Paradise News

Tag: Americas

  • 'American Hustlers' podcast explores corruption and con artists who eventually committed murder

    Cons. Disguises. Manipulation. Murder.

    “True Crime News” is proud to present “American Hustlers,” a new podcast about two con artists who committed crimes from coast to coast and around the world. Citizen detective Tyson Wrench tracked down Kaushal Niroula and Danny Garcia after the two men drained Wrench’s bank account in one of their elaborate schemes. 

    Niroula and Garcia masqueraded as real estate moguls, art dealers, bankers, and even royalty as their web of manipulation crossed academia, immigration, and finance. The two men conned anyone they could — including each other.

    They flew under law enforcement’s radar until they committed the biggest felony of all: murder.

    “American Hustlers” is hosted by Kim Kantner and Julie Golden.

    New episodes come out Mondays starting Jan. 27.

    Source: True Crime Daily

  • Fire chief responds to call and finds his home on fire and wife dead

    Nanette Krentel’s home went up in flames, leaving her body in the rubble. Her fire chief husband rushed to the scene when he heard the news and found her dead. Investigators would soon learn Nanette died from a gunshot wound, but who would shoot her? Years later, the case remains unsolved.

    Source: True Crime Daily

  • Fraudster facing trial for husband’s murder; Woman sends $850,000 to fake Brad Pitt – TCN Sidebar

    In this episode of True Crime News The Sidebar Podcast: Angenette Levy joins host Joshua Ritter to break down the biggest cases making headlines across the nation. They discuss Natalie Cochran’s murder trial after she pleaded guilty to a multi-million-dollar Ponzi scheme, A$AP Rocky’s decision to decline a plea deal in favor of taking his chances with a jury, and a woman conned out of $850,000 by scammers posing as Brad Pitt.

    YouTube: Fraudster facing trial for husband’s murder; Woman sends $850,000 to fake Brad Pitt – TCN Sidebar

    Source: True Crime Daily

  • Years Ago JW White Paper Verified Mexican Cartels are Foreign Terrorist Organizations

    More than five years after Judicial Watch published a White Paper providing comprehensive documentation that Mexican drug cartels undoubtedly meet U.S. government requirements to be designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) the Trump administration is finally making it happen. It is important to note however, that during his first term the president announced he would designate cartels as FTOs but days later did an about-face to appease then Mexican President Manuel Lopez Obrador. Trump claimed that the U.S. and Mexico would instead step up their joint efforts to “deal decisively” with the “vicious” cartels, which never happened.

    Reneging on the FTO designation in late 2019 could not have come at a worse time because Mexico’s former top law enforcement official, a presidential cabinet member who oversaw the country’s federal police, had just been charged in the United States with multiple counts of cocaine trafficking conspiracy and one count of making false statements. The disgraced Mexican Secretary of Public Security, Genaro Garcia Luna, took millions of dollars in bribes to protect one of the country’s most notorious drug cartels, according to U.S. federal prosecutors. The Trump administration’s assertion that it would combat the sophisticated and violent criminal enterprises that have practically taken over Mexico by joining forces with its famously corrupt government—rather than use a tool like classifying cartels FTOs—seemed preposterous.

    Thankfully, the president kicked off his second term by issuing a long overdue executive order designating cartels as FTOs as well as global terrorists. International cartels constitute a national security threat beyond that posed by traditional organized crime, according to the order which states that cartels infiltrate into foreign governments across the western hemisphere and have complex, adaptive systems characteristic of entities that engage in insurgency and asymmetric warfare. “The Cartels have engaged in a campaign of violence and terror throughout the Western Hemisphere that has not only destabilized countries with significant importance for our national interests but also flooded the United States with deadly drugs, violent criminals, and vicious gangs,” Trump’s order states, adding that cartels control, through a campaign of assassination, terror, rape, and brute force nearly all illegal traffic across the southern border of the United States.

    “In certain portions of Mexico, they function as quasi-governmental entities, controlling nearly all aspects of society,” the executive order says. “The Cartels’ activities threaten the safety of the American people, the security of the United States, and the stability of the international order in the Western Hemisphere. Their activities, proximity to, and incursions into the physical territory of the United States pose an unacceptable national security risk to the United States.” The document also mentions other transnational organizations such as Venezuela’s deadly Tren de Aragua gang and the famously violent Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), renowned for drug distribution, murder, rape, robbery, home invasions, kidnappings, vandalism, and other brutal crimes. “Their campaigns of violence and terror in the United States and internationally are extraordinarily violent, vicious, and similarly threaten the stability of the international order in the Western Hemisphere,” the executive order reads.

    Finally designating Mexico’s major cartels—which include Los Zetas, Juárez, La Familia Michoacána and Sinaloa—as FTOs will enhance the federal government’s ability to combat them. An official FTO classification enables the prosecution of those who provide them with material support, facilitates the denial of entry and deportation of TCO members and affiliates and eliminates the organizations’ access to the U.S. financial system. “FTO designations play a critical role in our fight against terrorism and are an effective means of curtailing support for terrorist activities and pressuring groups to get out of the terrorism business,” according to the State Department. For years Mexican cartels have hijacked and sabotaged buses, commercial trucks and trains, activity constituting terrorist activity under U.S. law. They have headquarters throughout the United States and are one of the country’s greatest criminal, national security, and public health threats.

    The U.S. government has long assessed that Mexican drug cartels are the greatest criminal threat to the country and that they are smuggling mass quantities of deadly illicit fentanyl into communities throughout the nation. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says they maintain drug distribution cells in cities across the U.S. that report to leaders in Mexico and dominate the nation’s drug market. The FTO designation was long overdue.

    Source: Judicial Watch

  • California man accused of beating his 62-year-old mother to death

    FRESNO, Calif. (TCN) — Police recently announced the arrest of a 35-year-old man on suspicion of killing his 62-year-old mother, who was found deceased in her home this week.

    According to the Fresno Police Department, on Monday, Jan. 20, officers responded to the area of East Cortland Avenue and Ninth Street to perform a welfare check on Shirla Ramirez after she failed to show up to work. Fresno Interim Chief of Police Mindy Casto said Ramirez had a birthday on Sunday, Jan. 19, and co-workers told law enforcement she didn’t reply to their celebratory text messages.

    Responding officers noticed the front door of Ramirez’s residence was ajar. They entered and found Ramirez in the back of the house bloodied and deceased. Investigators suspect the victim died of blunt force trauma and multiple lacerations to her upper body, and they ruled her death a homicide. However, Casto said police are waiting for the medical examiner to determine her exact cause of death. According to the interim chief, officers located blunt force weapons near Ramirez’s body.

    Ramirez reportedly lived alone and called out from work three days prior, on Friday, Jan. 17, claiming “family issues.”

    Further investigation revealed Shirla Ramirez’s son, Brad Ramirez, allegedly killed his mother. Casto said Shirla Ramirez’s vehicle was involved in a collision, and California Highway Patrol personnel located Brad Ramirez near the scene. Officers arrested him on Jan. 22 after he was discharged from Community Regional Medical Center. He remains held in the Fresno County Jail on a charge of murder.

    According to Casto, the suspect’s motive remains under investigation.

    MORE:

    • Homicide Investigation – Fresno Police Department
    • Interim Chief Casto gives a statement regarding the homicide of Shirla Ramirez – Fresno Police Department
    • Fresno County Jail

    Source: True Crime Daily

  • Illinois man allegedly sexually assaulted and strangled hiker before partially burning her body

    COOK COUNTY, Ill. (TCN) — A 30-year-old man faces charges in connection with the death of a 22-year-old woman who disappeared while walking in a wooded area with her mother in 2020.

    According to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, Vanessa Ramirez went for a hike in the Midlothian Meadows Forest Preserve on Nov. 2, 2020, and her body was found partially burned two days later. Authorities said she had been sexually assaulted and strangled to death.

    WGN-TV reports that Ramirez was walking with her mother and her mother’s friend but went missing after staying behind to tie her shoes. According to documents obtained by the news source, the victim’s mother texted her daughter asking where she was and tried calling multiple times. Ramirez’s blue iMessages turned green after 3:53 p.m.

    One of Ramirez’s replies, “ha verdad,” which loosely translates to “for real,” confused the victim’s mother after she said, “We are on our way back.” The mother allegedly responded, “Where are you?” before messaging, “The police are looking for you.”

    Officials reportedly found Ramirez’s body in an area in the woods known to locals as “the pits.” Investigators suspect the victim had been bound at some point and was burned after she was fatally strangled.

    Detectives later identified Dakota Petrey as the primary suspect. According to WGN, one of Petrey’s family members called in a tip pointing to the suspect, claiming it was something he “would do.” The relative reportedly said they were asked to help move Petrey’s vehicle around the time of Ramirez’s death.

    According to deputies, Ramirez’s phone pinged at Petrey’s apartment building shortly after her family reported her missing. Authorities also found Petrey’s DNA at the crime scene and on the victim. He is reportedly “known to frequent Midlothian Meadows.”

    The sheriff’s office said they do not believe Petrey and the victim knew each other.

    Officials issued a warrant for Petrey on Jan. 16 and arrested him on Jan. 18 after he was released from the Fulton County Jail for separate charges. He had been held there since Oct. 7, 2024.

    Petrey faces charges of first-degree murder and aggravated criminal sexual assault.

    In a statement, Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart said, “This heinous crime is every parent’s worst nightmare. It took years of tireless work by our police detectives to investigate this case, but we never gave up on finding Vanessa’s killer and seeking justice for her and her family.”

    MORE:

    • Central Illinois Man Charged in 2020 Murder, Sexual Assault of 22-year-old Woman – Cook County Sheriff’s Office
    • Man charged in 2020 forest preserve murder, sex assault of Harvey woman – WGN

    Source: True Crime Daily

  • POLL: Pamela Ianetti was found dead with 47 stab wounds. Did she do it to herself?

    Valentino Ianetti said his life changed on a cold winter night in New Jersey. On Dec. 8, 2009, at around 2:30 a.m., Ianetti claimed he woke up after falling asleep on the couch, and as he walked past his bedroom, he found his longtime wife, Pamela Ianetti, in a pool of blood on their bedroom floor. Barely alive, he said she reached for a large kitchen knife near her body. Valentino Ianetti grabbed it from his wife who was clinging to life and called 911 for help.

    Police and EMS arrived at his home, and the officers immediately brought him in for questioning. Valentino Ianetti told detectives Pamela Ianetti suffered from depression and took pain pills, and that she stabbed herself. Pamela Ianetti sustained 47 stab wounds, including 22 to the left side of her neck and 17 to the right side. Pamela Ianetti died from her injuries, which the medical examiner determined was homicide.

    During his interviews with detectives, Ianetti insisted he did not kill his wife, but he also made comments about how there was a chance he could have been sleepwalking and stabbed her. Additionally, he admitted that he and Pamela Ianetti did not have a perfect relationship. Footage from the interrogation room showed him saying to himself, “What did I do? What did I do?”

    Investigators arrested Valentino Ianetti and charged him almost immediately with murder.

    A toxicology report later revealed that Pamela Ianetti had large Oxycodone in her system the night she died. A medical expert brought in for Ianetti’s defense argued there was a possibility that Pamela Ianetti might not have even felt the stab wounds due to the number of painkillers she took. He and his attorneys insisted Pamela Ianetti died by suicide because she had “hesitation cuts” on her body and not any defensive wounds.

    Ianetti spent nearly four years in jail awaiting trial, but in August 2013, Sussex County prosecutors dropped the charges against him, citing reasonable doubt.

    Prosecutors left the door open to bring Ianetti to trial again and file new charges against him, but he won’t see another day in court. Ianetti died April 9, 2024, at the age of 74.

    Do you believe Pamela Ianetti took her own life? Share your opinion in the poll below.

    Source: True Crime Daily

  • Judicial Watch Sues Chicago Mayor for Records on Pledge to Resist Trump’s Mass Deportation Efforts

    (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today it sued Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson for records regarding his vow to resist the Trump administration’s mass deportation and other immigration law enforcement activities (Judicial Watch Inc. v. Office of the Mayor (No. 2025-CH-00347)).

    On November 11, 2024, the mayor held a press conference at which he stated that Chicago would remain a so-called “sanctuary city” and that city officials “will continue to shield all immigrants in Chicago from federal agents, regardless of whether they are citizens, permanent residents or asylum seekers, despite the election of President-elect Donald Trump.”

    According to a WTTW News report, Mayor Johnson said he “was prepared to fight any effort to stop federal funds from flowing to Chicago because it will not cooperate with mass deportation efforts, and would work to stop the arrival of immigration agents.”

    “We will not bend or break,” Johnson said. “Our values will remain strong and firm. We will face likely hurdles in our work over the next four years but we will not be stopped and we will not go back.”

    The firm Chalmers, Adams, Backer & Kaufman filed the lawsuit on behalf of Judicial Watch in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois County Department Chancery Division after the mayor’s office failed to adequately respond to a November 27, 2024, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for records or communications of Mayor Johnson or his designated representative about plans or preparations to resist federal efforts to enforce immigration laws or not cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportations.

    The new Trump Justice Department initiated a policy directing federal prosecutors to investigate and consider prosecuting “resistance, obstruction, and other non-compliance with lawful immigration-related commands and requests from federal authorities.” Fox News reported last month that since August 2022 Chicago spent $574.5 million on sheltering migrants.

    “Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson announced himself and his city government to be outlaws on illegal immigration as they plan to help illegal aliens resist the rule of law,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “Sure enough, this scandal is worsened by the evident cover-up of the full scope of Mayor Johnson’s lawlessness, which Judicial Watch aims to remedy with our open records lawsuit.”

    Judicial Watch is being assisted by attorney Christine Svenson of Palatine, Illinois.

    ###

    Source: Judicial Watch

  • Honolulu man accused of sexually assaulting, fatally strangling high school student in 1977

    HONOLULU (TCN) — Authorities recently arrested a man at a nursing home on suspicion of sexually assaulting and fatally strangling a teen at a high school nearly five decades ago.

    According to Honolulu Police Lt. Deena Thoemmes, on the morning of March 21, 1977, officers responded to McKinley High School to a report of a possible homicide. Police discovered 16-year-old Dawn Momohara on the second floor of the English building partially clothed with an orange cloth wrapped “tightly” around her neck.

    Officials pronounced Momohara dead at the scene and determined she had been sexually assaulted. Police recovered her purse, shorts, and other evidence. Thoemmes said an autopsy later revealed Momohara had died of asphyxiation due to strangulation and sustained injuries around her neck where the orange cloth was used to strangle her. Investigators believe she was killed during after hours at the school.

    The morning before she was killed, Momohara allegedly received a call from an unknown man. The victim reportedly told her mother she was going to go shopping with some friends, and that was the last time she saw or heard from her daughter.

    According to police, investigators collected scrapings from the scene and semen. As part of the investigation, detectives interviewed friends of the victim. A witness reportedly said he and his girlfriend saw a car and a man near the English building. The man walked out, and the witness allegedly circled the vehicle, but they had left.

    Thoemmes said police had a sketch drawn up, but they were unable to find any leads at the time.

    On March 28, 1977, detectives interviewed Gideon Castro. He reportedly told authorities he met Momohara at a school dance in 1976, the year he graduated from the high school. Gideon Castro claimed he and his brother, William Castro, were both friends with the victim. According to police, Gideon Castro told detectives he last saw Momohara at a carnival, and they spoke for around 15 minutes.

    William Castro allegedly said he last saw the victim walk past his home, and he offered a ride, but she refused.

    Decades later, in 2019, investigators re-examined the case and submitted a request to process items from the scene. The following year, police said investigators created a DNA profile from the recovered semen. According to Thoemmes, in 2023, investigators received information that either Gideon Castro or his brother William Castro could be suspects in the case.

    Detectives reportedly traveled to Chicago where William Castro had been living and obtained a DNA sample from one of his grown children to compare it to the DNA found at the scene. As a result, they ruled William Castro out as a suspect.

    Police said authorities located Gideon Castro in Utah and also obtained a DNA sample from his son. Investigators concluded the DNA found at the scene was a match with Gideon Castro and identified him as the primary suspect in the cold case.

    Officers arrested Gideon Castro at a nursing home in Utah on a charge of second-degree murder. He will be extradited back to Honolulu to face the charge.

    MORE:

    • Press Conference – Honolulu Police Department

    Source: True Crime Daily

  • Ga. woman wanted for allegedly killing 1-year-old son is captured in N.Y.

    ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. (TCN) — Law enforcement officials captured a woman about two weeks after she allegedly killed her 1-year-old son and fled to upstate New York.

    On Jan. 8, Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office deputies received a call about a person not breathing, and when they arrived, they found the unresponsive child. Paramedics attempted lifesaving measures on the boy and transported him to a hospital, where he died. Officials did not announce his cause of death.

    Investigators identified the suspect as the boy’s mother, Gloria Wright, and issued a warrant for her arrest. One week later, the sheriff’s office said Wright was no longer in the area and she was wanted on charges of first-degree murder and first-degree cruelty to children. They even offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to her arrest.

    Wright was captured Jan. 18 in Rochester, New York, and brought into custody with assistance from the U.S. Marshals.

    A Rockdale County investigator told WIS-TV they had additional motivation for locating Wright, sharing, “We have a small child that has lost its life in the hands of its mother and we would like to get this mother in custody because she is currently carrying another child right now, so we would like to get her in custody for her safety and for the safety of that child.”

    MORE:

    • Mother Wanted for Murder and Cruelty to Children – Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office
    • Wanted – Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office
    • Update – Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office
    • Pregnant woman accused of killing 1-year-old in metro Atlanta captured in New York – WSB

    Source: True Crime Daily