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OFFICER DOWN-TENNESSEE
Trooper Andy Wall was killed in a motorcycle accident on the Sam Ridley Parkway, in Smyrna, while escorting members of the U.S. Air Force’s Thunderbirds to an air show.
Another vehicle struck the motorcycles that Trooper Wall and another trooper were riding. Trooper Wall was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. The other trooper was treated and released.
Trooper Wall had served with the Tennessee Highway Patrol for seven years. He is survived by his parents, sister, and girlfriend.
Agency Contact Information
Tennessee Highway Patrol
1150 Foster Avenue
Nashville, TN 37243
Phone: (615) 251-5175
Joyce Meyer Ministries guard found guilty in murder www.privateofficer.com
Chester IL May 8 2011 Christopher Coleman, the former security chief for televangelist Joyce Meyer, was found guilty this week of murdering his family. Jurors also determined that he is eligible for the death penalty.
Coleman was convicted Thursday of strangling his wife and two sons, who were 11 and 9, in 2009. The trial will continue Monday when the jury decides whether he should receive the death sentence.
“If there was ever a reason for a death penalty I think it would be for a father who murdered his wife and two defenseless young boys, innocent as they are, in their beds,” prosecutor Ed Parkinson said, according to The Associated Press.
The son of a pastor, Coleman had called police from a gym on May 5, 2009, and asked a police officer who had investigated prior threats related to the family to check on them after calls to the house allegedly went unanswered.
When police got to the house later that morning, they found the bodies of his 31-year-old wife and two children all strangled with some type of wire, rope or cord. Spray-painted across the walls of the house, meanwhile, were obscenities that appeared to have been directed at Sheri Coleman, including the words “punished,” “wh*re paid,” “u have paid,” and “I saw you leave, [expletive] you, I am always watching.”
Coleman resigned soon after from his position at Joyce Meyer Ministries after being questioned about a violation of the ministry’s moral conduct policy. He had served as a bodyguard to Meyer while she traveled.
Pulled into the case, Meyer testified that she was unaware that Coleman was having an affair until she was informed by the police. According to the Belleville News Democrat, the well-known evangelist and speaker said he would have been fired if he was having an extra-marital affair.
Prosecutors argued that Coleman carried out the murder to keep his job and continue his relationship with the other woman, who was his wife’s friend.
A wrongful death lawsuit was filed earlier this week in Monroe County in Illinois by the wife’s family against Joyce Meyer Ministries “for its failure to recognize that accused family murderer Christopher Coleman was a threat to his wife and two sons,” according to a statement.
The lawsuit claims that the organization should have been aware of Coleman being a threat because he was sending threatening messages to his family from his employee issued computer and cell phone.
“This tragic murder would have been preventable if Joyce Meyer Ministries had responded to the threats and the extramarital affair and warned Sheri appropriately,” said Antonio M. Romanucci, an attorney.
The death penalty was abolished in Illinois and it takes effect on July 1. Gov. Pat Quinn said he’ll commute any death sentences to life in prison.
UVA student says he lied about being racially profiled www.privateofficer.com
Johnathan Perkins, 25, admitted he made up the story that police stopped him on March 31 and mistreated him, according to the release issued Friday.
The Daily Progress of Charlottesville reports that Perkins did not respond to a request for comment.
Perkins made the claim in a letter to the editor, which ran in the April 22 edition of the law school newspaper, Virginia Law Weekly.
“I wrote the article to bring attention to the topic of police misconduct,” Perkins wrote in a written statement to U.Va. officials. “The events in the article did not occur.”
During an investigation following Perkins’ allegation, campus police reviewed dispatch records, personnel rosters and police radio tapes.
“The student cooperated with the investigation,” U.Va. Police Chief Michael A. Gibson said. “But details and facts of his story came into question as the investigation unfolded.”
Gibson said he hopes Perkins’ false claims will not deter other students from coming forward if they have problems with police.
“I recognize that police misconduct does occur,” Gibson said in the release. “I want to send the message just how seriously we take such charges and that we will always investigate them with care and diligence.”
The university release said Perkins will not face criminal charges for making a false report.
He is scheduled to graduate in two weeks.
Security guard’s murderer captured in Mexico www.privateofficer.com
MIAMI FLA May 8 2011 – The man accused of gunning down a Miami security guard, sparking a nationwide manhunt, has been captured in Texas.
Miami Police announced the arrest of Jonathan Labrada, 27, by the United States Marshalls Service late Friday. He had been on the run since authorities say he gunned down security guard Luis Diaz.
The search for Labrada caught the attention of authorities nationwide after he was profiled on “America’s Most Wanted” last December. He was also the subject of a “Crime Stoppers Miami” episode that aired on CBS4’s sister station WBFS/TV33 in February of this year.
Also this year, Labrada’s picture was plastered on several South Florida billboards, begging the community for information on his whereabouts.
On March 13, 2010, Diaz was working as security at Las Botellitas Restaurant, located at 2150 NW 22nd Avenue, when he was shot. He was rushed to the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital where he died.
In addition to being the prime suspect in Diaz’s murder, police said Labrada has outstanding warrants for first degree murder and an assault on a law enforcement officer.
Miami Police homicide detectives are on their way to Texas to interview Labrada. It is expected he will be extradited to South Florida to face charges soon.
Va Beach security officer victim of armed robbery www.privateofficer.com
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. May 8 2011 – Virginia Beach police are asking for the public’s assistance in identifying two suspects who robbed a security guard patrolling the parking lot of the Courtyard Marriott.
Police said a uniformed security guard was patrolling the lot in the 5700 block of Greenwich Road in VIrginia Beach on Saturday, April 30 at 4:40 a.m., when he saw two men near a pickup truck.
The security guard went over to check on them, when one of the suspects pulled a handgun and made the guard lay on the ground.
After taking the security guard’s property, the suspects got in their vehicle and fled on Greenwich Road.
Police said the security guard was unharmed.
Police released composite sketches of the suspects (left). If you have any information on this crime, call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
Source:WAVY
Nightclub security officer stabbed to death www.privateofficer.com
ORLANDO FLA May 8 2011
A worker at an Orlando bar is dead after being stabbed by a customer.
It all happened right in the middle of a packed Friday night crowd downtown.
Police said a bouncer at the Lodge Bar was trying to escort a customer out, following an altercation, when that suspect then stabbed the worker.
Rescue crews rushed Milton Torres to the hospital, but they said his injuries were too severe.
Many who were downtown at the time said they were caught off guard by the violence, but police said the area is generally safe.
“You think this is a safe upscale place, that you’re going out to have a good time. It’s very upsetting, and he was very much liked by the other security guards,” said Caroline Echemendia.
“This is very rare. We’ll have our occasional scuffles, but downtown is safe. [There’s] just so many people and so many bars. We just try to maintain as much order as we can,” said Lt. Scott Boos, Orlando Police Department.
Torres was stabbed in the chest.
Police arrested the stabbing suspect, 24-year-old Eric Sandhaus.
He’s now charged with second-degree murder.
NOPD officers suspended for operating security company www.privateofficer.com
New Orleans LA May 8 2011 Mayor Mitch Landrieu suspended a ranking New Orleans police officer Friday, the second officer to be suspended this week related to paid off-duty details performing a city government function.
Sgt. Bradley Rhodes in the 2nd District was suspended for up to 120 days without pay for forming a limited liability corporation that provided security at the city’s car impound lots, a violation of Police Department policy. NOPD’s Public Integrity Bureau is investigating Rhodes and his company, Bradley Rhodes Consultant LLC, that coordinated security for the city’s Parking Division Immobilization Yard, the Claiborne and Almonaster Auto Pounds and the Administrative Hearing Center.
Late Friday, Landrieu also announced that four NOPD officers were being suspended from detail privileges for violating city policies prohibiting police ownership of limited liability corporations related to the off-duty details.
The officers — Capt. Joseph Waguespack of the juvenile division, Capt. Henry Mendoza of the intelligence division, Lt. Otha Sandifer of the 8th District and Sgt. Joseph Catalanato of the mounted division – will be prohibited from working any off-duty details for 60 days while the NOPD’s Public Integrity Bureau investigates.
Sandifer’s suspension is apparently linked to his LLC New Dominion Enterprises, which coordinates security patrols in the Downtown Development District. That detail was suspended earlier Friday, according to the DDD’s president and chief executive Kurt Weigle.
Weigle said the detail officers who work for the district focus on community policing and tracking crime trends, while also tackling quality of life problems like panhandling. Their work is meant to supplement the regular patrols by the 8th District, which handles all the calls for service in the area.
Sandifer informed the district that the detail, which costs the DDD $750,000 annually, had been suspended, Weigle said. The DDD, a special taxing district created by the state, is financed by a millage paid by property owners in the district. Along with enhanced policing, the district gets additional cleaning services paid for with the tax money.
DDD officials have already written to NOPD Superintendent Ronal Serpas and Landrieu asking how the detail can be restarted, Weigle said.
Waguespack’s suspension likely involves his relationship with JJW LLC, whose agent and sole officer is his wife, Joann Waguespack. Waguespack, the former head of the homicide division, was investigated by NOPD in 2007 for payroll fraud while he was working security details for the film “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” More recently, Waguespack was put on desk duty while he is investigated for possible violations related to the Henry Glover civil rights case.
NOPD details have come under heavy scrutiny as controversy swirled around a detail run by Police Commander Edwin Hosli, the head of the 8th District. Officers got paid to work off-duty for Hosli to review the videos for citations taken by the city’s traffic and red-light cameras.
As public outrage over the arrangement boiled over, Landrieu suspended Hosli earlier this week, along with Robert Mendoza, the head of the Department of Public Works, which initially oversaw the work and made the decision to use a police detail to do it. The mayor said he was chagrined by the “poor and questionable judgment of using city funds to pay off-duty police officers to perform police duties.”
Hosli and Mendoza are suspended for up to 120 days pending an investigation by the city inspector general. Hosli is under investigation by the NOPD’s Public Integrity Bureau.
To make up for the loss of detail officers, the DDD will increase the patrols of a private security program the district already uses. Weigle said uniformed security officers patrol on foot and by bicycle, providing extra “eyes and ears” in the streets.
Police Commander Jeffrey Walls, who took over operation of the 8th District this week, also sent out an email to community members saying the district has “made adjustments to manpower” to make up for the loss of the details.
Indianapolis jail security officer arrested- fired for sexual battery www.privateofficer.com
INDIANAPOLIS IN May 8 2011
The Marion County Sheriff’s Department fired a jail security officer Friday after fellow employees accused him of sexual battery.
Maurice Frazier, a 12-year employee, faces four counts of sexual battery, two counts of official misconduct and one count of criminal confinement. He was a former lietenant, assigned to jail security.
According to court documents, two women accused Frazier of touching them sexually, under threat. The victims said the incidents occurred in April.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Department has zero tolerance for criminal misconduct within our ranks,” Sheriff John R. Layton said, adding, ” This further demonstrates that we in public safety are bound by the same laws as the people that we serve.”
US Marshals capture security officer killer www.privateofficer.com
AMW Capture #1151
Marshals: Labrada Arrested In Mexico
Washington DC May 8 2011The manhunt for accused killer Jonathan Labrada ended at 6:30 a.m., May 6, 2011, in Matamoros, Mexico. After a year of tracking Labrada, U.S. Marshals arrested him in his Mexican apartment located about 600 miles from Mexico City.
His arrest is a direct result of America’s Most Wanted. Deputy U.S. Marshal Xavier Jorge in Miami said, “If it weren’t for America’s Most Wanted and the billboards, we would not have located Labrada.”
On March 13, 2010, Miami police say Labrada entered a lively watering hole, Botellita’s Bar, and told someone at the bar that “someone is going to die tonight.” And that’s exactly what happened. Labrada waved his weapon in the crowded bar. Security guard Luis Diaz confronted Labrada, and the two got into a heated arguement. Police say Labrada shot and killed Luis — an innocent victim who was just doing his job.
Earlier this year, AMW put up billboards in Miami with Labrada’s photo. These were arranged through a partnership with the Outdoor Advertising Association of America, whose members have teamed up with AMW nationwide to provide billboard space to help in our manhunts. As a result of those billboards in Miami, AMW received a tip with valuable information. Deputy Marshal Jorge said that information led them to Mexico.
In a matter of weeks, they knew Labrada was hiding out in Matamoros. Working with Mexican authorities, the U.S. Marshals narrowed in on the lead and located Labrada at his rundown apartment.
Miami police were relived to hear of Labrada’s capture.
“I’m very excited because this guy thought he was smarter than everyone else,” said Sgt. Eunice Cooper, who was the lead detective on the case. “I think he got real confident thinking he ‘outsmarted’ us. But the perserverence and the persistance of everyone — the U.S. Marshals Service, America’s Most Wanted, and the Miami Police — never stopped.”
He was extradited from Mexico to the U.S. via the Brownsville, Texas, Port of Entry.
Luis’ sister and mother learned the good news the same day Labrada was captured.
“This morning my son appeared in my dreams,” his mother, Laraza, told AMW. “But then I woke up and couldn’t see him again. … Justice is being done, and we are seeing it.”
“This is a Mother’s Day gift for my mom, who’s suffered so much,” Luis’ sister Regla Quiroga said.
Jonathan Labrada is AMW Direct Capture No. 1,151.
Houston police officers shot- suspect killed www.privateofficer.com
HOUSTON TX May 8 2011 — A gunman who shot two officers outside Greyhound’s downtown bus depot was confirmed dead Saturday evening, according to officials.
HPD said the man was found dead inside a parking garage at the intersection of Pierce and Fannin, where the suspect barricaded himself after the shooting inside the Greyhound station.
Police said the suspect was attempting to buy a ticket at the bus station in the 2100 block of Main St. around 5:15 p.m. when someone spotted the butt of his gun sticking out of his belongings.
HPD officers responded to the scene and used a Taser on the man after an altercation. The suspect then fired his gun, striking two officers.
One of the officers was grazed on the hand. The other suffered a gunshot wound to his calf. Both injuries were considered non-life-threatening, according to police.
A witness at the scene said the suspect suffered a gunshot wound, but that was not confirmed by police.
3 Arrested trying to breach checkpoint security at Denver Airport www.privateofficer.com
DENVER CO MAY 8 2011 — Three men were arrested Saturday morning, accusing of trying to go through an airport security checkpoint without identification or boarding passes.
The FBI is assisting Denver police investigators, 7NEWS has confirmed, with the incident that took place soon after 10:15 a.m.
A spokesman said police found one man above the south security checkpoint video recording as two other men and a woman went through the security line.
Only the woman had identification and a boarding pass, Sonny Jackson said.
“(We have) three guys arrested at this point, ” Jackson said, adding they’re being held for creating a disturbance and interfering with airport operations.
When asked if this was a “dry run” for terrorists, Jackson said. “Not necessarily. I won’t speculate as to what that is.
It could be that they want to see how you’re going to react to me without a ticket. Or they just don’t believe in the policies. We don’t want to blow this out of proportion.
It’s important to keep it in perspective. You’ve got some individuals who were not armed. They had nothing that would lead us to believe that they had anything to do harm to anybody with.
But they were basically trying to go through (security) without recognizing authorities and going through the proper procedures.”
Source: 7News
Shoplifting gang nabbed in Pasco County www.privateofficer.com
NEW PORT RICHEY FLA May 8 2011Employee charged with $30,000 theft www.privateofficer.com
WOODSTOCK IL May 8 2011 – Bond was reduced Thursday morning for a Marengo woman accused of taking more than $30,000 from her employers.
Jo Knake, 56, had her bond reduced from $75,000 to $25,000; 10 percent must be posted for her to be released. Knake was charged with nine counts of felony theft, the most serious of which is a Class 2 felony punishable by three to seven years in prison.
Knake, who also has a misdemeanor theft conviction from 1990, allegedly stole from three related paving companies for which she worked, prosecutors said. She would give herself unauthorized raises and use checks without permission, they said.
According to court documents, Knake allegedly stole $14,313 in wages from October 2007 to November 2009, plus thousands more in wages and $13,150 in business expense checks from that same period.
She also is accused of ordering items such as a golf ball gift set and princess doll set through LTD Commodities.
Knake’s next scheduled court date is May 31.
Source:Northwest Herald
Armed woman captured at the Waldorf Astoria www.privateofficer.com
Manhattan NY May 8 2011 – A Connecticut woman wearing pink bikini bottoms outside her clothes was nabbed walking around the lobby of the Waldorf Astoria Saturday with a gun, cops said.
Security at the famed Park Avenue hotel called cops just after 9 a.m. to report the alleged antics of Marilyn McHose, of Danbury, who had been staying in a room on the 12th floor.
Sources said that a .25 caliber gun was visible in her jacket pocket.
When McHose was approached by security, she made a dash for the bar, but gave up soon aftewards.
The suspect later confessed to investigators: “I have a gun,” a source said.
She claimed that she was trying to find a place to store her valuables.
McHose was charged with weapons possession and taken to Elmhurst Hospital for psychiatric evaluation.
Her brother, Robert McHose, 51, said: “She’s fallen in and out of mental illness from time to time.
“It’s a very unfortunate situation. I’m glad nobody got hurt and she’s in the proper care.”
Her parents declined comment yesterday when reached at their New Hampshire home.
The hotel did not immediately return a call for comment.
Source:www.dnainfo.com
Fla Vitamin Store employee charged with theft www.privateofficer.com
Fort Meyers Fla May 8 2011 A loss prevention officer for a South Fort Myers vitamin store watched Thursday afternoon as an employee took two tubs of protein mix into his car, then confronted him about the thefts.
The employee, Jonathan Michael Reynolds, 21, of the 12400 block of Rock Ridge Lane, Fort Myers, was charged with grand theft, after he admitted to taking $2,579.76 in products during a six-month period from the Vitamin Shoppe, 11741 S. Cleveland Ave., according to a Lee County Sheriff’s Office report.
Reynolds, at the request of the loss prevention officer, returned the protein mix and casein items, according to the report. He told the loss prevention officer and another person he took the tub while the keyholder of the building was in the restroom.
Reynolds told the loss prevention officer he began taking the items about six months ago and also gave away about $1,500 in items to friends without ringing the transactions into the cash register, according to the report.
A printout shows about $4,000 in items were stolen between Jan. 1 and April 30.
Fort Wayne woman faces theft from employer charges www.privateofficer.com
FORT WAYNE. Ind. May 8 2011- The Allen County Prosecutor’s Office filed a Theft charge Thursday against a former employee of Anthony Wayne Services (AWS) after court documents said thousands of dollars turned up missing in an audit of consumer financial records.
According to a probable cause affidavit filed in Allen Superior Court, AWS Residential Manager Debra Endsley, 51, allegedly stole $8,830 from a company account used to handle money that came from Medicaid and to keep money on hand for residents.
When Endsley was asked to bring her consumer financial records to the AWS office for review and audit on January 26, 2011, she failed to show up.
Court documents said Regional Residential Director, Anne Rentschler, said she later received an email from Endsley saying she had ‘borrowed’ the money.
AWS helps children and adults with disabilities live as independently as possible and be included in the community and function at their maximum potential.
Endsley worked for AWS since 2007. Her initial hearing has been scheduled for Monday, May 9.
Source:Wane.com
Portland nightclub security officer stabbed www.privateofficer.com
Portland Ore May 8 2011 Police are looking for a man who stabbed a bouncer and cut a woman employee in a strip club this afternoon in Old Town and then fled.
Lt. Robert King, spokesman for Portland police, said the man walked into Spyce Gentleman’s Club at 33 N.W. Second Ave., brandishing a large hunting knife and demanding money from the till. He cut the thumbs of a woman who was working the door and stabbed a bouncer who tried to intervene in the arm.
The man fled on foot — without any cash — and police arrived, setting up a loose perimeter in the area. They were unable to track him down.
He’s described as 6-foot-3, wearing a black shirt, black pants and carrying a black backpack.
The two victims sought medical treatment on their own, King said.
Police urge the public to be on their guard and call 9-1-1 if they see anything suspicious.
Source:Oregonlive.com
