Paradise News

Tag: Americas

  • Man's body found inside suitcase floating in Northern California lake

    OAKLAND, Calif. (TCD) — Police in Northern California are investigating a homicide after fire personnel discovered a man’s body inside a suitcase that had been floating in a local lake.

    According to KTVU-TV, on Tuesday, Oct. 31, at approximately 11 a.m., Oakland Fire Department officials were called to Lake Merritt after a volunteer who cleans up the lake noticed the suitcase. The volunteer who found the body, Kevin Shomo, told KTVU he and another volunteer pulled the case closer to them using net poles. They noticed the case was “too heavy,” so once they got it to shore, they unzipped it and found the body.

    Shomo described the man as being in “kind of like in a fetal position.”

    NBC Bay Area reports Shomo said he was “surprised that there was a body in the luggage.”

    Oakland Police Capt. Alan Yu told the news station investigators are trying to determine “where the body could have floated from. It could be any part of the lake.”

    Shomo said it’s not unusual to see suitcases or other pieces of luggage in the lake. Most of the time, however, they are filled with clothes that get waterlogged.

    Homicide detectives are investigating and have not publicly identified the victim.

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  • Wis. man allegedly bit wedding guest’s finger off when victim tried to restrain him

    OCONOMOWOC, Wis. (TCD) — A 21-year-old man was arrested last week after he allegedly bit the top of a man’s finger off at a wedding because other guests were upset the suspect “inappropriately touched another guest.”

    According to the criminal complaint cited by WITI-TV, on Friday, Oct. 27, officers from the Town of Oconomowoc Police Department responded to The Club at Lac La Belle after getting a call from someone who said a man “had their fingertip bitten off.”

    Officers arrived at the wedding venue and located the suspect, Nathan Landsee, sitting on a couch “with blood on his sleeve, which did not appear to be from him.” There was other blood evidence on the floor near the main ballroom, as well as attendees who “appeared to have been disturbed by this incident, including some who were crying.”

    The criminal complaint alleges Landsee touched a guest, which caused other people around them to become upset. Landsee reportedly “began to yell and became very agitated,” at which point people tried to isolate him in another room. The bride and groom attempted to calm Landsee, but he soon became disruptive again.

    Another witness reportedly walked into the room and told Landsee to leave, but he “became very aggressive and continued to be loud.”

    One of the witnesses allegedly told Landsee he needed to leave or else he would call the police. Landsee allegedly “started to lunge at him, and was attempting to strike him.”

    Three people restrained Landsee on the ground, but during the altercation, Landsee “bit the tip or someone’s finger off.” The Oconomowoc Police officer who wrote the criminal complaint noted, “It appeared that approximately a half-inch of the finger had been bitten off. The bone inside of the finger appeared to be exposed.”

    He called the victim’s injuries “significant.”

    The criminal complaint cited by WISN-TV says Landsee was “running his mouth,” so the victim “grabbed the defendant around the head area.”

    Landsee reportedly turned toward the victim, “they toppled down onto the floor, and at some point, Victim A’s hand got into the defendant’s mouth and the defendant bit down on his finger.”

    Officials located the victim’s fingertip and put it in a cup of ice until he could be taken to the hospital. The victim said he needed “18 or 19 stitches while the surgeon attempted to reattach the tip of his finger.”

    If the surgery did not work, however, he “would have a deformity for the rest of his life.”

    Landsee was reportedly very drunk at the wedding and had a blood alcohol content level of .210, according to WITI.

    Court records show Landsee is being charged with felony aggravated battery — intent to cause bodily harm and misdemeanor disorderly conduct.

    His bond was set at $25,000.

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  • Cornell student arrested after allegedly threatening to kill and rape Jewish people on campus

    SYRACUSE, N.Y. (TCD) — A 21-year-old engineering student at Cornell University is in custody after allegedly posting violent threats against Jewish people on campus.

    According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York, Patrick Dai, a junior at the school, reportedly posted messages to the Cornell section of an online forum “calling for the deaths of Jewish people.”

    The Cornell Daily Sun reports that the posts appeared on Cornell’s Greekrank forums, a site about collegiate fraternities and sororities, on Saturday, Oct. 28, and Sunday, Oct. 29. The site bans hate speech or any promotion of violence.

    Dai allegedly wrote that he was “gonna shoot up 104 West,” referring to a dining hall on campus that offers kosher food next to the Cornell Jewish Center.

    According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Dai allegedly wrote in another post that he was going to “stab” and “slit the throat” of Jewish males on campus. He also threatened to “rape and throw off a cliff any Jewish females,” as well as “behead any Jewish babies.”

    The U.S. Attorney’s Office alleges that in the same forum post, Dai said he planned to “bring an assault rifle to campus and shoot all you pig jews.”

    According to the Cornell Daily Sun, other antisemitic graffiti on campus included “Israel is fascist” and “Zionism = genocide.”

    Muslim students are also being targeted on the platform. One post was allegedly written by someone with the username “glory to hamas,” who said to bring AK-47s and “slave women in hijab.”

    New York Attorney General Letitia James called the posts “absolutely horrific.”

    On Tuesday, Oct. 31, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Dai’s arrest on a federal criminal complaint, charging him with posting threats to kill or injure another using interstate communications. Officials were able to locate Dai by tracking the IP address used when he created the posts, Syracuse.com reports.

    Dai reportedly admitted to writing the threats. Many of his posts have since been taken down.

    Additional security measures and law enforcement presence have been implemented on campus to provide enhanced protection for Jewish students and organizations, according to Syracuse.com.

    In a statement obtained by the Cornell Daily Sun, Cornell University president and professor Martha Pollack said, “We will not tolerate antisemitism at Cornell.”

    New York State Governor Kathy Hochul wrote in another statement, “Public safety is my top priority, and I’m committed to combatting hate and bias wherever it rears its ugly head.”

    Dai appeared in federal court on Wednesday, Nov. 1, and was ordered to remain held in jail. He is set to appear in court again on Nov. 15 for his probable cause hearing.

    If convicted, Dai faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release.

    The indictment comes about two weeks after a man in Chicago was arrested for allegedly fatally stabbing a 6-year-old boy and injuring the child’s mother because they were Muslim. The Associated Press reports the suspect, Joseph Czuba, pleaded not guilty to hate crime charges.



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  • Georgia college student killed by stray bullet while working as a bartender

    REMERTON, Ga. (TCD) — An investigation is underway after a 21-year-old bartender was killed by a stray bullet as she was finishing a shift over the weekend.

    According to a news release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), on Sunday, Oct. 29, at approximately 2:40 a.m., the Remberton Police Department contacted the GBI and asked for assistance regarding the fatal shooting of Brianna Long.

    Long, a bartender at The Pier, was closing the bar at around 2 a.m. when a shooting occurred outside the establishment approximately 30 minutes later. The GBI said Long was struck by a bullet as she was finishing her shift with another employee. She was transported to South Georgia Medical Center, where she was later pronounced deceased.

    The GBI alleges an altercation led up to the shooting. As gunfire erupted, there were reportedly many individuals outside and numerous cars were struck by bullets.

    The GBI did not announce any arrests.

    At the time of her death, Long was a student at Valdosta State University, WSB-TV reports.

    Prior to that, she was reportedly a soccer play for Paulding County High School and was selected as a Regional Winner for Positive Athlete Georgia for the 2019-2020 school year.

    The investigation is ongoing. A GBI medical examiner will conduct Long’s autopsy.

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  • Houston man sentenced for killing single father because he was hanging out with his girlfriend

    SPRING, Texas (TCD) — A man will spend 22 years in prison for fatally shooting a New Jersey man in what a Harris County prosecutor called a “jealous ambush” in 2021.

    According to a news release from District Attorney Kim Ogg, a judge sentenced James Lane Monday, Oct. 30, after he pleaded guilty in August to the murder of Gregory Moore, a single father of three. For the past two months, Lane had a pre-sentence investigation, and a judge decided his punishment after a daylong hearing.

    In June 2021, Moore visited Spring, Texas, and was staying with three friends at an Airbnb. Ogg said the group spent the vacation going to clubs and restaurants. During the trip, they met several women.

    On June 28, 2021, Moore brought a woman back to the rental home on the 3500 block of Braewin Court. According to Ogg, the woman turned out to be Lane’s girlfriend, and he tracked her location through her cellphone. Lane reportedly drove to the Airbnb armed with a flashlight and handgun. At the home, he assaulted Moore and the woman, pistol-whipping them both. Then, Lane fatally shot Moore before leaving with his girlfriend.

    The Harris County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene shortly after.

    According to Ogg, detectives identified Lane as the primary suspect through cellphone data and witness interviews. Deputies located and arrested him days later.

    Assistant District Attorney Kasie Herring said in a statement, “This was a jealous ambush — he ran up to them with a flashlight and a gun and ended up shooting nine times.”

    Ogg added, “This was a planned and premeditated attack on an unsuspecting visitor to Houston, and there have to be consequences.”

    After Lane’s sentencing, some of Moore’s friends and family provided victim impact statements.

    Lane will have to serve at least half of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole.

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  • Taliban Creates Fake Nonprofits to Get Millions in U.S. Afghanistan Aid Since Military Withdraw

    In one of the most recent Afghanistan debacles, the Taliban has established fraudulent non-governmental organizations (NGO) to loot the hundreds of millions of dollars in humanitarian aid that the United States has sent Afghanistan since the 2021 military withdraw. NGOs are typically nonprofits with humanitarian missions that supposedly work to improve public or social welfare. Approximately 1.5 million NGOs operate in the U.S., according to the State Department, and they advocate for a variety of issues that include the environment, healthcare, women’s rights, marginalized populations, youth empowerment and economic development. The U.S. government gives NGOs billions of taxpayers every year through various agencies, including the departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security and State.

    In Afghanistan terrorists are not surprisingly stealing the humanitarian aid that keeps flowing to the central Asian Islamic nation by, among other things, utilizing fake NGOs. Specifically, the Taliban is benefiting from American education funding through the establishment of fraudulent NGOs to receive donor assistance, according to an audit published recently by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR). The Taliban is also infiltrating and extorting existing Afghan NGOs delivering educational assistance, the probe found. “For example, an NGO official told us the Taliban are targeting and extorting Afghans who receive monetary support from U.S.-funded education programs under the guise of taxation,” the report states. “In another example, NGO officials told SIGAR that the Taliban are coercing NGOs to hire Taliban supporters or purchase goods from Taliban-owned companies.”

    Prior to the Biden administration’s abrupt military withdraw, the U.S. invested $1.3 billion on education-related programming in Afghanistan and reportedly it “contributed to significant improvements” in the Muslim nation’s education system. Since the terrorist group returned to power in August 2021, Uncle Sam has continued to fund Afghanistan’s education sector through six programs that cost $185.2 million even though the Taliban has issued decrees drastically limiting access to education for girls and women as well as restricting women’s ability to work and other basic freedoms. Nevertheless, the American taxpayer dollars keep flowing. In fiscal year 2023, which ended in September, the U.S. sent Taliban-ruled Afghanistan over $566 million in humanitarian assistance. Most of it was for emergency food but a chunk was classified as going to general humanitarian and health. More than $15 million went to a cause that is labeled “redacted” in the government records.

    It’s not like American government officials don’t know the Taliban is taking the money. A report issued earlier this year by the United States Institute of Peace, the federal institution founded by Congress to promote worldwide conflict resolution, concluded that foreign-funded assistance is unlikely to prove effective as leverage to shape the Taliban government’s behavior. “On the contrary, the Taliban are likely to increasingly regard foreign funded activities as just another potential revenue stream,” the U.S. Institute of Peace found. “Any form of humanitarian or development assistance is prone to manipulation by the Taliban. Aid/development delivery…exposes [foreign donors] to Taliban coercion with little leverage or recourse to resist.” Specific to education, SIGAR writes that the Taliban’s “repressive” policies, especially those targeting girls and women, have severely limited access to, and the quality of, education at all levels. Yet the American taxpayer dollars keep pouring into the terrorist group’s coffers.

    Laughably, the Islamic Emirate Afghanistan (IEA) denied in a Pakistani news report that the Taliban is stealing U.S. education funds, insisting that the IEA acts in the best interest of Afghanistan. “The claims made by SIGAR regarding Afghanistan are far from reality,” according to the IEA’s deputy spokesman quoted in the article. “The Islamic Emirate makes all decisions and manages affairs in Afghanistan based on its principles and the nation’s welfare.”

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  • New York man allegedly pointed gun at 6-year-old's head over Halloween goody bag

    MANHASSET, N.Y. (TCD) — A 43-year-old man stands accused of pointing a gun at a 6-year-old boy who went to retrieve a goody bag that he and his sister accidentally dropped off at the wrong address over the weekend.

    According to a news release from the Nassau County Police Department, on Saturday, Oct. 28, at approximately 7:25 p.m., a 42-year-old mother drove her three children and nephew to 138 Rockcrest Road to drop off the Halloween goody bag at her daughter’s friend’s house. At the home, the woman’s 10-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son reportedly walked up to the house, rang the doorbell, and left the candy goody bag on the porch.

    Police said the family drove down the block when the daughter realized they dropped off the candy at the wrong home. They reportedly went back to 138 Rockcrest Road to retrieve the goody bag.

    The 6-year-old boy got out of the vehicle and approached the front door when Michael Wen allegedly “stepped out of the house and pointed a black handgun at the victim’s head.”

    According to court documents obtained by WABC-TV, the 6-year-old boy told police Wen swore at them to leave his property.

    Police arrested Wen without incident on charges of second-degree menacing and endangering the welfare of a child.

    Wen reportedly told police, “I just wanted to scare them.”

    He was arraigned on Sunday, Oct. 29, and pleaded not guilty. WABC reports that Wen will go through a court-mandated mental health evaluation and will attend an anger management class.

    Wen is scheduled to appear in court again on Nov. 13.

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  • North Dakota woman allegedly fatally poisoned her boyfriend for 'financial motives'

    MINOT, N.D. (TCD) — Police arrested a 47-year-old woman this week who allegedly poisoned and killed her boyfriend last month.

    According to the Minot Police Department, on Sept. 5, 51-year-old Steven Riley died at a Bismarck hospital after being transferred there from Trinity Hospital. An autopsy report concluded that he was fatally poisoned.

    Upon further investigation, police determined his girlfriend, Ina Kenoyer, allegedly had “financial motives” to kill her boyfriend. Officials did not specify what those financial reasons were.

    Police arrested Kenoyer on Monday, Oct. 30, on suspicion of Riley’s murder.

    Kenoyer was booked into the Ward County Jail on a felony murder charge. She remains held without bond.

    According to North Dakota state records, Kenoyer faces a maximum penalty of life in prison without parole if convicted.

    Investigations Commander Capt. Dale Plessas said in a statement, “This case was extremely complex. Thank you to everyone who provided us with information that helped our investigators piece this together.”

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  • Fla. teen allegedly fatally stabbed his mom in front of her newborn and sent pictures to friend

    HIALEAH, Fla. (TCD) — A 13-year-old is being charged with murder after he allegedly stabbed and killed his mother while she slept near her 2-week-old child’s crib.

    According to WPLG-TV, on Thursday, Oct. 12, at approximately 11:30 p.m., Hialeah Police officers responded to the Amelia Oaks apartment complex on West 79th Place regarding a death. A teen reportedly contacted police and said he “just murdered his mother,” Irina Garcia.

    In the 911 call released by WPLG, 13-year-old Derek Rosa asked the dispatcher to send police to his apartment, though he said he did not know his own address. The dispatcher asked, “I need to know if your mom is breathing.”

    Rosa replied, “She’s dead, miss,” and later said, “There’s blood all over the floor.”

    Parts of the 911 call were redacted.

    Rosa said he found a Beretta gun and was “gonna shoot myself, but I didn’t want to.”

    Rosa asked what to do if his mom woke up, and the dispatcher replied, “If she wakes up, just let me know. I need to know. Do you think we can help your mom?”

    He said, “Miss, she’s dead.”

    Later in the call, Rosa admitted he “took pictures and I told my friend about it.”

    He said he doesn’t know his friend’s “real name because he’s an online friend who I play with a lot.”

    WPLG reports the call lasted 17 minutes. Police arrived while Rosa was on the phone, and Rosa can be heard screaming.

    He asked if he should open the door and whether police “are gonna kill me.”

    Hialeah Police Lt. Eddie Rodriguez told WPLG Rosa allegedly waited for his mother to fall asleep, then stabbed her multiple times in the neck. She was reportedly found dead next to a crib where her 14-day-old daughter was sleeping. The newborn was unharmed.

    Rodriguez said Rosa was “very apologetic” and “very respectful” during the 911 call.

    NBC Miami reports Rosa is being charged as an adult for first-degree murder, to which he pleaded not guilty. He could face up to life in prison if he is convicted.

    At his bond hearing, Rosa’s family urged for his release.

    His father, Jose Rosa, told the judge, “It’s hard for us to explain how this occurred. It’s difficult, but I guess what we are asking for another opportunity, a second chance to help him grow — put this behind him and say we have your back — we are here to support you.”

    Video footage shared by WPLG shows his father saying, “It’s very unfortunate that this tragedy occurred. But this child is very humble, very peaceful, and no one could have imagined that this would ever happen.”

    The judge, however, denied bond.

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  • Ala. couple arrested after new homeowners discover son’s decomposing body in freezer

    HEADLAND, Ala. (TCD) — A 44-year-old man and his 43-year-old wife were taken into custody over the weekend after their teenage son’s decomposing body was found in a freezer on the property where they used to live.

    On Oct. 29 at 11:37 a.m., Henry County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a call on Bradford Drive regarding a deceased individual. When officials arrived, they found a man’s body, believed to be 19-year-old Logan Michael Halstead, in a freezer in the backyard.

    Investigators located Logan Halstead’s parents, Michael Halstead and Karen Halstead, in Jack, Alabama, and transported them back to Henry County for questioning. Both were arrested on a charge of abuse of a corpse.

    According to WDHN-TV, a couple moved into the home on Bradford Drive and started cleaning up the residence before they moved in.

    Lane Keith, the new tenant, told WDHN, “The freezer was going to be the last thing in the backyard that we were going to move and we went to go move it and couldn’t move it. So, my wife flipped the lids off the freezer, moved the tarp back and the cardboard boxes, and there laid a hand.”

    Detectives reportedly believe Logan’s body had likely been in the freezer since July or August.

    Logan Halstead reportedly suffered from spina bifida, which occurs when the spine does not form correctly and can result in paralysis or the inability to walk.

    WDHN reports Logan Halstead had a bowel movement in the house, so Michael Halstead left the room to get cleaning supplies. When he returned, he allegedly claimed his son was dead. He reportedly wrapped his son’s body in blankets, a shower curtain, and plastic bag before leaving him in the freezer.

    Halstead allegedly moved the rest of his family out of the house following Logan’s death.

    Halstead reportedly called Headland Police to report the incident, but investigators never found the body when they went to the house to search.

    According to WDHN, Logan Halstead’s body was sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, but his cause of death remained undetermined. Karen Halstead and Michael Halstead reportedly could face additional charges, including murder, pending autopsy results.

    They are being held at the Henry County Jail on $175,000 bond.

    Henry County Sheriff Eric Blankenship told WDHN, “Very tragic, very horrific scene for you know a situation like this especially to involve a child and parents. This definitely caught us all off guard.”

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