Tag: Americas

ALTON, Ill. (TCD) — Five people, including four teenagers, are being charged with first-degree murder after a 13-year-old girl was shot in the head and later died from her injuries.

According to Madison County State’s Attorney Matt Haine, Ra’niya Steward was shot Feb. 3 on the 900 block of Highland Avenue in what he called “senseless violence.” Steward was taken to a hospital in St. Louis in critical condition, where she remained until she died from her injuries on Tuesday, Feb. 13. Haine “expects evidence to show that she was not an intended target.”

Two 19-year-olds, Alvin Perry III and Raysean Colvin, were arrested on Feb. 7 and charged with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, and aggravated unlawful use of weapons. Colvin is also being charged with unlawful sale or delivery of firearms.

On Feb. 10, the state’s attorney’s office announced a third suspect, 24-year-old Keith Sanders, was taken into custody on charges of attempted first-degree murder, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and aggravated battery with a firearm. The statement alleges Sanders “encouraged a minor to become delinquent ‘by advising the minor of the presence of a particular individual at a specification location, knowing that information would cause the minor to act in a violent manner.’”

The statement alleges Sanders, or a minor he is responsible for, fired the gun that ultimately killed Steward.

Following Steward’s death on Feb. 13, the state’s attorney’s office upgraded the charges from attempted first-degree murder to first-degree murder. In addition, Vito Crowder and Dakota Perry, both 16, were charged with first-degree murder and aggravated unlawful use of weapons. Haine said the murder charges filed against Crowder and Perry make them automatically eligible to be tried as adults.

Sanders, Alvin Perry, and Colvin are in custody, but Dakota Perry and Crowder have not been caught yet.

According to court documents cited by the Alton Telegraph, Sanders allegedly told the minors that a “rival faction of individuals were at a specific location,” so they needed to bring guns to “attempt an armed robbery, shoot at, or attempt to scare the rival faction of individuals.”

They allegedly were targeting a juvenile and a 19-year-old who has a criminal record.

Alvin Perry reportedly took Crowder and Dakota Perry to the house on Long Street “with the intent that they would discharge a firearm.” After the shooting, Sanders allegedly drove them back to his home. Colvin reportedly gave the gun to the minors.

Haine said in the statement, “This case is beyond tragic. The life of a beautiful young girl has been lost, and our community is hurting. Ra’niya, her family and her loved ones remain in our prayers.”

MORE:

• Haine announces charges of attempted murder filed in connection with shooting of girl in Alton – Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office
• Third defendant charged with attempted murder in shooting of 13-year-old girl in Alton – Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office
• Amended First-Degree Murder Charges Announced Against 5 Defendants in Fatal Shooting of Alton Girl – Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office

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CADDO COUNTY, Okla. (TCD) — Prosecutors filed a court document this week citing their intention to seek the death penalty against the caregiver of a 4-year-old who was found deceased inside a backpack.

Caddo County District Attorney Jason Hicks wrote in a bill of particulars that Alysia Adams should be given the death penalty because she “knowingly created a great risk of death to more than one person” and that Athena Brownfield’s death was “especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel.”

On Jan. 10, 2023, a mail carrier called Cyril Police after she came across a 5-year-old girl outside a home without any adult supervision. Police began investigating and called in the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation for assistance. Investigators learned Brownfield and her sister had been in Adams’ care for at least a year prior to the girl’s disappearance.

Adams was arrested on child neglect charges and her husband, Ivon Adams, was taken into custody in Arizona and extradited back to Oklahoma to face charges of murder and child neglect.

The search for Brownfield lasted several days until remains found on Jan. 17, 2023, were positively identified as Brownfield’s. KOCO-TV reports Brownfield died from acute pneumonia with complicating malnutrition. She reportedly weighed only 23 pounds and had a number of viruses, including COVID-19.

According to Ivon Adams’ affidavit, the 5-year-old sister referred to Alysia Adams as “mom” and Ivon Adams as “dad” and “uncle Ivon.” When she spoke with investigators, she reportedly said she “had been home and she is tired of being alone.”

The couple did not enroll the girls in school or take them to the doctor.

Alysia Adams allegedly told investigators her husband beat Brownfield to death on Dec. 25, 2022, then punched her in the chest. At around 1 a.m. on Dec. 26, Ivon Adams allegedly left their home with Brownfield’s body, and when he returned, he said he buried the girl’s body near a fence line next to their old house. He allegedly left a “large broken branch” over the shallow grave he dug.

KOCO reports that the medical examiner did not find any evidence of physical trauma on Brownfield’s body.

According to KSWO-TV, Brownfield was discovered inside a backpack, and she and the backpack weighed 25 pounds in total.

In December, prosecutors modified charges against the couple. Ivon Adams’ first-degree murder charge was downgraded to second-degree murder, but he still faces charges of child neglect and unlawful removal of a dead body, KFOR-TV reports. The district attorney’s office is now charging Alysia Adams with first-degree murder for allegedly “putting Athena Brownfield in a closet and depriving the child of proper nutrition.”

She could also reportedly face a count of second-degree murder.

Brownfield’s biological mother, Jasmin Brownfield, was arrested in May on two counts of child neglect.

MORE:

• Bill of Particulars – Sixth Judicial District Court
• Caddo County DA recommends considering death penalty for Alysia Adams – KOCO
• Missing Oklahoma 4-year-old reportedly beaten to death on Christmas, buried near fence, 1/17/2023 – TCD
• Charges modified for couple accused in Athena Brownfield’s death, 12/12/2023 – KFOR
• Official autopsy report on 4-year-old Athena Brownfield reveals new details, 8/7/2023 – KSWO
• State of Oklahoma vs. Jasmin Brownfield

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MANASSAS, Va. (TCD) — Police fatally shot a 26-year-old suspect who allegedly stabbed two people at a trade school this week, leaving one man dead and another in critical condition.

On Tuesday, Feb. 13, shortly after 3:20 p.m., the Prince William County Police Department received multiple 911 calls regarding a possible stabbing in progress at an apprentice training facility at 7016 Infantry Ridge Road. Officers arrived and located the suspect, later identified as Philip Brant, armed with a knife at the front door.

According to police, Brant failed to comply with officers’ commands and moved toward them. Two officers fired at Brant from their department-issued handguns and struck him. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Upon further investigation, police learned Brant allegedly grabbed a knife from his backpack and stabbed one of the victims multiple times in a classroom while other students were present. The students reportedly scattered, and Brant continued to attack the victim.

According to police, Brant left the classroom at one point and stabbed the second victim in another classroom.

The first stabbing victim collapsed inside the classroom where he had been stabbed. The second victim reportedly made it out of the building but later fell in the parking lot.

The victims were transported to local hospitals, where 23-year-old Elijah Safadi died from his injuries. Police said the second victim, who was not publicly identified, remained in critical condition as of Feb. 13.

The officers who fired at the suspect have been place on paid administrative leave pending the investigation.

Safadi’s family told WRC-TV he was expecting a baby and had worked as an electrician in addition to taking class at the training center.

MORE:

• News Release – Prince William County Police Department
• Student slain at Manassas trade school was about to become a father, family says – WRC

TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our True Crime Daily newsletter.

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LIVE OAK, Fla. (TCD) — Deputies recently arrested a babysitter on suspicion of abusing an infant in her care, causing serious injuries that will impact the rest of the victim’s life.

According to a news release from the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office, on Sunday, Jan. 14, Suwannee County Fire personnel responded to the 7500 block of U.S. 90 in reference to a 10-month-old baby experiencing a seizure. The child’s caregiver, 39-year-old Heather Hogan, reportedly told paramedics the infant suffered a seizure before falling off the couch twice.

Paramedics transported the child to a local hospital and called in the sheriff’s office because they determined the baby’s injuries were consistent with child abuse.

The victim sustained extensive bruising, a broken clavicle bone with a “large bruise extending from the front of their shoulder up around their neck that appeared to have occurred several days prior.” Additionally, the child tested positive for cannabis.

According to the sheriff’s office, the baby suffered injuries to the inside of the mouth and multiple bruises in different stages of healing. The baby had fractured bones in the spine and leg consistent with forceful yanking on the leg and impact on a hard surface.

The sheriff’s office said the baby also sustained subdural hematomas and lost the ability to see.

Medical professionals believe the victim will have long-term disabilities because of the alleged abuse.

Upon further investigation, the sheriff’s office identified Hogan as the primary suspect and obtained a warrant for her arrest.

Hogan was arrested and booked into the Suwannee County Jail on Feb. 14 on charges of aggravated child abuse and child neglect. She remains held on $600,000 bond.

The sheriff’s office wrote, “This case of abuse is sadly one of the worst our investigators have encountered. It is incomprehensible how such cruelty towards an innocent child can take place in a civilized society.”

MORE:

• News Release – Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office
• Suwannee County Jail

TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our True Crime Daily newsletter.

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RENO, Nev. (TCD) — A 37-year-old man recently pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison for the 2020 shooting death of his pregnant girlfriend.

The Washoe County District Attorney’s Office announced Feb. 15 that a judge sentenced Guy Lambert to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the first-degree murder of 28-year-old Tiffany Self. Lambert was also given a consecutive 20-year sentence for a deadly weapon enhancement.

In 2020, Reno Police responded to an apartment building on Park Street in reference to a possible shooting. Officers found Self, who was four months pregnant with Lambert’s baby at the time, with a gunshot wound to her face. Responders attempted lifesaving measures, but Self succumbed to her injuries.

According to the district attorney’s office, investigators learned Self and Lambert had gotten into a fight. Out of fear, the victim decided to stay with a friend to hide from the defendant. Self requested that her friend not tell her boyfriend she was staying there.

Lambert reportedly found out his girlfriend was hiding from him. He got a handgun, “forced his way into the apartment,” and fatally shot Self before fleeing the scene, according to the district attorney’s office.

A secret witness provided a tip, and officers found Lambert four days later and took him into custody.

According to the district attorney’s office, Self’s mother and sister spoke at the sentencing hearing and “described their grief.”

MORE:

• Man Shot and Killed Pregnant Girlfriend Sentenced to Life Without Parole – Washoe County District Attorney’s Office

TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our True Crime Daily newsletter.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (TCD) — State and local officials are searching for a 5-year-old boy who was allegedly kidnapped by his foster mother in the middle of the night.

On Wednesday, Feb. 14, shortly after 3 a.m., Columbus Police Department officers responded to the 900 block of Reeb Avenue after a man called 911 and said his wife, Pammy Maye, “woke him up and made statements that made him believe that their foster child Darnell had been hurt.” Maye reportedly “abruptly” left the residence and drove off in a 2015 Jeep Cherokee. Police said she was last seen wearing a green floral nightgown and pink shoes.

Police said they issued an Amber Alert for Darnell Taylor about two hours after the initial call.

The Jeep Cherokee was found in Brooklyn, Ohio, at around 6 a.m., but Maye and Taylor were not located.

Franklin County court records show there is a warrant for Maye’s arrest on charges of first-degree kidnapping and third-degree endangering children.

According to the probable cause affidavit posted by WCMH-TV, Maye allegedly told her husband, the 911 caller, that she killed Taylor and that “their son was no longer alive.” The man searched the house for the boy, then contacted police. While on the phone, Maye allegedly put her hand over her husband’s mouth and said she had “a plan.” She then fled.

MORE:

• Missing Child – Columbus Division of Police
• Amber Alert – Ohio Amber Plan
• Press Conference: Amber Alert Update – Columbus Division of Police
• Court document: Amber Alert boy, 5, may have been killed – WCMH
• State of Ohio vs. Pammy Maye

TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our True Crime Daily newsletter.

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WASHINGTON (TCD) — Police are working to identify and locate a suspect they allege killed a 41-year-old tech executive from Virginia this month.

According to a news release from the Metropolitan Washington, D.C., Police Department, on Friday, Feb. 2, at around 2 a.m., officers responded to the 1100 block of 15th Street NW in reference to a possible assault. Police found the victim, Vivek Taneja, suffering from life-threatening injuries.

Taneja was transported to a local hospital, where he died from his wounds several days later, on Feb. 7.

According to WRC-TV, Taneja allegedly got into a fight with an individual, who punched him to the ground. During the altercation, the victim’s head reportedly hit the concrete, and he went unconscious.

Police captured the suspect on surveillance footage and asked for the public’s assistance in identifying the man. Officers are offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading up to an arrest.

Taneja was the co-founder and president of Dynamo Technologies, a “premier technology solutions and analytics product provider to the federal government,” according to the company’s website.

MORE:

• MPD Seeking Suspect in a Northwest Homicide – Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Police
• Tech exec dies week after being knocked out in fight in DC – WRC

TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our True Crime Daily newsletter.

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VICKSBURG, Miss. (TCD) — Police recently arrested a woman and her boyfriend for allegedly killing an elderly man in a fire after a dispute earlier this month.

According to a news release from the Vicksburg Police Department, on Friday, Feb. 2, officers and Vicksburg Fire Department personnel responded to a structure fire at 508 Speed St. After extinguishing the flames, responders found the body of 75-year-old Ernest Gleese.

The Mississippi State Fire Marshal’s Office alleges 50-year-old Carolyn Mansfield set the fire following an “argument over drugs.”

Mansfield reportedly confessed to the crime, and police took her into custody on Wednesday, Feb. 7, on charges of first-degree murder and arson.

According to the fire marshal’s office, 74-year-old Albert Thomas, Mansfield’s accomplice and boyfriend, also faces charges of first-degree murder and arson. Officials issued a bench warrant for his arrest.

Mansfield appeared in court the same day as her arrest, and a judge set her bond at $1.75 million.

MORE:

• Arrest Made in Weekend House Fire – Vicsburg Police Department
• Two Accused in Fatal House Fire – State Fire Marshal’s Office

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LAFAYETTE, La. (TCD) — A woman awaiting trial for allegedly killing the man who sex trafficked her was apprehended in Louisiana after not showing up to court for an alleged domestic incident in January.

Lafayette Parish Jail records show Chrystul Kizer was arrested Monday, Feb. 12, and is being held while she awaits extradition to Wisconsin. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports U.S. Marshals located her after about two weeks on the run.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, on Jan. 7, Kizer called the Milwaukee Police Department and alleged a man at her apartment was trying to rape her. The dispatcher reportedly heard a male voice in the background scream, “Stop hitting me.” Officers arrived at her apartment and Kizer reportedly told them the man was a sex offender but did not tell her the truth as to why he was on supervision. Their fight allegedly began over a cellphone.

As the man was getting ready to leave the apartment, Kizer allegedly said she would hit him with a baseball bat, then she tried to punch him. The officers arrested her, but she was not cooperative.

Kizer was charged Jan. 22 with disorderly conduct. The Kenosha News reports Kizer failed to adhere to terms of her bail, which led to bail jumping charges. Kizer was arrested in 2018 for allegedly killing Randall Volar, setting his house on fire, and stealing his car. Volar reportedly sex trafficked underage girls, and Kizer was 17 years old at the time of the shooting.

Kizer was released from jail in 2020 when several activist groups raised the money to bail her out. The judge said Kizer was not allowed to commit crimes as part of her bond stipulations.

Her case is scheduled to begin June 10, and she faces charges of first-degree intentional homicide with use of a dangerous weapon, taking and driving a vehicle without consent, and arson of a building without owner’s consent.

MORE:

• Lafayette Parish Jail inmate information
• Homicide suspect Chrystul Kizer caught in Louisiana. When will she return to Wisconsin? – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• Chrystul Kizer, accused of killing suspected sex trafficker, facing new charges, 1/26/2024 – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• Chrystul Kizer does not appear at Kenosha court as scheduled, warrant remains in effect, 1/29/2024 – Kenosha News
• State of Wisconsin vs. Chrystul D. Kizer

TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our True Crime Daily newsletter.

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LINCOLN, Neb. (TCD) — A 24-year-old woman is facing an assault charge after she allegedly attacked two women in her apartment, including stabbing one of them below the eye.

According to KOLN-TV, on Sunday, Feb. 11, just after midnight, Lincoln Police Department officers responded to a residence on North 37th Street and Madison Avenue regarding a stabbing. Police located two females, who alleged Tatiana Iniguez beat them after they remarked on how dirty Iniguez’s house was. They reportedly remarked on the lack of cleanliness because two children were living there.

Iniguez allegedly choked one of the victims, then punched the second woman as she tried to rescue her. At one point, Iniguez reportedly picked up a knife and slashed one of the women in the face, causing a 1/2-inch laceration under her eye. The stabbing victim also had defensive marks on her hands.

KOLN reports four children were at home when the fight broke out. Police in the home noticed an “extreme amount” of dog feces and dead mice in the basement, as well as other dirty clothing items.

The children are now reportedly in the custody of a family member.

Lancaster County Department of Corrections records show Iniguez was booked on a charge of second-degree assault and possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony.

MORE:

• Woman chokes, stabs guests at her home in north Lincoln, police say – KOLN
• Lancaster County Department of Corrections inmate information

TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can also subscribe to our True Crime Daily newsletter.

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