List of All Articles with Tag 'us crime news'

Three women were attacked in a string of Manhattan subway slashings in New York on Sunday, 18 June. Police on 19 June said they believed the same man was responsible for all three attacks, and released Metropolitan Travel Authority (MTA) surveillance footage of the alleged perpetrator. According to the New York Police Department (NYPD), the man attacked two women at the 86th Street and Lexington Avenue station, before slashing the leg of a third woman while riding a southbound 4 train. The first attack took place shortly after 4pm on Sunday, when a man wearing a Boston Red Sox cap approached 19-year-old Bianchelli Diplan and slashed her right leg with a sharp object. “I started up the steps and then I felt something [on] the back of my leg. So I like, hold on to it. And I saw there was blood.” Ms Diplan, who was on her way to buy a Father’s Day cake, told ABC7. “So I turned around I saw him and, like, he just stared at me and I was crying. And he just walked away.” She reportedly needed 19 stitches and is recovering at home. The NYPD believes he also attacked a 48-year-old woman at the same station before riding the 4 train to Brooklyn Bridge Station where he slashed a 26-year-old woman’s left leg at around 4.32pm. The cut was so deep that a tourniquet had to be applied on her leg before she was rushed to Bellevue Hospital with non-life threatening injuries, according to the New York Post. Surveillance footage shows the suspect jumping the turnstile at the Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall station after slashing his third victim. During a briefing on 19 June, NYPD Chief of Transit Michael Kemper said he was confident the perpetrator’s “identity will be obtained shortly”. “I’m also confident that he’ll be apprehended shortly,” Mr Kemper said. Ms Diplan urged commuters to “be aware of your surroundings” while travelling on the subway “because this could happen to anybody”. Anyone with information about the attacker, who is 5ft 8in and weighs 220 pounds, can send the NYPD a direct message on Twitter or call 800-577-TIPS. The attacks come one day after the death of a man who was found with fatal stab wounds on a 4 train at Union Square Station. Police have charged Claude White, a 33-year-old homeless man, with the murder of Tavon Silver. Charges against Mr White also include criminal possession of a weapon. While Mr White didn’t know the victim, police believe they became embroiled in a dispute which ultimately led to Mr Silver’s death. Read More Russia tried to kill ‘CIA informant’ in Florida, report says Missing Titanic submarine with five onboard may have 50 hours left as US accused of hampering rescue – live Inside Titan: Titanic-spotting submarine steered by video game controller Where is the Titanic wreckage? British Navy expert warns ‘timescale’ of missing Titanic sub is ‘very concerning’

Authorities in Idaho have revealed an alleged quadruple murderer opened fire on his victims after one of them exposed himself to the suspect’s daughters. Majorjon Kaylor, 31, has been charged with the killings of Kenneth Guardipee, 65, his daughter Kenna 41, and her sons 18-year-old Devin Smith and 16-year-old Aiken Smith on Sunday. The victims lived below the suspect and his family in a duplex at 515 W Brown Ave in Kellogg. The carnage last week shocked the community of Kellogg, with court documents shedding some light on the circumstances surrounding the shooting. According to an affidavit unsealed on Tuesday, Mr Kaylor reportedly told law enforcement that he “snapped” and “lost it” during an argument with his neighbours. Mr Kaylor and his wife, Kaylie Kaylor, told police that they were upset because several days earlier, Devin had allegedly masturbated in front of his bedroom window in full view of the Kaylors’ young daughters. The families shared a duplex, and the girls were playing outside in the yard when the exposure allegedly occurred. The incident was reported to the police, and the report was forwarded to the county prosecutor so a criminal charge of indecent exposure could be filed. But on Sunday evening, the Kaylors had an argument with the Guardipees over how the allegations were being handled. Police arrived at the house after reports of a shooting at around 7.20pm on Sunday. Mr Guardipee, his daughter and youngest grandson were found shot in the temple at close range, while Devin was shot multiple times in the head. Kaylor is being held without bond and has not yet entered a plea. A preliminary hearing has been set for 3 July. This is a developing story ... check again for updates.

It’s been 10 months since the name Harmony Montgomery first hit headlines across the US when a missing persons investigation was launched to find the seven-year-old girl. Since then, her father and stepmother have both been arrested and charged. A home where she used to live in Manchester, New Hampshire, has been searched for days on end. And a reward for information leading to her discovery has topped $150,000. But, despite the national attention and the painstaking efforts to find the missing child, who is blind in one eye, investigators made little headway. In a press conference in mid-January, Manchester Police Chief Allen Aldenberg admitted he was a “little discouraged”. Though concerning, the lack of progress was perhaps unsurprising as whoever had information about what happened to the little girl had a more than two-year head start on investigators. Manchester Police said Harmony has not been seen since around October or November 2019 when she was five years old. Yet, a missing persons investigation was only launched in December 2021. However, on Monday a definitive move was finally made on the case, possibly bringing the years-long investigation closer to a close; Harmony’s father, Adam Montgomery, was charged with murdering his daughter. When was Harmony Montgomery last seen? The last confirmed sighting of Harmony by law enforcement was on 11 September 2019 when Manchester police officers were called to the home on 77 Gilford Street in Manchester where she lived. Harmony was living with her father Adam Montgomery, who had been given custody of his daughter in February 2019, as well as his wife Kayla Montgomery and their children at the property at the time. The little girl had been in and out of foster care for much of her life. Then, in 2018, her mother Crystal Sorey lost custody of her due in part to substance abuse. Ms Sorey lived in Massachusetts so the child was moved to New Hampshire where Mr Montgomery lived. Chief Aldenberg previously said the last police callout to the property was in October 2019 but confirmed he had muddled the dates in a press briefing on 12 January. Despite the date change, the police chief said investigators are still working to the belief that Harmony was last seen in October or November of that year. This timeline appears to be based on police interviews and statements from various family members. Ms Sorey told police she had not been able to contact her since they spoke on a video call in April 2019. After that, she said Mr Montgomery cut off all contact between her and her daughter. Mr Montgomery claimed to investigators he last saw his daughter around Thanksgiving 2019, claiming that Ms Sorey had picked her up from Manchester to take her to live with her. The criminal complaint says that Mr Montgomery claimed to believe his daughter was living with his ex and did “not show much emotion or reaction” when officers said they were concerned whether Harmony was alive when they contacted him in December. His story was also contradicted by Ms Montgomery’s account, who said she last saw Harmony the day after Thanksgiving when her husband said he was driving her to see Ms Sorey. Mr Montgomery’s uncle Kevin Montgomery told investigators he has not seen Harmony or his nephew since late 2019 when she was five years old. Who has been charged? On Monday, Harmony’s father, Adam, was charged with murdering his daughter. Attorney General John Formella made the announcement Monday at the Manchester Police Department. “Earlier this morning, Adam Montgomery was arrested for the murder of Harmony Montgomery in 2019 and other related charges,” Mr Formella said. According to Mr Formella, Mr Montgomery is facing four new charges in addition to others brought against him in early 2022. Those charges are one count of second-degree murder for recklessly causing the death of Harmony; falsifying physical evidence for altering, destroying, concealing or removing the girl’s body; abuse of a corpse for unlawfully removing, concealing or destroying Harmony’s body; and tampering with witnesses or informants, which he allegedly did by attempting to coerce his estranged wife, Kayla Montgomery, to lie to investigators. “I do want to again express my deepest sympathies to Harmony’s family, friends and loved ones,” Mr Formella said at the news conference in Manchester. “We understand that today’s news, while significant for purposes of this investigation, is yet another difficult moment for those who loved Harmony and those who have followed this case.” The charges accuse Mr Montgomery of repeatedly striking Harmony with his fist sometime around 7 December, 2021. His arraignment is scheduled for 25 October, according to the Department of Justice. In early January, Harmony’s father and his wife were both arrested and charged on counts related to the missing child. Mr Montgomery was arrested on 4 January and charged with second-degree felony assault, two misdemeanor counts of endangering the welfare of a child, and one misdemeanor count of interference with custody. On the assault charge, he is accused of “striking [Harmony] in the face” sometime in July 2019, giving her a black eye, according to the criminal complaint. Police interviews with other family members revealed Mr Montgomery was allegedly abusive toward his daughter, including giving her a black eye, forcing her to clean the toilet with her own toothbrush and making her stand in a corner for hours as a punishment. Mr Montgomery’s brother Michael Montgomery told investigators he “had concerns that Adam was physically abusive” to the child and was “super short” with her. Kevin Montgomery said he noticed Harmony had a black eye in July 2019, which his nephew confessed to causing by hitting her in the face, according to the criminal complaint. “I bashed her around this house,” he said his nephew told him. Kevin said he contacted DCYF that time and had also noticed Mr Montgomery subject Harmony to other forms of “abusive discipline” including scrubbing a toilet with her toothbrush and her being “spanked hard on the butt”. Officials said Mr Montgomery was not cooperating with the investigation into his daughter’s disappearance and has refused to say where she is. The day after her husband’s arrest, Ms Montgomery was arrested on one felony charge of welfare fraud for allegedly fraudulently collecting welfare benefits for the missing child between December 2019 and June 2021. Ms Montgomery, who has three children with her husband, is accused of fraudulently obtaining $1,500 in food stamp benefits meant for Harmony between December 2019 and June 2021 even though the girl was not living with them. Prosecutors have now dropped that welfare fraud charge and added three new charges - one count of theft by deception and two misdemeanor charges of welfare fraud. The charges accuse Ms Montgomery of making intentional false statements about her stepdaughter’s whereabouts in February and March 2021 in order to claim benefits. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Mr Montgomery has a history of violence and a long criminal record including convictions for shooting a man in the head in a drug deal just six months before Harmony was born. He was also convicted in 2010 for attacking two women at gunpoint. It has also emerged that Mr Montgomery is a suspect in the cold case murder of a 28-year-old man in Lynn, New Hampshire, back in February 2008. Darlin Guzman was found shot in the chest in the parking lot of the former White Hen Convenience store in Lynn’s Austin Square on the night of 10 February 2008. He was pronounced dead in hospital. A law enforcement source told Boston 25 Newsthat Mr Montgomery, who was 18 at the time, and two members of his family, who were not named, have been the focus of the murder investigation since day one. The three family members had been in contact with the victim earlier that day and planned to meet with him at the convenience store, before the meeting culminated in gunfire, according to the source. The victim’s car was later found abandoned in the direction of Bedford, New Hampshire, where Mr Montgomery lived at the time. No one has ever been charged with the Mr Guzman’s murder but the source said Mr Montgomery remains the focus of the investigation to this day. Almost 14 years on from that killing, Mr Montgomery and his wife are now charged on counts related to his missing daughter, including, in her father’s case, her murder. Why was she not reported missing for two years? Questions arose over how a little girl could not be seen for more than two years without any action being taken by authorities. Multiple family members have said they raised concerns for Harmony’s safety with New Hampshire’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) over the last two years. Ms Sorey accused the authorities of “failing” her daughter. She said she made multiple attempts to report concerns to child services. On November 18 she contacted Manchester Police saying she believed her daughter was missing. Police officers contacted the New Hampshire Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) about the location of the missing child. Then, on 27 December, the DCYF reported that it was also unable to locate Harmony. Manchester Police announced a search was launched on 31 December. Ms Sorey was so conviced that her daughter was in trouble that she sent emails to the Manchester mayor’s office, begging for help in finding the girl. “Please, I’m begging for help in finding my daughter,” she wrote on 29 December. Ms Sorey said Mr Montgomery had never enrolled their daughter in school and that she has missed “important doctor’s appointments she’s had since a baby due to a disability in her eye”. The emails were sent just two days before police finally reported Harmony missing. As well as the repeated attempts to raise the alarm, the family was well-known to child services. Records released on 12 January showed that police officers were called to the Gilford Street home at least 10 times between February 2019 - when Mr Montgomery got custody of Harmony - and when she was last seen in the fall. Reports ranged from claims of domestic disturbances to animal welfare and concerns about the living conditions in the home. The DCYF was notified about some of the incidents. A neighbour told The Independent that it was a “bad situation” at the property, describing lots of people living there at different times, adults seen arguing in the street, junk left piled up in the yard, and the electricity being switched off at one point. “We didn’t intermingle with them as it was a bad situation,” she said. “There was lots of different people living there, piles of junk in the driveway, junk outside. “The electricity was turned off and they ran the generator all summer with the wiring running through the window.” The neighbour said the Montgomerys were “basically squatting” at the home when it had fallen into foreclosure and Mr and Ms Montgomery were refusing to leave. She said she went away for the Thanksgiving holidays in 2019 and returned to find the family had finally packed up and moved out. This coincides with when Mr and Ms Montgomery claimed they last saw the little girl. New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu announced on 12 January that the DCYF is carrying out an internal review of its handling of Harmony’s case. However, the governor defended the state’s work saying: “As soon as we found out that this child may not have been showing up for school for quite some time, it was reported up to us. “The team got right on it. It wasn’t a delay. It didn’t sit in a file on somebody’s desk.” An independent investigation was also launched by the Massachusetts Office of the Child Advocate after Harmony was moved from Massachusetts into the custody of Mr Montgomery in New Hampshire in February 2019. Officials in New Hampshire and Massachusetts passed the blame between each other. The New Hampshire governor sent a letter to Massachusetts court officials slamming a judge for placing Harmony in the care of her “monster” father, given his violent past and long rap sheet. Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker responded to the criticism saying he “felt his pain” but said he wants to wait to see the results of the independent review by the Massachusetts Office of the Child Advocate. The report, released in May, found placed the blame on state agencies failing to consider Harmony’s needs above her parent’s rights to her custody. “The central and most important finding in this investigation and report is that Harmony’s individual needs, wellbeing, and safety were not prioritized or considered on an equal footing with the assertion of her parents’ rights to care for her in any aspect of the decision making by any state entity,” Maria Mossaides, Director, Office of the Child Advocate, said in the report. “When children are not at the center of every aspect of the child protection system, then the system cannot truly protect them. This report describes the ripple effect of miscalculations of risk and an unequal weight placed on parents’ rights versus a child’s wellbeing.” Mr Baker responded to the report a day later by saying “everybody failed in this case,” and pushed a bill that included $50 million to recruit, train and pay guardian ad litems within the Massachusetts court system. “There are a lot of lawyers who are in the room on this case, and none of them at the end of the day had just Harmony Montgomery’s interest as a primary concern,” Mr Baker said. Where is Harmony? Investigators have revealed little detail about what they think may have happened to Harmony. The girl’s remains have still not been found. The Gilford Street property was the focus of much of the search with investigators seen in the home and the backyard for multiple days. However, Manchester Police said the search concluded there. It is not clear if anything of interest was uncovered and no other locations for searches have been identified. Around 300 tips have been received from the public so far and the reward for information about Harmony’s disappearance has topped $150,000. Anyone with information is asked to call or text 603-203-606 Read More Harmony Montgomery last seen one month before first thought as police chief says ‘somebody knows something’ Stepmother faces new charges in case of missing girl Harmony Montgomery Harmony Montgomery’s mother says daughter was ‘failed by everybody’ as police search home Harmony Montgomery neighbour says family moved on Thanksgiving 2019 – the same time dad says he last saw missing child

A man has appeared in court for the first time on four murder charges as he’s accused of shooting and killing a family with whom he shared a duplex in Kellogg, Idaho. Majorjon Kaylor, 31, appeared in Shoshone County Magistrate court in an orange jumpsuit on Tuesday morning, according to The Spokesman-Review. Mr Kaylor is facing allegations that he killed Kenneth and Kenna Guardipee, in addition to Devin Smith and a teenage boy who in the courtroom was referred to as AS. The family lived below the suspect and his family in a duplex at 515 W Brown Ave in Kellogg. Police arrived at the house after reports of a shooting at around 7.20pm on Sunday. Police found the family killed by gunfire in the home. More follows...

A 19-year-old Michigan man accused of threatening a mass attack on a synagogue will make his second appearance in court this week after the FBI arrested him on Friday and discovered a cache of weapons at his home. Seann Patrick Pietila, of Pickford on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, was charged with one count of interstate communication of threats after posting antisemitic content on social media, prosecutors said. He appeared in court on Friday and a detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday. According to prosecutors, Mr Pietila seemed inspired by mass shootings that included the 15 March 2019 mosque attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand which left 51 dead and 40 injured, The Detroit News reported. Court documents outlined how authorities found makeshift plans for Mr Pietila’s own event on the tragedy’s five year anniversary – 15 March 2024 – possibly targeting the Shaarey Zedek congregation in East Lansing, according to the AP. “The investigation began with a tip earlier this week that someone was making threats on Instagram to commit a mass killing, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court,” the AP reported. Officials said that a note was found in Pietila’s phone mentioning Shaarey Zedek and the date of 15 March 2024, the Lansing State Journal reported. The note continued: “Me and Limey, Equipment: hand-made pipe bombs, molotovs, Two Stag-15s, 12 guage shotgun and two back up Glock 18s AND a Akm full auto conversion,” the paper reported. On the same day the teenager was arrested, another man was found guilty by a federal jury of attacking.a synagogue 350 miles away in Pittsburgh in 2018. Robert Bowers was found guilty on all 63 counts he faced, which included hate crimes resulting in death and the obstruction of the free exercise of religion resulting in death. The ruling came more than four years after he killed 11 people during the Tree of Life synagogue attack. On 18 October 2018, Bowers walked into the synagogue with an AR-15 and other guns and began firing at the congregants. The attack would become the worst anti-Semitic attack in US history. In addition to the 11 people he killed, Bowers injured seven people, including five police officers who engaged him in a shootout. In Michigan, Rabbi Amy Bigman of Shaarey Zedek told The Detroit News the synagogue had notified its congregation of 220 families after learning on Friday afternoon about the Pietila investigation from FBI agents, and that an arrest had been made and that person had been charged, the AP reported. “We wanted our congregation to know that federal, state and local authorities are aware of the situation that didn’t happen because our law enforcement was on top of things, which we are thankful for,” Bigman said. If convicted, Mr Pietila faces up to five years in federal prison. The Independent has reached out to his lawyer. US Attorney Mark Totten said on Friday that Mr Pietila was “alleged to have communicated with others on social media and “evinced a neo-Nazi ideology, antisemitism, glorification of past mass shooters, and a desire and intent to mimic past mass shooters or mass casualty events,” according to the State Journal. Mr Totten said he was “incredibly grateful to the FBI for their swift action to identify and arrest Pietila,” the AP reported. “Antisemitic threats and violence against our Jewish communities — or any other group for that matter — will not be tolerated in the Western District of Michigan,” he said. “Today and every day, we take all credible threats seriously.” Read More Synagogue shooter found guilty in deadliest attack on Jewish community in US history Synagogue massacre survivor cried 'Mommy' as her 97-year-old mother was shot and killed by her side Rabbi recounts fear and heroism during deadliest antisemitic attack in US history US weighs in on Roger Waters antisemitism debate, says artist has long history of denigrating Jews Kanye West sparks controversy after serving sushi on nude women during 46th birthday party

An Ohio father allegedly shot dead his three young sons in the garden of the family home and wounded their mother. Chad Doerman, 32, was arrested in Clermont County and charged with murdering the three boys aged 7, 4, and 3, in the shocking incident, according to officials. The alarm was raised on Thursday afternoon when a female called 911 and screamed that “her babies had been shot,” reported ABC News. A second 911 call was then received several minutes later from a passerby who said that a young female had been running down the street screaming that “her father was killing everyone.” Clermont County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the home in Monroe Township, which is located 26 miles southeast of Cincinnati, where they found the suspect sitting on a step outside. He was taken into custody without incident. The sheriff’s office says that deputies then found “three unresponsive gunshot victims in the yard of the residence” and first responders immediately began life-saving measures. “All life-saving measures were unsuccessful and all three gunshot victims succumbed to their injuries while on scene,” they said. “A fourth gunshot victim, later identified as an adult female age 34, was also located outside of the residence. The female sustained what appeared to be a single gunshot wound to her hand [and was] non-life threatening.” Mr Doerman was interviewed by detectives and charged with three counts of aggravated murder. He was taken to the Clermont County Jail where he is currently being held without bond. David Gast, the chief prosecutor in Clermont County, spoke during an arraignment hearing on Friday. “The trauma that this man has inflicted on his family, community, law enforcement, first responders, and all the rest of us is unspeakable,” he said. “There has been a full admission in this case, the case is still new, we’re still discovering facts. But the evil horror of what we know is impossible to process. “In an act of incomprehensible cruelty, the father that stands before you lined up his three young boys and executed them in his own home with a rifle. In an act of desperation, the mother at some point grabbed the gun the father was wielding to attempt to protect them.” Read More DoJ releases scathing report of systemic abuse by Minneapolis Police after investigation prompted by George Floyd murder Synagogue shooter found guilty in deadliest attack on Jewish community in US history Clown performer’s 15-year-old son shot dead as he entertained children’s party

Paramedics in Baja California Sur who responded to the report of an American couple deceased in their hotel room said they felt symptoms consistent with carbon monoxide poisoning when they entered the room. Fernando Valencia and his partner were called to the Hotel Rancho Pescadero in El Pescadero around 9pm on Tuesday (13 June) after receiving reports that two Americans were unconscious. Upon arriving, Mr Valencia said he and his partner felt “dizzy” when they entered the room where they found 28-year-old Abby Lutz and 41-year-old John Heathco dead. “We went out of the room as soon as possible … I was afraid for my partner because my first thought in my mind was ‘are we going to die?’” Mr Valencia told Good Morning America. Lutz and Heathco were on a vacation in Mexico when they began to experience what Lutz’s family said are symptoms consistent with food poisoning. The two went to the hospital to seek treatment and by Monday (12 June) were feeling better. Between the time that Lutz texted her father on Monday and Tuesday evening, the couple died of “intoxication” by an unknown substance, according to the Baja California Sur attorney general’s office. Lutz’s family said they were told the couple’s deaths were due to “improper venting of the resort” with the possibility that it could be carbon monoxide poisoning. Mr Valencia called walking into the room “one of the worst experiences” of his life. He was especially worried for his and his partner’s health because he was working with his sister. The Baja California Sur attorney general’s office said in a statement that Lutz and Heathco had been dead between 10 and 11 hours by the time paramedics arrived. There were no signs of physical violence. In a statement provided to The Independent, Henar Gil, the general manager of Rancho Pescadero – a Hyatt property – said: “We are truly heartbroken by this terrible tragedy. Our hearts are with the impacted families and loved ones during this unimaginable loss.” “Local authorities are still actively investigating the situation, and the safety and security of our guests and colleagues remains a top priority, as always. We can confirm there was no evidence of violence related to this situation, and we are not aware of any threat to guests’ safety or wellbeing,” Ms Gil said. She added “We are working to care for those who have been impacted and we are working closely with authorities as they conduct their investigation to understand the cause of death. Further inquiries should be directed to local authorities.” US Department of State spokesperson Matthew Miller said they are “closely monitoring the investigation” into Lutz and Heathco’s deaths in a news conference on Thursday (15 June). “We stand ready to provide any consular – any appropriate consular assistance,” Mr Miller added. Read More An American couple were found dead at a luxury hotel in Mexico. Family fear they were poisoned Two Americans found dead in luxurious Baja California Sur hotel as family suspects carbon monoxide poisoning Thousands of dead fish wash up in Texas after overheated water chokes them of oxygen

The world first heard the story of American teenager Heather Mack and her mother Sheila von Wiese-Mack when the 62-year-old’s body was found stuffed in a suitcase in Indonesia. But the story actually begins many years earlier. Behind the headlines about the so-called “Suitcase Killer” is a tragic story of a mother who endured years of domestic violence at the hands of her child inside the home they shared in the Oak Park suburb of Chicago. Abuse which ultimately escalated to that day in 2014 when the 18-year-old and her 21-year-old boyfriend bludgeoned her to death at a 5-star resort in Bali. Rasul Freelain, a retired Oak Park Police sergeant who arrested Mack multiple times for allegedly abusing her mother, tells The Independent that the warning signs were there as soon as he met the pair for the first time back in 2010. What he saw was a sadly typical case of a domestic abuse victim reluctant to speak out or take action against the abuser that she loved. The violence grew progressively worse over the next few years until January 2013, when von Wiese-Mack made the chilling admission that she believed her daughter was going to kill her. But – due to the current lack of laws around child to parent domestic abuse – Sgt Freelain and the Oak Park authorities were ultimately helpless to save von Wiese-Mack from her fate. Nineteen months later, her tragic prediction became a reality. “It was like watching a slow-moving train derailment – we can see it and we all look and see it falling off into a ravine,” says Sgt Freelain. “I feel that on some level the entire criminal justice system failed Sheila.” He adds: “Her daughter of course failed her the most. Her child who she loved and raised and doted on and did everything she could to win her affection and approval betrayed her in a way no one could match.” Suitcase murder On 12 August 2014, Mack, then 18, and her then-boyfriend Tommy Schaefer, 21, bludgeoned von Wiese-Mack to death with the metal handle of a fruit stand at the luxury 5-star St. Regis resort in Bali. They then stuffed her body into a suitcase, hailed a taxi and loaded it into the trunk of the car. When they were unable to check out of the luxury resort – using her mother’s credit card – the couple fled the scene, leaving the bloodstained suitcase behind. They were soon tracked down to a budget motel and arrested on suspicion of murder. At the time of the murder, Mack – the daughter of socialite von Wiese-Mack and famed musician James L Mack – was pregnant with Schaefer’s child. Prosecutors revealed that she had flown her lover out on a $12,000 business-class ticket just hours earlier charged to her mother’s credit card. Chilling text messages also showed how the couple likened themselves to the notorious duo Bonnie & Clyde and plotted methods of murder with the help of Schaefer’s cousin Ryan Bibbs. They were both convicted of premeditated murder in Indonesia and narrowly avoided facing the firing squad. Mack’s baby Stella was born in Bali prison and was allowed to stay with her there for the first two years of her life. She is now being raised by von Wiese-Mack’s niece in Colorado. Bibbs was also convicted of conspiracy to kill von Wiese-Mack and sentenced to nine years in prison. After Mack served seven years in an Indonesian jail, she was extradited to the US, where she was arrested on charges of conspiracy to murder in a foreign country in November 2021. Since then, she has been behind bars in Illinois awaiting trial. On Friday (16 June), she pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to murder a US national under a plea agreement with prosecutors despite believing – by her own admission – that she has already done her time for her crime. It’s a horror case that has transfixed the nation for the past eight years and raised several questions due to the sheer brutality of von Wiese-Mack’s demise: How could a daughter have plotted her own mother’s death? How could she have then stuffed her own mother’s corpse in a suitcase? And why did she do it? But the bigger question – and one that has rarely been asked over the years – is could von Wiese-Mack’s murder have been prevented? History of violence In the years leading up to the murder, police records reveal that officers responded to a string of violent incidents committed by Mack against her mother at their home in Illinois. Oak Park Police records show at least 35 interactions with officers since 2008 including reports of Mack breaking her mother’s arm, biting her and punching her. The records also include reports of stealing credit cards and money – an apparent motive for the murder. While only Mack now knows when the violence first began, the first record of police being called to the home came in April 2008 for a report that the then-13-year-old had locked her mother in a room and threatened her. The next police report came in January 2010 when Mack allegedly punched her mother’s broken ankle. Sgt Freelain first met von Wiese-Mack in November of that year when she reported that her daughter had stolen her credit card and $1,060 cash. A detective specialising in youth and family issues at the time, he was assigned the case and says he met von Wiese-Mack in person and spoke with her on the phone several times. It was also the first time he met Mack, then aged 15. After interviewing her, Mack admitted that she stole her mother’s credit card but denied stealing the cash. “In that first meeting, I certainly saw how Sheila was torn in terms of what to do about Heather,” Sgt Freelain recalls. “She suspected and then knew that she had stolen from her but didn’t want to follow through on pressing charges against her daughter which is understandable but as things progressed that infliction would make things very difficult for us to be able to help Sheila. “In that first meeting it was clear something was wrong – in terms of both the financial side of things but also her daughter’s behaviour. “But it was the next time when I met Sheila in February 2011, that alarm bells really went off.” Sgt Freelain says that von Wiese-Mack turned up at the police department that night with her right arm broken and in a cast. In one violent incident that January, Mack had pushed her mother causing her to fall and break arm, according to a police report later filed. “Her body language – she looked so beaten back,” Sgt Freelain says of that day in February 2011. “In November, it was clear there was some kind of domestic dynamic that wasn’t good but Sheila hadn’t been forthright in elaborating about what was going on. “But that night I got her more comfortable talking and she opened up about the physical and verbal abuse. We established a good rapport that night that stayed over the next two-and-a-half years.” Von Wiese-Mack told him what had happened to her arm. “I told her ‘I’ve worked with families where the kids abuse the parents and it doesn’t fix itself’,” he says. “I told her about one case where a kid went on to murder their mother.” But when Sgt Freelain says he told von Wiese-Mack that they would have to arrest Mack and that she needed to press charges over the alleged attack, he says “reality hit” and she ran out of the police precinct. “She was so fearful of the idea of Heather being arrested,” he says. “I figured I would never see her again but she came back the next day to say she’d been attacked by Heather again. “An officer came and got me from the detective division and said a ‘woman is asking for you’. “I went out and it was Sheila Mack. She had been attacked and was crying and said ‘I’m sorry, I should have listened to you. Can you help me?’” He adds: “And that was the first day that I arrested Heather.” On 17 February 2011, Mack was arrested for the first time for domestic battery over the January attack on her mother that resulted in her broken arm. This marked a major step forward for von Wiese-Mack. Up until that point, Sgt Freelain says there was a pattern of her calling 911 to report Mack’s alleged attacks but then refusing to cooperate when police urged her to press charges. But it was a cycle von Wiese-Mack ultimately couldn’t get out of. Victim’s conflict “Her behaviour was completely consistent with other families I’ve worked with where kids have been abusive to the parents and in other broader situations of domestic or family abuse,” says Sgt Freelain. “It’s mirrored in what we see in intimate partner violence where the victim is very reluctant to speak out against their abuser. “Sheila’s conflict was ‘I don’t believe she wanted to break my arm, she was just mad at me.’ “It’s what we hear from so many victims of domestic violence.” Following Mack’s first arrest, von Wiese-Mack was given all the options for next steps and decided she did not want the case to go to court. But, by 14 April – less than two months later – Mack was arrested for a second time for biting her mother’s arm. Sgt Freelain was not the arresting officer in that case but, when he heard about it, he contacted von Wiese-Mack and urged her to seek court protection against her daughter. “The situation was escalating and I was trying to both keep Sheila safe and help Heather change her behaviour,” he says. “But Heather didn’t give things a chance and by the summer more and more reports were coming in about her behaviour.” Between that first arrest in February and the end of 2011, Oak Park Police records reveal no fewer than 10 separate interactions where police were called to the suburban home. The reports include incidents of biting her mother’s bicep, threatening her, running away and one where she is described as “out of control”. In early 2012, Mack was convicted of battery in juvenile court over the violence against her mother, according to Cook County juvenile records, obtained by The Chicago Tribune. Under the juvenile conviction, she was ordered to attend counselling, with a specific focus on anger management. Sgt Freelain says that the conviction initially caused von Wiese-Mack to distance herself from the help of police. “She went from thanking me for helping to navigate the chaos as Heather became more violent and aggressive to not speaking to me because Heather was detained,” he says. “You see it a lot in domestic abuse cases.” He adds: “We were going against Sheila’s hardwired desire to protect her own child. Heather was her only child – she was wired to keep her girl safe even though she was going to kill her.” As well as trying to protect von Wiese-Mack, authorities also tried to get Mack the help she needed to change her violent behaviour. Mack spent time at two separate facilities for juvenile offenders who suffer from mental health problems, receiving both inpatient and some outpatient treatment. As well as mental health services, Sgt Freelain connected the teenager with a female detective who specialised in connecting with at-risk girls who could act as her mentor. “My motivation was keeping Sheila safe but also saying what do we need to do for Heather to break this cycle,” he says. “It’s a duality we tried to balance.” Despite the efforts, the alleged domestic abuse continued. Throughout 2012, at least 15 police reports were made about Mack’s behaviour. ‘It wasn’t enough’ “Things then came to a head in January 2013,” says Sgt Freelain. As police records show, von Wiese-Mack confided in him for the first time that she feared her daughter was going to kill her. “When a victim says ‘I think this person is going to kill me, I believe them’,” he says. Sgt Freelain says he passed the information straight away to Mack’s probation officer who shared the same fears about the danger to von Wiese-Mack’s life. They tried to lay out a case that Mack had violated her court supervision and so should be jailed. But, von Wiese-Mack stopped cooperating again, he says, and so the case was dismissed in May 2013. The mother and daughter moved from Oak Park to Chicago, out of the jurisdiction of the police department. Fifteen months on from the case being dropped – and just over a year-and-a-half after von Wiese-Mack disclosed her fears for her life – her only daughter and her boyfriend beat her death. Sgt Freelain recalls the moment he heard about von Wiese-Mack’s murder. “I was driving my car and it came out on the local news radio… I had to pull the car over to the side of the road,” he says. “What Sheila said had happened. It was information overload. I started pounding the steering wheel and saying ‘no, no, no’ in the car. I couldn’t fathom that it had happened even though it was like watching a slow-moving train derailment.” Sgt Freelain says he also recognised the name of Mack’s accomplice Schaefer, having tried “to take him under my wing” while working as an officer at a school that he attended. For the retired detective, he is confident that he did everything he could under the law to try to save the 62-year-old. “In the police department, I felt we were very thorough in terms of documenting every interaction we had and trying to get Sheila to press charges,” he says. “I was the first person who arrested Heather and I arrested her four times in total. I worked to get her convicted and then tried to get her probation violated. “But it just shows it wasn’t enough.” Gaps in the law In the way was the lack of laws protecting parents from domestic violence at the hands of a child or teenager. In Illinois and many other states, there are laws protecting children from abuse by their parents and other adults. There are laws protecting elders from abuse. And there are also laws protecting adults from abuse by domestic partners and other adults in the home. But there are currently no laws in Illinois protecting parents from abuse from their minor children. What this meant was that, once von Wiese-Mack stopped cooperating and refused to press charges, authorities had no power to push ahead and take action against Mack. Sgt Freelain explains that if Mack had been 18 – and therefore an adult under the law – things would have been very different. As it was, Mack was just five months away from her 18th birthday when the case was dismissed. Sgt Freelain asks: “Why is Sheila any safer from a 17-and-a-half-year-old than from an 18-year-old?” “If Heather had been an adult, in Illinois there would have been all kinds of mandatory things that would have kicked in after even one attack,” he says. “She would have been put in jail overnight, there would be a list of restrictions, a mandatory appearance in domestic violence court, an almost guaranteed second court appearance and – even if Sheila stopped cooperating – we could have continued to prosecute Heather. “In other forms of domestic violence, we have things in place that even if the person tells the judge or prosecutors that they don’t want to cooperate, we can continue with the prosecution. But none of those things are in place for child to parent violence.” Because of the lack of laws recognising child to parent abuse, their hands were tied. Here was a case where the same laws that can be used to protect victims of abuse by their partner, child victims of abuse by their parents, victims of elder abuse, or abuse by any domestic adult within the home, could not protect a parent being abused by her child. The state of Illinois is far from alone with this issue. The very first law recognising child to parent abuse (CPA) also came into force in Florida six years ago. And von Wiese-Mack is also far from alone in her suffering. While CPA may be less common and rarely spoken about when compared to partner-to-partner violence or child abuse, it is still far too common. A 2018 study, which looked at 60 years of research, found that CPA exists in between 5 and 21 percent of families. Due to underreporting – perhaps in part due to a stigma on the issue – the true figures are actually expected to be higher. Von Wiese-Mack appears to have felt that stigma. Sgt Freelain recalls that she once attended a support group for domestic violence but, after finding herself the only person in the room being abused by their child, she never went back. While it’s impossible to know, Sgt Freelain believes that the system failed von Wiese-Mack and that her horrific and tragic death may well have been avoided. “I strongly believe that if the systems that are in place for adults who abuse women, if those laws and protocols had been in place for child and teenage abusers, then there would be a greater chance Sheila would not have been killed on August 12 2014,” he says. Logistically, he points out if the case hadn’t been dismissed by the court in May 2013 and Mack had been found in violation of the court order, she would have been sent to jail at 17 and turned 18 behind bars that October. Leaving jail as an adult, she would have then been on parole for any future domestic situations on her release. “It could have changed the dynamic,” he says. Need for change This is why the retired police officer is now pushing for a change in laws to recognise child to parent abuse and shore up the gaps in protections and available responses. He is also calling for more training for police and schools on CPA and improved access to mental health services to support young people like Mack. He is writing a book on the topic centred around this tragic case, with the blessing of von Wiese-Mack’s family. “There are gaps in the criminal justice system – do I feel it let Sheila and Heather down? Yes.” “Sheila lost her life and it’s had a catastrophic effect on people who cared about her and Heather. And it’s sad for Heather as well. I wanted the best for her too,” he says. “It’s a tragedy on all sides. “So I’m motivated by two things: to try to honour the memory of Sheila. We hear about her as someone shoved in a suitcase and about Bonnie and Clyde but what about the victim? She wasn’t perfect but she loved her daughter and wanted to give her the best life and no one deserves to be abused the way she was,” he says. “The second motive is to bring awareness of how this case is an extreme example of what can happen with child to parent abuse if we don’t bring about change in society. We have got to figure this out. “There’s not a day I don’t think about this case and about how families like Sheila and Heather need assistance. Where Sheila and I didn’t agree was because she accused me of pushing too hard and I kick myself now as I feel like I didn’t push hard enough.” This month von Wiese-Mack should be turning 75. Instead, her daughter has just pleaded guilty to conspiring to kill her and now faces up to 28 more years behind bars at her sentencing in December. The sad irony of Sheila’s case is that, were it not for the tragic ending, no one would ever have known the years of abuse she endured behind closed doors. “If it wasn’t for the suitcase, the world wouldn’t have known about this. The world knows because of the horror and because what they had to do to get her in there was unthinkable,” says Sgt Freelain. “But there’s more to it. It’s the unthinkable combination of years of unthinkable abuse.” Read More Heather Mack plea hearing – live: ‘Suitcase killer’ to plead guilty in US over Bali murder of socialite mom A body in a suitcase, Bonnie and Clyde fantasy and baby born in Bali prison: The chilling case of Heather Mack ‘Suitcase killer’ Heather Mack pleads guilty to conspiracy to murder – facing up to 28 years in US prison Heather Mack plea hearing – live: ‘Suitcase killer’ to plead guilty in US over Bali murder of socialite mom ‘Suitcase killer’ Heather Mack pleads guilty to conspiracy to murder – facing up to 28 years in US prison A body in a suitcase, Bonnie and Clyde fantasy and baby born in Bali prison: The chilling case of Heather Mack

An Arizona man who was convinced and sentenced to death in the death of a four-year-old was released from prison on Thursday (15 June) after serving 29 years in prison. Barry Lee Jones, 64, was accused of murder, child abuse and sexual assault in the death of his girlfriend’s daughter, Rachel Gray, in 1994. For nearly 30 years, Mr Jones has maintained his innocence that he did not sexually assault or kill her. Now, after a years-long appeal process, a Pima County judge ordered Mr Jones’s release after approving a deal that Mr Jones’s defence team struck with prosecutors who said a medical re-examination of the case didn’t support a finding that Mr Jones caused the girl’s injury. Mr Jones pled guilty to second-degree murder. The Arizona Attorney General’s Office said evidence supported that because Mr Jones was caring for Rachel at the time, allowing her to die as a result of her injuries. “After almost 30 years on death row for a crime he did not commit, Barry Jones is finally coming home,” Cary Sandman, a federal public defender who represented Mr Jones for over 20 years said as reported by the Arizona Republic. The case In early May 1994, Mr Jones drove his girlfriend, Angela Gray and her four-year-old daughter to a Tuscon hospital, where the child was pronounced dead upon arrival. Mr Jones had been living with his daughter, Ms Gray and her three daughters for approximately three months at the time of the incident in a trailer park in Tuscon. Doctors noted the young child had bruises covering her body and a cut on her head. An autopsy showed that Rachel’s death was caused by a small bowel laceration due to “blunt abdominal trauma” according to an investigation from The Intercept. Immediately fingers were pointed at Mr Jones and Ms Gray. Mr Jones reportedly said Rachel was injured while on his watch the day before but it was not his doing. The young girl had hit her head after falling from his parked work van. The four-year-old told Mr Jones a little boy pushed her out of the van and hit her in the stomach with a metal bar. However, the key witnesses comprised of eight-year-old twins and Rachel’s 10-year-old sister, claimed they may have seen Mr Jones hitting Rachel. Mr Jones was arrested and charged with child abuse as well as the murder and sexual assault of Rachel. He was found guilty by a jury in April 1995. However, in Mr Jones’s appeals, it is noted that the jury did not receive all of the information related to the case – like evidence that alleged Ms Gray had been abusive toward her children and potential predators interacted with Rachel. The appeal Mr Jones’s first appealed in 1997 but the Arizona Supreme Court upheld the conviction. He tried to appeal again in 2008, this time federally, but it was denied. Finally, in 2014, Mr Jones’s case was remanded to a federal district judge after new evidence emerged about the young boy who hit Rachel in the stomach with a metal bar. The federal judge called for Mr Jones’s release in a July 2018 ruling, concluding Jones’ earlier lawyer had failed to adequately investigate whether the girl’s injuries were suffered during the time she was alone with him. Experts testified that Rachel may have been injured earlier. The judge’s ruling was upheld by an appeals court, though Jones remained in prison. But the US Supreme Court reversed the decision a year ago, with Justice Clarence Thomas saying the federal courts are generally barred from taking in new evidence of ineffective assistance of counsel that could help prisoners. With Mr Jones still behind bars, his attorneys struck a deal with prosecutors for his release. Under the agreement, once his convictions and death sentence were thrown out, Mr Jones pleaded guilty to a second-degree murder charge in connection with his failure to seek medical care for the girl. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison and will be given credit for time served. Now that Jones’ death sentence has been thrown out, Arizona has 110 people on its death row. Read More Arizona woman alleges sexual assault by Trevor Bauer; he denies allegation and countersues Australian man sentenced to 9 years in prison for gay American's 1988 manslaughter US Marine among two men arrested for firebombing California Planned Parenthood Heather Mack’s mother told police she feared her daughter would kill her. They were powerless to prevent it Woman accused of murdering husband ‘pushed him’ while holding knife, jury told

Six people, including three children, are dead after a horror murder-suicide in Marion County, Tennessee, authorities say. Police and fire teams were called to an address in Sequatchie at about 9pm on Thursday night after neighbors reported hearing gunfire, neighbors told WTVC. The found six victims from the same family dead, and a seventh suffering from gunshot wounds in what authorities are describing as a “domestic incident”. Marion County Sheriff Bo Burnett described the scene as being 'one of the worst I've been involved in all my career as a law enforcement officer.' Breaking more to come

“Suitcase killer” Heather Mack has pleaded guilty in a Chicago court today over the 2014 murder of her socialite mother in Bali, bringing some sort of conclusion to the shocking case. In August 2014, Mack, then 18 and pregnant, and her boyfriend Tommy Schaefer, then 21, bludgeoned Sheila von Weise-Mack, 62, to death with a metal fruit stand while on vacation at the luxury 5-star St Regis resort on the Indonesian island. The couple, who described themselves as “Bonnie and Clyde” in chilling text messages, then stuffed her body in a suitcase and left it in the trunk of a taxi. They were both convicted of premeditated murder in Indonesia – narrowly escaping death by firing squad. After serving seven years in a Bali jail (where her daughter was born), Mack was extradited to the US where she was arrested on arrival in Chicago and hit with fresh charges of conspiracy to murder in a foreign country in November 2021. Since then, she has been behind bars fighting the charges but had a change of heart and decided to take a plea deal. Read More A body in a suitcase, Bonnie and Clyde fantasy and baby born in Bali prison: The chilling case of Heather Mack Heather Mack, convicted in mother’s murder in Bali, plans to plead guilty in US, attorney says

The Department of Justice has released a scathing report into the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD), outlining systemic abuses after a year-long investigation that began after the May 2020 murder of George Floyd. The Justice Department has found that MPD routinely uses excessive force, including unjust deadly force, the department revealed during a press conference on Friday. Attorney General Merrick Garland appeared with city officials in Minneapolis to speak about the blistering 89-page report. He said that the “patterns and practices we observed made what happened to George Floyd possible”. Mr Garland added that he spoke to the family of Mr Floyd earlier on Friday, noting that he told that his death has had a “irrevocable” on the city and the country, according to The New York Times. “His loss is still felt deeply by those who loved and knew him, and many who did not,” Mr Garland said. The attorney general ordered the probe in April 2021, nearly a year after the death of Mr Floyd. The report states that MPD uses tastes and firearms without properly assessing threats. The report notes that in one such incident in 2017, an officer was “spooked” by a woman reporting a sexual assault. DoJ also found that the MPD disregards the safety of those they take into custody, and that they failed to step in to prevent the unreasonable use of force, such as in the murder of Mr Floyd by then-MPD officer Derek Chauvin when several fellow officers stood by and didn’t intervene. The report also states that the practice of stop and search, that the use of force disproportionately affected Black and Native American residents, and that MPD wasn’t held accountable for racist activity until public protests ensued. MPD had been accused of using excessive force well before the murder of Mr Floyd. DoJ called the findings “deeply disturbing” and said that they “erode the community’s trust” in policing. The report found that it was “reasonable” to believe that officers are guilty of a “practice of conduct that deprives people of their rights under the Constitution and federal law”. The Department of Justice also accused MPD of violating the First Amendment rights of protesters and reporters at demonstrations. The city of Minneapolis has agreed to negotiate to possibly come to an agreement to be enforced by the courts that would put in place major changes to the city’s police. Similar consent decrees have been put in place in cities such as Chicago and Baltimore, in addition to several others. The report found that from January 2016 until August of last year, there were 19 police shootings in which “a significant portion of them were unconstitutional uses of deadly force”. Police at times discharged their firearms “without first determining whether there was an immediate threat of harm to the officers or others”. An investigation conducted by the state of Minnesota finished in 2022 found similarly outlined systemic abuse. The report states that Chauvin had been found to previously have used excessive force. DoJ found that several other officers “stood by” in multiple other cases involving Chauvin. DoJ also accused the city of not adhering to the Americans with Disabilities Act as they discriminate against those with behavioural health disabilities. The report states that “many behavioral health-related calls for service do not require a police response, but M.P.D. responds to the majority of those calls, and that response is often harmful and ineffective”. The federal probe found that officers in the Minneapolis force often failed to properly consider the health complaints of those they placed under arrest. “We found numerous incidents in which officers responded to a person’s statement that they could not breathe with a version of, ‘You can breathe; you’re talking right now,’” the document stated. More follows...