Investigation into Black man found hanging in NJ park determined suicide
MORRISTOWN, N.J. — A man found hanging from a tree at a New Jersey park has been determined to be a suicide, Morris County Prosecutors said Wednesday.
On June 28, law enforcement found 20-year-old Washington Township man Amanual “Amani” Kildea hanging from a tree just off of a hiking trail at Morristown’s Lewis Morris Park after a 911 caller had found him.
First responders found Kildea’s body in a near seated position at the base of a tree, with a rope wrapped around
his neck. The rope was connected to the tree approximately six-and-one-half feet from the ground and Mr. Kildea’s body was partially suspended several inches off the ground, according to authorities.
Morris County Prosecutors say there were no indications of a struggle observed at the scene. A subsequent investigation Kildea’s wallet and cell phone to be in his pocket. Other personal items, including a laptop and backpack, were neatly placed near Kildea’s body.
Investigators also found Kildea’s car located in a parking lot at the park.
Further investigation by county prosecutors confirmed that Kildea had purchased the rope used in this incident from a Morris County home improvement center earlier on the day he was found and that he was alone at the time of purchase.
Additional investigation revealed evidence that Kildea had “conducted multiple internet searches related to suicide” on that same day.
Prosecutors say there’s no evidence of criminality nor any connection between Kildea’s death and any other person or group. The county’s medical examiner determined his death a suicide, not identifying any trauma to Kildea’s body that was inconsistent with the manner in which he died.
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Biden campaign already selling ‘Will you shut up, man’ T-shirts
(CNN/Meredith) — One of Joe Biden’s lines from the first 2020 presidential debate just became a fashion statement.
Biden’s campaign team is now selling T-shirts bearing the phrase, “Will you shut up, man?”
The Democratic nominee said that to President Donald Trump Tuesday night following a series of endless interruptions.
Throughout the debate, moderator Chris Wallace struggled to regain control as the two candidates frequently talked over one another.
“Gentlemen, I hate to raise my voice, but why should I be any different than the two of you?” Wallace said roughly 50 minutes into the debate.
Both Trump and Biden are back on the campaign trial Wednesday.
Trump will be in Minnesota while Biden is taking a train through Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Photo Credit: CNN
The police officer who fatally shot Breonna Taylor is crowdfunding money to retire
(CNN) — The Louisville police officer who fatally shot Breonna Taylor is currently raising money to fund his retirement.
Detective Myles Cosgrove was one of three Louisville officers who fired shots into Taylor’s apartment last March after breaking in to serve a search warrant related to Taylor’s ex-boyfriend.
Taylor, an emergency room technician, died from multiple gunshot wounds sustained in the botched raid.
Now, Cosgrove is seeking funds on the “Christian crowdfunding site” GiveSendGo so he can “purchase the remainder of his service time” and retire, according to the fundraiser’s description. He wants to focus on his family’s safety, which, per the description, has been threatened since protests erupted after Taylor’s killing.
“Myles’ reputation has been completely dismantled and the psychological trauma is something that he will have to cope with for the rest of his life,” the fundraiser description reads.
Jarrod Beck, an attorney for Cosgrove, confirmed to CNN that the page was set up by members of Cosgrove’s family but declined to comment further. CNN also reached out to GiveSendGo to comment on the campaign and is waiting to hear back.
The detective is currently seeking $75,000 and, as of Wednesday morning, has raised over $9,000.
The Louisville Courier Journal was the first to report about the fundraiser.
Cosgrove and Officer Jonathan Mattingly were two of the three officers present the night of March 13 when Taylor was killed.
Neither were indicted for their actions that night, though Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said Cosgrove fired the fatal shot — which he said was justified because Taylor’s boyfriend fired at officers first.
A third officer, Brett Hankison, has been indicted on three counts of wanton endangerment in the first degree for firing blindly into an adjoining apartment that was occupied.
Hankison has pleaded not guilty.
Cameron told CNN affiliate WDRB that he didn’t seek murder charges against Cosgrove or Mattingly.
The grand jury’s decision to indict only one of the officers involved in her death, and on Class D felony charges, the lowest of four classes of felonies, outraged Louisville protesters. Last week, two Louisville officers were shot at a protest and dozens of demonstrators, including Kentucky’s only Black woman legislator, were arrested.
GiveSendGo hosts fundraisers for Kyle Rittenhouse and Kenosha officer
GiveSendGo currently hosts fundraisers for two other accused gunmen: Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old charged with first-degree murder for allegedly shooting and killing two people in Kenosha, Wisconsin, during protests against the police shooting of Jacob Blake; and Rusten Sheskey, the Kenosha officer who shot Jacob Blake. The campaigns have raised over $500,000 and $30,000 respectively.
GiveSendGo didn’t immediately respond to CNN’s requests for comment, but in a release published following backlash for hosting Rittenhouse’s legal fund, co-founder of GiveSendGo Heather Wilson said the platform allows campaigns “even if we don’t agree with them” as long as the methods of funding are legal.
CNN’s Ray Sanchez and Mark Morales contributed reporting to this story.
Photo Credit: CNN/LMPD
7 injured in drive-by shooting at Milwaukee funeral home
Seven people were shot at a Milwaukee funeral home Wednesday, with police now looking for the unidentified gunman and trying to piece together the circumstances behind the violent attack.
All of the victims — men and women between the ages of 24 and 48 — were listed in stable condition after the shooting at the Serenity Funeral Home on West Fond du Lac Avenue, police said at a briefing aired by WITI-TV.
“Our prayers are with the victims and their family members during this terrible time,” acting Milwaukee Police Chief Michael Brunson said. “This is an untenable situation, this brazen act that was done in broad daylight and just unacceptable in our city.”
The shooting took place around 12:45 p.m. local time.
Brunson said there was a funeral underway but police have not determined if there is a link between the service and the shooting — and are still trying to figure out a motive behind the incident.
According to witnesses, several people were seen fleeing the scene covered in blood, WABY-TV reported.
Brunson called the initial investigation “fluid,” and said more details will be released when it becomes available.
He urged the public to phone in any tips regarding the shooting.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/09/30/seven-shot-by-gunman-at-milwaukee-funeral-home/
Photo Credit: Christopher Sadowski
Pastor did meth with parishioners, performed exorcism on 1-year-old
An Arkansas pastor admitted using meth with parishioners and performing an exorcism on an emaciated 1-year-old boy, police said.
Lloyd Eddie Lasker Jr., pastor of the House of Refuge and Deliverance Ministries church in Mayflower, was arrested at a gas station with meth and a pipe on Sept. 22, according to court documents obtained by The News & Observer.
Four days earlier, police in nearby Conway responded to the church for a welfare check and discovered a 21-month-old child with “multiple bruises from head to toe,” as well as the boy’s mother and the 49-year-old pastor.
The boy’s mother claimed he “was possessed by a demon” before he was taken to a hospital, where he was admitted into an intensive care unit with a brain bleed and extreme malnourishment, police said.
Investigators then went to Lasker’s Mayflower home on Sept. 22 to ask him about the case, but he wasn’t there. Officers later spotted his white Dodge truck at a gas station in the small town of less than 2,000 north of Little Rock, where police say about 4 grams of meth in a small baggie was found inside his vehicle, an affidavit shows.
Cops also found a pipe and more meth on the truck’s passenger side, where Lasker had been sitting. A second man, Timothy Bynum, was standing near the driver’s side, police said.
Bynum told officers the drugs belonged to Lasker, who denied knowing the pipe and drugs were in the truck, but admitted to using meth “in the past,” as well as inside the church several times — including with the child’s mother and other parishioners, the affidavit shows.
Lasker also admitted trying to “exorcise the demon” in the boy, but refused to explain what that entailed, police said.
Officers also found a bag of suspected meth during a search of the church, as well as a shotgun at Lasker’s home, court documents show. As an ex-felon, Lasker had been barred from possessing handguns, The News & Observer reports.
Lasker, who has been charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a gun by a convicted felon, was released from custody after posting $7,500 bond, the Log Cabin Democrat reported Monday.
Lasker is due back in court on Oct. 13, court documents show. Attempts to reach someone at the church early Wednesday were unsuccessful.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/09/30/arkansas-pastor-used-meth-performed-exorcism-on-1-year-old-cops/
Photo Credit: Faulkner County Sheriff’s Office
Florida woman forced to forfeit lotto prize after USPS loses ticket
A Florida woman says she was forced to forfeit her lotto prize after the US Postal Service lost her winning ticket in the mail.
Sue Burgess, of Hernando County, said she was thrilled to discover earlier this summer that she snagged $1,000 in the state’s Second Chance Lottery game, news station WFLA.
“I was elated. It was like winning a million dollars to me,” Burgess told the outlet.
But at the time, she couldn’t claim her winnings at any of the local lottery offices since they were closed due to the pandemic.
She followed the state lottery’s instructions and went to the post office to send in her ticket via certified mail, the outlet reported.
Burgess said the ticket, however, never made it to the lottery office in the one-week time frame required to claim the prize.
Her tracking information last showed the ticket in transit on Aug. 12 at a Tallahassee post office, WFLA reported.
“They said, ‘We have not received this ticket.’ They said, ‘No ticket, no prize,’” said Burgess, whose prize money went to an alternate winner.
Burgess said she’s frustrated because she could’ve left her ticket in a dropbox at a local lottery office, but she believed that certified mail was the safer and more efficient option.
“That’s why you choose certified mail,” Burgess said. “With COVID, I understand the mail is a little bit slow. But for safety sake, certified mail usually has priority.”
Six weeks later, the winning ticket is still unaccounted for.
The USPS apologized to Burgess and said it’s working with the state lottery to help her cash out her prize.
“We apologize to this specific customer for any inconvenience they may have experienced,” the postal service said.
“In this specific instance, we are continuing to work with the lottery office to confirm receipt of the mailpiece.”
The Florida Lottery said it’s not responsible for mistakes made by the postal service, though it will make an exception for Burgess and pay out her prize if the package shows up postmarked by the original deadline, WFLA reported.
“Ms. Burgess’ situation is an unusual circumstance and, to our knowledge, no other winner has experienced a similar issue,” the lottery said.
“Because the Lottery did not receive Ms. Burgess’ ticket within the seven-day claim period, an alternate winner was selected and paid. However, if Ms. Burgess’ package arrives at Florida Lottery Headquarters with a date stamp prior to the original expiration date, our Claims Processing department will process and pay her claim.”
via: https://nypost.com/2020/09/30/woman-forced-to-forfeit-lotto-prize-after-usps-loses-ticket/
Photo Credit: Christopher Sadowski
Child, 2, found loaded gun at NJ playground
PHILLIPSBURG, N.J. — A 2-year-old child found a loaded handgun at a New Jersey playground over the weekend, but no one was injured, authorities said.
Police in Phillipsburg told NJ.com that the toddler’s father quickly secured the weapon after the child found it Sunday afternoon and called police to the Firth playground.
Officials said they haven’t determined who left the gun at the playground or whether it is registered to anyone.
They plan to study surveillance camera footage from nearby homes and are asking for anyone with information to contact investigators.
via: https://www.pix11.com/news/local-news/new-jersey/police-child-2-found-loaded-gun-at-nj-playground
Photo Credit: pix11.com
Parrots in wildlife park moved after swearing at visitors – telling someone to “f**k off” and using other profanity
(CNN) — Five parrots have been removed from public view at a British wildlife park after they started swearing at customers.
The foul-mouthed birds were split up after they launched a number of different expletives at visitors and staff just days after being donated to Lincolnshire Wildlife Park.
“It just went ballistic, they were all swearing,” the venue’s chief executive Steve Nichols told CNN Tuesday. “We were a little concerned about the children.”
“I get called a fat t**t every time I walk past,” Nichols complained.
The African grey parrots — named Eric, Jade, Elsie, Tyson and Billy — were given to the park from five different owners within the same week, and shared a quarantining facility together before being placed on display.
But staff immediately noticed that the birds shared a propensity to fly off the handle.
“They literally, within a very short period of time, starting swearing at each other,” Nichols said. “‘F**k off’ is the most common one,” he explained — “it’s a very easy one for them to learn” — but the birds would utter “anything you can think of.”
Most customers enjoyed the talent once the parrots were displayed. “The visitors were giving them as much back as what they were giving to them,” Nichols said.
But concern for younger customers forced staff to split up the birds and temporarily remove them from the park’s public areas. Staff now hope the birds’ language will become more family-friendly now that they have been separated.
“To take in a swearing parrot isn’t an unusual thing, it’s something that happens probably three or four times a year,” Nichols said.
But the pandemic has led to a surge in donations, as owners spend more time with their birds and decide to give them to parks that can provide them with a larger living space, he explained.
“We would normally take in one or two parrots in a fortnight. Today we took in eight,” he said.
African greys are among the most popular species of parrot. Around 1.1 million indoor birds were kept as pets in the UK in 2019, according to the Pet Food Manufacturers’ Association.
Photo Credit: Lincolnshire Wildlife Park
Saint Louis salon owner frustrated after cars continue crashing into her business – two times this year
NORTH ST. LOUIS ( KMOV.com) — A north St. Louis salon owner is searching for a solution after cars keep crashing into her business.
For the 4th time in four years, Victoria Harrington’s hair salon has taken a brutal beating after cars slam into her store. She said this has happened twice this year.
“It’s a dangerous intersection,” she said. “I just pray that somebody doesn’t lose their life.”
Wooden boards were placed on the damage windows of Envy hair salon, which sits on the corner of Martin Luther King and Marcus. Harrington said it takes months for repairs to be complete.
“I lost a lot of business because people don’t know what happened. They don’t know if it was vandalized, they don’t know if it was a shooting. They don’t know so it deterred clients from coming,” she said.
Not only has it killed her business, most of her equipment inside has been destroyed too.
“This is a dream of mine that I’ve had since I was very young. I actually stopped being a nurse,” she added.
Harrington’s property management company is looking for a permanent fix and requested the city to put up safety barriers. The salon sits in an area considered a protected historic district which means any barrier or traffic devices that would alter the exterior of the building would have to be approved and reviewd by the cultural resources office.
“I’m a little discouraged. I don’t know which way to go. I don’t want to give up on my dreams, but I try to be positive,” Harrington said.
St. Louis City told News 4 each alderman gets capital money for projects like traffic calming devices. Envy Salon borders two wards where both aldermen have been serving for only a year so they were unfamiliar with the process.
Meanwhile the owner says she’s now looking for another place to do hair but she doesn’t want to.
“The residents in this area deserve to have some access to something really nice without having to travel very far to get it,” she said.
Photo Credit: kmov.com
Lesbian lovers allegedly killed, dismembered man to steal inheritance
A pair of Portuguese lesbian lovers inspired by the Showtime serial killer TV series “Dexter” allegedly killed and hacked up a man, chopping off his fingers to access his bank account and steal a more than $77,000 inheritance.
Maria Malveiro, 19, and her girlfriend Mariana Fonseca, 23, a nurse, are accused of murdering Diogo Goncalves, a 21-year-old hotel worker, in Portugal earlier this year.
The grisly details about Goncalves’ killing emerged as prosecutors get ready to put Malveiro and Fonseca on trial.
Investigators say Goncalves was strangled on March 18 and the two women allegedly cut off his fingers to gain access to his bank account from his cellphone, using his prints to swipe the cash, the Sun reported, citing Portuguese media.
The women allegedly dismembered Goncalves and kept his head, forearms, hands and feet for five days after murdering him and tossing his torso into the sea, according to the Sun.
They later threw the rest of his body parts into the sea from cliffs in the Algarve town of Sagres, the report said.
Local media reported that the gruesome crime happened after Malveiro seduced Goncalves.
She allegedly took advantage of the fact that Goncalves was attracted to her in order to give him an orange juice laced with a sedative after promising him a lap dance at his home, reports said.
An indictment charges that the women spent three days between March 20 and 23 sending messages from Goncalves’ Facebook account to trick colleagues and friends into believing he was still alive, the Sun reported.
Investigators say Goncalves’ torso ended up on dry land, ultimately leaving key clues behind.
Malveiro reportedly admitted to a local judge who questioned her after the crime that she and Fonesca were inspired by the “Dexter” TV series in the US.
The women will be tried for a string of crimes including murder, desecrating a body, computer fraud and using a stolen vehicle, reports said.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/09/28/lesbian-lovers-killed-dismembered-man-to-steal-inheritance/
Photo Credit: Instagram