truesee's Blog

Man Uses Debit Card To Buy Soda Then Attempts To Rob Store

Mar 4, 7:38 PM EST

Flustered W.Va. man uses debit card to pay for drink during alleged store holdup

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) -- Would-be robbers take note: Don't use your debit card during a holdup. A West Virginia man who police say attempted to rob a convenience store instead ended up buying a soft drink with his debit card - ultimately leading to his arrest.

Shawn Thomas Lester, 33, told the store clerk Monday he had a gun and wanted all the money in the register, police said. But the suspect got flustered when a customer walked in and the clerk told him to pay for the soft drink.

Lester handed over his debit card, then signed the receipt "John Doe" and left without any cash.

Police traced the debit card and found Lester, of Charleston. He told police he was only joking when he said he had a gun and demanded money.

He was charged with armed robbery in Kanawha County, according to a criminal complaint.

It was not clear whether Lester had an attorney. His phone number was unlisted.

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Information from: WCHS-TV, http://www.wchstv.com

Entry #183

$145,000 Stolen From Church by Man Dressed In Armored Guard Uniform

'Guard' gets away with $145K church deposit

 

LORI PILGER and COLLEEN KENNEY

Lincoln Journal Star

Wednesday, Mar 04, 2009 - 10:45:48 am CST

Police are looking for a brazen thief who went to Lincoln's Berean Church Tuesday morning dressed as an armored service guard and walked away with nearly $145,000 in cash and checks.

Lincoln Police Officer Katie Flood said a man who appeared to be a guard with the armored car service went to the church’s financial office Tuesday morning and told a woman he was there to pick up the deposit.

When the woman said he was a little early, he came back with a reason that sounded plausible enough, Flood said.

"'Carl' was handed the weekend offering of around $145,000, initialed the receipt and waltzed out," said Police Chief Tom Casady.

All but about $4,000 of the money was in checks.

The plot became clear 15 minutes later — when the real guard showed up to the church at 6400 S. 70th St.

The woman at the church told police the man who left with the deposit was white, in his late 20s, 5-foot-7 or 5-foot-8, around 150 pounds with short light brown hair, glasses and a couple of days growth of facial hair. He was wearing a dark baseball cap, dark pants and a shirt with an emblem that looked just like a security uniform.

She never saw his car.

"It sounds like he knew exactly what he was doing," Flood said.

Casady said the heist likely will go down as one of the most interesting of the year in Lincoln.

And, he said, he wouldn't be surprised if the same scheme doesn't show up elsewhere.

"Large congregations, beware," Casady said.

 Berean Church member Christina Peterson, an adjunct college instructor, hopes people don’t blame the church.

“I think it’s sad,” she said Wednesday morning by phone. “Berean is a wonderful church. They do a great job. I don’t feel like this is their fault at all. This man, he even had to know the routine. The people there (at the church) had no reason to believe he was anything other than what he presented himself to be.”

She wrote a $200 check on Sunday, so she’s pretty sure it was part of money stolen. Peterson said the church informed her by e-mail to call her bank.

“They’ve done everything within their power. It’s just sad that somebody decided to target a church that’s doing really well.”

While she’s being interviewed, another call comes in.

“Oh. That’s Wells Fargo.”

She calls back in a few minutes, says the bank told her they’re stopping payment on the check and are not going to charge her.

Story Photo

Entry #182

Man Puts Cat In Marijuana Bong and Smoked It

March 3, 2009

Neb. man says he put cat in bong 3 times

ERIC OLSON  
Associated Press Writer

A man who stuffed his girlfriend's cat into a makeshift bong and smoked marijuana through it said Tuesday that he had done it on other occasions and that it calmed the cat down.

Acea Schomaker of Lincoln said he never intended to hurt the 6-month-old cat, Shadow.

Lancaster County sheriff's deputies responding to a domestic disturbance at the residence ticketed the 20-year-old Schomaker on suspicion of misdemeanor animal cruelty Sunday after catching him smoking marijuana from a boxlike contraption that had the cat stuffed inside its 12-inch by 6-inch base.

Schomaker's girlfriend, Marissa Vieux, also was ticketed for animal cruelty because she didn't try to stop Schomaker, Sgt. Andy Stebbing said.

Vieux, 22, said she took in the cat about two months ago from friends who abused it.

Schomaker said the cat would bite and scratch them but he didn't want to discipline it by swatting or squirting water at it. He said they didn't bring it to an animal shelter because they feared it would be put down.

So Schomaker said he decided to use the makeshift bong because he had heard about people calming their pets by blowing marijuana smoke in their faces.

"I know for sure this isn't the first time someone has done this," he said. "I'm just the first one to get caught."

He said he put the cat in the bong a total of three times and it seemed to calm the cat.

"Every time we took her out she would pretty much just lay down and proceed to clean herself and act like a stoned person," Schomaker said.

The bong had a foot-long piece of garden hose coming out of a Plexiglas box, with the top secured with duct tape. Schomaker said it was constructed in such a way that the cat did not get immersed in smoke to the extent some might believe.

Schomaker said law enforcement and animal specialists lectured him about why what he did was cruel, and that he learned from his mistake.

This March 1, 2009, booking photo provided by the Lancaster County Sheriff's Dept., shows Acea Schomaker of Lincoln, Neb. He was booked Sunday on suspicion of animal cruelty, after deputies caught him smoking marijuana from a bong contraption that had a cat stuffed inside its 12-inch by 6-inch base. Schomaker told Lancaster County sheriff's deputies the 6-month-old female cat named Shadow had been hyper and that he was trying to calm her. Shadow was taken to the Capital Humane Society, where she appeared to be in good condition. (AP Photo/Lancaster County Sheriff Dept.)

A homemade bong, consisting of a piece of garden hose attached to a duct-taped plexiglas box, is seen in this March 1, 2009, handout photo provided by the Lancaster County Sheriff's Dept. Deputies responding Sunday, March 1, 2009, to a domestic disturbance call at a Lincoln, Neb., area residence, cited a 20-year-old man on suspicion of animal cruelty after catching him smoking marijuana from the contraption that had Shadow, a six-month-old female cat, stuffed inside its 12-inch by 6-inch base. The man told deputies the cat had been acting hyper and that he was trying to calm her down. (AP Photo/Lancaster County Sheriff Dept.)

Shadow, a 6-month-old female cat, is seen in this March 1, 2009, photo provided by the Lancaster County Sheriff's Dept. Shadow was rescued by deputies, who discovered the cat trapped in a "bong" after responding to a domestic disturbance call at a residency that a 20-year old suspect shares with his grandfather in the Lincoln, Neb., area. (AP Photo/Lancaster County Sheriff Dept.)

Entry #181

Is this the world's ugliest cat?

The BBC
Last updated at 16:14 GMT, Monday, 2 March 2009

 

 

A strange looking cat has been causing a stir at a veterinary hospital in America.

The cat's name is Ugly Bat Boy and he is bald apart from a furry chest.

Dr. Stephen Bassett was given the cat by a client and says Ugly is happy with the attention he attracts at his surgery in Exeter, New Hampshire, in the USA.

Hospital staff say the curious cat can scare and mesmerise people.

Entry #180

5 Year Old Boy Stabs 10 Year Old Sister Over Nintendo DS

French Boy Stabs Sister Over Nintendo DS

Luke Plunkett
Monday March 2, 2009
 8:30 PM 

 

A five year-old boy in the French town of Uckange has stabbed his ten year-old sister with a kitchen knife following an argument over a Nintendo DS, Le Post reports.

The incident occurred on Saturday night, and was prompted by the sister's refusal to allow her brother to play with her Nintendo DS. Upset over this, the boy took a kitchen knife and stabbed her in the chest. The children's mother was awakened by the girl's screams and she was rushed to hospital, where she remains (although her condition is not listed as critical).

There are further reports from a follow-up story by Le Post of the boy citing "inspiration" from a Power Rangers game that involved throwing knives, and of the family suffering from a history of domestic violence at the hands of their estranged father.

 

Entry #179

Rental Company Evicts Tenant By Mistake

Police: Rental company empties wrong apartment

Royston Sim
February 27, 2009

It was a shock when Edward Peterson returned to his downturn apartment last week to discover that it was stripped of everything, including shelves and drawers.

An hour or so later, police discovered that his landlord had cleaned out the apartment by mistake.

According to a Madison police report, Peterson, 36, returned to his apartment at 121 S. Han St. on Feb. 20 at 3 p.m. and found it emptied of all his furniture and belongings. He had left just five hours earlier, and everything was fine.

Peterson flagged down Madison Police Officer Nicholas Ellis in his squad car at 3:40 and he followed Peterson to his apartment to investigate what he assumed was a burglary.

The supposed burglar turned out to be Peterson's landlord at Hart Rentals, who had instructed a maintenance worker to clean out Peterson's apartment by mistake. Shirley Eckes, business manager of Hart Rentals, told Officer Ellis that the company wanted to clean out an apartment with the same number as Peterson's in a different building the company owns.

Maintenance man Dustin Sobacki told Ellis that he was already working in 121 S. Han on Feb. 20 when Eckes told him to clean out the apartment, the report said. Sobacki put all of Peterson's belongings into black garbage bags which he put into a trash bin on the east side of 121 S. Han.

Peterson recovered most of his property from the trash bin, the report said, and Hart Rentals returned Peterson's TV and TV remote, which Sobacki had kept in Hart Rental's maintenance office. Some items were still missing, however, including about 150 CDs with an estimated value of $1,500, a CD boom box, about $300 cash, approximately 100 astrology-related books; 10 DVDs, a cell phone and credit cards. Sobacki told Ellis that several people were outside the parking lot when he was moving items into the garbage and they may have taken some of Peterson's things.

According to the police report, Eckes told Officer Ellis that "whatever is missing from Peterson's apartment we will make him whole again." The report made no mention of criminal charges.

Peterson could not be reached for comment, and Eckes declined to comment on the incident when reached by The Capital Times.

Entry #178

Police Find Cocaine and Marijuana In Woman's Bra

Mar 2, 9:10 PM EST

Minnesota police find about 100 grams of marijuana and 4.25 grams of cocaine in woman's bra.

WINONA, Minn. (AP) -- A 20-year-old woman faces drug charges after police found cocaine and marijuana hidden in her bra. Buffalo County police notified authorities in Winona Thursday that a car headed their way may have been involved in a drug deal.

A Winona officer pulled over the vehicle and searched the woman. Deputy Chief Tom Williams said that turned up about 100 grams of marijuana and 4.25 grams of cocaine in her bra. He says she was also carrying about $600 in cash.

 

 

Entry #177

Woman with 2 wombs delivers twin girls

Mich. woman with 2 wombs delivers twins

Bithika Khargarhia

March 2, 2009

Mother has a condition known as uterus didelphyswomen.

New York, March 2: In a strange delivery case, a woman with two wombs has given birth to two healthy daughters - one from each uterus.

The northern Michigan woman, named Sarah Reinfelder, delivered the twins seven weeks premature via Caesarean section on Thursday at Marquette General Hospital in the Upper Peninsula.

The 21-year-old mother and her twin girls, Kaylin Joy and Valerie Marie, are doing fine, Dr. Connie Hedmark and Dr. Breanna Pond, who delivered the babies, said.

Doctors first delivered Kaylin, who weighed 3 pounds, 15 ounces, and then Valerie, who weighed 4 pounds, 15 ounces.

Although the babies are healthy and doing well, they still need to stay in hospital for several weeks until their lungs start working properly, Neonatologist Julie Frei said.

Sarah Reinfelder, born with a condition called uterus didelphys, which means she actually has two wombs, learned a few years ago after a miscarriage that she had two wombs.

Doctors have been calling Sarah Reinfelder’s delivery “miraculous”, and the baby girls “rare twins”, as the chance of conceiving twins, with one baby in each womb, is considered to be rare, happening to an estimated one in 25 million women.

Reinfelder already has a healthy 10-month-old son William with her husband Shane. Not very long after the birth of William, she came to know she was pregnant again - this time with twins.

"They told me your birth control isn't working, guess what, you're pregnant!" Sarah said. "I was like okay. And then they did the ultrasound and said guess what you're pregnant twice! And that's when I almost wet my pants."

Reinfelder and Shane, who are originally from Sault Ste. Marie, have been living in Marquette for about two months to be close to the hospital.

Uterus didelphys is a condition in which the womb develops in two parts, each with a single horn linked to the ipsilateral fallopian tube that faces its ovary. The condition occurs in one per 3,000 women. Women with the condition may be unaware of having a double uterus.

Although delivering twins in such a way is rare, there have been several documented cases of a woman having two wombs giving birth to a baby from each uterus.

In 2006, a British woman with a double uterus gave birth to triplets, a pair of identical twins from an egg that had implanted in one womb and then divided, and an infant from a single egg that implanted into the other womb.

In 1981, another triplet pregnancy in a woman with uterus didelphys was reported from Israel. In this case, one baby had died in utero, and of the remaining babies, one was delivered at 27 weeks gestation and the other more than two months later.

Entry #176

Woman Breastfeeding, Talking on Cell Phone While Driving Is Ticketed

Breastfeeding while driving gets woman a ticket

Kelli Wynn 

Dayton Daily News

Staff Writer

Friday, February 27, 2009

 

Note: Above link provides the actual 911 tape!
KETTERING — A Harrison Twp. woman faces child endangering charges after police said she admitted to breastfeeding her child and talking on a cell phone while driving, according to Kettering Police Officer Michael Burke.

The incident happened about 7:45 a.m. Thursday, Feb., 26, near the intersection of Far Hills Avenue and Dorothy Lane, Burke said.

A male motorist called the police department's non-emergency number to report that he had seen the woman breastfeeding and talking on a cell phone while driving, Burke said. The man reported that he also witnessed the woman driving a Honda minivan into the parking lot of a local school and saw some children get out of the van. The man then got the van's license plate number and called police.

"I'm following right behind her right now on Far Hills Avenue," the caller said as he spoke to a Kettering dispatcher in a recording of his non-emergency call that was released by police on Friday, Feb. 27.

"I tried to say something to her. She literally has the little girl on the steering wheel and I said, 'I can't believe you have that kid in your lap and she said, 'You want to pop your titty out and breastfeed this kid?' That's what she said to me. I'm like, 'You can feed your kid when you stop.' It's like wet out here. It's full of traffic. It's ridiculous. She's got like three other kids in the car."

The police came to the area and tried to locate the van, but could not find it. So they used the license plate number to track down her contact information, Burke said.

When a police officer spoke to her, she admitted she breastfed her child and also told police that she does not deprive her child when the child is hungry, Burke said.

The officer took the information and presented it to the city prosecutor's office. That's when Genine Compton, 39, of Elm Grove in Harrison Twp., was charged with a first-degree misdemeanor of child endangering and minor misdemeanor for unlawfully restraining her child, which Burke believes was under 2.

When police were unsuccessful with serving Compton her ticket and a court summons at her home on Friday, Feb. 27, an officer went to the school where the witness saw her drop off the children on Thursday morning. The officer used the descriptions the witness gave to locate Compton at the school and serve the tickets and summons, Burke said. Compton was not arrested.

When asked why the tickets and summons couldn't be mailed, Burke said, "It's legal documents. We have to personally serve them to the defendant."

If convicted of the child endangering charge, Compton could face up to 180 days in jail and fined between $1,500 and $1,800, Burke said. If convicted of the unlawful restraint charge, Compton could be fined up to $150.

"Our issue is not the fact that this woman was breastfeeding in public," Burke said. He added that Compton would have been charged even if the child was just sitting on her lap. "Our issue is that she created the condition that placed her child's health and safety at risk."

Entry #175

Man Post Ad On Line Wants Hit Man To Attack Girl Leaves Contact Info

Disgruntled ex posts ad for hit man online

Police: Man who wanted former girlfriend beaten put contact info in post

NBCNewYork.com
updated 9:51 a.m. ET, Fri., Feb. 27, 2009

NEW YORK - Sometimes people do stupid things. Posting an ad seeking a hit man to attack your ex-girlfriend is one of them, especially if you put your contact information at the bottom.

Newsflash: Cops surf the Internet, too.

Karim Emara apparently didn’t think twice, however. Emara posted an online personal offering $5,000 to the person who would assault his ex, police said. Not only did he want her hurt, the New Jersey man was specific about what he wanted done.

The ad called for an individual who would hit the woman in the knee with a blunt object — possibly a baseball bat — and permanently scar her face — possibly by cutting her, according to law-enforcement authorities.

Cops arrested Emara Wednesday night when he showed up at a prearranged location to give the hired brute his ex-girlfriend’s name, address and photograph. The AT&T computer programmer was charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault.

Emara was being held on $250,000 bail at the Bergen County Jail. His arraignment was scheduled for Thursday morning.

Entry #174

2 Young Women Rob Elderly Women To Throw Party

Tucson police: Women robbers wanted money to throw party

Alexis Huicochea
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona 
02.25.2009
Yuliana A. Galviz
Source: Tucson Police Departent
Two young women are in jail this morning after police say they robbed two elderly women at gunpoint to get money to throw a party.
Yuliana A. Galviz, 20, and 21-year-old Karina Hernandez-Benitez are now facing charges of armed robbery, aggravated robbery, aggravated assault with a firearm and forgery.
The women told a friend that they wanted to throw a party but they didn’t have any money, according to Sgt. Fabian Pacheco, a Tucson Police Department spokesman. That’s when they decided to victimize two elderly women Monday afternoon, he said.
The first robbery occurred just before 2 p.m. as a 70-year-old woman was walking towards the Home Depot near El Con Mall, Pacheco said.
The victim told police that a red sedan pulled up next to her and a woman in the passenger seat pointed a gun at her while demanding her purse.
She was stunned and unable to respond, at which time the gunwoman grabbed the purse and the driver drove away, police said.
The victim was able to memorize the license plate and gave the information to police.
Hours later the robbers began using the victim’s credit card to make purchases at several businesses.
They had purchased $236 worth of alcohol from a Fry’s grocery store, along with diapers and other items, Pacheco said.
They had also used the card twice at a service station at Park Avenue and 22nd Street, prompting police to respond there to obtain surveillance video.
While at the gas station, a detective spotted the suspect vehicle going south on Park, Pacheco said.
The women were pulled over and taken into custody in the area of South Sixth Avenue and Lincoln Street.
Hernandez-Benitez was determined to be the driver and Galviz was the passenger. Hernandez-Benitez also had her toddler daughter in the backseat of the car, leading police to believe that the child may have been present the entire time.
When taken in for questioning, the women admitted to having committed another armed robbery of a 60-year-old woman around 6 p.m.
That victim was robbed at gunpoint near West Valencia Road and South Santa Clara Avenue but was too afraid to call police.
“These women showed no remorse over what they had done,” Pacheco said.
Online court records show that Galviz has been arrested in the past on assault and disorderly conduct.
Entry #173

Man Robs Store Arrested While Taking Exam To Be A Policeman

Robbery suspect turns out to be police applicant

Greg Gross
Union-Tribune Staff Writer

7:50 p.m. February 27, 2009

CHULA VISTA Romeo Montillano wanted to be a Chula Vista police officer.

The Police Department wanted Montillano in handcuffs.

Police spokesman Bernard Gonzales said investigators identified Montillano as the suspect in a robbery at the Kmart on East H Street last Dec. 8. Then they learned he was signed up to take the police department's entrance examination two months hence, Gonzales said.

Then, even knowing he was wanted, Montillano showed up to take the test. Eventually.

In the robbery, a man stole a television set, DVD player and telephone from the store, then beat up store employees who confronted him in the parking lot.

Detective Ruth Hinzman telephoned Montillano. He told her he was in Las Vegas, but would be back in about three weeks to take the police exam, Gonzales said.

A skeptical but thorough Hinzman checked with her colleagues to confirm Montillano was signed up for the exam.

He was.

In a second call to Montillano, police Agent Henry Martin asked if he was planning on attending an orientation for police applicants on Feb. 18. Montillano said he would, Gonzales said, but he was a no-show.

End of the story? Not even close.

Montillano called police to apologize for missing the orientation, Gonzales said. He said his vehicle had been impounded in Las Vegas and he was trying to raise the cash to get it back.

At that point, detectives were convinced Montillano would realize he'd be arrested if he showed his face anywhere near police headquarters, and that they were now looking for a fugitive, Gonzales said.

Wrong again.

Five days after the missed orientation, police say the city got an e-mail from Montillano, saying he planned to catch a bus from Las Vegas to San Diego so as not to miss the entrance exam, Gonzales said.

Detectives doubted Montillano would show up, but they made plans to arrest him just in case.

So Hinzman and Martin were waiting at the registration table when one of the police hopefuls walked up and signed in: Romeo Ogilve Montillano.

The officers, momentarily stunned, called Montillano out of the exam room and into a nearby office, where they arrested him, Gonzales said. While he was being busted, Montillano asked two questions.

The first: Would he still be able to take to take the test?

No, he was told, his name was being removed from the list of applicants.

The second: Could he re-apply and maybe take the test later?

Montillano was booked into jail on suspicion of robbery, making criminal threats and grand theft in connection with the Kmart episode, Gonzales said. They later found that Montillano had been arrested in November on suspicion of a misdemeanor theft from another Chula Vista business

Entry #172

Deputy, Kicks, Strikes and Slams Girl, 15, on Jail Floor

Deputy Accused of Using Excessive Force on Teen Girl

Saturday, February 28, 2009

 

 

SEATTLE —  A King County sheriff's deputy kicks a 15-year-old girl, slams her to the floor of a jail cell, strikes her and pulls her hair in violence captured on videotape.

Prosecutors released the surveillance video in Friday in the assault case against Deputy Paul Schene, who is accused of using excessive force on the girl.

The footage shows the attack beginning after the girl enters the cell at suburban SeaTac City Hall and kicks off one of her shoes toward the deputy.

http://video.ap.org/?g=0227dv_wa_jail_video

Schene, 31, pleaded not guilty to fourth-degree assault in Superior Court on Thursday.

The incident last November began after the girl was brought in for an auto theft investigation, according to court documents.

"We believe this case is beyond just police misconduct, it's criminal misconduct," King County Prosecutor Daniel Satterberg said. "This is clearly excessive force."

Satterberg added the case is uncommon because cameras captured the entire incident.

Schene was investigated previously for shooting two people — killing one — in the line of duty in 2002 and 2006. Both times his actions were found to be justified, said Ian Goodhew, prosecutor's deputy chief of staff.

Calls by The Associated Press to Schene's lawyer Anne Bremner were not immediately returned Friday. Bremner, however, released a statement to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in which she said the video does not tell the whole story. Bremner had asked Judge Catherine Shaffer to not release the video to the media.

"As we argued to the judge, it will inflame public opinion and will severely impact the deputy's right to a fair trial," Bremner said.

In the video, a deputy kicks the girl, pushing her back toward the wall. The deputy then strongly backs the girl against the wall, and slams her to the floor by grabbing her hair. A second deputy enters the holding cell, while the first deputy holds the girl face down to the floor. The first deputy appears to hit the girl with his hands. The girl is then lifted up and led out of the cell while the first deputy holds her hair.

The second officer shown in the video was a trainee at the time and is not under investigation, Goodhew said.

According to court documents, the girl complained of breathing problems after the incident and medics were called to check her. A short time later, she was taken to a youth detention center and booked for investigation of auto theft and third-degree assault, the latter accusation dealing with her conduct toward the deputy. The girl has pleaded not guilty to taking a motor vehicle without permission, Goodhew said Friday, adding she was never formally charged with assault.

Schene told investigators through an e-mail conversation with his lawyer that once he was assaulted by the girl kicking her shoe at him, he entered the cell to "prevent another assault," according to court documents. Schene also said that the girl failed to comply with instructions in the holding area.

Prosecutors said Schene did not explain why he struck the girl after he had her in a holding position on the floor.

Entry #171

Firefighter Grows 100 Pounds of Marijuana

February 26, 2009

Firefighter Accused of Role in Marijuana-Growing Ring

JOHN ELIGON

New York Times

 

A New York City firefighter has been arrested on charges that he was growing more than 100 pounds of marijuana in the basement of a home in Queens, according to court records.

The firefighter, Patrick Murray, 33, was arraigned Wednesday in Federal District Court in Brooklyn on charges of manufacturing and possessing a controlled substance with the intent to distribute, according to Robert Nardoza, a spokesman for the United States attorney’s office for the Eastern District. Investigators said that Firefighter Murray belonged to a larger drug-trafficking ring.

Firefighter Murray did not enter a plea and was released on $250,000 bond, Mr. Nardoza said. If convicted, he faces 5 to 40 years in prison.

Firefighter Murray came under scrutiny during a broader investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

For about a year, the agency has been investigating a narcotics trafficking organization that grows marijuana in houses in Queens and sells it throughout the New York region, according to a complaint filed in court.

On Tuesday, the complaint said, federal investigators received a tip that Firefighter Murray was taking high-intensity discharge lights from so-called grow houses in Queens and loading them into a rented truck. The lights are used to grow marijuana indoors, the complaint said.

The tip led investigators to 88-23 237th Street, in Queens Village, the complaint said. There, they found Firefighter Murray sitting in a parked truck in the driveway, and he told investigators he was just making a U-turn, the complaint said.

Investigators searched the house and found a room in the basement with about 100 marijuana plants, the complaint said. The investigators recovered keys from Firefighter Murray that unlocked doors to the house and the room in the basement where the plants were found, the complaint said. It did not say who owned the house.

The agent investigating the house estimated the value of the marijuana found in the basement at $500,000.

Firefighter Murray, a five-year veteran of the department, has been suspended without pay, said James Long, a department spokesman. Firefighter Murray was based at Engine Company 292 in Woodside, Queens, Mr. Long said.

Entry #170

3 School Administrators Use Student, 12, To Buy Marijuana From Another Student

      LAPD probes drug sting run by school

Three Porter Middle School administrators were removed from the Granada Hills campus after L.A. Unified learned they had asked a student to buy pot from another student.
Jason Song
February 26, 2009
Porter Middle School administrators believed a boy was dealing pot on campus. So they allegedly sent a student to buy some.

The sting worked -- to a point. The student successfully bought drugs and the administrators at the Granada Hills campus reported the incident to authorities.

http://www.latimes.com/video/?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=3488048

But although Los Angeles Police Department officers are investigating the suspected marijuana dealer, they also are scrutinizing the three administrators who allegedly orchestrated the buy, said Michel Moore, an LAPD deputy chief, on Wednesday.

It is a felony to ask a minor to buy drugs.

The administrators have also been reassigned by the Los Angeles Unified School District to positions away from the Granada Hills campus, which was named a California Distinguished School in 2007, while the investigation is ongoing. In a letter to parents, Supt. Ramon C. Cortines said the school's principal, an assistant principal and dean had been removed.

Nobody has been arrested in the case, although the investigation is ongoing. The student who allegedly bought the drugs is not under criminal investigation, Moore said.

"We wouldn't expect an administrator to act this way with a student," he said.

A student told administrators Feb. 18 that a boy was selling marijuana on campus, according to police.

Three administrators, without consulting police or other Porter officials, then asked a student to purchase some drugs. Moore declined to say the amount of marijuana the student bought or how much he paid for it.

After the sting was completed, school officials then reported the incident to the district's Police Department, which investigated the incident.

Once L.A. Unified officials realized that a student had been involved in the drug buy, they immediately removed the administrators from the campus.

City police began investigating the incident Monday.

The district will pursue all legal measures against the administrators if the allegations are true, said David Holmquist, the district's chief operating officer, who said he had never heard of a similar situation.

"There is nothing more important to us than the safety of our students," he said.

District officials also said Wednesday that four male Taft High School students have been suspended for their alleged hazing of other students in the locker room shower late last month.

District officials reassigned six administrators Tuesday for possibly not reporting the incident in a timely manner.

Police say the victims were allegedly held down by other students and assaulted. Investigators are still trying to determine whether they were injured.

District sources said some of the alleged suspects were members of the boys volleyball team.

Investigators also believe that the hazing in Woodland Hills might be part of a series of similar incidents, Moore said.

"Every time we pull one layer back, we find another layer," he said.

The incident is similar to others in Ventura and Orange counties during the last dozen years in which student athletes were hazed as part of initiations.
Entry #169