Posts Tagged ‘Crime’
Evangelist Sentenced to 175 Years for Taking Child Brides
JON GAMBRELL writes on the AP via Yahoo News:
Evangelist Tony Alamo used his stature as a self-proclaimed prophet to force underage girls into sham marriages with him, controlling his followers with their fears of eternal suffering.
But the judge who sentenced Alamo on Friday to 175 years in prison for child sexual abuse warned of another kind of justice awaiting the aging evangelist. “Mr. Alamo, one day you will face a higher and a greater judge than me,” U.S. District Judge Harry F. Barnes told the preacher. “May he have mercy on your soul.”
Barnes leveled the maximum sentence against the 75-year-old, who preyed on followers’ young daughters and took child “brides” as young as age 8. A jury convicted Alamo in July on a 10-count indictment accusing him of taking the…
Florida Man Arrested for Calling 911, Asking for Sex
On the AP:
Florida police say a man arrested for repeatedly calling 911 looking for sex claimed it was the only number he could dial after running out of cell phone minutes. Tampa police said 29-year-old Joshua Basso made sexual comments to the 911 dispatcher and asked if he could come to her house. Investigators say she hung up, but he called back four more times.
He was arrested about 15 minutes later at his home late Wednesday and charged with making a false 911 call. Basso reportedly told officers that he didn’t think he would get in trouble for calling 911.
Tampa jail records show Basso is being held without bond but don’t indicate whether he has an attorney. He is listed as unemployed with arrests for theft and other crimes dating…
Bank Robbery Notes for the Unarmed
Banknotes is a fascinating collection of the actual notes and security camera images used during unarmed robberies. There seems to be a strange correlation of polite language and unsuccessful attempts. Crime pays, but it doesn’t pay to be nice!
I have a gun in my bag.
Give me $5,000 please.
Thanks a bunch.male, 20, Metro Bank, Wyomissing Hills, PA
UNSUCCESSFUL
This Mob Is Big in Japan
Jake Adelstein in the Washington Post:
I have spent most of the past 15 years in the dark side of the rising sun. Until three years ago, I was a crime reporter for the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest newspaper, and covered a roster of characters that included serial killers who doubled as pet breeders, child pornographers who abducted junior high-school girls, and the John Gotti of Japan.
I came to Japan in 1988 at age 19, spent most of college living in a Zen Buddhist temple, and then became the first U.S. citizen hired as a regular staff writer for a Japanese newspaper in Japanese. If you know anything about Japan, you’ll realize how bizarre this is — a gaijin, or foreigner, covering Japanese cops. When I started the beat in the…
Saudi Court Upholds Child Rapist Crucifixion Ruling
I have pretty strong feelings about this as a parent, so I can’t say I feel that the animal who was convicted deserves to be treated any better, but is crucifixion after beheading truly necessary, or is it just playing to bloodthirsty appetites? Story from Reuters:
RIYADH (Reuters) – A Saudi court of cassation upheld a ruling to behead and crucify a 22-year-old man convicted of raping five children and leaving one of them to die in the desert, newspapers reported on Tuesday.
The convict was arrested earlier this year after a seven-year old boy helped police in their investigation. The child left in the desert after the rape was three years old, Okaz newspaper said.
International rights groups have accused the kingdom, the birthplace of Islam, of applying draconian justice, beheading murderers, rapists…
How Gun Possession For Defense Backfires
Think that carrying a handgun could help protect you in a high-crime area, if, god forbid, someone attempts to rob or assault you? In fact the opposite could be true.
The American Journal of Public Health discusses a new study from the University of Pennsylvania which shows that in cases of assault, victims who are in possession of a gun at the time are a whopping 4.5 times more likely to get shot than victims who are unarmed. And, “In cases where the victim had at least some chance to resist, this adjusted odds ratio increased to 5.45.”
The conclusion, obviously, it that the idea of walking around with a concealed firearm for the purpose of self-defense is nonsensical. Not that this is going to change many gun owners’ minds.
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Leech Blood DNA Match Solves Crime
Leeches have been invaluable societal tools for centuries. And they are still proving to have use today; the The Daily Mail reports on how a decade-old crime in Australia was solved after police found a leech with the suspect’s blood:
An armed robber has been caught after his DNA was matched with blood from a leech found at the scene of the crime he committed eight years ago.
The creature was the only piece of evidence recovered from a farmhouse ransacked by Peter Cannon and an accomplice. But it was only when Cannon was arrested for a separate crime last year that the DNA match was discovered by Australian police.
It is the oddest way of convicting anyone I have ever been involved in,’ Detective Inspector Mick Johnston said. ‘I have not been able…
Social media an inviting target for cybercriminals
Steve Almasy writes for CNN:
It’s your birthday. And thanks to your Facebook profile, everybody knows that. Your wall fills up with well wishes from hundreds of “friends.”
Sure, it’s nice to be noticed. But security experts are skeptical about whether sharing information, such as birthdays, with a broad audience is a bright idea.
“It’s all about providing the bad guy with intelligence,” said Robert Siciliano, CEO of IDtheftsecurity.com. “Back in the day, spy organizations planted someone on the inside to get proprietary data. Social media is the man on the inside. We’re giving away all the intelligence for free.”
Many people use their birthdate in passwords and personal identification numbers, and security questions often ask for it to resend a lost password. So broadcasting a birthdate could help cybercriminals pose as others as…
