Archive
Three face charges in theft of money from armored car www.privateofficer.com
Bismark ND October 6 2010 Three men face felony charges for an alleged scheme in which approximately $330,000 was stolen from an armored car.
Michael Joshua Link, 22, Matthew Levi Fiechtner, 19, and Nathan Dean Tuenge, 25, were charged Monday with Class B felony conspiracy to commit theft.
South Central District Judge Bruce Haskell set bond for Link and Fiechtner at $10,000. Fiechtner posted bond and has been released, while Link remains in the Burleigh County Detention Center. Tuenge has not been arrested, Burleigh County Assistant State’s Attorney Cynthia Feland said.
An affidavit from Bismarck Police Detective Roger Marks said US Bank reported on Feb. 23 a deposit dropped off by Alpha 6, Inc., was missing approximately $330,000. The armored car company confirmed the money left in a truck in the custody of Link, an employee of Alpha 6. Detectives spoke to Link, who denied knowledge of the missing money.
Marks’ affidavit said someone told him on Aug. 23 that Link, Fiechtner and Tuenge had confided a scheme in which they stole money from an armored car. The informant said Link planned the theft, Fiechtner was a get-away driver and Tuenge took the money with a duplicate key made from keys to the truck provided by Link.
Court documents say the conspiracy included the men timing Alpha 6’s pick-up and drop-off routes at US Bank locations and monitoring camera views of Alpha 6 locations.
Documents say Link provided keys for an Alpha 6 vehicle, Fiechtner made duplicates of the keys, and Fiechtner and Tuenge removed money from the truck while dressed to resemble drivers of the armored trucks.
According to court documents, Link is on probation for felony theft.
Feland said federal authorities also are involved in the investigation.
Source:Bismark Tribune
Boston police say 10 year old committed suicide www.privateofficer.com
The victim was just 10 years old, according to a police report.
Boston police responded to 48 Glenville Ave. where they found the girl, said Officer Eddy Chrispin, a police spokesman.
Her mother had dialed 911 on a cellphone and was connected to the State Police, Chrispin said.
The police report of the incident indicates the mother screamed to the dispatcher that she had just found her daughter hanging from a scarf in a closet and that she was not breathing.
The girl, whose name was not released, was taken to Children’s Hospital Boston where she was pronounced dead.
Source:Boston.com
Philadelphia police officers arrested in sting-accused of robbing drug dealers www.privateofficer.com
Philadelphia PA Oct 6 2010 It started two weeks ago with an informant’s tip, developed during a state drug investigation: A couple of Philadelphia cops had become too cozy with a dealer.
Although the officers patrolled a section of North Philadelphia brimming with temptation, no one at the time suspected them of being dirty, authorities said.
But once investigators began looking into the activities of Officer Sean Alivera and his partner, Christopher Luciano, they quickly realized they had a problem.
The two appeared to be stealing drugs from couriers and giving them to a dealer to sell.
Two weeks after receiving the initial tip from the Bureau of Narcotics Investigations, a sting operation was swiftly arranged, with a young and “extremely brave” Philadelphia police officer posing as a courier.
Monday evening, investigators watched as Alivera and Luciano – on duty and in full uniform – stopped the undercover officer, arrested him, and robbed him of 20 pounds of marijuana and $3,000 in cash, authorities said.
The crime was captured on video surveillance, said District Attorney Seth Williams.
Alivera, 31, and Luciano, 23, were arrested shortly after 7 p.m. Monday at the 25th District headquarters, where they were assigned. They were charged with robbery, kidnapping, conspiracy, and other crimes.
“Police corruption will not be tolerated,” Williams said Tuesday at a news conference announcing the arrests. “We are committed to rooting out bad cops, and we will prosecute them for the disgraceful thugs and scum that they are.”
Both defendants were being held Tuesday on $1 million bail. Court records did not indicate if either had an attorney.
Both will be fired, and no one will wear their badge numbers again, Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey said.
Their scheme, as described by authorities, is nearly identical to another revealed in July, when three officers were accused of stealing heroin and selling the drugs to a dealer for $6,000.
In that case, federal authorities tracked the officers for months as they hatched their plan, with the aid of wiretaps and an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agent. The indictment, which also charged three dealers and the wife of one officer, contained a thick narrative of events.
By contrast, the arrests of Alivera and Luciano moved so quickly from tip to sting that many details remained cloudy Tuesday.
Authorities described the officers’ drug-dealing partner as an unnamed individual who was supposed to redistribute the stolen marijuana. Williams and Ramsey declined to say what happened to the pilfered marijuana, valued at $24,000.
How the officers came to be associated with the dealer also was unclear. Investigators said they were unsure if Alivera and Luciano had robbed other drug couriers or if other officers could have been involved.
Prosecutors did say that the $3,000 taken from the undercover officer was “found in the defendants’ possession.”
“With this effort to root out corruption, things could get worse before they get better,” Ramsey said.
He said there was no connection between Alivera and Luciano and the three officers arrested in the heroin-stealing case.
One of those officers, Robert Snyder, also worked in the 25th District, but he was in a different squad and was not assigned to the street.
The other two officers in the heroin case, Mark Williams and James Venziale, worked in the adjacent 39th District.
The sting that netted Alivera and Luciano was a joint operation involving the police, the district attorney, and the state Attorney General’s Office.
The state Bureau of Narcotics Investigations learned of the initial tip during a separate drug investigation and passed word to the Police Department.
Once the seriousness of the situation was established, Ramsey called Williams to inform him.
Alivera and Luciano became the 12th and 13th officers arrested since March 2009, including two charged with murder after off-duty shootings.
“This is another embarrassment for our department, another in a long list unfortunately,” Ramsey said. “But it’s all part of our commitment to clean our house.”
Mayor Nutter said Tuesday night that he did not believe the department had a pervasive problem with corruption. Rather, he said, a few “knuckleheads” are sullying the department’s reputation.
“We have a no-tolerance philosophy related to any kind of inappropriate action by anyone in the Police Department,” he said.
Alivera, a 10-year veteran, and Luciano, a three-year veteran, patrolled sections of North Philadelphia and Kensington where drugs and crime are nearly commonplace. News of their arrests brought a mixture of reactions from those who live and work there.
“It’s tragic,” said Teresa Richardson, principal of Ascension of Our Lord School at G and Westmoreland Streets. “In a neighborhood like this, you need to have trust and faith in the police.”
Christina Torres, a Kensington block captain, said that some saw police as part of the problem and that the arrests would harm relations with the community.
“That’s why nobody hardly gets along with the cops or trusts the cops,” she said.
But Joseph A. Bishop, the associate pastor at Victory Outreach Church, at Second and Ontario Streets, praised police for halving drug activity around the church.
“The police are doing the best that they can,” he said. “It’s a shame that the spotlight is on this unfortunate event.”
After the heroin case was made public in July, Ramsey announced a plan to tackle corruption and improve the department’s ethical standards.
Among the reforms, he said more officers would be assigned to Internal Affairs, a public hotline for reporting misconduct would be established, and recruitment standards would be raised.
John McNesby, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5, said he was shocked when he learned more officers had been arrested.
“We’ve got a lot of good cops out there,” he said. “Hopefully, this is just a run of bad luck, or I don’t know what – stupidity.”
Source:www.philly.com
NC karate instructor guilty of molesting students www.privateofficer.com
WILMINGTON, NC Oct 6 2010 – Parents fought back against the karate instructor who touched their kids at an after school program. Today those parents came face to face with John Maisenhelder as he pleaded guilty without admitting to the acts.
It’s been more than a year since New Hanover County deputies arrested Maisenhelder for seven counts of taking indecent liberties with a minor and one count of sexual molestation. All of those acts took place at Maisenhelder’s after school training program known as CAST.
Witnesses say the 62-year-old karate instructor touched several female students between the ages of six and 10. From 2007 to 2009 parents say Maisenhelder would put his hands under their children’s clothing, kiss them on the ear and rub his fingers around their lips.
“Since this has happened, they’ve become bankrupt, she’s lost her job, their family’s been devastated. I think both sides to this ordeal are very thankful it’s resolved,” Maisenhelder’s attorney Woody White said.
Monday Maisenhelder entered an Alford plea. That means he does not admit to the acts, but acknowledges that there is enough evidence to convince a judge and jury that he is guilty.
“John is still unsure why this has all happened to him, but given the gravity of what the allegations were, he’s thankful with the resolution,” White said.
A large group of supporters sat behind Maisenhelder in the courtroom, but some people who heard the evidence say he got off too easy.
“The evidence was overwhelming,” concerned citizen Mike Davis said. “If taken to trial, there’s no way 12 people in a box would have let that man walk.”
The judge sentenced Maisenhelder to one year in prison and five years probation. Maisenhelder will also have to register as a sex offender, which means he can’t have contact with anyone under the age of 18.
The prosecution says Maisenhelder would have students sit on his lap while he touched them and sometimes force them to touch him. Sheriff’s deputies say several of the acts were caught on tape.
Greely teacher fired for groping student in classroom www.privateofficer.com
GREELEY, Colo.October 6 2010 — A teacher has been fired after being accused of groping a 16-year-old student in a classroom, according to the Greeley Tribune.
The newspaper said the Greeley-Evans School District 6 Board of Education called a special meeting and took two minutes to vote 5-0 to dismiss David Rangel, 28.
Rangel, a teacher at Jefferson High School, was arrested in September on suspicion of sexual assault on child by a person in a position of trust, police spokesman Sgt. Joe Tymkowych said in a news release.
The police investigation determined that at the beginning of the school year, Rangel had “consensual contact” with the girl in a classroom, Tymkowych said.
Under Colorado law, adults cannot have consensual sex with minors.
Jefferson High School is an alternative school for teen parents and kids with other challenges.
7NEWS reported that the 16-year-old girl in this case lives with a foster family.
Source:TheDenverChannel.com
Stunt at Bradley airport lands teen in jail www.privateofficer.com
Windsor Locks CT Oct 6 2010 Security put an end to a prank police said Brendan Sullivan, 23, of Springfield, Mass., was planning on a friend because it involved bringing a pellet gun onto a plane.
Bradley International Airport security stopped Sullivan around 5:30 a.m. on Saturday when security checkpoint staff spotted a handgun.
Police said he told them it was part of a prank he was going to pull on a friend.
He was charged with tampering with airport security, police said. He posted $400 bail and was released from custody.
Mall security officers help nab fraud suspects www.privateofficer.com
SPRINGFIELD, Ore. Oct 6 2010 – Springfield Police arrested three Seattle women Monday for a string of alleged forgery incidents at several Oregon malls.
Police received a call from Gateway Mall in Springfield that the three women had attempted to pass a counterfeit $100 traveler’s check.
Gateway Mall Security officers say they saw the women leaving in a silver Dodge Magnum with Washington license plates. Police in the area stopped the women at Beltline and I-5. Officers recovered high quality counterfeit travelers checks, cash and merchandise.
They arrested and lodged Louella Velma Craven, Carrie Lee Lewis, and Quinnetta Iesha Fant in the Lane County Jail on the following charges:
-10 Counts of Identity Theft
-10 Counts of Forgery 2
-Forgery 1
-Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument
-Theft 1
-10 Counts of Theft 2
Police say several stores in Gateway Mall were victims of the counterfeit travelers checks including Kohl’s, Target, and Ross. Valley River Center, Lloyd Center, Roseburg and Keiser also fell victim to the same crime.
Source:KEZI.com
Ohio Security Officer killed in forklift accident www.privateofficer.com
Pedro M. Alvaraz, age unknown, was in a gravel lot at about 10:40 p.m. when he was struck by the forklift, according to the report. Officers responding to the scene reported they were unable to find Alvaraz’s pulse.
Witnesses told police that Alvaraz worked as night security at the tomato processing plant and was supposed to keep an eye on the employees’ cars while they were working.
The driver of the forklift told police that because of dust in the air and the time of day, his vision was partially obscured, and that Alvaraz had come out of nowhere and walked in front of the forklift, the report says.
The Ottawa County coroner pronounced Alvaraz dead at 11:15 p.m., the report says.
An investigation by the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has begun and could take up to six months, according to Scott Allen, spokesman for OSHA’s Chicago office.
“When there is a fatality,” said Allen, “it does take the better part of that six months.”
Allen said an investigation into a Youngstown-area company that experienced a fatal trench accident in April just finished up and fines were announced. Allen said OSHA investigators will look at Charles Jones Produce to see if there was any wrongdoing on their part.
Records from OSHA’s website database indicate the company has had no violations or investigations by the federal safety officials.
Baldemar Velasquez, president of the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, the union that represents farm workers at the company, said he has no problems with the company.
“He’s one of the best employers in the area,” Velasquez said. “He’s very cooperative. Everything the union’s asked him to do he’s done.”
Velasquez said he met with the victim’s adult daughter shortly after the accident and that the union and its staff have been working hard to help her make arrangements. Velasquez said Alvaraz was from Mexico.
“We are always saddened by this type of tragedy,” Velasquez said. “It was a terrible accident.”
A spokesman for Charlie Jones Produce referred calls to Velasquez.
Port Clinton News Herald
Security officer opens fire on suspected bank robbers www.privateofficer.com
Auburn AL Oct 6 2010 police are searching for two men who attempted to rob an Auburn bank Tuesday afternoon but were thwarted by a security guard.
Officers arrived at the BankTrust on North Dean Road at approximately 2:40 p.m. in response to a robbery call. Witnesses at the bank reported two men with light complexions, one armed with a handgun, attempted to enter the bank, but were stopped by security personnel.
“The two suspects entered the bank’s breezeway through a first set of doors and were about to enter the bank through a second set of doors when they were met by a security guard on duty at the bank who when he saw that one of the suspects had a weapon drawn, drew his own weapon and opened fire,” said Auburn police Capt. Tom Stofer. “We do not know at this time if the second suspect was armed.”
Police report that the security guard fired five shots at the suspects before they fled on foot without any money. No one was injured.
Both suspects are described as being of average height and weight. One was wearing light colored pants, a white shirt, and beige bandanna over his face. The second was wearing dark pants, a dark shirt, white tennis shoes, and a white bandanna over his face. Both men were last seen running northbound on North Dean, according to police.
This is the third time this year the North Dean location has seen robbery attempts.
Shawn S. Smith, 32, of Columbus, Ga., reportedly robbed the branch on Feb. 22. He did not display a weapon nor hurt anyone, but he fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash. Smith is awaiting trial.
Auburn police are still searching for the man who entered the same bank on Jan. 13, presented a weapon and left with an undisclosed amount of cash, said chief Tommy Dawson. At the time, the suspect was described as a black man, approximately 6 feet tall, weighing approximately 180 pounds, of light complexion with a thin beard and mustache.
“We will investigate this case as we have the others to see if there are any similarities in past incidents at this location,” Stofer said.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Auburn Police Division at 334-501-3100, detectives at 334- 501-3140, or anonymously by text or voice on the tip line at 334-246-1391.
Source:OANOW.com
