Archive
Memphis security officer shot in the head in critical condition www.privateofficer.com
Investigators say the guard was manning his post inside a guard shed on the south end of the complex when the men drove up and opened fire.
The security officer was hit twice and taken to the Med and is reported to be in very critical condition.
Neighbors tell News Channel 3 this shooting a symptom of a larger problem in that complex.
“You got a lot of gang activity, grownups luring minors into gangs. I think it’s sad and I think the Memphis Police Department needs to step up hard on these gang crimes,” says Kenneth Wright.
Anyone with information about this shooting is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (901) 528-CASH.
San Antonio man pulls razor blade and threatened security guard www.privateofficer.com
New Braunfels, TX May 25 2012 – What started as a simple shoplifting charge quickly escalated into an aggravated robbery charge for a San Antonio man in New Braunfels yesterday afternoon.
At a little past 2pm yesterday a 30-year old Middle Eastern man from San Antonio tried to leave the New Braunfels Wal-Mart location on Walnut Avenue with a couple of Boost Mobile devices. But he was stopped by store security before he could actually make off with those mobile devices, and that’s when things got interesting. Instead of giving up once he was caught, the man reportedly pulled out a razor blade and threatened the security guard, who was able to wrestle away the stolen goods before the suspect fled the scene.
He got into a tan passenger car and sped away, getting onto southbound I-35. New Braunfels Police officers quickly caught up to that vehicle, stopping it on the access road of I-35 near Solms Road, where they performed what’s known as a felony traffic stop (where guns are drawn and the suspect is instructed to exit the vehicle and lie down on the ground before officers approach to handcuff him).
30-year old Jawad Khalil was taken into custody and booked on an aggravated robbery charge, which is a 1st degree felony (punishable by 5 to 99 years in prison). Bond for Khalil has not yet been set and he remains in custody at the Comal County Jail
Guard’s accident on public road while driving to work not compensable www.privateofficer.com
Indianapolis IN May 25 2012 In Indiana, a worker’s injuries in an accident on a public road are generally not compensable because the public road is open to the general public.
Case name: Arnold v. Rose Acre Farms, Inc., No. 93A02-1109-EX-874 (Ind. Ct. App. 03/27/12).
Ruling: The Indiana Court of Appeals held that a security guard was not entitled to benefits because his injury did not occur within the course of his employment.
Self-insurance group’s handling of claim may save company from liability (03/17/11)
Worker fails to land benefits after driving golf cart over ramp (09/15/11)
Smoking pot before feeding bears not prudent, but not fatal to claim (08/30/10)
Ignoring coexisting conditions can have nightmarish ramifications, expert warns (12/08/11)
Co-worker immunity protects errant driver from suit (09/13/10)
What it means: In Indiana, a worker’s injuries in an accident on a public road are generally not compensable because the public road is open to all members of the general public and the hazards and danger of his accident were common to everyone using the public road.
Summary: A night security guard for a farm was driving from his home to work on a public road. As he was making a left turn onto a gravel road that served as the entrance to the farm, he was struck by a truck. The collision occurred on the public road, but the vehicles came to rest partially in the farm’s driveway. The guard sustained multiple injuries, including broken bones and cognitive impairment. He sought workers’ compensation benefits. The Indiana Court of Appeals held that he was not entitled to benefits because his injuries did not occur in the course of his employment.
The guard recognized that the accident did not occur in the farm’s parking lot, private drive, or easement. However, he argued that the public road was an extension of the farm’s operating premises. He pointed out that anyone going to the farm had to use the public road to access the farm’s driveway. Although the farm’s property line went to the center of the roadway, the court found the public road was not part of its premises. The farm had no control over the use of the road even if it owned the soil underneath the road. The court also explained that everyone using a public road experienced the hazard occasioned by a left-hand turn against traffic.
The court concluded that the guard was not injured in the course of his employment when he traveled to work on a public road.
New Rochelle school electrician arrested for proposing sexual acts with student www.privateofficer.com
New Rochelle NY May 25 2012 Patrick Clark, an electrician working in the Buildings & Grounds department for the New Rochelle Board of Education was arrested by the Westchester County DA’s office for proposing various sexual acts he would like to engage in with what he believed to be a 15-year old girl. The “girl” was an undercover Criminal Investigator working for the Westchester County District Attorney.
Sources say that Patrick Clark was sent home from work by supervisor Anthony Rigos after the district learned of the arrest which, sources say, took place over the weekend.
Patrick J. Clark was hired April 1st, 2005. As of March 31, 2011 his salary was $87,213,
Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore announced today that Patrick Clark, 42, of 50 Highland Avenue, New Rochelle, New York, has been arraigned on a Felony Complaint charging him with one count of Attempted Disseminating Indecent Material to Minors, in the First Degree, a class “E” Felony.
According to a statement released by the DA’s office, between April 5th, 2012 and May 8th, 2012, an investigator from the Westchester County District Attorneys office, while acting in an undercover capacity, assumed the “role” of a fifteen year old female and engaged in a series of “chat” conversations with the defendant via an internet chat room.
The undercover made it clear to defendant that “she” was a fifteen years old girl. The defendant discussed specific sexual acts, in which he would like to engage with the “15 year old girl” including digital penetration, oral sex and sexual intercourse.
Clark is the fourth school district employee arrested since 2009. Jose Martinez was arrested in 2011 on charges related to repeatedly raping a student at Isaac E. Young Middle School. Dianna Wessel was arrested in 2010 after refusing to take a breathalyzer and drug test after crashing her vehicle into three parked vehicles and then flipping her own vehicle. Vito Costa was arrested in 2009 in charges related to working a no-show job in the Buildings & Grounds department.
Clark is just the latest in a series of district employees alleged to have engaged in various sex crimes involving students and district employees: Anthony Newman (Glazier, Buildings & Grounds Department) sexually assaulted a district employee in City Hall. Donna Henry (Security Guard) transmitted a nude image of a 14-year old girl to two other district employees (her son and her daughter-in-law). Suspended for 30 days with pay, hearing, given a pay increase and relocated to New Rochelle High School.
Several school employees were referred by the New Rochelle Board of Education to the Westchester County District Attorney Sex Crimes unit. Leroy Manuel (Security Guard) engaged in a sexual relationship with a student, as a result of which she became pregnant, moved to Florida and had the baby, sources say. Robert McLean (Security Guard) engaged in sex with students. Kyle Figueroa (Security Guard) engaged in sex with students. After the Jose Martinez arrest, Figueroa was caught on camera receiving oral sex from a student in area of Room 105/106. Walter Hubbard (Janitor) was terminated after being caught multiple times viewing pornography on school district computers. Also, engaged in sex with students.
Jerome Planter (Security Guard) and Geeta Singh (Security Guard) submitted falsified residency records to New Rochelle Civil Service Commission to obtain a position with New Rochelle residency requirement.
Frank DeMasi (Carpenter/Buildings & Grounds) misappropriated school equipment, converting school van and tools for personal use. Kareem Ali (Finance/Special Education) sexually harassed a senior official in the finance department; prohibited from having direct contact with the woman and not allowed to walk past a certain point in the hallway on the second floor. Ali resurfaced again when the New Rochelle Public Library discovered $300,000 unaccounted for in 2011. He has since been reassigned to Special Education department. Danielle Carter (Security Guard ) caught stealing at ShopRite grocery store on Palmer Avenue while wearing her City School District of New Rochelle security uniform. Rasool Hassan Williams (Buildings & Grounds) murdered a man in Ohio. Williams was a repeat offender for many years, drug use, drug possession. Arrested while employed by the district. Arrested for murder in Ohio three weeks after leaving employment of New Rochelle school district, convicted, sentenced to life in prison. Len Ricci (Buildings & Grounds) hired despite felony drug arrest. Phil Carino (Janitor) hung stuffed monkey on a noose, district settled lawsuit for racist behavior. Freddie Smith (Assistant Superintendent of Schools) numerous allegations of plagiarism, Doctorate revoked by University of Virginia, Fired at his next two jobs as these issues became known. Martin Freiman (Janitor): Suspended for making racist statements to children and staff at Jefferson Elementary School, long history of similar incidents. Jimmy Bonanno, Sr. (Buildings & Grounds) misappropriated school equipment and staff; directed school district employees to perform work on his girlfriend’s house in Orange County.
The defendant was arrested and arraigned in White Plains City Court. The defendant is due back in court on May 31st, 2012. Bail was set at $2,500 cash or bond.
The defendant faces a maximum sentence of four years in state prison.
Assistant District Attorney ToniAnn Gagliardi of the Investigations Division is prosecuting the case.
AR Supreme Court denies teenagers request to be tried as juvenile in murder of guard www.privateofficer.com
Christopher Beverage is charged with killing a guard during an escape from the Jack Jones Juvenile Justice Center in Pine Bluff. Prosecutors say Beverage and two other teens, Nicholas Dismuke and Brandon Henderson, escaped from the facility on Jan. 30, 2010, and that during the escape Beverage and Dismuke attacked security guard Leonard Wall, who later died from his injuries.
Beverage also allegedly attacked and injured another guard, Gloria Wilburn, and stole a vehicle from a couple at a gas station.
Beverage and Dismuke were apprehended in Fort Smith on Feb. 1, 2010. Henderson was apprehended the next day in Oklahoma.
Beverage is charged as an adult with capital murder, second-degree battery, first-degree escape, theft of property and three counts of aggravated robbery.
After he was charged, he filed a motion seeking to transfer the case to juvenile court and challenging the constitutionality of a state law that allows prosecutors to charge a juvenile defendant as an adult if the defendant is accused of committing acts at age 16 or 17 that would be felonies if committed by an adult.
Jefferson County Circuit Judge Robert Wyatt Jr. denied the motion, and Beverage appealed.
In its unanimous opinion Thursday upholding Watt’s ruling, the Supreme Court said prosecutors had sufficient reason to charge Beverage as an adult and rejected arguments that the law allowing that action was unconstitutional.
Beverage argued that the state Legislature had violated the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers by dictating court procedures. In its opinion Thursday rejecting Beverage’s appeal, the Supreme Court said the statute is “a substantive law that is rooted in public policy” and therefore falls under the purview of the General Assembly, “the policy-making branch of government.”
The court also rejected Beverage’s argument that the statute violates the equal-protection clauses of the federal and state constitutions because it allows prosecutors to treat certain juveniles differently from others. The Supreme Court said restrictions that single out certain classifications of people are permissible if they have a rational basis and serve a legitimate purpose.
“Due to the well-documented rise in the violent crime rate among juveniles in recent years, the Legislature was prompted to restrict or qualify the right of treatment as a juvenile by making the option of trying juveniles as adults available to the state,” Chief Justice Jim Hannah wrote in the court’s opinion.
Alabama high school football coach and son die in Fla car crash www.privateofficer.com
ORLANDO, FLA. May 25 2012— Authorities say an Alabama high school football coach and his 10-year-old son were killed in a central Florida crash.
The Florida Highway Patrol reports that 38-year-old Stacy Watters pulled out in front of a box truck Thursday morning, causing the truck to hit his car.
FHP says Watters and his son, Quentin, died at the scene. Watters’s 9-year-old son Jai suffered critical injuries in the collision. He was taken to an Orlando hospital, followed by family members that had been riding in another vehicle. The family had just returned from a cruise.
The Orlando Sentinel (http://bit.ly/KOwV4Q ) reports that Watters coached at Carroll High School in Ozark, Ala., where he was hired as a physical education teacher last spring.
The crash remains under investigation. The box truck’s driver wasn’t injured.
Ridge View High School coach of sexual misconduct with students www.privateofficer.com
COLUMBIA, SC May 25 2012 - A coach at Ridge View High School has been arrested and accused of carrying on an inappropriate relationship with a 15-year-old female student.
According to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, 45-year-old Darrien Brown is charged with criminal sexual conduct with a minor and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
A check of the Richland School District 2 website shows Brown is an assistant track and field coach and a linebackers coach on the football team. Richland 2 officials say Brown started working at the school last October.
School officials received a tip about the relationship and immediately notified the school’s resource officer and sheriff’s deputies.
“I know the investigation has a lot of evidence that links the suspect, Mr. Brown, directly to the victim and gives us information that he’s had relationships with other kids,” Richland County Capt. Chris Cowan said.
Investigators say Brown picked the victim up from the school, drove her to his home, and committed inappropriate sexual acts with her back in April.
When we went to Brown’s house, the mother of one of his children said she had no idea Brown brought the girl into their home. She declined to speak further on the matter, but said Brown would not be returning to the residence when he gets out of jail.
Deputies believe Brown may have victimized others and are continuing to investigate.
“It’s important to understand the relationship that you have with your teachers, with your parents, with your guardians,” Cowan said. “You need to make sure if you question any kind of behavior no matter how small you think it is, you need to bring it to the attention of someone.”
Brown was booked at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. Bond was set at $60,000 with guidelines that he could not have any contact with the victim and could not be within 300 yards of her.
Source:WIS
Commercial bus at US-Mexico border had 700 pounds of marijuana www.privateofficer.com
SAN DIEGO CA May 25 2012 — Customs officers found 700 pounds of marijuana in a commercial bus that was stopped at the San Ysidro Port of Entry, federal authorities said Wednesday.
Customs officers found 177 packages of marijuana on the bus. There were 22 passengers on the bus when it entered the port for inspection about 7 a.m. Tuesday, said Angelica De Cima, a spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
A canine team was screening vehicles in the area when a dog alerted to the undercarriage of the bus.
Officers found 177 packages of marijuana in a compartment that had been built in the gas tank. The street value of the drug was estimated at $350,000, De Cima said.
The 37-year-old driver, a Mexican citizen who lives in Tijuana, was arrested and booked into the Metropolitan Correctional Center.
Source:UT-San Diego
UPS delivery driver arrested for watching woman bathe www.privateofficer.com
SAN DIEGO CA May 25 2012 — A UPS delivery driver was arrested Wednesday after a woman found him in her hallway watching her bathe, San Diego police said.
Walter Flowers, 43, was on his regular route when he dropped off a package at the woman’s house on Tuxedo Road in San Carlos shortly before 1 p.m., police said.
The woman accepted the delivery from him.
She was in the bathtub about 30 minutes later when her dog, which had been outside, came into the bathroom. Confused, she peered around the corner and saw Flowers watching her from the hallway, said police Lt. Andra Brown.
The woman, who is in her 20s, chased him from the house, and he sped away in his delivery truck. He had reportedly entered the home through an unlocked back door, police said.
He was contacted by his employer and returned to the home about an hour later, surrendering to police who were taking the report, Brown said.
He was arrested on suspicion of peeping, prowling and trespassing — all misdemeanors.
Shoplifters charged after crashing car in Belleville NJ www.privateofficer.com
Police arrested and charged Pilar Atencio, 42 of Newark with shoplifting after store security said she tried leaving the store without paying for the pain reliever. She was held on $200 bails and also had a $250 outstanding warrant from Newark.
A chase through the streets of the Silver Lake area of Belleville ensued when police said a woman tried to flee the local Pathmark supermarket in her car without paying for several items.
Police arrested and charged Ana Diaz, 23 of East Orange with shoplifting at 6:17 p.m. A supermarket security officer saw Diaz leave without paying and jump into a waiting gray Saturn sedan that sped off.
After a chase from the Belmont Avenue supermarket parking lot through Honiss and Lake streets, the car, the driver and Diaz hit a parked car, and Diaz was not found.
On May 14, police found out that the car belonged to Diaz’ mother when Diaz came to pick up the car. She was then charged with resisting arrest and given motor vehicle summonses. A court date is pending
Waterford Township police officer in critical condition after crash www.privateofficer.com
Waterford Township MI May 25 2012 I could hear it screaming down the street,” said Diane Carr. “I just heard like a crash and then a huge boom.”
However, her husband, Henry, who was standing on his front lawn, was the first to see it. It started with a motorcycle flying down Waterford Township’s Elizabeth Lake Road.
“Over a hundred miles an hour just flying by. All you saw was a blip and heard the noise. All of a sudden, this gentleman in this VW, the young kid was turning left onto our street. The cop car came flying over here — that’s a small hill as you can see — and she hit him.”
Officer Annette Miller was pursuing a motorcycle believed to be speeding in Pontiac and had just crossed into Waterford. Witnesses say the officer came over the hill and clipped a blue VW. The 20-year-old driver was trying to turn left onto Fernbarry. He spun out and landed in their yard.
“I just grabbed the young boy here. He was bleeding out of his nose and everything. We laid him down here,” Henry Carr explained.
Swerving to avoid the VW, Officer Miller hopped the curb and slammed into a tree. The force of the crash wrapped her SUV around the tree, flipping it up on its side. Her police canine was caged in the back.
It took about 40 minutes, but emergency crews using the jaws of life were finally able to free Officer Miller and her tracking dog. The dog injured his paw and will be fine. Officer Miller’s injuries were much more severe. She remains in critical condition.
“I’m very deeply concerned about the safety and welfare of our employees. Quite frankly, I’m shocked and crushed with an accident of this nature and I pray for her recovery,” said Waterford Township Supervisor Carl Solden.
Witnesses say before the crash, all they heard was a buzzing of a motorcycle. No police sirens or flashing lights. Accident re-constructionists are investigating what happened and who is at-fault, but the driver of the VW told witnesses he never saw the police SUV coming until it was too late.
“The poor kid was so shaken up. He just kept saying I didn’t see her. I couldn’t get out of the way,” Diane Carr said.
The 20-year-old driver of the VW from Waterford suffered just minor injuries. He was taken to the hospital and released.
We’re told Officer Miller is suffering from internal injuries. The Waterford Township Police Department is asking the community to keep her and her family in their prayers.
Meanwhile, police are looking for the motorcyclist. We do have a slight description. It’s a black sport-style motorcycle that was being driven by a man who was wearing a white helmet with a gold or a dark-stripped and tan pants. Anybody with any information about this individual is asked to call police or Crime Stoppers.
source:myfoxdetroit.com
Ashe County NC man gets 50 years in $40 million Ponzi scheme www.privateofficer.com
Ashe County NC May 25 2012 A North Carolina man convicted of running the $40 million Black Diamond Ponzi scheme was sentenced Wednesday to 50 years in prison for what prosecutors called “the worst financial crime in this district in memory.”
Keith Simmons, 47, didn’t react while U.S. Chief District Judge Robert Conrad read the sentence in a quiet courtroom. The Black Diamond scheme had more than 400 victims, prosecutors said, many of them elderly. Nearly 100 were more than 75 years old, and many lost their entire life savings.
Prosecutors said Simmons told investors he was putting their money in a foreign currency trading program with annual returns as high as 137.4 percent in 2007. In reality, he invested none of the money and spent millions on real estate near his Ashe County home, traveling on private jets and furnishing “lavish love condominiums.”
He also used investor money to make over $18 million in bogus interest payments to convince current investors that everything was fine, prosecutors said, and to lure in new investors to fuel the scheme.
Simmons spoke only briefly to the judge and the courtroom before his sentence was read.
“I’m not sure if any of the supposed victims are here, but I’d like to take the opportunity to apologize to those folks for the traumatic experience,” he said, dressed in an orange jumpsuit with his hands clasped behind his back. After apologizing to the court for taking up its time, Simmons concluded: “There’s nothing I can say I feel will sway the court.”
The scheme began collapsing in 2009, as investors sought to withdraw their money. By October 2009, statements to clients from Black Diamond said the fund had assets totaling $378 million, while the fund in fact had no money. Simmons was arrested by the FBI in December 2009 and held without bond.
Simmons was convicted by a jury of wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering in late 2010, and has been awaiting sentencing. Prosecutor Kurt Meyers said the 50-year sentence sought by the government was the longest he could recall locally for a financial crime. “I’ve never asked for anything close to that,” he told the judge. “Not even in the same ballpark.”
Meyers said the sentence was justified by the victims’ extreme losses, and said Simmons’ characterization of those affected as “supposed victims” was offensive. Meyers said the sentence was comparable to what one might receive for serious drug dealing or violent crimes, but placed Simmons in the same category.
“I think he’s worse in some respects,” Meyers told the judge. He painted Simmons as a megalomaniacal schemer who “giggled” to his female employees about how much money he had and “bought land on top of a mountain so he could look down on Ashe County.”
Conrad said the case was the most damaging financial crime he’d ever presided over.
“I can’t remember another case that involved such devastating, life-wrecking … greed,” Conrad told Simmons. “There was a callousness to this Ponzi scheme that seems singular.”
He called the victims’ stories, some of whom testified at Simmons’ 2010 trial, “gut-wrenching.”
Prosecutors said one woman testified at Simmons’ trial that she had saved over $1 million since growing up working in an orphanage during the Great Depression. She used to forage for food in the trash, she said. Now, since investing her retirement funds with Black Diamond, she lost everything and is back to looking for food in the trash.
Other victims sent the court letters describing their suffering, telling of insomnia, constant anxiety, and a deep sense of betrayal. “I have lost my trust in others and no longer believe in the good of mankind,” wrote a victim identified as M.A.
Simmons professed Christianity and quoted Bible verses to lure people into investing with him, prosecutors said. One victim, identified as C.D., said they lost their faith in God after Black Diamond.
“I used to be a religious person, went to church, and put things in God’s hands but I have since lost my faith,” C.D. wrote. “I hit rock bottom and would be lying if I said I didn’t think about ending it all.”
Prosecutors said in addition to financial distress, victims suffered ruined marriages, stress-induced heart attacks, depression and even a miscarriage after the fraud was discovered.
He used their money to pay for an extravagant lifestyle, prosecutors said. Simmons paid women for sex in his condominiums, prosecutors said, including current and former employees. He also invested in unprofitable side businesses and “filled them with young, attractive women.” In addition to buying land on an Ashe County mountain, he bought large areas of land around his house, which prosecutors said was to ensure he wouldn’t see anyone else’s house when he looked out his windows.
Simmons was ordered to pay $35 million in restitution to the victims. He was also ordered to forfeit property, a vehicle, and money from the sale of shares of mixed-martial arts companies. The FBI has already taken additional vehicles and collected coins. The property in question was purchased with $4.8 million, and the government will seek to liquidate forfeited assets and give the money to victims.
Another woman who helped run the scheme, Deanna Salazar, was also sentenced Wednesday to 4 1/2 years in prison for her role. Other alleged Black Diamond conspirators from around the country are currently awaiting their trials or sentencing. CommunityONE Bank, a small North Carolina-based bank, also paid $400,00 in fines for not detecting Black Diamond’s fraudulent activity.
Source:www.charlotteobserver.com
Former West Seneca West High School teacher sentenced to 30 years in federal prison on child porn charges www.privateofficer.com
BUFFALO, NY May 25 2012 Timothy Bek, a former substitute teacher at West Seneca West High School, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison on child porn charges.
Bek, 25, used a fake Facebook account, where he posed as a teenage girl, to solicit nude pictures from students he taught or saw in school everyday.
The children were between the ages of 12 and 16.
Bek threatened students if they did not send him more nude pictures, said U.S. Attorney for the Western District of New York, William Hochul.
“As our evidence showed, Mr. Bek possessed a cunning and intelligence, a predatory nature that truly marks him as one of the most evil people that we have convicted for production and solicitation to produce child pornography,” Hochul said.
Bek will be on supervised release for the rest of his life once he is released from prison.
Drug Enforcement Agents arrest Dallas County school principal www.privateofficer.com
SARDIS, AL May 25 2012 - The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and members of the Selma Police Department Drug Unit have taken a Dallas County school principal into custody.
The principal, Aaron McKinley, works at Shiloh Elementary School.
Investigators took McKinley into custody just before noon Thursday and charged with two counts of possession with intent to distribute drugs. The drugs were identified as Hydrocodone and Oxycodone.
The Dallas County School Board released the following statement:
“We are both shocked and saddened about the allegation involving Mr. McKinley. However, we will take the necessary steps to protect our students and the reputation of the Dallas County Board of Education. Also, we would like our parents to know that Shiloh’s designated Assistant Principal and certified administrator, Mrs. Jackie Averhart, will serve as the chief school administrator for the next week.”
Police say they arrested McKinley after observing him selling drugs to an individual while on school property.
Further charges are pending this investigation, according to Selma Police Chief William T. Riley. After being arrested, McKinley reportedly acknowledged purchasing a vehicle he believed may have been stolen.
Authorities checked the background on McKinley’s 2006 Chevrolet pickup truck and found that it had been reported stolen from the Thomasville area in September 2008. The vehicle was recovered on Pecan Drive.
McKinley has been transported to Mobile. Additional booking information is not immediately available.
Source: WSFA
“Bangor International Airport” -The place where diverted flights go www.privateofficer.com
BANGOR, Maine May 25 2012 (AP) — Given the size of the place, the name “Bangor International Airport” might seem a little grandiose. But the airport actually gets an outsize share of international visitors.
Of course, many of them are accidental tourists who would rather not be here at all.
Because the airport is on the far northeastern edge of the U.S., incoming trans-Atlantic flights confronted with terrorist threats or unruly passengers are often diverted to Bangor, population 33,000.
The latest such incident happened Tuesday and involved a French passenger who caused a security scare when she told a US Airways crew she had a surgically implanted device. The jet had been traveling from Paris to Charlotte, N.C., with 188 people aboard.
“The general public might not know exactly where Bangor, Maine, is on the map,” said interim airport director Tony Caruso. But “in the aviation industry, the Bangor, Maine, name is well known, and we have a well-earned reputation for handling these types of situations.”
It’s the last major U.S. airport for jets headed east across the Atlantic and the first for incoming flights, and though it has only a single runway, it is more than 11,000 feet long, long enough for the space shuttle.
Before 9/11, the airport saw plenty of air-rage episodes, with drunken and disruptive passengers being dropped off in Bangor and spending the night in the local lockup. In the decade since the terrorist attacks, the number of diverted flights has dropped, but the cases are more likely to involve security threats, such as passengers on the no-fly list.
One of the most notorious incidents came in 2004, when a flight was diverted to Bangor after officials discovered Yusuf Islam, the singer formerly known as Cat Stevens, was aboard. He was on a no-fly list and barred from the U.S., so he was sent back to London.
Two years ago, a jetliner set down in Bangor after a former Air Force intelligence officer who had taken a prescription sleep aid claimed he had dynamite.
In 2008, a passenger from Ireland found himself in Bangor after he smoked a cigarette in a bathroom, punched an off-duty airline employee and made threats about hijacking or destroying the plane, authorities said.
Sometimes diverted planes go to eastern Canada. But U.S. airline flights are usually brought into Maine, where offenders are subject to U.S. law.
By now, the Bangor airport has fine-tuned its response.
With 40 minutes’ notice on Tuesday, authorities assembled a team after getting word that US Airways Flight 787 was coming in for a landing. Firefighters from the Air National Guard, ambulance crews, police officers, bomb-sniffing dogs and federal agents were ready when the plane touched down, escorted by a pair of F-15 fighter jets.
Buses took the passengers to the terminal, where a caterer quickly lined up sandwiches and sodas. Donated cellphones were available for free long-distance calls. The passengers were soon put back on the plane and sent on their way.
The Rev. Ed Pavy would have preferred an uneventful flight instead of a 3½-hour stopover in Bangor. But he said passengers were treated well and local officials were professional.
“They were all about their business. They knew exactly what they were doing,” said the campus minister, part of a group from Campbellsville University in Kentucky that was returning from a mission trip to Niger.
When they landed, the passengers didn’t know exactly where they were. If they knew Bangor at all, they probably thought of Stephen King, the horror writer who lives here in a house with a metal gate adorned with bat wings.
Bangor was once Maine’s lumber center and home to many timber barons. There’s a statue of Paul Bunyan downtown. Pavy recalled seeing plenty of woods before he landed.
“It may be in the middle of nowhere, but it served a valuable function,” he said.
The diverted flights represent a tiny part of activity at the Bangor International Airport, which is home to a Maine Air National Guard wing and serves as a busy refueling hub for military aircraft carrying personnel and cargo to and from Europe and the Middle East.
Since 2004, the airport has handled 21 cases in which aircraft had to land for security reasons, compared with 388 for fuel, 139 for bad weather, 50 for medical emergencies and 49 for maintenance problems, Caruso said.
Each time this happens, the airport gets $2,000 to $3,000 for landing fees, ground-handling fees and fuel costs, which adds up to a small profit for the airport, he said.
Stuart Frankel, a passenger from Baltimore aboard the US Airways flight, said he liked the scenery and the hospitality so much that he hopes to return to Maine for a vacation.
“I was impressed by how kind and nice the people were,” he said. “Just the whole attitude is, ‘How can we help you?’ It makes me as someone who’s never been to the area want to come back.”
Former Nashville TN police officer sentenced to prison for money laundering www.privateofficer.com
Wilson and Wray were indicted on June 15, 2011and both pleaded guilty in January 2012.
According to the indictment, between April 5, 2011 and June 15, 2011, Wilson received cash payments totaling $24,500 for his assistance to individuals he believed to be drug traffickers. Wilson’s assistance included transporting what he believed to be cocaine and drug money to locations in and around Nashville. On three occasions, Wilson was on duty, in uniform, and in an official police vehicle while assisting individuals whom he believed to be drug traffickers.
Wray assisted Wilson in transporting purported cocaine and drug money on two occasions.
Wray’s plea agreement detailed a June 7, 2011, FBI-controlled undercover operation, during which Wilson, while in uniform and on duty, met with Wray and an undercover FBI agent at a local truck stop to obtain a bag containing five kilograms of purported cocaine. Wilson and Wray believed the undercover agent to be a drug trafficker and after obtaining the five kilograms of purported cocaine, Wilson and Wray proceeded to a local restaurant where they met with another undercover FBI agent whom they also believed to be a drug trafficker. During the meeting, that undercover agent gave Wilson and Wray a locked bag containing $15,000 in cash in exchange for the bag containing five kilograms of purported cocaine.
After receiving the bag containing $15,000 in cash, Wilson proceeded to a hotel in Nashville, Tennessee and delivered the $15,000 to undercover agents and was paid $5,000 in cash for transporting the purported cocaine and money in his patrol car. Wray was not with Wilson during the meeting at the hotel, but he was paid part of the $5,000 for his assistance to Wilson.
This case was investigated by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department.
The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Scarlett Singleton and Jimmie Lynn Ramsaur.
Reported by: FBI
Jackson MS Veterans Affairs hospital director charged with prescription fraud www.privateofficer.com
Michael Guest, district attorney for Madison and Rankin counties, says 59-year-old Dorothy White-Taylor was arrested Tuesday and released on a $10,000 bond.
The G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery VA Medical Center website says White-Taylor is the associate director of Patient Care Services.
Guest says Taylor has been charged in Rankin County with fraudulently obtaining 12 hydrocodone pills, but there could be more charges filed in other jurisdictions.
Guest says a condition placed on Taylor’s bond is a requirement that she get treatment for substance abuse. The case could go to a grand jury in July or August.
Oklahoma City teacher arrested for forcible oral sodomy and possession of obscene materials www.privateofficer.com
OKLAHOMA COUNTY, Oklahoma May 25 2012 - Oklahoma County Sheriff’s deputies arrest a teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with an underage student.
Eric Harris, 37, faces complaints of first degree rape by instrumentation, indecent or lewd acts with a child under 16, two counts of forcible oral sodomy and possession of obscene materials.
Harris teaches at the Millwood Freshman Academy in Oklahoma City and is also the school’s boys basketball coach. The arrest was announced at a news conference on May 23.
According to the sheriff’s department, administrative staff with Millwood Public Schools notified deputies of the alleged abuse after a student reported an inappropriate relationship between Harris and another 15-year old female student. Deputies interviewed Harris on May 23 and arrested him.
“Harris has admitted that he committed the crimes over a six month period with the most recent incident happening within the past few weeks,” said Sheriff John Whetsel with the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office.
Millwood Public Schools educates students at its Arts Academy, high school and school for students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.
“This is a most unfortunate situation for all persons involved,” said Millwood Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Gloria Griffin. “While this is an isolated incident that occurred, we pledge to continue to monitor your children’s safety while they are in our care.”
The married teacher and coach is being held in the Oklahoma County Detention Center. Bond has not yet been set in the case.
Treasurer of Myrtle Beach parent-teacher organization charged with fraud www.privateofficer.com
Myrtle Beach SC May 25 2012 The treasurer of a Myrtle Beach parent-teacher organization was arrested last week on charges she took money from the PTO’s account, according to a report from the Myrtle Beach Police Department.
Julie Allen Herndon, 35, was charged May 15 at the police department with breach of trust with the value greater than $10,000, the report said. She was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond.
Teal Britton, spokeswoman for Horry County Schools, said PTO and PTA organizations and booster clubs are all independently governed and elected, and that their finances and procedures of operation are independently handled by each organization.
“The [school] administration doesn’t oversee them, nor do they have any responsibility or accountability for finances within those organizations,” Britton said.
The incident was reported to police April 25 by Constance Briglio, PTO president, the report said. Briglio said she was approached by Cece Nance, principal at Myrtle Beach Primary School, in reference to an anonymous call she received about the PTO’s account with South Atlantic Bank being mishandled. The report said $11,037.48 was missing from the account.
Briglio told Nance she knew nothing in reference to the account, as she was a user on the account and did not take part in the accounting and bookkeeping, the report said. In addition to Briglio, the account’s users were Herndon and Sonia Lyons, co-treasurer.
According to the report, Briglio then followed up with the bank to inquire about the account balance, and she was advised by customer service representative Carol Vaci that it was approximately $950, but she could not recall the exact amount.
Briglio advised the bank that there was an error, and that the account balance should have been between $10,000 and $12,000, the report said. Afterward, the bank provided Briglio with records that showed debit transactions where money was withdrawn from the PTO’s account and transferred into Herndon’s personal Chase account.
The report said transactions were made Jan. 18 for $2,167.27; Feb. 27, $2,064.04; March 19, $2,608.69; April 12, $2,898.93; and April 16, $1,298.55. Briglio produced bank records indicating the first four transactions were paid to a Chase account via the Internet and belonging to Herndon, and that the fifth transaction was a check made out to Herndon.
Briglio said the total amount of funds used by Herndon for her own personal use totaled $11,037.48, the report said. Briglio said bank records also showed a total of $5,000 paid back to the account from Herndon’s personal account at South Atlantic Bank.
Briglio followed up with PTO board members, the report said. She advised them of the situation and told them she was going to file a police report.
Source:www.myrtlebeachonline.com
Bomb goes off at Phoenix Salvation Army distribution center www.privateofficer.com
Phoneix AZ May 25 2012 A device rigged with explosives went off inside a Phoenix Salvation Army distribution center Thursday afternoon, slightly injuring two employees, authorities said.
Phoenix police said preliminary evidence suggests the incident is linked to two other cases in which a person or persons left flashlights packed with explosives in Glendale on May 13 and 14. In each of the previous attack, a person who found the rigged flashlight suffered minor injuries.
The incident Thursday occurred a few minutes before 3:30 p.m. at the Salvation Army at 1625 S. Central Ave, about half a mile south of Buckeye Road. The building and surrounding area have been evacuated as a precaution, Phoenix police spokesman Sgt. Trent Crump said.
The flashlights found in Glendale were each described as a 9-volt yellow hand-held flashlight. Both were left outside near businesses, according to Sgt. Brent Coombs, a spokesman for the Glendale Police Department.
No other details were immediately available.
source:www.azcentral.com
Nearly 700 people arrested in Canada protest over higher university tuition www.privateofficer.com
Quebec Canada May 25 2012 Nearly 700 people were arrested Wednesday night after a protest over higher university tuition in Quebec erupted into another night of violence.
The student protests have only grown since the provincial government last week passed emergency legislation in an attempt to end Canada’s most sustained student demonstrations ever.
The protest was declared illegal by police the minute it was scheduled to start as demonstrators didn’t provide an itinerary, disobeying the new law that requires police be informed eight hours before a protest and told the route of any demonstration that includes 50 or more people.
The protests began with an almost party-like atmosphere in many Quebec neighborhoods but turned serious after protesters began throwing objects at police in Montreal. Officers encircled the thousands of protesters and squeezed them into a confined space.
Police said 518 people were arrested in Montreal and 176 were arrested in Quebec City. Many of those arrested were carted off onto city buses, which have recently been converted into police holding pens.
Independent filmmaker Emmanuel Hessler who had been following the march for a few blocks said from inside the police encirclement that he was surprised by the action.
“Suddenly, there were police all around us,” he said.
Montreal police spokesman Daniel Lacoursiere said an order to disperse was given because police had been pelted by projectiles and other criminal acts had been committed.
Montreal police said those arrested will face charges, some under minor municipal bylaws and others under the more severe Criminal Code.
The protesters are demanding that Quebec Premier Jean Charest roll back the tuition hikes of $254 (US$254) per year over seven years. Quebec has the lowest tuition rates in Canada, but even after such an 80 percent increase, it would remain among the lowest in the country.
The conflict has caused considerable upheaval since it began in February in the French-speaking province known for having the country’s most contentious protests.
Parti Quebecois Leader Pauline Marois on Thursday called it the worst social crisis in Quebec’s history.
“That’s where the Quebec Liberal Party has taken us: mass arrests, more often than not arbitrary ones, to silence opposition,” she said.
While the new legislation aimed at stopping the protests is unpopular among students and rights groups, a poll published the day after legislation was passed showed two-thirds of Quebecers supported it.
Student groups have said they would challenge it in court and continue demonstrations.
Richmond VA woman indicted for murder in barroom stabbings www.privateofficer.com
Richmond VA May 25 2012 A Richmond woman now faces a murder charge in the stabbing of two sisters after a barroom disturbance erupted when people started laughing because a woman’s wig fell off while she was dancing.
The Richmond area’s multijurisdictional grand jury on Wednesday indicted Monita W. Cunningham, 48, of the 3800 block of Caulder Court on a charge of first-degree murder of Rakita McClenny, 29, of South Richmond.
Cunningham already had faced a charge of malicious wounding of McClenny’s sister, Aja McClenny, who was seriously wounded but survived.
The sisters were attacked early Sunday after they and some friends stopped by Ed’s Cafe in the 3000 block of Hull Street in South Richmond.
A witness to the double stabbing said this week that Cunningham had been taunting Rakita McClenny inside the bar and insinuating that McClenny was stuck up.
Ultimately, many of the bar’s patrons burst into laughter when a wig fell off the head of a woman Cunningham knows, the witness said. Angered by the laughter, Cunningham threw a beer in Rakita McClenny’s face, causing chaos inside the bar that spilled outside, according to the witness.
The witness said Aja McClenny was stabbed in the back outside the bar and that her sister chased the assailant and was stabbed fatally in the chest. Police found Rakita McClenny in the 300 block of nearby Swansboro Lane. She died at the scene.
Cunningham is expected to be arraigned Friday in Richmond Circuit Court.
Alert VA State Trooper Captures Twin Brothers Murder Suspects www.privateofficer.com
PALM BAY, Florida May 25 2012 – Virginia State Police have captured two twin brothers from Florida wanted on murder charges.
Troopers received a “be on the lookout” alert for a white SUV from Florida just after 4 a.m. Thursday.
A trooper, positioned on I-95, spotted the SUV heading north. The trooper stopped the vehicle along the interstate in Stafford County – and Octavius and Obadiah Toppin were arrested without incident.
Palm Bay police said the Toppin bothers face murder charges for the Wednesday afternoon shooting death of Raymond Torres. Just after 4 p.m., Torres was shot while standing in his driveway.
Eyewitnesses told police the identity of the suspects, including a description of their vehicle.
Law enforcement agencies along the eastern U.S. were alerted to be on the lookout to for the pair who were believed to be heading to New York to visit family friends.
The Toppin brothers are being held at the Rappahannock Regional Jail, pending extradition back to Florida.
Source: WTVR
New Bern NC police officer arrested for theft of evidence www.privateofficer.com
NEW BERN NC May 25 2012 – New Bern Police have arrested New Bern Police Department Officer Frances Sutton, and charged with theft of evidence from the New Bern Police Department Evidence Room.
The items taken were controlled substances in the form of Oxycodone pills. Sutton voluntarily surrendered to SBI agents Wednesday night.
She was charged with four felony counts of Obstruction of Justice and three felony counts of Altering, Destroying, or Stealing Evidence of Criminal Conduct. She was placed in the Craven County Jail under a $35,000 secured bond. Her first appearance in Craven County District Court is scheduled for Thursday morning, May 24, 2012. Ms. Sutton is currently on administrative leave.
Police say Chief Summers conducted an internal review and discovered evidence missing in cases in which Ms. Sutton was the charging officer. He reported his findings to District Attorney Thomas who requested an SBI investigation.
“We are saddened by this news. But just as we are committed to policing our community, we must also police ourselves. And we will not tolerate unlawful activity in our neighborhoods or in our department,” said Chief Summers.
“Law enforcement officers are expected to uphold and enforce the law, not violate it. Ms. Sutton is charged based on the findings of the investigation at this point. We will continue to look for any other illegal activity,” said District Attorney Scott Thomas.
Source: WNCT
Former Fulton County prosecutor arrested on drug charges www.privateofficer.com
Atlanta GA May 25 2012 A former Fulton County prosecutor turned high-profile defense attorney was charged Thursday with intent to distribute methamphetamine and ecstasy, Atlanta police said in a statement.
Rand Csehy, a former assistant district attorney who participated in the prosecution of Fulton County courthouse shooter Brian Nichols, was arrested during a law enforcement sting, according to the APD.
Csehy, 40, also was charged with with two counts of possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony and cocaine possession. He was released Thursday on a $25,000 signature bond.
Atlanta police said the attorney, who is now in private practice with his wife, Gayle, arrived at an predetermined location with the drugs and, after contacting an unidentified source, was arrested. The APD would not elaborate on the specifics of the case.
Csehy’s clients, according to the superlawyers.com website, include drug cartels and dealers, and most of the business of Csehy Law Group is criminal defense. He also represented Atlanta police Officer Greg Junnier, charged in the shooting death of 92-year-old Kathryn Johnson in her home.
Last August, police found Csehy outside his office in downtown Atlanta bleeding from the head after what he said was an attack by a client. The attorney told police he was hit from behind while getting into his vehicle.
Deceased Orangeburg County SC sheriff accused of fraud-theft www.privateofficer.com
ORANGEBURG, SC May 25 2012 - More than a year and a half after his death, Orangeburg County is going after former Sheriff Larry Williams’ estate.
Williams died in September 2010, then 3 months later, the county administrator started looking into the sheriff department’s finances. The county says it uncovered fraud and a conspiracy case involving the late sheriff and his girlfriend.
It was a lot of money, according to the lawsuit, and the county says Williams and his girlfriend used the money for personal gain.
Williams’ $250,000 home could soon end up in the hands of Orangeburg County if the county can convince a jury the former sheriff stole tax dollars, then spent it.
The county filed suit 2 weeks ago, claiming the late sheriff opened multiple bank accounts, then funneled state and federal tax dollars through them.
Roger Heaton retired from the State Law Enforcement Division 8 months ago and is now running for sheriff. He opened the investigation into the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office’s checking accounts last year.
Heaton got a call from county administrator Bill Clark about the bank accounts after Clark had the sheriff’s finances audited. Heaton met with Clark and current Sheriff Leroy Ravenell a few days later.
“I got a call on a Thursday and I remember I reviewed the material through the weekend. Based on the material I saw, the conversations I had, and some of the information in the notebook that the sheriff provided, in my opinion, there was a need for a criminal investigation,” Heaton said. “I saw criminal acts.”
The lawsuit claims Williams had his girlfriend, Ivadella Walters, open the accounts while she worked for the South Carolina Federal Credit Union. The pair, the suit alleges, spent the money on themselves, even spending $72,000 on an RV. Court records show they, at first, titled the RV in their names, but later changed it over to show it belonged to the county.
“I think it’s probably better to say that I was disappointed at what I saw,” Heaton said. “Before I went to SLED, I spent 14 years with the sheriff’s office. Some of the people involved were people I have worked with.”
Current Sheriff Leroy Ravenell was second-in-charge to Williams and has provided information to investigators. We tried to ask Ravenell whether he knew anything about the bank accounts, but he did not respond to any questions.
The sheriff’s office sent us an email saying Ravenell will not talk about the lawsuit.
SLED is continuing to investigate the bank accounts, but we don’t know right now how much money is missing, what it was spent on, and who all may be involved.
Source:WIS
