Trucking Company Owners Sentenced for $800,000 Scheme to Defraud Tracker Marine www.privateofficer.com

 

SPRINGFIELD, MO May 15 2013—Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that that the owners of a Lebanon, Missouri trucking company have been sentenced for their roles in a conspiracy to defraud Tracker Marine, a Springfield, Missouri-based manufacturer of boats and trailers sold throughout North America.
James Keith Ivey, 53, and his wife, Melinda Kay Ivey, 43, both of Lebanon, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner on Friday, May 10, 2013. James Ivey was sentenced to five years and 10 months in federal prison without parole. Melinda Ivey was sentenced to two years and six months in federal prison without parole. The Iveys are jointly and severally liable to pay $797,325 in restitution.
On August 15, 2012, the Iveys were found guilty following a bench trial before U.S. District Judge Richard E. Dorr. The Iveys and co-defendant Paul Ray Hunting, 40, of Paso Robles, California, devised a scheme to defraud Tracker Marine LLC from January 2006 to April 2009 by inflating purchase orders and shipping invoices. During that time, the Iveys and Hunting caused more than 2,550 fraudulent invoices to be submitted to Tracker, which created a total loss of at least $797,325 to Tracker.
The Iveys owned and operated J&M Trucking Inc. in Lebanon. Tracker contracted with J&M to transport boats and trailers to Tracker’s dealers located throughout North America. Hunting, formerly of Laclede County, Missouri, was promoted to transportation manager for Tracker in 2006.
Hunting pleaded guilty to his role in both a wire fraud conspiracy and a money laundering conspiracy as well as to failing to file an income tax return. Hunting, who was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison, was ordered to pay $294,496 in restitution.
J&M’s compensation from Tracker was determined primarily by the distance its trucks traveled. Hunting caused Tracker to make payments to J&M in excess of the contract amount by listing an inflated and false number of billable miles on purchase orders. In exchange, James Ivey paid Hunting a portion of the revenue generated by the fraudulently increased billable miles in cash. From 2006 to 2008, James Ivey paid Hunting a total of $265,775.
At the beginning of the scheme, there was no set amount for Hunting’s increases to the billable miles on purchase orders. However, in April 2006, James Ivey and Hunting agreed on a set amount of 158 miles as being the amount Hunting would add to each purchase order, because when multiplied by the then-applicable reimbursement rate of $1.90 per mile, the result was an additional $300 per trip. This amount allowed for an even three-way split between Hunting, James Ivey, and Melinda Ivey. The defendants continued the practice of inflating billable miles by 158 miles per trip, even after the reimbursement rate was increased to $2.10 per mile in January 2007.
However, J&M paid its drivers for the actual miles they drove, not the number of miles for which J&M invoiced Tracker.
In addition to the fraud conspiracy, James and Melinda Ivey were found guilty of a money laundering conspiracy related to the cash payments to Hunting, which involved the proceeds of the mail and wire fraud conspiracy. Approximately every two weeks, James Ivey, often accompanied by Melinda Ivey, met Hunting (usually in a parking lot in Lebanon) and paid Hunting his share of the proceeds generated from the fraudulent invoices, in cash. Hunting claimed some of those payments on his federal income tax return as income from a catering business, which was false. The Iveys claimed the payments represented a percentage of revenue generated by two trucks they claimed Hunting owned and was leasing to J&M, which was also false.
In addition to the fraud and money laundering conspiracies, James and Melinda Ivey were convicted together in nine counts of wire fraud, and James Ivey was convicted of 10 additional counts of wire fraud. The Iveys were each convicted of one count of making false statements to federal agents.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Mohlhenrich. It was investigated by the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation.
This news release, as well as additional information about the office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, is available online at http://www.justice.gov/usao/mow/index.html.

Binghamton-Area Man Sentenced for $594,000 Theft and Tax Evasion www.privateofficer.com

 

Broome County NY April 27 2013 United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian announced that William P. Stiles, 43, of Deposit, Broome County, New York, was sentenced today in United States District Court to twenty four weekends of incarceration and five years’ supervised release for the felony crimes of wire fraud and tax evasion.

Stiles was chief operating officer and part owner of Aeden Waterford Inc. (AWI), a payroll and human services company located in the city of Binghamton. Stiles stole more than $500,000 from approximately 100 business clients of AWI between November 2005 and November 2010.

The money stolen by Stiles was supposed to be used by Stiles to pay client employment with holding taxes but instead was deposited by Stiles into Stiles’ personal bank accounts. Stiles used the funds stolen from AWI clients for his own personal benefit. Stiles further admitted he evaded income taxes due on the stolen money.

In addition to home confinement and supervised release, District Court Judge Thomas J. McAvoy ordered Stiles to pay $64,466 in back taxes to the Internal Revenue Service and $529,607.29 in restitution to the victims of his crime.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Binghamton Resident Agency, and it was prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Clinical Laboratory President and New Jersey Doctor, Others Charged with Company in Multi-Million-Dollarl Scheme www.privateofficer.com

 

NEWARK, NJ April 11 2013—Federal agents arrested the president and part-owner of Parsippany, New Jersey-based Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BLS), a New Jersey physician, and two other BLS employees this morning on charges they participated in a long-running scheme to bribe doctors to refer patient blood samples to BLS and to order unnecessary tests, resulting in tens of millions of dollars in profit for the company. The charges were announced today by New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman.

BLS president David Nicoll, 39, of Mountain Lakes, New Jersey; Scott Nicoll, 32, of Wayne, New Jersey, a senior BLS employee and David Nicoll’s brother; and Craig Nordman, 34, of Whippany, New Jersey, a BLS employee and the CEO of Advantech Sales LLC—an entity used by BLS to make illegal payments—are charged in a federal complaint with conspiring to bribe physicians over a period of several years. BLS is also charged with the conspiracy.

Frank Santangelo, 43, of Boonton, New Jersey, a New Jersey physician with offices in Montville and Wayne, is charged in the complaint for allegedly accepting bribes to refer patients to BLS and violating his duty of fidelity to his patients. Santangelo allegedly received more than $700,000 in bribe payments from BLS and sent the company more than $4.2 million in blood referrals.

The defendants are scheduled to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court.

“People depend on their doctors to make medical decisions about care based solely on medical need,” said U.S. Attorney Fishman. “When doctors order extra tests or choose particular labs in exchange for cash, they abandon their obligation to their patients and to all of us who support our nation’s health care system. No patients should have to worry that their doctors’ loyalty and judgment have been bought by a salesman trying to make a buck.”

“The FBI views health care fraud as a severe crime problem that affects every American,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford. “Fraud and abuse take critical resources out of our health care system and contribute to the rising cost of health care for everyone. Today’s arrests are the result of a long term, multi-agency investigation into a complex health care fraud scheme, requiring substantial investigative resources. The FBI, with its law enforcement partners, will continue to provide a significant amount of expert resources to investigate these crimes.”

“Kickbacks have no place in the healthcare industry. Financial inducements only cloud medical judgment. This elaborate kickback scheme had one goal, and that is greed,” said Tom O’Donnell, Special Agent in Charge for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Federal and state taxpayers, and vulnerable patients, deserve better.”

According to the complaint unsealed today:

Between 2006 and 2013, BLS and entities it funded paid millions of dollars to physicians to induce them to refer patient blood samples to BLS. From these referrals, BLS received at least tens of millions of dollars from private health insurance companies and Medicare.

Numerous physicians were bribed under the guise of lease, service, and/or consulting agreements. Under the lease and service agreements, between 2006 and 2009, physicians were frequently paid thousands of dollars a month by BLS for space in medical offices that BLS did not need or actually use and to perform routine blood drawing services that had little real dollar value.

In a text message referenced in the complaint, David Nicoll wrote to Santangelo about the status of their referral agreement, stating that BLS “really can’t afford the 40-50,000 [dollars] a month if the girls aren’t going to be drawing any blood,” to which Santangelo responded by stating, “U no u can count on me” and “I never let u down.”

When the state of New Jersey sought to address the problem of laboratories using lease agreements to bribe physicians for referrals—effectively prohibiting all leases between blood laboratories and physicians in 2010—BLS, David Nicoll, Scott Nicoll, and Nordman funded and used at least half a dozen entities to disguise bribe payments to physicians.

In one example from the complaint, a physician was paid $1,500 per month by Nordman—who identified himself as both a BLS employee and the CEO of Advantech—for spending less than two minutes each month filling out a one-page questionnaire asking how often sales representatives visited the physician’s office, which insurance companies were in-network for the physician and which out-of-network insurance companies did the physician bill. In reality, the payments were to refer patients’ blood samples to BLS.

Various recorded conversations are also detailed in the complaint, including one in which Nordman urges another physician to order “more tests,” stating, “That’s where it really is. I mean, if we get 10 bloods for $1,000 as opposed to 10 bloods for $4,000 or five bloods for $4,000, obviously there’s more. We get paid a percentage, obviously.” In a second conversation, Scott Nicoll tells this same physician, “I would like to be able to get you, you know, around 1,500 [dollars] a month if I can, but I need—we would either need more tests or more patients or something along those lines…you’re doing about a $1,000 a bag per patient…if we could, we could somehow get that up in the two’s then I’m looking at making 4,000, and I have no problem paying you know 1,500 [dollars] for it.”

Over the course of the charged conspiracy, BLS has made more than $200 million from the testing of blood specimens and related services. David Nicoll received more than $33 million in distributions from BLS during that same time period, during which he also spent millions on personal items: more than $5 million on high-end and collectible automobiles, including approximately $580,000 for a Yenko Nova and approximately $365,000 for a Yenko Chevelle, approximately $300,000 for a Ferrari, and approximately $291,000 for a Corvette; more than $700,000 to purchase a Manhattan apartment for a female companion; $600,000 on private jet charters; $392,000 on tickets to sporting events; $216,000 at electronics stores; and $154,000 at a gentleman’s club and restaurant.

“It is alleged in today’s complaint that the president and other employees of BLS bribed physicians to refer patients to their lab and order unnecessary lab tests, reaping millions of dollars, all in the name of greed,” stated Shantelle P. Kitchen, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Newark Field Office. “Medical tests should only be run when medically necessary, not so someone can buy exotic cars and charter private jets. This type of health care fraud will not be tolerated and IRS-Criminal Investigation, along with our law enforcement partners, will vigorously investigate these crimes to bring the perpetrators to justice.”

“Postal Inspectors, along with other law enforcement agents, unraveled a sophisticated false billing scheme that resulted in millions of dollars in losses,” said Acting Inspector in Charge Maria Kelokates, Newark Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “Postal Inspectors will continue to aggressively pursue investigations in which the U.S. mail is used to facilitate a crime.”

David Nicoll, Scott Nicoll, and Nordman are charged with one count of conspiring to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Federal Travel Act. Santangelo is charged in two counts—with substantive violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Federal Travel Act, for allegedly using the interstate mails in aid of commercial bribery. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison on each of the counts with which they are charged. Each count also carries a maximum $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. BLS is also charged with the conspiracy, and faces a maximum potential penalty of five years of probation and a $500,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss.

U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ford; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge O’Donnell; IRS–Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Kitchen, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Inspector in Charge Kelokates.

The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel Andrew Leven, Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Jampol and Deputy Chief Jacob T. Elberg of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Health Care and Government Fraud Unit in Newark, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Barbara Ward of the office’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit.

Daytona Beach police Chief Chitwood injured in scuffle on Main Street www.privateofficer.com

Daytona Fla March 18 2013 Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood broke his hand, had his finger bitten and suffered a deep gash to his forehead in a scuffle Saturday on Main Street with a man who said it “was his constitutional right to kill any cop that he thought was bad,” according to a police report.

Michael A. Dangelo, 43, of Daytona Beach, approached Chitwood and asked if he could talk to him, then uttered the “kill any cop” statement after Chitwood stopped to talk, police said. The chief turned to walk away and Dangelo spit on the back of Chitwood’s shirt.

The chief turned and told Dangelo he was under arrest, pushed the suspect against a wall and reached for Dangelo’s hand. Dangelo turned his head and bit down on Chitwood’s right index finger, the report said. Dangelo “did not loosen his bite” and the two men struggled, with Chitwood falling to the ground and hitting his head on a parked motorcycle.

Several witnesses then assisted Chitwood in restraining Dangelo until other officers arrived, according to the report. Chitwood suffered a broken left hand and finger, deep lacerations to his finger and a gash to the forehead that required stitches.

He was treated at Halifax Health Medical Center. Dangelo was charged with two felonies — aggravated battery against a law enforcement officer and resisting an officer with violence — and a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct

Fifteen Charged in Telemarketing Scheme to Defraud Timeshare Unit Owners www.privateofficer.com

Press Release Miami Fla March 9 2013 Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, announced today a two-count indictment charging conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The indictment charges the following 15 defendants: Pasquale Pappalardo, 60, of Coral Springs, Florida; Pasqualino Agovino, 49, of Coral Springs, Florida; Patride Ditroia, 43, of Coral Springs, Florida; Louis Duany, 64, Wilton Manors, Florida; Michael Bleich, formerly of Boca Raton, Florida, 36; Audwin Lovinsky, of Tamarac, Florida, 35; Ibrahim Al-Dabbas, 47, Deerfield Beach, Florida; Michael Vincent Scheel, 50, of Boca Raton, Florida; Diana Harrington, 65, of Boca Raton, Florida; Ashley Lowton, 24, of Clermont, Florida; Charles Lee, 24, of Coral Springs, Florida; Kenneth Rockmore, 27, of Lauderhill, Florida; Ricardo Davis, 25, of Tamarac, Florida; Milton Oliver, 37, of Boynton Beach, Florida; and Clinton Ross, 57, of Redondo Beach, California.

All defendants are charged in count one of the indictment with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349. Count two charges defendants Pappalardo, Agovino, Ditroia, and Duany with conspiracy to commit money laundering, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956. Defendants Pappalardo, Ditroia, Lovinsky, Oliver, Agovino, Duany, Lowton, Davis, and Lee all appeared in court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lurana S. Snow. Bond hearings are scheduled for tomorrow. Arrests are expected to continue during the week.
So far, 41 defendants have been charged to date for their involvement with a timeshare resale telemarketing room called Timeshare Mega Media and Marketing Group Inc. (TMMMG). The other cases previously filed include Case Nos. 11-60190-CR-Cohn, 11-60247-Cr-Marra, 11-60268-Cr-Hurley, 12-60019-Cr-Scola, 12-60149- Cr- Scola, and 12-mj-6114-RSR.
According to the indictment, in June 2009, Pappalardo incorporated TMMMG, using defendant Duany and Duany’s mother as nominee owners. Pappalardo was a co-owner of TMMMG, and Ditroia, Agovino, and Duany helped run TMMMG for him. According to the allegations in the indictment, the defendants conspired to unlawfully enrich themselves by making false representations over the telephone to individuals who were trying to sell their time-share units. Among the false statements, the defendants would tell customers, most of whom lived outside of the state of Florida, that the defendants had successfully sold their time-share unit and asked the customer to pay a fee to finalize the sale, a which fee would purportedly be refunded at closing. This fee ranged from at least $1,996 to as much as $10,000.
According to the indictment, the defendants knew that TMMMG never had any buyers for any of the sellers of their timeshare units. In this way, during the 10 months that TMMMG was in business, it fraudulently induced customers to send approximately $5,000,000 to TMMMG, of which Pappalardo received at least $300,000 in checks and hundreds of thousands of dollars of cash from victims.
If convicted, defendants Pappalardo, Agovino, Ditroia, and Duany each face a possible statutory maximum sentence of up to 40 years in prison. Defendants Bleich, Lovinsky, Al-Dabbas, Scheel,
Harrington, Lowton, Lee, Rockmore, Davis, Oliver, and Ross each face a possible statutory maximum sentence of up to twenty years in prison.
Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI. Mr. Ferrer also recognized the assistance provided by the Fort Lauderdale Police Department and the Federal Trade Commission during this investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey N. Kaplan.

Owners of Miami Home Health Companies Sentenced to Prison in $48 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme www.privateofficer.com

WASHINGTON DC March 1 2013—The owners and operators of two Miami health care agencies were sentenced to nine years and more than four years in prison today, respectively, and ordered to pay millions in restitution for their participation in a $48 million home health Medicare fraud scheme that billed for unnecessary home health care and therapy services.

The sentences, imposed in federal court in the Southern District of Florida, were announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida; Michael B. Steinbach, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Miami Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Christopher B. Dennis of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations Miami Office.

U.S. District Judge Frederico A. Moreno sentenced Rogelio Rodriguez, 43, and Raymond Aday, 48, both of the Miami-Dade area, to 108 months and 51 months in prison, respectively. In addition to the prison term, Judge Moreno sentenced Rodriguez to pay $33 million in restitution, and Aday to pay $2.1 million in restitution. Both defendants were also sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and pay a $100,000 fine. In December 2012, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
According to court documents, Rodriguez was the owner of both Caring Nurse Home Health Corp. and Good Quality Home Health Inc., and Aday was a manager at Caring Nurse and owner of Good Quality.

According to plea documents, Rodriguez and Aday conspired with patient recruiters for the purpose of billing the Medicare program for unnecessary home health care and therapy services. Rodriguez, Aday, and their co-conspirators paid kickbacks and bribes to patient recruiters. In return, recruiters provided patients to Caring Nurse and Good Quality, as well as prescriptions, plans of care (POCs), and certifications for medically unnecessary therapy and home health services for Medicare beneficiaries. Rodriguez and Aday used these prescriptions, POCs, and medical certifications to fraudulently bill the Medicare program for home health care services, which both Rodriguez and Aday knew was in violation of federal criminal laws.
According to court documents, nurses and office staff at Caring Nurse and Good Quality falsified patient files to make it appear the Medicare beneficiaries qualified for services they did not. Rodriguez admitted to knowing that these files were falsified so the Medicare program could be billed for medically unnecessary therapy and home health related services.
From approximately January 2006 through June 2011, Caring Nurse and Good Quality submitted approximately $48 million in claims for home health services that were not medically necessary and/or were not provided. According to court documents, Medicare paid approximately $33 million for these fraudulent claims.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant Chief Joseph S. Beemsterboer of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,480 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $4.8 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to http://www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

Montgomery County Pastor and Mortgage Broker Convicted of Mortgage Fraud www.privateofficer.com

PHILADELPHIA PA Feb 27 2013—Michael Wilkerson, 47, of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, and Denise Haines, 43, of Birdsboro, Pennsylvania, were convicted today of engaging in a scheme to defraud JP Morgan Chase’s predecessor, Chase Manhattan Bank, by fraudulently obtaining home loans valued at more than $6 million for properties located in Schwenksville and Glenmoore, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.

Michael Wilkerson, pastor of New Millennium Life Restoration Fellowship, with locations in Phoenixville and Spring City, recruited several of his congregants and the congregants’ families and friends to participate in a number of real estate transactions. If they had good credit and acted as “straw purchasers”—meaning they would sign loan documents as the purchaser of a house and attend the property settlement—Michael Wilkerson would pay them $15,000. Wilkerson paid the recruits another $5,000 if they referred other straw purchasers to him. Wilkerson recruited at least six individuals who agreed to be straw purchasers of homes. Denise Haines, a mortgage broker with American Group Mortgage Corporation, submitted fraudulent loan applications in the transactions to Chase Manhattan Bank. These fraudulent loan applications falsely represented the appraised value of the homes, the identification of the “straws,” the source of funds, the borrower’s income and assets, and their intent to take possession of the homes as their primary residence. Based on the representations made in the loan documents, Haines knew she could get Chase Manhattan Bank to approve the loans with little verification of the information on the loan applications.

Wilkerson’s wife Joyce, who pleaded guilty, assisted in the scheme by writing out the checks to the “straws” and also pretended to be a co-purchaser of each of the homes at the time of settlement. Lee Garell, a real estate broker who pleaded guilty, prepared the sales paperwork for each of the homes that was sold to the “straws” and, along with Michael Wilkerson, dictated the fraudulent terms set out in the settlement sheets.

When the loans were funded at the time of settlement, the defendants manipulated the documents prepared at settlement and, later, forwarded the settlement documents to Chase Manhattan Bank to make it appear to the bank that the “straws” brought considerable cash to the closings. In fact, all of the money involved at the settlement actually came from Chase Manhattan Bank. The defendants shared in the profits from the fraudulent sales.

After settlement on the homes, Michael Wilkerson took possession of all of the homes, rented at least two of them and lived in another. He paid the mortgages with the proceeds from the fraudulent mortgage transactions and with rental income for approximately six months and then told the “straw” purchasers that they had to pay the mortgages. This last act led to the loans falling into default and then foreclosure, resulting in a loss of approximately $3 million.

U.S. District Court Judge Mitchell S. Goldberg scheduled a sentencing hearing for June 3, 2013, for Michael Wilkerson and for June 17, 2013, for Denise Haines. Each faces a maximum possible sentence of 180 years in prison, five years’ supervised release, a fine of up to $6 million, and a $600 special assessment. Sentencing hearings are scheduled for Garrell and Joyce Wilkerson on April 30, 2013, and May 6, 2013, respectively.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anita Eve.

President Obama established the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch and, with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.

WV Substitute Teacher Arrested on Sex Abuse Charges www.privateofficer.com

MASON COUNTY, W.Va. Feb 23 2013 — A substitute teacher in Mason County is facing two counts of sexual abuse, accused of having “inappropriate behavior with a student.”
Mason County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested James Paul Hadinger, 43, of Gallipolis Ferry, on Thursday. He was charged with two counts of sexual abuse by a parent, guardian, custodian or person in a position of trust to a child.
According to the criminal complaint, Hadinger was a substitute teacher at Hannan Jr./Sr. High School and became involved with the female, underage student over the last several weeks.
On February 12, investigators say Hadinger met the student at a grocery store and the two went to a basketball game together.
Deputies say after they left the game, Hadinger and girl drove to an abandoned house on Ball Chapel Road in Ashton where he engaged in sexual conduct with her.
According to the Sheriff’s Deputy on the case, Hadinger gave a written confession to the alleged incident.
He is being held on a $200,000 bond in the Western Regional Jail.
Mason County Schools Superintendet Suzanne Dickens released the following statement on the incident:
“Confidentiality requirements prevent me from commenting upon or discussing any allegations of employee misconduct. In the event disciplinary action is taken against an employee by the Board further information will be disclosed. However, I can say that anytime the district is confronted with allegations relating to the safety and welfare of students the allegations are taken seriously, thoroughly investigated and that measures are taken to ensure that students are safe and not exposed to any continuing risk of harm.”

Source: WSAZ

Three Charged In Explosion At Polk Motel In Columbia Tn www,privateofficer.com

COLUMBIA, Tenn. Feb 16 2013 – Three men have been charged after a meth lab explosion inside a room at a Maury County motel.
Adam Arabis, 23, Raymond Stringfellow, 50, and Derrel Pack, 43, were charged with three counts of reckless endangerment, promotion of meth, manufacture of meth and other charges.
Officials said they got reports of the explosion at the Polk Motel on Nashville Highway in Columbia around 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
“We arrived to see smoke, a small bit of flames, occupants coming out of the structure,” said Mark Gandee from the Columbia Fire Department.
Sergeant Jeremy Haywood from the Columbia Police Department said two of the men were injured in the blast, and both were taken to Maury Regional Medical Center for treatment. They were first decontaminated in the hotel parking lot.
“We do just a precautionary decon with soap and water, put tyveck paper suit just to take care of EMS, because they’re in a small confined area,” said Chief Lee Bergeron from the Columbia Police Department.
The other man fled the scene, but was later taken into custody.
The affected portion of the hotel was evacuated while crews investigated.

Bensalem investigation leads to arrest of 20 people in theft of more than $1.5 million www.privateofficer.com

Bensalem PA Feb 14 2013 A year-long corruption investigation culminated in the arrest of 20 people associated with the theft of more than $1.5 million from the Bensalem School District, police announced Tuesday morning.
Bensalem investigators made the arrests after they launched two separate investigations into alleged misdoings involving district staff. One investigation focused on “ghost employees,” the other on theft and illegal distribution of vehicles and related parts, township Public Safety Director Fred Harran said.
District Attorney David Heckler and Harran both said the investigation is not finished and more arrests are possible.
Jack Myers, the retired Bensalem School District business manager, was among those arrested in the corruption probe. He is charged with misapplication of entrusted property. Law enforcement said the 63-year-old Philadelphia resident knew of the many thefts occurring in the district and even participated in some of the activity.
The district’s current facilities manager, Robert Moseley, 61, of Bensalem was arrested and charged with misapplication of entrusted property for his part in the ghost employee investigation. In that case, police said multiple ground crew workers were getting paid for shifts they did not work. One employee did not report for work for up to three years, police said.
Head mechanic Fred Lange, 68, of Croydon was charged in August after it was uncovered he led the theft scheme being operated out of the bus garage, police said. Authorities called Lange the operations mastermind.

District mechanics Martin Chappell and Patrick Hammond were also arrested along with Lange.
Detectives told Patch that Chappell’s home garage was found to have a large surplus of vehicle parts suspected of being purchased with taxpayer money. One box of headlights was even addressed to the school district.
Hammond is suspected to have played a smaller role in the thefts. A search of his personal garage uncovered several small items believed to have been purchased using district funds.
One aspect of the crime involved ordering equipment through the district’s discounted consortium rates and then selling them out the figurative back door for less, keeping all the profits. Between nearly 7,000 bus tires and close to 2,200 batteries, the thieves are said to have swindled the district of over $1 million, police said. More money is alleged to have been spent on windshield wipers, oil filters and engine fluids, Harran explained during a late morning press conference.
Another angle involved Myers and Lange turning over the titles of 30 district buses, vans and pick-up trucks to Joel Zober, who owns a junkyard in Pipersville, police said. The vehicles were given to the junkyard and a group of classic car enthusiasts were able to pick other vehicles at the junkyard for free. Police called the group “The Breakfast Club,” due to their regular breakfast trips.
“All their people, their friends got to go to that junkyard and get parts free of charge,” Harran said. “There was a definite monetary value back.”
Harran called the group “very organized.”
Joseph Bound, owner of Bound Beverages on Bristol Pike in Bensalem, told police he bought items to maintain his vehicle fleet from Lange for the past 10 years. He said he paid cash for tires, synthetic transmission oil and transmission filters order by the school district, according to an affidavit.
“When gone unchecked for years, [the suspects] continued to do it. Those days are over,” Harran told reporters.
All of the suspects arrested on Wednesday were lead from the police station to District Justice Leonard Brown’s courthouse where they were arraigned.

Below is a list of the people arrested by authorities on Wednesday:
Current and Former District Employees

Former 28-year district business manager Jack Myers, 63, Hendrix Street, Philadelphia: misapplication of entrusted property
Facilities manager Robert Moseley, 61, Byberry Road, Bensalem: misapplication of entrusted property.
District bus mechanic Patrick Hammon, 53, of West Bensalem Avenue, Bensalem: theft and receiving stolen property
Mechanic Roland “Tex” Angle, 72, of Mildred Avenue, Bensalem: conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
“Ghost Employees”

Former Groundskeeper Supervisor Joseph Dyer, 43, of West Bensalem Avenue, Bensalem: theft and criminal conspiracy
Former Groundskeeper Shannon Dyer, 39, of West Bensalem Avenue, Bensalem: theft and criminal conspiracy
Groundskeeper Anthony Ruggiero, 38, of Ogden Avenue, Bensalem: theft and criminal conspiracy
Stolen Property Receivers and Distributors

William “Gill” Slowe, 73, of Crescent Avenue, Bensalem: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Alfred Venturino, 59, of Fourth Avenue, Croydon: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Robert Lord Sr., 64, of Dunksferry Road, Bensalem: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Bound Beverages owner Joseph Bound, 65, of Ford Avenue, Middletown: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Smith’s Auto Repair owner Elwyn Smith, 56, of Ritter Avenue, Bristol: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Classic car club member William Klosz, 63, of Hawthorne Avenue, Bensalem: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Classic car club member Leo Cannon, 65, of Hampton Court, Newtown: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Classic car club member Wiliam O’Hara, 56, of Ash Avenue, Bensalem: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Classic car club member Ronald Stoud, 69, of Cliff Road, Bensalem: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Upper Bucks County junkyard owner Joel Zober, 70, of Magnolia Drive, Croydon: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property
Tow truck operator Wilson Lopez, 29, of Lincoln Avenue, Bristol: criminal conspiracy, theft and receiving stolen property

Source: Bensalem Patch

Four women charged with thefts at Columbus K-Mart www.privateofficer.com

COLUMBUS, Miss. Feb 11 2013 — Columbus police have arrested four woman they say took over $500 from a local business.

Authorities say they were notified the woman took items from K-Mart on Highway 45 North Wednesday night.

The vehicle they were traveling in was stopped a short time later.

Brenda Lee Roby, 43, Labrenda Denise Roby, 21, Sheila Shavon Roby, 36, and Shameka Letrese Roby, 34, all of Columbus, are charged with shoplifting over $250 – third offense.

Shelia Shavon Roby is also charged with speeding and two counts of contempt of court.

Bond has not been set.

Source-WTVA

Two charged with felony shoplifting at Oconee County Lowe’s store www.privateofficer.com

 

Oconee County GA Nov 5 2012 Two separate incidents of shoplifting, one of which involved a Winder man, were reported on Friday, Oct. 26 at the Lowe’s store on Epps Bridge Parkway inOconee County.

Reed Willis Padgett, 43, of Winder, was booked into the Oconee County Jail on a charge of felony theft by shoplifting. Padgett attempted to steal tools and batteries around 2:30 p.m., a store loss prevention employee told Oconee Sheriff’s Office deputies.

The employee said he observed Padgett via surveillance cameras as he placed items in his black leather jacket and attempted to leave the store without paying for them.

According to an incident report, a Dewalt 20V Max 5 tool kit, 18V Dewalt compact battery, heavy duty Dewalt 7.2 V 18V and Linemen’s Electrica pliers were recovered. The merchandise was valued at $810.

At approximately 5 p.m., deputies received an additional call to Lowe’s where a 28-year-old woman was being held. The loss prevention employee stated seeing the woman take over $650 worth of merchandise and attempt to leave the store without paying. The items weren’t listed in the deputy’s report.

Megan Elizabeth Jeffers was charged with felony theft by shoplifting.

Okla. women charged with theft from Premium Outlet Mall www.privateofficer.com

Osage Beach MO Oct 21 2012 Officers responded to Brooks Brothers located at the Osage Beach Premium Outlet Mall in reference two black females who were caught stealing merchandise Sunday afternoon. The women had stolen merchandise, returning a short time later stating that they wanted to return the items for store Gift Cards.

While officers were at the Brooks Brothers Store, they learned that the women had also been at the Tommy Hilfiger Store and received store Gift Cards and merchandise exchange. Officers searched the area and located the women, one as she was entering another store. At the time of apprehension, gift cards, and merchandise from other stores, within the mall, were located.

Shanita Butler, 30, from Tulsa, Okla., and Julie R. Ware-Berry, 43, of Broken Arrow, Okla., were taken into custody and transported to the Camden County Jail.

Butler and Berry provided officers with false identification at the point of initial contact.

Butler was charged with felony stealing over $500 and misdemeanor stealing under $500. Her bond was set at $1,000 cash and $10,000 surety. Ware-Berry was charged with stealing, 3rd offense and forgery. Her bond was set at $750 cash and $7,500 surety.

Police arrest seven people from Georgia involved in international fraud ring www.privateofficer.com

 

Naperville  IL Oct 20 2012 Police have arrested seven people from Georgia they say are part of an “international fraud group,” operating out of the western suburbs.

The group members posted fake ads on Craigslist and made more than 50 fraudulent money/wire transfers, according to police.

Investigators this week located a makeshift lab equipped with computers and specialized printers used to make counterfeit identification, police said in a news release. They also found 62 counterfeit identification cards and numerous passports.

Police say the seven people they took into custody are part of a larger crime group operating in eastern Europe. Alicia Y. Jordan, 38, of Clarkston, Ga.; Darrick, L. Jordan, 23, of Decatur, Ga.; Jacqueline C. Gibson, 46, of Decatur, Ga.; Rickey L. Gibson, 43, of Atlanta, Ga; Decopeland S. Harris, 41, of Conley Ga.; Sierra S. Chambers, 25; of Decatur, Ga.; and Shanekie D. Head, 28, of Scottsdale, Ga. have each been charged with identity theft and forgery. They are being held at the DuPage County jail.

Men jailed after Walmart reports shoplifters take $1,100 in items www.privateofficer.com

 

Topeka KS Sept 14 2012 Two Topekans were arrested Tuesday afternoon after shoplifting more than $1,000 worth of merchandise from a business on S.W. Wanamaker.

Topeka police responded about 11:55 a.m. to Walmart, 1501 S.W. Wanamaker, on a report of shoplifters.

Lt. Ron Gish said Walmart employees saw two men pushing a cart with several items past all of the checkout lanes, making no attempt to pay. The men wheeled the items out of the store, and authorities were notified of the crime.

A car linked to the thieves later was stopped by police in the 4800 block of S.W. 17th, Gish said, which is where police made contact with Timothy Earl Collins, 43, and Phillip Gene McClellan, 22. That location is near S.W. 17th and Fairlawn.

Police discovered items stolen from Walmart— two Blu-ray DVD players and a desktop PC — in the trunk of the maroon Chrysler the two men had been in. Collins and McClellan then were arrested for felony theft. Collins also had Topeka bench warrants. The PC was valued at $800 and the Blu-ray players at $310.

Both remained in the Shawnee County Jail on Tuesday afternoon awaiting their first court appearances.

Source:capitol-journal

Rome Ga residents face felony drug charges after shoplifting www.privateofficer.com

 

 

 

Rome GA Sept 5 2012 Three Rome residents are facing felony drug related charges after they were initially arrested for misdemeanor shoplifting. The incident occurred on Saturday at the Wal-Mart in Rockmart when the asset protection security team noticed suspicious activity related to shoplifting.

Three suspects were apprehended and upon further investigation it was determined that they had shoplifted $72.70 worth of merchandise and passed off forged prescriptions for narcotics. The trio communicated by using a walkie-talkie device to coordinate their criminal activity.

Michael Charles Livingston, 43, Theresa Marie Livingston, 39, and Misti Ann Smith, 29, all of Rome were arrested by Rockmart police and charged with shoplifting, prescription fraud, possession of hydrocodone, possession of hydrocodone with intent to distribute.

According to Rockmart Police Chief Keith Sorrells, when responding officers arrived on the scene, Smith fled on foot and was apprehended at a nearby Wendy’s. Smith had in her possession a bag that contained the stolen merchandise, a forged prescription and a walkie-talkie.

The Livingston couple was found in a van along with a prescription that had been filled earlier that day at the Wal-Mart pharmacy. They also had two other prescriptions in the van (one blank and one forged) as well as a walkie-talkie.

Michael and Theresa Livingston were both released on 8/17 after each posted four property bonds totaling $16,100

Smith remains in custody at the time of this publication with a $16,100 property bond.

The three have been arrested before on similar charges, Smith was arrested in Rome last year at the Redmond Circle Wal-Mart and charged with three felonies after passing off a fake prescription for hydrocodone using a phony name. She was also arrested at the East Rome Wal-Mart on Cartersville Highway in December of 2011 at the East Rome Wal-Mart after she allegedly opened and drank a Redbull energy drink, discarded the empty container into a trashcan and then attempted to leave the store without paying.

Michael and Theresa Livingston were both arrested in November 2009 in Polk County; Theresa was charged with first degree conspiracy to commit forgery and Michael was charged with first degree forgery.

Arrest reports do not reflect the guilt or innocence of the individuals listed. All parties are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Not every arrest/charge leads to a conviction. A conviction or acquittal is determined by the court system.

Suffolk County police charge man with assault on hospital security www.privateofficer.com

 

Suffolk County NY Aug 31 2012 Brian Colin Kelly, 43, of Shoreham, was arrested on Aug. 23 after he allegedly assaulted a security guard and stole money from a pocketbook at John T. Mather Memorial Hospital, according to police. He was charged with assault, harassment and burglary.

Police say that at about 10:10 a.m. Kelly assaulted a security guard near the loading dock at the hospital, pushing him into a concrete wall. About 10 minutes later, he pushed a person out of the way as he was entering or exiting an unauthorized area. While he was at the hospital, Kelly allegedly entered an unauthorized area and took money from a pocketbook.

According to records, Kelly was in Central Islip Court represented by a Legal Aid attorney on Aug. 25. His bail was set at $10,000 but was not posted. Kelly is due back in court on Sept. 14. Court records also show that last year Kelly was convicted of a previous crime of petit larceny and sentenced to one year in jail.

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.

Man charged with impersonating police officer www.privateofficer.com

 

Nassau NY Aug 13 2012 He may be a Cassanova but he’s no police officer.

Nassau Police’s Highway Patrol arrested a Staten Island man Friday night for allegedly impersonating an Amtrak police officer during a traffic stop in Old Westbury.

The suspect, Conrad Cassanova, 43, of Circle Loop Drive, is actually an Amtrak mechanic, police said.

The Highway Patrol officer pulled Cassanova’s 2002 BMW over at 10:30 p.m. on the westbound Long Island Expressway near Glen Cove Road after he swerved out of his lane and crossed over pavement markings.

Cassanova told the officer he was a cop and turned over a badge and Amtrak identification, neither of which brandished his law enforcement credentials, police said. The officer eventually called Amtrak and determined that Cassanova is a civilian employee. Nonetheless, the suspect continued to insist he was an Amtrak police officer, police said.

Cassanova is charged with criminal impersonation and failure to use a designated lane of traffic. He will be arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Saturday.

Western Iowa teacher arrested for drug charges www.privateofficer.com

 

 

ONAWA, Iowa  Aug 8 2012— An Onawa, Iowa, elementary school teacher faces marijuana and methamphetamine charges, according to court documents.

Karen Kay Bartelson, 43, of Blencoe, Iowa, has been charged with possession of marijuana, possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia. All are misdemeanors.

Her next court appearance is Aug. 20 in Onawa.

Authorities found the items in Bartelson’s purse on July 21 at a residence in the 22000 block of Dogwood Loop in Onawa, according to a complaint and affidavit.

Bartelson was listed as a fourth-grade teacher at Central Elementary School on the West Monona Community School District’s website.

A woman who answered the phone at the district offices Tuesday morning confirmed that was Bartelson’s position, but said she could not comment on Bartelson’s employment status.

District superintendent Lyle Schwartz could not immediately be reached for comment.

Source:WCFCourier.com

Alabama security guard left work to kill wife www.privateofficer.com

 

Heflin Al July 28 2012 A security guard at Southwire/Forte in Heflin was arrested Monday in Mississippi in connection with two Calhoun County shootings in which his wife was shot and killed and a family member was shot at.

Frederick Boyd, 43, of Saks, surrendered to officials in Meridian, Miss several hours after he was alleged to have shot and killed his wife Carmella, 41, and shot at a relative in Hobson City.

Heflin Police Chief Robert Pittman said Boyd worked as a security guard at Southwire/Forte and his department “learned early on to be on the lookout” for him.

According to Chief Pittman, Boyd had come to work at around 6 a.m. Monday and clocked in but left the property very soon thereafter.

Pittman said his department worked with Southwire officials and the Cleburne County Sheriff’s Department to put undercover officers inside the plant “to do a visual” but Boyd was not spotted.

The grounds and area outside the plant were then searched. “He (Boyd) came in and stayed only a short time and left.

However, we were prepared for the worst,” added Pittman.

Calhoun County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call in Hobson City around 7 a.m. after a family member of Boyd called to report he had been shot at.

Boyd is believed by investigators to have driven from his home in Saks to Mississippi after the shooting incidents. He faces murder and attempted murder charges.

Source: The Cleburne News

Former Anniston Police officer charged with murder www.privateofficer.com

 

Anniston AL July 25 2012 A former warrants officer for the Anniston Police Department was in custody in Mississippi Monday in connection with two Calhoun County shootings that led to a manhunt and security lockdowns at the police department and City Hall.

Frederick Boyd, 43, surrendered to officials in Meridian, Miss., before noon Monday, hours after the Anniston Police Department and the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office issued warrants for his arrest in two early morning crimes. Boyd faces a murder charge in the Monday morning shooting death of his wife and an attempted murder charge from an incident in Hobson City the same morning.

Calhoun County Chief Deputy Matthew Wade said deputies responded to a call on Martin Luther King Drive in Hobson City around 7 a.m. Monday. A man, identified as a family member of Boyd, said the suspect knocked on his door and opened fire on him. After the man said he shot back, Boyd left the scene in a black GMC Yukon sports utility vehicle, Wade said.

Wade said deputies were going to Boyd’s residence on Chatwood Drive in Saks to question him when they learned of a second shooting that morning at the home already under investigation by the Anniston Police Department.

Anniston police Lt. Fred Forsythe said Boyd was the suspect in the death of his wife, Cormella Boyd, 41.

Police reports state that the Saks shooting occurred between 6:30 a.m. and 7 a.m. and the Hobson City shooting occurred at 7:10 a.m.

Police placed City Hall and the police department’s headquarters on lockdown Monday morning, with officers with assault rifles stationed outside the buildings. Anniston Police Chief Layton McGrady said Boyd had not made direct threats against either building. Police Lt. Shane Denham said the measures were a precaution police took because of Boyd’s history with the department.

Boyd left the police department in August 2011, after a 17-year career. Before his resignation, Boyd’s supervisors had transferred him from serving warrants to a desk job within the warrants division, taking in reports, Denham said.

“There were issues that made us transfer him,” Denham said, noting he wasn’t at liberty to elaborate on what those specific “issues” were. “We really didn’t know what we wanted to do with him.”

The same month that he resigned, Boyd, who is black, filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the department claiming he was repeatedly harassed and denied promotion due to racial discrimination. That month, Anniston City Councilman Ben Little provided The Star with a DVD containing 50 pages of documents recounting Boyd’s experiences with fellow officers and several audio recordings alleged to be proof of racial comments aimed at Boyd.

The audio files were mostly indecipherable.

In November, the EEOC ruled there was not sufficient evidence to prove the police department had discriminated against Boyd.

By 10 a.m., news of the shooting in Saks had spread, and family members had gathered near the blocked-off street. None would discuss the matter with reporters. Two neighbors told a reporter they had seen police officers arriving on the scene prior to 8 a.m. Both men said they didn’t know Boyd personally, but one said he knew the man used to work as a police officer.

Forsythe said that, judging from the time frame, it’s likely Boyd left his house in Saks, went to Hobson City and drove to Mississippi afterward. Forsythe said police are investigating the motive behind the shootings.

Wade said Calhoun County deputies were on their way to Meridian Monday afternoon to extradite Boyd.

Source:Anniston Star

NJ women charged in armed robbery after pepper spraying security officer www.privateofficer.com

 

Glen Rock MJ July 21 2012 A Garfield woman is facing a slew of charges including armed robbery after police say she tried to make off with stolen liquor and attempted to mace a security guard who confronted her.

Mona Branch, 43, of Garfield, entered the Food Basics store on Lincoln Avenue on Wednesday and allegedly grabbed two liquor bottles off the shelf and placed them in her backpack.

According to Glen Rock Police Cpt. Jonathan Miller, Branch was spotted by a store manager and security guard attempting to leave without paying when the confrontation began.

The security guard, according to Miller, was attempting to detain her while Branch reached into the backpack, pulled out a can of pepper spray and made an attempt to spray him. Police say the attempt was unsuccessful and while gaining control of the accused, an alleged male accomplice approached the guard, who backed down. Branch dropped the backpack and fled with the unidentified male, Miller said.

Police say identifying information and the liquor bottles were found in the backpack, leading them to Branch’s Garfield address.

“It shows how desperate people are to get what they want,” Miller said of the incident.

Branch turned herself in to Glen Rock Police headquarters on Thursday after urging from friends and family, police said.

Due to the alleged threat and attempt at violence, the consequences morphed from what could have been a simple shoplifting charge to charges of armed robbery, criminal possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon with the purpose to use it unlawfully, and shoplifting.

The accomplice could also face charges if apprehended, Miller said. Branch was remanded to Bergen County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bail.

NJ CVS shoplifting turns violent www.privateofficer.com

 

Hillside NJ July 16 2012 A shoplifting turned violent in Hillside and the two suspects, both women, ended up charged with robbery. According to police, the pair assaulted store security personnel during the course of shoplifting from the CVS Pharmacy at Liberty and Long avenues.

Arrested were Cheryl D. Luck, 50, of Rahway and Carla D. Nulls, 43, of Newark. The incident took place Thursday, July 12 about 6:30 p.m. Hillside police responded to the drug store on a report of two women shoplifting. Sgt. Joseph Cocuzza observed one women detained by store personnel and another running away as she tossed an item away.

Cocuzza ran after the woman and apprehended her moments later. Police learned that a store employee watched Nulls loading her pockets with merchandise. As he approached her, she began to run for the door. The employee then attempted to prevent Nulls from leaving.

As he did, Luck jumped on his back while Nulls began to struggle with him, police said. When Luck heard the police were called, she began to run from the store when Sgt. Cocuzza arrived. Both were arrested and transported to Hillside police headquarters. Recovered from the women was $59.62 in merchandise.

Luck is charged with robbery and resisting arrest and Nulls with robbery. Each was being held at the Union County Jail on $50,000 bail.

3 people dead in Panama City murder-suicide www.privateofficer.com

 

PANAMA CITY Fla July 6 2012 — Neighbors of the victims of what police believe to be a double murder-suicide said the three deceased were “cordial” but private people.

Shortly after 10 p.m. Tuesday, Panama City Police found Marco L. Bostwick, 40, Angelina M. Brunson, 43, and Mary L. Richardson, 83, dead inside a home at 907 E. Eighth Court. Each body was found in a different room and police believe Bostwick shot and killed Brunson, Richardson and then himself, according to a news release. The gun thought to be used in the shooting was recovered at the scene, according to police.

Bostwick, who has a long criminal history in Bay County, was dating Brunson, who lived with her aunt, Richardson. Bostwick and Brunson have a 7-year-old daughter who was in the house when the shootings happened.

Ray Masslieno said he was standing outside his home across the street when he saw Bostwick pull into the driveway of 907 E. Eighth Court. Though police have said Bostwick lived on the property, Masslieno said Bostwick only visited regularly. Masslieno said Bostwick went around the back of the house.

“Shortly thereafter we heard gunshots and the screams of the child,” he said. “After the third shot the child came out and ran to me.”

The girl was not physically harmed and is now staying with family, according to police.

Masslieno said Richardson had lived across the street from him for more than 30 years.

“We called her ‘Lady Diana’ because every time she went by we were waving and she waved,” he said.

Brunson lived with Richardson in an apartment-type structure on the property for a while, but then moved away and came back about a year ago, Masslieno said.

Bostwick’s criminal record stretches to 1993, according to courthouse records. He’s been charged with petit theft, grand theft auto, assault, domestic violence battery and other offenses.

He was charged with domestic violence in January 2011 and March 2011 but both cases were dropped, the first by the state and the second by Brunson. He was due to appear in court for a jury trial on assault charges next week.

Court records also indicate there was a child support dispute between Bostwick and Brunson.

“Persons that were interviewed and police records indicate Bostwick and Brunson have been in a strained relationship for some time and that violence was common between them,” according to a release from PCPD.

Masslieno’s comments on the violence charges against Bostwick were limited.

“It was private,” he said. “It wasn’t something the community saw.”

Autopsies on the three dead are scheduled to be done today.

Source:www.newsherald.com

Fairfax County VA high school teacher charged with drug trafficking www.privateofficer.com

 

 

Fairfax County VA June 16 2012 A high school teacher and former sports coach was arrested Wednesday on charges of possessing and intent to distribute steroids, police said.

Jeffery Reagan, 43, had served as an assistant high school football and track coach at the South County Secondary School in Lorton and was recently being considered for a football coaching position at West Springfield Secondary School, police and school officials said. Reagan also taught at Mountain View Alternative Learning Center.

“We don’t have evidence to say he was distributing steroids to children, but it is an ongoing investigation,” said Lucy Caldwell, a Fairfax County police spokeswoman. “This is a good opportunity for parents to have conversations with their student athletes.”

Reagan, of the 10000 block of Moxleys Ford Lane in Bristow, was arrested in the Sully Plaza Shopping Center, where he allegedly met his illegal steroid supplier around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, police said.

Reagan’s alleged supplier, Jeremy Helbing, 35, of Leesburg, also was arrested and charged with distributing steroids. After Helbing’s arrest, detectives searched the man’s home, where they uncovered numerous substances that appear to be steroids and are being tested, police said.

Fairfax County police detectives launched the investigation after receiving a tip in December 2011.

Mary Shaw, a Fairfax County schools spokeswoman, wrote in an e-mail that Reagan has been suspended from his job at Mountain View without pay. She said he had been through the proper background checks and was a coach at South County from 2007 to 2011.

Pete Bendorf, a former South County High School football coach, said Reagan coached freshman football there under him. Bendorf said Reagan had been a lineman on a club football team at George Mason University. He said there was no indication that any football players at South County used steroids during Reagan’s time as a coach at the school.

“It’s a little sad to hear,” Bendorf said about Reagan’s arrest. “He was extremely loyal and I never had any issues with him.”

Shaw said Reagan had only brief contact with the West Springfield football program. “His ‘association’ with West Springfield consisted of attendance during two days of a recent football camp and a fitness workout session as part of him being evaluated to join the football staff,” Shaw wrote in her e-mail.

A booster club for the school listed Reagan as the offensive and defensive line coach on its Web site. The reference was recently removed.

On Thursday, the principals of South County and West Springfield sent e-mails to parents about Reagan’s arrest. In the West Springfield note, Principal Mark Greenfelder said Reagan was “never alone” with the students during his brief time with the football team.

Reagan is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in Fairfax County court. Neither he nor Helbing could be reached for comment.

Source:Washington Post

San Bernardino County probation correctional officer arrested www.privateofficer.com

 

Glendora CA May 27 2012  Police on Friday evening arrested a San Bernardino County probation correctional officer on suspicion of false imprisonment and impersonating a police officer in connection with a May 11 incident in Glendora.

Douglass Leon Weaver, 43, was arrested about 6 p.m. Friday at the San Bernardino County Juvenile Detention & Assessment Center, 900 E. Gilbert Street, San Bernardino, where Weaver worked.

Weaver is being held at the Glendora City Jail on charges of false imprisonment and impersonating a police officer. His bail is set at $50,000.

According to Glendora Police, Weaver was on duty at the time and was unaware that police were searching for him.

The Probation Department participated in the investigation with the Glendora detectives, leading to Weaver’s arrest. The Probation Department’s Criminal Intelligence Unit identified the suspect from the Glendora Police Department’s composite drawing. They also confirmed that Weaver drove a cream-colored Ford Edge SUV with paper plates.

On May 11, Weaver allegedly pulled over an intoxicated male victim on the Sunflower off-ramp of the Westbound Interstate 210 freeway at 11 p.m. Claiming to be an officer and flashing a badge, Weaver allegedly offered to drive the victim to his sister’s home.

Five days later, at 2 p.m. on May 16, Weaver allegedly returned to the sister’s address in the same vehicle and made unwanted physical contact with her.

Weaver was off duty at the time of the alleged incidents.

Thanks to numerous leads from the public, Glendora Police said they were able to identify Weaver as a suspect.

“It was only through the many tips that were provided by the public and the diligence and long hours put in by Glendora police detectives that led to this arrest,” said Glendora Police Chief Rob Castro in a press statement. “It proves the value of the partnership that has been developed with the community.”

In a statement, Chief Probation Officer Michelle Scray stated, “We will not tolerate off duty conduct that brings discredit upon the San Bernardino County Probation Department and the professional men and women who work here.”

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.

Intoxicated assistant Fairdale High School athletic diriector slams into police car www.privateofficer.com

 

Louisville KY April 30 2012 An assistant Fairdale High School athletic director was intoxicated when he was driving a pickup truck that struck a Louisville Metro police officer early Sunday, police said.

The police officer was taken to University Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, LMPD spokesman Dwight Mitchell said.

He said Adrian Adkins, 43, tried to flee the scene after the accident.

Adkins is also a softball coach and security guard at Fairdale, Jefferson County Public Schools spokeswoman Lauren Roberts said.

Mitchell said the accident happened shortly after 2 a.m. on the Sndyer near New Cut Road.

“A 3rd division police officer was working a previous car accident on I-265 east of New Cut Road when a white F-150 drove through the accident scene, struck one of the vehicles involved in the accident, which then struck the officer,” Mitchell said.

Adkins was charged with driving under the influence, wanton endangerment, fleeing and evading and resisting arrest.

Source:courier-journal.com

Rehobeth High School teacher faces felony charges after sex with a student www.privateofficer.com

Rehobeth AL April 22 2012 A Rehobeth High School teacher faces multiple felony charges alleging he had sex with a student at the school.
Houston County Sheriff Andy Hughes said investigators arrested Robert Lee Michel, 43, of Dothan, just after 9 p.m. Friday and charged him with three felony counts of school employee engaging in a sex act with a student under the age of 19. Michel remains held at the Houston County Jail without bail.

Hughes said Michel works as a 10th grade science teacher at Rehobeth High School.

Hughes said a woman called 911 around 6:30 p.m. to report the offenses.

“The mother walked in and caught them,” Hughes said. “He was in bed with a 16-year-old girl and he was naked. He fled on foot with no clothes on.”

Hughes said Michel ran across the street and into some nearby woods. He said just after 9 p.m. deputies took Michel into custody after he walked out of the woods near Third Avenue and Knoxville Road.

“He was wearing a couple of trash bags on his body,” Hughes said. “He got two white small garbage bags and was trying to wear them to cover him self up.”

Hughes said Houston County Sheriff’s bloodhounds and a helicopter from the Dale and Houston County Aviation unit helped authorities in the search of the suspect.

Hughes said more charges could be pending in the ongoing investigation.

“Upon interviewing the teenage girl we found out this had happened on several other previous occasions,” Hughes said. “This will be the first arrest we’ve made under this law.”

source:dothaneagle.com