Times of the Internet RSS Feed - crime

Fundraiser to aid victim of burning crime

DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla., Nov. 22 (UPI) --

A Florida fundraiser to benefit a 15-year-old burn attack victim netted about $50,000 and boosted the family's spirits, the boy's mother said.

Sports celebrities including Miami Dolphins quarterback Chad Pennington, and other team members signed autographs at the carnival-like event in Pompano Beach to support Michael Brewer of Deerfield Beach, who was doused with rubbing alcohol and set afire by three schoolmates on Oct. 12, the Miami Herald reported Sunday.

Prosecutors charged three teens, Matthew Bent, 15, Denver Jarvis, 15, and Jesus Mendez, 16, as adults with second-degree attempted murder.

Funds from all attractions -- bounce houses, hot dogs, face painting, silent auctions, raffles, and a golf tournament -- were donated to help Brewer's family, the newspaper reported.

Everglades University presented the family with a tuition scholarship for Brewer, and AllianceCare of Boynton Beach said it will give free home healthcare to the boy when he returns home.

More fundraising is expected, going into December, the newspaper said.

Five militant suspects arrested in Iraq

BAGHDAD, Nov. 21 (UPI) --

Iraqi security forces arrested five suspected members of the al-Qaida in Iraq and the Islamic State of Iraq terrorist groups Saturday, military officials said.

The arrests came during three combined security operations in which U.S. military advisers assisted Iraqi forces in Ramadi, Tikrit and Kirkuk, military officials told the American Forces Press Service.

Two of the arrests came during searches of a pair of buildings in Ramadi for a suspected al-Qaida in Iraq leader thought to be responsible for multiple vehicle-borne bomb attacks in the region.

Meanwhile in Tikrit, local police and U.S. advisers arrested two suspects while searching a building for an alleged associate of al-Qaida in Iraq and Islamic State of Iraq.

And in southern Kirkuk, members of the Iraqi unit made an arrest while looking for a suspected Islamic State of Iraq member believed to be involved in planning and conducting vehicle-borne bomb attacks against security forces in Iraq, the news service said.

Teenagers arrested in classmate's death

URUMA, Japan, Nov. 21 (UPI) --

Eight teenagers in Okinawa, Japan, have been arrested in the death of a classmate beaten so badly he died of hemorrhagic shock, police said.

The eight were charged Friday with inflicting bodily injury resulting in the death of 14-year-old Hoshito Yonemori of Uruma, Okinawa prefecture, The Mainichi Daily News reported Saturday.

The five 14-year-olds and three 13-year-olds allegedly admitted punching and kicking Yonemori in a vacant lot Thursday, before carrying him to a supermarket and calling an ambulance, police said.

The teens initially told police they were playing on the rooftop of a building when Yonemori jumped off and landed on his back on a concrete lot. An autopsy, however, found he had deep bruises all over his body and died of hemorrhagic shock, police said.

Life term sought for US student in Italy murder trial

PERUGIA, Italy (AFP) --

Italian prosecutors on Saturday demanded life imprisonment for American student Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito for the 2007 murder of Briton Meredith Kercher.

"I was Meredith's friend," Knox exclaimed, her voice choked with emotion, shortly afterward.

"I didn't hate her. The idea that I wanted revenge against someone who was nice to me is absurd," she said.

"What I've heard in the last two days is pure fantasy, it's not the reality," Knox said.

UC-Berkeley occupiers arrested, removed

BERKELEY, Calif., Nov. 21 (UPI) --

University of California-Berkeley protesters who occupied a campus building to protest skyrocketing tuitions have been arrested and removed, observers said.

Police on Friday escorted 40 protesters out of UC-Berkeley's Wheeler Hall, 11 hours after they had barricaded themselves into the facility to draw attention to a 32 percent jump in tuition instituted by the school's Board of Regents to help plug a $535 million budget gap, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

As more than 2,000 supporters chanted outside Wheeler Hall, Alameda County, Calif., sheriffs deputies removed the protesters and indicated they would be charged with misdemeanor trespassing offenses, the newspaper said.

The occupation, capping three days of campus protests, began at 6 a.m. Friday when the demonstrators entered the second floor of the building. The Chronicle said two were arrested immediately for burglary. They protesters reportedly issued demands that the tuition hikes be rescinded and 38 custodians whose jobs were cut be restored to the staff.

UC-Berkeley spokeswoman Janet Gilmore told the newspaper that school officials share the frustration of the occupiers, but at the same time we're disappointed that they had taken this action.

Italians arrest 2 in Mumbai terror probe

BRESCIA, Italy, Nov. 21 (UPI) --

Two Pakstani men suspected of helping terrorists carry out last year's attacks in Mumbai were arrested in Saturday Italy, authorities said.

Italy's Division of General Investigations and Special Operations said the men are charged with transferring money the day before the Nov. 26, 2008, attacks to activate Internet phone lines used by the Mumbai terrorists, CNN reported.

The U.S. broadcaster quoted the Italian agency's head, Stefano Fonzi, as saying the Pakistanis were arrested in the northern city of Brescia after a tip from Indian authorities and the FBI. Fonzi also indicated two people connected with a local money transfer agency were also arrested and fifth man was still wanted.

The transfer agency reportedly drew authorities' attention after money was wired under the name of man who had never been in Italy.

The Mumbai terrorist attacks killed 160 people over a four-day siege targeting several sites in the Indian financial capital.

Ex-boyfriend charged with murder plot

WAUKESHA, Wis., Nov. 20 (UPI) --

A Texas man has been charged with arranging the killing of his former girlfriend in her Milwaukee-area home, allegedly to get custody of their son.

Chief David Beguhn of the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department said Thursday that Darren Wold, 41, was arrested in Lubbock, Texas, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Jack Johnson, 65, a former Wisconsin resident now living in Mexico, and Justin Patrick Welch, 26, of French Camp, Calif., were arrested at the U.S.-Mexico border near San Diego.

Investigators allege Welch stabbed Kimberly Smith Oct. 1. A knife and latex gloves found in a sewer near her home in Oconomowoc, allegedly had Welch's DNA on them, court records say.

Wold allegedly wanted Smith dead so he could have custody of their son, Jackson, 4. They had been involved in a court fight for about two years, with Wold at one point held in contempt for failing to make court-ordered payments and lying about where he was living.

Beguhn said Wold and Johnson were longtime friends.

Robbers arrested in Craigslist stings

CHICAGO, Nov. 20 (UPI) --

Police in Chicago said three men were arrested in two armed robbery cases involving postings on the Web site Craigslist.

Investigators said Dwayne Williams, 20, was charged Thursday with 12 counts of armed robbery in eight incidents, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Friday.

Officers said Williams would lure his victims to a South Parnell Avenue neighborhood by agreeing to sell electronics and would then rob them at gunpoint. Police said he was arrested by officers posing as customers.

Meanwhile, police said Jalmar and Jamelle Smalling, 19 and 18 respectively, were charged Thursday with were five counts of armed robbery for a string of similar Craigslist-related incidents and one count of attempted armed robbery for trying to rob the officer posing as a potential victim.

Police said no one was hurt in any of the robberies in either case.

Ex-Pittsburgh anchor arrested for DUIs

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 20 (UPI) --

An attorney for Don Cannon said the former Pittsburgh TV news anchorman was arrested for not serving sentences on two driving under the influence convictions.

Attorney Patrick J. Thomassey, who represents Cannon, said the former WTAE-TV and KDKA-TV anchor was arrested in California after not completing his house arrest and probation sentences from convictions in October 2008, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review said Thursday.

Apparently, he just didn't follow through, from what I've been told, Thomassey said of the sentences from the convictions in Allegheny County, Pa.

The bench warrants for Cannon's arrest were issued by Common Pleas Judge Donna Jo McDaniel in October, Allegheny County Sheriff William P. Mullen said.

Allegheny County authorities contacted police in Carlsbad, Calif., where Cannon currently resides, to have the former TV anchor arrested this week.

The Tribune-Review said Cannon, 69, did have permission to serve his sentences totaling 93 days of house arrest followed by two and a half years of probation in California.

Home robbery con suspect arrested in Ore.

EUGENE, Ore., Nov. 20 (UPI) --

A man suspected of conning his way into homes in Eugene, Ore., to steal from residents has been arrested, police say.

Eugene police allege Jacob Steven Lucas, 28, is the individual who convinced several local residents to let him into their homes, only to take laptop computers, cameras and other valuables from them, The (Portland) Oregonian reported Friday.

Police said Lucas allegedly gained entry by telling people he desperately needed to use a telephone or a bathroom.

In one instance, Lucas allegedly convinced two college-age students to allow him to wash his clothing and get a ride in their car before stealing from them.

The string of thefts prompted a warning from police Thursday and within hours a resident contacted police regarding a suspicious individual who claimed he had been assaulted by his girlfriend.

The Oregonian said police responded and arrested Lucas, who now faces charges of menacing with a knife, meth possession, criminal trespass and theft.

LA sees hike in certain hate crimes

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 20 (UPI) --

Hate crimes based on sexual orientation increased 21 percent in Los Angeles County last year, the county's Human Relations Commission says.

A new report released by the commission says the rise in homophobic crimes occurred at the same time as the county experienced a drop of 4 percent overall in hate crimes from 763 in 2007 to 729 in 2008.

The commission found the number of religion-based crimes increased 14 percent from 105 in 2007 to 120 in 2008.

Hate crimes based on sexual orientation went from 111 in 2007 to 134 in 2008.

The commission found the largest number of hate crimes were concentrated in the San Fernando Valley followed by the Los Angeles metro area.

Gang members were responsible for 22 percent of racial hate crimes and 80 percent of their crimes were overwhelmingly violent, the commission said.

Arrests made in European match-fixing ring

BOCHUM, Germany, Nov. 20 (UPI) --

Law enforcement officials in Germany said Friday that 17 people were arrested for allegedly taking part in a major match-fixing ring in European soccer.

The New York Times said the 15 people arrested in Germany and two individuals detained in Switzerland are accused of trying to fix the results of nearly 200 soccer games, including three games in Europe's professional Champions League.

The alleged attempts to manipulate game results in nine different countries involved efforts to bribe soccer officials ranging from players to referees. Authorities allege the suspects were also involved with an international gambling ring that had clients in Europe and Asia.

Both authorities and Union of European Football Associations officials refused to offer specific details regarding the matches and suspects at the center of the match-fixing scandal, the Times said.

Without question, this is the biggest betting fraud in the history of U.E.F.A., the European soccer organization's head of anti-fraud operations, Peter Limacher, said.

Alleged hitman arrested in Naples, Italy

NAPLES, Italy, Nov. 19 (UPI) --

Authorities said a suspected mafia hitman allegedly caught on video killing a man in Naples, Italy, has been caught.

The Italian news agency, ANSA, reported Thursday that Costanzo Apice, 28, was arrested for allegedly killing convicted bank robber Mario Bacioterracino in a broad daylight shooting this year.

Video released last month of the May 11 fatal shooting allegedly shows Apice shooting Bacioterracino in the side three times before administering a final gunshot to the man's head.

Apice disappeared into the crowd following the shooting and fled to the town of Caserta, police said.

Investigators would not offer specific details how they eventually located Apice in Caserta.

The release of the video on television and the Internet sparked concern from Italian officials like Interior Minister Roberto Maroni, ANSA reported.

''This video gives an impression of Naples very different from what it's really like," said Maroni, saying the video reinforces the theory that Naples is home to the Camorra crime syndicate.

Two wanted Rwandan rebel leaders arrested

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Nov. 19 (UPI) --

Two Rwandan rebel leaders accused of committing crimes against humanity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been apprehended, the United Nations said.

The United Nations said in a release Thursday German authorities apprehended Ignace Murwanashyaka and Straton Musoni, who are also suspected of committing war crimes in the Central African country.

The two men are thought to be top officials with the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, a militant group made up of ethnic Hutu rebels.

Alan Doss, the leader of the U.N. Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, applauded the arrest of the two rebel leaders and urged other countries to take action against the Hutu rebels when necessary.

This is an important development, which we believe will help the people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the region move to a more peaceful future, Doss said.

The United Nations established the U.N. mission in 2000 to help bring peace to the Democratic Republic of the Congo following several civil wars.

Rwandan militia leaders' arrests praised

KIGALI, Rwanda, Nov. 19 (UPI) --

The arrest of Rwandan militia leaders suspected of committing atrocities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is good news, a U.N. envoy says.

The two men, Ignace Murwanashyaka and Straton Musoni, believed to be top members of the ethnic Hutu rebel Forces Democratiques de Liberation du Rwanda, or FDLR, were arrested by German authorities Tuesday, the United Nations said Thursday in a release. They are accused of carrying out crimes against humanity and war crimes in the eastern region of the Congo.

This is an important development, which we believe will help the people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the region move to a more peaceful future, said U.N. Special Representative Alan Doss, who also heads the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the Congo.

I would urge other nations where FDLR leaders are sheltering, to follow Germany's example.

The arrests are in line with U.N. Security Council resolutions calling for members to take action against leaders who are known supporters of FDLR commanders in the Congo's eastern region, the United Nations said.

Report: Corporate crime up in Canada

TORONTO, Nov. 19 (UPI) --

The economic recession has led to an upswing in corporate crime in Canada in the past year, a report released by an advisory firm in Toronto said Thursday.

The PricewaterhouseCoopers Investigations & Forensic Services' Global Economic Crime Survey said reported corporate crime affected 56 percent of companies, up 10 percent from 2003.

Of the crimes, 83 percent involved theft of tangible assets through fraudulent means, the report said.

Among Canadian companies, 24 percent estimated their fraud-related losses to be more than $500,000 in the past year and 59 percent of companies said external fraudsters perpetrated the fraud.

Steven Henderson, partner and national leader of the Investigations and Forensic Services practice, said the recession was undoubtedly a factor in the crime increase.

Companies need to be aware that an economic downturn can lead good people to do bad things -- need comes to the forefront and becomes intermingled with greed and opportunity, creating the perfect storm for fraudulent activity, Henderson said When corporate survival is the focus, the incentive to commit fraud increases while the focus on fraud detection, prevention and investigation diminishes.

3 arrested after Fla. family terrorized

WINTER GARDEN, Fla., Nov. 19 (UPI) --

Three men were arrested and a woman was sought for allegedly abducting and terrorizing a Florida couple and their 5-year-old son for two days, police said.

The suspects allegedly forced Marcela Borges, 27, of Winter Garden, Fla., near Orlando, Fla., to withdraw nearly $24,000 from the bank and shot her as she tried to escape, police said.

It appears to us that it is not a random act, Lt. Keith Ralston told the Orlando Sentinel, but decline to explain further.

Borges and Rubens Morais, 48, president of RLM Trucks Carrier Inc., answered the door of their 3,700-square-foot home Sunday morning, a police report said.

Four intruders armed with guns pushed their way in, blindfolded the family and drove them in their own sport utility vehicle to a house in Apopka, 13 miles north, where they were held captive overnight, the report said.

The next day, they were taken back home, still blindfolded and bound with clothing and duct tape, the report said.

Borges was forced to go to a bank and withdraw $23,600, the report said.

She managed to pull down her blindfold and free herself Tuesday and leaped from a second-story window.

As she ran toward a neighbor's house, one of the intruders allegedly shot her in the left side of the back, with the bullet passing through her body and hitting her left wrist, shattering it, the police report said.

Morais was hit on the head with a blunt object, but was not seriously hurt. Their son was not hurt.

Police later arrested Oscar Diaz Hernandez, 19, of Orlando and cousins Miguel Diaz Santiz, 25, and Victor Manuel Sanchez, 20, both of Apopka, on charges of attempted homicide, kidnapping and home-invasion robbery.

Police did not release the name of the female suspect.

15-year-old girl indicted for murder

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo., Nov. 18 (UPI) --

A 15-year-old girl Missouri girl indicted for first-degree murder Wednesday in the slaying of a 9-year-old girl will stand trial as an adult, a judge ruled.

Alyssa Bustamante allegedly strangled, stabbed and cut the throat of her young neighbor Elizabeth Olten.

Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem ruled the case should be heard in adult court because the crime was vicious and serious, and there were not adequate services or facilities to handle the suspect in the juvenile court system, KRCG-TV in Columbia, Mo., reported.

Olten lived down the street from Bustamante. The child was allegedly visiting Bustamante's home when her family reported her missing. Police say written evidence led them to Bustamante, who took them to Olten's body in nearby woods Oct. 23.

There were two graves allegedly dug a week before Olten's death, Highway Patrol Criminal Investigator Sgt. David Rice said. It wasn't known who might have been the intended victim for the second grave , KRCG reported.

Bustamante had spent 10 days in a Missouri mental health center in 2007 after a suicide attempt, and had been treated for depression, Jefferson City's News Tribune reported.

Jury deliberates in Mountie murder case

YELLOWKNIFE, Northwest Territories, Nov. 18 (UPI) --

A jury began deliberating Wednesday in the trial of an Alberta man accused of killing a Canadian Mountie.

Emrah Bulatci, 25, is charged with first-degree murder in the Oct. 6, 2007, shooting death of Royal Canadian Mounted Police Constable Christopher Worden, 30, in Hay River, Northwest Territories.

The Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported Bulatci's lawyers asked the jury to convict him of the less serious charge of manslaughter. Bulatci had tried to plead guilty to that charge at the start of his trial.

Worden was shot four times while responding to a call for help in the community of about 3,650 people. Authorities said Bulatci was in Hay River to sell cocaine when Worden tried to arrest him outside a house.

While both charges carry a life prison sentence, Bulatci could become eligible for parole after serving just four years for manslaughter but would have to spend at least 25 years behind bars if convicted of first-degree murder.

Bulatci was among the 53 witnesses who testified during the three-week trial.

Alleged pot theft victims arrested

WICHITA, Kan., Nov. 18 (UPI) --

Police in Kansas said they arrested a pair of robbery victims who reported five suspects entered their apartment and stole their marijuana.

Wichita police said one of the suspected robbers accidentally fired a gun during the Monday night robbery and the group became spooked and fled in a white Cadillac, KWCH-TV, Wichita, reported Wednesday.

Investigators said they recovered a bag of marijuana dropped by one of the robbery suspects and found more cannabis in the apartment of the man and woman who reported the crime.

The man and the woman were arrested and charged with possession and intent to sell within 1,000 feet of a school.