Archive
Wanted Dougherty siblings captured in Colorado www.privateofficer.com
DENVER CO Aug 11 2011 (AP) – The FBI has confirmed that two men and a woman wanted for crimes in Florida and Georgia have been captured.
FBI Special Agent Steve Emmett said Wednesday that the three Dougherty siblings were in custody in Colorado.
Twenty-one-year-old Ryan Edward Dougherty, 26-year-old Dylan Dougherty Stanley and 29-year-old Lee Grace Dougherty were the target of a weeklong nationwide search.
The Colorado State Patrol said the trio was captured near Walsenburg, in southern Colorado, after a short chase that ended in a crash.
Trooper Richard Krantz said they were driving a car described in a reported sighting of the siblings in Colorado Springs on Tuesday.
Miami Beach police issue new guidelines on seizure of video and cameras www.privateofficer.com
Miami Beach Fla Aug 11 2011 The Police Department issued new guidelines earlier this month prohibiting officers from searching or seizing video footage or pictures taken by the general public or members of the media who capture images of police officers doing their job in areas open to the general public, except under special circumstances.
The new policy is a reaction to a May incident when Miami Beach police allegedly confiscated video-recording equipment from a member of the public and a TV photojournalist after they witnessed officers shooting and killing a suspect on a public street.
The policy, General Order 11-03: Seizure & Search of Portable Video and Photo Recording Devices, says: “The Department recognizes that the taking of photographs and/or videos by private citizens and media personnel is permitted within areas open to general public access and occupancy.” It says civilians may record or photograph a police employee’s activities as long as they remain at a reasonable distance, don’t interfere with the employee’s duties and responsibilities, and do not create a safety concern for the employee, person detained or other persons.
The policy distinguishes between members of the public and the news media. It says police can only seize a video device or camera from members of the public without the permission of the owner when probable cause exists that it depicts visual and/or audio items pertaining to a criminal act and there are exigent circumstances, such as the danger of the imminent destruction of evidence.
It also says police officers “shall not seize portable video and photo recording devices from media personnel unless they are under arrest or directly involved in the criminal act.” The policy makes clear that a warrantless search of the video “seized incident to the direct involvement or arrest of media personnel is prohibited unless there is reason to believe that the immediate search of such materials is necessary to prevent the death or, or serious bodily injury to, a human being.”
Mickey Osterreicher, general counsel for the National Press Photographers Association, commended the new police in a letter to Police Chief Carlos Noriega, but he also offered words of caution. The NPPA provided information and guidance to the department when it was constructing the policy.
“I would like to commend you and your department for implementing [the new guidelines],” he said. “While NPPA is pleased to see that MBPD has issued this policy, the real challenge will be in the ongoing education and training of your officers. It is also critical that when violations of this policy occur — they are quickly and thoroughly investigated by your department — and employee(s) found to have violated departmental policy be properly disciplined and criminally charged if necessary.”
The policy points to the federal Privacy Protection Act of 1980, which makes it illegal for a police officer or law enforcement employee to search for or seize the work product of a media photographer or videographer unless there is reason to believe that the immediate seizure is necessary to prevent the death of, or serious bodily injury to, a human being, or there is probable cause to believe the person possessing the materials has committed or is committing the criminal offense to which the materials relate. The statute makes clear that a search or seizure of the materials is prohibited when the offense is merely withholding it.
Former Arizona bus driver guilty of sexual assault of minors www.privateofficer.com
Not until a man living with Seymour witnessed him engaged in a sex act with one of the victims and then went to authorities did his actions come to light.
U.S. District Court District of Arizona federal judge Paul G. Rosenblatt presided over the trial between June 14-16. Seymour will be sentenced Sept. 26.
A press release announcing Seymour’s conviction indicated that a single count of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor carries a mandatory minimum of 30 years in prison and a maximum of life, a $250,000 fine, or both.
“The second aggravated assault sexual abuse of a minor charge, the attempted aggravated sexual assault of a minor charge and the attempted aggravated sexual abuse of a minor charge carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.”
According to the press release, Rosenblatt has some leeway in sentencing ranges, but is bound to the 30 year minimum.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI and the White Mountain Apache Tribal Police Department.
Assistant U.S. attorneys, District of Arizona Dimitra H. Sampson and Christina J. Reid-Moore handled Seymour’s prosecution.
Court records state that on Oct. 4, 2008 the witness who lived with Seymour walked past his open bedroom door where he saw Seymour lying naked on a bed with a 10-year-old male victim.
The witness told authorities that when Seymour saw him he got up and slammed the door closed.
The witness reportedly told his girlfriend what he had seen before contacting tribal police by phone and reporting it the same day.
Tribal police responded to the call, but Seymour was not home.
They turned a written report over to BIA agents in Whiteriver for further investigation.
On Oct. 23, 2008, Seymour was advised of the allegations against him during an interview with law enforcement at which time he reportedly admitted to the incident.
On March 20, 2009 officials with the Flagstaff Medical Center conducted a forensic child interview with a male victim during which officials said the victim exhibited signs of severe emotional distress while refusing to talk about the sexual abuses Seymour had inflicted on him.
Then, on Oct. 22, 2009, the FBI received information from tribal police about allegations that Seymour had assaulted a 10-year-old female in his bedroom.
With that information in hand the FBI began a parallel investigation with tribal police.
Court records further state that during an Oct. 22, 2009 interview at the pre-school, Seymour confessed to sexually assaulting more than one child under the age of 12.
On Jan. 18, 2010, previously filed charges against Seymour for sexually abusing the 10-year-old boy were dropped by White Mountain Apache Chief Tribal Judge Reagan Armstrong who said during the trial that he had already decided that Seymour was not guilty and did not wish to hear from additional witnesses.
Armstrong said that he would rule in Seymour’s favor if the prosecution did not drop the case.
They did.
That is when a federal arrest warrant was issued for Seymour under the premise that since the case had been dropped per Judge Armstrong’s directive, Seymour would once again have direct daily contact with the witness who went to law enforcement, and to his victim(s) under the age of 12.
Seymour was questioned by FBI agents on Oct. 22 at the McNary Headstart preschool where he worked.
According to court records, Seymour’s hands were shaking during the interview and he would not make eye contact with investigators.
When asked if there might be other instances of sexual assault of a child, Seymour allegedly looked to the ground and shook his head indicating there were.
Source:white mountain independent news
TX security officer shoots at man who tried running him over www.privateofficer.com
At about 1:35 a.m., deputies were dispatched to Smiley’s Sports Bar, 9900 block of Highway 6 South in the Sugar Land area, to investigate an altercation.
Earlier, three men entered the bar, and after exhibiting what authorities said was “inappropriate behavior,” one of the men was asked to leave. Two security guards escorted the man out of the building, and at that time, the man threatened the guards, saying he was going to get a gun.
As the guards were returning to the bar, the subject had entered his vehicle and it appeared he was attempting to run down one of the guards.
At that point, the guard turned and began firing his weapon at the vehicle. The man drove his vehicle to the parking lot exit, at which time he opened the car door. Thinking the subject was going to fire a weapon, the security guard fired a few more shots, and the subject left.
The guard was unsure as to whether the subject had been struck by gunfire.
Deputies searched for the subject, believed to be driving an older model Honda Civic with tinted windows. He has not been located.
Anyone with information about the incident should call the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office at 281-341-4665.
Source:fortbendnow.com
Army National Guard recruiter guilty of rape www.privateofficer.com
Caroline County VA Aug 11 2011 A recruiter with the Army National Guard was convicted yesterday of raping a teenage girl he was trying to recruit.
Jerry Lee Robinson, 37, of Culpeper, was found guilty of rape, forcible sodomy and misdemeanor sexual battery in Caroline County Circuit Court.
The victim, from Goochland County, was 17 at the time of the rape and is now 18. She testified yesterday that she had met Robinson in June 2010 after she submitted an online application to join the Army National Guard.
At that time, Robinson was a staff sergeant first class with the Army and worked as a recruiter in the Warrenton office. He had previously served in Iraq and had received a Purple Heart.
She said that she heard back from Robinson regarding the application and agreed to meet him at her sister’s house in Hanover County to discuss the recruiting process.
She testified that during that conversation, she told him she was concerned about passing the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test, which is required for high school students wanting to enlist. She said he told her that he would personally help her study for it.
After that meeting, Robinson and the teen began to exchange text messages, which included questions like what kind of girl she was and if she had a boyfriend.
The girl testified that on June 28, 2010, Robinson, wearing his uniform and driving a National Guard car, picked her up in Hanover to take her to study at the Randolph-Macon College library.
She testified that she did study a little, but they eventually began kissing.
She testified that he later drove up U.S. 1 and turned onto a gravel road in Caroline County that led to a deserted field. There, she testified, he forced her to have oral sex and intercourse in the back seat of the car.
She said that he told her he was her boyfriend now and that she should smile, and then he took her back to Hanover. She said they continued to communicate by text message for a few days after the incident.
Investigators got involved on July 2 after a male friend in Texas told someone in the girl’s family that she told him she had been raped.
Source:fredericksburg.com
Credit and debit card “Skimming” reaches epidemic stage www.privateofficer.com
TAMPA FLA AUG 11 2011– Skimming debit and credit card numbers at gas pumps has become nearly epidemic, reports ABC Action News, with thieves making off with hundreds of numbers throughout central Florida.
“It is unsettling that we have that many victims,” says Highlands County Sheriff Susan Benton, who said it’s the worst case of credit card fraud ever reported in the area. “I think it is the crime of the future.”
Hillsborough County Sheriff’s investigators have confiscated four skimmers from Tampa-area RaceTrac stores this year alone. “They [thieves] are unlocking the door where the regular skimmer, where you put your credit card in and they attach a device you can’t see.”
Hillsborough Sheriff’s Cpl. Kevin Bodie said there’s a two-fold reason that RaceTrac stores have been targeted. “I think RaceTrac is targeted more frequently because of their access to interstate or major thoroughfare,” he said, adding that their pumps are also more vulnerable than others.
“What is unique is the keying device,” Bodie said, explaining that RaceTrac’s pumps open with the same master key.
A RaceTrac spokesperson said security changes made last year helped detected the skimming devices.
“The skimmers in our stores were found thanks to routine pump checks our associates conduct every shift. Like retailers everywhere we are constantly working with financial institutions and law enforcement to update our security measures and keep guests protected.”
NACS Anti-Skimming Solution
The WeCare decal
is a tamper-evident label that can help retailers identify potential security breaches if skimming devices are inserted at fuel dispensers or other unattended PIN-entry devices. The labels can also help retailers address some of the PCI compliance mandates that are now required.
The security labels are to be used on fuel dispensers near the credit/debit card transaction area. If the label is lifted to insert a skimming device, a “void” message appears on the label, providing a visual alert to store employees so that additional action can be taken. Because the labels clearly indicate that they are to prevent tampering, the labels help assure customers that their data is secure, and discourage criminals targeting the store.
Protect your business and your customers — order the WeCare decals for your stores today.
FACT SHEET
What is skimming?
Skimming is any attempt to acquire the data from a credit or debit card transaction. At its simplest, it is stealing credit card receipts. Today, it often involves placing a small electronic device over a terminal that the criminal later takes back to download card data. In all cases, the thieves need to open your dispenser to place the skimming device(s).
Is skimming a particular problem at convenience stores/gas stations?
The incidence of skimming at the fuel island is over-exaggerated, as industry data points to retail environments where the consumer gives up possession of the card as the biggest source of skimming. In fact, according to the 2009 Verizon Business Data Breach Investigations Report, the real risk to consumers isn’t retail at all; 93 percent of compromised accounts occurred at breaches within financial institutions. The simple fact is that criminals go “where the money is,” and complicated, site-based hacks of retailers is a high-risk, low-yield proposition.
Consumer Reports magazine and other publications have suggested that customers use signature debit, instead of PIN, to minimize the risk. Is this good advice?
The recommendation that consumers not use their PINs when paying is erroneous at best, and could increase consumer risk of compromise, overdrafts and increases retail prices.
Industry data shows that card transactions without PINs have a six times greater chance of being compromised – which is why PIN usage is the de facto standard for world payments. Consumers who choose not to use a PIN are also at risk for overdraft fees that occur when their bank does not remove debit holds from their account in a timely fashion. Signature-based transactions are processed on the antiquated Visa and MasterCard systems that do not process in real-time, versus the instant operation of PIN debit. Not using PIN also increases the cost of the transactions, which is passed back to the consumer. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City documented that a $50 transaction processed with a PIN cost the retailer 49 cents, while the same transaction processed without a PIN cost the retailer 68 cents – a cost difference of 19 cents.
The assertion that “a lot of gas pumps use older technologies, so PIN codes are not encrypted” is totally unsupported by the facts. With the introduction of master session encryption technology in the early 1990s, fuel dispensers have been required by Visa and electronic funds transfer networks to encrypt PINS or not accept PIN debit. In fact, every one of the estimated 6 million fuel dispenser terminals installed today accepting PIN debit encrypts PIN numbers – as has been the case for the past 15 years. The convenience and petroleum retail segment has invested more than $5 billion in payment systems and technology to provide a safe, fast and accurate card payment experience for consumers.
How can a retailer check if terminals are being skimmed?
Unless you are a trained dispenser technician, you probably can’t tell. We recommend serial-numbered security strips and periodic inspections of them. The idea is to know if the dispenser has been accessed – if a strip is broken, then shut down the dispenser and call in a tech to inspect the pump.
How can retailers minimize the risk of being skimmed?
Here are three simple steps:
Use serialized security strips over all access doors you wish to protect.
Re-key the locks on dispenser doors that have access to electronic payment data.
Consider investing in anti-breach kits for dispensers. Manufacturers now offer anti-breach kits, which generally notify and shut down dispensers that are accessed without proper security code entry. This can be expensive, but is the ultimate line of defense.
What should a retailer do if there is an incident?
Stop the bleeding. Take the dispenser offline to discontinue any more transactions.
Have a tech identify the device, but do not remove or touch it. If there is no device, get it in writing from the tech and restart the dispenser.
Call the police to inspect. Remember, this is a crime scene and the perpetrators are probably doing the same thing to other retailers in the general area. Also, the Secret Service and FBI are frequently involved in large cases; let the police handle this. After the investigation, ask for a dated police report.
You don’t know if any of the cards used at the dispenser have been compromised, so don’t assume that they have been.
Do you have advice for consumers?
Use payment terminals and ATMs at established retail or banking locations, where access to the device is controlled by on-site personnel.
Use a PIN whenever you can; it reduces your risk of compromise six-fold and leads to lower retail prices.
Place reasonable limits on the daily or weekly withdrawals from ATMs.
Even the latest chip and PIN technology currently being installed outside of the United States has proven to be vulnerable to attack. The latest reports of skimming and the recent news of hundreds of company systems being hacked is irrefutable evidence that the United States needs to have a national conversation about payment, identity and access security, and how this country can lead the world to the next generation of data security, instead of following it.
Courtsey of NACS
Utah man posed as cop, sexually abused children www.privateofficer.com
Orem Police say the man, David Morris Richards, 54, posed as a police officer and lured children into his home where he would videotape them using his bathroom.
Police say that Richards gave the children snacks and drinks to where they would have to use the bathroom. There, they say Richards would record them undressing and using the toilet.
“Without getting too graphic, he would give them a lot to drink so that they would have to use the restroom,” says Orem Police Sgt. Craig Martinez. “And that’s where a lot of the photos and videos were taken — while the kids were in the restroom.”
Martinez says they found evidence on Richards’ computer. He says they do not have evidence to say if the recordings were uploaded to the internet. They believe Martinez kept the recordings for personal use.
Residents in the Orem neighborhood say that Richards made them believe he was a Utah Highway Patrol officer and he would go by the alias Lt. “D”.
Police say that Richards is a long-time resident of 17 years and that the alleged abuse has been going on for at least a year. They are hoping that more parents and children would come forward with any further information pertaining to the case.
Richards was arrested shortly after a neighbor alerted police of suspicious behaviour between Richards and other children in the neighborhood.
Richards has 19 counts against him, the most serious of which is a felony charge of aggravated sexual abuse of child.
Source:Fox News
Washington DC man sent to prison in armored car robbery www.privateofficer.com
Authorities said that Daniel Chapman was one of three heavily armed assailants who tried to rob a Brinks armored car on Feb. 12 in Northeast Washington. Chapman brandished a silver revolver during the attempted robbery, according to court papers filed by federal prosecutors Erin B. Andrews and Catherine Connelly.
But before Chapman and the others could pull off the heist near V and 31st streets NE, FBI agents and D.C. police swarmed the scene and arrested them, prosecutors said.
In May, Chapman pleaded guilty to using a firearm during a crime of violence. U.S. District Judge Richard W. Roberts sentenced Chapman to the mandatory minimum prison term.
Prosecutors said the crime was brazen and dangerous, and the robbers, armed with handguns and an AK-47, risked the lives of the car’s guards and bystanders.
“Although no one was physically harmed during the commission of this offense, the potential for violence was very real,” Connelly and Andrews wrote in court papers. “The defendant and his co-defendants were heavily armed, and the attempted robbery occurred in broad daylight near a busy metropolitan area.”
Chapman had no prior arrest record and was a high school graduate. His grandmother and mother both spoke for him at sentencing, and Chapman said the robbery was a “wake up call” to turn his life around.
“I am very remorseful for what I have done,” he said.
Two others have been charged in the robbery — Nathaniel Bailey, 57, and Ricardo Hunter, 53.
Fake bomb hoax lands 3 in Arizona jail www.privateofficer.com
PHOENIX AZ Aug 11 2011- Three African refugees were arrested after what police described as a fake bomb was found in one of their carry-on bags during security screening at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, police said Tuesday.
Phoenix police didn’t yet know what the motive was behind the Friday incident and weren’t ruling out the possibility of a terrorism connection, Phoenix police Sgt. Steve Martos told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
“We’re taking it seriously, not just because of the substance they were trying to take on board a plane, but also the 10-year anniversary of 9/11 and the proximity of that date to now,” Martos said.
Martos said that Luwiza Daman, a 51-year-old woman from Ethiopia, had the suspicious item in her carry-on bag as she tried to get through security at the airport Friday, and that Transportation Security Administration workers alerted police.
Martos described the item as an organic substance inside a container, with a cellphone taped to the outside of the container. He was unable to describe the container.
A TSA spokeswoman contacted after hours did not immediately have information about the incident Tuesday night.
A bomb squad and a hazardous materials crew found that the item was not explosive, and Martos said it could not have hurt anyone.
He said that Daman told investigators that an acquaintance gave her the item to be delivered to someone in Des Moines.
Police tracked down the acquaintance, identified as 25-year-old Shullu Gorado of Eritrea, which is next to Ethiopia. Gorado told police that he got the item from another man, 34-year-old Shani Asa, also of Eritrea, Martos said.
He said that Asa admitted to attaching the cellphone to the container, and said he was asked to have the item delivered to Des Moines.
Police have not identified the Des Moines contact who was supposed to receive the item.
Daman, Gorado and Asa all have been booked into Maricopa County jail on a charge of having a hoax device and conspiracy to obtain a hoax device. More charges may be filed as the investigation continues.
Martos did not know how long Daman, Gorado and Asa have been living in the U.S. He said Gorado and Asa most recently were living in Phoenix but did not know where Daman was living.
Martos described the incident as the first of its kind at Sky Harbor.
Source:ktar.com
Security officer shoots at bar patron www.privateofficer.com
SUGAR LAND, TX Aug 11 2011 — A security guard shot at a bar patron who allegedly tried to run him over, and deputies are now trying to track down the man in that car.
It happened around 1:30am Sunday at Smiley’s Sports Bar in the 9900 block of Texas 6 South in the Sugar Land area.
Three men had entered the bar together earlier that night. Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office officials said one of the men was asked to leave after exhibiting inappropriate behavior.
As two security guards escorted the man out of the building, the suspect threatened them, saying he was going to get a gun.
The suspect got into his vehicle outside and it appeared he was trying to run down one of the guards who was walking back into the bar.
The guard turned and began firing his weapon at the vehicle, deputies said.
According to investigators, the suspect drove to the parking lot exit and opened the car door. Officials said the security guard fired a few more shots, and the man left.
It was unknown whether the suspect was struck by any bullets. He remains at large.
Officials said he was believed to be driving an older model Honda Civic with tinted windows. Anyone with any information about this incident is urged to call FBCSO at 281-341-4665.
Source:KTRK
Snail mail quickly becoming preferred method of shipping illegal drugs www.privateofficer.com
Miami Fla Aug 11 2011 The U.S. Postal Service is quickly becoming a preferred method of shipping drugs to South Florida, as traffickers would rather pay for postage than risk their lives moving marijuana and cocaine.
Authorities say more drugs are being intercepted through the mail in the Sunshine State than in recent years as drug runners look for easier ways to get their good across the Mexican border.
“As the Border Patrol increases security on the border, it leads to smugglers using different tactics,” Miramar-based Postal Inspector Blad Rojo told the Sun-Sentinel. “You know you can put it in the mail and it’s going to get there. But we don’t want the criminals to exploit the efficiency of our postal services.”
While the amount of drugs confiscated through the mail has been dropping steadily in the last few years nationally, the amounts have been increasing in Florida.
Already 3,368 pounds of marijuana have been intercepted through June of this year, compared with 2,789 pounds last year and 2,158 pounds in 2009.
Some 44 pounds of cocaine have been intercepted in Florida through June, compared with 37 pounds in both 2009 and 2010.
Drug shipments sent through the mail generally have between 20-30 pounds of marijuana or a kilo or two of cocaine. Companies like FedEx and UPS said they have security programs in place to try to stop the flow, but keep most of their methods a secret.
“We do a good job identifying suspicious packages,” FedEx spokesman Jim McCluskey said.
Four arrested in fight that left bouncer injured www.privateofficer.com
Hoboken NJ Aug 11 2011 Several were injured after a brawl broke out early yesterday morning on Sinatra Drive in Hoboken, police say.
A woman told police that she was walking home with her boyfriend around 2:59 a.m. when they were approached by Benito Durio, 22, of Jersey City, who complimented the 23-year-old woman, reports said. She told Durio that his comments were unwelcome and that she was with her boyfriend, reports said, adding that he apologized.
As the pair walked away, Jonathan Serrano, 24, of Union City, came toward them and said to Durio, “Man, f— this sh–. I don’t care about her man,” angering her boyfriend and starting the fight, reports said.
Bouncers at The Quays, a restaurant located at 310 Sinatra Dr., saw the group fighting across the street, reports.
The group crossed the street and continued fighting on the sidewalk in front of the bar and Quays security personnel attempted to break up the brawl by physically moving the fighters back into the street, reports said.
One of the bouncers said that during the scuffle, Durio punched him in the mouth before dodging behind a 50-year-old bouncer whom he then hit behind the head with a closed fist, causing him to lose consciousness, reports said. The 50-year-old was taken to Jersey City Medical Center and had contusions on his face, a possible broken nose, a five-inch avulsion to the left side of his forehead and suffered a concussion, reports said.
Another bouncer said he tussled with two men who matched Durio and Serrano’s descriptions before running away, reports said, adding that the 32-year-old was taken to Hoboken University Medical Center after suffering lacerations to his face and body.
When cops responded to reports that a fight, possibly involving a knife, was taking place, they saw several people chasing Durio and a 29-year-old woman, reports said. The chasers told the cops that the two were involved in a fight and were trying to leave, reports said.
Durio disobeyed officers’ orders to stop but was arrested after a brief chase, reports said. He was charged with two counts of aggravated assault, possession of weapons for unlawful purposes and unlawful possession of weapons, reports said, adding that he had an open warrant for failure to appear in court.
Cops also found two open warrants for failure to appear in court for Serrano, who received no other charges, reports said, noting that Serrano had a blood stain on his shirt when cops found him and said he was leaving the scene of the fight.
Police found William Oquendo, 30, of Jersey City, at 199 River St. with blood stains on his right wrist, reports said, noting that Oquendo was not bleeding and did not appear to be injured. Oquendo told police that he was involved in the fight and was helping the bouncers, reports said.
Krystal Nobua, 23, of Jersey City, was seen arguing with Oquendo about the fight and was charged with disorderly conduct after witnesses told police that people matching both Oquendo and Nobua’s descriptions were involved in the scuffle, reports said.
Source:nj.com
Pastor Tased, woman stabbed at Alabama church www.privateofficer.com
IRVINGTON, Alabama Aug 11 2011- Mobile County Sheriff’s Officials said they have issued an arrest warrant for a man who ran for the U.S. Senate last year.
They said Simone Moore, also known as Simone De, tased the pastor of a Mobile County church Sunday.
Investigators said that triggered an all out brawl, and a woman was stabbed in the fight.
Mobile Sheriff’s Officials said it all took place Sunday at the New Welcome Baptist Church on Boe Road in Irvington.
They said pastor Daryl Riley told his music minister, identified as Simone Moore, that he was no longer needed, and gave him his final paycheck.
Deputies said Moore disagreed with the amount of the check, got into an argument, and tased Pastor Riley.
Lori Myles with the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, said, “When that happened, several other people in defense of the pastor got involved, and it just escalated from that point on.”
Sheriffs officials said that led to a fight involving Moore’s mother, Agolia, who was stabbed with a pocket knife by one of the deacons, Harvey Hunt.
Arrest warrants were issued for Moore and Hunt.
Myles said, “I’m sure, now, there are all hopefully looking back on it, saying, ‘Hmm. we could have done something a little different there.’ “
Monday afternoon, News Five went to an address listed as the home of Agolia Moore in Prichard.
No one answered the door.
Deputies said Moore needed 19 stitches in her arm.
We tried to talk to Pastor Riley as well, but his residence is listed as on both Emogene and Orleans Streets with no addresses.
Deputies said Riley has been released from the hospital, too.
No one answered the door at the church Monday, either.
But, Lashea Gray lives next door.
Gray said, “There were just some little girls running by, screaming.”
Gray said she was surprised to see such commotion at a church.
She said, “I just peeped out the window, and I saw police and ambulances. I didn’t go out to check to see what was going on.. I didn’t know what to think, at a church like that, to see all that.”
Walmart Distribution Center employee arrested for theft www.privateofficer.com
Aug 11 2011 A Walmart Distribution Center employee was arrested Saturday after a security guard found stolen camera equipment, according to Shelby police.
David Davis, 43, from the 2000 block of Rock Road in Rutherfordton, was charged with embezzlement.
He set off the security alarm at the Walmart Distribution Center and told the security guard he had two cameras. A Sony camera and camcorder were found in Davis’ lunchbox, according to the report.
Shelby police found USB cables, a power cord, wall charger and another digital camera on Davis. He told police the items fell off the line and he put them in his bag, the report states.
Davis apologized and told officers “I was going to keep it…I made a bad decision,” according to the police report.
He was arrested on a felony embezzlement charge and released on a $1,000 unsecured bond.
Source:the Star
Shopping malls brace for terrorist attacks www.privateofficer.com
BLOOMINGTON MN Aug 11 2011 AP A janitor spots a baby’s abandoned nappy-bag lying on a table in the sprawling food court at the Mall of America. A bomb-sniffing dog and a security officer are there within minutes, examining the package while nearby shoppers are held a safe distance away.
No bomb. Case closed. But that scene is repeated at the largest shopping centre in the US 150 times a month.
Years ago, lost handbags or shopping bags would just go to the lost and found. But after the September 11 attacks and a series of terror threats against malls, “we realised that bad guys don’t write ‘explosives’ on the side of packages,” said Major Douglas Reynolds.
He heads a 150-officer security force at the mall trained in Krav Maga, the official self-defence system of Israeli security forces. A plainclothes unit is solely devoted to behavioural profiling.
Terror threats against US malls – federal authorities have charged suspects in at least three terror plots since the September 11 attacks – have made huge behind-the-scenes changes to one of the most treasured American experiences: going to the mall.
Shoppers say they hardly notice the closed-circuit cameras, plainclothes officers and trained dogs.
“The average shopper, they don’t walk in and think ‘this could be the end’, ” said Don Heinzman, 77, of Elk River, Minn., having coffee with two friends at the Minnesota mall.
In 2004, an anonymous call threatening a Los Angeles plot sent more than 100 officers to protect various shopping centres.
Two Ohio men – originally from Somalia and Pakistan – are serving prison terms for a 2003 threat to bomb Columbus-area malls. Another man is serving a prison term for a similar plot against a mall near Chicago
A Massachusetts pharmacist is awaiting trial on terror charges; prosecutors said he conspired with others to shoot down shoppers in US malls and kill US troops in Iraq.
In a 2006 report, the nonprofit Rand Corporation found that there were 60 shopping mall attacks in 21 countries between 1998 and 2005 and that US malls may not be well prepared for them.
The International Council of Shopping Centres trained about 10,000 mall officers between 2003 and 2009 to better recognise terrorists and other threats. Experts at George Washington University designed the US$3 million (Dh11m) programme, which was discontinued because of a lack of money.
Paul Maniscalco, a research scientist at the university who was involved in developing the programme, called shopping malls “soft targets”.
“I think they’re as safe as any place else in the US,” he said. “Unfortunately in an open and free democratic society there are certain trade-offs. The concept of a shopping centre is a pretty complex social icon within our society. You can’t turn them into armed camps.”
Malachy Kavanagh, the spokesman for the International Council of Shopping Centres, said the threat to public places in the US is from “lone wolf” individuals.
“A big part is to be aware of who may be watching your centre,” he said. Officers have to watch for people trying to engage guards in conversation, checking for security cameras, he said.
Major Reynolds said his officers need to cultivate a balance between securing a centre and cultivating a family-friendly atmosphere. “We’re not designed to be Fort Knox,” he said.
“We need to be accessible and make people feel welcome – but still protected.”
With thousands of square metres of space and more than 20,000 parking spots, it’s difficult for his officers to see everything. He’s instituted the so-called “Ram Unit” – short for Risk Assessment and Mitigation – which is a team of plainclothes officers who perform behaviour profiling and who look for suspicious objects.
His officers don’t carry guns but can make arrests under Minnesota law.
There haven’t been any terror arrests; most calls are about shoplifters, missing children and abandoned packages. Occasionally, the officers will confront a drunk and rowdy customer.
Maj Reynolds said his officers must also be on the alert not just for terrorists, but for volatile workplace or domestic arguments that could result in a mass shooting.
The mall has a control centre where dispatchers monitor 12 closed-circuit televisions and field the 120,000 calls for service each year.
Nearby, the bomb-sniffing dogs are in a separate office. Maj Reynolds explained that he’s transitioning from tough-looking Belgian Malinois dogs (similar to German Shepherds) to English Springer Spaniels and flat-coated retrievers, so that the dogs are perceived by shoppers as less aggressive and police-like.
“These dogs break hearts all day,” he said, while patting Chuck, a four-year-old black and white spaniel.
If the client-friendly tactics sound like something out of Disney, that’s because they are.
Maj Reynolds has visited Orlando to learn from security experts there, and even uses some phrases similar to Disney’s security force.
Officers who are patrolling the mall are “on stage,” and inside the training room, there’s a large word above the door that leads to the mall: “Showtime.”
UPS worker snagged by security for theft of pain pills www.privateofficer.com
LOUISVILLE, Ky. Aug 11 2011– Police arrested a UPS worker for opening a package and removing prescription pain pills. Company security officers say they saw Nicholas Murphy open the package at the UPS facility at 911 Grade Lane. He was caught on surveillance video taking something to the restroom.
Once UPS security officers confronted him, they say they found 84 percocet-oxycodone pills in his pocket. In an arrest report, Murphy admitted to stealing the pills, going into the restroom, and emptying the pills into his pocket.
UPS security went into the restroom and found several more empty pill bottles. Murphy allegedly admitted the bottles were his.
Source:www.wlky.com
Apartment worker stabbed to death over water incident www.privateofficer.com
HOUSTON TX Aug 11 2011 – Houston police have arrested a suspect in the fatal stabbing of a worker at a southwest Houston apartment complex.
The scene unfolded around 3 p.m. inside the Westfield Apartments in the 10100 block of Forum West Drive in southwest Houston.
Police said an apartment employee was doing maintenance work in a unit when he walked to the back porch and poured out a bowl of water through the screened-in porch. A man who was sitting outside on the ground drinking a beer was hit by the water. He became enraged and got up, slashed the porch’s screen, and pulled the man outside, police said. In the argument that followed, police said the man stabbed the apartment worker to death.
“There are witnesses who are inside this apartment who see this occur, the suspect sees them, he runs into the apartment and up the third floor trying to chase after them with a knife, thankfully he was not successful in finding them, or else they may be dead,” said Houston Police Department spokesman John Cannon.
A Houston police officer arrived and tried to take the man into custody, but while she was putting him in handcuffs he pulled out the knife, police said. Her gun went off after a struggle ensued, and as she was knocked to the ground, the man escaped. The officer fired one more shot, but did not hit the man.
The officer suffered minor abrasions from falling to the ground.
Police later found the 10-inch knife at the center courtyard of the apartment complex.
After an extensive search the suspect was taken into custody late Wednesday night.
Police Tased disorderly security officer www.privateofficer.com
Milwaukee WI Aug 11 2011 A security guard at the Wisconsin State Fair was Tasered by a State Fair Park police officer attempting to question the man after a fairgoer complained that he was being “overly confrontational,” a spokeswoman for the fair confirmed Wednesday.
The man, whose name and age were not available, was arrested and terminated from his job with Contemporary Services Corp., state fair spokeswoman Patrice Harris said.
The guard, who stands more than six feet tall and weighs more than 300 pounds, was hired to check IDs at the fair’s entrance, Harris said.
After the fairgoer complained about him Tuesday a supervisor with the security firm was called but the guard became confrontational with him, she said.
When State Fair police were called three officers came to investigate and one of them asked to see the guard’s identification. The man refused to comply and became aggressive when one of the officers put a hand on his arm, Harris said.
The man jerked his arm away so hard the officer went to the ground and when the guard continued to be uncooperative he was Tasered by one of the officer’s, she said.
The guard was taken to a hospital for a medical evaluation and terminated from his job, Harris said.
He was also issued a citation, however Harris was not sure Wednesday evening what he was cited for.
Campus security nab teens after bottle bomb explosion www.privateofficer.com
ST. PAUL, Minn. Aug 11 2011- The St. Paul Police Department says two 20-year-old Hamline students were arrested Wednesday after multiple bottles were found containing household chemicals that could explode, with one detonating near the library.
According to a Hamline spokesman, security officers heard a loud bang near their building and the library at about 1 a.m. Upon investigation, officers found an “explosive device made out of a pop bottle” that had exploded.
St. Paul police said they found at least three other bottles.
Hamline security found two suspects and detained them until St. Paul police arrived to arrest and book them.
Police said both men cooperated with officers and did not intend to harm anyone or anything.
The Ramsey County Attorney will review the case and decide whether or not to press charges.
Source:Fox News
County fair worker subdued by security after urinating in public www.privateofficer.com
Butler PA Aug 11 2011 A ride operator at the Butler Farm Show is in jail today after police said he got drunk on the job and then urinated under the “Ring of Fire” fair ride.
Todd Michael Boyer, 47, who state police at Butler said has no known address, is charged with reckless endangerment in Tuesday evening’s incident in Connoquenessing Township.
Butler County Commissioner Jim Lokhaiser, the farm show’s recording secretary, said Boyer made inappropriate comments to a 20-year-old Butler woman and an 11-year-old girl.
Once a complaint was filed, Lokhaiser said Boyer grew agitated and began yelling when security officers confronted him. He described Boyer as “being out of it.”
“He was really drinking too much,” he said. “He got mouthy with some of the people and was making lewd remarks toward a couple of the girls.”
He said the incident was over within 15 minutes. After security subdued Boyer, troopers led him off the grounds, Lokhaiser said.
“We’re very fortunate that we do have excellent security and they’re on top of everything,” he said.
Lokhaiser said alcohol is not sold or permitted at the farm show. He added show security typically handles a few small incidents every year.
“Nothing to this degree, though,” he said. “We’ve had a few problems in the past with ride operators, but it wasn’t this type where you have exposure or language like that.”
After an arraignment Tuesday before District Judge Tim Shaffer in Slippery Rock, Boyer was taken to Butler County Jail. His bail is set at $20,000.
Lokhaiser said Boyer was employed by J & J Amusement, not the farm show.
TSA screener guilty in hate crime incident www.privateofficer.com
MINNEAPOLIS, MN Aug. 11 2011 (UPI) — A former Transportation Security Administration employee in Minneapolis pleaded guilty to a hate crime Wednesday in assaulting an elderly Somali man.
TSA employees provide security at the nation’s airports.
The former TSA employee, George Thompson, 64, pleaded guilty in federal court to violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.
The U.S. Justice Department said information presented during the hearing showed Thompson targeted the 83-year-old Somali because the elderly man had a red beard, causing Thompson to believe the man was a Muslim and an African immigrant.
Thompson admitted he assaulted the man solely because he was Muslim and Somali. Thompson yelled during the assault that the victim should go back to Africa, the department said.
Thompson faces up to 10 years in prison.
The department gave no other details.
Good Samaritan stops robbery of Target customer www.privateofficer.com
Canton GA Aug 11 2011 A 47-year-old Acworth man tried to rob a woman Monday morning in the parking lot of the Canton Marketplace Target, Canton Police Det. Candy Worthy said today.
The woman, whose name was not released, was loading her car around 10:52 a.m. when the suspect, identified as Daniel Edward Thomason, approached her from behind.
“The victim recalled feeling an object penetrating her back and Thomason then tried pushing her into the vehicle,” Worthy said. “The victim began resisting and Thomason grabbed her purse and sat down in the victim’s vehicle, which was unlocked and opened at this time.”
Thomason shut the car door.
As he continued to go through the woman’s purse, Worthy said the woman pushed the panic button on her car key, which locked the suspect in the vehicle.
The woman screamed for help. A man, identified only as Ryan in a WSB-TV report, entered the lot and saw the commotion.
Worthy said that man pulled Thomason out of the vehicle and “began his own investigation.
“The male citizen told Thomason to lift his shirt to show that he had not talking anything from the victim. The male citizen also checked Thomason’s pockets.”
Other witnesses called 911 and stayed in the area until Canton Police units arrived.
Thomason was arrested on charges of robbery by sudden snatch, entering auto and simple battery. He was booked into the the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center.
Georgia Department of Corrections records show that Thomason just got out of state prison on July 22 on similar charges.
“Additional charges are possible and are being looked into,” Worthy said. “Due to how upset the victim was at the scene, the stick weapon information was not realized until later.”
The woman only had minor injuries from the altercation, namely a bruised arm.
“The victim is following up with her doctor to see if she has any serious injuries to that area because of the struggle,” Worthy said.
Security stops robbery suspect from fleeing www.privateofficer.com
MAYS LANDING NJ Aug 11 2011- Egg Harbor City man was arrested for armed robbery 11 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 7 at the Atlantic City Race Track. He was reportedly dressed in camouflage, wearing black paint on his face and carrying a pellet gun.
According to police, Jared E. Gatto, 24, walked into the simulcast parlor demanding to know where money was kept. After grabbing a deposit bag from a female employee, Gatto attempted to flee the scene.
Before he could leave he was stopped by security guard Daniel Mondorf, 28, of Mays Landing and track manager Robert Ravasio, 58, of Egg Harbor Township. During the scuffle Albert Battista Jr., 66, from Egg Harbor Township, grabbed the deposit bag from Gatto.
There were no injuries during the incident and the deposit bag’s amount was unspecified.
Police said that Gatto was charged with robbery, aggravated assault with a handgun, possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose and theft. He was lodged in Atlantic County Justice Facility on $50,000 cash bail.
Source:shore news today
