Crime

The Buffalo News reports: A judge Friday sentenced former Rep. Chris Collins to 26 months in federal prison for igniting an insider trading scheme that also prompted his son, Cameron, and his son’s future father-in-law to break the law. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Vernon S. Broderick, according to a journalist tweeting from the courtroom, …

The Guardian reports: Prosecutors in Panama have found the corpses of six children and one adult in a clandestine burial pit where a religious sect was found torturing indigenous people in exorcism rituals. Prosecutors said the victims ranged in age from one to 17, and that the adult was a pregnant woman who was the mother of five of the …

ABC News reports: The U.S. Justice Department has charged a former Virginia college student with calling in fake emergencies to prompt law enforcement responses, in coordination with a group the FBI labelled as sympathetic to neo-Nazi ideology. John William Kirby Kelley, 19, was charged last week with conspiracy to make threats. He’s accused of being part of a network that …

The Detroit Free Press reports: Police now are seeking other men Mark Latunski met on Grindr. They know of two. A New York man born in 1973 fled Latunski’s home, jumped a fence and called police after becoming frightened during a consensual sexual encounter on Oct. 10. Then a 29-year-old Lansing man wearing only a kilt got “spooked” during a …

Roll Call reports: Former Speaker John A. Boehner is among a robust contingent of Republicans who want a judge to give convicted former Rep. Chris Collins a break on prison time. The requests for leniency say the New York Republican is a dedicated public servant, father and friend. But the attempt from current and former GOP lawmakers runs contrary to …

The Santa Monica Mirror reports: A man has pleaded guilty to using Craigslist, among other sites, to extort hundreds of thousands of dollars from Santa Monica and Los Angeles men who responded to ads offering gay sex services. 28-year-old Tyler Buchanan pleaded guilty Wednesday to federal felony charges using an interstate facility to facilitate an unlawful activity, transmitting threatening communications …

The Buffalo News reports: Chris Collins didn’t just destroy his congressional career and put himself at risk of imprisonment when he called his son Cameron to share an inside stock tip in June 2017. He destroyed his dream that his son would be his political heir. And he led Cameron and his future father-in-law into a scheme that turned them …

The Dallas News reports: A North Texas militia member and vigilante who led armed patrols of the Texas-Mexico border and was wanted by federal authorities died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to law enforcement officials. Kevin Lyndel Massey’s body was discovered Dec. 23 in Van Zandt County, according to the sheriff. Pending autopsy results will officially determine the …

The SPLC’s Hatewatch reports: “Alt-right” figure Augustus Sol Invictus was denied bond Thursday for charges of kidnapping, domestic violence and possession of a weapon during a crime of violence. Invictus, born Austin Mitchell Gillespie, has lingered on the margins of the modern radical right for years, using its growing visibility to preach his own violent, misogynistic and totalitarian worldview. In …

Reuters reports: Brazil has requested that the international police organization Interpol help find and detain a man suspected of attacking the office of producers of a controversial Netflix movie that portrayed Jesus as gay, authorities said. An arrest warrant was issued in Brazil for the suspect authorities say threw fire bombs into the headquarters of Brazilian comedy group Porta dos …

Politico reports: Rep. Duncan Hunter’s San Diego-area seat will remain vacant until 2021 once Hunter steps aside, potentially undercutting the GOP’s prospects for holding the district. While Hunter pleaded guilty to misusing campaign funds in December, he waited until Monday to formally set his resignation date for next week. Now California Gov. Gavin Newsom has confirmed he will not call …

The New York Daily News reports: A wacko customer at a Manhattan gay bar mailed a powder-filled envelope with a message reading “It’s called anthrax. Enjoy,” to an employee after he was threatened with a ban from the watering hole, prosecutors charged Monday. Unhinged patron Ameen Keshavjee, allegedly menaced the male employee at Nowhere Bar in the East Village starting …

Oregon’s Statesman Journal reports: A Turner woman is suing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for $9.54 million after her husband’s confession to church leaders led to his arrest, conviction and imprisonment on child sexual abuse charges. The lawsuit, which accuses local church leaders of violating confidentiality and the “priest-penitent privilege,” contrasts sharply with other cases accusing the …

Courthouse News reports: An elected official in metro Phoenix resigned Tuesday, months after being charged with running a human smuggling operation that paid pregnant women from the Marshall Islands to give up their babies in the US. The resignation of Maricopa County Assessor Paul Petersen came after leaders in the one of the nation’s most populous counties suspended and pressured …

The Denver Post reports: A Parker woman is accused of planning a raid to kidnap her child with help from a far-right conspiracy group, according to an affidavit filed by the Parker Police Department. Cynthia Abcug , 50, who does not have custody of her child, is accused of plotting the raid to take the child back with help from …

The Washington Post reports: Rep. Duncan D. Hunter will resign from Congress effective Jan. 13, two congressional aides with knowledge of the move said Tuesday, more than one month after the California Republican pleaded guilty in federal court to misusing campaign funds. Hunter submitted his letter of resignation to congressional leaders Tuesday, according to the aides, who spoke on condition …

The Detroit Free Press reports: A Michigan man has been arraigned for the murder and mutilation of 25-year-old Kevin Bacon who was found dead on Dec. 28. Bacon’s body was found in Mark Latunski’s home in the 700 block of W. Tyrrell Road in Bennington Township, a half-hour west of Flint. He was hanging naked from the ceiling, according to …

Variety reports: Harvey Weinstein has been hit with a new sex crimes charge for “raping one woman and sexually assaulting another in separate incidents over a two-day period in 2013,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey announced on Monday. He’s being charged with one felony count each of forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by use of force …

The Associated Press reports: An Indonesian man described as “the most prolific rapist in British legal history” has been sentenced to life in prison with a possible release after 30 years following his conviction for sexual offences against 48 men. Authorities said the evidence against Reynhard Sinaga, 36, indicates he had many more victims, with roughly 195 men apparently having …

The San Jose Mercury News reports: U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter of California is staying silent on when he will resign after he pleaded guilty to using campaign money for personal expenses, drawing the ire of a fellow Republican who wants to replace him. The six-term congressman said last month that he would step down “shortly after the holidays” but has …