Man impersonating officer pulls over van full of actual cops on Long Island
HICKSVILLE, N.Y. — Police in the New York City suburbs say they’ve arrested a fake cop who tried to pull over real detectives.
Nassau County police say Valiery Portlock sounded a horn and flashed emergency lights Friday morning as he an attempt to pull over a van in Hicksville, Long Island.
The unmarked van turned out to be occupied by detectives from the department’s electronics squad.
Police say that once the detectives identified themselves and approached his vehicle, the 25-year-old Portlock swerved his Nissan Sentra into oncoming traffic and sped to the Long Island Expressway.
Police say highway patrol officers eventually pulled Portlock over and arrested him without incident.
He faces charges of criminal impersonation and reckless endangerment.
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Washington mother says fake CPS workers tried to take her son
MARYSVILLE, Wash. – A Washington state mother says she went through a terrifying experience early Monday morning when a pair claiming to be Child Protective Services agents demanded she hand over her 4-year-old child.
But the victim told police the strangers refused to provide proof they worked for the state and now detectives are investigating.
“Anxiety and adrenaline just pretty much took over and I just pretty much wanted to get my son somewhere safe,” said mother Jessi McCombs. “I just don’t want somebody else to end up in a situation like that or worse.”
McCombs said a man and woman knocked on her door early Monday morning, announced they were with CPS and demanded she hand over her 4-year-old son, Liam. She said they had detailed information about her and her family.
“She was there about my son’s injuries and they were there to take my son into custody. My son doesn’t have any injuries, so I was really confused and thought for sure she had the wrong house until she told me his name and birthday, she knew my name,” she said.
After some back and forth, McCombs still refused to give up Liam and eventually the strangers left. She then dropped Liam off at day care and went to work. She says she called Marysville police, but the department says they didn’t receive an official report until later last night.
“I did what I thought was best,” she said.
McCombs said another neighbor spotted the same strangers driving around the complex later that day in what looked like an old police car.
“It’s an open and active investigation,” said Mark Thomas from the Marysville Police Department.
Detectives are looking into the case and working to identify the people McCombs talked to Monday morning.
Thomas says CPS agents will always contact local law enforcement to assist before removing any child from a family, adding that Marysville Police was never contacted about any case regarding McCombs.
via: https://pix11.com/2019/08/21/washington-mother-says-fake-cps-workers-tried-to-take-her-son/
Photo Credit: pix11.com
California Gang Members Laugh In Court While Receiving Life Sentences For Attempted Murder Of Cop
Two California gang members convicted of attempted murder in the 2015 shooting of a police officer smiled and laughed as a judge handed them life sentences on Monday, according to a report.
Jamie Caudillo and Steven Rincon stood trial for shooting at former Merced Police Officer Ryan Rasmussen during a routine traffic stop in Merced, Calif., on Feb. 28, 2015.
According to prosecutors, Caudillo, the passenger, fired at Rasmussen as Rincon sped off. Rasmussen was hit on his bulletproof vest and his hand.
Fellow officers fired at Caudillo, hitting him at least once, the Merced Sun-Star reported.
A 10-hour manhunt involving multiple law enforcement agencies eventually ended with the arrest of Caudillo and Rincon.
In May, Caudillo was found guilty of shooting Rasmussen, and Rincon of being the getaway driver, the Merced Sun-Star reported. Both were charged with attempted murder, the report said.
Rasmussen, who lost his right pinky finger in the encounter and was forced to retire from police service, said Caudillo “stripped me of my career.”
Merced County Judge Carol Ash said neither gang member appeared to express remorse during the trial.
“I pray that they ask God for forgiveness,” said Rasmussen’s mother, Judith, as Rincon reportedly laughed and shook his head.
Caudillo was sentenced to 50 years and eight months to life in prison, while Rincon received 80 years to life in prison, the Sun-Star reported.
Rincon, a third-strike offender, already was facing charges for a jailhouse murder, according to court records.
The men’s attorney said they would be appealing their sentences and convictions.
Photo Credit: start.att.net
Mom arrested after putting recycling in wrong color bag
A British woman was arrested and held in a police cell — for putting her recycling in the wrong colored bags, according to reports.
Mom of three Lyndsey Webb, 34, was caught putting out black bags in Ipswich rather than following a new system of orange or clear ones for recyclables.
She told The Telegraph she was eventually arrested and forced to give evidence via video link from her cell, getting fined $60 and given a six-month conditional discharge.
“All I did was get the color of my rubbish bags wrong and I’ve suddenly got two police officers at my door arresting me in front of my kids,” she said.
“These people have put me and my family through a total nightmare.”
However, officials say she was only busted because she ignored previous summonses to appear in court, leading to an arrest warrant.
“She was originally sent a warning letter, but her offending continued,” said a spokesman for the Ipswich Borough Council, who claimed Webb was “dumping a large quantity of bags outside a shop in an alleyway.”
“She was sent a summons and missed two court appearances. She was arrested under warrant because of her failure to attend court.”
via: https://nypost.com/2019/08/20/mom-arrested-after-putting-recycling-in-wrong-color-bag/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Best Buy deliveryman sets elderly woman on fire; beats her to death
A Best Buy delivery man allegedly doused a woman with a liquid chemical and beat her to death after installing her washer and dryer in Florida, cops said.
Jorge Luis Depre Lachazo, 21, arrived at the Boca Raton home with his coworker to install the appliances on Monday and Lachazo was eventually left alone with Evelyn Udell to explain how to use the devices, according to the Boca Raton Police Department.
The coworker suddenly heard screams and ran inside to discover the 75-year-old Udell lying on the floor covered in blood.
Lachazo then hopped into the delivery van and fled the scene, cops said.
Udell was rushed to Delray Medical Center, where she died on Tuesday.
When he was apprehended, Lachazo admitted that he struck the woman and set her on fire.
The man also told police he had used cocaine and marijuana earlier in the day.
The suspect was charged with murder, arson, and armed burglary.
Photo Credit: Boca Raton Police Department
Ohio man arrested after woman says she went to party, woke up in freezer with severe frostbite
EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio – An Ohio woman is recovering from severe frostbite after telling police say she went to a party and then woke up inside a freezer with severe frostbite.
She managed to escape and crashed a car, which led police to arrest a suspect in East Cleveland, according to WJW.
The woman was taken to MetroHealth Medical Center for treatment. She told police the last thing she remembers is attending a party at a group home on Sunday, and believes she may have been in the freezer for more than one day.
On Tuesday afternoon, East Cleveland police arrested 41-year-old Eric Glaze on charges of kidnapping and attempted murder.
“The next thing I know, I’m talking about police everywhere, and I seen the SWAT dudes come up and kick the door in,” said neighbor Aaron Dennis.
East Cleveland police said they were first alerted to a problem around 10 a.m. when a Garfield Heights woman crashed her car near East 115th Street and Superior Avenue in Cleveland. She told police she was escaping from a man who had put her in a freezer inside a group home on Glenmont Road.
“We were able to ascertain that the suspect was not actually inside the vehicle, but we’re still unclear if the suspect was chasing her in another vehicle,” said East Cleveland Police Cpt. Scott Gardner.
Police said the woman identified Glaze as an acquaintance and directed them to the home where he lived, the same place she says she attended a party on Sunday.
“She came over here on her own volition and essentially, she was administered some sort of narcotic, according to her. She’s not exactly certain of the events, that happened in between, but she woke up and she was in a freezer that was running,” Gardner said.
Police said the woman was not restrained, and was able to push open the lid and escape Tuesday morning.
“She seems to think that they were, that they had drugged her to the capacity that she was dead, is what she was indicating to us, and that they were essentially trying to get rid of her,” Capt. Gardner said.
“Why didn’t you just call 911, have the ambulance come and check her out? First, then they would have determined whether she took something, had something, you know what’s I’m saying, before you just say ‘Oh she’s dead,'” said neighbor Pat Phoeson.
East Cleveland police said the group home houses people with mental challenges, although it is not registered with the city.
“Whether it’s a group home, no group home, whatever it may be… We should have known,” Phoeson said.
East Cleveland police said the woman told them that, to her knowledge, she was not sexually assaulted. But detectives said they were having a rape kit done, in case she was assaulted and does not remember it.
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Stranger picks up 7-year-old boy after he’s left at wrong bus stop, father claims -took him back to his grandmother’s house
MARION, Ark. (WHBQ/CNN) — An Arkansas father said a bus driver dropped his 7-year-old son off at the wrong stop, more than a mile away from home.
DeMarcus Watkins Sr. said a complete stranger picked up his son after noticing the boy walking on the side of the road in Marion on Aug. 15.
“Luckily a goodhearted person took him back to his grandmother’s house,” said Watkins.
The father is now demanding an apology from the Marion School District. Watkins claims his son tried to tell the driver he missed his stop but was ignored.
“My biggest problem was when he got to this point and he was telling the driver and the driver’s aide that this is not his right stop, no one really paid attention,” said Watkins.
He said the driver gave his son the option to get off at a different stop or go back to the bus terminal.
The boy’s family didn’t realize he was missing until they saw other kids being dropped at their regular bus stop — except for him.
The superintendent of Marion schools said they are reviewing bus video cameras to determine if the correct procedures were followed. He said there is no question there could be improvements, and they plan to meet with the family this week.
Photo Credit: kmov.com
Man Arrested While Attempting to Fix Flat Tires With Gauze and Band-Aids in Mission Viejo
Orange County sheriff’s deputies responding to a report of a suspicious man next to a parked SUV arrived to find him attempting an unusual (and ineffective) method to fix a flat tire.
The man was attempting to patch two damaged tires using gauze and Band-Aids, OCSD – Mission Viejo Police Services said in a Facebook post.
A citizen reported the suspicious man next to the vehicle near Felipe Road and Barbadanes around 6 a.m.
When deputies arrived, they found both driver’s side tires were flat and a 26-year-old man trying to repair them using gauze and Band-Aids.
The man was arrested on suspicion of being under the influence of drugs, deputies said.
The suspect’s identity was not released.
Photo Credit: Mission Viejo Police Services
Mom yells at deputies who arrest son after threat to kill people at school
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Authorities have posted a video of their arrest of a 15-year-old Florida boy who allegedly posted an online threat to kill at least seven people at a high school.
Volusia County Sheriff’s officials interviewed the boy and his mother outside their home near Daytona Beach last Friday, and posted a video of their discussion to underline the consequences of making school threats.
The boy, whose name is not being used by The Associated Press, told investigators he was joking when he posted the message on Discord using the fake name Dalton Barnhart. In it, he vowed to bring his father’s “M15” to Seabreeze High School in Daytona Beach and “kill seven people at a minimum.”
The FBI alerted Volusia County authorities on Thursday, and deputies arrested the teen the next morning.
“Joke or not, these types of comments are felonies under the law,” the sheriff’s office wrote in its Facebook post.
In the video, the deputy tells the mother the boy had made a written threat to carry out a mass shooting.
“But he’s just a little kid playing a video game,” she protests. “These kids say stuff like that all the time. It’s a joke to them. It’s a game. And it’s so wrong. I hate that game.”
The deputy says law enforcement officers now spend a lot of time checking out similar threats.
“How do we know he’s not going to be like the kid from Parkland, or he’s not going to be like the kid that shot up Sandy Hook? We don’t know that,” he says.
“There is a Florida state statute that you cannot make a written threat to cause a mass shooting,” he adds, explaining that her son would be charged with either a second- or third-degree felony.
“He’s just a little boy,” the mother says, getting emotional. “He didn’t do anything wrong. Yes, he’s 15, but he’s still a little boy. He’s not one of those crazy people out there doing stuff … he shouldn’t be treated as though he’s a terrorist or something because he made a silly statement on a stupid video game.”
The deputy asks if there’s a gun in the home. She says yes.
“Ok, he has hands and feet and he can grab your gun and go do something,” the deputy says.
The mother says her son wouldn’t do such a thing.
“We don’t know that,” the deputy says.
“This is the world we live in, where people think it’s funny to say I’m going to go kill people at school,” the deputy adds, before taking the boy to juvenile detention. “He made the charge, he’s going to face the consequences.”
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Truck driver threatened mass shooting at Memphis church
INDIANAPOLIS — A truck driver has been arrested after saying he would commit a mass shooting at a church in Memphis, Tennessee, authorities say in newly filed court records.
Thomas Matthew McVicker was apprehended in Indianapolis before the plan could be carried out, according to court papers filed Monday. It’s the most recent case in a string of men being arrested around the country for threatening to carry out shootings.
McVicker, 38, made “credible threats to conduct a mass shooting and suicide” planned for Thursday, an FBI special agent said in a sworn affidavit.
The circumstances of his arrest in Indiana weren’t outlined in the affidavit.
Earlier this month, a friend of McVicker in the south Alabama town of Fairhope told a Florida FBI officer that McVicker has been considering “shooting a church up” or killing people on the street.
Later, in a telephone call, the friend said McVicker told her the church shooting would happen when he was in Memphis on Thursday and that he “intended to take his knife and slit the pastor’s throat.”
His mother told the FBI he owned a Ruger P90 handgun and sometimes uses cocaine and methamphetamine. She also said her son is being treated for schizophrenia. McVicker told his Alabama friend “evil entities entered his body and are torturing him,” the affidavit states.
The friend asked McVicker why he wanted to kill innocent people, and he said “they put spiritual snakes and spiders in my bed at night,” the FBI agent wrote. “I’ve only seen them a couple of times but they take form and I can feel them crawling on me and under me,” the affidavit states.
The FBI says it confirmed with McVicker’s employer that he requested leave time Thursday and that he indicated in the request that he would spend the leave time in Memphis, the affidavit states.
The affidavit doesn’t specify a motive, nor does it identify a specific Memphis church. McVicker’s friend did not learn of an exact location from the phone call. However, “McVicker insisted that ‘something’ would happen when he was in Memphis,” the affidavit states.
The Memphis Police Department was notified of the threat, which did not mention a specific church, police spokesman Louis Brownlee said Tuesday. Memphis police work regularly with state and federal authorities on these types of threats “to stay ahead of the curve,” Brownlee said.
Earle Fisher, pastor at Abyssinian Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis, said he would be reaching out to his congregation to tell them about the threat and inform them that the church has security measures in place.
“It’s tragic that we are in a climate that even in your house of worship, in what is supposed to be a sacred and safe space, you have to take up measures that might include making sure that you have armed security in your sanctuary to make sure that your parishioners are safe,” Fisher said.
Court records in Alabama show McVicker received a ticket for driving a truck in an improper lane in Jefferson County, which includes Birmingham, in June 2014. He was working for Swift Transportation of Gary, Indiana, at the time, records show. McVicker failed to pay the fine until 13 months later, after his driver’s license was suspended, records show.
Court records list McVicker’s address as Punta Gorda, Florida, but his Alabama friend told the FBI that McVicker lives in his semi. The records don’t list a lawyer who could be reached for comment on McVicker’s behalf.
via: https://pix11.com/2019/08/20/fbi-truck-driver-threatened-mass-shooting-at-memphis-church/
Photo Credit: Getty Images