Crime Time

Unfit for print: Man hurt in car wreck had nasty words written on him, police say

Here's a weird one: A motorist with serious injuries for a single-car wreck Tuesday night had derogatory words written on his body.

The man was hurt shortly after 11:30 p.m. Tuesday on Interstate 35W.

As for the writing on the man's body, "You would not be able to put the words in print or say them on TV," said police Sgt. Kelly Peel in an email on Wednesday.

Domingo Ramirez Jr. has the story.

-- Bill Miller

 

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/02/27/4647816/man-in-crash-had-derogatory-words.html#storylink=omni_popular#storylink=cpy

Tulsa woman found in freezer ALIVE!

The words “found in freezer” sound like something sinister has happened to someone.

That’s not what happened Wednesday in Tulsa.

A woman was found alive stuck inside her freezer — alive. But police say she could have been in there since last weekend.

They said Theresa Christian, 59, may have climbed inside of her deep freezer to seek shelter from bad storms and tornadoes, but then she couldn’t free herself.

See this article and video from ABC News.

-- Compiled by Bill Miller 

Woman jailed for highway striptease

A southwestern Pennsylvania woman has been jailed on charges she was flagging down motorists and offering to take off her clothes for cash.

Jackie Hatter, 35, of Uniontown remained jailed Wednesday unable to post $25,000 bond.

The Herald-Standard of Uniontown reports Hatter was arrested about 8:40 a.m. Sunday and charged with disorderly conduct and marijuana possession.

Read the Herald-Standard report here.

-- The Associated Press

Illinois man faces federal charges after allegedly trying to open passenger plane door

An Illinois man faces federal charges of interfering with a flight crew after he allegedly tried to open the door of a passenger jet to kill himself.

The Associated Press reports that Reynel Alcaide, 34, was on a Continental Airlines flight from Houston to Chicago on May 8 when he allegedly tried to open the jet's door.

Alcaide was subdued and the flight was diverted to St. Louis, Missouri.

Prosecutors in the case said that Alcaide had tried to kill himself before.

-Chance Welch

El Paso police fatally shoot cougar before Obama visit

Just  hours before President Obama was scheduled to arrive in El Paso, police officers were involved in a wild chase of a mountain lion that wandered into downtown.

The mountain lion, a female weighing about 125 pounds, was spotted around a downtown intersection just before 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

The animal was cornered in a garage where it was shot with a tranquilizer dart. But before the drug could take effect, the cougar escaped. 

An animal control officer and El Paso police trailed the animal through a school yard, neighborhoods and business areas before cornering him at a business. After a second tranquilizer dart failed to subdue the cougar, two El Paso police officers and a state alcohol control agent opened fire killing the animal.

The shooting will receive an El Paso police review, according to a police statement issued Tuesday.

Such mountain lion sightings in El Paso are rare but not unheard of because of the proximity of the Franklin Mountains.

--From staff and wire reports

Rocks used as weapon in Kansas City coffee shop robbery

Sticks and stones may break my bones but they can also be used in a robbery.

NBC Action News reports that a Kansas City coffee shop was robbed Tuesday but three people with backpacks full of rocks.

One of the workers at the coffee shop told police that two men and a woman tried to rob the business by "hitting him over the head with backpacks full of rocks."

Surveillance footage shows two suspects attacking the man with a backpack but ran away when the employee was able to escape through the front door.

The suspects were arrested after the attempt as they tried to flee the scene.

The employee suffered minor injuries to his head and shoulder and nothing was reported stolen in the robbery attempt.

Two of the suspects have been charged in the crime. Michael P. Luzar, was charged with one count of attempted first-degree robbery and Gary L. Winslow, 51, was charged with one count of second-degree robbery and attempted first-degree robbery.

No word on whether the third suspect will be facing any charges.

Aspiring robbers, take this as a teaching moment before you decide to rob your local Starbucks by beating the barista over the head with a backpack full of rocks.

Maybe next time they will use a pointed stick.

-Chance Welch

Initials of victims may link 77-year-old murder suspect to more killings

A 77-year-old man believed to have murdered four women in California from 1977 to 1994 might be linked to several unsolved murders in New York.

The Associated Press reports that Joseph Naso was arrested late Monday after being released from jail for a probation violation. A search of his Reno, Nevada home in April 2010 turned up guns, ammo and evidence that linked him to the California killings.

What's the link? Oddly enough, it's the alliteration in the victim's names.

The four women found in Northern California were Roxene Roggasch, Carmen Colon, Pamela Parsons and Tracy Tafoya. The three girls who were victims in the "Double Initial Murders" also had matching initials.

Police learned that Naso once divided his time between the Rochester area and the west coast in the early 1970's around the same time of the New York murders. He worked as a professional photographer who often traveled the country for his job.

It's important to note that no other evidence ties him to the case and a DNA sample taken from one of the New York victims did not match Naso.

Also, the victims in California were adults while the New York victims were children.

In addition to the investigators in both states, a separate task force is looking into the possibility that more cold cases in the U.S. can be linked to him.

Naso remains in a Marin County jail without bail.

-Chance Welch

Maryland man removed from Walmart toilet seat after prank

For one unfortunate Maryland man, April Fool's Day was not a laughing matter.

CNN reports that a man was glued to a toilet at a Walmart in Elkton, Maryland on the night of March 31st, the eve of April Fool's Day.

The 48-year-old man called for help after he realized he was stuck when he attempted to stand up to leave the restroom.

Police made the scene and it took about 15 minutes to remove the man from the stall but couldn't separate his body from the actual seat.

The man was taken to a hospital where the seat was detached. Embarrassment aside, he only suffered minor injuries to his buttocks.

Investigators believe the sticky situation was just a case of a random prank that went wrong (or right, if you are the pranker in this case). If the pranker gets caught, he or she could face second-degree assault charges, police said.

-Chance Welch

New York grandmother sentenced to three years prison for her role in ritual burning of a child

The Associated Press reports that a New York City grandmother was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison after pleading guilty for her role in the ritual burning of her 6-year-old granddaughter.

Queens resident Sylvenie Thessier pleaded guilty to one count of endangering the welfare of a child after prosecutors say the child's mother, Marie Lauradin, sprayed the child with rum and set her on fire in June 2009 to get rid of the girl's evil spirits.

Thessier allegedly extinguished the flames with water and put the girl to bed without seeking medical help for her severe burns.

The girl's mother is also set to go on trial for counts of endangering the welfare of a child and assault.

-Chance Welch

FBI seeks help cracking code in 1999 murder

Have a pen and paper handy?

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking to the public to help crack a baffling code that might solve a 1999 murder in Missouri.

The Associated Press reports that the FBI has been investigating the death of 41-year-old Ricky McCormick, whose body had been dumped in a cornfield near Highway 367. Agents believed he was murdered but the case has remained unsolved.

A pair of notes containing codes were found in the man's shirt pocket. Officials said McCormick had spent much of life experimenting with codes and ciphers.

It seems that the cryptic message has stumped even the experts the FBI's Cryptanalysis and Racketeering Records Unit.

You can look at the two notes here.

The FBI has also set up a website for anyone who wishes to submit their answers.

-Chance Welch