Archive
Off-duty Dallas officer shoots, kills shoplifter www.privateofficer.com
Off-duty Dallas officer shoots, kills shoplifter http://www.privateofficer.com
An off-duty Dallas police officer working security at a Wal-Mart shot and killed an armed shoplifter Friday morning, police said.
Officials said the off-duty officer, identified as officer David L. Yzaguirre, was in uniform and working security at the store on Wheatland Road at the time of the incident. According to police, at about 9 a.m. the officer and a store security officer confronted a shoplifting suspect who then became aggressive.
The man, police have identified as Dale Mitchell Lemoine, 53, armed with a box cutter, lunged at the officer cutting him on the arm and stomach. The officer then shot the man in the chest.
The officer was transported to an area hospital for treatment and was later released. The shoplifting suspect was transported to Methodist Hospital in Dallas in critical condition where he later died.
Police have not said what the man was attempting to steal.
Mr. Lemoine, who was from California, died at Methodist Dallas Medical Center. Officer Yzaguirre was treated and released.
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
Man pleads guilty in thefts, credit card fraud www.privateofficer.com
Man pleads guilty to thefts, credit card fraud http://www.privateofficer.com
A Mabton man arrested for going on a shopping spree with a Gig Harbor man’s stolen credit information claims he committed the crimes to support his methamphetamine addiction.
Rolando Gabriel Gutierrez, 34, pleaded innocent to second-degree identity theft and possession of methamphetamine. He faces a July 21 trial date.
Prosecutors allege Gutierrez used Gary Lester’s credit card numbers to buy goods and services at 18 Tri-City merchants, including Target, Famous Footwear, Jiffy Lube, Pizza Hut and a couple of gas stations.
At least $2,300 was charged in 29 purchases over a month, documents said.
Lester, who called Kennewick police when he discovered the fraudulent charges, said he has never been to the Tri-Cities. He suspects the information was stolen when he used the card at a restaurant near where he lives, police said.
Gutierrez was arrested May 21 when Target security caught him buying an MP3 player with the stolen information, court documents said.
Security at the Columbia Center Boulevard store recognized Gutierrez from a May 2 video that reportedly showed Gutierrez buying $315 in merchandise at the same time that amount was charged to Lester’s card, documents said.
Gutierrez was wanted on a state Department of Corrections warrant.
When he was searched before being booked into jail, officers found a “smoking device with residue clinging to it,” three bindles of meth, three Visa and MasterCard gift cards and one Visa credit card in another name, court documents said.
Gutierrez is being held in the Benton County jail on $10,000 bail.
School security guards caught sleeping on the job www.privateofficer.com
School security guards caught sleeping on the job http://www.privateofficer.com
Three security officials in charge of keeping Orange County schools safe are under investigation after someone caught them sleeping on the job.District control-center operators Javonda Crayton and Christopher Hardy and supervisor Angelisa Bright were placed on leave with pay Wednesday, said school district spokeswoman Kathy Marsh. The workers are responsible for monitoring surveillance video from schools and other district properties.
Rick Harris, the district’s senior security director, said this afternoon that he was disappointed by the alleged actions.”Never in the history of the school district has this happened,” Harris said. “We don’t want anything of this nature to reflect poorly on the more than 90 security employees who perform well. Our team has picked up the slack. There has been no degradation in protecting our students and our staff.”
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
Shoplifter faces serious prison time in theft arrests www.privateofficer.com
Shoplifter faces serious prison time in theft arrrsts http://www.privateofficer.com
An oft-convicted retail thief from Lancaster is facing a lengthy state prison term if convicted on a recent charge filed this week.
Ephrata police Detective Tony Russell said he charged Casandra Morant, 37, with stealing about $1,000 worth of electronics equipment Tuesday night from Kmart on South State Street.
Because of Morant’s six prior guilty pleas or convictions of retail theft, the recent charge is graded as a third-degree felony. The offense carries a maximum 7-year state prison sentence upon conviction.
Morant’s alleged accomplice in the theft at Kmart, 41-year-old Kenneth Gaskins, was charged with a misdemeanor count of retail theft. Gaskins, no known local address, moved to Lancaster from Philadelphia last year.
The two used an elaborate scheme to swipe the items, according to investigators. Russell provided the following account of the thefts and subsequent arrests:
The two entered the store and put a 68-quart trash barrel into a shopping cart.
Security personnel immediately contacted police because they recognized the Morant as a suspect in prior thefts at area Kmart stores, Russell said. “They were watching for her,” he said.
The two walked around the store and loaded several items — including an MP3 player, cell phones and a digital camcorder — into the barrel, then closed the lid on it.
Alarm sirens sounded when they tried to leave the store with the items. “So they tried to hurry to their vehicle,” Russell said.
The suspects got into their getaway vehicle and began to back up, but Russell pinned them in with his police cruiser.
The alleged thieves were trapped between a brick wall and the cruiser, so they surrendered.
“At that point, they didn’t have anywhere to go,” Russell said.
Both suspects were remanded to Lancaster County Prison on $50,000 bail each, police said. As of Thursday night, they hadn’t posted bail.
Surveillance cameras inside the Kmart recorded most of the theft. A search warrant executed on the vehicle revealed that they stole about $1,000 worth of merchandise, Russell said.
Morant, who uses the alias “Kim Carter,” was first convicted of retail theft at age 19 in 1990, according to court documents and newspaper records. Lancaster city police charged her with stealing items from Boscov’s and Woolworth at Park City shopping mall, according to those resources.
Since then, she has pleaded guilty or been convicted of five other charges of retail theft in Lancaster city and East Lampeter Township, according to court documents
Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
Nurse’s aid arrested for robbery of patient www.privateofficer.com
Nurse’s aid arrested for robbery of patient http://www.privateofficer.com
Police investigators arrested Jami Young of Penn Hills and have charged Young with theft, robbery, and simple assault.
Police said that Young forcefully removed the ring from an 87-year-old woman at Presbyterian Senior Care last month.
The police said that they were able to determine that the employee was responsible for the cruel theft and located the ring at a pawn shop in Plum.
Young has been terminated from her job and is being held pending a court appearance.
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
Illegal bounty hunter poses as federal agent www.privateofficer.com
Illegal bounty hunter poses as federal agent http://www.privateofficer.com
Authorities said Mark Antonio Johnson, 41, ran an illegal bounty hunter operation and went to extremes to look like he was a federal agent, including using a bogus uniform and bogus badge. Police said Johnson did use a real gun.
“He’s a scam artist,” said DeKalb police spokesperson Mekka Parrish. “He was posing as a federal agent and he was basically just going around scamming people.”
Police said Johnson operated the ultimate illegal bounty hunter business called FRET — or Fugitive Retrieval Enforcement Team. And he looked the part, authorities said.
He had a uniform, a gun, a photo ID with an agent number, business cards listing himself as a unit commander and a badge with the FRET name on it.
The first problem with Johnson, police said, is that the business isn’t licensed. Police said the second problem is that Johnson is a convicted felon so he’s not allowed to have a weapon. Authorities said Johnson posed as a federal agent and may have made arrests.
“At this point, it is possible that he did arrest two people as a bounty hunter,” said Parrish.
Police said they became aware of Johnson after he obtained two real government license plates for his SUV. His vehicle had official-looking decals and a fake DOT number on the back. Officials said Johnson successfully posed as an officer at the tag office and convinced them.
“Even went so far as to put, ‘Call 911 in case of an emergency.’ So it certainly at one glance, you would think this would be a legitimate federal agent,” said Parrish.
Johnson faces a list of charges including felonies for impersonating an officer and conspiring to defraud the state.
“There are some other people he would scam to get their ID and make up fake documents,” said Parrish.
Johnson could also face charges for writing bad checks to his employees who may not have known the business was illegal.
His first court appearance will be Saturday. He is being held at the DeKalb County Jail.
Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
Police chief, assistant charged with rape www.privateofficer.com
Police chief, assistant charged with rape http://www.privateofficer.com
Creston Police Chief James Alan Christensen, 40, and assistant chief John West Sickels, 38, are charged with second-degree sexual abuse. The charges allege that a forced sex act was committed while being aided or abetted by another person. Both men surrendered Friday.
In an affidavit, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation agent David Dales detailed what happened during the alleged assault at the Crestmoor Golf Club in the early morning hours of April 18.
It said that Sickels and Christensen were the only customers at the club’s bar around closing time when Sickels requested that a female employee perform a sex act on both men and she refused.
The men allegedly blocked the woman’s exit from the bar area and then Sickels left that area apparently to lock the door to the country club. Upon his return Sickels had forced sexual intercourse with the woman while Christensen “held her hand, stroked her hair and ‘shushed her,”‘ the affidavit said.
It said the woman repeatedly told Christensen that what was happening was wrong, and that he knew it was wrong.
Attempts to reach attorneys for the two officers were unsuccessful.
Sickels was interviewed by state investigators last month and initially denied any physical contact with the woman. He later admitted having intercourse with the woman but claimed it was consensual and said that he doubted Christensen had witnessed the act, the affidavit said.
When Christensen was interviewed, he initially denied that he or Sickels had any contact with the woman. Later, he admitted that he saw Sickels having sex with the woman and that during the act he touched her hand. The affidavit said he also admitted that the woman had expressed that she did not consent to have sex.
Bail has been set at $25,000 each for Sickels and Christensen. If convicted, they face a maximum prison sentence of up to 25 years.
The Iowa attorney general’s office said it is prosecuting the case at the request of the Union County attorney’s office. The Division of Criminal Investigation has handled the investigation.
Warren Woods, mayor of the town of about 8,000 located 70 miles southwest of Des Moines, said the police chief and his assistant have been on administrative leave for about a week, adding that the city is evaluating what to do now that both men face charges. The fire chief has taken over administrative duties for the Police Department, which is comprised of about a dozen officers, Woods said.
The state patrol will provide backup if needed, he said, adding that all the police shifts are being covered.
“Our police department is in place. We have good officers on the ground,” he said.
A woman who answered the phone at the Crestmoor Golf Club declined to comment.
Alma Swanson, owner of Fiscus Diamond Jewelry and Gifts in Creston, said rumors “have been flying” around the community for several weeks.
“It’s just totally blown us all away,” said Swanson, who said she knew Christensen. “I’m still just totally amazed. It’s kind of hard to believe.”
Swanson called it a sad situation and said she’s trying not to jump to conclusions.
“There are a lot of things I’m sure that will be uncovered and/or discussed when this comes to trial,” she said.
Jim Saunders, a spokesman for the DCI, said the case was an isolated incident among law enforcement and that Sickels and Christensen are being held accountable.
“I think it goes without saying that when something like this happens it’s kind of a blow to the public trust that law enforcement tries to maintain in the community,” he said.
Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
Security officer aids in burglary arrest www.privateofficer.com
Security officer aids in burglary arrest http://www.privateofficer.com
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
Man arrested for having 6yr old pose with gun www.privateofficer.com
Man arrested for having 6yr old pose with gun http://www.privateofficer.com
Investigators said Toby Allen, 30, took the disturbing photos on a cell phone. They finally tracked him down at a house in Palm Bay, where they arrested Allen and one of his roommates, Paul Rosaci, 26.
Her face is blocked out to protect her identity, but police said it’s a 6-year-old girl in the flower print shirt holding a handgun that seems disturbingly large for her small hands. In a second picture, she’s pointing the same gun right at the camera with her finger on the trigger.
“It’s alarming to us that we had such a young child brandishing a handgun,” said Det. Steve Hill, Palm Bay Police Department.
Investigators with the Palm Bay Police Department and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office said Allen took the photos, including two more of himself holding an SKS assault rifle. Detectives said the pictures came from a cell phone stolen from the owner of a local landscaping company where Allen recently worked.
The owner of the company was able to recover some of his stolen property, including the phone and contacted officers when he discovered the photos. By examining the background in the photos, police determined they were taken at the home where officers arrested Allen Friday.
A man who still lives there talked abut the photos Friday.
“I thought they were outrageous. I don’t know why he did it,” the unidentified man said. “I asked him what the hell he was thinking.”
Police said the photos aren’t enough to charge Allen with child endangerment, but they said the girl is safe and Allen, who has a long criminal history, is charged with being a felon in possession of a weapon.
“He indicated he thought it looked funny. He thought it looked cool,” said Randy Holliday, Brevard county Sheriff’s Office.
Police said they are not identifying the girl in the pictures or her relationship to Allen.
Email us/adminassist@privateofficer.com
Join us/myspace.com/privateofficernews
Be part of our social community! http://www.privateofficer.com
