Tag: Americas

CASTLE ROCK, Colo. (TCN) — Authorities recently arrested two people in connection with the death and dismemberment of a missing 51-year-old woman whose remains have not yet been found.

According to an Oct. 15 press conference held by Douglas County Sheriff Darren Weekly, in August 2019, Kimberly Bell was reported missing by her sister, but investigators found very little information or evidence surrounding her disappearance. Weekly said the cold case team took over the investigation in 2021.

Officials later learned that on July 22, 2019, Javier Martell and Jennifer Bremer, who were known to Bell, were inside her vehicle at a parking structure. Per an indictment reviewed by KUSA-TV, Bremer allegedly worked with Bell, and they had lived together. Martell and Bremer reportedly dated at the time. According to KUSA, they were driving around in a rental car to shop for a new car after Bell had totaled her previous vehicle.

Weekly said Martell “became enraged” with Bell, put his arm around her, and pulled her from the driver’s seat into the back seat. Martell reportedly told Bremer to get into the driver’s seat and drive as he continued to choke Bell. The sheriff said Martell took a break for a moment before “finishing the job” and allegedly choking Bell until she died.

Bremer purportedly testified and said she asked Martell if he killed Bell to which he replied, “I guess I did.”

Following Bell’s death, Weekly said Bremer and Martell drove around the Denver area with Bell’s body. KUSA reports that Bremer used Bell’s credit card at one point to purchase gas for the rental car.

According to Weekly, the suspects also drove to a Home Depot, and Martell purchased an ax. Martell and Bremer then drove to a remote location, where Martell allegedly dismembered Bell’s body, placed the parts into trash bags, and put them into the rear of the vehicle. Weekly said Martell and Bremer disposed of the trash bags in a dumpster near a veterinarian clinic, but investigators have not yet located them.

According to the sheriff’s office, Martell has been charged with murder, while Bremer faces a charge of being an accessory.

MORE:

• Sheriff Weekly Announces Arrests in Cold Case From 2019 – Douglas County Sheriff’s Office
• 2 arrested in gruesome murder of Colorado woman who went missing in 2019 – KUSA
• News Release – Douglas County Sheriff’s Office

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Angelika Graswald and her fiancé Vincent Viafore were kayaking home one cold April afternoon when Viafore’s kayak capsized, and he drowned. “True Crime News” looks at the case of the woman once known as the “Kayak Killer.”

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TWO RIVERS, Wis. (TCN) — A 38-year-old haunted house owner and operator entered a plea this week for sexually assaulting a teenager who was a volunteer at the attraction.

Court records show John Schwarz pleaded no contest to having sexual intercourse with a child, fourth-degree sexual assault, and causing mental harm to a child. As part of the plea deal, prosecutors dropped the charge of repeated sexual assault of the same child.

According to WLUK-TV, Schwarz was sentenced to five years of probations. Prosecutors and Schwarz’s defense team initially recommended two years of probation for sexual assault and causing mental harm to a child and five years of probation for the first charge. As part of his probation, conditions would include a psychosexual evaluation, no contact with anyone younger than 18 unless approved, and no contact with the victim. Schwarz’s defense team asked for him to be allowed to see his juvenile son as part of the probation stipulations.

Schwarz was arrested by the Two Rivers Police Department on Oct. 12, 2023, on charges of second-degree sexual assault, two counts of child enticement, and one count of exposing genitals to a child. Schwarz’s family owned Scare USA, a Halloween horror attraction. After his arrest, the company said it “will be closed effective immediately due to unforeseen circumstances.”

WLUK-TV reports one of Schwarz’s victims spoke in court and advocated for Schwarz to serve time behind bars.

The victim, who called himself a “shell of his former self,” said, “Nobody deserves to go through the amount of pain I have endured.”

MORE:

• State of Wisconsin vs. John S Schwarz Jr
• Former Two Rivers haunted house operator sentenced for sexually assaulting teen worker – WLUK
• Two Rivers haunted house owner convicted of sexually assaulting teen employee – WLUK
• Press Release, 10/13/2023 – Two Rivers Police Department

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LOS ANGELES (TCN) — A 19-year-old man has been charged after allegedly fatally stabbing his award-winning photojournalist father near a hiking trail over the weekend.

According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, on Saturday, Oct. 12, deputies responded to Mount Baldy Road near Stoddard Canyon Falls in the San Gabriel Mountains to a report of an assault with a deadly weapon. Responding deputies found a man, later identified by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office as Christian Lowe, with trauma to his upper torso, and fire personnel pronounced him dead at the scene.

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner determined Lowe died of a stab wound to the neck, and his death was ruled a homicide.

A male was reportedly seen driving away from the area before he got into a solo traffic collision nearby and was taken into custody for questioning. The district attorney’s office alleges the man, Emir Lowe, stabbed his father with a knife. He faces one count of murder. If convicted, Lowe faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life plus one year in state prison.

According to KCAL-TV, Christian Lowe, a photojournalist, covered the siege of Sarajevo during the Bosnian war. He also reportedly worked as a visiting professor in war studies at King’s College London.

MORE:

• DA Gascón Announces Charges Against Son in Father’s Murder in Mount Baldy in Unincorporated Los Angeles – Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office
• LASD Homicide Bureau Responded to a Death Investigation, Mount Baldy Road, near Stoddard Canyon Falls, San Gabriel Mountains – Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
• 19-year-old charged with killing his father on Mt. Baldy Road is due in court – KCAL
• Christian Lowe – Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office

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OKLAHOMA CITY (TCN) — A 63-year-old woman will likely spend the rest of her life in prison for killing her 3-year-old granddaughter and leaving her decomposing body in a trash can for several days.

KOCO-TV reports Becky Vreeland pleaded no contest to first-degree murder in connection with the death of her granddaughter, Riley Nolan. A judge sentenced her to 45 years in prison with the possibility of parole after serving 85% of her sentence, which equates to about 38 years. Court records show a charge of desecration of a human corpse was dismissed as part of the plea deal.

On June 21, 2022, Oklahoma City Police Department officers responded to a home on Southwest 151st Street and were informed about a deceased child at the residence. Officers located Nolan’s body in a trash can and noted she had “obvious signs of trauma to her body.”

According to court documents cited by KFOR-TV, Vreeland claimed she discovered the child’s body on June 18, 2022, but waited several days to tell anyone “because she was so upset.”

She reportedly told police that when she woke up on the morning of June 18, 2022, she saw Nolan wasn’t asleep in her bed. She saw the trash can lid was closed outside even though she “advised she had placed toys inside the trash can the night before and she had left the lid open.” Vreeland reportedly said she noticed a ladder next to the receptacle that had not previously been there.

Vreeland opened the lid and “saw Riley’s feet sticking out of the toys and Riley’s head was below the toys.”

Vreeland reportedly “could tell Riley was not alive” after feeling her feet. KFOR reports Vreeland “left Riley in the trash can because she was so upset and she did not want to tell her son about Riley’s death, until he had been released from jail, and had been able to have Father’s Day with the other kids.”

According to KFOR, Nolan’s siblings told police they saw Nolan with a bruise on her forehead. The medical examiner determined Nolan died from blunt force trauma to the head. She reportedly also had a skull fracture and additional injuries to her head. Her manner of death was ruled a homicide.

MORE:

• Grandmother accused of killing 3-year-old, leaving body in trash can takes plea – KOCO
• Court documents: Child found dead days before report, 6/23/2022 – KFOR
• Homicide #34 of 2022, 6/22/2022 – Oklahoma City Police Department
• ME: 3-year-old Oklahoma child’s death ruled a homicide, 12/20/2022 – KFOR
• Oklahoma grandma arrested after 3-year-old girl found dead in trash can, 6/22/2022 – TCN

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Richard Allen, the man accused of killing Abigail Williams and Liberty German in February 2017, is heading to trial following his arrest in 2022.

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TIJERAS, N.M. (TCN) — A 24-year-old man was arrested on multiple charges over the weekend for allegedly killing his parents, sister, and family dog, trying to clean up the scene, and kicking a hole in an interview room.

According to a criminal complaint, on Sunday, Oct. 13, at 2:14 p.m., a man called the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office to report hearing gunshots from his neighbor’s property, and when he texted them to check in, no one responded. The neighbor reportedly attempted to communicate by honking his car horn but once again did not hear a reply.

When deputies arrived at the scene, they reportedly saw Adlai Mestre with a gun and loaded magazine on him. Deputies detained him, and he allegedly said, “I killed them and was going to bury them.” Law enforcement officials reportedly “observed blood transfer patterns consistent with drag marks and mopping/cleaning,” as well a bloody knife and meat tenderizer near the door.

The deputies searched a ravine nearby and located two deceased adults and one deceased juvenile, all of whom suffered apparent gunshot wounds. The criminal complaint says the victims had “significant injuries” and there was a possibility they had been stabbed in addition to being shot. Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen spoke at a press conference and identified the victims as Mestre’s father, 46-year-old Raymundo Mestre, his mother, 51-year-old Bertha Mestre, and sister, 17-year-old Brielle Mestre. Adlai Mestre also allegedly shot the family dog.

A detective spoke with Mestre at the sheriff’s station at around 5:30 p.m., and Mestre said he fatally shot his father in the living room and his mother as she walked down the stairs but “didn’t know about his younger sister.” After the shooting, he dragged their bodies outside to bury them and “tried to clean up by mopping before he was interrupted by initial responding deputies.”

The complaint says Mestre had blood on his shoes, shirt, and hands.

The detective arrested Mestre on three counts of open murder, four counts of tampering with evidence, and one count of extreme cruelty to animals.

At 7 p.m., Mestre reportedly started punching and kicking the wall in the interrogation room. He made a hole in the wall and ran out of the room. He was caught soon after that and detained. Due to the damage caused in the room, the detective also charged him with criminal damage to property $1,000 or more and escape from the custody of a peace officer.

Allen said in the press conference that the gun used in the shooting was bought legally. Mestre had recently been admitted to a behavioral health hospital in the area.

Allen spoke about red flag laws and said, “If you went to get a mental health evaluation, even if you didn’t have any homicidal or suicidal ideations, there needs to be some recognition in the system or notification to law enforcement that there are firearms in the house.”

He added, “Please pay attention to any family members have that behavioral health issues and you have firearms in the house. That is a red flag. We need to start paying attention and doing our part.”

MORE:

• Adlai Mestre criminal complaint
• Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office hold news conference on triple homicide in Tijeras – KRQE-TV

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GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (TCN) — An investigation is underway after the dismembered remains of a missing teen were found in a freezer and positively identified.

According to the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office, on Jan. 12, someone went to claim a free freezer from the new owner of a recently sold home and discovered a human head inside. The Mesa County Coroner’s Office noted forearms with hands attached were also found.

Per KHOU-TV, the people who went to retrieve the appliance opened it to remove meat when the human head fell out of a plastic bag. Investigators reportedly searched the property but didn’t find additional body parts.

On Oct. 11, through DNA testing, the Mesa County Coroner’s Office said they positively identified the victim as 16-year-old Amanda Overstreet, a resident of Grand Junction and Harris County, Texas. Authorities are investigating her death as a homicide. Overstreet was last seen alive in April 2005, but according to the sheriff’s office, she was never reported missing. Deputies said Overstreet was the biological daughter of the previous homeowner.

MORE:

• News Release – Mesa County Coroner’s Office
• Victim in Pinyon Avenue Homicide Identified – Mesa County Sheriff’s Office
• Body parts found in Colorado freezer identified as Harris County teen who hadn’t been seen since 2005 – KHOU

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LAS VEGAS (TCN) — A man who was initially charged with 55 felonies pleaded guilty but mentally ill to about half of them in connection with a crime spree over Thanksgiving 2020 that killed one and injured many others.

Clark County court records show Christopher McDonnell entered the plea Oct. 10, just a few weeks before his jury trial was scheduled to begin. Some of McDonnell’s 55 charges included act of terrorism, conspiracy to commit murder, murder with use a deadly weapon, multiple counts of attempted murder, and discharging firearm at or into occupied dwelling.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports McDonnell entered the plea for first-degree murder with a deadly weapon, conspiracy to commit murder, and several counts of discharging a firearm. His co-conspirators — his brother Shawn McDonnell and ex-sister-in-law Kayleigh Lewis — are still awaiting trial for the same charges.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the crime spree began on Thanksgiving — Nov. 26, 2020 — in Henderson, Nevada. The McDonnell brothers and Lewis reportedly shot at cars seemingly at random. Just before 1 a.m., they entered a 7-Eleven parking lot and opened fire on a group of people. Twenty-two-year-old Kevin Mendiola died. Mendiola’s girlfriend, brother, and another bystander were injured. The group reportedly continued to shoot at random people in cars.

They were captured 200 miles away in Bouse, Arizona, when an Arizona Highway Patrol officer engaged them in a pursuit. The suspects drove off the road and the car rolled over. All three were then hospitalized for injuries sustained in the crash. The Clark County District Attorney’s Office indicted them in March 2021.

Christopher McDonnell was reportedly on parole for felony assault in Texas when the crimes occurred.

Shawn McDonnell and Lewis wed in Las Vegas on Nov. 7, 2020. District Attorney Steven Wolfson told the newspaper at the time, “I would compare the crime spree to a Bonnie and Clyde situation. It’s incredible how many people they shot at.”

KLAS-TV reports Lewis filed for divorce while in jail.

Christopher McDonnell could be sentenced to more than his natural life in prison.

MORE:

• State of Nevada vs Christopher McDonnell
• Man pleads guilty to murder, gun charges in deadly 2020 shooting spree case – Las Vegas Review-Journal
• 1 of 3 in Nevada-Arizona crime spree that killed 1, injured more pleads guilty – KLAS
• How a ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ rampage unfolded on Thanksgiving Day, 12/6/2020 – Las Vegas Review-Journal

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