Jay Tokasz, The Buffalo News, N.Y. – Gunshots rang in the New Year in Buffalo late Saturday and early Sunday, including in the downtown entertainment district, where thousands of people were celebrating the…
Category: Crime
A comprehensive crime page for the North Iowa area and beyond.
Two Iowa women accused of abusing dependent senior
William Smith, The Hawk Eye, Burlington, Iowa – Two Burlington women are accused of abusing a local man they were supposed to be caring for and stealing $50,000 from him. Cindy Marie Dameron,…
Man sentenced to sobriety, in DWI Court of Ramsey County
Mike Blair didn’t think he’d make it sober for one year. He’s made it for five. Blair, 55, of St. Paul, was recognized for five years of sobriety this week in Ramsey…
Austin, MN father pleads guilty to belt beating
Amanda Lillie, Austin Daily Herald – An Austin man pleaded guilty Tuesday to beating his 12-year-old daughter in the face and legs with a belt. Christopher Craig Siverly, 33, pleaded guilty to malicious…
2 doctors face murder charges in botched abortion case
By Peter Hermann, The Baltimore Sun – BALTIMORE — Two doctors who Maryland authorities say botched a teenager’s abortion last year in Elkton, Md., have been indicted on murder charges and are awaiting…
Visitor to 9/11 memorial told police of loaded gun, was arrested
By Tina Susman, Los Angeles Times NEW YORK — A Tennessee tourist who says she unwittingly broke New York’s weapons laws by visiting the 9/11 memorial with a loaded gun — legal in…
4 charged after 2 U.S. flags burned at Occupy Charlotte site
By Steve Lyttle, McClatchy Newspapers – CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Four Charlotte-area men, at least two of whom are members of the Occupy Charlotte group, were charged early Friday after they burned two U.S….
BRIEF: Cedar Rapids man arrested for indecent exposure in front of children
Jeff Raasch, CR Gazette – Police arrested a Cedar Rapids man Thursday night after witnesses said he masturbated while he was watching them. Brian D. Zirtzman, 47, was arrested on suspicion of four…
BRIEF: Meth-making materials found in northwest Cedar Rapids home
Jeff Raasch, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa Police discovered materials used to make methamphetamine inside a Cedar Rapids home Thursday evening. Officers responded around 6:50 p.m. to 1019 Sioux Dr. NW for a…
Double Trouble
Las Cruces, NM – On December 28, 2011, Deputy U.S. Marshals and the Las Cruces Police Officers apprehended murder suspects Armando and Mando Lopez. The twin brothers are Norteno gang members wanted out…
Robbery of Glenwood State Bank Branch in Alexandria
On December 29, 2011, at approximately 5:30 p.m., a bank robbery occurred at the Glenwood State Bank, located at 2221 South Broadway Street, Alexandria Minnesota. The robber approached the bank tellers and…
Casey Anthony can stay silent in civil case, judge says
By Jeff Weiner, The Orlando Sentinel – ORLANDO, Fla. — Because her criminal appeal is still pending, a judge ruled Thursday that Casey Anthony doesn’t have to answer questions in a civil defamation…
Ohio county jail is lactose intolerant
By Rick Armon, Akron Beacon Journal – AKRON, Ohio — Milk moustaches soon will be a thing of the past at the Summit County Jail. The county will stop serving milk to inmates…
Florida police officer faces financial misconduct allegations
By David Ovalle, McClatchy Newspapers MIAMI — A high-ranking Miami-Dade County police officer is suspected of misappropriating nearly $23,000 by using it to bankroll his unofficial department flag football team, court records show….
Gay nativity scene vandalized at Southern Calif. church
By Abby Sewell, Los Angeles Times LOS ANGELES — An unusual nativity display at a Claremont church that conveyed a gay couple was vandalized over the weekend in an incident authorities are investigating…
BRIEF: Trial reset to March for man accused of sexually assaulting resident at Anamosa care center
Trish Mehaffey, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa The trial for one of the men accused of sexually assaulting a resident at a care facility last summer has been reset to March 6 in…
Former state worker pleads guilty to embezzling jobless benefits
Trish Mehaffey, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa – UPDATE: A former Iowa Workforce Development employee, previously convicted of similar charges in 2000, pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to embezzling more than $43,000…
Federal Indictments Lead to Arrests in Stem Cell Case
Three men have been arrested for their participation in a scheme to manufacture, distribute and sell to the public stem cells and stem cell procedures that were not approved by the Food…
TCF Bank in Minneapolis Robbed
On December 26, 2011, at approximately 2:25 p.m.., a bank robbery occurred at TCF Bank, located at 1444 West Lake Street, Minneapolis, Minnesota. The robber approached a bank teller and demanded cash….
Man Sentenced to Over 18 Years for Brutal Rape
PHOENIX, AZ—David Karl Wilson, Jr. 42, of Leupp, Ariz., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow to 220 months in the Bureau of Prisons. Wilson pleaded guilty on August 30,…
Fourteen Citizens of Romania Charged with Participating in Internet Phishing Scheme
David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Kimberly K. Mertz, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced the unsealing of an indictment…
Man Pleads Guilty to Online Enticement of a Minor and Receipt of Child Pornography
BUFFALO, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Jason Bek, 30, of West Seneca, N.Y. pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara, to coercion and enticement of a…
Statement of Attorney General Holder on Increase in Law Enforcement Officer Fatalities
WASHINGTON – The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund today released preliminary fatality statistics for 2011, which show a 13 percent increase in the number of federal, state and local officers who…
Former UNItix Assistant Director Charged with Felony Theft
Cedar Falls, IOWA — Today, 44 year old John Gogola of Cedar Falls, Iowa was arrested and charged with Theft in the First Degree. This charge is a class C felony. The…
Florida man arrested, had “makings of an ecstasy lab” inside his car
Dallas S. Keen, 22, of Ocala is in the Marion County Jail to face one count of possession of pre cursor chemicals to manufacture DMT (N, N-Dimethyltryptamine) and one count of resisting…
Iowa man charged with manufacture of a destructive device
DES MOINES, IA – On December 20, 2011, Charles Crider, 44, of Humeston, Iowa, appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Celeste F. Bremer and entered a not guilty plea to federal charges of…
Soldier accused of killing woman in Washington state
By Kim Murphy, Los Angeles Times – SEATTLE — To the string of suicides, assaults and slayings plaguing Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state, add one more: A soldier stationed there faces charges…
Sexual assault reports double at Naval Academy
By Matthew Hay Brown, The Baltimore Sun – BALTIMORE — The number of sexual assaults reported at the Naval Academy doubled during the 2010-11 academic year, as did the percentage of female midshipmen…
French officers look to ICE HSI for guidance on gang enforcement
WASHINGTON — Across the United States, gangs threaten public safety in neighborhoods and communities. “Transnational gangs are a worldwide problem, not confined to any single country,” said Mark Selby, unit chief for…
Defendant charged with alleged participation in the murder and attempted murder of 2 ICE special agents is extradited from Mexico to the United States
WASHINGTON — Julian Zapata Espinoza, also known as “Piolin,” has been extradited from Mexico to the United States to face charges for his alleged participation in the murder of U.S. Immigration and…
Longtime fugitive and former school teacher sentenced on child pornography charges
Was an ICE top ten most wanted fugitive BUFFALO, N.Y. — An upstate New York man, who was convicted for receipt of child pornography, was sentenced to 120 months in prison and…
US, Mexico seize more than $80 million during Operation Holiday Hoax
WASHINGTON — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) announced the seizure of more than 327,000 counterfeit items with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price worth an estimated $76.8 million…
Husband and Wife Sentenced to Prison for Fraudulent Commercial Driver’s Licenses Scheme
WASHINGTON – A Pennsylvania husband and wife were sentenced yesterday to 30 months and 24 months in prison, respectively, for their participation in a scheme to provide out-of-state residents with Pennsylvania driver’s…
Insurer for Sandusky’s charity seeks to avoid paying for his defense
By Nathan Gorenstein, The Philadelphia Inquirer PHILADELPHIA — The insurance company for Jerry Sandusky’s charity, Second Mile Inc., wants to be excused from paying for his legal defense. Federal Insurance Co. of Warren,…
Texas killer of 6 wore Santa Claus outfit, police say
By Aman Batheja, McClatchy Newspapers GRAPEVINE, Texas — The man police say shot six family members to death in a Grapevine apartment on Christmas before killing himself was dressed as Santa Claus, according…
Police arrest suspect in shooting that left soldier paralyzed
By Scott Glover, Los Angeles Times LOS ANGELES — San Bernardino, Calif., police Monday announced the arrest of a suspect in the shooting of a 22-year-old soldier on leave for the holidays. Police…
ICE deports convicted Rwandan to serve sentence for role in 1994 genocide
DETROIT — A convicted human rights violator, wanted by Rwandan authorities to serve a 19-year prison sentence for a murder conviction, was deported to Rwanda on Tuesday by officers with U.S. Immigration…
Arrest made in death of mother, toddler
Tania Lopez and Gary Dymski, Newsday, Melville, N.Y. A North Bay Shore man has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder in the deaths of a woman and her 2-year-old son, Suffolk…
Florida suspect arrested for sex battery of 11-year-old
Florida detectives arrested Michael McClintock, 21, for allegedly having sex with an 11-year-old between July and August, 2011. On 11/30/11, the victim told detectives that while she was staying at a friend’s…
Davenport man sentenced for conspiracy to distribute crack
DAVENPORT, IA – On December 20, 2011, Lorenzo Diaz, age 48, of Davenport, Iowa, was sentenced to 120 months imprisonment for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt….