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Apollo PA police chief arrested for selling stolen guns www.privateofficer.com
Paul Breznican Jr. turned himself in to state police and was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge James Andring on felony counts of theft by unlawful taking, theft by deception, receiving stolen property and theft by failure to make required disposition of funds and a misdemeanor charge of official oppression.
In an affidavit, police said Mr. Breznican illegally confiscated a shotgun and rifle on a suicide check in 2006 and sold the guns to a dealer in Saltsburg 10 days later.
He is also accused of selling one of the department’s AR-15 rifles — purchased with federal grant money — and amunition to a Spring Church man two years ago and a .22-caliber rifle, a tear gas gun and a tear gas baton to a dealer in Apollo.
The complaint also states that the Apollo borough council said Mr. Breznican failed to return two items valued at $1,500 to the borough when he was asked to return all police equipment. The criminal complaint lists the items as a dog bite suit and a bail remote door opener.
Mr. Breznican is being held at the Armstrong County Jail on $25,000 bond.
Washington DC police officer investigated for threats against Michelle Obama www.privateofficer.com
The police department’s Internal Affairs Division is investigating the alleged comments and notified the U.S. Secret Service Wednesday, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to give details of the investigation.
The motorman allegedly made the comments Wednesday morning as several officers from the Special Operations Division discussed threats against the Obamas. It was not immediately clear where the alleged conversation took place or exactly how many officers took part in the conversation.
During that conversation, the officials said, the officer allegedly said he would shoot the First Lady and then used his phone to retrieve a picture of the firearm he said he would use. It was not immediately clear what type of firearm was allegedly shown.
An officer overheard the alleged threat and reported it to a police lieutenant at the Division, who immediately notified superiors, the officials said.
“We received an allegation that inappropriate comments were made. We are currently investigating the nature of those comments,” D.C. police spokeswoman Gwendolyn Crump said in an e-mail. She declined to discuss the matter further.
Police officials declined to identify the officer. Officials from the U.S. Attorney’s office declined comment.
In an interview Thursday afternoon, police union chief Kristopher Baumann said he did not have details on the matter.
There was no indication of a legitimate danger to Michelle Obama. A Secret Service spokesman declined to provide further details, saying in an e-mail that the agency was aware of the incident and “will conduct appropriate follow-up.”
Police officials immediately reassigned the officer to other duties, the police officials said.
The police escorts the Special Operations Division performs for the First Family are dignitary escorts. Police escorts for non-dignitaries drew attention in April 2011 when District officers accompanied actor Charlie Sheen from Dulles Airport to DAR Constitution Hall when Sheen was running late to a concert.
The propriety and cost of that run — which was reimbursed by a concert organizer — was debated later at a District Council hearing and reviewed by the District’s Office of the Inspector General which concluded, among other findings, that the department needed clearer guidelines on conducting escorts.
Source:Washington Post
San Bernardino police brace for severe cutbacks www.privateofficer.com
San Berardino CA July 14 2012 Officers serving with the San Bernardino (Calif.) Police Department are bracing for severe cutbacks, following the City Council’s decision to file for bankruptcy.
City leaders now have 30 days to craft a “bankruptcy budget,” after the City Council’s Tuesday decision to file for Chapter 9 protection. In Stockton, which became the largest city to file bankruptcy in the nation in late June, city leaders proposed cutting police wages and eliminating retiree health-care benefits to help balance the ledger.
Similar cuts may be considered in San Bernardino, the head of the city’s police union told POLICE Magazine.
“There’s nothing that’s not on the table,” said Steve Turner, president of the San Bernardino Police Officers Association and a homicide detective.
On Thursday, San Bernardino Police Chief Robert Handy acknowledged the department may have to “modify our staffing models and make changes to our organizational structure,” which may lead to drastic changes in the way the agency operates.
Chief Handy will shift officers from specialized assignments, including gang units, to patrol duty to ensure quick response to reported crimes, reports the Los Angeles Times. He has also suggested eliminating crime prevention programs.
Mayor Pat Morris told KTLA the city will consider outsourcing police services to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. The department’s 294 sworn officers police a city with 211,000 residents.
San Bernardino, from a cash-flow standpoint, is in worse shape than Stockton, city leaders said. The city faces a $45 million deficit, compared to Stockton’s $26-million shortfall, and has less revenue, according to city officials. Stockton’s 325 sworn officers patrol a city of 291,000 residents.
San Bernardino is the fourth California city, along with Stockton, Vallejo, and Mammoth Lakes, that has filed for bankruptcy. And it may not be the last, Michael Coleman, a fiscal policy adviser for the California League of Cities, told The Times.
Coleman and others pointed to rising pension costs as playing a role in the bankruptcy filings. In San Bernardino, the city’s retirement spending has jumped from $1 million in fiscal year 2006-2007—9% of the general fund—to $1.9 million, or 13% of the fund, in 2011-12. Public safety makes up 78% of city spending this year, reports the San Bernardino Sun.
However, mismanagement of funds by city leaders also caused the crisis, Turner said. Turner cited the city’s lavish spending on projects such as a rapid-transit bus line and the Regal Theater.
“In a nutshell, we’re in this condition because of mismanagement by the city,” Turner said. “When all else fails, attack public employees.”
Since 2009, the city’s employee unions gave $10 million in concessions. The police union agreed to a wage freeze and reduced retiree medical benefits—an officer with 20 years of service would get $200 a month. The union also gave up a uniform allowance of $950 per officer.
Oak Ridge firefighters now write parking tickets www.privateofficer.com
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. July 14 2012– Firefighters will be able to issue $25 parking tickets as designated “special police officers” under a resolution approved by Oak Ridge City Council this week.
Training sessions for members of the Fire Department in the proper procedure for issuing citations instead of making arrests in such cases will be conducted soon, Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said Wednesday.
He said he expects firefighters will be able to start writing tickets in about 30 days.
The measure is part of a “Not in Our City” campaign, a general effort to improve Oak Ridge that includes a new ordinance tightening guidelines involving on- and off-street parking.
Kerley said after they are trained, firefighters will be able to issue parking tickets in instances where motorists have parked in fire lanes at businesses, next to fire hydrants, and in areas designated as fire department connections for hookups to building sprinkler systems.
Motorists parking in fire lanes in retail areas are a frequent problem because firefighters respond to medical emergencies in stores on a “routine basis,” Kerley said.
The on-street parking issue became a problem when firefighters went to a recent residential fire, and vehicles parked on both sides of the street impeded their response, the fire chief said.
Birmingham police recruiting civilian patrollers www.privateofficer.com
The Citizens On Patrol program, funded in part through a nonprofit grant, is a pilot program that will launch first in the Woodlawn community.
Volunteers won’t be police officers, but they will learn much of what new recruits are taught in their training, such as defensive driving, how to identify suspect behavior, how to talk on a police radio, note taking and first aid.
Their role simply is surveillance, reporting and assisting in non-emergency situations.
“It’s those initial do’s and don’ts that we teach the recruits,” said Birmingham police Sgt. Michelle Moore. “The training will be tweaked because they shouldn’t be encountering or engaging in dangerous situations.”
The training will take place for two hours a day, once a week for seven weeks. Once that is complete, volunteers are required to commit to 12 hours a week on patrol.
So far, 13 people have been approved to participate and training is set to start on Tuesday, Aug. 14. The first day of patrol is set to begin Oct. 15.
Moore said volunteers must be at least 25 years old, have a high school diploma or equivalency, a valid state driver’s license. They can’t have any felony convictions or convictions for violent misdemeanors.
Anyone who wants more information should contact Moore at 205-297-8100 or michelle.moore@birminghamal.gov.
Source:Al.com
NYPD officer accused of stealing firearms www.privateofficer.com
The New York Post reports Nicholas Mina was arrested on Thursday night after officials caught him sneaking into NYPD lockers to snatch four 9mm firearms from the Ninth Precinct in the East Village.
In addition, bulletproof vests and an iPad were also stolen. Four civilians were also arrested in connection to Mina’s thefts.
31-year old Mina, a six-year veteran of the department, had been assigned to overnight patrols of the lockers after thefts began in February.
Mina’s alleged crime follows the arrest of five NYPD officers in October who were caught smuggling firearms and slot machines. Some even allegedly took part in 12-person theft ring to steal boxes of cigarettes from tractor-trailers.
William Lasso, among the five NYPD officers arrested, pleaded guilty to the charges in February.
Burke Co. NC teacher pleads guilty to sex crimes, sentenced to 40 years www.privateofficer.com
BURKE COUNTY, N.C. July 14 2012
The Burke County teacher accused of committing sex crimes against children pleaded guilty Thursday afternoon.
Michael Alexander pleaded guilty to three counts each of statutory sex offense and indecent liberties with a child. He was sentenced to at least 40 years in prison.
The district attorney said after the hearing that the plea deal kept any of the children from having to testify against Alexander, adding that at 54 years old, Alexander will likely spend the rest of his life in prison.
Several of the students wrote letters describing their third-grade teacher as a monster.
With his head down during most of the court appearance, Alexander listened to the words of his own students read by prosecutors on Thursday.
“My parents sent me to school in the hands of a monster. You, Michael Alexander, Mr. A. I sometimes have nightmares at night of this now. I look over my shoulder to see if any man has seen my pictures,” one letter stated.
Assistant District Attorney Eric Bellas described how it was an international investigation into child pornography that led the FBI, the State Bureau of Investigation and deputies to Hildebran Elementary School.
“Investigators determined this defendant had a fetish sexual interest in children wearing high-heel leather boots and that he had been trading those images of children in high-heeled boots for explicit images of children,” Bellas said.
Burke County Sheriff Steve Whisenant said an international investigation into child pornography led to an arrest of a pedophile in Spain. Videos taken from that suspect showed girls between the ages of 4 and 11 years old in various sexual situations, both with each other and with a man.
Authorities in Barcelona, Spain, arrested a suspect, Javier Alvarez Varela, in what they called Operation Filipo. After the arrest, Spainish authorities contacted the United States Embassy about Alexander’s alleged involvement, a police report said.
Investigators said some of those girls seen in the video were wearing Hildebran T-shirts. Alexander had served as a teacher at Hildebran Elementary School for seven years, where he was both a third-grade and drama teacher.
Prosecutors said Alexander not only took photos and videos of young girls but had sexual contact in and out of the classroom.
Alexander did not want to make any statement, but his attorney, Wayne Clontz, did prior to sentencing.
“If Michael Alexander, and I on his behalf, started apologizing and we did so in a genuine way we’d probably be apologizing for years. He apologizes for everything he did,” Clontz said.
But afterwards, one parent, who asked not to be identified, did not accept the apology.
“He just made me sick to my stomach. To walk in and say he was sorry. You’re not sorry. You’re not sorry for what you did,” she said.
The plea deal does not prevent federal officials from prosecuting Alexander, officials said.
Source:WSOCTV.com
Atlanta woman given prison for injecting customers’ buttocks www.privateofficer.com
BALTIMORE MD July 14 2012 – An Atlanta woman with no license to practice medicine has been sentenced for injecting customers’ buttocks with commercial silicone in hotel rooms and using glue and cotton balls to prevent the substance from leaking out.
Forty-seven-year-old Kimberly Smedley was sentenced to three years in prison Thursday in federal court in Baltimore. She was also ordered to pay a $25,000 fine and more than $8,000 in restitution.
According to her plea agreement, Smedley administered the injections in hotel rooms in several cities, using silicone intended to be used for metal or plastic lubrication, as an additive for paint and coatings, and as furniture or automotive polish.
The customers, who wanted their buttocks enlarged, paid between $500 and $1,600 in cash for each session.
Source:Associated Press
NH corrections officer arrested for smuggling drugs into jail www.privateofficer.com
KEENE NH July 14 2012 – Police have arrested a corrections officer accused of smuggling drugs into the Cheshire County Jail.
Shane Stockwell, 23, was arrested Thursday and charged with delivery of prohibited articles, according to a release from the Keene Police Department.
Police had been investigating how contraband was making it into the jail since July 3. Investigators concluded inmates were coordinating with a person outside of the jail to smuggle the drugs the secure facility.
Officers from the county and police put Stockwell’s car under surveillance and on Wednesday night someone placing evidence under the vehicle. Detectives confronted Stockwell and he was not allowed back into the jail.
Stockwell, who worked at the jail for over a year, was fired. He was released on $2,500 bail and scheduled for arraignment on Aug. 1.
Source:union-leader.com
Former Puerto Rico officer sentenced to 40 years in corruption sting www.privateofficer.com
Javier A. Diaz Castro, 30, was convicted in December of two counts of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine, two counts of attempting to possess with the intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine, and two counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug transaction, a prosecutor said.
Diaz, along with 88 other law enforcement officers in Puerto Rico and 44 other people, were indicted in October 2010 as part of the FBI’s Operation Guard Shack, which targeted public corruption and cocaine trafficking, federal authorities said.
As of Thursday, 128 of the defendants have pleaded guilty or have been convicted at trial, including Diaz, according to Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer and Special Agent in Charge Joseph S. Campbell of the FBI’s San Juan Division.
Diaz provided security for what he thought were drug deals at least twice in 2010 — but the transactions were part of the FBI sting, authorities said.
Diaz, a 10-year police veteran assigned to the frauds unit, carried his service weapon in the transactions, federal authorities said. Another Puerto Rico police officer allegedly brought Diaz into the criminal enterprise, authorities said.
U.S. District Judge Gustavo A. Gelpi for the District of Puerto Rico issued the prison sentence, authorities said.
Source:CNN
Rome NY man charged in hospital burlgary www.privateofficer.com
David Cardamone, 38, was arrested after security footage at the hospital indicated he was responsible for an after-hours break-in at Jazzmans Cafe in the hospital lobby Wednesday and for breaking a window on a hospital employee’s car in the parking lot in order to remove items from inside, police said.
Cardamone is charged with felony third-degree burglary, felony third-degree criminal mischief, misdemeanor petit larceny and misdemeanor attempted petit larceny, police said.
Cardamone was on parole at the time from a second-degree forgery conviction. He is being held in Oneida County jail pending a later court date, deputies said.
A Rome man faces felony burglary charges after he allegedly attempted to break into a cash register at a cafe on the St. Luke’s campus of Faxton St. Luke’s Healthcare, New Hartford police said.
David Cardamone, 38, was arrested after security footage at the hospital indicated he was responsible for an after-hours break-in at Jazzmans Cafe in the hospital lobby Wednesday and for breaking a window on a hospital employee’s car in the parking lot in order to remove items from inside, police said.
Cardamone is charged with felony third-degree burglary, felony third-degree criminal mischief, misdemeanor petit larceny and misdemeanor attempted petit larceny, police said.
Cardamone was on parole at the time from a second-degree forgery conviction. He is being held in Oneida County jail pending a later court date, deputies said.
Source:UticaOD.com
North Las Vegas fire chief on administrative leave for refusing to follow orders www.privateofficer.com
NORTH LAS VEGAS NV July 14 2012– A representative of the North Las Vegas firefighters union said this afternoon that Fire Chief Al Gillespie was placed on administrative leave after he refused to implement what he determined were dangerous cuts in 911 response.
The moves come two weeks after North Las Vegas City Manager Timothy Hacker laid off Deputy Chief Kevin Brame, who served as the No. 2 person in the department.
North Las Vegas spokeswoman Juliet Casey confirmed both personnel moves and said that Jeff Buchanan was selected Thursday as the acting fire chief.
“Both Brame and Gillespie saw the danger in these cuts to services to 911 response that Hacker had dictated,” said Jeff Hurley, president of North Las Vegas Firefighters Local 1607, in a statement provided by Fierro Communications.
“These two professionals literally have a lifetime of experience in fire services in major cities and could not support decisions that they felt were unwise and would destroy the minimal safety net provided by a Fire Department.”
Source: KSNV
Calcasieu Parish Walmart employees charged with thefts www.privateofficer.com
Calcasieu Parish LA July 14 2912 The Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to the Wal-Mart Supercenter located on Highway 14, in reference to a theft.
Upon arrival, deputies spoke with a Wal-Mart security team member who advised on numerous occasions between April 12 and June 6, store cashier, Jamella J. Delafosse, 28, 701 Malcolm Street, Lake Charles, was captured on store video surveillance checking out several current and former employees but not scanning all of their items.
Delafosse would place the unscanned items directly into shopping bags, allowing customers to walk out of the store pushing buggies of unpaid merchandise, worth over $7,000.
Deputies also discovered store video surveillance from April 15, captured employee Delane H. Caillier, 39, 1511 Hunter Street, Lake Charles, who worked as a photo lab tech, filling up a shopping cart with merchandise and continue to the check-out line operated by Delafosse.
Caillier would leave the check-out line paying around $7.00 for a shopping cart full of unpaid merchandise, worth over $500, which had not been scanned by Delafosse.
Delafosse and Caillier were both arrested and booked into the Calcasieu Correction Center and each charged with theft over $1,500. They have both been released on a $1,000 bond, set by Judge Clayton Davis.
CPSO Detective Eddie Curol is the lead investigator on this case. The investigation is continuing with more arrests possible.
Source:beaumont enterprise
Baton Rouge Police Officer Arrested for Theft www.privateofficer.com
Baton Rouge LA July 14 2012 Detectives arrested Officer Jake Chustz, 27, late last night charging him with Felony Theft, and Malfeasance in Office.
Chustz, a patrol officer assigned to 2ND District, is accused of stealing an iPhone while assisting in a vehicle crash that resulted in a DWI arrest.
The investigation showed that after the victim was released from jail relative to his DWI arrest he was not able to locate his cell phone which was left in his vehicle. The victim used the “Find my iPhone” feature under his iCloud account and discovered that the cell phone name was changed to “Jake Chustz’s iPhone”. The victim recognized the name as one of the officers who assisted with his wreck and DWI arrest. The victim contacted the Baton Rouge Police Department Internal Affairs Division and filed a complaint.
Chustz, who was hired in July 2007, resigned today immediately following his arrest.
Source: Baton Rouge Today
Simple jaywalking ticket turns violent and dangerous in Florida www.privateofficer.com
CASSELBERRY, Fla. July 14 2012
A video shows Casselberry officers using Tasers on a man after they say he ignored crosswalk signals, and refused to identify himself.
The man and his friend said police crossed the line.
Police told WFTV’s Tim Barber that their officers followed policy so well that they’re going to use the video for training.
“Give me your ID, or you are going to go to jail,” a Casselberry police officer is heard saying to Zikomo Peurifoy on a video recorded by Peurifoy’s friend, Noelle Price.
On the video, Casselberry officers are seen using Tasers on Peurifoy three times before handcuffing him.
Price is heard repeatedly yelling for the officers to get their supervisor.
But the deputy chief of the Casselberry Police Department said his officers didn’t have to get their supervisor, because they were not doing anything wrong.
He said he is even using the video to train other officers on how to handle out-of-control suspects.
“They handled themselves, they were very polite; it’s a shame that the defendants here didn’t cooperate,” said Capt. David Del Rosso of the Casselberry Police Department.
Peurifoy and Price were first stopped by the police after they crossed State Road 436 at a crosswalk while the pedestrian light was red, police said.
The officers stopped the pair outside a nearby Amscot store and asked for their IDs, but police say Peurifoy refused, which is against the law.
Police said the officers warned Peurifoy several times that they would use a Taser on him, and then they did.
According to police, after Peurifoy was arrested, the officers found a gun on him, but he did have a permit.
“He tensed up, jerked away and then he took a fighting stance when they approached him again, so that Taser had to be used,” said Del Rosso.
Peurifoy was not home when WFTV’s Tim Barber went by to hear his side of the story.
Peurifoy is charged with resisting with violence and battery on a law enforcement officer because both officers received minor injuries during the arrest, according to police.
Price also had a gun which was not registered, so she is facing several other charges, according to police.
Peurifoy and Price were also ticketed for improperly crossing the street.
Source: WFTV
Man claiming he’s on reality show sucks Walmart shopper’s toes www.privateofficer.com
The Augusta Chronicle reports that the woman called sheriff’s deputies Tuesday to describe the bizarre encounter in the Grovetown store, west of Augusta.
Columbia County sheriff’s reports say the man asked the 18-year-old if her toenails were painted, whether she’d watched America’s Funniest Home Videos and said he was with the show.
Authorities say he asked if he could kiss her foot as part of the prank, then started sucking on her big toe.
The woman said she screamed, the man said “it tasted so good, though” and then ran from the store.
Charlotte NC sees spike in serious crimes www.privateofficer.com
Charlotte NC July 14 2012 After three years of double-digit crime drops and historic lows, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police announced on Thursday the city’s first period of sustained crime increases under Chief Rodney Monroe.
So far this year, homicides increased nearly 40 percent, a jump from 18 to 25, when compared with the same period last year. Robberies were up 17 percent, and aggravated assaults were up nearly 14 percent.
It’s new territory for the department under this chief. After Monroe, 55, took over the department in 2009, crime dropped so much and so fast that one community group asked to look at the department’s crime numbers to see if they checked out.
And the crime numbers kept going down. In 2010 and 2011, the department announced that the crime rate had fallen to the lowest number since it started keeping uniform records in the 1970s.
Crime across the state and the country declined during the same period, but the department’s crime drops outpaced even those.
“You look at the degree of those declines and you’ll see that we’ve pretty much led the way,” said Deputy Chief Kerr Putney. “Now, we’re battling our own success.”
At Thursday’s press conference, the department highlighted its three-year average, which Putney said provides a better view of crime trends in Charlotte. Over that period, most crimes declined, though aggravated assaults were up more than 12 percent.
Julie Eiselt, one of the founding members of Neighbors for a Safer Charlotte, said she wasn’t worried about the uptick, but thinks Charlotteans should still feel empowered to ask police why crime is going up.
She said police and the district attorney have implemented new strategies that will keep crime down over time.
“You can’t expect that it will always go in the same direction,” she said.
Monroe’s police department has brought crime lower than his predecessor’s. Before 2009, the department focused on geographic areas — using data to figure out where crime was happening, then flooding those hot spots with police officers.
Monroe’s approach focuses more on identifying the criminal element of a community and locking them up, or stopping them before they can commit a crime.
But several questions at the press conference focused on whether the city was seeing the limits of what Monroe’s strategy could do.
“I made the prediction last year that we’d bottomed out a year ago,” Putney said, “but I was wrong then. … I wish I could proclaim there would be no more crime. However, we’ve got to keep fighting.”
Crime in N.C. continues fall
The announcement by CMPD came just hours after the North Carolina attorney general announced that crime in the state had dropped for the third straight year.
The decrease marks a 34-year low in the state, and continues a nearly two-decade period of declining crime.
“When we invest wisely in law enforcement, the result is safer communities,” Attorney General Roy Cooper said. “It takes well-trained law enforcement using the latest technology to keep our crime rates low, and we need to make sure they have the tools needed to do the job.”
Still, Cooper made the same warning he did last year, saying budget cuts to law enforcement agencies could result in more crime.
The state numbers:
The overall rate of index crime per 100,000 persons in North Carolina in 2011 decreased by 0.9 percent compared to 2010. The rate of violent crime per 100,000 North Carolinians dropped 5.2 percent, according to reports submitted to the State Bureau of Investigation from state law enforcement agencies.
Homicides increased 5.9 percent.
Among violent crimes, rapes declined 2.8 percent; robberies dropped 4.1 percent; aggravated assaults were down 6 percent.
Juvenile arrests for all crimes dropped 7 percent, while adult arrests for all crimes fell 3 percent.
Source: Charlotte Observer
Walmart Apologizes For Wrongly Accusing Smyrna Mother www.privateofficer.com
NASHVILLE, Tenn.July 14 2012 - Walmart is now apologizing to a Smyrna woman. The world’s biggest retailer wrongly accused her of committing a crime not once, but twice. So she turned to NewsChannel 5 Investigates for help. And not only did we get to the bottom of the story and help the woman clear her name, but we also discovered that Walmart really messed up.
Martha Quinn said she’s no thief. Yet twice now this mother of four from Smyrna has been accused of shoplifting by the world’s largest retailer.
Quinn told NewsChannel 5 Investigates, “I supposedly stole items from a Walmart in Texas on two occasions.”
But Quinn said she hasn’t been to Texas in years and never to a Walmart there.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked Quinn, “They had the wrong person?”
“Yes.”
And, it turns out, Walmart should have known that. Yet the company and Palmer Reifler & Associates, a Florida-based law firm hired by the discount chain, went after Quinn anyway, sending her letters demanding that she pay hundreds of dollars in what’s known as civil recovery fees, money retailers can demand from shoplifters to cover their losses.
Quinn said she felt threatened just by the tone of the letters.
“It was making me think that if I didn’t pay this, I was going to be looking at other charges. And, I have four children that I cannot be separated from. And, the fact that this is not me. It just was really really scary,” she recalled.
But, even worse, she said, was being accused of something she didn’t do, the first time in 2009, and then again last month.
“When you’re asked, ‘Where were you on the night of the 18th,’ you know, if anybody’s asked, you kind of freeze up and you’re like, ‘Oh, where was I? Where was I? I know I wasn’t there. But, where was I?’”
Quinn said she contacted the law firm both times and told them they had the wrong person.
But, when NewsChannel 5 first contacted Walmart, the company was still insisting that Quinn was the woman they’d caught shoplifting, when in reality, we found, she wasn’t.
We discovered that Walmart had actually busted a woman from Texas who lives just miles from one of the stores. So what did Walmart do? The company then insisted that the other woman had identified herself as Quinn she was caught.
But, NewsChannel 5 Investigates tracked down that other woman, Pearl Whitlock Williams, and she insisted she’d never heard of Quinn and never claimed to be anyone other than herself. She told us she’d given Walmart her own name and her own address.
“Cause when they take you to jail, they’re obviously going to find out,” Williams explained.
And police records, we found, back up her story. A citation issued by police in Conroe, Texas cites Williams and the information on the ticket is Williams. There’s nothing on the citation pertaining to Martha Quinn.
Walmart then insisted that Williams had given them Quinn’s social security number. But, that we found was wrong too. Finally, Walmart admitted they’d had Williams’ Social Security number in their files all along, leading Martha Quinn to ask, “How could they know, try to cover up and continue to accuse without any proof that it was me?”
Walmart now said what happened was “a terrible mistake” and the company wishes “it never had happened.” The company “regrets the error and is taking steps to resolve the issue.”
Martha Quinn said she wishes Walmart would have taken steps before now.
“They should have researched and made sure that they were going after the correct person. It would have saved me three years of grief.”
Now, we have been going back and forth with Walmart for nearly three weeks. Walmart finally called Quinn two days ago, on Tuesday, and apologized to her. Then late Wednesday afternoon, Walmart called her again and offered her a $500 gift card.
As far as this mix-up, Walmart now is blaming it on a data entry mistake in their system. They said they’re not exactly sure when or how it happened, but they said they are continuing to review the case and will make changes if necessary to prevent this from happening again.
Source:newschannel5.com
Skateboarder charged with assault on security www.privateofficer.com
Officers arrived and detained a male suspect who was holding a large wooden post in his hands. The suspect refused to stop skateboarding in front of the business, where people were walking, and made threats to return and harm the security guard after he was told to leave the premises.
The suspect then walked to a city park, broke off a wooden tree support post and returned to confront the security guard.
He made attempts to intimidate the security guard by acting like he was going to strike him with the post.
The suspect was arrested and taken into custody for assault with a deadly weapon and vandalism.
Monroe LA Sam’s Club employee accused in $10,000 theft www.privateofficer.com
Monroe LA July 14 2012 City police arrested a man Thursday morning accused of stealing more than $10,000 from a local store.
Aaron Howard, 22, of 322 Woodale Drive, Monroe, was booked into Ouachita Correctional Center on charges of felony theft and criminal conspiracy.
An arrest affidavit stated police were called to Sam’s Club in reference to an employee theft. When police arrived, they spoke to a manager, who said Howard, a cashier, made 16 fraudulent transactions between May 27 and July 7.
The report stated the total amount of the transactions was about $10,060.10. Police said two unidentified men were seen on store video removing merchandise and bringing them to Howard who handled the false refund.
Howard admitted to police he made the transactions, but said he did not know the names of the two men.
Bond was not set.
Source:thenewsstar.com
Priest from St. Claire’s Catholic Church caught shoplifting www.privateofficer.com
Forty-three-year-old Giuseppe Savaia is a priest at St. Claire’s Catholic Church in North Palm Beach. Police said the ordained priest was recently caught shoplifting.
Surveillance cameras captured Savaia as he went inside the Neiman Marcus store at the Boca Town Center Mall. Savaia can be seen looking at a Jay Strongwater picture frame worth $895.
Savaia is then seen with the frame as he walked away from the shelf. Police said the priest slipped the frame in his pocket and walked out of the store. “I think that’s just very wrong, especially since he’s a priest. That’s not godly to do,” one shopper said.
Another shopper said, “People don’t expect priests to do it, but [some do].”
Five days later, the priest appeared at the Neiman Marcus store at the Sawgrass Mills Mall. He was captured on camera carrying two bags. Loss prevention officers began to follow Savaia.
Later, the priest took two Italian-made jackets and layered them, draped them over his arm, and began walking aimlessly around the store. After some time, he walked out of the store, jackets in hand.
However, store employees were waiting outside and escorted him back inside the business. Shopper Chuck Trombly said, “There’s always those people in every profession that may go outside the law, and he just happens to be one of them who got caught.”
Savaia faces two counts of grand theft.
Source:www.wsvn.com
Former EMC charged in $220,000 embezzlement www.privateofficer.com
Framingham MA July 14 2012 A former EMC (NYSE:EMC) employee has been arraigned for allegedly stealing about $220,000 from the storage vendor.
The employee, Madeline Vinton, served as an administrative assistant at EMC’s Hopkinton, Mass., headquarters from April 2006 until early this year, when EMC started investigation of the alleged theft, according to a report from the Middlesex County District Attorney’s office in Woburn, Mass.
The MetroWest Daily News of Framingham, Mass., reported that Vinton pleaded not guilty of the charges and was ordered by the court to be held on $7,500 cash bail.
According to the District Attorney’s office, Vinton is alleged to have illegally used an EMC-issued credit card to charge over $155,000 in personal expenses, with the money being spent on limousine rides, Amazon.com purchases, hotels, meals, rental cars and tickets to Boston Celtics games. Another $500 was charged to that card on plastic surgery, the D.A. alleged.
Vinton also allegedly made “fraudulent purchases” on her boss’s company credit card and requested payments of over $48,000 on overtime the D.A. said she never worked.
EMC early this year began investigating possible theft after noticing a “pattern of travel and expense activities that were inconsistent with Vinton’s role and assigned duties,” according to the D.A.’s report.
EMC terminated Vinton’s employment in February. She was arraigned in the Framingham, Mass. District Court on March 30, indicted by a Middlesex County, Mass. Grand Jury on June 7, and arraigned on larceny charges Wednesday. A pre-trial conference in the case is set for August 29.
EMC confirmed that Vinton was a former administrative assistant for the company, but declined to specify for which department she worked. The company declined any other response other than to point to the D.A.’s online report and issue a statement that read, “EMC is cooperating with the authorities.”
The D.A.’s office declined to provide any other information other than its report.
Source:CRN
