Archive for the 'Criminal Arrests' Category

A Santa Monica restaurant allegedly decided to serve meat from an endangered whale to their patrons

Criminal charges were filed this week against The Hump restaurant and one of its chefs for allegedly selling meat to customers that came from an endangered whale. The restaurant immediately released a statement through their attorney Gary Lincenberg admitting to wrongdoing and that they are willing to cooperate with court system, according to the L.A. Times.

Lincenberg said the Hump took “responsibility for the wrongdoing charged by the U.S. attorney.” The misdemeanor charge of illegal sale of a marine mammal product could be punished by up to a year in prison, as well as a $100,000 fine against an individual and a $200,000 fine against an organization, The L.A. Times reported

The restaurant was exposed through an unlikely team effort between a documentary producer, two vegans and federal agents.

Charles Hambleton, associated producer of the Oscar-winning documentary about water body abuses in Japan called “The Cove” (watch the trailer below), was tipped off about The Hump’s nefarious menu option. Crews that worked on the film helped to outfit two vegan women with a hidden camera before going into The Hump for a meal.

Once inside, the women ordered a $600 Chef’s Special called the omakase, and asked the server if they could sample whale meat. Eight pieces of what were described as whale by the server were then brought out to the two women, the Times reported.

The two women then took samples of the whale meat that were later verified through testing by Scott Baker, associate director of the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University. Baker’s tests found that the whale meat came from a Sei whale, an internationally protected species of whale identified as endangered.

Sei whales, the third largest in the world behind humpbacks and blue whales, are protected in the U.S. under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The law makes the sale of any whale meat illegal throughout the U.S.

“Someone should not be able to walk into a restaurant and order a plate of an endangered species,” U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. wrote in a news release.

The Typhoon Restaurant Inc., owners of The Hump, and Chef Kiyoshiro Yamamoto were named in the official criminal complaint filed in the Los Angeles area U.S. District Court.

Typhoon is currently renegotiating their lease with the city of Santa Monica, an aspect of the case councilmen said they would be taking into consideration while they debate on how to punish the company.

Utah State Senator Sheldon Killpack recently resigned from the state legislature after he was arrested for allegedly driving under the influence, according to the Washington Post.

Although this was his first time accused, it was not his first experience with drunken driving. Killpack’s father was killed by a drunken driver when he was a teenager. Since then he became a strong advocate against driving under the influence.

The Washington Post reported that Killpack, the former Republican Utah state Senate majority leader, devoted his six years in office to efforts against drunken driving. He hoped to stop intoxicated drivers from cruising on the roads.

As a member of the Mormon Church, Killpack was encouraged to abstain from alcohol. Under the circumstance, Killpack thought it would be best to resign.

He made the decision to resign saying, I have a tremendous amount of respect for the legislative process. In light of that, I have decided to tender my resignation as majority leader and as a Utah state senator, effective immediately.

Senate President Michael Waddups said he did not advise Killpack to resign. He said that is was a personal matter in which he would need to figure out for himself.

Waddups also added that it might be difficult for Killpack to face his conservative constituents in light of the situation.

According to the Salt Lake Tribune, the evening Killpack was pulled over, he attended a boxing fundraiser for Representative Greg Hughes. No alcohol was served at the event.

The Utah Highway Patrol spotted Killpack’s vehicle driving erratically on the road several hours later.

The state trooper said he smelled a strong odor of alcohol coming from the senator. He then ordered Killpack to take field tests. Killpack obliged, but refused to give a breathalyzer test.

Killpack was arrested and taken to the Salt Lake County jail at around 2:45 a.m. and was released two hours later.

The UHP was able to get a warrant for a blood test to determine the senators blood alcohol content. It could take up to two weeks to a month before the test results are in and criminal charges are issued. No court date has been set at this time.

A young Nigerian man was taken into custody for an alleged attempt to blow up an airplane on Christmas Day.

Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab boarded a plane flying into Detroit, Mich. carrying an explosive device.

According to a CNN article, he was arrested and now faces criminal charges of attempting to destroy the plane and placing a destructive device on the aircraft.

Abdulmutallab had a multi-entry visa into the United States. But the 23-year-old was added to a watch list of 550,000 potential terrorists.

Abdulmutallab’s father - Umar Abdulmutallab – stated he contacted the National Counter-Terrorism Center providing information about his son and shared his concerns of what his son was capable of.

Abdulmatallum’s family further stated that he was studying abroad in London when he disappeared and no longer communicated with them.

His father claimed Abdulmutallab’s new attitude was something the family had never seen before. He further claimed that Farouk was becoming “radicalized” and he felt that his son was planning something.

He also contacted the U.S Embassy in Nigeria to alert them of his son.

A U.S. official stated that the embassy flagged his visa so when he tried to renew it in six months they could investigate his visa renewal.

But he was never stopped or questioned before he boarded the plane.

When Abdulmatallum boarded the flight leaving Nigeria; he went through “regular screening.” He walked through a metal detector and his bag went through an x-ray machine.

He flew into Amsterdam and went through a second screening.

Next Abdulmatallum boarded Northwest Airlines Flight 253 to Detroit. There were 290 passengers on board. He injected chemicals into the explosive device that authorities say he had hidden in his underwear.

The bomb device contained an explosive chemical called pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN). He had enough of the explosive to blow a huge hole in the side of the plane.

According to a CNN article - passengers heard a popping noise on the plane and then saw his seat go up in flames.
The passengers were able to put out the fire and tackle him before any further issues could arise.

Abdulmutallab was taken to a nearby hospital to treat his injury burns and was released into the custody of a U.S. Marshall - as of now he has been taken to an undisclosed location.

The bomb is said to be from Yemen and according an LA Times article, the Yemen sector of Al Qaeda has claimed to be behind the bomb attempt.

In Covington, La., a dad gagged and tied up his daughter in the passenger seat of his pickup truck and drove down the highway.

Obviously he got caught - which is apparently what the pair was going for, alleging that the whole thing was a stunt - merely a practical joke, according to an Associated Press report.

Tim Williams, 45, bound and gagged his 12-year-old daughter with duct tape and drove down a Louisiana interstate, where other drivers were stunned by the sight and surrounded Williams’ car until a state trooper arrived.

Both Williams and his daughter were arrested, Williams on charges of criminal mischief and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and his daughter was cited for criminal delinquency.

The girl was later released to her uncle, and Williams was released on bond.

The sheriff’s department reportedly did not know whether Williams has a defense lawyer to help with his case.

According to a CNN article, Tony Alamo - found and leader of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries - was recently sentenced to 175 years in prison.

The 75-year-old minister was accused of allegedly sexually abusing underage girls and bringing them over state lines to engage in sexual activity. He violated the Mann Act, which prohibits transporting young children across state lines for illegal purposes such as sexual activity.

Alamo was arrested in Flagstaff, Ariz. in Sept. 2008. Police intercepted the minister with his wife at the Little American Hotel. During his arrest, over 100 federal and state agents searched his compound in Texarkana, Ark.

During the search, Arkansas police found six young girls in the compound and removed them from the premises. All the girls alleged that Alamo had sexually abused them.

Alamo claimed the accusations were a hoax. He claimed the young girls who made the accusations were “just trying to make {the] church look evil by saying I’m a pornographer. Saying that [he] rape[d] little children.”

Alamo was convicted on 10 federal counts for crimes dating back to 1994. He was charged for offenses that spanned over an 11 year time frame.

In addition to prison time, Alamo was fined $250,000 for all his criminal charges.

The U.S. attorney for Western District of Arkansas stated, “Given the number of victims and the difficult type of testimony they had to provide in order to get to trial, it’s gratifying for them to see him get this sentence.”

Alamo’s defense lawyer has filed an appeal.

Alamo awaits a second court hearing in January, when Judge Harry F. Barnes will make the decision if the victims will receive restitution. He will remain in Texarkana until the court date and then he will be transported to federal prison.

According to a New York Times article, Judge Barnes stated, “Alamo abused his powers as a fatherly figure.”

Alamo first started preaching in California where he started a commune. Once he established ministries in Arkansas, he became a controversial preacher.

Alamo’s ministry was described as a cult by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors hate groups. They claimed Alamo preached that females were fit for marriage when they became sexually mature.

This is not the first time Alamo has been charged with a federal crime. He was also convicted on charges of tax evasion back in 1994. The IRS claimed he owed $7.9 million, and he spent four years in prison.

According to the Akron Beacon Journal, an Ohio man arrested for allegedly robbing a bank actually consumed the evidence while officers were cuffing him.

A “DashCam” video shows the man munching on a piece of paper while the officers are searching his pockets and handcuffing him on the hood of their police cruiser.

John H. Ford, 35, allegedly handed a note to a bank teller in Streetsboro, Ohio that demanded she hand over some cash.

Ford was pulled over and arrested in Twinsburg, Ohio, where officers searched his pockets and threw their findings on the hood of the car. Later, the note was nowhere to be found, and officers reviewed the footage from the “DashCam.”

In the video, officers said they saw Ford lean over to eat something off the hood of the police car. “He grabbed it in his mouth, just like Pacman,” said Twinsburg patrolman Daniel Biada.

Authorities said a .38-caliber pistol was found in Ford’s vehicle. Ford is also a suspect for bank robberies that took place in Stow and Akron, Ohio.

Police in Albertville, Ala. received a call over the weekend about a minivan driving down a state highway with a kid riding on the roof.

According to an Associated Press article, the 37-year-old mother driving the minivan was arrested for allowing her 13-year-old daughter to ride inside a cardboard box that was secured to the top of the minivan with a coat hanger.

The woman told police that the box wouldn’t fit inside the vehicle, so her daughter was inside it holding it down.

No one was harmed, and the girl was turned over to a relative when her mother was arrested. The woman was allegedly out on bond as of yesterday.

There is no indication that criminal charges have officially been made in this case.

Four men who allegedly engaged in the making, selling and viewing of child porn in Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin were recently caught by the FBI. The group referred to themselves as the ‘Boy Lovers.’

The criminal arrests were facilitated by another man who had been caught for child pornography crimes earlier in the year. After his own arrest, he became a cooperative witness, helping the FBI find the other participants, according to a Chicago Tribune report.

Over the course of a few months, the witness corresponded and spoke with the four men involved in the child pornography ring. Phone calls and emails were exchanged to help the FBI bring the criminal charges on the men.

If the four men are convicted of the crimes they allegedly committed, they will face prison terms of 20 years or more. The witness may still face a 10-year jail sentence.

Many marine recruiters visit schools looking for young adults to invest in serving our country. These recruiters should have the best intentions at heart when searching for our future brave men and women to serve the United States.

Unfortunately there has been a rise in the number of sexual assaults by marine recruiters. According to CBS.com, back in 2006 over 100 young women said they had been raped or sexually abused.

Of the many cases that were brought to court, one young woman filed a lawsuit stating the recruiter told her if she wanted to join the navy then she had to have sex with him. She didn’t know what to do - she was 18 years old, and she trusted this man in uniform.

In some of these cases, the relationships were romantic and initiated by the young women, but these were adult men recruiting young women into the navy and not all the women were legally adults.

In the most recent case one marine recruiter allegedly had sexual relations with a 15-year-old girl and is facing 14 felony charges. If convicted he can serve up to life in prison.

26-year-old Trevor Hooper is being charged by Salt Lake Prosecutors for rape, forcible sodomy, sexual exploitation of a minor and forcible sexual abuse.

The two met when Hooper visited her high school to recruit. They allegedly went to a motel together and engaged in sexual acts, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. The girl’s father found photos of sexual relations between her and Hooper on a memory card that contained images of the two engaged in sexual activity.

According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Sgt Damien McGee, a spokesman for the Marine Corps. recruiting station in Salt Lake City, stated that the Marine Corps. was unaware of any issues until Hooper was arrested. They are not exactly sure of the high schools visited by Hooper but advised each recruiter should visit four different schools in the surrounding area.

Sgt. Damien McGee also stated that “all marines, including recruiters, have very stringent rules to follow.”

Hooper may also face federal criminal charges in sexual exploitation of a minor as well as facing disciplinary consequences from the military.

The young girl’s name has not been released.

Neighbors feared for their lives as they waited for police to search for the suspect who killed eight in the town of Brunswick, Ga. - a small community left in the shadows in the beginning of a police investigation.

According to an Associated Press report, seven people were murdered at the scene and two were left in critical condition. The local police department is not releasing any information as to whom, how, what or why.

Neighbors wondered if the murderer was still on the loose, and many were upset that no information was being provided to ease their worried minds.  Some wanted to know if they should take matters into their own hands in fear the killer was still on the loose.  One neighbor talked about putting a gun under her pillow just to make sure she was safe at night.

The police stated they could not provide any information, as it could interfere with the investigation, and there was no known suspect in custody.  The best the police could do was to urge the neighbors to be cautious and aware of their surroundings.

After a week of not knowing if a murderer or murderers were running wild around the neighborhoods of Glynn County, the police arrested a 22-year-old man by the name of Guy Heinze who is related to all the victims.

Heinze is the one who reported the murders to the police.  He called 9-1-1 stating “my whole family is dead.” He found them after returning to the mobile home after a night out.  When police arrived at the scene they arrested Heinze.

He was initially charged with evidence tampering, lying to the police and drug possession, but was not yet accused of the murders, the Associated Press reported.

Heinze allegedly removed a shotgun from the mobile home and attempted to hide it from the police by putting it in the trunk of his car.  He allegedly told police he thought the gun was stolen and that’s why he tried to hide it.

Later that same day, the police arrested him for the murders of his family and he is now being charged with eight counts of first degree murder - since one of the two survivors, 19-year-old Michael Toler died at the hospital and became the eighth victim, ABC reported.

The victim’s names were released and they were all Heinze’s family members who lived in the mobile home together owned by his uncle, Toler Sr. According to neighbors, his uncle took in all the family members who needed help and were having hard times.  His father and uncle were among the deceased.

The only survivor of this horrible and deadly attack was three-year-old Byron Jimerson. He remains in the hospital.
For many that knew Heinze, they were surprised that he could have killed his family members.  Many of his friends and family say that they were all so close and he never seemed  like the type to commit such horrible crimes.

Heinze was not able to attend the funeral for his family.  He remained in jail while the funeral proceedings were carried on.