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TN State Corrections Officer Killed During Robbery
Nashville TN Aug 27 2012 The woman fatally wounded just after 4:30 a.m. today in the parking lot of Longwood Apartments at 371 Wallace Road is identified as Dalia Gutierrez-Sanchez, 43, a State of Tennessee correction officer who worked at Riverbend Prison.
The investigation to this point shows that Gutierrez-Sanchez was approached by a gunman moments after she parked outside her apartment building. She was fatally wounded during an altercation with the suspect. Robbery is a possible motive in that Gutierrez-Sanchez’s purse was taken. The gunman fled the apartment complex on foot and was last seen on Wallace Road. Detectives are continuing to work with witnesses to gain a detailed description of the shooter.
Anyone with information as to the gunman’s identify is asked to contact the Emergency Communications Center at 862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 74-CRIME. Citizens can also send an electronic tip to Crime Stoppers by texting the word “CASH” along with their message to 274637 (CRIMES) or by logging onto http://www.nashvillecrimestoppers.com. Callers to Crime Stoppers can remain anonymous and qualify for a cash reward.
Three people killed in crash with Memphis police car www.privateofficer.com
MEMPHIS, TN – Aug 27 2012 Not much was left of a Mercury sedan after it collided with a Memphis Police car, Sunday afternoon.
“I was on the porch me and my niece, all we heard was a loud boom,” said Odessa Stephenson.
A Memphis police spokesperson said one of their officers was in route to a call going east bound on Crump.
When the officer approached Georgia, the cruiser crashed into a private vehicle heading South on Georgia.
Three victims inside the car were killed, a fourth critically injured. Family members rushed to the med waiting for word on their conditions.
“It’s terrible cause I want to know what’s going on because that’s my only aunt and we want to know what’s going on,” Latricia Murphy said.
Relatives said the three passengers and the driver from Senatobia, Mississippi were in Memphis for a 50th birthday celebration. They were on their way back to Mississippi when the crash occurred.
“The police officer called us and told us to meet them at the Med because my Auntie has been in a real bad accident,” Murphy said.
Murphy was informed soon after that her aunt, Deloise Epps died at the hospital. Epps daughter and husband were also killed. A family friend traveling with them is in extremely critical condition.
People living near the crash site want to know whether the accident could have been prevented. They said they never heard the officer’s siren.
“I didn’t even hear no skid, no errr, no I didn’t hear, it was just boom,” Stephenson said.
I just hate for those people they lost their life,” Justin Vinson, who lives near the site of the crash said.
Police said the officer’s injuries are not life threatening.
Memphis police are not able to comment on whether the officer was following procedure but did confirm the crash will be investigated.
Source: WMC-TV
Jacksonville K-Mart manager charged with theft of $100,000 worth of jewelry www.privateofficer.com
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.Aug 27 2012 – Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested an employee at the K-Mart on Blanding Boulevard on charges she stole over $100,000 worth of jewelry over the course of a year.
Police received notification from the K-Mart loss prevention officer at the store located at 4645 Blanding Boulevard that a store audit showed a shortage of $145,000 from the jewelry department, according to an arrest report from JSO.
Store personnel told police they reviewed video surveillance that showed the shortage did not happen on the store floor. The report says loss prevention officers then placed video surveillance inside the store’s main office.
When they reviewed the surveillance tape, they saw Wanda Bias not place the jewelry storage case inside the cash office, according to the report.
The loss prevention officer told police Bias would leave the jewelry case inside the main office. Bias would then unlock the jewelry case, remove jewelry from the case and then place the jewelry in her pockets and purse.
The loss prevention officer for the store told police once the full investigation into the theft was completed, the total value of the stolen jewelry was over $200,000.
The K-Mart loss prevention district manager went to the store to speak with Bias, who was a manager. The report says when the district manager interviewed Bias, she admitted to him that had been stealing from K-Mart for over a year.
Wanda Bias was arrested and taken to the Police Memorial Building to be interviewed. When detectives spoke with Bias, the report says, she admitted to stealing the merchandise.
Bias was charged with employee theft over $100,000; dealing in stolen property; and giving false verification of ownership of pawned items. She is not eligible to receive bond.
Source: First Coast News
Virginia Beach man dies after being hit on the head with a bottle www.privateofficer.com
Virginia Beach VA Aug 27 2012
Police are investigating the death of a man who died Saturday morning after he was hit with a bottle at a nightclub, police said.
Police responded to Club Royale Blue in the 800 block of Baker Road around 12:50 a.m. after receiving a call about a man who had collapsed on the dance floor, according to Officer Jimmy Barnes, a department spokesman.
Officers found that the man had been hit with a beverage bottle on the dance floor by an unknown person.
Barnes said police are investigating the case as a homicide and do not have any suspects. Anyone with information is asked to call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP (562-5887).
The identity of the victom has not been released yet.
Baton Rouge man killed by nightclub security guard www.privateofficer.com
BATON ROUGE LA Aug 27 2012 - Police are investigating a shooting that left one dead around Sunday outside a nightclub on Plank Rd. near Harding Blvd., according to Baton Rouge Police Department Cpt. Elton Brown Sr.
Brown says officers were dispatched to Club Sha La (8190 Plank Rd.) around 1:30 a.m. relative to a shooting. Officers found a black male dead next to his vehicle in a parking lot.
Officers were advised that a security officer working at the nightclub shot the man in self-defense, according to Brown.
The case was turned over to homicide detectives. Detectives are following up on the case.
Witnesses say the man killed is local rapper Corey Kaufman.
Anyone with any information is urged to contact BRPD Homicide Division at 225-389-4869.
Source:wbrz.com
Three charged with retail burglary at Kohl’s store www.privateofficer.com
Vallejo CA Aug 27 2012 Three people were arrested Thursday on suspicion of burglary at Kohl’s, Vallejo police said Friday.
A 19-year-old Vallejo woman was arrested for allegedly taking three pairs of shoes, police said. The store’s security guard detained her on scene until police arrived. She was identified as Abigail Messano, and was also found to have an outstanding arrest for theft.
Two men also were arrested about five hours later at about 10:30 p.m. after a security guard spotted them taking clothing items, police said.
Upon police arrival, they were seen fleeing the store but were soon arrested. They were identified as Karl Mitschan, 33, of Oroville and Kamani Trotter, 22, of Vallejo.
All stolen items were recovered and the suspects were all booked.
Two men charged in smash and grab of expensive watches from the King of Prussia mall www.privateofficer.com
Upper Merion police Sgt. Jeff Maurer said today that the two were arrested in Philadelphia last night after questioning, and were charged with receiving stolen property.
They were found to be in possession of some of the luxury watches taken in a 20-second whirlwind crime from the Tourneau Inc., luxury watch store at 2:47 Wednesday, Maurer said.
He said the investigation is in a preliminary stage and detectives are now working to connect the pair with the actual removal of the jewelry from the store in the King of Prussia Plaza.
The crime, carried out by three heavily masked men, occurred when one smashed display cases with a small sledge hammer while the others gathered up the watches. Officials estimated the take at being worth $477,000.
The entire crime was captured on surveillance videotape, but the tape was not being released to the public, Maurer said.
Maurer said the pair, whose names he did not know because city police did the booking, were believed to be from Philadelphia and older than their 20s. He said a third suspect has not yet been identified and is still being sought.
“They have been cooperative in talking to us,” Maurer said of the men in custody. “But we have a lot more to go on this investigation. Our goal is to link them to the actual crime.”
He said a bevy of new charges could be filed in Upper Merion as the investigation deepens.
Two smash and grab robberies happened at the same store, one on July 13, 2011, the other on April 13, 2012. The store sits next to a service door to the outside which allowed the robbers to make a quick exit.
Source:philly.com
School security-police make burglary arrests at Sunset Elementary School www.privateofficer.com
King County WA Aug 27 2012 Around 9 p.m. on Friday night, police were called to the old Sunset Elementary School site in Shoreline’s Richmond Highlands neighborhood, after a school district security guard on patrol reported hearing noises in the vacant building.
After arriving on scene, police arrested four teenage males, three of whom were booked into the King County Jail as adults on investigation of burglary and malicious mischief. The fourth, a juvenile, was released into the custody of his grandmother.
The Sunset Elementary building has remained mainly vacant since the school closed in 2007. Most recently, it had been used as a storage facility for the Shoreline Historical Museum before it completed its move to its current location at 185th and Linden Ave.
An agreement was reached in May between the City of Shoreline and the Shoreline School District, which calls for the district to pay for the demolition and removal of the school building, while the city takes over the maintenance, utilities, supervision, and scheduling of the property. Meanwhile, Friends of Sunset Park continue to pursue converting the space into a new community gathering place.
SC Security officer shot to death www.privateofficer.com
COLUMBIA SC August 27 2012 -For the second time in a week, Richland County Deputies are looking for the killers of a nightclub security guard.
Early Sunday morning deputies say that three men shot and killed a security guard, now identified as Jimmy Moti after he refused to let them into a nightclub.
According to officials, the men showed up to El Toro’s at 806 St. Andrews Road around 11:30pm.
Deputies say the security guard refused to let the men inside after he questioned the authenticity of one man’s ID. The men and security got into a verbal altercation. After the argument the men left and got into their car.
According to deputies, as the men were driving off, they shot the security guard from inside their car. The guard was taken to a local hospital where he later died from gunshot wounds.
Deputies say the men were in a black, older model Mercury Marquis.
If you know anything about this incident you are asked to call Crimestoppers at 1-888-Crime-SC.
Just a week earlier, on August 19th, a security officer, GaWayne A Franklin, 25 was shot to death at Mr. Lucky’s.
Police have arrested 22-year-old James Kevin Bethel Jr and charged him with murder. Investigators say that a fight broke out inside the club and when the security guard attempted to lead Bethel outside; he pulled a handgun and shot him.
At least 67 U.S. security officers have been killed on duty this year.
Four Chicago school employees charged with stealing over $380,000 www.privateofficer.com
She never received a the degree, but for the next 15 years, Howley lied to her superiors and eventually presented them with fake transcripts from Rush University that showed she reached her goal, allowing her to pocket an extra $307,000, Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez said.
If it weren’t for a prospective out of state employer, diligent local investigators and others, Howley, 64, and a handful of other former Chicago-area educators would have continued stealing money allocated for schools, Alvarez said Wednesday in announcing charges against the group in her ongoing “Operation Cookie Jar” probe.
“The theft of public money by individuals who are in positions of public trust is always egregious, but the theft of money from schools is absolutely outrageous and extremely offensive when the ultimate victims are our school children,” said Alvarez. She was joined by inspectors general for the Chicago Public Schools and City Colleges and by Thomas Utz, a special agent with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General.
Howley remains in Fort Collins, Colo., where she currently lives, but she is expected to be arraigned here soon, officials said.
Another former City Colleges employee, Natatia Trotter-Gordon, 43, allegedly asked Northwestern Memorial Hospital workers who helped coordinate a conversational Spanish class to mail checks to her instead of Kennedy-King College. Through that ploy, Trotter-Gordon, then Kennedy-King’s director of Business and Industry, ended up with more than $51,000 in her personal bank account, Alvarez said.
Trotter-Gordon was ordered held in lieu of $75,000 bail for forgery Wednesday.
Louis James, 58, a former sports administrator for the Chicago Public Schools, is accused of forging checks, purchasing items and then returning them — and then pocketing the cash to buy champagne, flowers, chocolate, condoms and a king-size mattress.
Another former Chicago Public School employee, Sonia Lopez, 49, wrote 14 fraudulent checks to herself totaling $21,000 while she worked as a teaching assistant at Thurgood Marshall Middle School, Alvarez said.
Lopez is also accused of swiping $3,000 in cash from student fees and other payments.
Both James and Lopez were ordered held in lieu of $30,000 bail for their alleged crimes Wednesday.
Alvarez’s announcements came a day after former Harvey-Dixmoor School District 147 Supt. Alex Boyd was ordered held in lieu of $150,000 bail for theft and official misconduct charges for allegedly stealing the cash-strapped district’s money to line his own pockets.
Boyd’s secretary, Mable Chapman, was also charged with helping Boyd pull off his ruse by signing off on the fraudulent transactions, Alvarez said. Boyd, now 65, would allegedly buy Chapman airline tickets for trips using district funds. Five of Chapman’s friends and relatives ended up on the payroll, officials said. Chapman also asked maintenance staff to use district equipment to clear snow off her driveway in Harvey, Alvarez said.
Chapman, 58, wasn’t in court Tuesday but arrangements have since been made for her surrender, Alvarez said.
Source:Sun-Times
Two women face robbery charges in JC Penney shoplifting www.privateofficer.com
Watertown NY Aug 27 2012 Two women were jailed Thursday evening after being charged by state police in connection with an alleged shoplifting incident at J.C. Penney, Salmon Run Mall, in which a store employee was injured.
Tiffany F. Merrifield, 27, of 327 W. Kirby St., Dexter, is charged with third-degree robbery and petit larceny, while Desiree L. Smith, 22, of 327 Walker Ave., faces the petit larceny charge. LeRay Town Justice George E. Mead III set bail at $25,000 for Ms. Merrifield, and at $5,000 for Ms. Smith, sending both to the Metro-Jefferson Public Safety Building.
They are charged in an incident Sunday afternoon in which they allegedly placed merchandise priced at $97 in a purse being carried by Ms. Merrifield, and then left the store without paying, police said. When they were confronted by store employee Jennifer Dunn, Ms. Merrifield swung her elbow at Ms. Dunn and gouged her on the chest with her fingernails, police alleged.
The suspects got away, and police obtained warrants. The search for Ms. Merrifield led Watertown police early Thursday to 736 W. Main St., where they found four people possessing heroin. She was not there, however.
Troopers found Ms. Merrifield and Ms. Smith shortly after 2:30 p.m. Thursday in an apartment at 736 W. Main St.
The two were accomplices in a liquor shoplifting incident in May at Arsenal Wine and Liquor, 940 Arsenal St. They pleaded guilty to petit larceny, and neither has paid their $400 in fines and court fees, according to City Court.
Source:Watertwon Daily News
101 arrested at New England Country Music Festival in Foxborough www.privateofficer.com
Foxborough MA Aug 27 2012 Police arrested 101 people and took another 466 into custody at the New England Country Music Festival in Gillette Stadium Friday and Saturday evenings, police said today.
The charges included being a minor in possession of alcohol, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, trespassing, assault and battery, and assault and battery on a police officer, Foxborough Police Sergeant Richard Noonan said. One person was arrested for operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, and another was arrested for drug possession.
Those arrested ranged in age from teenagers to people in their 50s, Noonan said. The two-day event was headlined by country singers Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw.
At the 2009 New England Country Music Festival, where also Chesney performed, police arrested 114 and placed placed at least 228 people in protective custody. Six people were charged with assault and battery in 2011 after a melee at a McGraw concert in Attleboro.
Noonan declined to say whether police provided extra security for this year’s event in Foxborough.
Source:globe.com
Lumber mill destroyed in fire-no one injured www.privateofficer.com
A four-story lumber mill has been destroyed by a fire in Montesano.
KOMO News reports that blaze began late Saturday at Mary’s River Lumber and quickly engulfed the entire structure.
Firefighters were only able to keep the blaze from spreading to other structures.
A security guard initially spotted the fire and called 911. But the blaze quickly spread to piles of wood chips, which fueled the flames. Within minutes, towering flames were pouring from the building.
No one was injured in the blaze. The mill employs about 100 people and is one of the main employers in the small town
Source:Seattle Times
Chicago police charge dozens of teens with disturbances www.privateofficer.com
Chicago IL Aug 27 2012 Two dozen young people were arrested after causing disturbances near and on the Magnificent Mile Saturday afternoon, Chicago police said this morning.
Of those arrested, 20 were juveniles and four were adults after the incidents Saturday evening, police said. Most were cited or charged with misdemeanor reckless conduct.
No injuries were reported though scores of police officers criss-crossed the city’s Near North Side, including on the Gold Coast, responding to numerous calls regarding rowdy teens pushing aside pedestrians and darting into traffic along North Michigan Avenue near Chicago Avenue, according to witnesses and police.
Those arrested were involved in incidents at several locations, including the northeast and southeast corners of Michigan and Chicago Avenues and near State Street and Chicago Avnue. When officers assigned to a North Michigan Avenue detail tried to arrest several of them, they darted out in front of moving cars to try to evade arrest on Michigan Avenue.
In one related incident, a 14-year-old girl was arrested at 8 p.m. after throwing tea on a security guard at a McDonald’s at 20 E. Chicago Avenue, police said.
In the end, officers took about two-dozen youth into custody, charging most of them as juveniles with reckless conduct, said Officer Ronald Gaines, a police spokesman.
Source:chicago tribune
Greensboro, NC charge 4 men with robbery of Walmart store www.privateofficer.com
When officers made it to the scene at 3 p.m., they learned that two men had entered the store and tried to shoplift.
One of the men pulled out a weapon when confronted by store security.
The two suspects ran from the store, got into a car and tried to drive away from the scene, but their car hit a pole, and then another car during their escape.
Greensboro police stopped the suspects and arrested and charged four people.
Malcolm Jamar Wilson, 20, and a 17-year-old male, are charged with Robbery.
Daniel Oneil Collins, 41, and another suspect, whose age is unknown, are charged with Conspiracy to Commit Robbery.
Police are still investigating this incident.
If you have any information, call Crimestoppers at (336) 373-1000
Atlanta vehicle booting tactics inspire outrage www.privateofficer.com
Atlanta GA Aug 27 2012 For Atlanta attorney Stanley Lefco, the decision to park in a spot marked for visitors at Varasano’s Pizzeria the night before a 10k race cost him more than a tip. He walked right past a waist-high sign warning what would happen next.
He returned to the parking deck off Peachtree Road to find two heavy-duty metal contraptions on the wheels of his car. Removing the “boots” cost $75, the maximum allowed by city ordinance.
“We all know the bootman is not going to let me go without the money,” Lefco wrote in an essay about the incident.
A chorus of local residents say aggressive booting on private parking lots in Atlanta should be tamed, and some city officials agree. But others caution that frustrated drivers’ best recourse is to the landlords, parking operators and booting companies that orchestrate impoundments on private property.
City Councilman Kwanza Hall is pushing for an ordinance that would add requirements for the more than dozen companies licensed to boot vehicles in Atlanta. Electronic payment boxes would have to dispense receipts, replacing the old “honor boxes” that take cash through slots but don’t issue proof of payment for parking.
“That would be a huge leap forward,” said Hall, whose district includes downtown and parts of Midtown. “I’m just trying to come up with a solution that really works.”
Some executives at booting companies say their crews are simply abiding by the terms of their contracts with the property owners. The goal is to protect the valuable parking spots for merchants who might otherwise see their spots occupied by noncustomers, several executives said.
“We’re constantly training our guys in how to deal with people,” said Mike Jacob, co-owner of Advanced Booting Services, which was founded 14 years ago in Atlanta. “Nobody’s happy to get a boot. It’s just a simple courtesy to explain to people exactly why their car was booted.
“It’s a tough job, but it’s a necessity out there,” Jacob said. “And it’s a much kinder alternative than being towed.”
Currently, 17 companies have permits to boot vehicles in Atlanta, according to statistics from the Atlanta Police Department, which issues the permits. The ordinance governing vehicle immobilization requires clear signs warning drivers that they could be booted.
Hall said his goal was not to outlaw booting in the city. That would just lead to more towing, he said.
It’s not clear if the City Council or Mayor Kasim Reed will support Hall’s push for new regulations.
Duriya Farooqui, who reports to Reed as the city’s chief operating officer, said she was open to proposals but concerned about unintended consequences. If the city got more involved in regulating the private booting industry, it could cost police manpower and add thousands of dollars in costs to some small businesses that own parking lots, she said.
“The city would have to be very thoughtful” about considering any new regulations, Farooqui said in an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Private business have contractual relationships with private vendors. The question would be, when should government intervene? Something that seems like a simple solution might not be. A strong case would need to be made.”
That caution is unlikely to soothe some residents. Nima Patel, a 24-year-old Stockbridge resident, said she parked at the Starbucks lot on 14th Street, then decided she preferred a bagel at Einstein Bros. next door. She bought the bagel and then returned to Starbucks.
It was a few hours before she noticed the boot on her car. The parking technician had taken video footage of Patel as she left the lot, and said it was a violation of the “in and out” policy. He didn’t budge on the $75 fee, even when Patel called the police.
“I told him I went right next door and came right back,” Patel said. “This is just way too unfair. I feel bullied and deceived.”
“The booting company is being contracted to provide a service under the direction of the owner or the manager of the property,” said Cohen, executive director of the parking authority in Lancaster, Pa. “If they’re taking the heat on it, they’re probably the wrong people. They’re the front-line folks who are taking the brunt of the complaints and the venom in that situation, but someone is setting a policy and procedure for that property.”
Several of Atlanta’s neighbors limited the operation of booting companies. Cobb County banned booting entirely in its unincorporated areas in 2004, and Gwinnett County did the same in 2007.
Cherokee County commissioners voted unanimously last year to ban the use of parking boots by private companies. That came after customers at an Acworth McDonald’s said they were booted while inside the restaurant and had to pay a $500 release fee.
Jeff Varasano, owner of Varasano’s Pizzeria, said unclear signs and swift booting in the nearby parking deck have caused big headaches.
He has endured tirades from customers and dished out a few in the direction of the booting technician. In four cases, he paid for boots to be removed from customers’ vehicles. He was booted himself.
“I’ve had investors come to the restaurant and get booted,” said Varasano, who said he planned to urge his landlord to end the practice. “It’s crazy. It was almost every night for a while.”
Source:ajc.com
