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Mall security officer speaks about her kidnapping www.privateofficer.com
Two search warrants obtained by 7NEWS reveal the timeline of events dealing with the man suspected in the Cherry Creek Mall kidnapping and separate murder of a Denver man on April 13.
According to one of the search warrants, a female security guard at Cherry Creek Mall was about to start her workday when a man approached her car in the west garage. Police believe that man is 24-year-old William Lornes.
Suspect Made Woman Drive At Gunpoint
The woman told police that the man walked up to her car and asked for a cigarette and to borrow her phone.
She then said he pulled out a silver handgun and got in her back seat.
They drove to an alley where the man forced her into the trunk. While the man drove, the woman found the trunk’s escape latch and was able to jump out when the car slowed by a 7-Eleven near Eighth Avenue and Colorado Boulevard.
She called police and gave her report to investigators within an hour.
Lornes Also Suspected In Denver Dumpster Murder
Police have said they suspect Lornes in not just the Cherry Creek Mall kidnapping, but also the murder of a Denver man.
While police were looking for Lornes after the reported kidnapping, a person called 911 to report what looked like a dead body in a dumpster near 12th Avenue and Hudson Street.
The man, 73-year-old Gerald Schwartzman, had been shot in the head.
Based on the search warrants, police have pieced together a timeline for the two crimes.
Dumpster Murder, Cherry Creek Mall Timeline
•April 13, 12:27 p.m.: Schwartzman had a lotto ticket in his pocket bought at 12:27. Police had previously said he was last seen at the King Soopers off 13th Avenue and Krameria Street.
•12:32 p.m.: Schwartzman’s sister speaks with him on his cell phone.
•Between 1-2 p.m.: Woman reports seeing a black man leave a vehicle in a shopping center near Leetsdale Drive and Holly Street. At 4:03 p.m., the woman called police to report the abandoned vehicle.
•2:28 p.m.: Cherry Creek Mall surveillance revealed a man who looked like Lornes walk to the west garage area.
•3 p.m.: Woman escapes the trunk of her own car near Eighth Avenue and Colorado Boulevard.
•April 14, 2:10 a.m.: Lornes rings the buzzer at Arrowhead Manor Bed and Breakfast in Jefferson County asking for a taxi after police said he crashed his car along Highway 285 between Conifer and Tiny Town.
•3 a.m.: Colorado State Patrol and Jefferson County sheriff’s deputies investigating a single car crash spot Lornes in a passing taxi and make the arrest near C-470 and Alameda Avenue.
On Thursday, Lornes was charged with kidnapping, robbery and car theft, but has yet to be charged with murder.
Resort security aids in capture of burglars www.privateofficer.com
PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz. April 30 2011- Police have arrested two burglary suspects in a pursuit that led officers onto resort grounds in Paradise Valley.
Thursday afternoon, a Paradise Valley Police Officer spotted a man breaking into a parked vehicle. The officer pursued the suspect on foot, but the suspect jumped into a waiting vehicle driven by a woman.
After a short vehicle chase, the car stopped and the man bailed again on foot, while the driver took off. Phoenix and Scottsdale Police were called in to assist.
The vehicle was found a short time later and two women were detained by Paradise Valley Police officers.
The search continued for the male suspect. Security officers at the Scottsdale Camelback Resort, located very close to the foot pursuit area, called police after spotting the suspect on video tape.
Officers ended up finding the suspect hiding in the false ceiling of a banquet room.
Michael Montoya, 36, and Anna Montez ,31, were arrested and charged with burglary and unlawful flight from a police officer. The second woman was not charged.
Police believe the suspects are responsible for several other burglaries in the area — they recovered stolen property from this crime and others.
Cell phone company employee charged in identity theft crimes www.privateofficer.com
Police said Jason Ryans, 26, of 69 Imperial Drive, Manchester, used other employees’ names to make at least 20 fraudulent inventory computer adjustments.
In an interview with police, Ryans allegedly admitted to selling smartphones to people he met through the Internet. He admitted to receiving an excess of $17,000 from the sale of the stolen phones, police said.
Source:Hartford Courant
Shoplifter arrested for arson in K-Mart blaze www.privateofficer.com
SPANAWAY, Wash.April 30 2011 — Police have arrested a woman suspected in the Kmart arson case.
Former Macy’s employee charged with embezzlement www.privateofficer.com
Palo Alto CA April 30 2011 A former Macy’s employee was arrested at work Wednesday night after an internal investigation uncovered a four-month trail of suspected embezzlement involving thousands of dollars.
David Fraire Garcia, 22, was booked into the Santa Clara County Jail by Palo Alto police on two felony charges of embezzlement and burglary, police said. He was arrested at 9:29 p.m. at the Macy’s store at Stanford Shopping Center. Police did not know which department Garcia worked in, or what his title was.
Macy’s security estimate that the Menlo Park resident scammed approximately $6,757 from the company, police said. Garcia allegedly started the scam last December and made the last transaction on April 23.
According to police, Garcia was allegedly buying merchandise from the store and then charging refunds on the goods to his Bank of America credit card, but keeping the products. He was also jacking up the refund amounts, police said Thursday.
Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Sergeant Rick Sung said Garcia has since bailed out of jail.
Former Miss Russia arrested for shoplifting in New York www.privateofficer.com
New York April 30 2011 Miss Russia 1998 and former Miss Universe semifinalist Anna Malova was arrested in the United States for shoplifting in a clothing store, the New York Post reported on Thursday.
Anna Malova, 39, was caught stealing a pair of sandals valued at $135 and a hat for $10 at a Strawberry store in New York.
Malova was arrested and charged with criminal possession of stolen property and petit larceny. She is due to attend a court hearing on May 24.
Malova was arrested in February 2010 on charges of illegal drugs possession, forgery and impersonating a physician.
Shoplifter fires on citizen trying to stop him www.privateofficer.com
BAY CITY MI April 30 2011 — Bay County prosecutors allege that Tyris D. Bryant opened fire on a citizen who pursued him and three others from a department store where one of the men allegedly stole two Xbox game systems.
Bryant, 21, of Saginaw, and two codefendants — Quentin A. Smith Jr. and Darold C. Cain Jr. — were arraigned today before District Judge Dawn A. Klida.
Klida set a $200,000 bond for Bryant who is charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm, a 10-year felony; two counts of felony firearm, a two-year felony; felonious assault, a four-year felony; and transporting a loaded firearm in a vehicle, a two-year high court misdemeanor.
Bay County sheriff’s investigators have said the gunman fired five shots from a Colt .38 at a man who gave chase as they fled from the Walmart Supercenter, 3921 E. Wilder Road.
Investigators allege Smith was driving the get-away vehicle.
Smith, 22, of Saginaw, remains jailed on $150,000 bond following his arraignment on charges of assault with intent to do great bodily harm; two counts of felony firearms; felonious assault; receiving and concealing stolen firearms, a 10-year felony; carrying a dangerous weapon with unlawful intent, a five-year felony; and possession of a loaded firearm in a vehicle.
Cain was charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm, two counts of felony firearms and felonious assault. He remains jailed on $100,000 bond.
All three suspects requested court-appointed attorneys.
Klida ordered that the defendants have no contact with each other or the civilian who pursued them. If they are released, they are prohibited from going near the Bangor Township Walmart.
A 21-year-old Saginaw man accused of stealing the Xboxes has bonded out of jail and will be arraigned at a later date on misdemeanor retail theft charges.
“He’s out (of jail),” said Bay County Sheriff’s Lt. James Chlebowski. “He bonded out on a misdemeanor charge. He just stole the Xboxes. That’s all this would have been if they just would have stopped when the security guy was going to get them at Walmart. But they escalated it.”
The weapon had been reported stolen from a Bangor Township residence more than 10 years ago, authorities have said.
The suspects were arrested after multiple deputies stopped them at Mackinaw Road and U.S. 10.
Source:MLive.com
NJ firefighter chases down shoplifter www.privateofficer.com
CLIFTON NJ April 30 2011 — A shoplifter trying to flee the Home Depot on Bloomfield Avenue with $800 worth of unpaid merchandise didn’t stand a chance with Clifton Firefighter Anthony Latona chasing him, according to police.
On April 21, at about 9:45 a.m. Clifton firefighter Latona saw the suspect, later identified as Luis Gonzalez-Perez, 46, of Passaic, running out of the hardware store with unpaid merchandise and chased him, said detective Capt. Robert Rowan.
When the suspect realized he was being chased, he abandoned the cart full of unpaid merchandise and continued fleeing, but within minutes, Latona caught up with him and held him until police officers arrived, Rowan said.
Rowan said officers took the suspect back to the store where employees identified Gonzalez-Perez as the shoplifter and he was charged.
“We appreciate the assistance from our public safety partners,” Rowan said, adding “If it wasn’t for Firefighter Latona the suspect would have gotten away with a pretty large haul.”
The cart of merchandise was recovered and returned to the store.
Source:NorthJersey.com
Community College Security Chief Arrested www.privateofficer.com
PITTSBURGH PA April 30 2011 — County police have charged the head of security at the Community College of Allegheny County’s Allegheny campus with impersonating an officer.
Robbie Henderson, 45, was recently named the head of security at the school. He is facing impersonating a police officer charges after investigators said he tried using a badge to receive a discount at an Avalon thrift store.
According to police records, Henderson flashed a fake badge to the manager of the store and identified himself as “Allegheny County homicide detective Henderson.”
Police said Henderson demanded 50 percent off and would not take no for an answers. The police reports said Henderson repeatedly told the manager, “I don’t want to go over your head. I know you can make an exception for me.”
The store’s manager Sherri Lisanti told police that Henderson said, “He would call the corporate office and go through the Allegheny County if he had to.”
CCAC officials said Henderson was placed on administrative leave without pay while they “review the situation.”
Store security officer pepper spray-beat by shoplifters www.privateofficer.com
McKEES ROCKS, Pa.April 30 2011 — A security guard at a Foodland grocery store in McKees Rocks was sprayed with Mace while confronting a suspected shoplifter early Friday morning.
Police said the guard tried stopping a woman from leaving the store, but she ran out and went into Gino’s Bar.
Dodo Kemenar said he chased the woman to the bar, where he confronted the woman again, but a man in the bar punched him and the woman then sprayed him in the face, burning him with the Mace, police said.
“Three black females come in the store loading stuff in their purse. I went to stop the one right here and she turned around and sprayed some mace in my face,” Kamenar said.
Police said the woman ran out of the bar and got into a car with two other women and fled the scene.
“Next thing I know someone hit me from behind and knocked me down. Then the car came with two other black females and two fellas came running out of that bar. I lay on the ground then finally got up,” Kamenar said. “I had some bruises here and I got a nice big lump on the back of my head where somebody cracked me.”
Police said they don’t believe the man in the bar was an accomplice. Investigators said the women got away in a white convertible.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police.
Source:WPIX
Former Bushnell University employee charged in copper thefts www.privateofficer.com
LEWISBURG PA April 30 2011 — Six thousand, two hundred pounds of copper can bring in a lot of cash. It also brought felony burglary and trespass charges against a 27-year-old Watsontown man accused of stealing copper wire from a Bucknell University facility.
Shawn M. Hoffman, a former student employee for Bucknell’s Facilities Department, was arraigned recently by District Judge Leo S. Armbruster on charges of stealing copper wire from a storage barn on the Lewisburg campus between last fall and March 3. He is out on $25,000 bail and faces a preliminary hearing May 5.
University police arrested Hoffman April 19. He took the stolen wire, worth about $21,000, to Staiman’s Recycling Center in Williamsport, police said.
Felony charges include burglary, criminal trespass and breaking into a structure and receiving stolen property. Hoffman also faces misdemeanor charges of theft by unlawful taking and possession of an instrument of crime with intent.
Bucknell police did not return a call seeking comment before press time Thursday.
This is the third copper theft in the Valley within the past four months. In late December, a vacant former orphanage in Upper Augusta Township, Northumberland County, had 2,000 feet of copper pipe stolen. In early January, two Milton men were charged with theft after they allegedly were caught with copper pipe and tools in their possession. The two incidents are unrelated.
Copper’s value has climbed steady for the past few years, fueling a black market for the material that has stoked copper thefts. Abandoned buildings and homes are popular targets for thieves, who break in and strip copper pipes and cable.
However, recently, the price of copper has hit a slump because of the U.S. economy, Reuters reported Thursday. While it finished on the New York Mercantile Exchange and Commodity Exchange at $4.26 per pound, that is down from a record high in February of $4.65 a pound.
That drop in price for the base metal came after U.S. gross domestic product for the first quarter slowed to a 1.8 percent annual pace, according to Reuters.
Source:Daily Item
Abercrombie & Fitch employee accused of felony theft www.privateofficer.com
Mentor MI April 30 2011 A former Abercrombie & Fitch employee is accused of stealing more than a $1,000 worth of clothes and money from the store in Great Lakes Mall.
The loss prevention manager had noticed the store’s winter inventory was short this February, Mentor Police Lt. Tom Powers said. Consequently, the manager set up a camera to record employees.
Mallory Babika, 23, of Wickliffe, was repeatedly filmed stealing clothes from the store, Powers said.
“She would go into a changing room with an article of clothing and come out wearing it,” he said.
Babika is also accused of filing fraudulent clothes returns and pocketing money, Powers said.
According to the police report, Babika is suspected of taking $1,449 worth of clothes and money from the store between Feb. 2 and April 27. She was arrested from the store and charged with theft Wednesday, Powers said.
Babika was arraigned this morning in Mentor Municipal Court. She is out on bond. Her next court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday.
If convicted of theft, Babika could be punished with probation or up to a year in prison.
JC Penney security nab repeat offender www.privateofficer.com
Police were called to the JC Penney after store security personnel stopped 18-year-old Shaquia Marie Shephard of Roslindale for allegedly shoplifting.
JCPenney in Natick Collection loss prevention agents told police that he woman was spotted concealing numerous items and then leaving without making payment.Nightclub bouncer stabbed by boss over owed money www.privateofficer.com
SAN ANTONIO TX April 30 2011 — A nightclub bouncer on the south side allegedly got into a heated fight with his employer over money, leading to a stabbing.
The incident happened after 4 a.m. Wednesday in the 3200 block of Mission Road.
Police said the victim got into a vicious brawl over money he claims his boss owes him. During a verbal altercation, officers at the scene say the boss pulled out a knife and allegedly stabbed his employee in the stomach.
The victim was transported by EMS to the hospital. Police are carrying this case as a fight. Criminal charges are pending.
TBI says Nashville crime is on the rise www.privateofficer.com
Nashville TN April 30 2011 Reported crime rose in Nashville last year, for the first time since 2006.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation on Thursday released its final crime statistics for 2010, showing an overall 3.4 percent decrease in crime statewide. But while the state and nearby Middle Tennessee counties saw general declines, Nashville saw a slight overall increase, including a 37 percent jump in all reported sex crimes and a 21 percent jump in burglaries, a crime that has stymied police.
Mayor Karl Dean declined to comment on the crime statistics, instead deferring to Metro police.
“Chief Anderson, the deputy chiefs and precinct commanders discuss crime trends and strategies each Friday,” spokesman Don Aaron said. “It has been and continues to be the police department’s mission to enhance safety and reduce crime in neighborhoods throughout Nashville.”
Tennessee overall saw double-digit declines in several property crime categories and a 13 percent drop in homicides.
“Law enforcement in general works diligently every day, and when you see the overall number of crimes reported across the state drop even slightly, that’s encouraging,” said Kristin Helm, spokeswoman for TBI.
Neighborhoods besieged
Nashville’s neighborhoods in late 2010 were under siege from brazen burglars who would break in during broad daylight, clean out homes and be gone before alarms or neighbors could alert police.
Christian Paro, 32, was one such victim. On Nov. 13, his girlfriend returned to their East Nashville home to find something terribly wrong.
“She came in; the front door was locked. But she noticed things didn’t look right,” Paro said. “The TV in the living room was missing; the back door was open. She went upstairs and saw all the drawers were rummaged through, her jewelry chest.”
They were shocked by the timing of the burglary. It was about 10:30 a.m. on a sunny Saturday. He has since installed an alarm but was burglarized a second time on April 12.
The city also saw jumps in sex crimes, though the department declined to address the increase, saying there could be problems with the TBI’s data.
“MNPD staff is presently reviewing and reconciling police data with (TBI) figures,” Aaron said.
Questions have been raised about the department’s practice of filing away some cases — sex crime allegations included — as noncrime “matter of record” reports that don’t appear in statistics. In January, Metro police announced they would be recategorizing scores of sex crime allegations to actual crimes after re-evaluating the cases.
Metro police are still awaiting an overall audit of the department’s crime statistics, which have similarly come under question over the past several years.
Sumner crime drops
Neighboring counties saw crime remain flat or decline, with Sumner leading the pack.
Sumner County Sheriff Sonny Weatherford said his detectives had great success in 2010 in busting burglary cases, which helped contribute to a 14 percent decline in property crimes.
“We have really stepped up our patrols and are working the areas where, if we have one burglary, we kind of saturate that area and work those neighborhoods for the next week or so,” Weatherford said.
Weatherford said Sumner County’s growth will reach a tipping point where his department will need more deputies to keep pace with expected demands.
It’s a similar story in Williamson County, which saw the raw number of crimes increase but a lower crime rate because of an increased population.
“We have just an X amount of deputies to go around, and that hasn’t grown in a while,” said Deputy Rod Shoap of the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office.
As for Paro, he’s not giving up on his East Nashville home, in spite of seeing more crime in his neighborhood.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “But I am getting a dog. A Doberman pinscher.
Source:The Tennessean
Man urinating outside mall pulls gun on police www.privateofficer.com
Harper Woods MI April 30 2011 Two men are in custody today after one pulled a handgun on a police officer in a parking lot near Eastland Center in Harper Woods, police say.
Harper Woods Deputy Police Chief Jim Burke tells The Detroit Free Press security officers at the shopping center, located near Kelly Road and Eight Mile, reported two men suspected of being intoxicated staggering outside a home improvement store at 11 a.m. Harper Woods Police Lt. Rob Hunter, who was nearby, drove into the lot, where he spotted one man urinating next to a car.
The newspaper reports Hunter approached one of the men as they were walking away, and then the man reached into his waistband and pulled out a handgun, but Hunter was able to get it away from him.
Burke could not be reached for comment by MLive.com at this time.
The shooting occurs about a month after mall officials announced a partnership with K9 Academy to incorporate to start a K9 Patrol initiative “to enhance the safety and security at the mall.”
This is at least the third reported situation involving a firearm at the mall in the past six months or so.
In November, a dispute between two rival groups of teenagers escalated into gunfire when members of one of the groups opened fire inside Eastland, critically injuring one teenager and a clothing store worker.
And just two months before the shooting inside the mall, a 30-year-old man was killed in the facility’s parking lot.
According to CBSDetroit.com, the man was sitting in his car when another car pulled next to him, and someone inside began shooting. The victim was shot multiple times, and Harper Woods EMS pronounced him dead at the scene.
Eastland opened in 1957 and currently has nearly 90 storefronts.
Source:MLive.com
Campus security, police arrest men with counterfeit merchandise www.privateofficer.com
According to the warrants, N.C. Secretary of State Trademark Enforcement Agent Derek Wiles of North Wilkesboro and Officer Joe Buchanan of the of the N.C. Alcohol Law Enforcement Hickory District office arrested Tevinn Leron Pair, 18, of Orangeburg, S.C., Chris Jody Dwight, 16, of Columbia, S.C., Paul Taylor, 25, of Kannapolis, and Jevon M. Barber, 28, of Eastover, S.C.
The four, according to records, were parked behind one of the apartment buildings at Windemere Apartments on Collegiate Drive at 11 p.m. Officers said that the four were probably waiting to sell the shirts to fans leaving the campus after the performance by the Zac Brown Band, and that none of the shirts had been sold when the four were apprehended.
Officers said that the screen printing on the variety of shirts, as well as the shirts, were poor quality. Counterfeit shirts are usually sold for $5 to $10. Licensed Zac Brown Band shirts of similar designs sold at the MerleFest Mall were priced at $25.
The four were charged with felony criminal use of a counterfeit trademark on merchandise with a retail value of $5,775 (based on the $25 retail price). They were processed through the Wilkes County Jail and are being held under a $15,000 secured bond pending first appearance hearings this morning.
Wilkes Community College security officers assisted with the arrest and seizures, along with officers from the Wilkesboro Police Department, Wilkes County Sheriff’s Department and North Wilkesboro Police Departments who are working for WCC Security during the festival.
Officers from the N.C. Secretary of State’s Counterfeit Task Force work undercover at special events such as MerleFest and will be here through Sunday.
Licensed products, including T-shirts and other apparel, and CDs, are available at the MerleFest Mall on the WCC campus.
Florida church members robbed by heavily armed men www.privateofficer.com
Sanford police today released a recording of a 911 call made in the terrifying minutes after the two masked men robbed three church band members and a pastor Wednesday night at Iglesia Apostólica, 2599 Sanford Ave.
The band was practicing about 9 p.m. when the robbers burst in, said Sgt. David Morgenstern, a police spokesman. The robbers stole wallets, car keys, cash and credit cards.
The Spanish-speaking man, who was assisted by a translator on the call, said nobody had been hurt during the incident. He also said that the robbers had been dressed in all black, and that nobody at the church saw whether they took a vehicle
Church members were forced into a back room, Morgenstern said.
Investigators used dogs and a Seminole County sheriff’s helicopter, but they could not locate the robbers. Police dusted for prints.
“One print can take us a long way, so hopefully we’ll get something out of that,” Morgenstern said.
Anyone who saw anything suspicious at the church, which is near 26th Street, is asked to call police. The number is 407-688-5070.
Texas police release photo of person of interest in security officer’s murder www.privateofficer.com
Fort Bend TX April 29 2011 County Sheriff’s authorities are asking for the public’s help identifying a man they are describing as a person of interest in the shooting death of a security guard at a construction site last week.
On Thursday, authorities released images of the man that were taken by a store surveillance camera. Detectives want to talk to him about the April 20 death of Fidel Sanchez, 26.
Sanchez was shot multiple times after responding to an emergency alarm at J.D. Abrams, a construction site in the 8400 block of FM 2234 in Fresno.
Sanchez died later at an area hospital.
Investigators ask anyone with information to call the sheriff’s office at 281-341-4665 or Fort Bend County Crime Stoppers at 281-342-TIPS (8477).
US Security underbidding wins Colorado courthouse contract www.privateofficer.com
“I will be unemployed,” said Charles Hall, a security guard at the complex for three years. “I’ll have to look for a new job. I’ll have to collect unemployment. And hopefully I can find a new job.”
Hall says he’s refusing to drop from nearly $12.75 an hour to $9.50 per hour with the new company and feels the public should be concerned.
“I mean, you know, you’re putting people’s lives at risk for less money,” he said.
“I’m going to retire,” said Bob Perino, a guard at the security checkpoint for the past four years. “There’s no way you can work for $9.50 an hour.”
Several court staffers and even one judge told 7NEWS Wednesday they had no idea the change had been made and would be sorry to see Hall, Perino and the other two staffers go.
“OK. But cheaper’s never always better. So it’s not a great idea at all,” said Sue Reed-Baum, a Justice Center visitor. “I think it stinks.”
Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith approved the change, as did the county’s finance director.
Commissioners could vote on the final contract next week, said spokeswoman Deni La Rue.
But commissioner Steve Johnson told 7NEWS he was already sold.
“It does not bother me at all,” Johnson said. “In fact, courthouse security is the responsibility of the sheriff and he has our full confidence. What it says to me is that our sheriff is very good at courthouse security and getting the best value for the taxpayer dollar. I’m not surprised at all if the losing bidder is unhappy but that’s what competition is all about in America.”
Twin City Security had the contract for the justice center for five years, a company spokesman told 7NEWS.
And a Larimer County sheriff’s spokesman agreed the company did a fine job.
But, he said, after reviewing 14 bids, U.S. Security Associates had the lowest offer.
“Yeah, that’s the main reason the change is occurring,” said Nick Christensen, the executive officer for the sheriff’s department. “If they’re the lowest bidder, they’re going to get that job and they’re going to have to find a way to make that work.”
When asked if public security was the right place to search for cost savings, Christensen said, “Well, absolutely. As long as we get the same level of service. That’s the key.”
Criminal background checks are being done by the sheriff’s department, another spokesman said.
The contract with U.S. Security runs four years, with annual reviews and a chance to terminate the deal at any time for serious problems, the sheriff’s office spokesman said.
Detroit security shoots man during burglary call www.privateofficer.com
DETROIT MI April 29 2011 — Detroit police said a security guard shot a man Wednesday at a home at 14500 Abington Avenue.
Police said the security guard, who witnesses say is also a neighbor, was responding to an alarm that went off at the home. When he arrived, there was a car in the driveway that started backing up toward him, police said.
The guard fired shots at the man in the car, striking him in the arm, police said.
The Detroit Police Department said officers were questioning the security guard Wednesday night.
The man who was shot is in stable condition, police said.
Shoplifters bite, assault Carson Pirie security agents www.privateofficer.com
Chicago IL April 29 2011 Three women were caught stealing from Carson Pirie Scott at The Plaza, 2500 W. 95th St., and one injured two security officers by biting them, police said.
At about 4:30 p.m. on April 18, police received a call that three women were fighting in the store parking lot. According to police reports, a store clerk saw Chicago residents Sandra L. Ramsey, 17, Kametta Coakley, 19, and Lakeshia N. Ramsey, 25, walking in the store, selecting items and concealing them in the bags they were carrying.
According to reports, a clerk called security, then the women left through the west doors to the parking lot. Police said that after security officers identified themselves, the three women took off running but were caught and taken into custody.
While Ramsey was being taken into custody, she bit a security officer, breaking his skin, which necessitated a call for an ambulance, police said. The security officer eventually had to get stitches, according to the report. Police said that when they arrived, the three women were already in custody.
The three women were charged with retail theft for taking a combined $522.98 worth of assorted clothing, jewelry and makeup, police said. Ramsey also was charged with aggravated battery for biting the security guard, and was charged with battery for biting another officer on the hand, but not breaking the skin of that officer.
Casino security team nabs suspect in chips theft www.privateofficer.com
Chester PA April 29 2011 A Delaware County casino is out $1,500 after an alleged theft from a roulette table, state police said.
Daniel Robert Paul of Prospect Park swiped six $500 chips off the table at Harrah’s Chester, police said.
When the chips turned up missing during a routine check, casino security reviewed surveillance cameras and contacted state police.
After leaving the table, Paul, 41, and Tara Lynn Foglio, 35, of Ridley Township, headed to their car in a casino garage. Foglio returned to redeem three chips for $1,500 in cash, according to police.
Paul and Foglio were charged with theft, receiving stolen property, conspiracy, and related crimes. They are being held in the Delaware County jail after failing to make bail.
Foglio told police she dropped the $1,500 in the parking garage when she thought she saw a security guard. That money is still missing, but the three missing chips were found in Paul’s car, police said.
Source:Philadelphia Inquirer
Heroic police officer’s last act of bravery saves daughter www.privateofficer.com
Covington LA April 29 2011 A police officer sacrificed his life to save his young daughter when a tornado ripped through their campsite in Mississippi, part of the terrifying band of storms devastating the South.
As violent winds tore through their tent, Louisiana police Lieutenant Wade Sharp, 40, flung himself on top of the sleeping nine-year-old to shield her.
Moments later a huge sweetgum tree crashed through the canvas, hitting the lieutenant on the back of the head and killing him instantly, but leaving his daughter unharmed.
It was the final act of heroism in a 19-year career with the force, in which he had been decorated several times for bravery, twice saving lives by endangering his own.
Covington Police Chief Richard Palmisano told the Times-Picayune: ‘He was a hero all the way through his whole career, and was a hero to the end.’
He said: ‘Everyone always wanted to work with him. He was a joy to be around. He was an excellent, fantastic officer, well-liked. I never heard anything against him.’
He was head of the criminal investigations division and had been given the Medal of Valor, the highest award Covington Police Department can bestow, for risking his life to save a man from a burning house, despite not having breathing apparatus.
Another colleague, Captain Jack West, called him ‘a hell of an investigator’
Cook County corrections officer commits suicide www.privateofficer.com
William Washington, of the 20100 block of Sequoia Avenue in Chicago Heights, was pronounced dead at 7:06 p.m. at Saint James Hospital and Health Care Centers in Chicago Heights, according to a spokesman for the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
Washington sustained a gunshot wound to his chest at about 6:15 p.m. on the 400 block of West 34th Street in Steger, officials said.
While an autopsy is scheduled for today, police are treating the case as a suicide, said Steger Police Chief Richard Stultz.
Police were called to the home at about 6:15 p.m. The apartment belongs to Washington’s girlfriend, who is also a Cook County correctional officer, said Stultz.
Washington and the girlfriend were at the woman’s apartment, where they were arguing, Stultz said. The woman had just been dropped off by a male friend, who left and walked down the stairs when the argument began, Stultz said.
After the woman stopped the argument and was about to leave, Washington went to a back bedroom. The woman heard a gunshot and then found him wounded on the floor, said Stultz. The male friend called 911.
No charges are expected, said Stultz.
Washington had worked for the Cook County sheriff’s office since March 2, 1999 and was assigned to work at Division 1, a maximum security section of Cook County Jail, said Steve Patterson, a spokesman for the office. Washington worked a 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. shift, Patterson said.
“Everything we’ve heard indicates he was a good employee,” said Patterson.
Washington, who was in uniform at the time of the shooting, apparently used his service weapon, officials said.
Source:Chicago Tibune
ST Louis corrections officer arrested in aiding prisoner escape www.privateofficer.com
St. Louis, MO April 29 2011 - A 51-year-old corrections officer at the Downtown St. Louis Justice Center has been charged in connection with last week’s daring escape from the facility.
The Circuit Attorney’s Office charged Mori Farrell with five counts of forgery, two counts of permitting escape and one count of making false declaration.
Two Justice Center inmates, 33-year-old David White and 34-year-old Vernon Collins, escaped from the Justice Center on the morning of Friday, April 22. Police said the men were in the infirmary as the Justice Center, located at 200 S. Tucker. Both White and Collins removed their yellow corrections jumpsuits prior to escaping. They pushed the bunk bed they were assigned to sleep in and put it against the wall. They climbed into the ceiling and were able to gain access to a window. They smashed the window, tied bed sheets together into a rope and used that to get down the wall and escape the building.
White was previously charged with burglary, domestic assault, unlawful use of a weapon, endangering the welfare of a child and property damage. Collins had previously been charged with assault on a law enforcement officer, armed criminal action, assault, resisting arrest and disarming a correctional officer.
Police said Collins was suspected of shooting a St. Louis police officer when they got into a struggle over the officer’s gun earlier this year following a stabbing investigation in the 5200 block of St. Louis Avenue. The officer was critically injured in the shooting.
The inmates were apprehended within 24 hours and charged again.
According to court documents, Farrell was assigned to the infirmary area of the Justice Center, which included a cell holding White and Collins. Nine inmates were in the infirmary – eight male and one female.
Farrell was responsible for performing watch tours every half hour on all individuals confined to the infirmary. He was to confirm by sight that all inmates were present in their cells and enter that information into a database, which includes what time the guard performed the check and the number of confined individuals present at the time of said check.
The detention center supervisor said guards were required to perform physical head counts of confined individuals by calling off their names and confirming their presence. Guards would then report the results of the head counts to admissions personnel on the second floor, who would then relay that information via reports to a master control hub in the Justice Center.
Prosecutors allege Farrell made false entries into that database, and said he admitted to detectives that he lied about making status checks on the inmates on four occasions that morning.
A nurse at the Justice Center infirmary told investigators that at approximately 2:15 a.m. she reported hearing loud banging noises coming from one of the cells to Farrell. The noise was coming from the cell containing White and Collins.
Farrell allegedly walked into the cell area but did not enter any of the cells. He noticed the bed was on its side but did not see Vernon Collins. He then allegedly told the nurse that one of the inmates was exercising with his bed.
Around 2:45 a.m., the same nurse went to the guard again and said she heard more banging noises coming from the cell, prosecutors said. The guard again went into the cell area and looked in the cell, but did not see Vernon Collins. This time, however, authorities allege Farrell told the nurse someone was taking a shower. The nurse told the guard inmates were not allowed to take showers because of the time and staff requirements.
Prosecutors said Farrell later admitted to detectives that he never observed Collins in the infirmary at that point either.
Just before 6 a.m., Farrell went to the second floor supervisor to provide head count information and allegedly confirmed all the inmates were present. Authorities said the supervisor used this false information and made a false report.
The infirmary nurse said at some point around 6 a.m. she looked into the cell holding Collins and White and saw neither man present. She then informed Farrell, who confirmed both men were missing. Farrell then reported to the master control hub that the inmates were missing.
A St. Louis police officer interviewed the guard at 7 a.m. to review what had happened. Farrell is accused of lying to the police officer by saying he reportedly saw the inmates just before 6 a.m.
Farrell admitted to lying to authorities all this time to avoid getting into trouble, prosecutors said.
Source:KSDK
Drake University security officer assaulted www.privateofficer.com
Des Moines IA April 29 2011 A Drake University security officer monitoring activity around a beer tent near campus early today had his arm slammed in his car door as he tried to climb out of his vehicle.
Security Officer Matthew Samann was parked in a university lot in the 1300 block of 31st St., not far from Peggy’s tavern, which was hosting an annual Drake Relays party with a beer tent at the back of the business.
Des Moines police said Samann’s attention was drawn to a commotion. It appeared that a fight was about to break out. As he was getting out of his car about 1:45 a.m., a man standing nearby intentionally shut the door on him, pinning his arm between the door and the frame.
Samann detained the man with the help of fellow university employees and a Des Moines police reserve officer.
Officers charged Benjamin Joseph Freeman, 22, of Fargo, N.D., with simple assault and public intoxication. Bond was set at $600.
Source:DesMoines Register
Santa Fe NM deputy caught shoplifting www.privateofficer.com
SANTA FE April 29 2011 — A Santa Fe County Sheriff’s lieutenant faces a shoplifting charge after he was allegedly caught trying to steal inexpensive car care products from Kmart on Tuesday morning.
A store security guard caught Jeremy Garcia, 39, opening a car waxing kit and pocketing some of its contents at the Kmart on St. Michael’s Drive, according to Santa Fe police Capt. Aric Wheeler.
Garcia was seen pocketing items that dealt with car scratch repair. Wheeler said the product is valued at $19.99.
Garcia was not in uniform and there were no signs that he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the 8 a.m. incident, Wheeler said.
Garcia was cited for misdemeanor shoplifting of under $100 and was released, as is customary with petty shoplifting charges, Wheeler said.
Garcia heads a traffic patrol for the sheriff’s office and has been a lieutenant for five years, according to Santa Fe County Sheriff Robert Garcia. Jeremy Garcia has been placed on paid administrative leave pending a sheriff’s office internal review of his alleged actions, the sheriff said.
“It’s very disappointing,” Sheriff Garcia said.
Arizona security guard arrested for auto burglary www.privateofficer.com
Investigators say the couple then returned to their Jeep Liberty and saw a man wearing a uniform and holding the victim’s purse.
Police later arrested 29-year-old Emory Ray Stout of Golden Valley. He was picked up near Davis Camp north of Bullhead City.
The police department says Stout was booked into the Mohave County jail on charges of burglary, criminal damage and theft.
Source:Daily Journal
Kansas police break student’s arm www.privateofficer.com
The department says it investigates any time an officer uses force during an arrest. In this particular case, a student was injured and the officer was unharmed. While some claim the officer went too far, the department says it’s still too early to tell.
“He just grabbed me and tried to throw me on the ground,” said Jonathan Villarreao.
17-year-old Villarreao claims he was thrown to the ground Wednesday. This, after his SRO at Derby High School asked him to pull up his pants because they were sagging, and he said ‘no.’
“I told them no because I already had gotten out of school and I was leaving to go to home and catch my bus,” said Villarreao.
Then what began as a verbal dispute turned physical, when police say Villarreao refused to comply.
“[He] used a number of different profanities towards the officers. The SRO was was attempting to escort him back to the office of the school when he refused to go,” said Derby Police Chief Robert Lee.
But police are still investigating exactly what happened to spur the officer to shoot his taser, then use enough force to break Villarreao’s arm and give him a black eye.
“This is just not right. He shouldn’t have made me get a broken bone just for [refusing] to pull up my pants,” said Villarreao.
“Physical altercation certainly isn’t the most desirable, but there are times when that’s what is the next step,” said Lee.
Whether it was the appropriate step in this case, the department hasn’t yet determined.
“What I would tell people is, don’t be driven by emotion. Let the facts tell you what they are, and that’s what we’re going to do, is gather the facts in this case,” said Lee.
But Villarreao and some of his fellow students claim they know the facts, and they say what happened wasn’t right.
“I’m pretty scared of them now, for what they did to Jonathan. If they’re here to help they shouldn’t have done what they did,” said Derby High School student Natalie Quintanilla, who says she witnessed the altercation.
“These people, they don’t really care about you. They say they’re here to protect you but they didn’t protect me,” said Villarreao.
The police department says charges haven’t been filed against Villarreao. It will be up to the District Attorney’s office whether to pursue the case.
The officer will continue working as the SRO at Derby High School as the investigation continues
Source:KAKE
