ReportWire

Tag: Crime and Justice

  • ‘Squatty Potty’ Creator Indicted On Child Abuse Sex Material Charges

    [ad_1]

    The co-inventor of the Squatty Potty — once featured on the ABC hit show “Shark Tank” — faces charges of allegedly receiving sexually explicit images of a child, according to a Monday release from the Justice Department announcing an unsealed indictment against the business owner.

    Federal authorities arrested 50-year-old Robert Edwards of Ivins, Utah, earlier this month after a four-and-a-half year investigation showed that he allegedly and knowingly received multiple images of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), according to the DOJ release.

    Edwards first came to the feds’ attention back in March 2021, when an undercover FBI agent joined a group chat used to trade CSAM and noted that participants viewed abuse videos streaming on the chat’s main screen, the DOJ said. The agent noted that participants were visible during the meeting, including a man later identified as Edwards.

    In addition, FBI agents suspected last May that Edwards was purchasing CSAM via PayPal, which led them to execute a search warrant in November.

    During the search, agents seized a cell phone from Edwards’ vehicle that contained what the DOJ described as “multiple videos and images of child sexual abuse material, some of which downloaded onto the cell phone just two weeks before the search warrant was executed.”

    Authorities found additional CSAM files during the search of Edwards’s residence. He was arrested Feb. 12 and pleaded not guilty to a charge of receipt of child pornography.

    His next court date is Monday in St. George, Utah.

    HuffPost reached out to Edwards’s attorney, but no one immediately responded.

    Edwards is best known to “Shark Tank” fans as the co-creator of Squatty Potty, a stool that props up the legs to supposedly ease bowel movements.

    Edwards and his mom ― who is the co-inventor ― made a deal with Shark Lori Greiner in November 2014 that led to the product eventually achieving total lifetime retail sales exceeding $260 million.

    HuffPost reached out to Greiner, who reportedly owns 20% of Squatty Potty, for comment, but no one immediately responded.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • As he was about to go free, Missouri Supreme Court halts release of man with overturned conviction

    As he was about to go free, Missouri Supreme Court halts release of man with overturned conviction

    [ad_1]

    The Missouri Supreme Court halted the immediate release Wednesday of a man whose murder conviction was overturned — just as the man was about to walk free.A St. Louis Circuit Court judge had ordered Christopher Dunn, now 52, to be released by 6 p.m. CDT Wednesday and threatened the prison warden with contempt if Dunn remained imprisoned. But Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey has been fighting Dunn’s release.The situation was chaotic as the deadline set by the judge approached. Corrections Department spokesperson Karen Pojmann told The Associated Press that Dunn was out of the prison facility and waiting for a ride. His wife told the AP she was on his way to pick him up. Minutes later, Pojmann corrected herself and said that while Dunn was signing paperwork to be released, the Missouri Supreme Court issued a ruling that put his freedom on hold.St. Louis Circuit Judge Jason Sengheiser overturned Dunn’s murder conviction Monday, citing evidence of “actual innocence” in the 1990 killing. He ordered Dunn’s immediate release then, but Bailey appealed, and the state Department of Corrections declined to release Dunn.St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore had filed a motion Wednesday urging the judge to immediately order Dunn’s freedom.“The Attorney General cannot unilaterally decide to ignore this Court’s Order,” Gore wrote.An attorney for the Department of Corrections told a lawyer in Gore’s office that Bailey advised the agency not to release Dunn until the appeal plays out, according to a court filing. When told it was improper to ignore a court order, the Department of Corrections attorney “responded that the Attorney General’s Office is legal counsel to the DOC and the DOC would be following the advice of counsel.”Dunn’s attorney, Tricia Rojo Bushnell, the executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project, expressed her frustration.“What is this bringing to taxpayers in Missouri? What is this use of our resources and our state’s time getting us?” she said. “All it’s doing is keeping innocent people in prison.”Dunn’s wife said while driving to the prison that they were numb when he didn’t get out earlier this week.“If you know a little about the story, you know we’ve had a lot of disappointments where we thought we’d finally get his freedom and it was snatched away,” Kira Dunn said. “So we were just bracing ourselves.”Dunn’s situation is similar to what happened to Sandra Hemme.The 64-year-old woman spent 43 years in prison for the fatal stabbing of a woman in St. Joseph in 1980. A judge on June 14 cited evidence of “actual innocence” and overturned her conviction. She had been the longest held wrongly incarcerated woman known in the U.S., according to the National Innocence Project, which worked to free Hemme.Appeals by Bailey — all the way up to the Missouri Supreme Court — kept Hemme imprisoned at the Chillicothe Correctional Center. During a court hearing Friday, Judge Ryan Horsman said that if Hemme wasn’t released within hours, Bailey himself would have to appear in court with contempt of court on the table. Hemme was released later that day.The judge also scolded Bailey’s office for calling the warden and telling prison officials not to release Hemme after he ordered her to be freed on her own recognizance.Dunn, who is Black, was 18 in 1990 when 15-year-old Ricco Rogers was killed. Among the key evidence used to convict him of first-degree murder was testimony from two boys who were at the scene of the shooting. Both later recanted their testimony, saying they had been coerced by police and prosecutors.At an evidentiary hearing in 2020, another judge agreed that a jury would likely find Dunn not guilty based on new evidence. But that judge, William Hickle, declined to exonerate Dunn, citing a 2016 Missouri Supreme Court ruling that only death row inmates — not those like Dunn sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole — could make a “freestanding” claim of actual innocence.A 2021 law now allows prosecutors to seek court hearings in cases with new evidence of a wrongful conviction.Although Bailey’s office is not required to oppose such efforts, lawyers for his office said at the hearing that initial testimony from two boys at the scene who identified Dunn as the shooter was correct, even though they recanted as adults.He also raised opposition at a hearing for Lamar Johnson, who spent 28 years in prison for murder. Another St. Louis judge ruled in February 2023 that Johnson was wrongfully convicted, and he was freed.Another hearing begins Aug. 21 for death row inmate Marcellus Williams. Bailey’s office is opposing the challenge to Williams’ conviction, too. Timing is of the essence: Williams is scheduled to be executed Sept. 24.Steven Puro, professor emeritus of political science at St. Louis University, said Bailey is in a highly competitive race for the attorney general position with the primary quickly approaching on Aug. 6.“Bailey is trying to show that he is, quote, ‘tough on crime,’ which is a very important Republican conservative position,” he said. “Clearly, he’s angering members of the judicial system that he will have to argue before in the future. But he’s making the strategic notion that he needs to get his name before the voters and try to use that to win the primary election.”Michael Wolff, a former Missouri Supreme Court judge and chief justice, agreed, saying it seems this has become political for Bailey.“But one of the things is that no matter what your beliefs are, if a court orders something to happen, it’s not your purview to say no,” he said. “The court has to be obeyed.”___Hollingsworth reported from Mission, Kansas; Associated Press writer Summer Ballentine contributed from Columbia, Missouri.

    ST. LOUIS, Mo. (Video from: KSDK, KIRA DUNN, CNN via CNN Newsource) —

    The Missouri Supreme Court halted the immediate release Wednesday of a man whose murder conviction was overturned — just as the man was about to walk free.

    A St. Louis Circuit Court judge had ordered Christopher Dunn, now 52, to be released by 6 p.m. CDT Wednesday and threatened the prison warden with contempt if Dunn remained imprisoned. But Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey has been fighting Dunn’s release.

    The situation was chaotic as the deadline set by the judge approached. Corrections Department spokesperson Karen Pojmann told The Associated Press that Dunn was out of the prison facility and waiting for a ride. His wife told the AP she was on his way to pick him up. Minutes later, Pojmann corrected herself and said that while Dunn was signing paperwork to be released, the Missouri Supreme Court issued a ruling that put his freedom on hold.

    St. Louis Circuit Judge Jason Sengheiser overturned Dunn’s murder conviction Monday, citing evidence of “actual innocence” in the 1990 killing. He ordered Dunn’s immediate release then, but Bailey appealed, and the state Department of Corrections declined to release Dunn.

    St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore had filed a motion Wednesday urging the judge to immediately order Dunn’s freedom.

    “The Attorney General cannot unilaterally decide to ignore this Court’s Order,” Gore wrote.

    An attorney for the Department of Corrections told a lawyer in Gore’s office that Bailey advised the agency not to release Dunn until the appeal plays out, according to a court filing. When told it was improper to ignore a court order, the Department of Corrections attorney “responded that the Attorney General’s Office is legal counsel to the DOC and the DOC would be following the advice of counsel.”

    Dunn’s attorney, Tricia Rojo Bushnell, the executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project, expressed her frustration.

    “What is this bringing to taxpayers in Missouri? What is this use of our resources and our state’s time getting us?” she said. “All it’s doing is keeping innocent people in prison.”

    Dunn’s wife said while driving to the prison that they were numb when he didn’t get out earlier this week.

    “If you know a little about the story, you know we’ve had a lot of disappointments where we thought we’d finally get his freedom and it was snatched away,” Kira Dunn said. “So we were just bracing ourselves.”

    Dunn’s situation is similar to what happened to Sandra Hemme.

    The 64-year-old woman spent 43 years in prison for the fatal stabbing of a woman in St. Joseph in 1980. A judge on June 14 cited evidence of “actual innocence” and overturned her conviction. She had been the longest held wrongly incarcerated woman known in the U.S., according to the National Innocence Project, which worked to free Hemme.

    Appeals by Bailey — all the way up to the Missouri Supreme Court — kept Hemme imprisoned at the Chillicothe Correctional Center. During a court hearing Friday, Judge Ryan Horsman said that if Hemme wasn’t released within hours, Bailey himself would have to appear in court with contempt of court on the table. Hemme was released later that day.

    The judge also scolded Bailey’s office for calling the warden and telling prison officials not to release Hemme after he ordered her to be freed on her own recognizance.

    Dunn, who is Black, was 18 in 1990 when 15-year-old Ricco Rogers was killed. Among the key evidence used to convict him of first-degree murder was testimony from two boys who were at the scene of the shooting. Both later recanted their testimony, saying they had been coerced by police and prosecutors.

    At an evidentiary hearing in 2020, another judge agreed that a jury would likely find Dunn not guilty based on new evidence. But that judge, William Hickle, declined to exonerate Dunn, citing a 2016 Missouri Supreme Court ruling that only death row inmates — not those like Dunn sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole — could make a “freestanding” claim of actual innocence.

    A 2021 law now allows prosecutors to seek court hearings in cases with new evidence of a wrongful conviction.

    Although Bailey’s office is not required to oppose such efforts, lawyers for his office said at the hearing that initial testimony from two boys at the scene who identified Dunn as the shooter was correct, even though they recanted as adults.

    He also raised opposition at a hearing for Lamar Johnson, who spent 28 years in prison for murder. Another St. Louis judge ruled in February 2023 that Johnson was wrongfully convicted, and he was freed.

    Another hearing begins Aug. 21 for death row inmate Marcellus Williams. Bailey’s office is opposing the challenge to Williams’ conviction, too. Timing is of the essence: Williams is scheduled to be executed Sept. 24.

    Steven Puro, professor emeritus of political science at St. Louis University, said Bailey is in a highly competitive race for the attorney general position with the primary quickly approaching on Aug. 6.

    “Bailey is trying to show that he is, quote, ‘tough on crime,’ which is a very important Republican conservative position,” he said. “Clearly, he’s angering members of the judicial system that he will have to argue before in the future. But he’s making the strategic notion that he needs to get his name before the voters and try to use that to win the primary election.”

    Michael Wolff, a former Missouri Supreme Court judge and chief justice, agreed, saying it seems this has become political for Bailey.

    “But one of the things is that no matter what your beliefs are, if a court orders something to happen, it’s not your purview to say no,” he said. “The court has to be obeyed.”

    ___

    Hollingsworth reported from Mission, Kansas; Associated Press writer Summer Ballentine contributed from Columbia, Missouri.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Incept Technologies Unveils Groundbreaking Reputation Monitoring Service

    Incept Technologies Unveils Groundbreaking Reputation Monitoring Service

    [ad_1]

    Press Release
    •

    Jul 24, 2024

    Incept Technologies, parent company to RemoveMyMugshot.org, reveals industry-defining software for reputation monitoring and brand sentiment analysis.


    TAMPA, Fla., July 24, 2024 (Newswire.com)
    –
    Incept Technologies, the parent company of RemoveMyMugshot.org, is proud to announce the launch of its innovative Reputation Monitoring Service. This forward-thinking service is designed to react to threats by proactively identifying and alerting users to potential cyber threats before they can compromise individuals’ privacy. With a proven track record of removing harmful content from search results, RemoveMyMugshot.org’s new service offers an unparalleled solution for those arrested or suspected of a crime and businesses seeking to measure sentiment and monitor online chatter regarding their brand.

    In today’s digital age, the spread of damaging information online can be swift and relentless. Recognizing this, Incept Technologies has developed a sophisticated system to protect its clients from such vulnerabilities. Many times, arrests result from domestic misunderstandings, aggressive police stings coinciding with local sheriff election cycles, or violations of civil liberties. Notably, most first-time arrestees generally manage to avoid convictions on their original charges through dismissals, no-files, plea deals, or pre-trial diversion programs. However, even after the removal of arrest information, booking details can resurface in new or different publications, posing ongoing risks to individuals and businesses alike. This can create a secondary need to remove information from Google images and the subsequent search results.

    The Reputation Monitoring Service by Incept Technologies is a robust solution that mitigates these risks. By continuously scanning the digital landscape, this service ensures that harmful information is detected and addressed promptly, safeguarding clients from potential reputational damage. This proactive approach protects privacy and empowers individuals and businesses to maintain their integrity in the face of cyber threats.

    Media Contact:

    Sandy Meyers
    admin@removemymugshot.org
    401 E. Jackson St. Suite 3400
    Tampa, FL 33602
    (813) 421-8334
    https://removemymugshot.org

    ###

    For more information, visit RemoveMyMugshot.org to discover how Incept Technologies is leading the way in reputation management and data privacy.

    Source: Incept Technologies, LLC

    Related Media

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Oklahoma marijuana farm killings: Man gets life sentence – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Oklahoma marijuana farm killings: Man gets life sentence – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    [ad_1]

    A man was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to killing four workers at an Oklahoma marijuana farm in 2022.

    Chen Wu pleaded guilty at a court hearing to four counts of first-degree murder and to one count of assault and battery with a deadly weapon in connection with the November 2022 killings, according to court records.

    Prosecutors say Wu, also known as Wu Chen in jail records, fatally shot three men and a woman in a garage at the farm west of Hennessey, a town about 90 kilometres northwest of Oklahoma City.

    As part of a plea agreement, Wu was sentenced to life in prison without parole for each of the murder counts and given a 20-year prison term for the assault charge. He will serve his sentences concurrently.

    Wu, 47, was arrested in Florida two days after the shooting and was later extradited to Oklahoma.

    In court records, prosecutors had alleged Wu had demanded the return of his US$300,000 investment in the marijuana operation shortly before he shot the victims.

    Killed in the attack were Quirong Lin, Chen He Chun, Chen He Qiang and Fang Hui Lee, court documents show. A fifth person, Yi Fei Lin, was wounded. Authorities later charged Yi Fei Lin with a separate assault charge. That case remains pending.

    Authorities have said Wu and all of the victims were Chinese citizens and that the pot farm on a 10-acre (four-hectare) farm was operating under an illegally obtained license to grow marijuana for medical purposes.

    “This case should serve as a reminder of the…

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

    [ad_2]

    MMP News Author

    Source link

  • Youth who caused Wellington CBD building fire found – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Youth who caused Wellington CBD building fire found – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    [ad_1]

    One youth has been referred to youth services after they allegedly set fire to items inside a Central Wellington building that later burnt down, police say.

    Three others have also been referred to youth services, two weeks after the major inferno that gutted the vacant Toomaths Building on Ghuznee Street in the CBD.

    Detective Senior Sergeant Tim Leitch said officers had identified and located the four youths allegedly involved after previously appealing to the public for help.

    “Four youths aged between 13 and 14 from Wellington have spoken with police and are understood to have been in the building at the time the fire started,” he said.

    “All four will be referred to youth services for unlawfully being in the building.

    “One of the young people has also been referred for setting fire to items which subsequently caused the building fire.

    “Police are not able to provide any further comment at this time.”

    The third alarm fire broke out on the afternoon of October 15 and caused serious structural damage to the building after starting out on the third floor.

    Work to demolish the heritage building began earlier this week due to safety concerns.

    Earlier, police said it had received reports of three boys and one girl “jumping the fence at the rear of the building shortly before the fire.”

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

    [ad_2]

    MMP News Author

    Source link

  • Violent Crime Is Back Down To Pre-Pandemic Levels, FBI Report Says

    Violent Crime Is Back Down To Pre-Pandemic Levels, FBI Report Says

    [ad_1]

    ST. LOUIS (AP) — Violent crime across the U.S. decreased last year — dropping to about the same level as before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic — but property crimes rose substantially, according to data in the FBI‘s annual crime report released Monday.

    The report comes with an asterisk: Some law enforcement agencies failed to provide data. But a change in collection methods in compiling 2022 numbers helped, and the FBI said the new data represents 83.3% of all agencies covering 93.5% of the population. By contrast, last year’s numbers were from only 62.7% of agencies, representing 64.8% of Americans.

    Violent crime dropped 1.7%, and that included a 6.1% decrease in murder and non-negligent manslaughter. Rape decreased 5.4% and aggravated assault dropped 1.1%, but robbery increased 1.3%. Violent crime had also decreased slightly in 2021, a big turnaround from 2020, when the murder rate in the U.S. jumped 29% during the pandemic that created huge social disruption and upended support systems.

    The violent crime rate of 380.7 per 100,000 people was a tick better than 2019 — the year before the pandemic hit the U.S., when the rate was 380.8 per 100,000 people.

    Richard Rosenfeld, criminal justice professor emeritus at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said the drop in violence can be attributed largely to the fact that the “stresses and strains” associated with the pandemic have abated.

    “By and large what we’re seeing is simply a return to something approaching normal after the big changes associated with the pandemic,” Rosenfeld said.

    Despite the waning violence, property crimes jumped 7.1%, with motor vehicle thefts showing the biggest increase at 10.9%. The FBI said carjackings increased 8.1% from 2021, and the vast majority of carjackings involving an assailant with a weapon. Someone was injured in more than a quarter of all carjackings.

    Rachael Eisenberg, managing director of rights and justice for the Washington, D.C.-based Center for American Progress, said that while the FBI report looks at 2022 data, more recent statistics indicate that the drop in violent crime will continue through this year.

    In fact, the FBI findings are in line with a report released in July by the nonpartisan think tank the Council on Criminal Justice. That report using data from 37 surveyed cities found that murders dropped 9.4% in the first half of 2023 compared to the first half of 2022, but vehicle thefts rose a whopping 33.5%.

    Last year’s FBI report arrived with major caveats since nearly two-fifths of all policing agencies failed to participate, including big cities like New York, Los Angeles and Miami. That followed a major overhaul in the reporting system.

    For this year’s report, the FBI used data voluntarily collected from agencies using the newer National Incident-Based Reporting System, but also included data from agencies still using an older system, known as the Summary Reporting System. That accounted, in part, for the huge increase in participating agencies.

    The overhaul will eventually make crime data more modern and detailed, federal officials said, but the switchover can be complicated for police departments. While the increase in 2022 participation was due in part to inclusion of Summary Reporting System data, the FBI noted that an additional 1,499 agencies submitted data through NIBRS.

    This year’s report showed that while the the number of adult victims of fatal gun violence decreased 6.6%, the estimated number of juvenile victims rose 11.8%. Gun-safety advocates decry the loosening of gun laws, especially in conservative-leaning states around the U.S.

    Assaults on law enforcement officers rose 1.8% compared to 2021. An estimated 31,400 of the 102,100 assaults resulted in injuries in 2022, up 1.7% from the previous year.

    Violent crime overall remains far lower than the historic highs of the 1990s.

    While the direct impact has ebbed, Rosenfeld said the pandemic could still indirectly result in more crime. The pandemic prompted many firms to allow employees to work from home some or all of the time. Desolate city streets make crime more likely.

    “The more people in the street, the more people difficult it is for somebody to commit a crime because there are so many eyes on the street,” Rosenfeld said.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Tech CEO Found Dead In Baltimore Apartment With Blunt Force Trauma: Police

    Tech CEO Found Dead In Baltimore Apartment With Blunt Force Trauma: Police

    [ad_1]

    A homicide investigation is underway after a 26-year-old tech CEO was found dead inside of her Baltimore apartment with signs of blunt force trauma, authorities said.

    Pava LaPere, who co-founded the data-curating company EcoMap Technologies, was discovered by officers responding to a call for service around 11:30 a.m. Monday, Baltimore police said in a press release.

    A call about a missing person had been made “a short time prior,” police added without elaborating.

    The body of Pava LaPere, 26, was found with blunt force trauma in her apartment Monday.

    Pava Marie LaPere/Instagram

    Authorities declined to comment further when reached by HuffPost.

    EcoMap, in a statement posted to Facebook on Tuesday, called the circumstances surrounding her death “deeply distressing.”

    “We are devastated by this loss, and we pledge our unwavering support to the LaPere family as they navigate this heartbreaking period,” the post read. “Pava was not only the visionary force behind EcoMap but was also a deeply compassionate and dedicated leader.”

    LaPere appeared to have lived in the same building that EcoMap operates out of.

    Speaking to local station Fox45 News, a neighbor of LaPere’s said they hadn’t heard any suspicious noises from the apartment and that police had knocked on LaPere’s door in the early morning without a response.

    LaPere was featured on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list for social impact this year due to her startup company, which was said to have raised more than $4 million. Its clients include the Aspen Institute, Meta, the WXR Fund and the T. Rowe Price Foundation, according to Forbes.

    EcoMap says the company is composed of more than 30 employees, half of whom are women and people of color.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Jan. 6 Capitol Attacker Who Punched Cop And Took Riot Shield Gets Nearly 3 Years In Prison

    Jan. 6 Capitol Attacker Who Punched Cop And Took Riot Shield Gets Nearly 3 Years In Prison

    [ad_1]

    A New York man who punched a police officer and took a riot shield during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack was sentenced to nearly three years in prison Friday.

    Jonathan Munafo, 36, is set to serve 33 months behind bars with 36 months of supervised release after pleading guilty in April to two felony charges of assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers and civil disorder.

    The day of the attack, Munafo cheered along with other rioters as they attempted to breach the Capitol in Washington, according to the Department of Justice.

    “He used two different poles to strike the window of a Capitol office approximately 13 times,” the DOJ said in a press release. “Munafo often looked back at the crowd, shouting, chanting, and attempting to rile up the other rioters.”

    Later that afternoon, Munafo punched a member of the Metropolitan Police Department twice before grabbing with the officer’s shield.

    “The second punch from Munafo appears to have caused the officer’s head to snap back,” the press release said. “Munafo then took the officer’s riot shield and slunk away into the crowd, leaving the officer without a shield and vulnerable to attacks from other rioters.”

    Approximately 140 police officers were injured the day of the attack. Others later died by suicide.

    Munafo is among more than 1,100 people who have been charged for their roles in the riot.

    Several members of the violent neo-fascist gang the Proud Boys were recently sentenced to years in prison in connection with the attack. Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, the group’s former chairman, was given the longest sentence yet among all Jan. 6 cases when a judge slapped him with 22 years behind bars earlier this month.

    If you or someone you know needs help, call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org for mental health support. Additionally, you can find local mental health and crisis resources at dontcallthepolice.com. Outside of the U.S., please visit the International Association for Suicide Prevention.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Killer Who Escaped Pennsylvania Prison Spotted Nearby On Surveillance Cameras

    Killer Who Escaped Pennsylvania Prison Spotted Nearby On Surveillance Cameras

    [ad_1]

    WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) — A recently convicted murderer who’s been on the run for days after escaping a suburban Philadelphia prison was spotted shortly after midnight Saturday by residential security cameras in an area not far from the prison, authorities said.

    Authorities haven’t disclosed the circumstances of how Danelo Cavalcante, 34, managed to escape Thursday morning from Chester State Prison, and say the episode is under investigation. He was sentenced to life in prison last month for killing his ex-girlfriend in front of her children, and escaped while awaiting transfer to state prison.

    Cavalcante was seen on cameras at around 12:30 a.m. in Pocopson Township, roughly 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) from the prison, the Chester County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

    Local police also received a report of an attempted burglary at a home around 11:30 p.m. Friday, although it wasn’t immediately clear if Cavalcante was involved.

    The district attorney’s office said Cavalcante’s appearance has not changed since he fled — a white T-shirt, a backpack, curly black hair and a closely cropped beard and mustache. Authorities described him as 5 feet (1.5 meters) tall and 120 pounds (54 kilograms).

    A jury convicted Cavalcante of murdering Deborah Brandao in 2021. He is also wanted in his native Brazil in a separate slaying in 2017 and is considered an extremely dangerous person, authorities said.

    Prosecutors say he killed his girlfriend to stop her from telling police about the charges against him in Brazil. He was captured in Virginia after Brandao’s killing and authorities believe he was trying to return to his home country.

    Law enforcement officers have been using drones, helicopters and dogs to locate Cavalcante. Searchers were focusing on railways, waterways and routes out of the area. The prison is roughly 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of Philadelphia.

    Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan said Friday that authorities believe Cavalcante is trying to flee south, but also have no evidence that Cavalcante has left the area or that he is receiving assistance from others.

    Authorities said area residents should continue to scan video from their doorbells or surveillance cameras for anything suspicious and check their cars, sheds and any outbuildings. They also advised people to check the homes of vacationing neighbors and look out for missing cars, bicycles or any other mode of transportation Cavalcante could use to aid his flight.

    Robert Clark, supervisor of the U.S. Marshals fugitive task force in Philadelphia, said the Brazilian consulate was advised of Cavalcante’s escape.

    It’s not the first time an inmate was able to escape from a Pennsylvania lockup this year.

    A homicide suspect was on the run for over a week after fleeing the Warren County jail on July 6 by climbing on exercise equipment, going through a window and scaling down a rope fashioned from jail bedding. He was caught looking dirty, wet and “worn out” from living in the wilderness to evade arrest, authorities said.

    On May 7, two inmates escaped from the Philadelphia Industrial Correction Center by cutting a hole in a fence surrounding a recreation yard, and were gone for nearly 19 hours before officials knew they were missing. Both we captured the next week.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Homicide investigation after ‘sudden death’ in Auckland CBD – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Homicide investigation after ‘sudden death’ in Auckland CBD – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    [ad_1]

    A homicide investigation has been launched, and two people are in custody after a “sudden death” in central Auckland this afternoon.

    Police were called to a residential address on Upper Queen Street at around 1.13pm, following reports of a person with injuries.

    The person was rushed to Auckland Hospital but died shortly after.

    Police said: “Two people are currently assisting Police with enquiries as we work to determine the circumstances of the death.”

    A scene guard is currently in place, and police have started a scene investigation.

    Speaking to media this afternoon, Detective Inspector Scott Beard said no possible weapons have been found and no motive has been identified, although the investigation was still in its infancy.

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

    [ad_2]

    MMP News Author

    Source link

  • Auckland CBD gunman died of self-inflicted wounds – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Auckland CBD gunman died of self-inflicted wounds – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    [ad_1]

    The gunman who killed two people during a shooting at a construction site in Auckland’s CBD died of self-inflicted wounds, police said.

    Three people were killed, including the gunman, following a shooting at the construction site of the 1 Queen St building about 7.20am on Thursday.

    The men who died were yesterday named as Solomona Tootoo, 45, of Manurewa and Tupuga Sipiliano, 44, of Wattle Downs.

    It comes as police today completed a forensic examination of the downtown building site.

    “Preparation work will now get underway to ensure the site can be handed back to the construction company,” Detective Superintendent Ross McKay said.

    “At this stage, police anticipates this will likely be towards the end of the week.

    “Post-mortem examinations have been completed on all three people who died, including the offender.”

    McKay also confirmed today that the shooter was 24-year-old Matu Reid of Flat Bush.

    He said a post-mortem examination showed he was hit with gunfire from police, but died of self-inflicted wounds.

    The police investigation will continue alongside a critical incident investigation and a coordinated learning review, he said.

    The Independent Police Conduct Authority is also investigating.

    Meanwhile, four people remain in hospital today, including a police officer.

    Three workers are in stable condition “and are continuing to recover well from their ordeal”, McKay said.

    “The police officer injured is also continuing to make progress in hospital, however will have a long road to…

    [ad_2]

    MMP News Author

    Source link

  • Family Whose Church Promoted Bleach As COVID Cure Found Guilty Of Federal Crimes

    Family Whose Church Promoted Bleach As COVID Cure Found Guilty Of Federal Crimes

    [ad_1]

    Members of a Florida family who for years touted an industrial bleach mixture as a miracle cure for a variety of health conditions, including COVID-19, were found guilty of federal crimes Wednesday in Miami.

    Mark Grenon, 65, and sons Jonathan, 37, Joseph, 35, and Jordan, 29, were convicted of conspiring to defraud the United States and deliver misbranded drugs after their church, the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, sold $1 million worth of their so-called Miracle Mineral Solution, or MMS, according to court records.

    The Grenons, who represented themselves and declined to speak or make opening statements during their two-day trial, were hit with the verdict after a jury deliberated for about 30 minutes, the Miami Herald reported.

    A Colombian police officer and soldier stand with Mark and Joseph Grenon on Aug. 11, 2020.

    Fiscalía General de Colombia vía AP

    According to court documents, the Grenons operated their organization online, calling it “a non-religious church” focused on health and healing. Their website included news and testimonials that claimed the Miracle Mineral Solution could cure everything from Alzheimer’s disease to autism.

    The solution is actually chlorine dioxide, a powerful bleach often used in industrial water treatment or for stripping textiles and paper, federal authorities said.

    The Grenons had created their church with a man named Jim Humble, who claims on his website that he discovered MMS in 1996 during a gold mining expedition in South America. The site describes it as “a simple health formula that cured malaria.”

    Humble writes that he’d been interested in health and medicine since managing a Los Angeles health food store, and he also claims to have been a research engineer in the aerospace industry.

    “Over the years Jim has maintained his interest in alternative health, and worked with numerous healing modalities including healing his own broken neck in record time using magnets,” his website says.

    Humble retired from the church in 2017. He did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for a comment.

    In a 2014 interview posted online, Mark Grenon spoke about forming the church with Humble. The self-appointed archbishop detailed how he promoted MMS with pseudoscience and conspiracy theories, claiming that modern diseases were not only human-made but “planned.”

    “You go back a 150 years ago, they didn’t have all these diseases that are, I believe, man-made by industrial toxins, by chemical, by medicine, by processed foods,” Grenon said. “I’ll go as far to say it was planned to control mankind like this.”

    In 2019, the Food and Drug Administration issued a warning to the public about the Miracle Mineral Solution.

    “The FDA has received reports of consumers who have suffered from severe vomiting, severe diarrhea, life-threatening low blood pressure caused by dehydration, and acute liver failure after drinking these products,” the agency said.

    In April 2020, federal authorities announced that they were halting the sale of MMS, calling the product “unapproved, unproven, and potentially dangerous.”

    In a video posted to his YouTube channel on July 4 of that year Jonathan Grenon continued to promote MMS for healing illnesses and infections. Less than a week later, he, his father and his two brothers were charged for violating court orders to stop distributing the product.

    After they were charged, federal authorities said they searched Jonathan Grenon’s home and found materials to manufacture MMS in his shed.

    According to the Justice Department, officers seized a number of blue chemical drums containing nearly 10,000 pounds of sodium chlorite powder, thousands of bottles of MMS, and multiple loaded firearms, including a pump-action shotgun concealed in a custom-made violin case.

    At the time, U.S. authorities only took Jonathan and Jordan Grenon into custody since Mark and Joseph Grenon were in Colombia, where they were accused of building a medical misinformation movement that garnered the support of politicians, army officers and celebrities.

    Mark and Joseph Grenon were eventually extradited to the U.S. in 2022 following their August 2020 arrest in Colombia, with officials there saying that they sold MMS locally and arranged shipments to Europe and Africa.

    The global impact of the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing only increased as the coronavirus pandemic raged. In Bolivia, officials said in 2020 that people could consume chlorine dioxide to treat COVID-19. And in Mexico, celebrity Verónica del Castillo said on Instagram that she used the substance to protect herself from the disease.

    The Grenons are scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 6, according to court records.

    Despite the Grenons’ arrest and trial, followers of their church continue to promote the bleach solution on a site formerly known as MMS Forum but now called The Chlorine Dioxide Forum.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • ‘I’m A Big Flirt’: Kevin Spacey Denies Sexual Assault Allegations At Trial

    ‘I’m A Big Flirt’: Kevin Spacey Denies Sexual Assault Allegations At Trial

    [ad_1]

    LONDON (AP) — Kevin Spacey took a dramatic pause in his testimony Thursday and appeared to almost choke up as he recalled the “intimate” and “somewhat sexual” friendship he shared with a man now accusing the actor of violently groping him. He said he was “crushed” when he learned of the allegations.

    “I never thought that (the man) I knew would … 20 years later stab me in the back,” Spacey testified in his own defense in his sexual assault trial in what could be the most consequential speaking part of his life.

    Spacey spoke in a calm voice and earnest demeanor — humorous, humble and self-deprecating at times — as he breezed over his career and then fast-forwarded to the early 2000s when he was in London working at the Old Vic Theatre.

    Four men have accused the two-time Oscar winner of sexually assaulting them between 2001 and 2013, describing disturbing encounters that escalated from unwanted touching to aggressive crotch grabbing. One man who called Spacey a “vile sexual predator” said he passed out or fell asleep at the actor’s London flat and woke up to find the actor performing oral sex on him.

    Prosecutor Christine Agnew has called Spacey a “sexual bully” who “delights in making others feel powerless and uncomfortable.”

    Spacey, 63, has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges that include sexual and indecent assault counts and one count of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.

    One of his accusers said Spacey on several occasions over the years had touched his inner thigh, buttocks and crotch in unwelcome ways that made him uncomfortable.

    The fondling culminated when the man was once driving Spacey and the actor grabbed his crotch so violently he almost ran off the road, the man had testified.

    The alleged victim told police he warned Spacey to never do it again and threatened to knock him out.

    “That never happened,” Spacey testified. “I was not on a suicide mission in any of those years.”

    He described the relationship much differently, appearing wistful as he looked at a photo the man sent him from a mountainous trek he took to raise money for charity.

    Spacey said the man was funny and charming and recalled their flirtatious time together, saying he probably took the lead in making physical contact: “I’m a big flirt.”

    Kevin Spacey leaves after giving evidence at his sexual assault trial at Southwark Crown Court on Thursday in London.

    Dan Kitwood via Getty Images

    Slowly, the two men began touching each other, Spacey said, but it never went much further, because the man made it clear he didn’t want that.

    “He said things like, ‘This is new for me,’ so I think he may have been surprised by his reaction,” Spacey said. “The only thing he made clear was he didn’t want to go further than we were going and I respected that.”

    Spacey’s description of gentle stroking was in direct contradiction to what the alleged victims testified about. They said he caught them by surprise when he aggressively grabbed their privates through their clothing.

    “It wasn’t like a caress,” one man testified. “It was like a cobra coming out and getting hold.”

    Spacey called that man’s account “madness” and said it never happened. He also denied he made racially offensive remarks to the man during a rehearsal for a charity theater event.

    Spacey poked a hole in the driver’s story by calling the timing of the account into question. The man testified he was grabbed while driving Spacey in 2004 or 2005 to an annual gala that Elton John holds.

    Spacey presented work schedules and itineraries that showed he was filming far away — once in Australia — those years. He said he only attended the event in 2001.

    The man said he could have had the dates wrong, but that he remembered the groping incident being the last straw. He said he stopped spending time around him after that incident.

    Spacey testified that the man still has photos of the two of them together posted on social media.

    Spacey began his testimony revisiting his start in theater and transition to the big screen, career, joking that his mother would say that he began acting the moment he emerged from the womb.

    The American actor was one of the biggest stars of the silver and small screens when sexual misconduct accusations brought his career to a halt. If convicted, he could face a prison term that would doom his hopes of a comeback.

    Spacey told German magazine Zeit in an article published last month: “There are people right now who are ready to hire me the moment I am cleared of these charges in London.”

    Spacey, who owns homes in London and the U.S., is free on unconditional bail.

    Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Hostage Freed After Hourslong Standoff At Las Vegas Strip Hotel Room, Police Say

    Hostage Freed After Hourslong Standoff At Las Vegas Strip Hotel Room, Police Say

    [ad_1]

    LAS VEGAS (AP) — A man was arrested and a woman described as his hostage was released unharmed Tuesday after an hourslong standoff in a room at the Caesars Palace resort on the Las Vegas Strip, police said.

    No injuries were reported and police did not immediately say if the man in custody had been armed in a high-rise tower of the iconic Las Vegas Boulevard property. Furniture, cushions and other objects fell from a 21st floor window, frightening guests in a swimming pool area below.

    “The suspect has been taken into custody. The female is currently with officers,” the department said in messages posted mid-afternoon Tuesday. Officer Aden OcampoGomez said the woman did not appear to be injured.

    Las Vegas police Capt. Stephen Connell said the standoff began about 9:15 a.m. with a report from hotel security that a man and woman were arguing and that the man pulled the woman into a room “by force.”

    Police SWAT officers secured the hallway outside the room, although Connell said it was not immediately clear if the man was armed.

    Connell told reporters during the standoff that the woman believed to be held hostage “has been heard from,” and was believed to be “still OK.”

    A person looks out a broken window on a hotel tower at Caesars Palace hotel-casino, Tuesday, July 11, 2023, in Las Vegas.

    Outside, guests heard glass break and saw curtains billow from a broken window about two-thirds up the 29-story Palace Tower, one of six towers at Caesars Palace, an iconic and historic centerpiece of the Las Vegas Stri. The hotel has nearly 4,000 rooms.

    Emma Snyder, 24, said she was near a resort swimming pool on her first day of vacation from Appleton, Wisconsin, when she heard several loud bangs and saw falling glass. She said it looked like sparkles.

    “People were just staring up and looking,” she said.

    Beverly Blackwell, 56, of Chattanooga, Tennessee, was lounging by a pool with her husband, Chris, when she heard glass break and saw curtains flutter from the broken window.

    “When we saw the window shatter it was kind of a surreal feeling, it got pretty scary,” Blackwell said. “We were told to gather our stuff and rush out the back.”

    Both Snyder and Blackwell told The Associated Press they thought there might be a shooter or attack. Staff yelled for guests to evacuate the pool area.

    Snyder said some people hid by a staircase while items flew out the window: a coffee maker, a hair dryer, a desk bureau.

    Blackwell said that after 30 minutes, people were told they could return to their rooms.

    Broken glass and furniture fell intermittently for about an hour, said Associated Press writer John Marshall, who was on vacation with his family in a room on the fifth floor of the Palace Tower.

    “It looks like he’s pretty much emptied the room of furniture,” Marshall said of the man police said was barricaded upstairs. Marshall saw seat cushions, a chair and other items hit a ledge outside the window of his room, and said some fell to the pool area after it had been evacuated.

    Hotel employees told Marshall and his family that the incident was on the 21st floor and that guests on other floors were not evacuated or restricted from movements.

    “In the casino, it’s business as usual,” Marshall said, although hotel security officers and police were visible in the guest valet area.

    OcampoGomez, a Las Vegas police spokesman, said there were no immediate reports of injuries to anyone in the pool area.

    Marshall said he and his family had no initial word from the hotel about what was happening but said they remained in their room as a precaution. Hotel housekeeping staff members were still working in nearby rooms, he said.

    Hotel representatives did not immediately respond to telephone and email messages from AP seeking comment.

    Dupuy reported from New York.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • What Happened To Natalee Holloway? Federal Case Begins For Joran Van Der Sloot.

    What Happened To Natalee Holloway? Federal Case Begins For Joran Van Der Sloot.

    [ad_1]

    More than 18 years have passed since18-year-old Natalee Holloway disappeared during her senior class trip in Aruba, but her family is hopeful they may finally find answers to what happened to their daughter.

    Joran van der Sloot, a longtime suspect in the Alabama teenager’s 2005 disappearance, is now facing charges of extortion and fraud after allegedly plotting to sell information about the location of Holloway’s remains. After spending years behind bars in Peru for the murder of another woman, van der Sloot was extradited to the U.S. on Thursday.

    He appeared in a federal courthouse in Alabama on Friday and pleaded not guilty. His attorney did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.

    Though the current case does not charge van der Sloot with Holloway’s disappearance, her family remains hopeful that the judicial process will bring them answers.

    “These particular charges do not involve me directly, but I am trusting that this prosecution will lead us to the truth about Natalee. I remain thankful for everything done by the U.S. Attorney’s office, the FBI, and the U.S. Marshal’s office here in Birmingham,” Holloway’s father, Dave Holloway, said in a statement to HuffPost on Friday. “We are also deeply appreciative for the support of people all over the world who share [a] common belief that good must always prevail over evil.”

    Who was Natalee Holloway?

    Beth Holloway, Natalee Holloway’s mother, participates in the launch of the Natalee Holloway Resource Center on June 8, 2010, in Washington, D.C. The nonprofit resource center was founded by Holloway and the National Museum of Crime & Punishment to assist families of missing persons.

    Holloway was 18 years old and graduating from Mountain Brook High School in Birmingham, Alabama, when she disappeared during a senior class trip to Aruba. She was last seen getting inside a silver Honda at around 1:30 a.m. after the students’ last night out on May 30, 2005, according to the FBI.

    In a two-part interview with Oxygen in 2017, Jessica Caiola, a classmate and friend, described Holloway as a “beautiful person” who was kind and generous. Caiola was one of the last to see both van der Sloot and Holloway before Holloway disappeared.

    Caiola said she remembered first seeing van der Sloot in the hotel’s casino two days before Holloway’s disappearance and again at the bar the night she disappeared.

    Caiola said the group of friends left the bar to go grab street food, and as they were waiting for a shuttle, she remembered seeing Holloway inside a silver car, which had its windows rolled down, as it drove off.

    “My impression was, ‘Oh great, she found a ride back to the hotel,’” Caiola said.

    Holloway never made it back to the hotel, and her friends did not realize until the next morning that she had disappeared.

    Her body has never been found, and authorities declared her legally dead in 2012.

    Who is Joran van der Sloot, and why was he a suspect?

    Joran van der Sloot, then 18, enters his family's car as his mother Anita closes the door after he was conditionally released from jail in San Nicolas, Aruba, on Sept. 3, 2005.
    Joran van der Sloot, then 18, enters his family’s car as his mother Anita closes the door after he was conditionally released from jail in San Nicolas, Aruba, on Sept. 3, 2005.

    Three people were in the car with Holloway when she was last seen: Van der Sloot and brothers Satish and Depak Kalpoe, who were all teens at the time.

    They told police officers that they had visited a beach with Holloway that day before taking her back to her hotel, CNN reports.

    Van der Sloot and the brothers were arrested days later, on June 9, 2005, in connection with her disappearance.

    Paul van der Sloot, a judge in Aruba and van der Sloot’s father, was arrested shortly after on suspicion of involvement in Holloway’s disappearance. He was released three days later.

    Van der Sloot and the Kalpoe brothers were released on Sept. 3, 2005, but at that time, they remained under investigation. Van der Sloot soon left the Caribbean island but was required to remain in Dutch territory under the terms of his release.

    What happened after he was released?

    Joran van der Sloot, then 20, takes a walk to the local supermarket near his parents' home in Oranjestad, Aruba, just after he was released from detention again in 2007.
    Joran van der Sloot, then 20, takes a walk to the local supermarket near his parents’ home in Oranjestad, Aruba, just after he was released from detention again in 2007.

    Raul Henriquez/AFP via Getty Images

    Upon his 2005 release, van der Sloot made multiple media appearances in an attempt to clear his name and even authored his own autobiographical account of Holloway’s disappearance in Dutch.

    In a 2006 interview with ABC News’ Chris Cuomo, he gave his version of what happened the night of Holloway’s disappearance, proclaiming his innocence and arguing that U.S. media had painted him “unfairly” as a “murderer and a rapist.”

    “In Aruba, that was part of my lifestyle … going out, being single and picking up girls,” he said. “Going out with them, having a good time and then saying goodbye.”

    Van der Sloot and the Kalpoe brothers were arrested again on Nov. 21, 2007, after investigators said they had new evidence, but they were released the next month. The case was dropped on Dec 18, 2007, according to CNN.

    In 2008, prosecutors in Aruba said that van der Sloot had been secretly taped describing how, on the day of her disappearance, Holloway began to shake and slumped over as if she was having a seizure as the two were kissing on the beach. Although Aruban prosecutors said the taped confession was admissible in court, it was insufficient to warrant an arrest.

    Van der Sloot moved to Thailand that same year.

    What charges were filed against van der Sloot in the U.S.?

    Between March and May 2010, van der Sloot contacted Holloway’s mother through her lawyer and demanded $250,000 in exchange for information he said he could provide about where Holloway was buried, according to a federal indictment at the time.

    According to the indictment, Holloway’s mother eventually paid him $25,000 for the information, with promises to pay the rest after Holloway’s remains were found. But the information van der Sloot provided proved to be false, and the FBI launched an investigation.

    A grand jury indicted van der Sloot in July 2010 on charges of extortion and wire fraud, but he was not immediately arrested because he had just been arrested in a separate case in South America.

    What happened in South America?

    A man holds posters of Joran van der Sloot and Stephany Flores in Lima on Jan. 13, 2012. Van der Sloot was sentenced to 28 years in prison by a Peruvian court after he confessed to killing Flores in Lima in 2010.
    A man holds posters of Joran van der Sloot and Stephany Flores in Lima on Jan. 13, 2012. Van der Sloot was sentenced to 28 years in prison by a Peruvian court after he confessed to killing Flores in Lima in 2010.

    Five years after Holloway disappeared, van der Sloot, now 22 years old, was accused of killing a 21-year-old Peruvian woman by luring her to his hotel room in Lima and beating her to death, according to Interpol.

    Van der Sloot was arrested on June 3, 2010, in Chile in connection with the death of Stephany Flores Ramirez, the daughter of well-known businessman and car racer Ricardo Flores. Hotel staff in Lima found her body on June 2, 2010, and van der Sloot was extradited to Peru.

    In a signed confession translated by The Associated Press, van der Sloot said that he and Flores had gone back to his hotel room to play poker on his laptop around 5:30 a.m. on May 30, 2010, exactly five years after Holloway had disappeared. Van der Sloot claimed in the confession that Flores had seen an email to him containing a death threat, and that he told her he had been a suspect in Holloway’s case. He said she then hit him, and he elbowed her in the nose. According to the document, he then strangled her.

    Van der Sloot pleaded guilty to Flores’ murder almost two years later on Jan 11, 2012, and was sentenced to 28 years in prison and required to pay $75,000 to the Flores family.

    Where are we today?

    Joran van der Sloot is transferred in a police car in Lima on June 8, 2023.
    Joran van der Sloot is transferred in a police car in Lima on June 8, 2023.

    ERNESTO BENAVIDES/AFP via Getty Images

    In 2021, van der Sloot faced an additional 18-year sentence after he was accused of smuggling cocaine into prison, the Netherlands Times reported.

    He was initially set to be extradited to the U.S. after he finished his sentence in Peru, but Peruvian officials agreed in May to temporarily transfer him earlier, the AP reported.

    Van der Sloot arrived in the U.S. surrounded by federal agents on Thursday.

    In a statement following van der Sloot’s not-guilty plea on Friday, John Q. Kelly, the attorney representing Beth Holloway since her daughter’s disappearance, said Holloway’s family is “thrilled” that the arraignment took place, calling it a step closer to holding him accountable for his role in the case.

    “For nearly two decades, Beth has tirelessly sought answers and fought for justice for her beloved daughter,” the statement said. “The journey has been emotionally and legally arduous, filled with countless obstacles, but Beth’s determination has never wavered. Today, she finds solace in the fact that the wheels of justice are finally turning and that van der Sloot will have to atone for his crimes on U.S. soil.”

    Subscribe to our true crime newsletter, Suspicious Circumstances, to get the biggest unsolved mysteries, white-collar scandals and captivating cases delivered straight to your inbox every week. Sign up here.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Man fleeced of $1800 in Melbourne CBD magic trick scam – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Man fleeced of $1800 in Melbourne CBD magic trick scam – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    [ad_1]

    A cognitively impaired man has been fleeced of more than NZ$1800 in a magic trick scam in Melbourne’s CBD, with police appealing for information from the public to catch the offenders.

    Police say the 33-year-old victim was duped into handing over the cash to two men on April 23 after he was approached on Little Bourke Street.

    The first man allegedly told him he had good fortune before performing a trick and demanding payment for the performance.

    The victim allegedly handed over all the cash he had on him to the suspect before he was ordered to withdraw more money from a nearby bank.

    A second man then approached the victim and repeated the same trick before also demanding he withdraw cash from an ATM for payment.

    After a 30-minute discussion between the three men, the victim handed over more than $1800 cash in total.

    The first man is believed to be between 50 and 60 years old and the second man around 30 to 40 years old.

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

    [ad_2]

    MMP News Author

    Source link

  • Man Charged With Murder Of New Jersey Councilwoman Had Attended Her Church

    Man Charged With Murder Of New Jersey Councilwoman Had Attended Her Church

    [ad_1]

    A 28-year-old Virginia man was arrested on suspicion of murder more than three months after a New Jersey councilwoman was found fatally shot outside her home.

    Middlesex County, New Jersey, prosecutors announced the arrest of Rashid Ali Bynum on charges of first-degree murder, second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun and second-degree possession of a handgun for an unlawful purpose in connection to the death of Eunice Dwumfour, who served on the Sayreville town council. The 30-year-old’s body was found in her car on Feb. 1, and for months, her family and the community sought answers in her killing.

    Sayreville business administrator Glenn Skarzynski told CBS News in April that the community was “anxious” and “frustrated” that her killer had not been caught at the time.

    “We are frustrated as well, but we are confident that our law enforcement partners will identify a suspect and bring justice for Eunice and for the community,” Skarzynski told CBS.

    This undated photo provided by the Sayreville, New Jersey, Borough Council shows Councilwoman Eunice Dwumfour, who was found shot to death in February.

    When prosecutors announced the arrest and charges on Tuesday, they did not offer a possible motive for the councilwoman’s death. John Wisniewski, the attorney representing the Dwumfour family, said family members who attended the press conference did not recognize Bynum, local outlet My Central Jersey reported.

    “For the family, there are as many questions now as to why did he target Eunice, what was the motivation behind him targeting Eunice, and those are all unanswered,” Wisniewski told the outlet.

    “This was a very complex, extensive case with painstaking police work every single moment until today, and it will continue after today,” Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said at a Tuesday press conference.

    Bynum and Dwumfour had attended the same church, but authorities did not provide details about their connection or how often they spoke. Ciccone said Bynum was a contact in Dwumfour’s phone under the name FCF, which is believed to be an acronym for the Fire Congress Fellowship, an affiliated church of the Champion Royal Assembly. Dwumfour served as a pastor and treasurer, according to public records.

    According to Ciccone, Bynum matched a witness’s description of the suspect, and phone records revealed that he allegedly traveled from Virginia to New Jersey at the time of the shooting.

    Ciccone said that Bynum’s online search history in the days before the killing revealed that he was looking for what magazines were compatible with a specific handgun. On the day of her death, Ciccone said, Bynum was searching for more information on the Champion Royal Assembly church and the Sayreville area.

    Dwumfour left behind her husband and 12-year-old daughter, who was home on the day of her murder. The girl told CBS in April that she tried calling her mother’s phone before her death.

    “We were waiting for my mom to look for a parking space, and then she was taking a lot of time, so we started calling her over and over again, but it wouldn’t pick up. And then we heard gunshots, and we started calling the police,” she said.

    Dwumfour ran as a Republican candidate and was elected to the Sayreville Borough Council in 2021. In an interview with TAPinto, Dwumfour described her background working with software companies and nonprofits, as well as her work as an EMT while she was in college. She was also a member of the borough’s Human Relations Commission.

    Bynum, who was arrested Chesapeake City, Virginia, will be extradited to New Jersey, where he will be held at the Middlesex County jail ahead of a pretrial detention hearing, a spokesperson for the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office told HuffPost.

    Subscribe to our true crime newsletter, Suspicious Circumstances, to get the biggest unsolved mysteries, white collar scandals, and captivating cases delivered straight to your inbox every week. Sign up here.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Police foot patrols up 220% in Auckland CBD as crime levels soar – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Police foot patrols up 220% in Auckland CBD as crime levels soar – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    [ad_1]

    Police have increased foot patrols in Auckland’s CBD by 220%, but retailers say they are still dealing with an unbearable amount of crime.

    One barber, Rafat Zain, who has been operating in a store next to the Sky Tower for more than a decade, told 1News a close friend was recently bashed in the back of the head just up the road.

    “One of the people on the road attacked him with no reason,” he said.

    He had to spend two days in the hospital.

    “The number of crimes [occurring] is increasing,” he said.

    “This is happening every day.”

    PJ helps run the Coffee Club next door. They recently had someone wander into their storeroom and help themselves.

    No one has been caught.

    “People do drugs and crime can happen here.”

    Auckland’s deputy mayor, Desley Simpson, described the state of crime in Auckland as “absolutely awful”.

    Inspector Grae Anderson is responsible for central city policing. As a response to crime concerns in the CBD, police set up a base right in the middle of the city.

    Anderson said there had been more than 11,000 foot patrols in the CBD this year – a 220% increase on this time last year.

    “It’s always alarming to see the violence that people choose to employ in such a brazen fashion,” he told 1News.

    “I think it’s fair to say there’s been an increase in offending across the board.

    “Predominantly in the city it’s alcohol related, mental health related, and all of those are competing demands for us.”

    Everyone 1News spoke to for this story said they…

    [ad_2]

    MMP News Author

    Source link

  • Children’s Book Writer Accused Of Poisoning Husband Allegedly Took Out $2 Million In Life Insurance

    Children’s Book Writer Accused Of Poisoning Husband Allegedly Took Out $2 Million In Life Insurance

    [ad_1]

    A Utah mother accused of killing her husband, and then authoring a children’s book about grieving, took out millions of dollars in life insurance on him years before his death, prosecutors alleged.

    According to updated charging documents obtained by The Associated Press, prosecutors said that Kouri Richins bought four life insurance policies on behalf of her husband, Eric Richins, without his knowledge from 2015 to 2017, including benefits totaling nearly $2 million.

    The woman, age 33, is accused of poisoning her 39-year-old husband in March 2022 by lacing a Moscow mule cocktail with a lethal dose of fentanyl. She reportedly told investigators that she had found her husband unresponsive in the middle of the night, and earlier this month, she was charged with murder.

    A statement of probable cause alleged that Kouri Richins had made previous attempts to poison her husband. He once became ill after she made him a drink while on vacation in Greece, it said, and he also became sick after eating a sandwich she made on Valentine’s Day last year.

    According to court documents, investigators found messages that Kouri Richins sent to an acquaintance about obtaining drugs including fentanyl and “some of the Michael Jackson stuff,” presumably referring to the anesthetic propofol. Prosecutors allege that these substances were used in the attempts to kill her husband.

    Before his death, Eric Richins reportedly planned to divorce his wife and changed his will to benefit a sibling rather than her. Three months before his death, however, Kouri Richins made herself the sole beneficiary, according to local news outlet KPCW.

    Kouri Richins is pictured in Park City, Utah, on April 12.

    According to the AP, Eric Richins met with a divorce attorney and estate planner to cut his wife out of his will in October 2020 after learning about financial moves that Kouri Richins had made without his knowledge.

    These allegedly included her taking out a $250,000 home equity line of credit, withdrawing $100,000 from his bank account, spending more than $30,000 on his credit cards, and stealing $134,000 from his business.

    Greg Skordas, a spokesperson for Eric Richins’ family, told CBS affiliate KUTV that despite his suspicions that his wife tried to poison him, the man likely wanted to preserve the relationship for his children.

    “It appears Eric may have stayed in a relationship that wasn’t good because he loved his boys, and wanted to keep the family relationship together,” Skordas told KUTV. “Maybe he was hopeful things would change, but his number one concern was for his boys.”

    After her husband’s death, the widowed mother of three self-published a children’s book about grieving the loss of a loved one. “Are You With Me?” follows the story of a child whose late father continues to watch over them after his death.

    In an interview with local station ABC4 in April, Kouri Richins said she and her children began writing as a way to navigate life following Eric Richins’ death.

    The new allegations in the updated charging documents have led her detention hearing to be rescheduled. She is next expected in court on June 12.

    Subscribe to our true crime newsletter, Suspicious Circumstances, to get the biggest unsolved mysteries, white collar scandals and more delivered straight to your inbox every week. Sign up here.

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Man critically injured after ‘serious’ assault in Auckland CBD – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    Man critically injured after ‘serious’ assault in Auckland CBD – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

    [ad_1]

    A man has been critically injured following a “serious” early morning assault in the Auckland CBD.

    Emergency services were called to a home on Karangahape Rd about 4am following a report a man had been seriously injured, police said.

    He was taken to hospital in critical condition.

    Inquiries into the circumstances of the incident are ongoing.

    Original Author Link click here to read complete story..

    [ad_2]

    MMP News Author

    Source link