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Four people killed in NC school bus accident www.privateofficer.com
BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC March 8 2011 (WECT) – Four people died in an accident involving a school bus in the Supply area Tuesday afternoon.
According to Sheriff John Ingram, a head-on collision took place on Camp Branch Road, near Highway 211.
The Brunswick emergency management director said the driver of the bus was taken to the hospital to be treated for minor injuries.
The identities of the victims are unknown at this time.
NC Highway Patrol is in charge of the investigation and emergency officials are on the scene.
S.C. couple kept kids in dog pens www.privateofficer.com
LEXINGTON, SC March 8 2011 – A Lexington County couple is charged with unlawful conduct toward a child after a driver found their 3-year-old son wandering alone on Pond Branch Road, according to deputies.
Major George Brothers said deputies were called around 3:00pm Thursday, and found the child wearing only a diaper that was filled with feces.
Brothers said officers were able to find where the child lived, and found the house’s side door open. Once they got inside, Brothers said they discovered that the boy’s parents, 37-year-old Kelly Lynn Smith and 34-year-old Edward George Smith, were sleeping.
A two-year-old boy was also found in the home. Deputies said the two-year-old was found in crib with a mattress saturated in urine, and his diaper was also filled with feces.
Deputies said the home smelled of rotten food, and found moldy food, garbage and clothes strewn around the home.
Sheriff James Metts said deputies also found a fenced in area with a locking device, similar to a dog pen. It had children’s toys inside. “Often times they would put the children in the pen in the backyard so they didn’t have to keep an eye on them,” said Sheriff Metts, “But to me, that’s like raising an animal and not a child.”
Sheriff Metts said Smith was very open with investigators about how he and his wife treated the children. “These types of cases are always difficult for everyone involved,” said Sheriff James Metts. “Young children need and deserve to be nurtured and protected as they grow and learn. We hope for the best for these children as they recover from this situation.”
The children have been placed in the custody of a relative, according to deputies.
Edward and Kelly Smith are charged with unlawful conduct toward a child. Edward is out on bond, while Kelly is still in the Lexington County Detention Center.
Source:WIS
TSA officer charged with impersonating cop www.privateofficer.com
Newark NJ March 8 2011 Don’t say you’re a cop if you’re not, especially to someone who is. And that goes for federal security officers.
A Transportation Security Administration supervisor assigned to Newark Liberty International Airport was arrested last week on charges of impersonating a law enforcement officer, after authorities say he told a Roselle Park patrolman who had pulled him over that he was a cop, too.
Michael Mazzone, 27, of Roselle Park, a lead transportation security officer employed by the TSA since 2006, is due in Superior Court in Elizabeth on Friday, said Detective Sgt. Manuel Jimenez, a spokesman for the Roselle Park Police Department.
Jimenez said Mazzone was arrested Wednesday, March 2, on a charge of “pretending to hold a position as a sworn law enforcement officer.”
Mazzone faces a separate charge in Roselle Park Municipal Court of failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, the offense he was originally stopped for, before claiming to be a “customs inspector,” Jimenez said.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE:
• Jersey City factory worker got box-cutters past JFK airport screeners: newspaper report
• Former TSA officer at Newark airport admits he stole up to $30K from travelers’ bags
• Newark airport checkpoint closes for 20 minutes in latest security breach
• TSA officials confirm string of Newark airport security lapses
• Most holiday travelers opted for controversial full-body scanners, TSA says
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers are empowered to carry firearms and make arrests. TSA officers can do neither.
The arrest occurred only days before another mishap for the TSA’s Newark Liberty detachment: A security checkpoint in Terminal C was shut down for 10 minutes Sunday afternoon after a carry-on bag raised a red flag during a X-ray, but the wrong bag was physically searched, officials said.
Ann Davis, a TSA spokeswoman, said the mistake was discovered before the passenger or bag left the checkpoint, and security was never compromised.
“TSA’s review of this event is ongoing. However, it appears TSA officers and managers followed proper protocol,” Davis said in a statement.
Sunday’s incident follows a half-dozen security breaches at Newark that prompted U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey last month to call for an investigation. His spokesman, Caley Gray, said today that the senator has been in touch with the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general’s office and, “they plan to do an investigation based on Senator Lautenberg’s concerns.”
Mazzone was pulled over at noon on Jan. 19, when he told Officer Theodore Dima he was a customs agent but wasn’t carrying his badge, Jimenez said. He said the real officer issued the impersonator a summons for not yielding and let him go, then called federal officials.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a particular affront,” Jimenez said. “But you’re pretending to be somebody who has particular expertise or authority and you’re lying about it.”
Mazzone does not have a published phone number and could not be reached for comment.
Davis said Mazzone’s “continued employment will be determined based on the result of TSA’s ongoing inquiry into his actions and the result of the pending case.”
Police divers search flooded casino property for victims www.privateofficer.com
Harrison County IN Mar 8 2011 The Indiana State Police dive team plans to search a flooded area near the parking garage at the Horseshoe Casino in Harrison County this morning after a report of a cry for help in the area Sunday night.
Police received a call about 8:15 p.m. Sunday about the cry for help being heard on the casino property, a Harrison County sheriff’s dispatcher said.
Several departments responded, including the county sheriff’s department and the state police, the dispatcher said.
The cry apparently came from the area of Knob Creek, which runs near the parking garage and often floods when the Ohio River is high, the dispatcher said.
A search was conducted until about 10 p.m., but conditions were too dangerous for divers to enter the water at night, a state police dispatcher said.
The dive team expects to be at the search area about 9 a.m. today, the dispatcher said.
Mike Stratton, the casino’s vice president of marketing, said casino officials plan to operate as usual today, but they are watching river-level forecasts closely. All roads to the casino were open Sunday night, he said.
Portland Maine security officer stabbed www.privateofficer.com
Portland Police Sgt. Edie says the first stabbing happened at 1196 Forest Avenue, in Morril’s Corner. The building was rented out for a private function. Sgt. Edie says that a security guard at the function was overwhelmed and stabbed in the back several times.
His wounds are not life threatening.
Not long after the Morril’s Corner incident, police responded to a report of a stabbing on Wharf Street.
One man was taken to the hospital after a fight with non-life-threatening stab wounds.
Both incidents are still under investigation.
Washington DC police officer nabbed in burglary sting www.privateofficer.com
Washington DC March 8 2011 A five-year veteran of the D.C. police department has been charged with accepting money she thought was stolen during a house burglary, after a sting operation by the internal affairs unit.
With her ankles and wrists in shackles, Officer Jennifer N. Green, 28, appeared in D.C. Superior Court on Monday and pleaded not guilty to one count of attempted receipt of stolen property. Magistrate Judge Diana Harris Epps allowed Green’s release but ordered her to undergo drug treatment and barred her from carrying firearms.
According to documents filed in court by police, the internal affairs unit hatched the operation using an informant with a pending assault case. Green and the informant met at Macombo’s Lounge in the District on Friday and talked about an apartment that contained a large amount of money and drugs, the documents say.
Green told the informant that she had no use for the drugs but that she could use the money, according to the documents.
About 7:45 p.m. Saturday, the informant called Green and asked whether she “was still trying to do that” with him later. Green, the documents say, then said, “Yeah, man, you got what you need to do that?” Green then asked for the address of the apartment, police say in the documents.
About 8:15, the informant arrived at Green’s apartment. Green, who was off duty, went outside and then went back for her police-issued radio, the documents say. Inside the informant’s vehicle, Green used the radio to monitor chatter from the 4th District, where she is assigned. Green then gave the informant directions to the apartment they were going to burglarize, and the two parked at a Safeway in the area, according to the documents.
The informant then pulled a crowbar out of the back seat and stuffed it into his right sleeve, the papers say. The informant went inside the apartment on Quincy Street and returned with $1,050 that had been marked by D.C. police internal affairs officers and a plastic bag containing white soap pieces that were packaged to resemble crack cocaine, the papers say.
According to the documents, Green ordered the defendant to drive away as she counted the money. She told the informant the total was “G 50″ and said she would take $600, the papers say.
The informant drove back to Green’s apartment about 9 p.m., and Green was arrested outside.
On Monday, Green was housed away from other prisoners in a segregated, lockup unit in D.C. Superior Court before her case was called.
After her hearing, Green left the courthouse with her parents and court-appointed attorney. She declined comment.
Several of Green’s friends, including one uniformed officer, sat with Green’s family before her case was called. Green was placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the charges. Green’s next court appearance is scheduled for March 17.
In a statement announcing Green’s arrest, D.C. police Chief Cathy L. Lanier said the force “must be just as proactive about preventing corruption as we are about preventing crime.”
Macy’s security agent injured by shoplifter www.privateofficer.com
Seannette Wint, 22, of Amityville, entered the store at about 5:15 p.m. and concealed about $174 worth of merchandise, according to cops.
She allegedly tried to leave the store without paying and was confronted by the female guard.
A struggle ensued and Wint hit the guard in the head and the face with the phone, police said.
The 24-year-old guard went to an area hospital where she received stitches for a cut lip and was also treated for contusions on her neck and face.
Wint was charged with Robbery first degree and weapons possession.
Man commits suicide on Florida park bench www.privateofficer.com
John Lloyd Nelson, 57, of the 700 block of 13th Street Southwest, shot himself while on a bench near the boat ramp between 12:30 and 1 p.m. Saturday, police spokesman Officer John Morrison said. No one witnessed the shooting, but one person heard the gunshot and called police, Morrison said.
Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers doesn’t customarily report on suicides and name people involved, but may when the incident happens in a public place, in the public eye or includes other factors.
New report says guards slept, watched TV while guarding federal buildings www.privateofficer.com
Washington DC March 8 2011 Private security guards protecting the Social Security Administration were founding napping, watching television, chatting with coworkers, talking for hours on the phone and failing to check identification badges at security checkpoints, according to a new watchdog report.
The report, by the agency’s office of inspector general, details several concerns with guards employed by Paragon Systems Inc. of Chantilly, Va., a private security firm providing security services at federal installations across the Washington area. The company says it has made changes to protective services at the SSA headquarters in suburban Baltimore and disputes some of the conclusions published in the report released last week.
Between January and August 2010, auditors observed several guards assigned to fixed posts not checking identification badges, “dozing off” at their posts and “loitering at posts involved in personal conversations.” During a weekend spot check, a guard was found watching a small television under a desk; guards assigned to roving patrols were observed not providing foot patrols, according to the report.
“Guards not complying with post orders as required by the contract could compromise SSA’s physical security,” the report said.
Guards also appeared to have inadequate weapons and equipment training. Two guards neglected to pause an X-ray scanner to review scanned items, while other guards appeared unable to operate vehicle barriers and other screening equipment. And despite the generally accepted preference that inspectors be the same gender as a person being inspected, “We also viewed two male guards using the hand-held wand metal detectors on female contractors entering the building,” the report said.
Agency officials also complained about a high volume of telephone calls made to guard posts. Telephone logs from May 1 to June 11, 2010 found 227 calls lasting more than 20 minutes and 23 calls lasting one hour or longer; 69 calls were made overnight to the posts, leading investigators and agency officials to conclude the calls “were not of a business nature.”
Paragon has been paid about $71 million as part of a 10-year, $242 million security contract agreement, according to the report.
SSA officials cooperated with the inspector general and shared several concerns with watchdogs, according to the report. Agency officials cited in the report vowed to closely monitor the contract.
In a statement, the company said it has “grave concerns” with the report’s conclusions because the incidents detailed occurred last year and were quickly corrected.
“This misleading disclosure gives an incomplete picture of the swift actions taken by Paragon to resolve these problems, including replacing personnel and installing an independent quality control officer to monitor progress,” the company said in a statement.
“Paragon believes that the concerns noted in the recent OIG report, and initially identified in discussions with the client last spring, have been effectively addressed and resolved,” the company said.
The report comes at a time of increased threats against administrative law judges who settle disputes regarding Social Security benefits. They were targeted at least 50 times during the latest six-month reporting period — up significantly from numbers collected between 2002 and 2005, according to the Association of Administrative Law Judges.
Threats against SSA employees generally are also on the rise, jumping from 897 in fiscal 2007 to 2,336 last year, according to the inspector general’s office. About 13 percent of 2,100 employees quizzed by the IG said they’d been threatened at work in the last three years — half of them more than once.
Concerns with private security firms protecting federal property are nothing new. The most damning allegations stem from a July 2009 Government Accountability Office report that exposed lax security procedures at 10 of the nation’s largest federal installations. Government investigators successfully smuggled bomb-making materials into the buildings and constructed small explosive devices that could have detonated.
Subsequent reports on poor record-keeping and training records have led to few, if any changes. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), who requested the 2009 report, is preparing to reintroduce a bill establishing stricter training standards and oversight of the Federal Protective Service, the tiny Homeland Security agency responsible for protecting more than one million federal workers at 9,000 federal buildings.
Source:Washington Post
Churchland High School coach, teacher charged with having sex with teen www.privateofficer.com
Portsmouth, VA March 8 2011- A Churchland High School football coach was arrested Monday for allegedly having sex with a 16 year old student, according to a police spokesman.
Cedric Cradle, 37, is listed as a football coach and special education teacher on the school website.
On Valentine’s Day, a school security guard saw Cradle leave the school with a 16 year old female student in his personal vehicle during school hours.
The security officer notified members of the school administration and the Portsmouth Police School Resource Officer (SRO). Less than an hour after leaving, the two returned to the school. The female student was then taken to her home by the SRO, and turned over to her parents. The Portsmouth Police Special Victims Unit conducted an investigation, with the assistance of school administration.
Cradle has been charged with two counts of Indecent Liberties with Child by Custodian and two counts of Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor.
Daring robbery at Atlanta Wal-Mart nets thief $180,000 www.privateofficer.com
ATLANTA GA March 8 2011 — Atlanta police are trying to figure out who walked out of a local Walmart with $180,000 in cash from the store’s safe.
The theft happened at the Walmart store in the 1800 block of Howell Mill Road in Atlanta.
Channel 2 Action News reporter Ryan Young spoke with investigators, who believe the thief had inside information.
Shoppers were also amazed someone could manage to steal that much money from the store without getting caught.
“That’s concerning to say the least, but I don’t know how they would get that kind of money away from the store in the first place … don’t know what to think about that,” one shopper said.
According to police, the theft occurred on Feb. 19 at about 2 a.m.
Police said they are scouring through the evidence left behind and reviewing video camera footage from the store.
“Unknown black male entered the safe. He is suspected to be familiar with the location. We don’t know who he is,” said Atlanta police spokesman Sgt. Curtis Davenport.
Police said the perpetrator, who was wearing sunglasses and a hat, walked into the Walmart and went to the customer service area. He then went to the safe and left with $180,000.
Young went through the police report line by line and learned that the perpetrator used a master key to open a Walmart safety deposit room and then opened a safe that requires a combination.
“I don’t know how that could happen … that’s an inside job maybe,” said one customer.
Customers told Young that overall, they feel safe in the store’s parking lot.
“Never felt threatened when I come here,” said one customer.
Source:WSBTV
Tulsa school principal arrested for interferring with security-police www.privateofficer.com
Tulsa Okl March 8 2011 A Tulsa elementary school principal was arrested Monday on an allegation that she argued with police officers who were trying to take her daughter’s boyfriend into custody, police said.
Tulsa Jail records indicate that Lynnette L. Dixon, 45, was arrested at 5:35 p.m. on one complaint of “delay officer – distraction.”
Dixon is the principal at Hawthorne Elementary School, 1105 E. 33rd St. North.
She was hired by Tulsa Public Schools in 1988, school district records show.
Police officers were called to the Comanche Park Apartments, 3608 N. Quaker Ave., about 5:30 p.m. to take a man into custody, Capt. Karen Tipler said.
The man, Charles Roscoe Boyd, 26, is the boyfriend of Dixon’s daughter, who lives in the apartment complex, Tipler said.
A burglary occurred in the apartment next to Dixon’s daughter’s apartment Monday afternoon, and apartment complex security officers responded, Tipler said.
When they came into contact with Boyd, they checked his record and learned that he had been banned from the complex and had an outstanding arrest warrant for a traffic violation, Tipler said.
Security officers detained him and were waiting on Tulsa police officers to confirm the warrant and take him into custody, she said.
Tipler said Dixon showed up at the apartment and was “belligerent” and “upset.”
“She accused the officers of going through her daughter’s apartment,” Tipler said.
“She was acting in such a manner that she was loud. When the officers were trying to explain, she would not listen; she kept yelling.”
Dixon’s daughter was not being accused of any crime, and her grandchildren were safe, Tipler said.
No physical altercations or fights occurred when officers were there, she said.
“That’s why we’re puzzled; she was just so upset,” Tipler said. “She gets there and has just lost her cool.”
Officers asked Dixon to calm down and to stay back, adding that if she did not comply, she would be arrested, Tipler said.
“She continued to act in that manner,” Tipler said. “At that point she was arrested for obstructing.”
Tipler said officers were not sure why Dixon was so combative or why she would not calm down.
Some of the students from her school live in the apartment complex, Tipler said.
“The students that you are a role model for are watching you, and you are so out of control. It’s an embarrassment,” Tipler said.
Dixon was booked into the Tulsa Jail shortly after 6:15 p.m., according to jail records, which spell her first name Lynette. Her bail was set at $150.
Boyd was arrested on the warrant for driving without insurance verification, and his bail was set at $296.50, jail records show.
Tulsa Public Schools Superintendent Keith Ballard said he learned of the arrest Monday evening but didn’t know any details about what had happened.
Ballard said Dixon would be placed on suspension with pay during an investigation, which is standard operating procedure.
Source:www.tulsaworld.com
Woman arrested after she pulls gun on security during shoplifting incident www.privateofficer.com
Naples Fla March 8 2011 As a result of a Crime Stoppers tip and the assistance of the local media, a Lehigh Acres woman was arrested late Monday for theft at a Bealls Outlet store in Lehigh.
Kellie Mitchell, 40, has been charged with felony aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, larceny theft and resisting an officer in the recovery of stolen property. She is being held without bond in the Lee County Jail.
Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers asked for the public’s help identifying the woman, who is accused of stealing underwear, perfume and shirts from the local store, then threatening a store security worker with a gun after being questioned about the theft.
Around 2 p.m. Feb. 21, a loss prevention officer for Bealls Outlet store, 1209 Homestead Road, spotted a woman who picked out a purse, then removed the stuffing from inside the bag. She then selected various items, including underwear, perfume and shirts and went into the fitting room. A few minutes later, she left the fitting area with a bulging purse, and none of the items she brought into the room.
When her shopping trip was over, she promptly left the store and drove off in a 2000 gold Chevy Silverado extended cab SUV with 20-inch rims. The loss prevention officer followed her out, and caught up with the woman at a nearby Circle K store. When the officer asked the woman about the items, she began to yell and cause a scene, telling the man that she had a gun, according to Lee County Sheriff’s Office reports.
At that point, the security officer retreated, only to turn around and see the female pointing a black revolver in his direction. He immediately ran for cover, while the female sped off, reports show.
Source:Naple News
Corpus Christi woman pepper sprayed store security during theft www.privateofficer.com
Officers were called to the Sunrise Mall at 7:33 p.m. where the loss prevention officer had the 29-year-old woman in custody.
The loss prevention officer told police he saw the woman put boxes of perfume and cologne in her purse and bags.
When the officer confronted the woman, he said a struggle ensued and the woman pepper sprayed him.
Despite that, the officer maintained custody of the woman, who was turned over to police.
Stephanie Molina is being held in Nueces County Jail on a $20,000 bond for suspicion of robbery and also being held without bond on other charges.
Trenton park ranger arrested for operating unlicensed guard company www.privateofficer.com
Maurice D. Garita, 40, was charged with the fourth-degree offense by the New Jersey State Police, who had Garita and his company, Tri-State Security, under investigation since November, a State Police spokesman said. The probe began with work Tri-State did for city restaurant Frankeye’s, but encompassed work at several establishments.
“He contracted with several other locations to provide security officers without a license to do so,” said Sgt. Steve Jones, a State Police spokesman.
Garita turned himself in to State Police headquarters March 1, and released after being charged by summons, Jones said.
A message left for Garita at his home was not returned.
The state’s Security Officer Registration Act requires security guards to register and undergo training with the State Police before they are licensed. Without a license, Garita could not legally operate his company, Jones said.
Garita was hired as a seasonal security guard on Aug. 13, one among many new hires by Mayor Tony Mack’s administration during his first weeks in office. Garita remained employed by the city months later, wearing the uniform of a park ranger and often sitting at a desk in the hallway outside the mayor’s office.
Until late last year, security guards exclusively handled safety at City Hall. But Mack’s administration announced in December that park rangers would share duties with the guards, all under the supervision of Public Property head Harold Hall.
Garita’s salary is listed at $9.20 an hour, according to public payroll records.
Trenton spokeswoman Lauren Ira declined comment on the charges against Garita, saying she was unable to talk about personnel matters. She could not confirm whether Garita had been suspended due to the criminal charges.
Garita was in uniform and working at the mayor’s Public Safety Summit the day after his arrest.
Source:NJ.com
