Crimes, Homicides & Suicides

[phkrause]

Crypto Founder Guilty

Cryptocurrency entrepreneur Kwon Do-hyung, better known as Do Kwon, pleaded guilty yesterday to federal conspiracy and wire fraud charges, three years after his company's collapse wiped out over $40B in investor assets.    Kwon cofounded Terraform Labs in 2018, creating a digital currency he claimed was pegged to the US dollar—a type of stablecoin. That promise unraveled in May 2022, when a wave of withdrawals sent the currency’s value to near zero within days. The federal government accused Kwon of misleading investors about the stability and value of Terraform's currency.   Under yesterday's plea deal, Kwon will forfeit $19.3M and several properties. Prosecutors may also seek up to a 12-year prison sentence at his Dec. 11 sentencing. After serving half his time, the 33-year-old may be eligible to serve the rest in his native South Korea, where he faces further criminal charges. This deal is separate from a $4.5B civil settlement Kwon and Terraform reached with the US government last year.

[phkrause]

Memphis man who killed 3 in 2022 live streamed shooting rampage pleads guilty

A Tennessee man avoided a trial and possible death sentence by pleading guilty Wednesday to fatally shooting three people and wounding three others in a daylong series of shootings that was livestreamed on social media in 2022. Read More.

[phkrause]

Man accused of faking his death to avoid rape charges is found guilty of sexual assault in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Rhode Island man accused of faking his death and fleeing the United States to evade rape charges was found guilty late Wednesday of sexually assaulting a former girlfriend in his first of two Utah trials.

https://apnews.com/article/nicholas-rossi-rape-trial-utah-guilty-4c9dd5588110e42847a3b9fbcf6f6657?

[phkrause]

Supermarket gunman who targeted Black people wants charges dropped, says grand jury was too white

Attorneys for the gunman who killed 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket in 2022 say the federal charges against him should be dropped because there weren’t enough Black people and other minority groups on the grand jury that indicted him. Read More.

[phkrause]

? Mapped: Where homicide rates are highest

Data: FBI. Map: Axios Visuals To hear President Trump tell it, the nation's murder problem is particularly bad in New York City, Chicago, Baltimore, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. — all run by Democrats. New FBI crime figures from 2024 tell a different story, Axios' Russell Contreras. ? Zoom in: 13 of the 20 U.S. cities with the highest murder rates were in Republican-led states. Many of those cities were run by Democrats who often are at odds with state officials, an Axios analysis of FBI data finds. Eight of the top 10 cities with the highest murder rates and populations of at least 100,000 were in red states — Mississippi, Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee, Ohio and Louisiana, Axios found. Jackson, Miss., had the nation's highest homicide rate— nearly 78 per 100,000 residents, more than 15 times the national average. Birmingham, Ala., was second with a homicide rate of almost 59 per 100,000 residents — more than 11 times the national average. St. Louis was third, followed by Memphis, Tenn. Keep reading.

[phkrause]

He earned a small town’s trust. He owed $95 million in what authorities say was a Ponzi scheme

Burt Marshall, a businessman from upstate New York, is accused of preying on his neighbors in a massive Ponzi scheme. Marshall promised clients an 8% annual return on their investments in local rental properties. Marshall filed for bankruptcy protection two years ago, owing nearly 1,000 investors about $95 million. Many victims, including retirees and local workers, lost their life savings. Read more.

[phkrause]

2 officers killed and a 3rd is wounded in a Utah shooting, authorities say

Two police officers responding to a domestic disturbance call were shot and killed in Utah and a man was taken into custody after bystanders persuaded him to drop the gun, authorities said Monday.

https://apnews.com/article/police-officers-shooting-tremonton-utah-934a860fea0dcdbaaa37c3ca7e28186b?

[phkrause]

'Ketamine Queen' accused of selling fatal dose to Matthew Perry agrees to plead guilty August 18, 2025 Jasveen Sangha becomes the fifth and final defendant charged in the overdose death of Matthew Perry to strike a plea agreement with federal prosecutors. Having initially pleaded not guilty, her change of plea means she’ll avoid a trial that had been planned for August. Prosecutors had cast Sangha as a prolific drug dealer who was known to her customers as the “Ketamine Queen,” using the term often in press releases and court documents and even including it in the official name of the case.

Read more   ‘Devil in the Ozarks’ Grant Hardin, a one-time police chief, evaded authorities for more than 10 days in the rocky terrain and dense vegetation of rural northwest Arkansas. His prison escape plan, hatched over several months, included Sharpie markers and a handmade badge.

[phkrause]

Man convicted of fatally shooting New Jersey pastor is sentenced to life in prison

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (AP) — A Virginia man convicted of shooting a New Jersey pastor to death outside her home in 2023 was sentenced Monday to life in prison.

https://apnews.com/article/new-jersey-councilwoman-pastor-killed-sentencing-fd8ef532c74596d1a7ed38adeb166ce0?

[phkrause]

Jury finds man not guilty in ambush killing of rapper Young Dolph August 21, 2025 A Memphis jury deliberated about three hours before finding Hernandez Govan not guilty Thursday of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in the 2021 killing.

Read more

[phkrause]

Wyoming man indicted for allegedly hitting wolf with snowmobile, bringing it to bar and killing it

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A Wyoming man who allegedly hit a wolf with a snowmobile, taped the wounded animal’s mouth shut and showed it off in a rural bar before killing it has been indicted on an animal cruelty charge by a grand jury nearly a year and a half after the incident.

https://apnews.com/article/wyoming-wolf-killed-snowmobile-run-over-bar-3b0fbb9c39a5257854e9aa88290666e8?

[phkrause]

California parole board denies release for Erik Menendez due to misbehavior in prison

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Erik Menendez was denied parole Thursday by a California board that said his continued misbehavior during decades in prison for murdering his parents with his older brother in 1989 showed he is still a risk to public safety.

https://apnews.com/article/menendez-brothers-freedom-murder-parole-erik-lyle-483fee4506e2ea7acb7ce846e844bb8b?

Suicide hotline

The Trump administration shuttered the specialized service for LGBTQ+ youth at the National Suicide Hotline on July 17. Previously, people who called 988 could “press 3” to reach counselors specifically trained to respond to the needs of this community. Now, several states are trying to backfill gay and questioning and trans crisis support. California is entering into a partnership with The Trevor Project, a nonprofit that focuses on suicide prevention efforts for LGBTQ+ youth. Colorado is boosting outreach efforts to let the public know that its operators welcome calls from the LGBTQ+ population. Both Nevada and Illinois plan to provide extra training on how to work with LGBTQ+ callers. And North Carolina is investing in partnerships with community organizations to increase mental health support to marginalized groups, including LGBTQ+ populations, through the state’s 988 call center and other programs.

[phkrause]

First Erik Menendez, then Lyle denied parole by California board that says they pose safety risk

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lyle Menendez was denied parole Friday by the same board that a day earlier rejected his brother Erik’s appeal for freedom after serving decades in prison for killing their parents in 1989 at their Beverly Hills mansion. The reason was the same: misbehavior behind bars.

https://apnews.com/article/menendez-brothers-parole-hearing-lyle-free-6083528ac05f1b2e872ece5c41410cb3?

[phkrause]

Parents of missing California baby arrested in murder investigation

CABAZON, Calif. (AP) — The parents of a missing 7-month-old boy were arrested Friday as part of a murder investigation, authorities in Southern California said.

https://apnews.com/article/missing-baby-emmanuel-haro-parents-arrested-1f2a5857d1a38d6e9f9748ac22490d08?

[phkrause]

El Mayo Guilty Plea

Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada is expected to plead guilty today in a Brooklyn courthouse to federal drug, money laundering, and weapons charges. The 77-year-old drug lord cofounded Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel alongside Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.   Prosecutors have characterized the Sinaloa cartel as the world’s largest drug trafficking organization. In the early 2010s, the group was believed to control 40% to 60% of Mexico’s drug market, earning as much as $3B annually. It is the leading exporter of cocaine and heroin to the US, largely responsible for fueling the opioid epidemic that has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans. The group also engaged in kidnappings, assassinations, and torture.   Zambada was arrested in El Paso, Texas, last year after being brought to the US in a private plane. He says he was kidnapped and betrayed by one of El Chapo’s sons. The group has since devolved into factions, with violence in the Mexican state of Sinaloa surging to its highest level since 2008.

[phkrause]

An Unconstitutional “Jim Crow Jury” Sent Him to Prison for Life. A New Law Aims to Keep Him There.

When Lloyd Gray stood trial for rape in 1980, two jurors didn’t believe he was guilty and voted to acquit. Today, a split-jury verdict would mean a mistrial and possibly Gray’s freedom. But back then, in Louisiana, it resulted in a life sentence for the 19-year-old from Tunica, a rural community nestled on the banks of the Mississippi River.

https://www.propublica.org/article/louisiana-prison-split-jury-landry-law-lloyd-gray?

Wisconsin missing kayaker who faked his own death is sentenced to 89 days in jail

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A Wisconsin man who faked his own drowning while kayaking and left his wife and three children to meet a woman in the country of Georgia was convicted Tuesday of obstructing an officer and sentenced to 89 days in jail, which was the amount of time he successfully misled law enforcement about his whereabouts.

https://apnews.com/article/missing-kayaker-wisconsin-faked-death-569bf6bb9860ff031a5a5482f01a9c21?

[phkrause]

1 year in prison for US border agent accused of ordering women to show their breasts

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — A U.S. Border Patrol agent in upstate New York who pleaded guilty to charges related to ordering women entering the U.S. to show him their breasts was sentenced to a year in federal prison Wednesday, according to prosecutors.

https://apnews.com/article/border-agent-sentenced-breasts-3b644131c44baa62385341fc551a8f98?

[phkrause]

Killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO has inspired followers, prosecutors say

NEW YORK (AP) — Prosecutors say Luigi Mangione, accused of killing the CEO of UnitedHealthcare on a Manhattan sidewalk, has inspired others to embrace violence over reasoned debate.

https://apnews.com/article/unitedhealthcare-ceo-killing-luigi-mangione-nyc-a8c629698433864e2069e58093a7b560?

[phkrause]

Democrats see crime as a major problem. Their party is struggling to address it

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrat Eric McWilliams doesn’t approve of Donald Trump sending National Guard troops to cities like Washington, D.C. And he’s certainly not supportive of most of the president’s policies.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-democrats-crime-ap-norc-poll-8ffcf69792b80f1e1aaed892d4253b50?

[phkrause]

11-year-old boy fatally shot in Houston after ‘ding dong ditch’ doorbell-ringing prank, police say

An 11-year-old boy was fatally shot in Houston after a prank in which he rang the doorbell of a home and ran away, police said Sunday.

https://apnews.com/article/doorbell-prank-child-shot-houston-44fa27d558124837dac2cdeb14317b3d?

[phkrause]

Houston man charged with murder in shooting of 11-year-old boy after door knocking prank

HOUSTON (AP) — Police have charged a Houston man with murder in the fatal shooting of an 11-year-old boy who knocked on the door of a home and ran away as a prank, police said Tuesday.

https://apnews.com/article/doorbell-prank-child-shot-houston-murder-2bca46512e5202d28e3a61b486166f69?

[phkrause]

Maine mass shooting

Survivors of Maine’s deadliest mass shooting and relatives of the victims are suing the US government, alleging its conduct “directly and proximately caused” the attack. In October 2023, US Army reservist Robert Card opened fire at a Lewiston bowling alley and bar and grill, killing 18 people. Two days later, he was found dead by suicide. An independent commission concluded that there were numerous opportunities for intervention by both Army officials and civilian law enforcement as Card’s mental health deteriorated. “By March 2023, the United States and its personnel knew Card was paranoid, delusional, violent, and lacked impulse control. The Army knew he had access to firearms. The Army promised to remove his guns but did not fulfill that promise,” the lawsuit states. Army officials conducted their own investigation after the shootings that found “a series of failures by unit leadership.” Three Army Reserve leaders were disciplined for dereliction of duty.

[phkrause]

Jury convicts Florida matriarch in murder-for-hire killing of her former son-in-law

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The matriarch of a wealthy South Florida family was convicted Thursday of murder in the killing of her former son-in-law, a prominent law professor who was locked in a bitter custody battle with his ex-wife when he was gunned down in 2014.

https://apnews.com/article/law-professor-killing-florida-adelson-33e4d17fe17325c23b9ba940df675a36?

[phkrause]

Decades-old mystery solved: girl identified in New Hampshire serial killer case

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The recent identification of a little girl found dead in a New Hampshire state park nearly 25 years ago both closed a key chapter in an investigation spanning four decades and opened a new search for another likely victim of her serial killer father, authorities said Monday.

https://apnews.com/article/bear-brook-murders-new-hampshire-serial-killer-ca09dd0892bd7fc66f15b0c0956a857a?

Retail theft

After the pandemic, videos of thieves smashing store windows and grabbing merchandise made the rounds. Now retailers say their anti-theft strategies are working, and data shows shoplifting rates are falling.

[phkrause]

Former exec of Mars candy subsidiary pleads guilty to stealing $28M from company

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — A former executive for a subsidiary of candymaker Mars Inc. pleaded guilty Thursday to fraud and tax charges in connection with his theft of $28 million from the company, federal prosecutors said.

https://apnews.com/article/mars-candy-theft-executive-guilty-plea-845b00059c36cef5a4e856d29ae99d78?

Indictment charges church leaders with swindling millions in military benefits

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Leaders of a Georgia-based church with congregations in five states have been charged by federal prosecutors with swindling millions of dollars in veterans benefits from parishioners serving in the military.

https://apnews.com/article/house-of-prayer-fraud-veterans-gi-bill-1631d9e342800fbda96e2541f504327e?