Paradise News

Tag: Americas

  • 2 men arrested after naked victim found dead inside large barrel at Malibu beach

    LOS ANGELES (TCD) — Officials have arrested two suspects in connection with the death of a man whose body was found in a large barrel at a Malibu beach in August. 

    According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, on Monday, July 31, shortly after 10 a.m., homicide detectives responded to the 23200 block of the Pacific Coast Highway in reference to a death investigation. A lifeguard noticed and retrieved a 55-gallon plastic barrel drum and found the victim, Javonnta Murphy, inside.

    Investigators determined Murphy had not been in the barrel for long before the discovery.

    The Sheriff’s Office identified 37-year-old Joshua Lee Simmons and 41-year-old Dennis Vance as the suspects and said they were “known to be acquaintances of the victim.”

    The motive is still under investigation.

    According to KTLA-TV, Murphy’s brother was one of five people arrested in connection with rapper Pop Smoke’s death in 2020. Murphy’s brother was later cleared of attempted murder charges.

    Authorities were reportedly investigating whether Murphy’s killing was a form of retaliation for the killing of Pop Smoke.

    Simmons was charged with murder, personal use of a firearm, and criminal threats. He was also charged with attempted robbery, two counts of criminal threats, with a personal use of bear spray in connection with a robbery attempt in El Monte last month.

    The El Monte Police Department released Simmons’ photos, stating that on Saturday, Sept. 2,  he attempted a smash-and-grab robbery at Meza Jewelry. He allegedly used bear spray on employees as reported by KTLA. However, the workers were able to stop the suspect’s efforts.

    Vance faces one count of accessory after the fact.

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  • Iowa mom, daughter accused of beating grandmother with candlestick and killing her with butcher knife

    SIOUX CITY, Iowa (TCD) — A mother and daughter were taken into custody on suspicion of murder after they allegedly killed their relative during a dispute at their apartment.

    On Thursday, Oct. 26, at 11:54 p.m., Sioux City Police Department officers responded to 607 Virginia St. regarding a deceased female in the parking lot and found the victim with multiple stab wounds. Police began investigating and reportedly discovered evidence of an altercation at one of the apartments in the complex.

    Officers subsequently arrested 59-year-old Angela Bino and her daughter, 32-year-old Jessica Bino, for first-degree murder. Sioux City Police did not reveal the victim’s name or age.

    Court documents cited by KCAU-TV say the victim lived with Angela Bino and Jessica Bino in the apartment. The victim was Angela’s mother and Jessica’s grandmother.

    According to the affidavit, Jessica Bino reportedly got into a fight with the victim at approximately 7 p.m., and Angela Bino joined in. They allegedly started punching the victim, then Angela grabbed a candlestick and hammer and beat her with those objects. KCAU reports Jessica picked up a butcher knife from the kitchen and stabbed her grandmother several times.

    A neighbor in the building reportedly saw Jessica Bino and Angela Bino moving the victim’s body to the victim’s car and trying to put her body in the trunk. This prompted the witness to call police.

    Woodbury County Jail records show Angela Bino and Jessica Bino are being held on $500,000 bond.

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  • Calif. man gets up to life in prison for killing girlfriend with an ice ax

    BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (TCD) — A 23-year-old man will spend a minimum of 25 years behind bars for killing his girlfriend with an ice ax in a garage, then touching her body sexually after she died.

    KGET-TV reports a judge sentenced Daniel Gunnarsson to 25 years to life with an additional two years and four months for the death of Kathryn Pham. A jury Gunnarsson found guilty Aug. 30 of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon and abuse of a corpse.

    On May 18, 2021, Kern County Sheriff’s Office deputies were called to the 900 block of Skylark Avenue in Ridgecrest and found Pham with trauma to her body. Officials pronounced her deceased at the scene and consequently arrested Gunnarsson in connection with her death.

    According to the Kern County District Attorney’s Office, Pham and Gunnarsson were in a relationship for about a month prior to the killing. On May 17, 2021, Gunnarsson reportedly “displayed animosity towards Pham and expressed what his friends believed to be suicidal behavior.” He reportedly went to his stepfather’s house May 18, 2021, and spoke about his “failing relationship with Pham.”

    He called her and apologized, then picked her up at her apartment and drove her back to his stepfather’s home. When they got to the house, Pham and Gunnarsson went into an RV garage. Painters working at the stepfather’s house heard Pham screaming and what sounded like “shuffling of items.” The painters went into the garage about an hour later and discovered Gunnarsson with blood all over his body and Pham deceased on a mattress topper.

    The statement said Pham was partially naked, with her chest and midsection exposed. The painters went to the stepfather for help and called 911. Investigators determined Gunnarsson put on gloves, then attacked Pham with a 24-inch ice ax 10 times, hitting her in the head, neck, and face. After she died, Gunnarsson “repositioned Pham and proceeded to touch her remains in a sexual manner.”

    According to KGET, the day before the murder, Gunnarsson reportedly reversed his car into a wall outside Pham’s apartment building multiple times. He was purportedly angry she did not “reciprocate his feelings.”

    Gunnarsson underwent two competency exams prior to his trial, and in June, he was deemed competent to stand trial.

    KGET reports Gunnarsson’s defense attorney argued someone else could have gone into the RV garage and killed Pham.

    At the sentencing hearing, Pham’s father called Gunnarsson a “monster.”

    Pham’s grandmother shared, “She was a treasure and we loved doing anything with her.”

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  • Florida Man Games brings meme to life with new competition series

    ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. (TCD) — The infamous “Florida man” meme is reaching great heights with a new competition series called the Florida Man Games, which are set to kick off in February 2024.

    While “Florida man” stories range from the tragic to the bizarre, the Florida Man Games website says the events will be “as unexpected as the headlines that inspired them.” The games are described as the place where “the bizarre meets brawn and sanity is optional!”

    Some of the competitions include “Weaponized Pool Noodle Mud Duel,” “Evading Arrest Obstacle Course,” “Category 5 Cash Grab,” “Beer Belly Florida Sumo,” and more. There will also be a mullet contest because “Florida is well known for being the home of the most outrageous mullet cuts on the planet,” as well as Chicken Coop Bingo.

    Additional activities include selfies with alligators and a barbecue competition. The site jokes about the alligator selfies, “The insurance company doesn’t love this, but we don’t care!”

    Two former American Gladiators will judge the games.

    Pete Melfi, the competition’s creator, told the Orlando Sentinel, “It’s going to be a wild day of mud games and Florida-style obstacle courses. It’s going to really be an opportunity to live that Florida Man life for a day.”

    Melfi said he wants different regions of Florida involved in the games, which is why hopefuls must submit a video audition.

    He told the Sentinel, “We’re picking whoever has the wildest, craziest Florida Man videos. We got a guy who sent us a video of him pulling an alligator out of a lake. You don’t have to go that far; please don’t put your life at risk.”

    The Florida Man Games are scheduled for Feb. 24, 2024, in St. Augustine.

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  • Judicial Watch Sues Secret Service for Audio/Visual Recordings Related to Death of Obama’s Chef

    (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for video recordings relating to the death of the Obamas’ personal chef Tafari Campbell in July 2023, in the Edgartown Great Pond (Judicial Watch Inc. v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security (No. 1:23-cv-03194)). Judicial Watch recently uncovered the existence of a Secret Service video tied to the incident in response to a separate public records request.

    On August 9, 2023, Judicial Watch submitted a FOIA request to the Secret Service, a component of DHS, seeking copies of:

    All audio/visual recordings (including dispatch calls, fixed camera footage, internal USSS communications, and communications with other law enforcement and EMS personnel), USSS emails, incident reports, witness statements, investigative reports, and all other records related to the death of Tafari Campbell on July 23-24, 2023, in the Edgartown Great Pond.

    Earlier this month, Judicial Watch received 40 pages of records from the Massachusetts State Police that include a July 24, 2023, homicide/death report written by Mass. State Trooper Dustin Shaw, listing the details of the investigation into Campbell’s death. In the narrative portion Shaw writes:

    The following is a summary of my observations of the video footage provided to me from this specific vantage point and is not intended to be an exact depiction of the overall entirety of the surveillance footage from [redacted] On Sunday, July 23, 2023, at approximately:

    • 6:54 PM; two (2) individuals identified as CAMPBELL and [redacted] are observed walking on the boardwalk from the area of the residence, toward the shoreline of Edgartown Great Pond. Both CAMPBELL’S and [redacted] appearance and clothing are consistent with prior descriptions. Once near the shoreline, it appears that CAMPBELL and [redacted] obtain paddleboards and paddles from a small alcove near the shoreline, and subsequently enter the water.
    • 7:40 PM; Secret Service Agent [redacted] (Rescue Swimmer) is observed running from his assigned post towards the shoreline of Edgartown Great Pond, utilizing his handheld radio.
    • 7:42 PM; Agent [redacted] observed running from the shoreline of Edgartown Great Pond, towards the area of the Command Post.
    • 7:43 PM; Agent [redacted] observed running back to shoreline of Edgartown Great Pond.
    • 7:50 PM; USSS boat launches
    • 7:57 PM; USSS vehicle/first responder vehicle arrives to the area of the shoreline of Edgartown Great Pond.
    • 7:58 PM; First Edgartown Police vehicle arrives to the area of the shoreline.
    • 7:59 PM; Second Edgartown Police vehicle arrives to the area of the shoreline.

    A request has been made to obtain a copy of the above-described video and is pending its release as of the time of this report.

    The records also indicate the presence of Barack Obama for a witness interview in the death investigation. The records, which are heavily redacted, indicate Barack Obama arrived at the emergency response scene via motorcade. A short time later, a cold, wet woman, who was a witness, arrived.

    The records also indicate the presence of Barack Obama for a witness interview in the death investigation. The records, which are heavily redacted, indicate Barack Obama arrived at the emergency response scene via motorcade. A short time later, a cold, wet woman, who was a witness, arrived. The next morning, the eyewitness was interviewed in the Obama residence, seemingly with Barack Obama again present. The State Police records show authorities concluded “no foul play” in Campbell’s “accidental” death.

    (On October 24, 2023, the Daily Mail obtained the initial 911 call as well as a follow-up call made by Barack Obama’s Secret Service agents after chef Tafari Campbell fell off a paddle board into the Edgartown Great Pond on Martha’s Vineyard.)

    “Why is the Secret Service hiding the video that can provide the public more information about the death of Barack Obama’s personal chef,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The Secret Service’s involvement in this death investigation had been treated like a state secret until Judicial Watch uncovered it.”

    In August 2023, Judicial Watch released records it received from the Edgarton, Mass., Police Department that show the Secret Service reported Obama’s Personal Chef Tafari Campbell missing and that the body was found using sonar. The records also detail that clothing was found separate from the body and that he was not wearing a life vest.

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  • Tlaib Snaps After MTG Moves to Censure Her for Inciting ‘Insurrection’ at Capitol

    The House of Representatives now has a new speaker: Rep. Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana.

    Now that this order of business has been accomplished, the Republicans got back to work by moving to rebuke Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) for inciting an “insurrection” at the Cannon building on October 18.

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    Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene introduced the motion on Thursday to censure the “Squad” member for not only spreading Hamas propaganda by saying that an explosion in a Gaza hospital was caused by Israel, which has since proven to be unfounded, but also for using incendiary language to foment a disruptive protest at a Capitol building.

    “Today, Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene introduced a privileged censure resolution for Rashida Tlaib following last week’s insurrection at the United States Capitol by Israel-hating, America-hating Jewish Voice for Peace led by Representative Tlaib,” read a statement posted to MTG’s website.

    “Congresswoman Greene’s privileged resolution will require the House to consider the resolution on the floor within two legislative days. The Congresswoman expects every Republican to vote in support of her resolution and hopes some Democrats will vote in favor as well to join together in a bipartisan manner in denouncing antisemitic, anti-American behavior from Members of the House of Representatives,” the statement read.

    “I just introduced my resolution to censure Rashida Tlaib as privileged to force a House vote in two legislative days,” MTG argued. “Tlaib led a pro-Hamas insurrection into the Capitol complex, has repeatedly displayed her anti-Semitic beliefs, and shown her hatred for Israel.”

    Left-wing anti-Israel activists broke into the Cannon Building after the Michigan Democrat gave an angry and emotional speech on October 18. The occupation was eerily similar to the so-called “insurrection” that Tlaib’s party members say could have brought down the whole U.S. government.

    In response to Greene’s censure motion, Tlaib used “Jewish peace advocates” as a human cover to protect herself. She did this in a statement that also accused Greene of Islamophobia.

    “Marjorie Taylor Greene’s unhinged resolution is deeply Islamophobic and attacks peaceful Jewish anti-war advocates. I am proud to stand in solidarity with Jewish peace advocates calling for a ceasefire and an end to the violence. I will not be bullied, I will not be dehumanized, and I will not be silenced,” Tlaib said.

    “I will continue to call for ceasefire, for the immediate delivery of humanitarian aid, for the release of hostages and those arbitrarily detained, and for every American to be brought home. I will continue to work for a just and lasting peace that upholds the human rights and dignity of all people, and ensures that no person, no child has to suffer or live in fear of violence,” the ‘Squad’ member added.

    However, the Anti-Defamation League, a far-left organization that manufactures accusations of anti-Semitism against the radical left’s targets, has even exposed Jewish Voice for Peace — the activist group that carried out an ‘insurrection’ at the Cannon Building earlier this month — as a radical anti-Israel organization.

    The ADL said that JVP “promulgates the view that Jews who identify even tangentially with Israel are motivated by white supremacy, Jewish racial chauvinism and religious supremacism.”

    “JVP uses its Jewish identity to shield the anti-Israel movement from allegations of anti-Semitism and to provide the movement with a veneer of legitimacy,” the ADL states in its  report on the activist group.

    Tlaib’s day got even worse when she screamed at a reporter for challenging her opinions on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

    “I think Rashida is a little triggered,” Greene snarked on X.



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  • Au pair charged after double homicide; Daughter accused of helping mom poison husband – TCDPOD

    This Week on True Crime Daily The Podcast: An au pair is charged with a man’s shooting death after he allegedly stabbed her boss in the family’s home. Plus, a daughter accused of conspiring with her mother to poison her mom’s husband.

    Emily D. Baker joins host Ana Garcia.

    YouTube: Au pair charged after double homicide; Daughter accused of helping mom poison husband

    TRUE CRIME DAILY: THE PODCAST covers high-profile and under-the-radar cases every week. Subscribe to our YouTube page for podcasts, exclusive videos, and more, and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.



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  • Ohio son arrested for allegedly killing his father, whose body is still missing

    TOLEDO, Ohio (TCD) — A grand jury indicted a 39-year-old man on multiple charges for allegedly killing his father in 2017, although his body has never been found.

    Lucas County court records show Timothy Darrow was indicted Oct. 24 on two counts of open murder in connection with Alvin Darrow Jr.’s death.

    According to Toledo Police, Alvin Darrow, 63, was last seen July 27, 2017, following work on a boating project when he went home to get some tools. He was reported missing the next day. Toledo Police said at the time Alvin Darrow left several personal belongings at home and he did not have anyone to look after his dog, which was “highly unlike him.”

    Toledo Police Lt. Dan Gerken told WTOL-TV Alvin Darrow and Timothy Darrow argued the day he disappeared, and “no one’s heard from Alvin since then.”

    A friend of Timothy Darrow’s, Michael Johnson, is being charged with obstruction of justice. Gerken said Johnson “lied to us” and “obstructed some of our investigation.”

    Johnson told WTOL in an interview he helped Timothy Darrow move a barrel and “a lot of things that night.”

    He said, “I helped him scrap a car. I helped him burn some things. I helped him dig up some things.”

    WTOL reports Timothy Darrow was already in custody at the time of the indictment. Records show he was charged with felonious assault Oct. 19 in an unrelated incident.

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  • Mississippi woman arrested after newborn dies with drugs in its system

    GULFPORT, Miss. (TCD) — Police arrested a 23-year-old mother this week after she reportedly gave birth to a child who died with drugs in its system.

    On Oct. 18, Child Protective Services notified the Gulfport Police Department of possible child abuse. Police later learned Savannah Reynolds gave birth to the victim when she was 37 weeks pregnant, and the child later died.

    According to police, at the time of the victim’s birth, the child had THC, amphetamines, and fentanyl in its system. Detectives determined Reynolds allegedly consumed several pills that contained fentanyl and methamphetamine “during and up to a week prior to giving birth.”

    On Oct. 20, police arrested Reynolds on one count of felonious child abuse.

    She was booked into the Harrison County Adult Detention Center and remains held on $250,000 bond.

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  • Convicted sex offender arrested after missing N.C. teen found in Missouri

    KIRKWOOD, Mo. (TCD) — Police arrested a 30-year-old sex offender this week who is accused of meeting a 16-year-old girl online and driving her from North Carolina to Missouri, where she was found safe.

    According to a news release from the Monroe Police Department, Lauren Heath was last seen leaving her home on Seefin Court on Friday, Oct. 13, shortly after 4 p.m., wearing a large sweatshirt and black backpack and carrying a white handbag. Police said they were looking for the teen “utilizing exhaustive methods, techniques, and assistance from cooperating agencies.”

    In an update, Monroe Police said Heath was found safe in Kirkwood, Missouri, nearly two weeks later on Wednesday, Oct. 25. Police observed a “suspicious vehicle” in a Lowe’s parking lot off Interstate 44 and spoke with the driver, a convicted sex offender named Christopher Porter.

    Police noticed a young woman in the passenger seat and later identified her as Heath. Officers were able to contact Heath’s parents after she provided a birth certificate and her mother’s phone number.

    Heath reportedly told police she met Porter on “anonymous social messaging apps.”

    Porter allegedly “took advantage of comments made by Ms. Heath about stress and wanting to run away, and ultimately convinced her to do so.”

    Police said Porter drove from Oklahoma to Monroe, North Carolina, to meet Heath and pick her up.

    Porter faces multiple offenses out of Missouri, but police did not specify the charges. Porter will likely face additional charges pending further investigation.

    Heath’s parents reportedly flew from North Carolina to Missouri to reunite with their daughter.

    In a statement, Monroe Police Chief J. Bryan Gilliard said, “Our detectives scoured every lead, followed every tip, and left no stone unturned in our pursuit of reuniting Ms. Heath with her family.”

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