Tag: Americas

WARE SHOALS, S.C. (TCN) — A 43-year-old former deputy will spend over three decades behind bars for killing his neighbor, who was found dead in his living room.

The Eighth Circuit Solicitor’s Office announced Oct. 22 that Justin Moody pleaded guilty to the murder of 48-year-old Oscar Rubio, and a judge sentenced him to 34 years in prison. Moody will not be eligible for parole.

According to prosecutors, in May 2023, Rubio’s girlfriend discovered her boyfriend deceased in the living room. Deputies responded to his home, where they found Rubio with a gunshot wound to the head and two gunshot wounds to the chest. Authorities also determined Rubio’s body had been dragged inside the home after the shooting, and they found blood on the porch and front yard.

According to prosecutors, “Multiple witnesses told investigators that Rubio had recently had an issue with his neighbor.” Witnesses also claimed Rubio had allegedly loaned Moody money in the past.

Greenwood County investigators attempted to speak with Moody at his home, but he reportedly did not comply. The solicitor’s office said a deputy who knew Moody personally eventually arrived, and the defendant answered the door, claiming “he had been sleeping.” However, deputies do not believe he had been asleep, as they noticed all the lights on in the residence. Officials also reportedly noticed a pair of pants with blood splatter on a kitchen chair inside Moody’s house.

Moody allegedly told investigators he had nothing to do with Rubio’s death, but he “knew an extraordinary level of detail about the crime scene.” According to the solicitor’s office, deputies continued to question Moody, and “he claimed to be God and could hear the thoughts of other people.”

Authorities reportedly found the gun used to kill Rubio in Moody’s residence, as well as boots that matched a footprint at the scene. On Moody’s kitchen table, prosecutors said investigators found a funeral pamphlet that read “RIP Oscar” and “you should love your neighbor.”

According to the solicitor’s office, officials located Rubio’s car keys and several thousand dollars in a duffel bag inside Moody’s house.

WYFF-TV reports that Moody previously worked for multiple South Carolina law enforcement agencies, including the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office.

Eighth Circuit Solicitor David M. Stumbo said, “This is an absolutely senseless act of violence. I cannot say enough about the excellent work done by the law enforcement investigators and our prosecutors to put Justin Moody behind bars for essentially the rest of his life. My hope and prayer is that Mr. Rubio’s family can begin to gain some closure and truly grieve his loss with the court case now behind them.”

MORE:

• Ware Shoals man pleads guilty to killing neighbor – Eighth Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office
• Former deputy said he was God, admits to killing his Greenwood County, SC, neighbor, official says – WYFF

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GALVESTON, Texas (TCN) — A 30-year-old woman is in custody on suspicion of intentionally causing fatal injuries to her young daughter before abandoning her on a road.

In a press conference, Galveston Chief of Police Doug Balli said on the morning of Oct. 23, officers responded to a report of an unresponsive child just off Seawall Boulevard. Police found a 17-month-old girl on the pavement with signs of life, and emergency personnel attempted to revive the child. First responders transported the girl to the trauma center of a hospital, and she died shortly after.

Police took the victim’s mother, Channel Yonko, into custody following the child’s death. Per an affidavit reviewed by KRIV-TV, Yonko allegedly intentionally dropped her daughter from a hotel balcony, and investigators obtained video footage showing the victim’s fall from the third floor to the ground. In addition to her trauma injuries, the girl allegedly sustained three puncture wounds.

Yonko remains held in the Galveston County Jail without bond on a charge of capital murder.

“This is a horrible crime. All children deserve to feel safe when around loved ones, especially with their own mother,” Balli said.

MORE:

• Press Conference – Galveston Police Department
• Media Release: Mother charged in death of child – Galveston Police Department
• Channel Yonko, charged in death of baby found in Galveston, denied bond – KRIV
• Galveston County Jail

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SAN ANTONIO (TCN) — A missing woman’s husband is facing new charges and his business associate has now been arrested amid the search for the wife, who has not been seen in more than two weeks.

According to Olmos Park Police Chief Fidel Villegas, on Sunday, Oct. 6, between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., Brad Simpson and his wife, Suzanne Simpson, reportedly got into an altercation at a club. Police did not learn about the fight until 24 hours later when Brad Simpson reported his wife missing. Olmos Park Police began investigating Suzanne Simpson’s disappearance and learned the couple’s disagreement at the club “could have gotten physical.”

Villegas said Simpson was uncooperative with police, so he was arrested on charges of assault with bodily injury and unlawful restraint. He has since been additionally charged with tampering with evidence and possessing a prohibited weapon.

According to court records obtained by True Crime News, a neighbor allegedly witnessed the couple fighting on the night of Oct. 6. The neighbor reportedly said he noticed Brad Simpson “grabbing her upper torso area to gain control of her body.”

Suzanne Simpson reportedly “was attempting to get away from Mr. Simpson’s grasp as he tried to pull her downward.” The neighbor reportedly went outside to check on the situation, then heard screams. He reportedly went back to his home and saw Brad Simpson drive away and return about an hour or two later.

Suzanne Simpson’s phone last pinged to a parking lot on the morning of Oct. 7 and has not had any activity since.

The affidavit says Suzanne Simpson typically picked her kids up from school, but she never showed up on the afternoon of Oct. 7. Investigators learned Brad Simpson went to a ranch he owned in Bandera because he was “separating himself from his family.”

Their youngest child, a 5-year-old girl, reportedly told her teacher that her parents had been “fighting” and “that her dad had hit her mom in the face and possibly pushed her into a wall.” She said her mother had a bruise on her elbow and her dad took her mom’s phone away.

WOAI-TV reports Suzanne Simpson’s family members said the couple had gotten violent in the past. Officials have been searching for Suzanne Simpson since she was reported missing, but she has yet to be found.

KSAT-TV reports police started sifting through a landfill in Bexar County for her remains on Oct. 15 and it spanned the course of several days. Villegas said in a statement at the time, “We feel confident there is a good chance of recovering Suzanne at that location.”

In a recent update, Texas Rangers arrested Brad Simpson’s friend and business partner James Vallee Cotter for tampering with evidence. According to KSAT, on Oct. 8, Brad Simpson reportedly texted Cotter and asked him to “haul a– to meet me” at Cotter’s house, adding, “I don’t have much time.”

In another text, Brad Simpson reportedly said, “OK, make sure to leave all that s–t in the pump house, especially that gun.”

Another message read, “Sorry for the urgency but you’re all I got especially now…social media is destroying me.”

Investigators learned Simpson allegedly asked Cotter to go to his home and get his rifle. Officials obtained a search warrant for Cotter’s home and discovered a fully automatic AK-47 hidden behind a wall. While searching Simpson’s house, they reportedly found a gun room with similar firearms.

Simpson’s total bond for his various charges is $3 million.

MORE:

• Missing Woman Press Conference, 10/9/2024 – WOAI
• Neighbor reports hearing screams during fight before Suzanne Simpson’s disappearance, 10/11/2024 – WOAI
• Olmos Park police reveal what led them to SE Bexar County landfill in search for missing mother Suzanne Clark Simpson – KSAT
• Brad Simpson’s illegal ‘machine gun’ hidden by friend inside wall at Dominion home, police say – KSAT

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How did Molly Young die?

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RICHLAND COUNTY, S.C. (TCN) — A 43-year-old man will spend four decades in prison for abusing and burning his young daughter before fleeing to Kentucky during his trial.

The Solicitor’s Office for the Fifth Judicial Circuit announced Oct. 22 that a judge sentenced Nathan Ginter to 40 years in the South Carolina Department of Corrections. A jury convicted him on June 12 of four counts of unlawful conduct toward a child for physically abusing his 3-year-old daughter.

Ginter skipped his trial and a bench warrant was issued for his arrest. According to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office for the 18th Judicial Circuit, local authorities apprehended Ginter and his accomplice, Riley Pearson, in Georgetown, Kentucky, on June 22. He was extradited back to South Carolina on Oct. 10.

Between January and March 2022, Ginter reportedly punished his daughter with abuse and torture. Prosecutors said he beat his daughter with a bamboo stick, causing bruises on her body. He also reportedly waterboarded her with cold water and used a drive-stun gun on her buttocks for several weeks, causing second-degree burns. The child’s grandfather and aunt alerted authorities after discovering the burns.

According to the solicitor’s office, investigators obtained digital evidence from Ginter and the child’s mother’s phones and observed images of the abuse. Authorities reportedly obtained video of “the defendant narrating his actions while waterboarding” his daughter.

The victim’s 9-year-old sister, who allegedly saw the abuse, testified in court.

Per WIS-TV, Ashley Kimbler, the victim’s current guardian, said the child “is kind and sweet and loving and not because of what he did, but because of me and my husband. She gets to know what true love is from a father that took her in and would move the world for her, rather than trying to ruin her world.”

The 3-year-old’s mother, Tiffany Brittain, reportedly pleaded guilty to similar child abuse charges against the victim and is serving a seven-year prison sentence.

MORE:

• Ex-fugitive sentenced for abusing daughter – South Carolina Fifth Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office
• Fugitives Arrested, 6/18/2024 – Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office for the 18th Judicial Circuit
• SC ex-fugitive who skipped child abuse trial sentenced to 40 years in prison – WIS

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Molly Young’s life came to an abrupt end on March 24, 2012, when she was just 21 years old. Young’s boyfriend, Richie Minton, told police he woke up and found Young deceased next to him from what he initially believed was a drug overdose. He called the 911 dispatch center where he worked several minutes later and said he found a gun under Young’s body and an apparent gunshot wound to her head. He claimed he was drunk and never heard a gun go off during the night.

Detectives first started investigating Young’s death as a homicide, but the coroner listed her manner of death as suicide. Then, a coroner’s jury changed Young’s manner of death to “undetermined.”

Young’s family believes she was the victim of a murder, and they are continuing to fight to uncover the truth about her death.

How do you think Young died? Share your thoughts in the poll below. Be sure to watch “True Crime News” for the full story on the investigation.

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KING COUNTY, Wash. (TCN) — A teenager was taken into custody after two adults and three juveniles were found dead in a home on Monday in what investigators classified as a domestic violence situation.

In a press conference, King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Mike Mellis spoke at a press conference Monday, Oct. 21, and said several 911 calls came in at around 5 a.m. regarding a potential shooting at a home on the 7700 block of Lake Alice Road. A neighbor with medical experience reportedly assisted an injured teenage victim until deputies and other first responders arrived at the “chaotic” scene. Deputies immediately took a male teen into custody and transported the injured victim to a Seattle hospital.

Deputies entered the home and found five people deceased. Mellis called it a “hugely significant crime scene.”

Mellis did not specify the names or relationships of the victims but said the juvenile victims were “young teenagers.” The suspect and injured teen live in the same house, but it was not clear if they are siblings. Mellis said the suspect has been booked into a juvenile detention center and did not have any prior criminal history.

Detectives obtained a search warrant for the home and will likely get additional ones to look through social media and other technology.

KOMO-TV reports prosecutors are seeking probable cause for five counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. He will remain in secure detention and is not allowed to speak with “surviving family members of the immediate family.” It was not known yet if he would be charged as an adult or in juvenile court.

The suspect’s defense team told NPR in a statement, “We want the court to know that our client is a 15-year-old boy who enjoys mountain biking and fishing and has no criminal history. Again, the law says our client is presumed innocent of these charges, and we are grateful for a judicial process that requires proof and evidence before there is a judgment.”

MORE:

• Authorities provide update on ‘tragic’ Fall City incident – KOMO
• Court orders teen accused of killing 5 in Fall City to be held in secure detention – KOMO
• 5 people are dead and a teenager is in custody after a shooting in Washington state – NPR

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Kimberly Long came home one night and found the love of her life, Oswaldo “Ozzy” Conde, bludgeoned to death in their living room. Officials pinned the death on her even though evidence said otherwise. “True Crime News” discusses the trial, conviction, and ultimate exoneration with Long and the people who helped get her out of prison.

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Zoraida Bartolomei, Alberto Rolon, their two kids, and three dogs were found fatally shot in their Romeoville, Illinois, home on Sept. 17, 2023. What detectives found out about their killings would shock them.

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