Crime

CNN reports: Robert Kraft will not accept a plea deal offered by Florida prosecutors in the case against the New England Patriots owner and other men accused of soliciting prostitution at a Jupiter, Florida, day spa, a source familiar with the case told CNN on Wednesday. Prosecutors have offered to drop misdemeanor charges against Kraft and 24 other men in …

CNBC reports: Prosecutors in Florida reportedly have offered Robert Kraft, the owner of the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, a chance to avoid prosecution for soliciting prostitution in exchange for an admission that he could be proved guilty at trial. The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the billionaire Kraft, and other defendants recently charged in a sprawling prostitution …

The New York Post reports: Anthony Comello, 24, who even yawned during the highly anticipated appearance in a New Jersey courtroom, held up his left palm and revealed a large, bold “Q” written in blue ink in the center of his hand. It was surrounded by the phrases “MAGA Forever,” “United We Stand” and “Patriots in Charge USA.” “Patriots in …

The Associated Press reports: The man charged with killing the reputed boss of the Gambino crime family wrote pro-Donald Trump slogans on his hand and flashed them to journalists before a court hearing Monday. Anthony Comello, 24, was arrested Saturday in New Jersey in the death of Francesco “Franky Boy” Cali last week in front of his Staten Island home. …

CBS News reports: Police say a man threatened and intimidated members of a Phoenix mosque Saturday evening. According to the Phoenix Police Department, 40-year-old Noel Thomas Becht was reportedly acting suspiciously at the United Islamic Center of Arizona located near 35th Avenue and Yorkshire Drive. He first entered the mosque and told members he was curious about the Muslim religion. …

It was Rudy Giuliani’s prosecution of the Gambinos and other mob families that led to his election as New York City mayor. Today’s news is a big flashback to those days. The New York Daily News reports: Gambino crime family boss Frank (Franky Boy) Cali was gunned down Wednesday night in a gory hit in front of his Staten Island …

The New York Times reports: Paul J. Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign chairman, has been charged in New York with mortgage fraud and more than a dozen other state felonies, the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., said Wednesday, an effort to ensure he will still face prison time if Mr. Trump pardons him for his federal crimes. News …

Moments ago federal judge Amy Berman Jackson sentenced former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort to 73 months in prison. This was Manafort’s second sentencing in as many weeks and part of today’s sentence will run concurrently with the 47 month sentence handed down last week by federal judge T.S. Ellis. The New York Times reports: Paul Manafort, President Trump’s former …

NBC News reports: “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett on Tuesday appeared at a hearing in Chicago on whether cameras would be allowed in court for the criminal case alleging he staged a racist, homophobic attack on himself. He was not required to appear, but a representative told NBC News that Smollett chose to do so “to show confidence in his innocence.” …

Rolling Stone reports: Saturday Night Live opened with a comedic take on R. Kelly’s bizarre interview with Gayle King, with Kenan Thompson and Leslie Jones portraying the singer and CBS This Morning co-host. Jones’ King opened the interview by asking the singer why he made the decision to conduct an interview while awaiting trial for sexual abuse charges. “Because people …

CBS News Chicago reports: Jussie Smollett is now facing deeper legal troubles after a grand jury returned 16 federal counts against the actor for falsely reporting a hate crime attack against him in January. The grand jury returned the indictment on Thursday. Last month, Smollett was charged with a disorderly conduct count for allegedly staging a racist and homophobic attack …

The Wall Street Journal reports: The U.S. Bureau of Prisons opened an investigation into pharmaceutical wunderkind Martin Shkreli’s behavior behind bars, a bureau spokesperson said Friday. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Mr. Shkreli, 35 years old, is largely running his former drug company, Phoenixus AG, from his prison cell in Fort Dix, N.J., via a contraband smartphone. Mr. …

The Chicago Tribune reports: Musician R. Kelly was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon after failing to comply with a judge’s order that he pay more than $161,000 in back child support. More than a hour after Kelly entered a closed court hearing in the Daley Center, he walked out accompanied by Cook County sheriff’s deputies. “He’s in our custody,” said …

TV Line reports: R&B singer R. Kelly, charged with multiple counts of aggravated sexual abuse, angrily denied the accusations in a new, at times heated interview with CBS This Morning‘s Gayle King. Looking directly into the camera, Kelly, through tears, screamed, “I didn’t do this stuff! This is not me! I’m fighting for my f—ing life!” Kelly was arrested in …

The Birmingham Herald reports: A 45-year-old man convicted in the 1999 hate crime murder of Billy Jack Gaither has been killed in an Alabama prison. Steven Eric Mullins [photo] was found unresponsive Feb. 26 at St. Clair Correctional Facility, Alabama Department of Corrections officials announced Monday. The Department of Corrections’ Investigations and Intelligence Division is filing capital murder charges against …

The Guardian reports: George Pell is arguing his child sexual abuse convictions should be overturned or he should receive a retrial, because of a “fundamental irregularity” that prevented him from entering a not-guilty plea in front of his jury. The Victorian court of appeal has released Pell’s grounds for appeal against his December conviction for sexually abusing two 13-year-old choirboys …

CBS News reports: Billionaire New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft has entered a plea of not guilty on charges of soliciting prostitution while visiting a Florida massage parlor in January. According to court records obtained by CBS News from the County Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit in and for Palm Beach County, Kraft formally pleaded not guilty to the …

Raleigh’s CBS affiliate reports: McCrae Dowless has been indicted on seven charges in connection to an investigation into absentee ballot irregularities in the NC District 9 general election. Dowless has been charged with three counts of felonious obstruction of justice, two counts of conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice and two counts of possession of absentee ballot. Dowless was arrested …

The Charlotte Observer reports: Citing his health, Republican Mark Harris said Tuesday that he won’t run in a new election for the 9th Congressional District. “After consulting with my physicians, there are several things that my health situation requires as a result of the extremely serious condition that I faced in mid-January. One of those is a necessary surgery that …

CNN reports: One of the most powerful men in the Roman Catholic Church was found guilty of multiple historical child sex offenses at a secret trial in Melbourne in December, the existence of which can only now be revealed. Australian Cardinal George Pell, 77, is almost certain to face prison after a jury found him guilty of one charge of …