Thursday, July 9, 2009

Alandus Weaver Charged with Murder of His 9-month-old Daughter

The father of 9-month-old girl who’s been missing for about a month has been charged with capital murder in her disappearance.

Dallas police Senior Cpl. Janice Crowther said Thursday that Denton County prosecutors filed the charge against 20-year-old Alandus Weaver.

Daisja Weaver has been missing since early last month after her 19-year-old mother, Tamaira Creagh, said a man broke into her apartment and kidnapped the baby.

Police eventually arrested Creagh on an evidence tampering charge, and she told police they dumped the child’s body into Lake Lewisville with a sandbag tied to it after she died while in her father’s care.

The father, 20-year-old Alandus Weaver, was arrested on suspicion of tampering or fabricating evidence to hinder an investigation.

The search of the lake for the child’s body has been abandoned.

Kristen Walters Arrested for Child Abuse


A three-week-old baby is at the University Medical Center Thursday suffering from a fractured skull, a broken arm and broken leg.

The baby's mother is in the Warren County Jail charged with felony child abuse. 24-year-old Kristen Walters of Oak Ridge Road in Vicksburg has been ordered held without bond by county judge John Price at her initial appearance today.

Sheriff Martin Pace tells WLBT that investigators believe the baby's injuries were inflicted Saturday night, yet the child was not taken to the hospital until Sunday morning.

After first being taken to River Region Medical Center in Vicksburg, the child was then taken to U.M.C. The baby has been placed in D.H.S. custody.

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Michael Forker Pleads Guilty to Child Porn


A man who worked at a shelter for runaway teens in Portland and was arrested six years ago in a child pornography case pleaded guilty last week after a long battle in the courts over evidence found on his computer.

Washington County Sheriff's deputies are now trying to find whether Michael Henry Forker, 31, lured children to his home and abused them, said Sgt. David Thompson, a sheriff's spokesman.

Forker lived at St. Mary's Woods Apartments, 4270 S.W. 159th Ave., in Aloha in 2003. He also lived for a time at Bonita Village Apartments, at 14650 S.W. 76th Ave., in Tigard.

Forker's Aloha apartment was searched in 2003 and evidence was found that led authorities to eventually accuse him of encouraging child sex abuse, Thompson said.

Thompson said Forker's attorney successfully argued that evidence gathered in the search of the apartment should be kept out of the trial. That caused the charges to be dropped, Thompson said, because the prosecution couldn't continue without the evidence that was found.

The decision to suppress the result of the search was appealed and in 2007 the decision was overturned. Thompson said the case was sent back to Washington County Circuit Court, and was set to go to trial on June 30.

Forker lost a number of pre-trial motions, including one to suppress evidence from the search. Forker then pleaded guilty to 10 counts of encouraging child sex abuse. He'll be sentenced on Friday, Thompson said.

When the case was first investigated, detectives found photographs that suggested Forker may have lured children to his apartment, but could not identify the children in the pictures, Thompson said. Detectives also found photos that were taken of boys in locker rooms they also couldn't identify.

Thompson said detectives are concerned that Forker may have victimized children who never reported it to authorities.

Prior to his arrest in late 2003, Forker worked at a shelter in Portland where runaway teens are able to receive services, Thompson said. He's been living in Sand Point, Idaho, for the last several years.

Anyone with information about crimes committed by Forker is urged to call Washington County Sheriff's Detectives at 503-846-2700.
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http://www.kptv.com/news/20004535/detail.html

Norman Kidd Sentenced for Distributing Child Porn

An Emporia man has been sentenced for distributing child pornography.

41 year-old Norman S. Kidd will spend 80 months in federal prison.

In March of 2009 he pleaded guilty to distributing the child pornography.

The investigation began in July of 2007 after the FBI found images of child pornography on Kidd's computer. They searched for the images through Limwire, a peer-to-peer file sharing program.

Former Principal Jonas Silverio Arrested for Molesting 3 Students

A former Lynwood high school principal has been arrested on suspicion of molesting three students at the school and another in the Whittier area.

Jonas Silverio, 40, was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon by sheriff’s detectives at LAX after flying in from the Philippines. He allegedly fled to that country in May and returned Wednesday, unaware that a warrant had been issued for his arrest.

Silverio is accused of molesting at least two members of the girls’ volleyball team at Lynwood’s Firebaugh High School, said L.A. County Sheriff’s Sgt. Dan Scott. He’s been charged with 17 counts of committing lewd acts upon a child and is being held on $1 million bail.

He resigned his position at Firebaugh High in early May after sheriff detectives began investigating the molestation allegations. The incidents allegedly occurred in 2001 and 2005. In addition to being principal, Silverio was the school’s volleyball coach.

Scott said their investigation is ongoing and that detectives are checking allegations that go back as far as 1996. Detectives from the Special Victims Bureau learned of the victim in Whittier/ Santa Fe Springs area during the investigation, Scott said.

Investigators are asking that anyone with information about Silverio conduct contact them at (866) 247-5877.

Neil Cohen Indicted for Another Child Porn Charge


A former New Jersey assemblyman has been indicted on another child pornography charge.

The new charge against Neil Cohen was announced Thursday by the state Attorney General's Office. Prosecutors say multiple images of child pornography were found on a computer seized from his law office in Montclair.

Cohen, who as a legislator championed bills aimed at fighting child porn, now faces five charges. He was originally indicted in December on three child pornography counts and one of official misconduct.

The 58-year-old Democrat has pleaded not guilty to the previous charges and remains free without bail.

Cohen's lawyer, Daniel McCarthy, did not immediately respond to a message left at his Cranford office on Thursday.

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Robert Leroy Baldwin Arrested for Possession of Child Porn

A 24-year-old Colorado man was arrested in Tool last Friday for possession of child pornography, Henderson County District Attorney R. Scott McKee announced this week.

Robert Leroy Baldwin was found in possession of child pornography videos at a home in the Cedar Creek Shores sub-division. He is currently in Henderson County Jail with bond set at $100,000.

According to information released by the DA’s office, officials received a tip which led to the arrest.

Early Friday morning, Sgt. Rick Simmons of the Tool Police Department received information about Baldwin. Simmons contacted DA Investigator Jody Miller, who along with Assistant DA Bridget Bateman, prepared a search warrant for the home located on Ridgewood Drive. The warrant was signed by 392nd District Judge Carter Tarrance.

Simmons, along with TPD officer Tonie Nichols, Cpl. Raymond Wennerstorm, and McKee executed the warrant around 8:30 p.m. Friday. Baldwin was taken into custody without incident.

During a search of the home, DVDs containing child pornography were found.

McKee said his office will continue to investigate the case and will seek assistance from the FBI to try and find the source of the videos.

Christopher Phillips Sentenced to 6 years for Attempted Sexual Assault

A Cañon City man was sentenced to six years in the Department of Corrections on Wednesday after pleading guilty to attempted sexual assault on a child.

Christopher Phillips originally was charged with sexual assault on a child. He was accused of assaulting an 8-year-old girl inside a Main Street business. He has a prior conviction for a sexual offense.

District Judge David Thorson also classified Phillips as a sexually violent predator, despite public defender Daniel Zettler’s request for a second psychosexual evaluation.

Phillips did not participate in the pre-sentence investigation with the probation department or the psychosexual evaluation ordered by the court.

Zettler argued his client misunderstood the purpose of his interview with probation officer Susie Vale. He said Phillips believed he already had stipulated to a DOC sentence.

Vale testified that when she went to conduct the interview she was unable to even get Phillips to sign the release allowing the psychosexual evaluators to come evaluate him.

“All I was able to go off of was the police report, because I was unable to get any information from Mr. Phillips,” she said. “He just walked away from me.”

Phillips also took the stand to explain his actions. He said he did not understand that he was refusing the evaluation.

“As far as I understood when she left, the people for the psychosexual were still coming,” he said. “I would definitely have completed the evaluation. I don’t see the point in being classified a sexually violent predator, I don’t believe I am one.”

Thorson did not accept the defense argument.

“I considered rejecting the plea agreement… because you refused to participate,” Thorson told Phillips. “I don’t understand what you thought you had to gain.”

Earlier in the day, Thorson dismissed one count of Internet sexual exploitation of a child in the case of James Ciric.

Ciric, 23, is charged in connection with an Internet Crimes Against Children investigation. He was arrested in January in Cañon City after a lengthy communication with an undercover police officer.

Thorson said the communications were enticing or inviting the fictional child to commit sexual acts at a later date, not during the communication as stated in the statute.

Ciric, of Houston, still faces four other charges — attempted sexual assault on a child, enticement of a child, Internet luring of a child, solicitation to commit sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust and conspiracy to commit sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust. He is set for a motions hearing in September.

Finally, charges were filed against the man connected with the death of Dalina Denell Turman.

Christopher Adonis Archuleta, 41, was charged with distribution of a schedule I controlled substance — heroin, tampering with physical evidence and abuse of a corpse. Deputy District Attorney Chip Cutler also included six counts of habitual criminal as a sentence enhancer.

Archuleta, of Cañon City, has a string of burglary convictions going back to 1987. He also had a 1994 conviction of possession of contraband.

Turman’s severely decomposed remains were discovered in the Chandler area on June 16. Archuleta told investigators that she had died of an overdose of heroin in his home on April 16 and that he had dumped her body because he did not want to go back to prison.

Nicholas Kelley Arrested for Sexual Assault

A Barre man with a disturbing past is behind bars for allegedly assaulting a teenage girl.

Montpelier Police say they arrested 18-year-old Nicholas Kelley on Wednesday, following an investigation into allegations that he'd had sex with a 14-year-old girl. Police already considered Kelley a person of interest because of his suspicious behavior. He was seen hanging around the Main Street Middle School and the Kellogg-Hubbard Library. When interrogated, he told police he was waiting for his sister. Investigators soon learned that Kelley doesn't have any relatives in the Montpelier Public School system.

Police say Kelley informed them that he is a convicted felon; he sexually assaulted a young child in South Carolina. However, he's not a registered sex offender; the law does not require him to register in Vermont. He also informed police that he was a gang member while living in South Carolina and made several statements regarding handguns he owns. Kelley was arraigned Wednesday for Sexual Assault of a Minor. He's being held for lack of bail.
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http://www.timesargus.com/article/20090709/NEWS02/907090333/1003/NEWS02

David Camp Arrested for Distributing Child Porn

The former chairman of the Moore County school board asked investigators to shoot him dead when he was arrested at his home on charges of distributing child pornography, a federal agent testified at a preliminary hearing Wednesday.

The agent testified that David Camp, 44, of Lynchburg was arrested July 2 on charges of sending sexually explicit images of young boys and young girls, some showing them involved in sex acts, to a Web site that was being monitored by agents in Los Angeles.

Camp's attorney, Brandon Raulston of Chattanooga, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Woods declined to comment after Camp was returned to custody pending a Friday bond hearing.

Camp was Moore County's school board chairman from October 2005 until September 2008.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Hendrix also said Camp told investigators he had been sending such images for about five years and had sent 10 to 20 the night before his arrest. Hendrix said compact discs and videos containing child porn were seized at the residence.

Hendrix testified there was no evidence that Camp personally created any of the images. Hendrix said the Web site also has a chat room where Camp wrote that he had sexual contact with a young girl.

"He was cooperative," Hendrix said of the interview before Camp was arrested and handcuffed. "At the end of the evening he asked us to shoot him, just to kill him."

Camp did not speak at the hearing. Woods told U.S. Magistrate Bill Carter that the case will be presented to a grand jury July 14.

Moore County schools director Chad Moorehead said Wednesday that he and board members were stunned by the arrest. Moorehead said the family's friends and acquaintances in the south-central Tennessee county of about 6,000 residents are praying for Moore and his family.

"I think I can speak for the board that we are all very shocked," Moorehead said in a telephone interview. "Our concern is for David and his family."
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More Information: http://www.whnt.com/news/sns-ap-tn--childporncharges,0,7186117.story

10% of Inmates are Sex Offenders

A check of the roster of the Potter County Detention Center reveals about ten percent of the inmates at the center are there on sexually related charges. Most of those are in jail for sexual assaults on children.

Potter County Sheriff Brian Thomas says he believes it's due to better enforcement and greater awareness. "There's probably a lot more cases that you see that are coming up and again I think that's due to the awareness and people going, wow, I think something's wrong here and they're reporting it more."

At Family Support Services, the vast majority of the sexual assault exams they conduct are done on children.

Crisis Services Coordinator Angie Stovall of Family Support Services says," "We had about 395 sexual assault exams last year, about 80% of those were child, sexual assault exams. Last month ... we had 35 sexual assaults and 33 of those were child sexual assault cases, so about 90% last month."

Secrecy helps keep predators safe. Stovall adds, "The perpetrator, the offender, he uses secrecy with a child, whoever he's offending. Also families keep secrets."

Thomas says that's why it's better to report. "We would rather go through the motions of investigating it and nothing be there than not get a phone call at all and something had been there."

Thomas adds professionals at schools, day cares and churches are better trained to recognize the signs of abuse.

Ricky Blackwell Arrested for Killing 8-year-old

A man put an 8-year-old girl in a headlock Wednesday and shot her to death, then shot himself in the stomach, authorities said.

The girl’s father is dating Ricky Lee Blackwell’s estranged wife. Spartanburg County deputies said Blackwell shot the girl twice in the driveway of a home where he had taken her and his estranged wife to swim and play. The home is in Chesnee, about 60 miles southwest of Charlotte, N.C.

Several adults and children saw the shooting and pointed officers toward Blackwell, investigators said.

Blackwell shot himself as police closed in. He was taken to a hospital but his condition wasn’t released.

The coroner’s office identified the girl as Heather Brooke Center of Woodruff.

Investigators said they weren’t sure of Blackwell’s motive.

“I don’t know where you can go in the mind to justify shooting a child,” said Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright. “I don’t understand how you can get so angry.”

The sheriff said Blackwell, 50, has a long criminal record. He was charged with murder and kidnapping. No one answered his phone Wednesday night.

“As soon as they called his name, I knew him,” Wright said. “I’d heard that boy’s name before.”

Summer Nelson Charged with Lewd Conduct with Child

An Idaho woman face charges that she had sex with a 14-year-old boy that she was hired to watch in August 2007.

KXLY-TV reported Tuesday that 28-year-old Summer Nelson, of Post Falls, was charged Monday with four counts of lewd conduct with a child.

Court records say Nelson was a friend of the boy’s mother. Police say the abuse was reported in December 2008, after the boy’s mother grew suspicious of Nelson’s attention Nelson toward the boy.

Investigators say Nelson told the boy’s siblings that she was in love with their brother. Detectives say Nelson and the boy had at least four sexual encounters.

Nelson remains held in Kootenai County Jail on $50,000 bond. It was not immediately known whether she had a lawyer.
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Information from: KXLY-TV, www.kxly.com/