Marcus Cobbs Charged with Starving Toddler to Death

A former member of a religious cult backed out of a plea deal Friday and will face trial on charges that he and others starved a toddler to death because the boy refused to say "Amen" after meals.

Marcus A. Cobbs, 22, had agreed to plead guilty to a lesser charge of accessory after the fact. But his attorney abruptly withdrew the plea after a dispute with prosecutors over the conditions of his release.

Cobbs will now face trial in January along with three other members of the now-defunct cult known as 1 Mind Ministries. All four face charges of murder and child abuse in the January 2007 death of 1-year-old Javon Thompson and could face life in prison if convicted.

Had Cobbs pleaded guilty, he would not have admitted any role in starving the child. But he did help the cult members cover up Javon's death, according to a statement of facts read in court to support his guilty plea.

He burned a mattress where the boy's body had lain for several days while the cult members prayed for his resurrection, according to the statement. He also measured Javon's body, washed it, wrapped it in a blanket and placed it inside a suitcase that he bought, the statement said.

The cult members drove to Philadelphia with the suitcase containing Javon's body, where they hid it in a shed behind a home, according to the statement and other court documents. The suitcase remained there for more than a year before police found it.

Javon's mother, Ria Ramkissoon, was part of the cult and pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in death. She is expected to testify against the other members and remains jailed. At the time of her plea in March, she held out hope that Javon would be resurrected, and in an extraordinary arrangement, prosecutors agreed to withdraw her plea if that occurs.

Maureen Rowland, Cobbs' public defender, told the Associated Press she thought her client would receive a five-year suspended sentence and be released from jail immediately after pleading guilty.

"He was only taking it because he wanted to get out of jail," Rowland said. "If he was sitting in jail, it wouldn't be a good deal."

But prosecutors said they never agreed to his immediate release. Their tentative plan was for Cobbs to live with a relative out of state until after the trial of the other three cult members, said Joseph Sviatko, a spokesman for the state's attorney's office.

Attorneys did not bring up their disagreement about the conditions of Cobbs' release until after Baltimore Circuit Judge John Philip Miller accepted the guilty plea.

Clearly exasperated, Miller called the attorneys to the bench for a heated conference, after which Rowland announced that she was withdrawing the plea. Miller agreed to throw it out.

"You didn't have an agreement, it appears," the judge said.

Kevin Ferguson Arrested for Distrubing Child Porn

Maryland State Police have arrested a 30-year-old Pasadena man on child pornography charges.

Kevin Ferguson was arrested Thursday for distributing and possessing child pornography.

He surrendered to a state police investigator with the computer crimes. He was released with no bond.

Police said a state trooper found Ferguson's computer on a peer-to-peer network sharing pornographic videos of children that could be downloaded.

Officers confiscated multiple computers, hard drives and storage media from Ferguson's home. Troopers say they recovered dozens of videos and images of children engaged in sexual activity.

Ria Ramkissoon Guilty of Starving Child to Death Will Soon Be Released from Jail

A Maryland woman who pleaded guilty last March to child abuse resulting in the starvation death of her one year-old son at the hands of a Baltimore-based religious cult will soon be released from jail.

Ria Ramkissoon will receive a 20-year suspended sentence for testifying against Queen Antoinette who led the cult called One Mind Ministries, who instructed Ramkissoon to deprive young Javon Thompson of food and water for not saying amen before meals. The infant who died in Baltimore was later found in a suitcase in Philadelphia. Ramkissoon’s lawyer reported that cult members believed if the body could travel with them, the child could be resurrected.

The mother was one of five cult members charged in Javon’s death; she has agreed to testify against those involved in addition to Queen Antoinette. Both defense and prosecuting attorneys have moved to send Ramkissoon to counseling.

Paul Matthew Green Sentenced to 63 Months for Child Porn

U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams, Jr. sentenced Paul Matthew Green, 38 of Solomons, on August 17, to 63 months in prison followed by supervised release for life for receipt of child pornography, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. As a consequence of his conviction, Green will also be required to register as a sex offender in the place where he resides and where he is an employee, pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.

According to Green’s plea agreement, in April 2006, ICE began an investigation into an organization operating commercial child pornography websites, which offered individuals monthly access to restricted websites for a fee. ICE agents were able to identify individuals that were paying for access to these illicit sites, including Green. One of the websites to which Green purchased access contained video recordings documenting the sexual abuse of prepubescent females and minor males. Additionally, Green bought access to other child pornography websites on at least six occasions over a two month period. ICE agents interviewed Green on December 13, 2007 and searched his residence. Green admitted that he purchased access to those websites and viewed child pornography on the internet.

ICE agents reviewed the contents of computers seized from Green’s residence, which contained at least 2,944 images and 101 movies containing child pornography. The majority of those images involved pre-pubescent children, some appearing to be as young as five years old.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. Details about Maryland’s program are available at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/md/Safe-Childhood/index.html
.

Moises Acurio-Suarez Arrested for Raping 7-year-old

A Georgetown man is behind bars on multiple charges after being accused of raping a 7-year-old boy at least four different times.

Georgetown police were contacted Wednesday by staffers at Nanticoke Memorial Hospital who stated that there was a 7-year-old boy being examined for a possible sexual assault. Police say the exam revealed injuries to the victim that were consistent with sexual assault.

According to police, a further investigation revealed that 21-year-old Moises A. Acurio-Suarez was a neighbor of the boy. Police say that at times the boy's mother would drop him off at Acurio-Suarez's home to be baby-sat while the mother would go to work.

Police say that on Wednesday, the boy told his mother that he did not want to be dropped off at Acurio-Suarez's home anymore because Acurio-Suarez was having sex with him.

According to police, the Children's Advocacy Center also interviewed the child who disclosed that on at least four different occasions Acurio-Suarez made him have sexual intercourse.

Acurio-Suarez was taken into custody and according to investigators, admitted that the boy's allegations were true. Police say the only reason Acurio-Suarez gave for the sexual assault was that his family rejected him at a young age.

Acurio-Suarez was charged with four counts of first-degree rape, one count of second-degree, felony endangering the welfare of a child, and unlawful imprisonment. He was jailed in in lieu of $237,000 cash bond.

Christopher Scott Fowble Arrested for Solicitation of Minor

State Police have arrested a 30-year-old Baltimore City man for allegedly planning to have sex with a 13-year-old girl.

Troopers says Christopher Scott Fowble of the 800-block of South Darby Street was arrested this morning.

Troopers say Fowble entered an online chat-room in June looking for a teenage girl to have sex.

An undercover trooper assumed the identity of the teen, and after a number of weeks of conversation Fowble agreed to a meeting.

Troopers say the conversations had sexual overtones or were discussions of the two meeting for sex.
______________________
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/ap/53058857.html
The suspect was arrested at the meeting place this morning.

He is charged with one count of solicitation of a minor, and could face up to ten years in prison if convicted.

Ralph Walls Guilty of Possessing Child Porn

A Clinton man pleaded guilty Tuesday to possession of child pornography after police found child pornography images and videos on his computer in December.

Police found 15 videos and five images displaying child pornography on a computer belonging to Ralph Walls, 60, according to his plea agreement.

Walls faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for receipt of child pornography and 10 years in prison for possession of child pornography, followed by supervised release up to a life sentence, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland.

A search warrant for Walls' home was obtained in December after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Louisiana found Walls was sharing more than 200 sexually explicit files online.

The initiative is part of Project Safe Childhood, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation.

Walls' sentencing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Nov. 9 in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt.

Walls' attorney, Timothy Sullivan, did not immediately return calls Tuesday.

Audey Frances Murphy Pleads Guilty to Possesion of Child Porn

Audey Frances Murphy, 45, of Dundalk, Md., pleaded guilty today to possession of child pornography, announced U. S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein, as a result of an investigation involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ).

According to his plea agreement, Murphy was sentenced to eight years in prison on Jan. 31, 2001, after being convicted of second degree rape in state court involving the repeated sexual abuse of a minor female over a two year period, beginning when the victim was 11 years old. As a result of the conviction, Murphy was required to register as a sex offender.

Murphy was released from custody in November 2006, but in October 2007, a family member reported to authorities that Murphy had unauthorized contact with minors, specifically, that Murphy had picked up his brother's minor children from school. Murphy was arrested on Oct. 11, 2007, was found to be in violation of his parole and ordered to serve the balance of his original sentence, which translated into a projected release date in January 2009.

An unrelated child pornography investigation led Maryland State Police to the Dundalk home of Murphy's mother on Nov. 15, 2007. Murphy's mother confirmed that Murphy had lived in her upstairs bedroom, and that he had used the computers in both his room and in the den. On March 3, 2008, Maryland State Police executed a search warrant at the residence and seized the computers, including the computer from Murphy's bedroom. Forensic analysis of the computer revealed 71 videos of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct, including a video depicting bondage and bestiality with a pre-pubescent female.

Murphy faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, followed by supervised release up to life. U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz scheduled sentencing for Sept. 24, 2009 at 9:00 a.m.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section ( CEOS ), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. Details about Maryland's program are available at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/md/Safe-Childhood/index.html.

Rosenstein praised ICE and the Maryland State Police for their investigation. Rosenstein also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Solette A. Magnelli and Judson T. Mihok, who are prosecuting the case.

John Kovach Arrested for Child Porn

A teacher and field hockey coach is now facing a federal indictment on child pornography charges.

Fifty-two-year-old John Kovach was arrested on March 11 by Baltimore County police. He was a teacher at a Montessori school in Montgomery County and an assistant field hockey coach at Towson University.

Authorities say the investigation began after a sexually explicit online conversation between Kovach and a retired Los Angeles police detective who was posing as a 13-year-old girl.

Police searched Kovach's Reisterstown home and seized computers. According to the indictment, authorities found sexually explicit images of young girls.

Kovach has been charged with receipt and possession of child pornography. If convicted, he faces a minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years.
_________________________
http://media-newswire.com/release_1095264.html

Convicted Sex Offender Charles Purdum Arrested for Violating His Probation

Maryland State Police have charged a convicted sex offender with violating his probation after a state trooper saw him with a child.

Police said 35-year-old Charles Purdum of Westminster was walking through a store with a 10-year-old boy and a woman July 14.

Troopers say he is a registered sex offender who is barred from contact with boys under the age of 18. Police said Purdum was alone with the boy while the woman, his mother, shopped in other parts of the store.

Purdum is being held without bond after being arrested Wednesday afternoon for violating his probation.

Aza Hrnjic Arrested for Child Abuse & Child Porn

Hyattsville police are looking for families who hired as a nanny a Hyattsville woman they arrested Thursday and charged with several counts of child abuse and child pornography on computers.

Officers arrested Aza Hrnjic, 22, a Bosnian national whose work permit expired in April and who was living in the 6000 block of 42nd Avenue, according to Hyattsville City Police.

City police and U.S. Secret Service agents arrested Hrnjic and charged her with 10 counts, including child abuse, child pornography on computer, second-degree assault and contributing to the condition of a child causing need of supervision.

Hrnjic allegedly showed children she was supervising pornographic images on a computer and allegedly sent pornographic photos she took of the children over a live Web cam, according to Hyattsville City Police.

Hrnjic is being held in the Prince George's County Detention Center in Upper Marlboro on a $350,000 bond.

Hyattsville City Police are asking anyone who employed Hrnjic as a nanny to call 301-985-5060.

Father Aaron Joseph Cote Convicted of Sexual Abuse

The family of a victim of a former Somerset priest convicted of sexual abuse says they are grateful the priest will be on the national sex offender registry for life.

Father Aaron Joseph Cote, 57, of New York, was convicted of one count of custodian child abuse by a judge earlier this week in Maryland. Cote served in the Holy Trinity Church in Somerset in the late 1980s.

Cote entered a not guilty plea to the charge, but did not object to a statement of facts that was given by the prosecution and was found guilty of the charge by Judge Louis G. Scrivener.

Cote was indicted last year on the charge in Maryland after victim Brandon Rains, at the time of the abuse 14-years-old, accused Cote of molesting him on a regular basis. Cote was serving part-time as the youth minister at the Mother of Seton Parish in Germantown.

The abuse took place between 2001 and 2002, court records show.

"While no other victims from the Somerset area have stepped forward, we are grateful to two witnesses from that area who previously worked with Cote and who were willing to testify on behalf of the prosecution at Cote's trial if needed," said Michael Morrow, Rains' stepfather.

Morrow said Rains and the family was disappointed Cote would probably not spend any time in prison - court records show Cote and the prosecution have reached a plea agreement of 10 years on probation, five of those supervised. However, he said they are thrilled that Cote will have to spend the rest of his life as a registered sex offender.

"He'll never get to be around children again," Morrow said. "I hope this means that the church won't be able to reassign him anywhere near children, either."

In 2005, Rains, who now lives in Florida, filed a civil lawsuit against Cote and the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Washington, D.C., and in 2007 was awarded a $1.2 million settlement, court records show.

Morrow said at that time that the main goal of his family was to protect children.

"This person has been concealed and protected by the church for so long," Morrow said at the time. "Now there are consequences and Brandon feels vindicated. The charges he brought were true and this man has been convicted."

Morrow also wants any other victims to know they are not alone and if they should ever need to step forward and talk, there are people waiting and who care.

Cote is expected to be sentenced in October.

Marcus Clark Arrested for Distributing Child Porn

A 29-year-old Arbutus man was charged today with five counts of distributing and nine counts of possessing child pornography, according to Maryland State Police.

Marcus Curtis Clark, of the 1000 block of South Beechfield Avenue between Wilkens Avenue and Leeds Avenue, had been under investigation by the Maryland Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force since April 2008, police said.

The task force’s assignment is to protect children from “computer-facilitated sexual exploitation,” according to police.

The investigation began after a trooper assigned to the task force discovered that someone on a computer connected to a peer-to-peer file-sharing network was offering pornographic videos of children for others to download, police said.

Troopers traced the computer to Clark, then obtained a warrant to search his home.

The warrant was executed last August, according to Sgt. Arthur Betts, a spokesman for the state police.

They confiscated multiple computers, hard drives and other media storage equipment, state police said.

State police forensic examiners recovered “dozens of videos and images of children engaged in various stages of sexual activity” from the confiscated items, police said.

Forensic investigators “have to carefully go in there and dissect the information and pull stuff out,” Betts said.

An arrest warrant was issued yesterday and police notified Clark.

Clark turned himself in to one of the computer crimes investigators early this morning, police said.

If convicted of all the charges, he could be sentenced to 70 years in prison and have to pay $150,000 in fines, police said.

Clark was taken before a District Court commissioner today, and was held on $50,000 bail pending his trial.

Teachers Robert Rich & Adam Windsor Charged with Inappropriate Behavior with Students

Two local teachers face criminal charges amid allegations of inappropriate behavior involving female students at their schools, the Frederick County State's Attorney's Office said Friday.

A Catoctin High School teacher is accused of inappropriately touching a 17-year-old female student, authorities said. A Ballenger Creek Middle School teacher faces allegations he videotaped 13- and 14-year-old girls as they changed clothes.

A grand jury on Friday indicted the men, both Hagerstown residents, said Assistant State's Attorney Lindell K. Angel. Warrants will be issued for their arrests.

If convicted of the most serious offenses with which they are charged, Robert Rich, 47, and Adam Windsor, 25, could each face 25 years in the Maryland Division of Correction.

Rich, a science teacher at Catoctin High, has been employed by Frederick County Public Schools since January 2004, said Marita Loose, the school system's communications director.

Rich was accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a student. He was indicted on six misdemeanor counts of fourth-degree sex offense and one felony count of child sex abuse on school property, Angel said.

An investigation by Detective Michael Davies of the Frederick County Sheriff's Office began after the teen victim confided her allegations to a family friend, who told the girl's parents.

Windsor, the theater arts and band teacher at Ballenger Creek Middle for three years, became the focus of an investigation by sheriff's Detective Willie Ollie as an offshoot of an investigation by the Baltimore office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Angel said.

Executing a search and seizure warrant of Windsor's residence as part of a child pornography investigation, ICE agents found video footage on his computer taken at Ballenger Creek Middle, Angel said.

Windsor is accused of using a cell phone to videotape girls changing in a room set up for costume changes, Angel said.

The ICE agent assigned to the pornography case was not available Friday.

The grand jury indicted Windsor on two counts of child sex abuse, exploitation and two counts of visual surveillance with prurient intent, authorities said.

Both teachers were placed on administrative leave when school officials became aware of the police investigations, Loose said.

Rich has been on administrative leave since May 6; Windsor has been on leave since April 24.

"School administrators were directed by law enforcement not to share information about these matters with staff or the school community while the investigations were ongoing," Loose said.