Archive
OFFICER DOWN- RUSSELL WILLINGHAM
Winston-Salem Police Department, North Carolina
End of Watch: Saturday, July 30, 2011
Tour of Duty: 2 years
Badge Number: Not available
Date of Incident: July 30, 2011
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Police Officer Russell Willingham was killed in an automobile accident while responding to backup another officers at approximately 3:15 am.
He was traveling on North Vargrave Street when his patrol car left the roadway and struck a tree. He was able to notify dispatch that he was pinned inside and rescue units were dispatched. Moments later he notified dispatchers that his vehicle had caught fire. When the rescue units arrived the vehicle was fully engulfed in flames.
Officer Willingham had served with the Winston-Salem Police Department for two years and had previously served with the Greensboro Police Department.
Agency Contact Information
725 N Cherry Street
Winston-Salem, NC 27101
Phone: (336) 773-7700
OFFICER DOWN DANIEL ACKERMAN
Police Officer
Daniel Ackerman
Buena Park Police Department, California
End of Watch: Saturday, July 30, 2011
Age: 31
Tour of Duty: 10 years, 3 months
Badge Number: Not available
Incident DetailsCause of Death: Duty related illness
Date of Incident: July 29, 2011
Weapon Used: Not available
Suspect Info: Not available
Police Officer Daniel Ackerman passed away after collapsing during a SWAT training exercise.
He was participating in the training when he collapsed at about 8:00 am. He was transported to St. Jude Medical Center where he remained until passing away early the following morning.
Officer Ackerman had served as a full-time officer with the Buena Park Police Department for six years and had previously served as a reserve officer for four years. He is survived by his daughter, mother, and sister.
Agency Contact Information
Buena Park Police Department
6650 Beach Boulevard
Buena Park, CA 90622
Phone: (714) 562-3901
Odessa Police arrest security guard in illegal gambling room www.privateofficer.com
Roberto Antonio Rios, 25, has been arrested. According to an arrest affidavit, Rios was a security guard at an eight-liner game room on Andrews Highway in Odessa — across the street from the Ector County Coliseum.
That game room was one of five that were raided earlier this month, after undercover police officers say they saw illegal gambling going on there.
Police say that Rios was protecting the gambling activities and keeping an eye on gamers while on the job.
Now, Rios is charged with engaging in organized criminal activity to commit gambling promotion. At least 15 people have been arrested in the gambling bust so far
Four adults charged with murder for stuffing girl in box as punishment www.privateofficer.com
Phoenix AZ July 31 2011 Four adults have been charged in the brutal killing of a 10-year-old family member who was stuffed a locked storage container as punishment for taking a Popsicle out of the freezer, police said.
Initially, authorities declared Ame Deal was a “death unknown,” after her family said she had died accidentally while playing hide-and-seek with other children in her Phoenix home.
On Thursday, her death was ruled a homicide after detectives found a pattern of horrifying abuse, including forcing the little girl to eat dog feces, making her sleep on the shower floor and forcing her to exercise barefoot outside in the blistering heat.
Cops said Ame was routinely put in the locked box, which was less than 3 feet long, 14 inches wide and about a foot deep, as punishment.
Her final offense before her death was deciding to take a Popsicle without permission, police said.
The little girl’s cousins John and Samantha Allen, both 23, confessed to locking her in the box the day she died. They have been charged with first-degree murder.
Ame’s aunt and legal guardian, Cynthia Stolzmann, 44, and her grandmother Judith Deal, 62, told authorities they previously punished her by placing her in the box. The two face child abuse and kidnapping charges.
Investigators said Ame, just 59 pounds, was found dirty and wearing soiled clothes.
“This child died at the hands of those who were supposed to love and care for her,” Sgt. Trent Crump, a spokesman for Phoenix police, told Reuters. “This case has turned the stomachs of some of the most seasoned detectives.”
Seymour police officer arrested for on-duty DUI www.privateofficer.com
“The Seymour Tribune” reports 38 year-old Officer John C. Newcomb, of Salem was arrested after the 1992 Ford Ranger he was driving north on Indiana 135 in Salem sideswiped a 1994 Pontiac Firebird and left the road, hitting a tree, late Wednesday.
Newcomb was pulling a DARE trailer owned by the Seymour Police Department at the time of the wreck, which was reported at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday. The report said that Newcomb was using the trailer to move personal belongings from his Salem home to a new address in Seymour.
Newcomb, who is Seymour Police Department’s school resource officer, was booked into Washington County Jail in Salem at 12:55 a.m. Thursday on a charge of operating while intoxicated. According to the report, Newcomb had a blood alcohol content of 0.14. The legal limit in Indiana is .08.
Newcomb was released from the jail at 8:47 a.m. Thursday after posting a $300 cash bond. Seymour Police Chief Bill Abbott said he is awaiting a report from the Indiana State Police and a chance to speak with Newcomb before making any recommendation about the matter or Newcomb’s future with police department to the Seymour Board of Public Works.
Social Security Administrator employee leaks hundreds of numbers www.privateofficer.com
“It certainly is one important part of our identity that is required in quite a few places,” said resident Sandy Lytle. However, those nine numbers can be valuable in the hands of thieves.
“It’s becoming more and more of a problem out here,” said Lytle. She came home to West Memphis, Arkansas after 35 years. She was stunned to find out that 30-year-old Leeanna Morgan was charged with a federal complaint.
“I’m very concerned,” said Lytle. U.S. Attorney Chris Thyer said the service rep allegedly leaked Social Security information from the West Memphis office. “You get that all the time in the big cities, but a small town like this, my hometown, [it] kind of tugged at my heart right away,” said Lytle.
Thyer said Morgan accessed the social security database and passed the information on to another person. “They had a little operation going on here,” said Lytle. “She was a fronter and she had someone else: a closer.”
Thyer said in a statement, “Government employees with access to personal identification information have a duty to the citizens of this Country to protect that information.”
Lytle added that she’s relieved to know her social security info is, in fact, secure. “Awesome work,” said Lytle. “Whoever did it, hats off to them for doing their job.”
For information on protecting your identity: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/
Three people arrested for kidnapping, raping Nashville tourists www.privateofficer.com
Nashville TN July 31 2011 Three people are in custody and Metro Police are working to identify a fourth in connection with the kidnapping and rape of four Lawrence County women after they left a downtown nightclub in the early morning hours of June 5.
Jesse L. Roberts, 23, of Claiborne Street, surrendered at police headquarters this morning after learning that he was wanted on arrest warrants charging him with four counts of aggravated kidnapping and one count of aggravated rape.
Two 17-year-olds have been arrested and charged in juvenile court with four counts of aggravated kidnapping, three counts of aggravated rape and one count of unlawful gun possession each.
One of the teens was arrested Tuesday and the other was arrested on July 19.
The Tennessean does not identify juvenile suspects unless they are charged in adult court. The paper also does not identify victims of sex crimes.
The District Attorney’s Office is requesting that the cases against the teens be transferred to adult court, police said.
According to the police account, the victims, one 29-year-old, one 28-year-old and two 19-year-olds, all related, met up with Roberts and the two teens as they walked on Second Avenue toward their car.
When the women got to the vehicle, the three men rushed the car and got in. The victims initially protested, but relented when the men said they would gas up the car if the victims would give them a ride home.
After the suspects purchased gas for the victims’ car at a market on Main Street, the 29-year-old drove the men to Roberts’ home at 89 Claiborne Street. When the victims tried to leave, two of the suspects pulled guns and ordered them inside the residence, where all four were raped over the course of a few hours, police said.
They were later allowed to leave, drove downtown and called police at 7 a.m. on June 5.
The victims told police a fourth man entered the Claiborne Street home once they were already there. Efforts are continuing to confirm that man’s identity, police said.
Anyone with information about the case or the fourth suspect is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 74-CRIME.
Many surprised when armed guards assigned to library www.privateofficer.com
Maricopa County AZ July 31 2011 Maricopa County’s decision to place armed security guards at the Southeast Regional Library in Gilbert has drawn the ire of top town officials, who say the county acted unilaterally and refuses to negotiate.
Frustrated by what Town Council members say is the county’s strong-armed action, members on Thursday said they’ll begin looking at alternatives for operating the library, including privatization or a takeover.
Library employees say they’ve seen a rise in incidents including threats to librarians and theft since funding for guards was cut last year, prompting the county to reinstate the guards at a cost of $120,000. To help cover the cost, the county plans to close the libraries on Sundays.
The decision to use armed guards has upset some residents and won the praise of others.
Vice Mayor Jenn Daniels said the current agreement, which allows the county to run the library while the town provides funding, concerns her for three reasons: safety, liability and communication.
“It is extremely important for us to have constant and consistent communication, and, unfortunately, that’s not what it sounds like we’re getting at this point with the county,” Daniels said.
Town Manager Collin DeWitt said Gilbert staffers are trying to reopen dialogue with the county, but county officials have canceled future meetings with the town.
The Maricopa County Library District operates two libraries in Gilbert: the Southeast Regional Library, at Guadalupe and Greenfield roads, and the Perry Branch Library, near Queen Creek Road and Val Vista Drive.
Last fiscal year, the town became fully responsible for funding the libraries’ budgets, $2,317,200 for the Southeast Regional and $957,600 for Perry. An intergovernmental agreement between the town and the county expired July 1, leaving the relationship’s future in limbo.
Daniels suggested the town negotiate a one-year agreement with the county, which would continue to run the libraries short-term. The contract would include a 30-day cancellation clause in case the town moves in a different direction.
“If we’re paying the entire bill . . . I do believe that we should have more say in what happens,” Councilman Jordan Ray said.
A final decision won’t likely come until 2012, giving town staffers time to work through various scenarios.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate to leave the libraries tomorrow,” Ray said. “There’s lots of due diligence to do.”
For now, it appears the armed guards will stay at the Southeast Regional Library, but Gilbert will urge the county to keep it open on Sundays.
“Do whatever you can to work with the county to not close on Sundays,” Daniels told town administrators. If that requires more funding, the measure may come back before the council at its Aug. 18 meeting.
Gilbert resident Theresa Reddy saw a permanent need for the security guards and described a recent incident where the reinstated guards played a key role.
A toddler was screaming “I want my mom!” as a man dragged her toward the exit doors, Reddy said. Although citizens might be hesitant to get involved, and library staff may not be available to call the police, the security guard was able to help sort out the situation, she said.
“You have homeless people that love Gilbert, and the library is a wonderful place to park,” Reddy said. “Some of these people are undesirable characters, unfortunately. I think having someone there in uniform is helpful.”
But Gilbert resident Jerry McBee, a regular at council meetings, said he fears an armed guard’s presence could escalate a confrontation into a shooting.
“How many casualties are we going to take in that process?” McBee asked. “And we’re going to be liable.”
McBee said he supports a town takeover of the library.
“And we tell the county to go pound sand, stack BBs in the corner, or whatever else they want to go do,” McBee said.
At Monday’s study session, Ray said County Supervisor Fulton Brock was open to the idea of town control.
“Supervisor Brock’s comment was, ‘If you guys can run it cheaper than we can, that’s great for the taxpayers. Let’s move that way,’” he said.
Source:www.azcentral.com
Burglar has bad judgment or just plain bad luck www. privateofficer.com
“I got home from work and looked at my desk and some papers had been moved, and I looked to the right and there were two pieces of mail on the floor,” Proctor said. “I thought hmm, the cat picked up the mail and moved it. I went over and picked up the mail and flipped it over and that’s when I saw her name and address.”
It turns out the alleged burglar, Kelly Diane Joiner, lived right across the street and had left her mail in Proctor’s home.
It didn’t take Proctor long to put everything together. After all, she’s got plenty of practice going after the bad guys: she’s the Chief Assistant Solicitor General for Douglas County.
“My county car was parked there every night with county decals and a county tag and a county sticker on the back of it,” she said. “She should have been able to know that I was, at the very least, a county employee.”
For thieves, Proctor’s home is double trouble: she rents the house from Douglas County Sheriff’s Captain Kevin Hensley.
“We hear about these stories on the radio and on the news about how criminals make mistakes, like they go to rob a bank and leave their driver’s license behind,” Proctor said.
“I honestly thought when I saw her mail: oh good grief, sounds like one of those stories that you hear all the time.”
Joiner is facing one count of burglary and one count of criminal trespassing. Officers say she stole and pawned thousands of dollars worth of jewelry. They believe drugs played a role in the burglary.
Source 11alive
Suspicious device shuts down community college www.privateofficer.com
Coos Bay OR July 31 2011 – A suspicious device shut down part of a Coos Bay college campus Friday.
Someone walking through a wooded area at Southwestern Oregon Community College noticed it a little before 10 a.m.
Coos Bay police and campus security blocked off part of campus, while a bomb squad made its way from Salem.
Officers say it looked like an explosive, but they couldn’t tell whether it was live.
Bomb technicians rendered the device safe, and removed it for further examination.
Captain Cal Mitts of Coos Bay police said, “At this point, we really can’t disclose much more information.
Even after we’ve diffused the situation out here, we’re still going to be investigating it for a while.”
No buildings were closed.
Officers say there’s no way of knowing how long the device was there, before someone spotted it.
The investigation is open; no arrests have been made.
Anyone with information about the device or how it got there is asked to call Coos Bay police.
Source:KMTR
San Francisco Giants might use falcons to stop unwanted guests www.privateofficer.com
SAN FRANCISCO CA JULY 31 2011 — The San Francisco Giants always draw a crowd when they play at home, but a bunch of flying party crashers are creating a bit of a mess. Seagulls and pigeons who can’t wait for a free meal are pestering fans.
The Giants say their seagull problem is beginning to cause quite a flap around the stadium. The scavengers are showing up earlier, and taking more liberties. But help could soon be taking wing. The Giants are considering hiring a falconry team to help the seagulls find the door.
“You get to use the falcons and hawks where you can’t use any other type of bird abatement where you don’t want to kill them,” says Wingmaster Falconry’s Jim Fustos.
The company uses falcons and hawks to intimidate birds from landfills, shopping malls and even resorts. Wingmaster owner Steve Vasconcellos says the key is training his birds to train the seagulls. For instance, Vasconcellos says his birds would be trained to intimidate but not attack.
“It’s the presence of the falcon in anaggressive flight mode that actually stimulates that fear factor in the seagull,” he says.
The Giants say they’re weighing the options, including trying to get falcons to set up house on a light pole.
Don’t even think about stealing these towels www.privateofficer.com
ATLANTA GA JULY 31 2011 To keep robes and towels from checking out, a small but growing number of hotels are starting to use new radio frequency chips to keep track of their inventory.
RFID technology stands for Radio Frequency IDentification and requires an installed chip that can be read by an electronic reader. It has been used by various industries for several years to organize product storage and tally shipments.
With cotton prices rising and fewer employees in housekeeping, hotels are using the tech to monitor the whereabouts of bathrobes, bed sheets, duvet covers, bathmats, pool towels, and banquet linens.
About 5% to 20% of linens at hotels typically go missing, estimates William Serbin of Linen Tracking Technology. The company, which sells trackable linens, has teamed with Fluensee, an inventory tracking technology firm, to market RFID tags to hotels. A towel with a chip is about a dollar more than other towels, he says.
Bendable and washable, the tags can be read by sensors up to six feet away. When towels are removed from a closet, for example, a reader station can register how many, so that the closet can be re-stocked.
Some tags are sewn into the fabric. Others are in a rubber case.
Theft by guests is a factor but not the primary concern, says Jeff Welles of InvoTech, a firm that sells linen chips to hotels.
Like a sock that gets lost in the dryer, linens often go missing when they’re shipped to outside laundries. And, Welles says, they’re difficult and time-consuming to keep track of. Hotels can also use the system to ensure their laundry bill is correct.
“When you’re sending them in and out, everything gets mixed up,” he says. “There’s no way for hotels to know what they sent to launder. It’s a tremendous problem.”
The tracking system also enables an accurate count of towels and linens stored in the closet on each floor, triggering more efficient room service, says Tim Harvie, CEO of Fluensee. He says his chips are used by more than two dozen hotel customers.
While tracking linens is appealing, says Scott Mitchell, director of room product development for Marriott International, the tagging is too expensive for now to be widely embraced by the industry. “It’ll have to come down in price,” he says.
Dunkin Donuts employee blew his nose into police officers coffee www.privateofficer.com
JAFFREY, N.H.July 31 2011 — A former Dunkin’ Donuts employee has been accused of adding “nasal mucus” to the coffees of two Jaffrey police officers.
According to police, on June 19 two police officers went to the Dunkin’ Donuts on Peterborough Street and ordered two cups of coffee from 20-year-old Christopher Hildreth.
Authorities said Hildreth grabbed two coffee cups, then went to the back room to make the coffee. The officers said in the affidavit that they found the behavior odd since they had ordered coffee from Hildreth before and had never seen him go out back to make coffee.
The officers were able to watch Hildreth from a store-front video monitor that shows a view of the back room, police said. The officers said they watched Hildreth put nasal mucus into the cups.
The officers did not say anything to Hildreth but later returned the coffees and contacted the manager to review the surveillance tapes.
The store manager reviewed the tape and terminated Hildreth shortly after viewing them.
Hildreth has been charged with two counts of attempted simple assault.
Source:www.thebostonchannel.com
Six men attack-brutally beat man during Tim McGraw concert www.privateofficer.com
Michael J. Skehill, 19, of Westwood, was attacked from behind and thrown to the ground during the Sunday show, police said. The man who jumped on Skehill punched him in the ribs and another man kicked him in the head, witnesses told police.
Mansfield police said they obtained arrest warrants for six suspects Thursday morning, and by late afternoon, four were in custody. Two other men were arrested early Friday.
Perry M. DiMascio II, 20, was ordered held without bail after his bail on a pending drunken driving case was revoked. He also faces charges of passing a counterfeit $20 bill at the Comcast Center at a previous concert.
Kevin A. Anderson, 21, was ordered held with bail set at $5,000 cash. He faces a probation violation hearing for a previous alcohol-related case.
DiMascio and Anderson were also charged with assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon: a shod foot. Police said they kicked the victim.
Michael Adams, 21, was ordered held in with bail set at $5,000 cash. He faces a probation violation hearing related to a previous alcohol-related case and faces charges of keeping a disorderly house related to a college party.
Brendan C. McCulloch, 22, was ordered held with bail set at $5,000 cash, which the judge set citing a 2008 assault case.
Bail for Daniel Morizio, 21, and Shane A. Dossantos, 20, were each set at $2,500 cash.
Skehill, a graduate of Xaverian Brothers High School, was flown to Boston Medical Center where he underwent surgery to remove his spleen. A pancreas injury is preventing him from eating, and he was put in a medically induced coma.
Police said the incident appears to have started over a girl, who briefly asked Skehill a question about a tattoo he has, and they said it was likely exacerbated by underage drinking.
“He would have died. He had lost two liters of blood and, basically, he would have died,” said Skehill’s mother, Carol, explaining that her son was saved by a security guard and an EMT who acted quickly to save him.
Police said several young men blindsided Skehill near the top of the lawn section during the concert Sunday night. Skehill’s mother said he doesn’t remember much about the attack.
“He remembers being beat up and he remembers trying to protect himself at this point because there was really nothing else he could do,” Carol Skehill said.
Police said witnesses “disgusted” by the attack came forward naming the suspects, all described as men in their early 20s. Skehill said if not for their help, it’s unlikely arrests would have been made.
“There’s no surveillance cameras there, you know, there’s 7,000 people out on the lawn. You know, how are they ever going to find these people?” Carol Skehill said. “I’m so glad. I mean, people don’t step up anymore and those people did. And we’re really grateful.”
Source:www.thebostonchannel.com
Shoplifter fights with security during escape attempt www.privateofficer.com
Murrieta CA July 31 2011 A fight with security guards at the Promenade mall landed a Murrieta man behind bars.
Gerric Donahoe, 31, was allegedly caught shoplifting by security guards at Macy’s department store around 4:30 p.m. Thursday, according to sheriff’s Cpl. Courtney Donowho.
He got in a fight with the guards who tried to detain him, but was arrested shortly by Temecula deputies, Donowho said.
Donahoe allegedly had drugs, paraphernalia and a pair of scissors on him deputies suspect he was using to steal things, the corporal said.
He was booked at the Southwest Justice Center on suspicion of burglary, possession of burglary tools, possession of controlled substances and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to jail records.
Bail was set at $5,000, and he was still behind bars this afternoon, according to the records.
Guardsmark sued for overtime violations www.privateofficer.com
San Jose, CA (PRWEB) July 31, 2011
A wage and hour class action lawsuit was filed on May 16, 2011 in Northern California against security guard company Guardsmark by the San Jose employment attorneys at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik. The security guard wage and hour overtime lawsuit was filed in Santa Clara Superior Court and is entitled Houle v. Guardsmark, Case No. 111-CV-200976. Click here to read a copy of the wage and hour class action complaint filed against Guardsmark.
According to the class action complaint, “GUARDSMARK systematically failed to record and pay [Security Guards] minimum wages, wages for all hours worked and overtime wages” in violation of the California Labor Code. The complaint further alleges that the security guard company “intentionally and unlawfully failed to pay the security guards for time spent conducting mandatory security training.” One of the main contentions in the class action lawsuit is that “the mandatory training was not independent of employment with GUARDSMARK and was performed all to the detriment of the Security Employees and to the benefit of GUARDSMARK.” As a result, the security guards claim they were “not compensated at the applicable minimum and overtime wages for this unpaid training time.”
The complaint against Guardsmark filed by the San Jose employment attorneys at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik also alleges that Guardsmark “unlawfully deducted earned wages from the Security Employees’ hourly compensation for uniform maintenance pay in violation of California Labor Code Section 221.” According to the complaint, after “deducting earned wages from the payments made by GUARDSMARK to the Security Employees and failing to pay them compensation for all earned wages, GUARDSMARK systematically miscalculated the overtime wages due” to the security guards. Moreover, the complaint filed by the employment attorneys alleges that “GUARDSMARK also failed to indemnify and reimburse the Security Employees for required expenses incurred in the discharge of their job duties” such as uniform maintenance pay.
Las Vegas jail inmate murders cell mate www.privateofficer.com
LAS VEGAS NV July 30 2011– Las Vegas police say an inmate was murdered by his cell mate.
18-year-old Carl Guilford has been charged with murder that happened early Friday morning at the Clark County Detention Center. Guilford was in jail accused of murdering his nephew.
Police say at 1:20 a.m. Friday morning, a jail guard was conducting routine checks and found an injured inmate. The officer entered the cell and found the male inmate unconscious and unresponsive with head trauma.
Emergency medical assistance was performed, but the inmate died at the scene.
Homicide investigators say the inmate had become involved in a fight physical altercation with Guilford. During the fight, Guilford allegedly beat the inmate and stabbed him with a pencil.
Guilford will be charged with murder for this crime. He was being held for the May 26 slaying of his nephew, which occurred on Desert Inn Road near Maryland Parkway.
Police say this is the murder of an inmate at the Clark County Detention Center since January 1979, when Patrick McKenna strangled his cell mate. McKenna remains on death row within the Nevada State prison system for that crime.
The identity of the deceased inmate, and the exact cause and manner of his death, will be released by the Clark County Coroner’s Office.
NC hospital patient arrested for raping medicated patient www.privateofficer.com
Gaston NC July 30 2011 A man with a history of violence against women is charged with raping a patient who was heavily medicated at a Gaston County hospital, reports the Gaston Gazette.
Howard Evan Gillespie Jr., 44, of Gastonia was being held in Gaston County jail, charged with second-degree rape.
Gastonia police told the Gazette that Gillespie was also a patient at Gaston Memorial Hospital on July 20 when he raped the woman.
The victim, who did not know Gillespie, was rendered “physically helpless” because of medication, but she was not entirely unconscious, police told the Gazette.
Gillespie has a long criminal record beginning in the early 1980s with convictions such as larceny, resisting an officer and felony breaking and entering, according to the N.C. Department of Correction. He’s been convicted of assault on a female three times since 1997.
He was released from prison in February after serving about a year and a half for convictions of habitual misdemeanor assault, according to the DOC.
Source:www.charlotteobserver.com
San Quentin prison guard arrested for pharmacy robbery www.privateofficer.com
LODI, CA July 30 2011- A San Quentin correctional officer was arrested Tuesday as a suspect in an armed robbery at a Lodi Rite Aid.
Daniel Duffy, 26, was arrested after he allegedly walked into the pharmacy at 520 W. Lodi Avenue around 5:40 p.m. threatened the clerk with a gun and demanded Oxycotin, Lodi police Det. Eric Bradley said.
The clerk gave Duffy the Oxycotin, who then fled the scene, Bradley said. The clerk called police and told them he recognized Duffy by name.
Duffy was arrested by police as he left his home, Bradley said.
Duffy has worked at San Quentin State Prison for nearly four years.
Police arrest 2 in Jackson security officer murder www.privateofficer.com
JACKSON, Miss.July 30 2011 – Police have charged two men and are looking for a third in connection with a shooting at a convenience store that killed a security guard and injured a clerk.
Early Tuesday morning, 54-year-old James McKinney was killed and a 26-year-old Suvin Sharth was shot during a robbery attempt at the Shell gas station on Fortification Street, police said.
Police said surveillance video shows two masked, armed men entering the store and then opening fire. Officer Colendula Green said McKinney returned fire and was shot once in the torso and once in the left arm. He died as a result of his injuries. Sharth was shot in the leg and was taken to the University of Mississippi Medical Center. He has been released from the hospital.
After seeing the surveillance video that aired on 16 WAPT News and other news outlets, a Hinds County sheriff’s deputy recognized the vehicle used in the shooting and called the Jackson Police Department. He said that he had stopped the car about a week prior and recorded the names of those inside the vehicle and also the license plate number. He also told police that there was a 9 mm handgun in the trunk. Police said the same type of weapon was used in the shooting.
Through tips from the deputy and Crime Stoppers, police identified Aaron McNair, 23, and Kameron Woodard, 21, as suspects in the shooting and attempted robbery, police said.
On Thursday, police tracked McNair to Clinton, La., where he was arrested on Wednesday after running a stop sign in the vehicle police said was used in the crime in Jackson. McNair is charged with capital murder and aggravated assault and will be held in Louisiana until he is extradited to Mississippi, police said.
Friday morning, the U.S. Marshals Service arrested Woodard in Jackson. He is also charged with capital murder and aggravated assault, police said.
Police said a third arrest is forthcoming. Additional details weren’t immediately available.
Source:www.wapt.com
Police arrest man walking into Texas airport with loaded gun www.privateofficer.com
Harold Vincent Gillen, 63, initially walked into the terminal July 13 with an empty shoulder holster, McAllen police said.
Gillen approached a U.S. Transportation Security Administration official and asked how to get past the checkpoint, according to court documents. He also asked a U.S. Border Patrol agent stationed there about carrying a weapon inside the premises.
The TSA official told Gillen about the proper paperwork needed and the agent told him he could not be carrying a weapon, public records show. Gillen then headed out to the short-term parking lot and authorities alerted a McAllen police officer, also stationed at the airport, about the suspect.
A second Border Patrol agent saw Gillen get into a gray 2006 Cadillac STS with Kansas licenses plates and reported seeing him drive up and down the parking lot’s aisles, according to public records.
Gillen returned to the terminal, this time with a .40-caliber Berretta in his holster, police said. Gillen does not have a concealed handgun license and the magazine held 10 rounds.
A Border Patrol agent who spotted Gillen drew his gun and handcuffed him, public records show. Gillen, who was dressed in civilian clothing, had a security guard badge on his belt, but police said he is neither a security guard nor a peace officer.
The agent took Gillen into the airport’s operations office, where he consented to having his vehicle searched, police said. Authorities found three boxes of .40-caliber ammunition in the Cadillac’s trunk.
Gillen told police he placed the gun in the holster when he went to his vehicle, public records show. He said he tried leaving the parking lot but his parking ticket didn’t work; that’s when he walked back into the terminal with the loaded gun.
A McAllen municipal judge charged Gillen on July 13 with unlawful carrying of a weapon, a Class A misdemeanor, and assessed him a $5,000 bond.
If convicted, he could face up to a year in county jail and/or a fine of up to $4,000
Hospital security nab man breaking into ambulance www.privateofficer.com
Denton TX July 30 2011
Police say a hospital scrubs-clad man caught breaking into an ambulance outside a Denton hospital early Thursday may be linked to similar crimes in the area.
The 43-year-old man, jailed on a misdemeanor vehicle burglary charge, is a suspect in two other ambulance burglaries in Denton this month and similar cases in at least two other cities, Lewisville and Coppell, said Ryan Grelle, a spokesman for the Denton Police Department.
The man was being held Thursday afternoon in lieu of $10,000 bail.
“Right now he’s charged with one burglary of a motor vehicle from last night,” Grelle said. “He’s a suspect in the others, but he’s refusing to talk to the detectives. We’re trying to piece everything together.”
The arrest occurred after 1 a.m. Thursday in the 3000 block of North Interstate 35. An off-duty police officer working security at the hospital saw the suspect opening doors to an ambulance that had just delivered a patient to the emergency room, according to police reports.
The suspect first said he was trying to locate the patient but quickly changed his story and said he was looking for paramedics so he could inquire about a job, according to police reports. The suspect said he was a paramedic but offered vague and conflicting information about his work history, according to the reports.
Police had been told to be on the lookout for a man driving a silver Jeep who was suspected in ambulance burglaries at area hospitals. The suspect’s vehicle matched the description, and he was arrested after he tried to walk away from the officer questioning him, according to police reports.
The two earlier Denton cases involved stolen medical kits. Nothing was reported missing from the ambulance in the latest case.
Virginia security guard impersonated a police officer www.privateofficer.com
SUFFOLK, Va. July 30 2011 - A former security guard and convicted felon is accused of impersonating a police officer in Suffolk.
Eugene Johnson, III, 22, of the 700 block of Eric Court, was arrested on July 27 and charged with impersonating a police officer, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, reckless driving, and having impermissible lights, according to Suffolk police spokesperson Debbie George.
On July 26, a Chevrolet Impala with a blue light activated was observed in the 1000 block of Hosier Road traveling recklessly at a high rate of speed.
George said the vehicle was traced back to Johnson, and he identified himself to police as a DCJS certified security officer. Police said his certification has since expired.
A search warrant was conducted on Johnson’s vehicle. Police believe some of the items inside the vehicle were stolen. The items included a jacket with POLICE displayed on the back, a bullet proof vest, and a portable radio.
Police believe Johnson formerly worked as a security guard and for hotels in the Hampton Roads area.
Johnson is currently being held with no bond in the Western Tidewater Regional Jail.
Police are continuing with the investigation.
Source:WAVY.com
Richmond police officer indicted for embezzlement www.privateofficer.com
Richmond VA July 30 2011 A Richmond police officer was arraigned today on charges of embezzling more than $10,000 from two police organizations and a fund-raiser for another injured officer.
Sgt. Michael Talley was indicted on embezzlement charges by a multijurisdictional grand jury on July 20, and the indictment was unsealed today, said Tracy Thorne-Begland, Richmond chief deputy commonwealth’s attorney.
Talley, who joined the department in 2001, has been on administrative leave without pay since the investigation began about six months ago.
He was arraigned on charges of embezzling about $6,000 from the Richmond Coalition of Police and $4,000 from the Richmond Police Athletic League, which benefits area youth. The embezzlement occurred in 2009 and 2010, Thorney-Begland said.
In addition, Talley was charged with taking about $400 collected through fund-raisers last year for a fellow officer who suffered a disabling injury when a tree fell on his personal vehicle, said Thorne-Begland.
The Richmond Police Department brought the issue to the Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, and the two agencies investigated the charges jointly.
“It is a sad day when an officer is accused of wrongdoing,” Chief Bryan T. Norwood said in a statement. “I want the residents of Richmond to know that our mission remains the same – for the men and women of this department, who put their lives on the line every day, to provide the best possible service to this community.”
Source:Richmond Times Dispatch
Tenn. firefighters arrested for burning down their fire station www.privateofficer.com
Houston County TN July 30 2011 Four Houston County, Tenn. firefighters were arrested on July 22 in connection to arson fires that were set earlier this year — including one that destroyed their own fire station.
Jeremy Mackens, 19, and Robert Taylor Richardson, 20, were charged in all nine blazes that occurred between March 21 and July 19 while Michael Brooks and Daryl Buttons, both 20 year old, were charged in only the first fire set at a barn, according to The Stewart Houston Times
Makens and Richardson were held in Houston County Jail on bonds of $90,000 each while Brooks and Buttons were freed on bonds of $500 and $1,000 respectively.
Each of the suspects had been with the department for about two years.
The biggest fire that Makens and Richardson were connected to occurred at their own department’s fire station in McKinnon, which destroyed the structure and two fire trucks on March 28 and caused damages exceeding $100,000.
Houston County Fire Chief David Hardin said addressed the entire department after the arrests were made public and said that the firefighters were “extremely let down” after learning that fellow firefighters set the blazes.
“It’s like being kicked in the gut,” he told the newspaper. “We know it’s a mark on (the department) which we’ll work to overcome. We still have a lot of excellent people working for us.”
He said that he has talked to the young men and that they are “very remorseful and haven’t quite grasped the seriousness of what they did.”
Houston County Sheriff Darrell Allison said all four suspects are well-known in the community and that they were either first to respond or one of the first to respond to several of the fires.
Source:newschannel5
Female jail guards payed to marry men waiting to be deported www.privateofficer.com
Two guards, who are described as single moms, were allegedly paid $10,000 each to travel to Jamaica and the U.S. to marry deportees in a bid to sponsor them back to Canada, the former female officers with 10-years of experience at the centre said.
The women, who no longer work at Toronto Immigration Holding Centre on Rexdale Blvd., did not want to be identified claiming they fear repercussions from jail staff and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
CBSA spokesman Antonella Di Girolamo said guards at the centre are contracted out to a private firm, which refused comment.
“There is no merit to these unfounded allegations,” Di Girolamo said on Thursday.
The security guards are “subject to the government security screening process,” she said.
She said the security guards must disclose any possible conflict of interest situation.
“They (would) be re-assigned to another work area,” Di Girolamo said.
She said if marriage fraud is suspected, the case will be referred for investigation.
”Marriage for the purpose of immigration fraud is a prosecutable offense,” Di Girolamo said.
But one of the former guards said she told management officials at the centre of the “fraternization” between female officers and detainees last year but nothing was done.
The former guards said the marriages are believed to be arranged by “unscrupulous agents,” who wined and dined the female officers after finding out where they worked.
One wedding was conducted last October after an officer travelled to Jamaica to wed a deportee who was held at the centre — where plans were hatched — before he was turfed, the women said.
A second officer travelled to Jamaica last year to get married but her deportee hubby was detained in the U.S., one of the former guards said. She returned to Canada single but travelled to Jamaica last month in a second attempt to wed the detainee, she said.
“She told everyone that she went to the U.S. for a wedding,” one of the women said. “She didn’t say the wedding was hers.”
The names of the guards have been withheld since they have not been charged with any crimes.
The women also accuse female guards of fraternizing with male detainees and allegedly smuggling them banned items that were purchased outside the centre.
The centre houses more than 100 detainees, including families with children, who are awaiting deportation from Canada. Teachers attend the facility weekly to teach Canadian-born children awaiting deportation with their parents.
Costco Wholesale enters partnership with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement www.privateofficer.com
Seattle WA July 30 2011 Issaquah-based Costco Wholesale has entered a partnership with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to ensure its current and future employees who are immigrants are legally allowed to work in the U.S.
One of the nation’s largest retailers, Costco joined 12 other Washington employers in participating in the free and voluntary program, called ICE Mutual Agreement between Government and Employers (IMAGE).
ICE trains program participants on proper hiring — including how to spot potentially fraudulent employment documents, and it conducts audits of their employment records to ensure current employees are legally allowed to work.
IMAGE participants use a Social Security-number verification service, as well as the Department of Homeland Security’s E-Verify to screen documents of new hires against Social Security Administration and Homeland Security records.
Joel Benoliel, senior vice president and chief legal officer for Costco said by partnering with the government “we set high standards for other U.S.-based companies.”
He said Costco was asked to participate because audits of its employment records show the company is in strong compliance with employment laws.
ICE officials hope Costco’s participation might encourage other employers to join. Started five years ago, IMAGE has only 100 employer members nationwide, including Tyson Foods.
Seattle’s Swedish Medical Center signed an agreement earlier this month. Tacoma-based TrueBlue, formerly Labor Ready, is also a participant.
In a prepared statement, Leigh Winchell, ICE’s special agent in charge in Seattle said, “This action sends a strong message to the millions of Americans who do business with Costco that the company places a priority on hiring and employing a legal work force.”
Costco currently operates 427 warehouses in the United States and Puerto Rico.
The company employs more than 140,000 people, including seasonal workers.
Source:Seattle Times
Fake guard dupes check cashing business out of $15,000 www.privateofficer.com
Queens NY July 30 2011
Police are searching for a clever thief in Queens who scammed a check cashing business out of almost 15,000.
Investigators say the man walked into Lorenzo’s Enterprises in Astoria Friday dressed in an armored car company uniform.
He said he was there for a pickup and an employee handed over $14,800 in cash.
It wasn’t until the real guard came in for the scheduled pickup that the store realized they had been robbed.
Police say the phony guard is around 33 to 34 years of age, and was last seen in a GARDA Armored Courier uniform.
Anyone with information about the case is being asked to contact Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-577-TIPS, by texting TIP577 to CRIMES, or by going to NYPDCrimeStoppers.com.
Alabama attorney found shot to death www.privateofficer.com
SYLACAUGA, Alabama July 30 2011– A Talladega County lawyer was found shot to death in his home Wednesday night, hours after his burning car was found in Tarrant, authorities said this afternoon.
Sylacauga police found Blake Lazenby, 54, dead from multiple gunshot wounds in his Stonehill Road home, said Talladega County Coroner Shaddix Murphy.
Police began looking for Lazenby after his burning car was found by Tarrant police about 7 p.m. Wednesday, said Tarrant Police Chief Dennis Reno.
Reno said he did not want to release the car’s location because the Talladega County Sheriff’s Office is handling the investigation.
Tarrant police ran the tag and it turned out the car was registered to Lazenby, Reno said. Tarrant notified Sylacauga police and they began searching for him.
Lazenby is survived by a teenage daughter. He had been a member of the law practice Thornton, Carpenter, O’Brien, Lazenby, and Lawrence since 1981, said his law partner Mike O’Brien.
Lazenby specialized in civil defense law and worker’s compensation cases, O’Brien said.
“He was the nicest person you’d ever want to meet,” O’Brien said.
Efforts to reach Sylacauga police and the Talladega County Sheriff’s Office were not immediately successful this afternoon.
Source:AL.com
Bikini clad woman ejected from Wal-Mart store www.privateofficer.com
Eugene ORE July 30 2011 A trip to Walmart was no day at the beach for one shopper.
Sandi McMillin and her sister, Karla Vogt, headed to a Walmart in Eugene, Oregon on Sunday — where the temperature was pushing 90 degrees.
To fight the heat, McMillin dressed down, choosing to head to the store in a pair of red shorts and a turquoise bikini top.
Minutes into the trip, McMillin says a Walmart employee instructed her to either put a shirt on or leave the store, citing a possible health code violation.
“I was horrified,” she told KVAL News. “I am embarrassed. I hadn’t done anything obnoxious or outlandish.”
McMillin says she was then escorted outside the store.
Walmart spokesperson Ashley Hardie told KVAL that McMillin was actually not forced to leave, but that other customers had complained about the bikini-clad shopper.
“We can understand her frustration,” Hardie said. “It was not our intent to offend the customer and we have apologized to her.
“We have also reinforced with our associates our expectations of how to handle these matters.”
McMillin, who bought the turquoise swimsuit at Walmart last year, said she will never shop at the store again.
Source:www.nydailynews.com
