Paradise News

Tag: Americas

  • Police searching for Texas man accused of killing mother and daughter near 5-year-old child

    IRVING, Texas (TCD) — Police are actively searching for a man they allege killed a woman and her daughter last week.

    According to a news release from the Irving Police Department, on Friday, Jan. 19, at around 8:50 p.m., officers responded to the 2000 block of West Irving Boulevard in reference to a possible shooting involving two victims. Officers pronounced 55-year-old Juana Medina Rodriguez dead at the scene.

    Police located a second victim, 23-year-old Nayeli Bolaños Medina, and she was transported to a hospital, where she died from her injuries.

    Investigators identified 33-year-old Hector Matute, also known as Hector Paguada, as the primary suspect. Officers said Matute knew the victims, but they are still investigating a possible motive.

    According to KDFW-TV, the two victims were mother and daughter. Medina’s 5-year-old son was allegedly inside the apartment at the time of the shooting.

    Police obtained a warrant for Matute’s arrest, charging him with capital murder. They have asked anyone with information regarding the suspect’s whereabouts to contact police.

    MORE:

    • Information Release – Irving Police Department
    • Irving police searching for suspect accused of killing mother and daughter – KDFW

    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.



    Source

  • 2 accused of killing man whose decomposing body was found in RV

    SAN JOSE, Calif. (TCD) — Police have arrested two men on suspicion of killing a victim whose body was found inside a recreational vehicle last week.

    On Jan. 11 at around 10:50 p.m., patrol officers from the San Jose Police Department responded to a report of a possible dead body near the area of Kruse Drive and Montague Expressway, where they found a deceased male.

    “Due to the level of decomposition, it was not evident at the scene that the death was the result of foul play,” police said.

    The Santa Clara County Coroner’s Office contacted officers on Jan. 17 and said the victim had suffered physical trauma, and his death was ruled a homicide. According to the East Bay Times, the victim reportedly died of a gunshot wound to his torso and a head injury.

    Further investigation revealed Marco Espinoza and Michael Anaya allegedly killed the man, and police obtained warrants for their arrests.

    Officers located and arrested the suspects on Jan. 19. They were booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail on suspicion of homicide. They each remain held without bail.

    Investigators are looking into a possible motive.

    Police said the Santa Clara County Coroner’s office will release the victim’s name after positively identifying him and notifying next of kin.

    MORE:

    • SJPD Arrests Two Suspects for Homicide #3 – San Jose Police Department
    • San Jose: Two arrested in shooting of man found dead in RV – The East Bay Times
    • Santa Clara County Main 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.



    Source

  • N.Y. man convicted of killing 20-year-old who mistakenly pulled into his driveway

    WASHINGTON COUNTY, N.Y. (TCD) — A jury convicted a 66-year-old man of murder for fatally shooting a 20-year-old who was in a car that pulled into his driveway by accident.

    WTEN-TV reports Kevin Monahan was found guilty of second-degree murder, first-degree reckless endangerment, and tampering with evidence on Tuesday, Jan. 23, in connection with the shooting death of Kaylin Gillis. The jury reportedly deliberated for about two hours.

    On the evening of April 15, 2023, Washington County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a shots fired call on Cemetery Road in Salem and found Gillis suffering from a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

    Deputies received another call from Patterson Hill Road in Hebron and learned that’s where the shooting took place. Washington County Sheriff Jeffrey Murphy there isn’t much cell service in the area, so Gillis and her friends “were looking for the friend’s house and mistakenly drove up this driveway.”

    Gillis and her friends realized they weren’t in the right place. As they were leaving, Monahan walked out of his house and fired two shots, one of which hit the car Gillis was in. Her friends drove to the Cemetery Road location, where they found service and called 911.

    Murphy said Monahan was not cooperating with authorities when they arrived at his house.

    According to the Albany Times-Union, Gillis’ boyfriend, Blake Walsh, was driving and there were two other people in the car with them. She was reportedly in the front seat and was struck in the neck with a bullet fired from a 20-gauge pump-action shotgun.

    Monahan’s trial lasted three weeks. The Albany Times-Union reports the jury was given the option to convict him of manslaughter. Monahan’s defense filed a motion for the jury to deliberate on criminally negligent homicide, but the judge denied the request.

    Monahan testified at his trial and reportedly said the first shot was a warning, but the second went off because he tripped on nails and hit the gun against the porch, which caused it to fire.

    His attorney, Arthur Frost, reportedly said during closing arguments, “You know he didn’t do this on purpose.”

    He also said Monahan “didn’t want to shoot anyone.”

    The Associated Press reports Assistant District Attorney Christian Morris argued during his closing statement, “He acted out of anger. That’s the only thing that can be inferred from shooting at people within 90 seconds of being on his property.”

    Monahan faces 25 years to life in prison for the murder conviction. He will be sentenced in March.

    MORE:

    • Jury delivers verdict in trial of Kevin Monahan – WTEN
    • Arrest in Hebron shooting death, 4/17/2023 – Washington County Sheriff’s Office
    • Monahan guilty of murder in Gillis shooting – Albany Times-Union
    • New York man convicted of murdering woman who wound up in his backcountry driveway after wrong turn –  The Associated Press

    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.



    Source

  • California man sentenced for spa bombing that killed ex-girlfriend and claimed another victim's eye

    ALISO VIEJO, Calif. (TCD) — A 64-year-old man will spend the rest of his life behind bars for creating and planting an explosive device inside a spa in 2018 that resulted in the death his ex-girlfriend and extensive damage to a commercial office building.

    According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, a judge sentenced Stephen Beal to life in federal prison for the use of a weapon of mass destruction resulting in death and malicious destruction of a building resulting in death in connection with a spa bombing that killed 48-year-old Ildiko Krajnyak.

    Beal was also sentenced to 30 years for use of a destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence and 10 years for possession of an unregistered destructive device. A jury found Beal guilty of the charges in July 2023 following a four-week trial.

    Beal reportedly left a package bomb at Magyar Kozmetika, a day spa owned by his ex-girlfriend, Krajnyak. The attorney’s office said Krajnyak opened the box on May 15 shortly after 1 p.m. and was “instantly killed.”

    Additionally, two spa clients, a mother and her daughter, suffered severe injuries, including second- and third-degree burns. One of the women lost an eye.

    According to the attorney’s office, during the trial, one of the surviving victims testified and said she observed Krajnyak behind a desk opening a cardboard box just before the explosion. The surviving victim grabbed her mother from the rubble, and the two spa clients escaped the building through a “blown-out wall” caused by the bomb.

    The attorney’s office said law enforcement officials searched Beal’s home after the explosion and discovered more than 130 pounds of explosive precursor chemicals, as well as bomb mixtures, electric matches, and wires.

    Beal reportedly had extensive experience in creating high-powered model rockets and pyrotechnics. According to the attorney’s office, investigators found the explosive mixture he used to create the package explosive inside his home. The FBI also located 9-volt battery and wire parts in the ceiling where the bomb went off that matched the electric matches and wires in Beal’s residence.

    Surveillance footage reportedly shows Beal purchasing a single 9-volt battery and three cardboard boxes with cash several days before the bombing.

    Prosecutors argued that Beal and Krajnyak had dated for 18 months. Krajnyak tried to “distance herself from him,” and then Beal became “obsessed” with her.

    According to the attorney’s office, the defendant “kept tabs on Krajnyak before the bombing, checking her online schedule application and social media account.”

    Beal reportedly had a key to the day spa and entered the establishment multiple times before the bombing while Krajnyak was out of the country. He later left the package bomb for her to open when she came back.

    The attorney’s office said Krajnyak’s family and associates testified in court, stating that “Beal was controlling and possessive, and some said they feared for her safety.”

    At Beal’s hearing, United States District Judge Josephine Staton said, “The cold, calculated nature of this crime is chilling.”

    Beal is scheduled to appear in court on April 12 to determine how much he should pay in restitution to the victims.

    According to the attorney’s office, in a separate case, Beal failed to disclose during a bankruptcy proceeding that he inherited $350,000 from his deceased wife. Beal also fraudulently collected insurance and social security payments. As a result, the defendant received $1.3 million in disability payments. Beal pleaded guilty in November 2023 to wire fraud, Social Security fraud, and concealment of bankruptcy assets and will be sentenced on Feb. 23.

    • Long Beach Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Bombing Aliso Viejo Spa in Attack that Killed His Ex-Girlfriend and Injured Two Others – U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
    • Long Beach Man Found Guilty of Federal Charges for Bombing of Aliso Viejo Spa That Killed Ex-Girlfriend and Severely Injured 2 Others, 7/19/2023 – U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
    • California man found guilty of killing woman in spa bombing after their breakup, 7/20/2023 – TCD

    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.



    Source

  • Judicial Watch Sues for Records on Alleged Cover-Up of Biden Classified Materials Housed at ‘Penn Biden Center’

    (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Defense for documents regarding a key Biden staffer allegedly involved in the handling of Joe Biden’s materials housed at Penn Biden Center (Judicial Watch, Inc. v. U.S. Department of Defense (No. 1:23-cv-03836)).

    The lawsuit was filed over an October 18, 2023, request for:

    Records and communications of Kathy Chung, Deputy Director of Protocol, Office of the Secretary of Defense, including emails, email chains, email attachments, text messages, voice recordings, correspondence, letters, logs, calendar entries, calendar meetings, memoranda, reports, regarding:

    1. Communications with Dana Remus, email address: dremus@cov.com, Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, concerning the Penn Biden Center, Washington, DC, or any classified documents or materials at the Penn Biden Center.

    2. Communications with any person using the email domain @who.eop.gov regarding classified documents, documents, or materials at the Penn Biden Center.

    3. Communications with any employee using the email domain @dod.mil regarding classified documents, documents, or materials at the Penn Biden Center.

    In a May 5, 2023, letter Chairman James Comer of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability wrote to former Assistant to the President and White House Counsel to President Biden Dana Remus (now a partner at the Washington law firm Covington & Burling) in the course of the Committee’s ongoing investigation of President Biden’s “mishandling of highly classified documents:”

    The Committee has obtained information that contradicts important details from the White House’s and President Biden’s personal attorney’s statements about the discovery of documents at the Penn Biden Center, including the location and security of the classified documents. The Committee has learned that you were a central figure in the early stages of coordinating the packing and moving of boxes that were later found to contain classified materials. Following a recent transcribed interview with Ms. Kathy Chung – the President’s former assistant from when he was Vice President and subsequent employee of then-former Vice President Biden’s company, Celtic Capri [now Deputy Director of Protocol, Office of the Secretary of Defense] – the Committee has identified you as a witness with potentially unique knowledge about this matter and requests information from you.

    ***

    Specifically, the Committee seeks clarification regarding the timeline of events prior to November 2, 022 (the day, according to the White House and the President Biden’s personal attorney, documents were discovered at Penn Biden Center), the security of the documents in the Penn Biden Center before and after Ms. Chung packed them, and President Biden’s history of potentially mishandling classified material.

    In a subsequent, October 11, 2023, letter to Remus’ White House successor, Edward Siskel, Chairman Comer stated:

    In January 2023, President Biden’s personal attorney, Bob Bauer, released a statement that included a timeline of events that inexplicably began on November 2, 2022, with the “unexpected[] discover[y]” of Obama-Biden records at Penn Biden Center. President Biden’s timeline was incomplete and misleading. It omitted months of communications, planning, and coordinating among multiple White House officials, Ms. Chung, Penn Biden Center employees, and President Biden’s personal attorneys to retrieve the boxes containing classified materials. The timeline also omitted multiple visits from at least five White House employees, including Dana Remus, Anthony Bernal, Ashley Williams, Annie Tomasini, and an unknown staffer. There is no reasonable explanation as to why this many White House employees and lawyers were so concerned with retrieving boxes they believed only contained personal documents and materials.

    “While the Biden administration was scheming to jail former President Trump over a document dispute, Biden operatives were desperately trying to cover up Biden’s own and more significant document scandal,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “And the cover-up continues with yet another Biden agency hiding records in violation of law.”

    ###

    Source

  • Gilgo Beach suspect accused of another killing; Woman on trial in socialite’s slaying – TCD Sidebar

    In this episode of True Crime Daily The Sidebar Podcast: Joshua Ritter breaks down the biggest cases making headlines across the nation. He discusses the latest updates in the Gilgo Beach slayings after Rex Heuermann’s charges for another murder, a woman accused of conspiring with her boyfriend in his ex-wife’s death, and evidence rulings ahead of Alex Murdaugh’s next hearing as he continues to appeal for a new trial.

    Tweet your questions for future episodes to Joshua Ritter using the hashtag #TCDSidebar.

    YouTube: Gilgo Beach suspect accused of another killing; Woman on trial in socialite’s slaying – TCD Sidebar

    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.



    Source

  • Blood-covered software engineer accused of beating wife to death inside their home

    SANTA CLARA, Calif. (TCD) — A 27-year-old software engineer is in custody on suspicion of punching and beating his wife to death last week, leaving blood all over himself.

    According to a news release from the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at approximately 11 a.m., Santa Clara Police officers conducted a welfare check at a residence on Valley Way after a concerned acquaintance tried to contact Liren Chen, but he failed to answer his phone or the door. From outside the home, the reporting party allegedly saw Chen on his knees, staring blankly with his hands in the air.

    Police made entry and found Chen standing in the bedroom covered in blood. The district attorney’s office said his right hand was extremely swollen and purple, and there were scratches on his arm.

    Officers also located Chen’s wife, identified by the San Francisco Standard as Xuanyi Yu, deceased on the floor with severe blunt force injuries to her head.

    First responders asked Chen how he injured his hand, to which he allegedly replied, “I punched my wife,” and he suggested the fatal attack happened the day before. Officers took him into custody, and he was transported to a hospital.

    The district attorney’s office charged Chen on suspicion of his wife’s murder. His arraignment was postponed to Jan. 19 due to his hospitalization. Chen faces life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted, the San Francisco Standard reports.

    Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement, “Domestic violence deaths have been falling in our county but that does not measure the depth and destructiveness of the violence.”

    According to their LinkedIn Profiles, both the suspect and his wife worked as software engineers for Google.

    MORE:

    • Santa Clara Man Charged with Wife’s Murder – Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office
    • Google Engineer Beat His Wife to Death, Santa Clara Police Say – The San Francisco Standard
    • Liren Chen – LinkedIn
    • Xuanyi Yu – LinkedIn

    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.



    Source

  • Mississippi woman accused of killing son and leaving body in wooden box behind fake wall

    GULFPORT, Miss. (TCD) — Police arrested a 66-year-old woman on suspicion of killing her son after his body was found inside a box in her home.

    The Gulfport Police Department announced Jan. 20 they took Jerri Lynn Isreal into custody on a charge of first-degree murder for the death of her son, John Allen Gaither.

    Police went to Isreal’s home on Dec. 22 to conduct a welfare check on Gaither and conducted several follow-up interviews on Dec. 27. Gulfport Police reportedly “began noticing discrepancies” in her statements and noted she “became increasingly uncooperative.”

    Isreal was convicted of murder in 1995 in Florida and she “made several attempts to dump the deceased subject at different locations throughout Florida,” according to the statement. After learning that information, investigators obtained a warrant to search her home on 16th Avenue.

    On the morning of Jan. 18, Gulfport Police Department detectives and Crime Scene Technicians executed the warrant and searched Isreal’s home. Isreal reportedly needed to be transported to a hospital for medical treatment at the same time. While looking through the residence, detectives discovered a wood box with Gaither’s body in it. Police said the box was found “behind a false wall.”

    Isreal was booked into the Harrison County Adult Detention Center on a charge of first-degree murder.

    MORE:

    • 1st Degree Murder News Release – Gulfport Police Department

    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.



    Source

  • Man pleads guilty to kidnapping, raping 13-year-old who was found with 'help me' sign

    LOS ANGELES (TCD) — A 62-year-old man pleaded guilty in federal court last week to kidnapping a teen girl in Texas and sexually assaulting her several times during a drive to California.

    The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California announced Friday, Jan. 19, that Steven Sablan entered the plea for one count of kidnapping and admitted to abducting the 13-year-old girl and raping her.

    Sablan kidnapped the teen at gunpoint in San Antonio in July 2023. He reportedly told her, “If you don’t get in the car with me, I am going to hurt you.”

    The girl got in the car and told Sablan she was only 13 years old and mentioned she had a friend in Australia. The U.S. attorney’s office said Sablan told the girl he “could take her to a cruise ship to visit this friend, but she had to do something for him first.” Then, he sexually assaulted her.

    He reportedly sexually assaulted her at least twice while on the road to California.

    Then, on July 9, a bystander called the Long Beach Police Department after the person saw the teen in a parked car holding a sign that said “help me.” Officers arrived and made contact with the girl who “was visibly emotional and distressed.” They apprehended Sablan and arrested him on charges of kidnapping, lewd and lascivious acts with a child, and fugitive from justice.

    Sablan was initially indicted on charges of kidnapping and transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.

    He will be sentenced in October and faces a mandatory minimum of 20 years in prison.

    MORE:

    • Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Kidnapping 13-Year-Old Girl at Gunpoint – U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
    • Texas Man Charged with Kidnapping Girl at Gunpoint then Repeatedly Assaulting Her on Road Trip Before His Arrest in Long Beach, 7/20/2023 – U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
    • Call from Good Samaritan Leads to Rescue of a Kidnapping Victim, 7/20/2023 – Long Beach Police Department
    • Texas teen’s ‘help me’ sign leads to arrest of man who allegedly kidnapped and raped her, 7/21/2023 – TCD

    Source

  • 18-year-old Georgia pageant queen accused of killing toddler

    DONALSONVILLE, Ga. (TCD) — An 18-year-old reigning beauty queen was arrested on suspicion of murder and other charges after an 18-month-old child died.

    According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), on Jan. 14, the Georgia Southwestern State University Police Department contacted the GBI for assistance in investigating a child’s death. Investigators learned the child was transported to Phoebe Sumter Hospital for medical assistance but later died.

    The GBI did not disclose what types of injuries the child had sustained.

    Investigators conducted interviews and announced Jan. 20 that they arrested Trinity Poague on charges of aggravated battery, felony murder, and first-degree cruelty to children.

    WTVY-TV reports Poague is the most recent winner of the Miss Donalsonville pageant and has also competed in the National Peanut Festival Pageant.

    It was not immediately clear what Poague’s relationship was to the child.

    MORE:

    • GBI Arrests Donalsonville Woman in Child Death Investigation – Georgia Bureau of Investigation
    • Child Miss Donalsonville charged with murdering suffered injuries in a university dorm room – WTVY

    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.



    Source