Tag: Americas

ST. PETERS, Mo. (TCD) — An 18-year-old and a juvenile were arrested this week in connection with the fatal shooting of a 23-year-old man whose body was found in an air mattress.

On the evening of Monday, Jan. 8, officers responded to the 300 block of Willott Square Drive after receiving information regarding a suspected homicide. They located the deceased victim, Dalton Coleman, and later arrested Jackson Pierce on a charge of second-degree murder, armed criminal action, and tampering with physical evidence. Police said the minor was transported to a juvenile facility on unspecified charges.

According to Pierce’s probable cause affidavit, hours before the arrest, an attorney for a witness contacted the St. Peters Police Department to alert them about Coleman’s shooting death. The witness told investigators he lives with Pierce, and on the day of the incident, Coleman and the juvenile were at their house. The witness left the residence to help a friend at work, but while he was out, Pierce allegedly called him several times “complaining about [Coleman] asking for unknown belongings and other erratic behavior.”

The witness reportedly told police he “attempted to calm the situation over the phone” and spoke with both Pierce and Coleman. He told Pierce to take some of his personal belongings from around the house — including a gun — and leave them in his room.

A few minutes later, Pierce allegedly called him and said he shot Coleman after Coleman “forced his way into the bedroom where Pierce and the juvenile had distanced themselves” from him. Coleman allegedly threw a punch at Pierce but missed. The two men got into a physical altercation over the gun, which had not yet been secured.

Pierce reportedly shot Coleman three to four times during the fight, but Coleman “did not go down, so Pierce continued to shoot the victim.”

The affidavit says the witness urged Pierce to call police, but he refused. The witness said he would contact his attorney to figure out what to do.

St. Peters Police officers conducted surveillance of the home, and a SWAT unit eventually arrived at the scene. Pierce and the juvenile walked outside and were taken into custody. A sergeant asked Pierce if Coleman was deceased inside, and he allegedly confirmed it.

After obtaining a search warrant, the St. Charles County SWAT unit flew a drone inside the residence and found a “rolled-up air mattress that had been tied tightly and wrapped with a piece of an electrical cord.” According to the affidavit, Coleman’s body had been rolled inside the mattress with a white garbage bag covering his head and an electrical cord that had been cut from a lamp.

Pierce reportedly told detectives he and Coleman got into a fight and Coleman looked as if he wanted to take the gun. Pierce said he shot Coleman in the abdomen, then continued to fire at him because he “did not go down.”

He shot 14 more rounds at the victim and said Coleman “did not fall to the ground until the last shot was fired.”

After Coleman died, Pierce and the juvenile suspect allegedly attempted to clean the area with dish soap. Investigators located shell casings in different trash cans.

The affidavit said Coleman sustained 15 gunshot wounds to the abdomen, hand, and face.

Pierce is being held at the St. Charles County Jail with bond set at $1 million cash.

MORE:

• Homicide Investigation in St. Peters – St. Peters Police Department
• Probable Cause Statement – St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office

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LAS VEGAS (TCD) — A 30-year-old man who was about to be sentenced for attempted battery is now being charged with attempted murder for leaping at the judge in the courtroom and attacking her.

On Wednesday, Jan. 3, Deobra Redden appeared before Judge Mary Kay Holthus and asked to be put on probation rather than sentenced to prison. Hotlhus said, “I appreciate that, but I think it’s time he get a taste of something else because I just can’t with that history.”

As she continued with the sentencing guidelines, Redden swore at her, jumped over her bench, and threw her to the ground. During the scuffle, the American flag fell onto the desk and court officers are seen trying to separate Redden and Holthus. Redden yelled expletives at Holthus, who remained on the ground for several minutes. One court officer punched Redden continuously.

One of the court officials triggered an alarm, which was heard in the background.

According to KLAS-TV, a marshal sustained a gash on his head that required 25 stitches, as well as a dislocated shoulder. Redden allegedly pulled Holthus’ hair, hit her head against the wall, and struck her in the head.

Court records show Redden is now being charged with attempted murder, battery on a protected person resulting in substantial bodily harm, extortion, intimidation of public officers, and more.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports Redden was due back in court Monday, Jan. 8, and Holthus said he needed to be there “by all means necessary.” She sentenced him to 19 months to four years in prison for attempted battery.

She reportedly said at the sentencing, “I want to make it clear that I am not changing or modifying the sentence I was in the process of imposing last week before I was interrupted by the defendant’s actions.”

Redden’s family members said he suffers from schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and that having him go to prison would “put him in a worse state of mind, because the system has failed him.”

MORE:

• Judge attacked on the bench in Las Vegas – Las Vegas Review-Journal
• Man who attacked Las Vegas judge faces new charge of attempted murder – KLAS
• State of Nevada vs. Deobra Redden
• Man faces attempted murder charge after viral video of judge attack – Las Vegas Review-Journal

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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ARROYO GRAND, Calif. (TCD) — A 21-year-old man will spend 25 years to life behind bars in connection with the 2020 death of a 77-year-old woman whose body was found in her home.

San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Down announced Kayonie Mendibles’ sentencing on Jan. 10. He previously pleaded guilty to the first-degree murder of Marion Vore on Oct. 30.

According to the initial press release from the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, on Nov. 27, 2020, shortly after 5 p.m., deputies responded to a report of trespassing in the 2000 block of Chamisal Lane. Deputies performed a welfare check at a home nearby and found Vore deceased inside from an apparent homicide.

According to KSBY-TV, Mendibles, who was 18 years old at the time, reportedly killed Vore using a belt.

The sheriff’s office issued a “be on the lookout” (BOLO) alert for Mendibles after he fled the scene in a car. Deputies located the suspect shortly before 10 p.m. in Pismo Beach and arrested him on a charge of murder.

KSBY reports that Mendibles provided a statement before his sentencing, claiming he was on LSD during Vore’s slaying, and he apologized to her family.

Vore’s daughter also reportedly spoke in court, stating, “Even three years past her death, I receive phone calls on her birthday from around the world from her friends who are trying to grasp that she will never answer again.”

MORE:

• Kayonie Eliaz Mendibles Sentenced to 25 Years to Life for First Degree Murder – San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office
• Fresno man sentenced to life in prison for Arroyo Grande woman’s murder – KSBY
• Kayonie Eliaz Mendibles Pleads Guilty to First Degree Murder, Faces Life in Prison, 10/30/2023 – San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office
• Suspicious Death Update- Homicide Investigation, 11/28/2020 – San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’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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MIAMI (TCD) — A 56-year-old El Paso, Texas, man was arrested for allegedly stalking music superstar Shakira outside her Miami Beach home and making claims that they were a married couple.

Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation records show the suspect, Daniel Valtier, was booked on charges of stalking and hiring a vehicle with intent to defraud.

WFOR-TV, which cites the arrest affidavit, reports Shakira’s security director reached out to Miami Beach Police detectives Monday, Jan. 3, about some of Valtier’s social media posts about the singer. In one post, Valtier reportedly recorded a video about being “married” to Shakira and how they would open a business together. He also reportedly spoke about having a “relationship” with her two sons.

Valtier reportedly previously mailed gifts to the “Hips Don’t Lie” singer’s house, including wine, chocolate, and toys. Her security detail reportedly told Valtier to stop sharing misinformation about Shakira and to no longer send presents.

According to NBC Miami, Valtier wrote on Instagram, “Kids adopt them when I am married too Shakira she wants too be American like her father, and share the rest of her life with me, we will own a trucking business sing songs promote manage and own a garment manufacturing corporation worldwide.”

Last week, Valtier posted a video on Instagram that showed a business card for a Rodeway Inn in Florida and made comments about visiting the Grammy Award winner’s home.

WFOR reports on Monday, Jan. 8, at 12:45 a.m., an off-duty police officer saw a taxi pull up in front of Shakira’s house and Valtier allegedly got out. The off-duty cop detained Valtier and called for backup.

The cab driver reportedly told police Valtier did not pay the cab cost of $70.05, but Valtier reportedly said someone in her home was “supposed to pay for the fare.” Valtier reportedly tried to pay for the ride, but his card got declined. The driver said he intended to press charges against Valtier for it.

According to WSVN-TV, Valtier appeared in court Tuesday, Jan. 9. The judge told Valtier he would not have any contact with the singer “any time except for required court appearances.” Valtier, however, said he “didn’t agree.”

Valtier reportedly told the judge, “She’s my wife. I speak to her all the time.”

WSVN reports the judge repeated that Shakira was not, in fact, his wife.

Valtier is in custody on $100,000 bond.

MORE:

• Texas man arrested and charged for stalking Shakira at her South Florida home – WFOR
• Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation inmate information
• ‘She’s my wife’: Man accused of stalking Shakira arrested outside star’s Miami Beach home – NBC Miami
• Alleged Shakira stalking suspect appears in court after disturbing social media posts – WSVN

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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DECATUR, Ga. (TCD) — A jury convicted a 46-year-old woman of one felony and acquitted her of other charges almost 25 years after her young son’s decomposing body was discovered near a cemetery.

On Wednesday, Jan. 10, the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office announced that Theresa Ann Bailey Black was found guilty of concealing the death of another in connection with her son William DaShawn Hamilton’s death. WAGA-TV reports Black was cleared of murder, aggravated assault, and cruelty to children.

The 5-year-old boy’s remains were discovered in a wooded area Feb. 26, 1999. Investigators concluded the victim was a Black male between 5 and 7 years old and he had been dead for most likely three to six months. The child’s body appeared to be “significantly decomposed.”

The boy could not be positively identified, so he became known as John Clifton Doe.

In 2000, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) published artist renderings of what the victim would have looked like, but there were no leads. Nineteen years later, a forensic artist with the NCMEC created a new reconstruction, which led to a breakthrough tip in 2020.

Someone called the NCMEC and said they knew the boy and his mother. Investigators reopened the case and collected DNA from Black. John Clifton Doe was positively identified as Hamilton in February 2022.

According to the district attorney’s office, in 1998, Black “abruptly” withdrew her son from school and moved them to Atlanta from Charlotte, North Carolina. She went back to Charlotte in 1999, but without Hamilton. She reportedly “told differing stories about his whereabouts.”

When detectives told her in 2022 that Hamilton was deceased, she reportedly “initially expressed surprise.” Then, she admitted her son was sick, but she did not seek medical help. She left his body in the woods after he died. The statement says Hamilton had diphenhydramine and acetaminophen in his system, which are medicines commonly used for colds or allergies.

WAGA reports DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said she and her team “respect the jury’s verdict” but are still “disappointed” that Black did not get convicted on the other counts.

Sherry said, “We still believe she is responsible for young William’s death. Teresa Bailey may have walked away and abandoned her son in 1999, but today I’m proud to say that the people in this room and in this community never did. Today, William DaShawn Hamilton has his name back, and he will never be forgotten.”

MORE:

• Mother Found Guilty of Concealing the Death of Her 6-Year-Old Son – DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office
• Teresa Black trial: Mother found not guilty of son’s murder – WAGA
• Mom charged with murder 23 years after 5-year-old son found ‘significantly decomposed’ near cemetery, 7/13/2022 – 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.

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SAN RAFAEL, Calif. (TCD) — Police arrested a 28-year-old woman this week on suspicion of stabbing her mother and livestreaming the fatal attack.

According to the San Rafael Police Department, on Monday, Jan. 8, shortly before 5 p.m., officers and paramedics responded to an apartment building on Cresta Way in reference to a fight and stabbing. Calls reportedly came in to police from witnesses and those who viewed a video of the stabbing on Facebook Live.

At the scene, police found Tonantzyn Beltran standing on the apartment’s rear balcony holding a knife in her hand next to her mother, identified by the Marin County Sheriff’s Office as 55-year-old Olivia Lucia Beltran Pacheco. The victim had sustained multiple stab wounds, and her clothes were soaked in blood.

Olivia Lucia Beltran Pacheco was transported to a local hospital via ambulance with life-threatening injuries, where she died an hour and a half later.

Tonantzyn Beltran refused officers’ commands, and another team of law enforcement officials forced entry into the apartment and took Beltran into custody.

Police contacted Meta to get the video of the stabbing taken down.

In an update, officers said the suspect has “produced content on many social media platforms” and created a video in the lobby of the Santa Rosa Police Department lobby.

A friend of the victim told KNTV-TV the victim leaves behind two daughters.

MORE:

• San Rafael Woman Arrested for Homicide – San Rafael Police Department
• San Rafael Terra Linda Homicide Victim – Identity Released – Marin County Sheriff’s Office
• Police arrest San Rafael woman for allegedly stabbing mother to death – KNTV

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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NOBLE COUNTY, Ohio (TCD) — Deputies arrested a 41-year-old mother this week on suspicion of lying about her child having cancer and pocketing money from local organizations who donated to the family.

On Jan. 4, the Noble County Sheriff’s Office and Noble County Children’s Services received a report of possible theft by deception involving a local child who had been “publicly portrayed to be fighting cancer.” Organizations in the area had reportedly provided donations to help the family with medical expenses and related costs, including one who gave the family $8,000.

However, sheriff’s office investigators confirmed the child did not have cancer.

Officials arrested the child’s mother, Pamela Reed, on Jan. 8. During an interview, Reed reportedly admitted she had “exaggerated and fabricated medical conditions to receive monetary donations from local organizations.”

Reed was booked into the Noble County Jail on a charge of theft by deception, and a judge set her bond at $50,000.

MORE:

• News Release – Noble County Sheriff’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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TOWNSEND, Mass. (TCD) — It could have been written for the Forresters.

A 64-year-old woman is accused of poisoning her husband’s food while she was allegedly being scammed by someone who claimed they were “The Bold and the Beautiful” star Thorsten Kaye, who plays Ridge Forrester on the hit soap opera.

According to WCVB-TV, on Dec. 3, Roxanne Doucette’s daughter reached out to the Townsend Police Department and said she was worried there was a possibility Doucette could have poisoned her father. The daughter, Nicole Heath, reportedly noticed a text message exchange on Doucette’s phone between Doucette and the person pretending to be Kaye. The scammer reportedly asked Doucette for money, which she provided.

On Dec. 1, the catfisher reportedly texted Doucette, “You have to get rid of your husband honey. I need you so much.”

Doucette allegedly responded that she needed to think about it, but that day wrote back, “Making an amazing soup. Special potion. He will be hungry when he gets back. Just enough for him.”

A few hours later, she allegedly texted, “Hubby got back not feeling well. Maybe I can collect life insurance.”

Doucette’s husband went to the hospital not long after eating the soup because he started feeling dizzy and lost consciousness. The husband reportedly told Heath that Doucette’s soup tasted “bitter.”

Doctors conducted toxicology tests, but the results were reportedly all negative. The toxicology panel, however, only tested for opioids, cocaine, and alcohol.

According to NBC Boston, Doucette’s husband filed a restraining order against her.

In an interview with WCVB, Doucette said she “would never try to poison anybody.”

The person claiming to be the soap opera star said they were in love with her and wanted her to leave her husband.

“I had no intention of leaving my husband,” she said. “I love my husband very much.”

She reportedly thinks her husband might have had a ministroke.

Doucette reportedly would not let an officer retrieve her iPhone and iPad for the investigation, so she was arrested for interfering with a police investigation. During the arrest, she reportedly kicked an officer in the groin. She faces charges of intimidation of a witness, resisting arrest, assault and battery on a police officer, and attempted murder.

NBC Boston reports Townsend Police Chief James Sartell said regarding the case,”Matters like this, they draw intense interest, but the fact of the matter is, these are real people, real victims and real perpetrators. We have to take a step back and do a holistic overview.”

Doucette told WCVB the allegations against her are “wrong,” saying, “I’m a wonderful cook. My son’s gone to culinary school. I learned from the best — my mom. And I did not try to poison my husband.”

MORE:

• Massachusetts woman poisoned husband at urging of person claiming to be soap star, police say – WCVB
• Fake soap opera star, poisoned soup at heart of Townsend police probe – NBC Boston

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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GREENVILLE, Miss. (TCD) — Police arrested a woman over the weekend after finding the remains of a young child in a closet.

According to a news release from the Greenville Police Department, on Sunday, Jan. 7, at approximately 4:30 p.m., officers responded to the 2000 block of Johnnie Lane to perform a welfare check on a 4-year-old child. The juvenile’s parent told officers they had not seen the child for weeks and came to the residence to speak with a relative who was looking after the victim.

Police said they were directed to a closet where the body of the young child was reportedly found. The remains have been transported to a crime lab for an autopsy and further evaluation.

Police identified 34-year-old Catrica Hardy as the primary suspect and arrested her in connection with the child’s death. She was charged with manslaughter and child deprivation of necessaries with substantial harm.

Hardy remains held in the Washington County Correctional Facility.

MORE:

• Body of 4yr old found, local woman in custody – Greenville 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.

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