Crime

Durham’s ABC affiliate reports: A Durham pastor, who also worked as a substitute teacher, is facing 14 new criminal charges out of Wake County. Police accuse David Dixon of committing a number of sex crimes with an underage victim at his Raleigh apartment. This comes a week after Durham investigators arrested him on charges of statutory rape and indecent liberties …

The New York Times reports: It was as quick as it was brutal — captured in just a few seconds of grainy video from a police body camera. Arriving at the home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, two officers find an intruder and Ms. Pelosi’s husband, Paul, standing calmly, each with a hand on a hammer that the police demand …

From the Justice Department: A federal grand jury in Phoenix returned an indictment today charging an Ohio man for allegedly sending threatening communications to an election official with the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office. According to court documents, on or about Aug. 2, Joshua Russell, 44, of Bucyrus, allegedly left the following voicemail for an election official with the Arizona …

The New York Post reports: The man who allegedly beat Paul Pelosi within an inch of his life with a hammer had a list of other targets including Hunter Biden, Tom Hanks and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a court heard Wednesday. San Francisco Police Sgt. Carla Hurley testified Wednesday David DePape — who had gone to the Pelosi residence with …

Asheville’s ABC affiliate reports: A charge of driving with a revoked license against North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn has been dropped. Dashcam video showed a North Carolina state trooper pulling Cawthorn over in Cleveland County on March 3. The trooper reportedly pulled Cawthorn over for driving left of the center line. The traffic stop resulted in the Republican congressman being …

From the Justice Department: A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Texas returned an indictment that was unsealed yesterday charging eight men with conspiracy to commit securities fraud for a long-running, social media-based “pump and dump” scheme. According to court documents, Edward Constantinescu, aka Constantin, 38, of Montgomery, Texas; Perry “PJ” Matlock, 38, of The Woodlands, Texas; John …

NBC News reports: A Florida pastor and his son were arrested Wednesday on charges of fraudulently obtaining more than $8 million in federal Covid relief funds and attempting to use some of the money to buy a luxury home near Walt Disney World. Evan Edwards and his son, Josh, 30, were taken into custody five months after an NBC News report raised …

Norfolk’s ABC affiliate reports: A Norfolk man who served as a youth group leader was convicted of sexual abuse Monday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said. Charles Willoughby III, 39, served as a youth group leader at New Life Worship Center. According to the DOJ, between 2006 and 2012, he groomed teenage girls in the church’s youth program to try …

Via press release from the SEC: The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Samuel Bankman-Fried with orchestrating a scheme to defraud equity investors in FTX Trading Ltd. (FTX), the crypto trading platform of which he was the CEO and co-founder. Investigations as to other securities law violations and into other entities and persons relating to the alleged misconduct are ongoing. …

The Tampa Bay Times reports: Jeremy Brown, a former U.S. Army Special Forces master sergeant linked to the Jan. 6 insurrection, was found guilty Monday on six of 10 federal criminal charges related to weapons and classified information that authorities found in his Tampa home. After a weeklong trial, a jury of six men and six women deliberated about five …

ABC News reports: Sam Bankman-Fried, the embattled former CEO of cryptocurrency giant FTX and trading firm Alameda Research, has been arrested in the Bahamas on criminal charges, the Bahamas Attorney General’s Office announced Monday. The arrest “followed receipt of formal notification from the United States that it has filed criminal charges against SBF and is likely to request his extradition,” …

Gothamist reports: Subway station agents will leave booths to patrol platforms under a new policy announced by the MTA. The change goes into effect next year — and officials said the agents will be equipped with cell phones to notify MTA managers or the NYPD if they find problems in their stations. It’s a historic shift for the station workers, …

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports: A Christmas concert with Patti LaBelle at Milwaukee’s Riverside Theater came to a sudden and shocking end Saturday night, after a bomb threat forced the R&B legend to leave the stage mid-show and the near-capacity audience to evacuate the theater. Video taken from the Riverside Saturday shows the 78-year-old LaBelle chatting with an audience member …

Wichita Falls’ NBC affiliate reports: The pastor of a Wichita Falls church was jailed on charges of sexual assault of an 11-year-old girl whose family attended his church, Good Samaritan Outreach Ministries. Paul Coleman was in jail Saturday on charges of sexual assault and indecency with a child. According to the arrest warrants, an 11-year-old girl made an outcry at …

From the Justice Department: US Attorney Roger B. Handberg announces the return of an indictment charging Henry Troy Wade (45, Ocala) with six counts of wire fraud related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison on each count. In addition, the United States is seeking an …

The Marshall Independent reports: A 36-year-old former pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Sleepy Eye faces three felony 3rd-degree criminal sexual conduct charges filed in Brown County District Court Friday. Bail was set at $50,000 for Nathan Van Alfred Luong of Rochester. Luong is accused of having an inappropriate sexual relationship with a teenage female church member from about October …

Law & Crime reports: A Donald Trump supporter who brought multiple weapons to Washington, D.C. ahead of Jan. 6, 2021, and shouted at law enforcement officers that they were “going to die” and to “get out of the way” as rioters marauded through the building that day has been sentenced to more than five years in prison. Ronald Sandlin, 35, …

Gainesville’s PBS affiliate reports: The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Wednesday that Harding is accused of making fraudulent applications to the disaster-loan program. The release said Harding “made false representations in supporting loan documentation, in the names of dormant business entities, submitted to the SBA.” Harding was indicted by a grand jury on two counts each of wire fraud, money laundering …

Raleigh’s NBC affiliate reports: On Thursday, investigators issued multiple search warrants related to attacks on the power grid. The warrants, which will remain sealed, are on the state level. The FBI has also applied for a Federal Order to retrieve cell phone records to identify people in the area of the substations on Saturday night. They are still working on …

The Associated Press reports: The Colorado Springs gay nightclub shooter had charges dropped in a 2021 bomb threat case after family members who were terrorized in the incident refused to cooperate, according to the district attorney and court documents unsealed Thursday. The charges were dropped despite authorities finding a “tub” full of bomb-making chemicals and later receiving warnings from other …