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Bandits rob jewelry store while security at lunch www.privateofficer.com
A pair of bold bandits snatched $1million worth of diamonds from a midtown jewelry store Thursday while the security guards were at lunch, police sources said.
The store’s co-owner, Rafaela Amini, buzzed the duo into Gioia Galleria Inc. on E. 57th St. a little before 3 p.m., police said.
As soon as the two men were inside, they doused Amini, 34, with pepper spray, knocked her to the ground and then kicked the stunned woman in the head as she lay crumpled on the floor, sources said.
The robbers – both in their mid-30s and with Russian accents – grabbed a pair of diamond earrings and a diamond ring, together worth more than $1 million, according to police.
“They were casing the place. Two gentlemen. They saw me leave for my lunch break. Twenty minutes later, they came to the door,” said a security guard who gave only his first name, Jesse.
He said Amini told the pair that they would have to wait until the security guard was back from lunch.
“They forced their way in,” Jesse said.
But Amini told cops she recognized the men because they had been to the store before, so she buzzed them in, police sources said.
Amini’s father and Gioia co-owner, David Amini, declined to comment on the theft.
Rafaela Amini was treated and released at Roosevelt Hospital.
As she came home last night, wearing large sunglasses, she declined to comment about the brutal robbery.
“Now is not a good time,” said a woman who was with her.
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Assistant principal, security charged in drug scheme www.privateofficer.com
hartfordcourant.com An assistant principal is charged with injury to a minor and tampering with a witness after she allegedly sent a student to buy drugs from another student “in an attempt to catch the other student selling drugs,” police said.
Amy Watson, 37, of South Alton Street in Manchester, was released on a promise to appear in Superior Court in Manchester on May 21, said Officer Hugo Benettieri, department spokesman.
An assistant principal at East Hartford Middle School, Watson planned the student’s purchase with a school security worker, police said. Benettieri said police plan to arrest the security officer, too.
According to a police press release, Watson and the security worker sent the student to buy narcotics from another student “in an attempt to catch the other student selling drugs.”
She was charged with tampering with evidence, police said, because once she learned police were investigating, she tried to get the student to change his story.
Her lawyer, Stephen F. McEleney, said his client maintains that she did not break any criminal law.
“Ms. Watson is a highly respected educator with an unblemished record and nine years of service in the East Hartford school system. She has always conducted herself with the best interest of the East Hartford Middle School students as her primary concern,” he said.
He also said Watson “vigorously maintains she did not engage in any criminal behavior but prefers, at this time, to address that issue in court and not in the media.”
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Pedestrian dies after being struck by SC State Trooper www.privateofficer.com
The Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office says the trooper was headed west on Asheville Highway in his patrol car when the man was struck Thursday night.
Witnesses said the man had just left an auto parts store and was crossing the highway when he was struck.
The man was taken to Spartanburg Regional Medical Center where he died.
The names of the victim and the trooper have not been released. The trooper was not hurt.
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Police arrest man in armored car robbery, shooting www.privateofficer.com
The Omaha Police Fugitive Task Force picked up 34-year-old Danny Reaves Thursday. He now faces a federal charge, Interference with Commerce by Threats and Violence.
Reaves was arrested in 2002 for another armored car robbery in west Omaha.
Guard Princeton Hervey was shot in the leg during the robbery. His partner shot at the suspects, and thought one might have been hit.
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Police nab man wanted in Home Depot robbery www.privateofficer.com
A man who assaulted a security agent who attempted to stop him from fleeing a Freeport Home Depot with a shopping cart filled with unpaid-for power tools was arrested Friday following a lengthy investigation, police said.
The robbery occurred on Dec. 29 at 5:40 p.m. at the Home Depot on Sunrise Highway in Freeport, police said.
Nassau County Police said Ira Walton, 46, of Lillian Avenue, Freeport, was arrested at his home Friday at 1:15 a.m. He was charged with second-degree robbery and is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in First District Court, Hempstead.
Police said Walton was attempting to leave the store “with a shopping cart full of unpaid-for power tools” when a “loss prevention officer” tried to stop him. Police said Walton assaulted the guard, breaking his nose. The guard had to be transported to Nassau University Medical Center for treatment, police said.
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Haines City teacher arrested for sex with minor www.privateofficer.com
The 28-year-old teacher allegedly had sex with a female victim, who was 16-years-old at the time. She is now 17-years-old.
According to the arrest affidavit, the victim became acquainted with Guerin in August 2008 through her participation in school activities.
During the next several months, Guerin developed a personal relationship with the victim, communicating extensively via cell phone calls and text messages.
At one point, Guerin told the victim his feelings for her had changed from just a ‘teacher-student’ relationship.
He also posted to his MySpace page that he was falling in love with her. The relationship then became physical.
The relationship was short lived. Within days, Guerin’s wife became aware of the relationship.
Despite telling the victim to deny all rumors of their relationship, Guerin was arrested Thursday by detectives. He is currently being held without bond.
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Suspects charged in robbery, assault of security officer www.privateofficer.com
Trenton police arrested a suspect wanted in connection with an assault and robbery at a Docks Corner Road warehouse last month, but another suspect remains at large.
Dalord Dumas, 32, of Trenton, was taken into custody May 1 and charged with robbery and aggravated assault.
The charges stem from an incident that occurred at the Home Depot warehouse April 21. At 11:15 p.m., security officer Kathleen Byrd, 43, was attacked by two masked assailants.
The suspects punched and assaulted Ms. Byrd with a stun gun type weapon before binding her wrists, according to police. The assailants then stole Ms. Byrd’s purse and a portable DVD player from her.
Ms. Byrd told police she believed one of the attackers to be Mr. Dumas, who is her ex-boyfriend, according to police. The other attacker is an unknown female being sought by police.
In addition to the DVD player and Ms. Byrd’s purse, which contained personal papers and an undetermined amount of money, the suspects also took a spare security guard uniform and other miscellaneous items.
Ms. Byrd was transported to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick for treatment of her injuries before being released, police said.
After being taken into custody by police, Mr. Dumas confessed his involvement in the robbery and assault during an interview and also gave police information relating to the second suspect in the crime, according to police. Police have yet to release any additional information regarding the second suspect.
Mr. Dumas is being held at the Mercer County Jail on a separate stalking warrant involving his ex-girlfriend and the South Brunswick charges. He remains in custody in lieu of $250,000 bail.
Anyone with information on the crime is encouraged to call the South Brunswick Police Department at 732-329-4646.
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Florida teachers arrested for stealing school property www.privateofficer.com
Police said Adolfo Espinoza stole thousands of dollars worth of school equipment, taking laptops, a sewing machine and a movie projector, among other items.
Pawn shop records indicate Espinoza received $80 from Presto Pawn for the movie projector that the school bought for $4,053, and he got $40 for a $2,055 sewing machine.
According to the police report, Espinoza admitted to stealing the items because “his family was going through very tough financial times” and that his wife knew he was pawning the equipment.
Espinoza was arrested Wednesday and has been released on bond.
WPBF News 25 has been unable to reach him or the school for comment.
Last week, Jorge Gonzalez was arrested on the same charges. Police said he pawned more than 68 items from 2006 to 2008.
Gonzalez lives in Royal Palm Beach but had been working at S.D. Spady Elementary School in Delray Beach. He’s accused of stealing computers, printers and cameras and pawning them at Value Pawn.
Police said he denied stealing any school property.
In April, Curtis Banks was accused of stealing thousands of dollars intended to help pay for South Olive Elementary School’s safety patrol trip to Washington.
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Arizona woman commits suicide during police chase www.privateofficer.com
A young woman shot and killed herself Friday after a short police chase in Tempe.
According to Lt. James Warriner, spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety, officers got a call from Mesa police to try and find a suicidal person at 3:10 a.m.
Warriner said a DPS officer spotted the car with the woman, who is about 24 years old, inside a car parked in front of a home near Elliot Road and Interstate 10.
The officer sat behind the woman while he waited for other officers to arrive, but she drove away.
She refused to stop for the officer and sped away before pulling into a parking space in front of a convenience store at Priest Drive and Warner Road.
“As the officer stepped out of the vehicle he heard a gunshot,” Warriner said.
Katie McDevitt, Tempe police spokeswoman, said Tempe police will investigate the suicide. Warriner said DPS will conduct an investigation of the officer’s actions, which is routine in significant incidents.
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Four teens charged in sexual assault of student www.privateofficer.com
According to the Hillsborough Sheriff’s Office, the teens, ranging in age from 14 to 15, used a broomstick and a hockey stick to assault the victim during an attack on April 30th.
The suspects, Randall John Moye, 14; Raymond A. Price-Murray, 14; Lee Louis Myers, 14; and Diemante J. Roberts, 15, were arrested Wednesday at school.
Deputies say two of the teens assaulted the boy in a locker room as the others held down while two others assaulted him.
The victim had been harassed by the teens for nearly two months before the alleged assault, according to detectives.
The suspects are charged with false imprisonment and sexual assault.
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Chattanooga Elementary School teacher faces child sex charges www.privateofficer.com
A former Chickamauga Elementary School teacher has been arrested again, and is now indicted on numerous counts of child sex crimes.
38-year-old Tonya Craft was arrested yesterday afternoon by Catoosa County detectives and charged with aggravated sexual battery.
Sheriff Phil Summers says she is accused of violating a child’s bottom at her former residence on Sycamore Drive.
Assistant district attorney Chris Arndt says Craft was first arrested and charged with sex crimes last summer, when three children claimed she had penetrated their private parts with her fingers.
One of those children is the named-victim in this latest case.
The Chickamauga school system fired her because the terms of her bond were that she not be around children.
Arndt says a grand jury indicted Craft yesterday on a total of 22 counts, and a trial will be scheduled for September.
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Deputies, casino security nab auto theft suspects www.privateofficer.com
A sheriff’s deputy and casino security workers joined forces yesterday to recover a stolen car and arrest three suspects sitting at a casino bar in Cabazon, according to Riverside County sheriff’s officials.
The incident began at 6:36 a.m. Thursday when the deputy noticed a brown Toyota Camry and three suspicious occupants parked at Casino Morongo along Seminole Drive in Cabazon, Sgt. James Swanson said in a written statement.
As the occupants entered the casino, the deputy checked the license plate and discovered that the car had been reported stolen less than two hours earlier in nearby Beaumont, according to the statement.
Casino security personnel used surveillance cameras to locate the suspects.
Jailed on felony charges related to vehicle theft and possessing stolen property were 37-year-old Daniel M. Falcon of Beaumont and two Banning residents, 40-year-old James A. Longo and 24-year-old Valerie G. Dunahee.
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Security officer injured during shoplifting incident www.privateofficer.com
A security officer at the Westfield mall has received numerous injuries while pursuing two shoplifting suspects.
Deputy Chief Michael Harry said the unnamed security officer was attempting to apprehend Shakia Donald, 20, of Stratford, and an unidentified accomplice as the pair fled in Donald’s car. During the struggle between the security officer and the suspects someone broke the drivers window. Harry said the security officer suffered injuries to both arms and the side of his head. Donald received cuts to her face.
The guard was treated at the scene. Trumbull EMS brought Donald to St. Vincent’s with police escort. Harry said Donald would be charged with larceny and robbery charges.
Police are seeking the accomplice, who Harry described as a light skinned black male, 6-feet tall and thin and in his early 20s. Any residents with additional information should call the Trumbull police, 261-3665.
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