List of All Articles with Tag 'crime'

Disgraced former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar was stabbed multiple times by a fellow inmate after he made lewd comments about girls during a Wimbledon match, the suspect reportedly told prison workers. The convicted sex abuser, 59, was stabbed in the back and chest by another inmate at the high-security United States Penitentiary Coleman in Florida on Sunday afternoon. A Bureau of Prisons spokesperson said that an inmate at the prison required “life-saving efforts” after the attack took place and the victim was transported to a local hospital for further treatment and evaluation. The Daily Beast reports that the incident happened after Nassar said “I wish there was girls playing” while inmates were watching a women’s match at Wimbledon. The suspect, who The Associated Press has named as Shane McMillan, allegedly stabbed Nassar with a makeshift weapon, wounding him in the neck, chest and back. Four inmates then rushed in and pulled McMillan off Nassar, a source told the news outlet. McMillan was convicted of assaulting a correctional officer at a federal penitentiary in Louisiana in 2006 and attempting to stab another inmate to death at the federal Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado in 2011, according to court records. Nassar remains in hospital in stable condition with injuries including a collapsed lung, reported AP. The Independent has reached out to the Bureau of Prisons for comment. The former USA Gymnastics team doctor is serving between 40 and 175 years in prison for sexually abusing young female athletes in his care. As the team doctor, the sexual predator abused his position of trust and preyed on dozens of young gymnasts for several decades, including Olympic great Simone Biles, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, and McKayla Maroney. In many cases, he sexually assaulted his young victims under the guise of it being medical treatment for hip and leg injuries sustained during the sport. As well as USA Gymnastics, based in Indianapolis, he also worked at Michigan State University and preyed on athletes there as well. Many of his victims went on to become America’s biggest gymnastics stars and have since spoken out about the years of abuse they endured at his hands. The scandal not only plagued USA Gymnastics – with victims revealing that they had confided in adults and coaches about the abuse – but also the FBI which failed to take the accusations seriously and left Nassar to abuse more than 120 further victims while they sat on the information for a year-and-a-half. It was July 2015 when Maggie Nichols became the first victim to report his sexual abuse to USA Gymnastics bosses, who then passed the information on to the FBI’s Indianapolis field office. W Jay Abbott, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Indianapolis office, resigned from the bureau in 2017. He was accused of waiting five weeks before telling the FBI about the first allegations received by US Gymnastics about Nassar’s behaviour. Agents failed to open an investigation for another 17 months when a complaint about Nassar was then made to Michigan State University’s campus police. The Justice Department watchdog later released a scathing report on the bureau’s handling of the matter, which it said let the sexual predator go on to abuse dozens more victims. Following his 2016 arrest, Nassar pleaded guilty to child sex abus images in December 2017 and was sentenced to 60 years in prison. Two months later, he pleaded guilty to criminal sexual conduct at a separate trial and was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison. He is also serving a separate 40 to 125 years for sexual abuse in Michigan. While behind bars, the serial sex offender has sought to fight his conviction, claiming that he was treated unfairly by the judge at his 2018 trial who called him a “monster” and said he should “wither” in prison like the wicked witch in “The Wizard of Oz”. His final appeal was struck down by the Michigan Supreme Court in June 2022. Read More Larry Nassar was stabbed in his own cell and attack was not picked up on camera, report says The mysterious connection between Larry Nassar and Jeffrey Epstein Disgraced former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar almost killed after being stabbed in prison

Colorado dentist and father-of-six James Toliver Craig leaned back in his chair and twiddled his thumbs through his handcuffs on Wednesday, his beard unkempt above his orange prison jumpsuit, as court took a brief recess from a preliminary hearing on the first-degree murder charge he faces for allegedly poisoning his wife. The casual display came shortly after the prosecution laid out a litany of evidence they say supports their case that Craig deliberately poisoned his spouse of more than two decades, Angela Dawn Pray Craig, with shakes while pursuing a relationship with a Texas orthodontist. Craig, 45, was arrested one day after Angela, 43, was pronounced dead on 18 March following her third hospitalisation in a month for a host of concerning and worsening symptoms. Prosecutors on Wednesday revealed Craig was also now facing a second charge without specifying what it was. But testimony from the Arapahoe County Coroner and lead detective – as reporters and several of Angela’s relatives sat in the courtroom – included a number of explosive claims. According to evidence given by Arapahoe County Coroner Dr Kelly Lear, samples showed that Angela had an arsenic level of 68 around 11.50am on 15 March – but that level had increased to 330 just after 8.20pm. That would be “consistent with her receiving additional cyanide exposure in that time period,” Dr Lear said. The cause of death she listed in her report was acute “cyanide and tetrahydrozoline poisoning; the manner of death is homicide,” she testified Wednesday. Tetrahydrozoline is the decongestant used in Visine eye drops. The dentist had researched other types of poison before his wife’s death, including an internet search for oleander, Aurora Police Detective Bobbi Olson testified on Wednesday. A search warrant obtained for an exam room computer at his dental practice found that, in the weeks leading up to Angela’s final hospitalization, Craig had searched for “how to make murder look like a heart attack,” “is arsenic detectable in an autopsy” and “how many grams of pure arsenic will kill a human?” Det. Olson also testified about how hospital staff, then police, were informed by Craig’s business partner and his wife about their concerns regarding the dentist’s behavior. Ryan Redfearn and his wife, Michelle, who has a PhD in nursing, had been informed by staff at the joint dental practice he owned with Craig that his business partner had ordered a delivery of potassium cyanide to the office. He had instructed an office employee to look out for a private package but it was mistakenly opened by another worker after it arrived on 13 March, Det. Olson said. A staff member “reconstructed the box, put the packaging slip back in; prior to doing that, she saw that it said ‘potassium cyanide,’ described the container, said it was like a tinfoil cardboard type container” she’d never seen before in the dental practice, Det. Olson said. “There was also a biohazard type sticker on the box, as well; she put it back together and then handed it to Mr Craig.” The dentist was later seen leaving with the container, the detective said. The employee googled potassium cyanide and its symptoms, connected them to Angela’s illness and told the Redfearns, who then told nursing staff, who called police. Det. Olson said both Redfearns were interviewed in the early morning hours of 16 March. At that time, Michelle Redfearn pointed out to police the previous recent hospital visits Angela had made, the detective said. Mr Redfearn, meanwhile, told police that Craig had filed for bankruptcy in 2021 and the debt payments were being covered by his own part of the business to the tune of $18,000 a month. He said he’d informed his partner in January that he “needed to work more, be around more, take less time off and that he was going to have to take a pay cut,” the detective testified. Craig’s pay was $39,000 in January and less than $16,000 the following month, she said. The dentist had taken out four life insurance policies on his wife from two companies totaling nearly $4.5million, the court heard. Throughout all of this, prosecutors allege Craig was enjoying his burgeoning relationship with Texas orthodontist Karin Cain, who is named in the charging documents. Det. Olson on Wednesday confirmed that the dentist continued to write letters to Ms Cain from jail after his arrest professing his love for her. Just hours before Wednesday’s hearing, Ms Cain broke her silence to claim that Mr Craig lied to her about the state of his marriage and that she would never have gotten involved with him if she had known the truth. Rather than being his “mistress”, the Texas orthodontist said they had only met three weeks prior to his wife’s death at a dentistry conference. “I don’t like the label,” she said. “If I had known what was true, I would not have been with this person.” Ms Cain shared doubts that she played a part in Mr Craig’s alleged murderous motive, as she said they had never planned a future together. “There’s no way I’m a motive. There’s been no planning a future together,” she said. Ms Cain said that she met Mr Craig at the dental conference in February and that he lied to her by claiming his marriage was over and that he did not live in the same home as his wife. At the time, Ms Cain was also in the middle of divorcing her husband of three decades. While she was “not looking for love,” she said that they bonded over their apparent shared experiences and shared devotion to their children. In total, they spent just three days together at the conference, meeting on a Thursday before parting ways – her to Texas, him to Colorado – on Saturday. After that they messaged constantly and she felt “so connected” to her new companion, she said. She planned to visit him in Colorado but the first trip fell through. The second planned trip came in March when she said Mr Craig told her his wife was ill. The day before she was due to arrive in Denver, she said that Angela had a seizure and was placed on life support, with a low chance of survival. While she said she reconsidered going to Colorado at that time, Mr Craig allegedly encouraged her by saying that he could do with her support. They went for dinner twice, she said, where she noted his behaviour seemed odd. “He at no point seemed stressed or anxious,” she said. “I mean really I had to drag it out of him like, ‘Are you sure you’re ok?’” Days later, Angela was dead. Now, Ms Cain says she feels lied to by the person she felt she was falling in love with. “I don’t have any sort of headspace in my reality where it fits” what she has now learned in the criminal affidavit, she said. “I didn’t willingly have a relationship with somebody who was in a marriage.” Read More Poison shakes, an illicit affair and ‘crocodile tears’: What we know about Denver’s alleged killer dentist Prosecutors set to present evidence against Colorado dentist accused of poisoning his wife's shakes Colorado dentist is charged with murder for allegedly poisoning wife who complained of headaches for weeks

Police have named the patient who fatally shot Tennessee surgeon Dr Benjamin Mauck in a clinic’s exam room after spending hours at the facility as Larry Pickens. The 29-year-old suspect killed the doctor, who specialised in elbow and hand and wrist surgery, at the Campbell Clinic in the Memphis suburb of Collierville, Tennessee, at around 2pm on Tuesday. Investigators say that it was a “targeted attack” and Mr Pickens, who lives in Memphis, has now been charged with first-degree murder and aggravated assault. “The Collierville Police Department does not have any prior reports regarding Mr Pickens. Investigators are checking with other agencies to see if any prior reports have been filed on Mr Pickens,” Collierville Police Department said in a statement. The suspect is being held on a $1.2m bond and is expected to be arraigned in court on Thursday. “We experienced a single shooter event inside our Collierville clinic,” the facility said in a statement. “We are shocked and heartbroken to confirm the incident resulted in the tragic loss of one of our highly respected and beloved physicians, Dr Ben Mauck. We ask that you please lift his family in prayer,” said Irina Ollar, director of marketing and public relations at Campbell Clinic. “We appreciate our local law enforcement officers who responded within minutes. We will continue to work closely with authorities as this remains an active investigation.” Dr Mauck had worked at the Campbell Clinic since August 2012 and was also the director of the Congenital Hand Deformities Clinic Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital. “Ben was a friend to so many of us — a respected member of our Le Bonheur family, a beloved colleague and a dedicated physician to so many patients. We already miss him, ” said Dr Trey Eubanks, interim president and surgeon-in-chief at Le Bonheur, in a Tuesday email to staff. “His death is an unthinkable tragedy, and I am at loss at what to say. I am so sorry to those who loved and knew him, for those who worked alongside him every day.” Read More Surgeon shot dead by patient in exam room at Tennessee clinic Ja Morant’s lawyers cite ‘stand your ground’ law and self defence in 2022 lawsuit Soccer coach accused of filming rapes of unconscious boys may have ‘decade of victims’, police say

The suspect in a hostage standoff at Caesars Palace has been identified as 35-year-old fugitive Matthew Mannix, according to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. A probable cause affidavit obtained by The Independent revealed that Mr Mannix was experiencing “drug-induced” schizophrenia when he allegedly held a 26-year-old woman hostage inside a room on the 21st floor of the resort on Tuesday. Hotel security first informed authorities of a domestic dispute in room 2128 around 9.30 PDT. Mr Mannix was arrested nearly five hours later after allegedly claiming that he “had a magazine full of rounds” and “would pull the trigger” — no mention of firearms recovered from the scene was made in official records. He was charged with kidnapping in the first degree, coercion with force, destroying property, resisting arrest without a firearm and disregard for the safety of a person. Following Mr Mannix’s arrest, the hostage victim told law enforcement that she was afraid to leave the room because her alleged captor had a knife and she also thought he would throw her out of the window he broke in the room. According to the incident report, Mr Mannix and the victim previously knew each other and had been experiencing a “transient lifestyle” on the Las Vegas strip and binging on narcotics for several days. As crisis negotiators talked with Mr Mannix, he allegedly spoke over the woman and threatened to “cut her tongue out of her mouth” so she wouldn’t engage with law enforcement at the scene. After she was rescued, police noted that the victim had cuts and bruises on her legs, some of which could have been caused by a beating. Employees at Caesars Palace first tried to check on the guests after receiving several complaints of noise coming out of room 2128, which they believed to be a domestic dispute. When security approached the room, they reportedly found a man believed to be Mr Mannix barricaded inside and threatening to “shoot someone” if police tried to breach the room. The threats continued and at some point, a female also yelled that the man “had a knife.” Las Vegas Police, a SWAT team and medical responders arrived at the scene to handle the hostage situation. Mr Mannix reportedly refused to let the 26-year-old woman out of the room and continued to open and close the door while allegedly threatening to “pull the trigger.” The woman eventually attempted to reach the door, but Mr Mannix then allegedly dragged her to the bed “as he body slammed her ... and began to have intercourse with her.” Mr Mannix is also accused of throwing large objects out of the window of his hotel room, sending guests on the pool deck running for cover. Bystander video showed broken glass and debris littering various decks at the Caesars as guests ran for safety. An investigator noted that the pool deck was left littered with furniture and glass and the property damage inside the room was “some of the most severe I have seen in my 18 years as a detective.” The damage caused is estimated to be upwards of $50,000. Mr Mannix was finally taken into custody at 2.40pm PDT. He reportedly told investigators during questioning that the victim was her “girlfriend and he loved her” and that “he would pay for everything that he damaged.” “[Mr Mannix] was so high that he was paranoid and had a schizophrenic episode where he was yelling random comments and numbers and saying that he would pay for everything because he has a lot of money,” the affidavit read. Las Vegas police also said that Mr Mannix is wanted in Colorado and has four protection orders against him. He appeared in court on Wednesday and his bail was set at $750,000. Mr Mannix is being held at the Clark County Detention Center. Read More Suspect in Caesars Palace hostage standoff identified as wanted fugitive Matthew Mannix - live Caesars Palace hostage-taker named as fugitive Matthew Mannix

A Tennessee surgeon was shot dead in an exam room on Tuesday after a patient allegedly lay in wait for hours to ambush him, authorities say. The surgeon, identified as Dr Benjamin Mauck, was killed in front of patients and employees at Campbell Clinic Orthopedics in Collierville, a city about 30 miles east of Memphis, Police Chief Dale Lane told reporters on Tuesday night. A suspect, who has not been identified, fired a handgun before running from the clinic and was apprehended by police about five minutes later without incident, Mr Lane said. Witnesses told WREG that a patient had been threatening to harm a clinic employee for the past week. “This appears to be a one-on-one interaction,” Mr Lane said during a press conference. “It was in an exam room … It was a health care worker and he was a patient.” Mr Lane said the gunman spared the “many” patients and employees who were in the clinic at the time. Police are yet to reveal a motive for the shooting, which Mr Lane described as “horrific”. Dr Mauck was a specialist hand, wrist and elbow surgeon who was named on Memphis Magazine’s 2023 Top Doctors List last week. In a statement, Cambell Clinic Orthopedics confirmed they had “experienced a single shooter event” at their Collierville health centre. “We are shocked and heartbroken to confirm the incident resulted in the tragic loss of one of our highly respected and beloved physicians, Dr Ben Mauck. We ask that you please lift his family in prayer. “We appreciate our local law enforcement officers who responded within minutes. We will continue to work closely with authorities as this remains an active investigation.” The health centre has closed all of its clinics on 12 July. Tennessee Senate Minority Leader Raumesh Akbari called for stricter gun regulations in the wake of the shooting. “Tragedies like this underscore the urgent need for common sense — like reinstating background checks and gun licenses, and establishing new reforms like an order of protection so police can remove firearms from a person who is threatening others,” she said in a statement. Dr Mauck had previously worked as a surgeon at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis, and completed his medical school training at the University of Tennessee-Memphis. The tragic incident comes two years after a gunman opened fire at a Kroger grocery store in Collierville. Uk Thang, a disgruntled contractor, killed one employee and injured more than a dozen before taking his own life. This article was amended on 12 July to correct the location of Collierville. Read More Las Vegas SWAT team captures man who held hostage in Caesars Palace hotel room after tense standoff A soccer coach left his phone in a restaurant. Police found a trove of videos of unconscious boys being raped Trans youth and families condemn ‘heartbreaking’ Tennessee court ruling against gender-affirming care

In 1969, Charles Manson dispatched a group of disaffected young followers on a two-night killing rampage that terrorized Los Angeles. The killings remain etched in the American consciousness. On Tuesday, Leslie Van Houten was released after spending more than 50 years in prison for two of those murders. She's the only one of Manson's followers who participated in the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders to go free. Members of the Manson “family” arrived at the Hollywood Hills home of Sharon Tate on 8 August 1969, where they stabbed, beat and shot to death the young actress and her friends – celebrity hairstylist Jay Sebring, coffee heiress Abigail Folger, and aspiring screenwriter Wojciech Frykowski. As they made their way to the house, they encountered a teenager, Steven Parent, who had been visiting an acquaintance at the estate’s guesthouse, and shot him to death. The next night, Manson led a handful of followers, including Van Houten, to the home of wealthy grocer Leno LaBianca and his wife, Rosemary. Manson tied up the couple and left the others to kill them. Manson and his followers also killed two others – musician Gary Hinman and Hollywood stuntman Donald “Shorty” Shea – in separate, unrelated attacks. In the decades since, some of Manson's followers have died while others remain behind bars. The killers: Charles Manson Charles Manson was a petty criminal who had been in and out of jail since childhood when he reinvented himself in the late 1960s as a guru-philosopher. He targeted teenage runaways and other lost souls, particularly attractive young women he used and bartered to others for sex. He sent them out to butcher LA's rich and famous in what prosecutors said was a bid to trigger a race war – an idea they say he got from a twisted reading of the Beatles’ song “Helter Skelter”. Decades after his conviction, Manson would continue to taunt prosecutors, parole agents and others, sometimes denying any role in the killings and other times boasting of them. He told a 2012 parole hearing: “I have put five people in the grave. I am a very dangerous man.” He died in 2017 after spending nearly 50 years in prison. He was 83. Susan Atkins Susan Atkins, convicted of the Tate, LaBianca and Hinman murders, was a teenage runaway working as a topless dancer in a San Francisco bar when she met Manson in 1967. The Tate-LaBianca murders went unsolved for months until Atkins, who was in jail on unrelated charges, boasted to a cellmate about her involvement. At trial, she testified she was “stoned on acid” and didn’t know how many times she stabbed Tate as the actress begged for her life. Atkins, who became a born-again Christian in prison and denounced Manson, tearfully recounted that confrontation during a parole hearing years later. She died in prison of cancer in 2009. She was 61. Leslie Van Houten Leslie Van Houten, a former high school cheerleader and homecoming princess, saw her life spiral out of control at 14 following her parents’ divorce. She turned to drugs and became pregnant but said her mother forced her to abort the fetus and bury it in the family’s backyard. Van Houten met Manson at an old movie ranch on the outskirts of Los Angeles where he had established his so-called “family” of followers. She didn’t take part in the Tate killings but accompanied Manson and others to the LaBianca home the next night. She has described holding down Rosemary LaBianca with a pillowcase over her head as others stabbed LaBianca dozens of times. Then, ordered by Manson follower Charles “Tex” Watson to “do something” she said she picked up a knife and stabbed the woman more than a dozen times. Van Houten, 71, earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in counseling while in prison and led several prison programmes to help rehabilitate fellow inmates. She was repeatedly recommended for parole, but two governors – first Jerry Brown and then Gavin Newsom – blocked her release. However, she was finally freed after Newsom announced last week that he wouldn't pursue efforts to keep her behind bars. Patricia Krenwinkel Patricia Krenwinkel was a 19-year-old secretary when she met Manson at a party. She left everything behind three days later to follow him, believing they had a budding romantic relationship. After he became abusive and bartered her for sex, she said she twice tried to leave him but followers brought her back, kept a close watch on her and kept her high on drugs. She testified at a 2016 parole hearing that she repeatedly stabbed Folger, then stabbed Leno LaBianca in the abdomen the following night and wrote “Helter Skelter,” ’’Rise” and “Death to Pigs” on the walls with his blood. Krenwinkel, 75, remains in prison. Krenwinkel contends she is a changed person but was denied parole more than a dozen times. She was finally recommended for parole last year but Newsom reversed the decision. Charles ‘Tex’ Watson Charles “Tex” Watson was a college dropout from Texas when he arrived in California in 1967 seeking “satisfaction through drugs, sex and rock ‘n’ roll,” as he explains on his website. He recalled meeting Manson at the house of Beach Boys drummer Dennis Wilson after seeing Wilson hitchhiking and giving him a ride home. Watson, 77, led the killers to the Tate estate, shot to death Parent as he was attempting to leave and took part in the killings that night and the next at the LaBianca home. He became a born-again Christian in prison and formed a prison ministry in 1980 that he continues to lead. Watson, who has authored or co-authored several books while in prison, maintains he has changed and is no longer a danger to anyone. He has repeatedly been denied parole. The victims: Sharon Tate Sharon Tate, 26, was a model and rising film star after her breakout role in the 1966 film “Valley of the Dolls”. She was eight-and-a-half months pregnant when she was attacked, and she pleaded with her killers to spare her unborn son. Tate’s mother, Doris, became an advocate for victims’ rights in California and was instrumental in a 1982 law that allows family members to testify about their losses at trials and parole hearings. Her younger sister, Debra, also dedicated her life to victims’ rights and testified at countless parole hearings for the killers, demanding they never be released. Tate’s husband, director Roman Polanski, was out of the country the night of the killings and has said it took him years to recover from the grief of losing his wife and baby. Jay Sebring Jay Sebring, a hairdresser to Hollywood’s stars, was Tate’s former boyfriend and also begged the killers to spare her unborn child. He was shot, kicked in the face and stabbed multiple times. Sebring had transformed the male haircare industry after graduating from beauty school in Los Angeles, and his clients included Warren Beatty, Steve McQueen, Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. He founded Sebring International in 1967 to market hair products and to franchise his salons internationally. Wojciech Frykowski and Abigail Folger Wojciech Frykowski and Abigail Folger had dined with Tate and Sebring earlier that night. The 32-year-old Frykowski was a friend of Polanski’s from Poland and an aspiring screenwriter. An autopsy found he was stabbed more than 50 times and shot twice. His 25-year-old girlfriend was the heir to the Folger coffee fortune. She managed to escape the house but was tackled on the front lawn and stabbed 28 times. Steven Parent Steven Parent, a recent high school graduate planning to attend college in the fall, had dropped by a guest house on the property to visit the estate’s 19-year-old caretaker, a casual acquaintance named William Garretson. He was leaving the property when Watson confronted him at the front gate and shot him to death. Garretson, who was briefly taken into custody, returned to his native Ohio soon after the killings. Except for his testimony during the murder trial, he rarely spoke publicly about that night. He died of cancer in 2016. Leno and Rosemary LaBianca Leno and Rosemary LaBianca, who owned a chain of Los Angeles grocery stores, had no connection to Sharon Tate or her glamorous friends. Their home was chosen at random by Manson, who tied them up and then, before leaving, ordered his followers to kill them. Among the weapons used was a chrome-plated bayonet. Other prominent players: Lynette ‘Squeaky’ Fromme Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, 74, a Manson “family” member who was not implicated in the Tate-LaBianca murders, was sentenced to prison for pointing a handgun at president Gerald Ford in 1975. Since her release in 2009, she has lived quietly in upstate New York. Linda Kasabian Linda Kasabian, the trial’s key witness, was granted immunity from prosecution. She had accompanied the killers to the Tate house but was posted outside as a lookout. In that position she said she saw some of the killings. The next night she remained in a car outside the LaBianca house as Manson tied up the victims, then left with him as the others stayed to kill them. The 20-year-old moved in with the “family” a few weeks before the killings and fled immediately after. She turned herself in to authorities after the others were arrested. Kasabian later changed her name and lived out of sight for decades. She died in Tacoma, Washington. She was 73. Bruce Davis Bruce Davis, 80, was convicted of taking part in the Hinman and Shea murders but was not involved in the Tate-LaBianca killings. He testified at his 2014 parole hearing that he attacked Shea with a knife and held a gun on Hinman while Manson cut Hinman’s face with a sword. “I wanted to be Charlie’s favorite guy,” he said. Parole panels have repeatedly recommended his release, but governors have blocked it. Steve ’Clem’ Grogan Steve “Clem” Grogan, 71, once a ranch hand at the old movie ranch where Manson had located his followers, was sentenced to life in prison for taking part in Shea’s murder. In 1977 he told authorities where Shea’s body was buried. Grogan was paroled in 1985 and moved to northern California. (John Rogers retired from The Associated Press in 2021) Read More Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten released on parole AP Was There: Cult leader Charles Manson and followers convicted for brutal California killings The creepy ‘million-dollar’ court battle deciding the fate of Charles Manson’s last possessions Linda Kasabian: Manson family member dies at 73

Las Vegas police have arrested a man who was barricaded inside a Caesars Palace hotel room with a female hostage, ending a standoff that spanned most of the day. “SWAT made entry into the hotel room and has taken the subject into custody,” the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said on Tuesday in a statement on Twitter. “The female who was also in the room is safe and with officers.” Earlier in the day, the man, who claimed he was armed, “forcibly” dragged the woman into his room, according to the LVMPD. The assailant was seen throwing large pieces of room furniture out of a broken window in his 21st-floor room. Police have not announced the identity of those involved in the standoff, or said whether any guns were found at the scene. This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information.

A man who says he is armed has barricaded himself in a room at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, police say, where the individual is holding a female hostage. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said they received a complaint of a domestic disturbance at around 9.15am on Tuesday. When they arrived at the hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip, the man refused to come out and told officers he was armed, police said. Vegas police said the man pulled a woman into his room “by force” and that she remains inside. “She is still in the room at this time,” a police spokesman said on Tuesday morning during a press update. “The female has been heard from and is still OK.” The officer added that no shots have been fired and no weapons have been seen. SWAT teams and crisis negotiators have been sent to the hotel on the 3500 block of South Las Vegas Boulevard. Police asked residents to avoid the area and watch out for emergency personnel. “We are actively trying to resolve this situation,” the LVPD said in a tweet. North Carolina real estate broker Alyssa Hellman told The Independent she was at the Caesars Palace pool with her wife when she heard a loud bang at about 1.30pm. She said she looked up to see that a window had been broken on about the 10th floor, and a man inside started throwing furniture out onto the concourse. “We heard a bang and then one of the windows was broken open, and the guy was throwing things out. Lamps, a TV and a minibar. He’s drawn the curtains now,” Ms Hellman said. Ms Hellman said guests were evacuated from the pool area, but staff did not explain what was going on. The couple had retreated to a safe distance and said everyone around them seemed “pretty calm and content”. “We’re tucked back hidden away, closer to the Bellagio,” she said. A video posted to Twitter showed security guards duck for cover as a television fell to the ground behind them. One guest told 8NewsNow that she had been swimming in the pool when a security guard ordered everybody out. The witness said she saw chairs being thrown from a window, which appeared to be completely smashed out. Caesars Entertainment said in a statement: “We are aware of the security incident at Caesars Palace. Our team is cooperating fully with law enforcement officers on scene who are handling the investigation.” Read More Caesars Palace standoff news - live: SWAT teams respond to ‘armed’ man barricaded in Las Vegas hotel room Las Vegas police officer set to go on trial over $165k stolen in 3 casino heists Oklahoma county sheriff and three other officials allegedly caught on tape talking about killing journalists Ex-student sentenced to 16-plus years in prison for 2022 attack on Las Vegas high school teacher

A man has barricaded himself inside the famous Caesars Palace hotel and casino in Las Vegas on Tuesday morning, claiming he is armed. Vegas police said the man pulled a woman into his room “by force” and that she remains inside. “She is still in the room at this time,” a police spokesman said on Tuesday during a press update. “The female has been heard from and is still OK.” The officer added that no shots have been fired and no weapons have been seen. SWAT teams and crisis negotiators are on site. A bystander told The Independent a broken window could be seen on the outside of the building, and someone inside was throwing objects out. Read More Armed man barricades himself in room at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas as SWAT teams descend

Susan Lorincz, the white woman accused of fatally shooting her Black neighbour, Ajike “AJ” Owens through the front door of her house, pled not guilty to a manslaughter charge on Tuesday. Last month Ms Lorincz, 58, was charged with manslaughter and assault in Marion County, Florida after shooting Ms Owens, 35, through her front door when Ms Owens knocked on Ms Lorincz’s door. Ms Owens, a mother to four, was trying to confront Ms Lorincz for allegedly calling her children racial slurs, taking their iPad and then throwing skates at her son when Ms Lorincz fired her gun. Authorities said Ms Lorincz and Ms Owens had a longstanding feud regarding Ms Owen’s children playing in an area next to Ms Lorincz’s home. On 2 June, Ms Owens went over to Ms Lorincz’s home to speak with her about the incident involving skate-throwing. Ms Lorincz then fired a bullet from within her home which went through the locked door and struck Ms Owens. The shooting occurred in front of her nine-year-old child. First responders’ attempted to keep Ms Owens alive and rushed her to a nearby hospital, but she did not survive her injuries. More follows Read More A Black mother confronted a neighbour for scolding her son. Then she was shot dead Body camera footage sheds new light on ‘racist’ who shot Black mother of four White woman charged after shooting through her door and killing Black mother in front of her son

Thousands of people living near the city's river banks have been moved to safer locations.

A 10-year-old girl from Illinois was found dead after being abducted while playing with her six-year-old sister. A woman told Rockford police that her daughter came home and said a man had kidnapped her sister just after noon on Saturday, a report details. At around 12.40pm, Rockford Police officers were flagged down by a man who said he found an unresponsive girl on the 1200 block of 9th Avenue. When the officers arrived at the scene, they performed CPR on the girl, before the fire department transported her to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Antonio Monroe, 44, is alleged to have abducted the girl. He is a convicted sex offender, previously convicted of criminal sexual assault. He has been charged with first degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery, and kidnapping, according to the police report. Mr Monroe was taken into custody and will be transported to the Winnebago County Jail after being released from the hospital for an unrelated issue, the report states. “From the time my phone rang yesterday in regards with this incident, my stomach has been in a knot,” Rockford Police Chief Carla Redd told reporters. “No one ever wants to get a knock on the door and hear from the police that your child has been murdered, especially an innocent child.” Chief Redd added both girls were strangled, but the younger girl escaped and was treated at a hospital. She has since been released. At a press conference, Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara described Monroe as a “real life monster.” The mayor added, “This is truly a real life nightmare and honestly probably worse than any nightmare or situation I can think of on my own.” Read More Friends and colleagues ‘appalled’ by lies about Princeton doctoral student kidnapped in Iraq Rudy Farias: A timeline of the bizarre case of the Texas man ‘missing’ for eight years Murder suspect arrested in multi-state manhunt is now on the run again after escape from Pennsylvania jail