Tag: crime

Democrat Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick Surrenders to Authorities After Allegedly Laundering $5 Million in FEMA Funds — Allegedly Bought 3.14-Carat Yellow Diamond Ring

A sitting Democratic member of Congress from Broward County, Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, surrendered to federal authorities Tuesday in Miami amid explosive allegations that she orchestrated a scheme to steal and launder $5 million in FEMA COVID-19 disaster relief funds, and used a portion to bankroll her 2021 congressional campaign and purchase a luxury yellow diamond ring.

The 46-year-old Congresswoman appeared in Miami federal court in handcuffs following a 15-count federal indictment issued last week. She now faces charges including conspiracy, theft of government funds, money laundering, making and receiving straw-donor contributions, and filing false statements on her federal tax return.

According to the Department of Justice, prosecutors allege that Cherfilus-McCormick and her 51-year-old brother, Edwin Cherfilus, siphoned off $5,057,850 FEMA funds.

“The indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to steal that $5 million and routed it through multiple accounts to disguise its source. Prosecutors allege that a substantial portion of the misappropriated funds was used as candidate contributions to Cherfilus-McCormick’s 2021 congressional campaign and for the personal benefit of the defendants.

The indictment further alleges that Cherfilus-McCormick and Nadege Leblanc, 46, of Miramar, arranged additional contributions using straw donors, funneling other monies from the FEMA-funded Covid-19 contract to friends and relatives who then donated to the campaign as if using their own money.

The indictment also charges Cherfilus-McCormick and her 2021 tax preparer David K. Spencer, 41, of Davie, with conspiring to file a false federal tax return. According to the indictment, they falsely claimed political spending and other personal expenses as business deductions and inflated charitable contributions in order to reduce her tax obligations.”

Keep reading

DOJ Employee Arrested, Booked on Terrorism and Evidence Tampering Charges For Doxxing Federal Agent

A DOJ employee was arrested and booked on terrorism and evidence tampering charges for doxxing a federal agent during a raid in Brownsville, Texas.

Karen Olvera De Leon, an employee with the US Attorney’s Office in Brownsville, appeared on a live stream of a federal raid on June 9.

A male joined the livestream and issued a death threat against one of the federal agents conducting a raid.

Another viewer of the livestream, later identified as Karen Olvera De Leon, doxxed the federal agent and provided his identity to the man issuing the death threat.

KRGV reported:

An employee with the United States Attorney’s Office in Brownsville was arraigned in connection with an online death threat against federal agents, according to a news release from Cameron County District Attorney’s Office.

Karen Olvera De Leon was booked on Thursday on charges of terrorism and tampering with or fabricating evidence, Cameron County jail records show.

According to the news release, Olvera De Leon’s arrest is linked to a June 9 federal enforcement operation conducted in Cameron County that bystanders filmed and livestreamed on social media.

“A male subject joined the chat and made an online death threat towards one of the federal agents involved in the operation,” the news release stated. “A viewer of the live stream commented providing the identity of the federal agent to the person making the threat.”

Olvera De Leon was identified as the viewer who provided the federal agent’s identity.

Jail records show Olvera De Leon was released on a $20,000 bond.

Keep reading

Number of rapes reported to police in Scotland soars by 11 PER CENT in single year

Rapes or attempted rapes are reported to police every three hours in Scotland, shocking new figures reveal.

The number has risen by 11 per cent in the past year to more than 3,000 – and is up by a quarter in the past four years.

Nearly 500,000 crimes have been reported overall, including a daily average of 200 violent offences, according to the Scottish Government.

The figures also show a 129 per cent rise in shoplifting in the past four years, prompting the Tories to warn shopworkers are ‘under siege’.

Last night Scottish Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘These deeply alarming figures are the direct result of the SNP’s cuts to policing and their relentless weakening of the justice system.’

Statistics released by the government show 3,043 reports of rapes and attempted rapes in the year to September, up from 2,746 the previous year.

Since the same period in 2021, the number of rape or attempted rape reports has increased by 25 per cent (from 2,436).

In the past year, the total number of reports of sexual crimes rose 7 per cent (from 14,651 to 15,704), including a 24 per cent rise in offences including indecent photos of children (from 756 to 936).

Keep reading

Rising Latin Singer ‘DELAROSA’ Gunned Down in Ambush-Style Shooting in Los Angeles – Two Others Critically Wounded, No Arrests

In a tragic and senseless act of violence in crime-plagued Los Angeles, 22-year-old rising Latin music star Maria De La Rosa, known by her stage name “DELAROSA,” was shot and killed in an ambush-style attack early Saturday morning.

The incident unfolded in the Northridge neighborhood of the San Fernando Valley around 1:30 a.m. on Bryant Street, east of Tampa Avenue.

De La Rosa and two others were sitting in a parked vehicle when two male suspects approached on foot and unleashed a barrage of gunfire at close range.

All three victims were struck, with the singer succumbing to her injuries after being rushed to a nearby hospital.

The other two victims remain in critical condition as of Monday.

Witnesses described the horrifying scene to police, reporting that the gunmen targeted the vehicle in what authorities have classified as an “ambush-style” killing.

“Witnesses described seeing two male suspects approach a vehicle that was parked on Bryant Street. Multiple rounds were fired at several victims who were parked in the area in their vehicle,” LAPD said in a statement.

De La Rosa had released her debut single “No Me Llames” in August and was building a following as both a musician and social media influencer.

Her final Instagram post, a series of studio photos, has since been flooded with heartbroken tributes from fans, including notable condolences from Mexican-American record executive Jimmy Humilde and Juan Moises, the lead singer of Los Gemelos de Sinaloa.

Keep reading

More Blood on the Hands of Sanctuary States: Oregon Issued Driver’s License to Honduran Illegal Alien Who Killed 8-Year-Old Idaho Girl in Horrific Hit-and-Run

An 8-year-old girl was killed in a hit-and-run crash in Boise, Idaho, by an illegal immigrant from Honduras who had been allowed to remain in the country for nearly a decade despite a deportation order.

Ramos-Caballero, 39, was able to obtain a driver’s license from the neighboring sanctuary state of Oregon, which allowed him to “legally” operate the vehicle that killed the young girl, Mora Gerety.

The incident occurred on November 11, just before 4:45 p.m., at the intersection of North Harrison Boulevard and West Ada Street.

Gerety, a student at Washington Elementary School, was crossing the street when the pickup truck driven by Ramos-Caballero hit her.

The illegal alien fled the scene, not rendering any aid to the child.

Gerety was rushed to St. Luke’s Boise Medical Center, where she succumbed to multiple blunt force injuries despite lifesaving efforts.

Ramos-Caballero was arrested the same day and charged with hit-and-run resulting in death. He was subsequently taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

According to a press release from the Department of Homeland Security, “This illegal alien was given a license by the sanctuary state of Oregon. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested Ramos-Caballero on November 11, 2025. Ramos-Caballero illegally entered the U.S. in September 2015 and was released into the country by the Obama administration. He never showed up for his immigration hearing and was ordered removed in absentia on May 9, 2016.”

DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin blasted the situation in a statement.

Keep reading

‘Slender Man’ stabber Morgan Geyser captured following nationwide manhunt

The nationwide manhunt for Morgan Geyser, the Wisconsin woman convicted in the 2014 “Slender Man” stabbing, has come to an end, authorities announced Sunday night.

The Madison Police Department confirmed Geyser was taken into custody in Illinois at approximately 10:34 p.m., ending the intense search.

Geyser escaped after she cut off her Department of Corrections monitoring bracelet and fled a Madison group home Saturday night, police said.

Madison police announced her escape in a social media post on Sunday.

“Morgan Geyser was last seen in the area of Kroncke Dr. around 8 p.m. with an adult acquaintance. Her whereabouts are unknown as of Sunday morning,” the department wrote.

“The Madison Police Department was notified of her disappearance Sunday morning.”

“A recent image of Geyser, captured on security video from this past month, is attached below. If you see her, please call 911,” police added.

In 2017, Geyser pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree intentional homicide in the violent stabbing of Payton Leutner, but claimed she was not responsible due to her mental illness.

She told investigators she tried to kill Leutner to please the horror character Slender Man and was ultimately found not guilty by reason of mental defect. 

Keep reading

‘Slender Man’ stabber Morgan Geyser escapes group home, cuts off ankle monitor – 11 years after horrifying attack

One of the “Slender Man stabbers” — who viciously ambushed and hacked a classmate when she was 12 years old in an effort to please a made-up internet boogeyman — has vanished, and cops are hunting her.

Morgan Geyser, 23, cut off her ankle monitor and escaped from the group home where she was living — and she’s on the run, according to cops in Madison, Wisconsin.

“Her whereabouts are unknown as of Sunday morning,” police said.

Geyser, along with her friend Anissa Weier, lured a fellow sixth-grade girl into a Waukesha, Wisconsin, park in 2014 and stabbed her 19 times.

The attack was an effort to impress “Slender Man,” a supernatural character that rose to viral prominence on internet forums and was later the subject of a 2018 horror movie.

Miraculously, the victim survived the horrifying assault, crawling her way to safety until she was found by a passing bicyclist.

Keep reading

Trans Activist Named Cassidy Mal Lyss (“Malice”) Arrested on 2nd Arson Charge – Previously Asked if He Could Begin Burning Churches

A trans-identifying man with an extensive arrest history was charged arson after setting fire to his own apartment during a standoff with police following a robbery, according to news reports.

This gem, who was charged with setting fire to his mother’s apartment in 2022, while the woman was inside, also once asked on a Facebook post, “May I start burning Churches yet?” independent journalist Andy Ngo reported.

Nathan Herbert Click — who now goes by the name Cassidy Mal Lyss (get it, “malice?”) — was arrested on the morning of Nov. 10 in Stillwater, Oklahoma, after a report of robbery, according to KOKH-TV in Oklahoma City.

Lyss, who had made prior threats to burn down the building, barricaded himself inside his apartment. Before a special unit could come to fetch him, officers said that they observed smoke coming out of it.

Police took him into custody by breaking into a bedroom window and getting him to safety. The Stillwater Fire Department put out the fire before anything more than smoke could spread to adjacent units, which had been evacuated.

He’s now charged with first-degree arson, assault and battery, first-degree robbery, obstructing an officer and threatening to perform an act of violence.

Most news outlets weren’t going to report what would have, in days of yore, been toward the front of the story: The individual at the center of this was “[a] 35-year-old transgender activist and sex worker,” as Ngo put it.’

He was “active on social media,” Ngo wrote, “posting photos of himself, images of the trans flag and promoting his sex work on OnlyFans and other adult websites.”

He also had a history of disturbing behavior.

Keep reading

Louisiana Woman Gets Over 4 Years in Federal Prison for $267K Pandemic Fraud

Reha Janee Arvie, age 35, of Westwego, LA, was sentenced for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud,  Acting United States Attorney Michael M. Simpson announced. 

Court documents say that around July 2020, Arvie defrauded, and attempted to defraud various state offices of Unemployment Insurance through the submission of about 100 fraudulent UI applications. Arvie recruited friends and family, via Facebook, to file these fraudulent UI applications. 

Additionally, Arvie filed fraudulent UI applications for herself and others, in various states including Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Indiana, Missouri, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Utah, Texas, and the territory of Guam. Arvie charged those for whom she filed fraudulent UI claims fees, ranging from $1,200.00 to $1,500.00. For example, Arvie obtained $267,612.00 in UI benefits from California’s Employment Development Department. Moreover, during the investigation, Arvie lied to federal agents during an interview.

United States District Judge Sarah S. Vance sentenced Arvie to 52 months imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release and payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.   

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. 

Keep reading

Co-Founder of Paycheck Protection Program Service Sentenced for $63M COVID-19 Relief Fraud Scheme

A co-founder of a lender service provider was sentenced to 10 years in prison for defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program by $63 million.

Court documents say that Stephanie Hockridge, also known as Stephanie Reis, 42, of Rio Grande, Puerto Rico, and previously of Arizona, co-founded Blueacorn in April 2020, purportedly to assist small businesses and individuals in obtaining PPP loans.

The U.S. Small Business Administration guaranteed the loans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. The defendant was also ordered to pay over $63 million in restitution.

Hockridge and her co-conspirators fabricated documents, including payroll records, tax documentation and bank statements. Hockridge and her co-conspirators charged borrowers kickbacks based on a percentage of the funds received.

Hockridge and others offered a personalized service to their clients called “VIPPP” to help potential borrowers complete PPP loan applications. Hockridge recruited co-conspirators to work as VIPPP referral agents and coach borrowers on how to submit false PPP loan applications. To get more kickbacks from borrowers and a higher percentage of lender fees from the SBA, Hockridge and her co-conspirators submitted PPP loan applications that they knew contained materially false information. In total, Hockridge and her coconspirators processed over $63 million in fraudulent PPP loans.

On June 20, a jury found Hockridge guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould for the Northern District of Texas; Acting Assistant Special Agent in Charge Don Daley of the Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Western Region; and Special Agent in Charge Christopher J. Altemus Jr. of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Dallas Field Office made the announcement.

Keep reading