Crime

Las Vegas’s CBS affiliate reports: Las Vegas Metro police arrested an evangelical pastor for allegedly having guns and drugs in a hotel room in an incident that initially sparked a counter-terrorism response, the 8 News Now Investigators have learned. David McGee, 61, faces drug and gun-related charges connected to his Aug. 20 arrest at the Strat Hotel Casino & Tower, …

CNN reports: Colin Gray, the father of 14-year-old Georgia school shooting suspect Colt Gray, appeared in court Friday and learned he could spend the rest of his life behind bars if convicted. Gray, 54, is charged with two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter and eight counts of cruelty to children after Wednesday’s mass shooting, which killed …

The Associated Press reports: The 14-year-old suspect in a shooting at a Georgia high school that killed four people will stay in detention as his lawyer declined to seek bail at a Friday morning court hearing. After the hearing, Colt Gray was escorted out in shackles at the wrists and ankles in khaki pants and a green shirt. The hearing …

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports: An arrest warrant affidavit out of Howard County in Indiana alleges that a former Gateway Church employee molested three girls all under the age of 11. A warrant for Scott Gerber’s arrest was obtained on April 26, 2023. The 65-year-old faces two counts of molesting a child under the age of 15, Howard County court …

The Associated Press reports: Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov promised to step up efforts to fight criminality on the messaging app, his first public comments since French authorities handed him preliminary charges for allegedly allowing the platform’s use for criminal activity. In a Telegram post late Thursday, Durov defended himself against the French judicial investigation, suggesting that he shouldn’t …

CNN reports: The father of the mass shooting suspect accused of killing four people at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, told investigators this week he had purchased the gun used in the killings as a holiday present for his son in December 2023, according to two law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of the investigation. Colt Gray, a 14-year-old …

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: Marcee Gray, the mother of the suspect in Wednesday’s Apalachee High School shooting, has a criminal record spanning more than 17 years and four counties, court records show. The 43-year-old has faced prosecution in Barrow, Fulton and Forsyth counties, accused of domestic violence, drug possession, property damage and traffic violations. She has also faced civil fraud …

Nashville’s NBC affiliate reports: The Wilson County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the shooting that left the home of Greg Locke, pastor of Global Vision Bible Church in Mt. Juliet, riddled with damage. The sheriff’s office said gunfire erupted outside the home late Tuesday night. Locke said he returned home with his family and found his home had been shot at …

Fox News reports: Naples, Florida, police arrested Mayor Teresa Heitmann on Aug. 28 for allegedly driving under the influence. Police initially responded to a residence in the 500 block of 16th Avenue South after receiving a call from a man and his wife saying an unknown woman in a silver vehicle had followed them from 12th Avenue South and 3rd …

From the Justice Department: A Florida man was sentenced to prison today after he previously pled guilty to assaulting law enforcement during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election. …

From the Justice Department: Ade Salim Lilly, 35, of Queens, NY, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 13 months in prison and 36 months of supervised release for threatening to kill a Congressional staffer and for conducting a campaign of pervasive harassing communications against members of Congress, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief J. Thomas Manger …

From the Justice Department reports: The Justice Department filed a civil lawsuit today in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against a man for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act. The FACE Act is a federal statute that prohibits use of force, threats of force or physical obstruction against anyone for seeking or providing reproductive health services. …

Politico reports: A Washington startup pitched as a service to integrate AI into lobbying is covertly run by a pair of well-known, far-right conspiracy theorists and convicted felons who are using pseudonyms in their new business, according to four former employees as well as photo and email evidence. LobbyMatic was founded last year by Jacob Wohl, who in 2022 was …

The Christian Post reports: A lawsuit filed against MorningStar Ministries earlier this month accuses founder Rick Joyner [photo], along with several top officials of the organization and multiple other staff members, of gross negligence for allegedly engaging in the cover-up of multiple incidences of sexual abuse in the ministry. The lawsuit names as defendants: Joyner, MorningStar Fellowship Church, Joyner’s second …

Reuters reports: A retired teacher was sentenced on Wednesday to five years in prison for threatening in obscenity-filled voicemails to harm a federal judge in Florida who had rejected a challenge to the state’s so-called “don’t say gay” law restricting classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity. U.S. District Judge William Jung in Tampa sentenced Stephen Thorn, 66, to …

The Central Jersey News reports: A 61-year-old pastor at a Throop Avenue church has been charged with sexually assaulting a child. Roby D. Cruz-Hernandez, of the Somerset section of Franklin, a pastor at Iglesia Pentecostal El Mesias, was arrested at his home and charged with sexual assault, a second-degree crime, and endangering the welfare of a child, a third-degree crime, …

Florida Politics reports: Rep. Carolina Amesty has surrendered herself to authorities at the Orange County Jail. Orange County Jail records show the Republican lawmaker was arrested on two counts of forgery, one count of illegally notarizing her own signature on documents, and one of falsely certifying a signature as a notary. All four charges are third-degree felonies under Florida law, …

The Batavia Daily News reports: A former youth pastor who took secret videos of a girl changing out of a bathing suit will serve seven years in prison. Nathan L. Rogers, 39, of East Aurora was sentenced Thursday in federal court for the incident that occurred in 2019 at Six Flags Darien Lake. Rogers was arrested shortly afterward. He was …

Winston-Salem’s NBC affiliate reports: Detectives in High Point have arrested and charged a man after a months-long sexual assault investigation involving teen victims. High Point police report they arrested James R. Murphey, 44, of High Point early Thursday morning. Officers found him at a home in High Point. Murphey is charged with 30 counts of sexual battery. Detectives said the …

NBC News reports: Pavel Durov, the CEO and co-founder of the news and messaging app Telegram, has been charged in France with enabling various forms of criminality in the app, French prosecutors said Wednesday. One of the charges — complicity in administering an online platform permitting illicit transactions by an organized group — carries a maximum penalty of 10 years …