May 28th 2009
By Jeremy Taylor

5 People Who Won the Lottery in Spite of Themselves

http://www.asylum.com/2009/05/28/5-people-who-won-the-lottery-in-spite-of-themselves/

May 30, 2009 12:15 pm US/Eastern

2 Murderers Escape Ark. Prison In Guard Uniforms

Convicts Serving Life Without Parole Escape Wearing Corrections Officer Uniforms

GRADY, Ark. (CBS)

 

CBS

 

Two convicted murderers put on corrections-officer uniforms and walked out of an Arkansas prison during a shift change, officials said Saturday as they searched for the men.

Jeffrey Grinder, 32, and Calvin Adams, 39, escaped Friday evening from the Cummins Unit prison in Grady more than three hours before officials realized they were missing, corrections department spokeswoman Dina Tyler said.

Both men were serving life sentences without the possibility of parole at the prison about 60 miles southeast of Little Rock.

The guard uniforms the inmates put on are made in the prison. Video surveillance shows the men put them in the prison library after the 6 p.m. headcount and walked out of the prison during a shift change less than 20 minutes later, Tyler said.

Grinder and Adams drove away in a maroon or burgundy colored, 4-door sedan that had been left for them. Officials realized the men were missing after coming up short during the 10 p.m. inmate headcount, Tyler said.

Grinder was convicted of capital murder in 2004, and Adams was convicted of capital murder in 1995. Both men have family in Arkansas and out of state.

"It is possible they could have left Arkansas," Tyler said.

Corrections officials are trying to develop leads on where the men are and hoping someone will spot them, Tyler said.

LINK TO VIDEO AND PHOTOS OF INMATES

http://www.fox16.com/news/local/story/UPDATE-Escapees-sought-after-in-Michigan/GWuXtx56CEOrK1ledT02Fw.cspx?rss=315

UPDATE: Escapees sought after in Michigan

Reported by: Brent Solomon  Last Update: 3:59 pm

Jeffery Grinder and Calvin Adams escaped a prison in Grady wearing guards uniforms LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Five prison guards were placed on leave Monday after two convicted killers from a high-security unit Grady escaped by putting on jail guard uniforms that are made at the prison and walking to a car that had been left for them. The fugitives, who escaped Friday evening, were spotted in the Missouri Bootheel on Saturday but later seen in Michigan, where one of them has relatives, Correction Department spokeswoman Dina Tyler said Monday afternoon. Tyler said the five officers were on unpaid leave while the department investigates the escape of Jeffrey Grinder and Calvin Adams. Tyler would not name the five officers, but said they had been guarding the entry and exit points of the prison. Gov. Mike Beebe on Monday called the escape "inexcusable" and said he was waiting on the department's investigation on how it occurred. He said he was sure there would be some ramifications. Among the jobs for inmates at the Cummins Unit is making uniforms for jail guards and law officers. Video surveillance shows the men put the uniforms on in the prison library after the 6 p.m. headcount and walked out of the prison unchallenged during a shift change less than 20 minutes later, Tyler said. Grinder and Adams drove away in a car that was left for them. Tyler said the men were spotted northwest of Kalamazoo. Adams has relatives in Michigan, including his mother, but Tyler said it wasn't his mother who reported seeing the fugitives. "We feel real confident about (the sighting)," Tyler said. Officers in Michigan searched an area and tracking dogs picked up a scent, which they lost at a paved road. "It could indicate they got back in the car and left," Tyler said. "We are working with Michigan and will continue to be a presence in the Bootheel." Grinder, 32, and Adams, 39, were each convicted of capital murder and were serving life sentences without parole. Tyler says the men were spotted Saturday in two southeast Missouri communities, Hayti and Braggadocio. Grinder and Adams are believed to be traveling together. Tyler said the department is investigating how the inmates obtained the uniforms and were able to leave the prison without anyone noticing something was amiss. "We know that they used officer uniforms and they walked out the front," Tyler said. "We don't know where the uniforms came from, but the suspect has to be the garment factory." Tyler said that inmates who work in the garment factory are searched upon entering and leaving the building, which is separate from the prison facility. Authorities are also trying to find out who left the automobile for the fugitives. Adams is from Leachville and was convicted of capital murder in 1995 in the 1994 kidnapping and shooting death of banker Richard Austin, 25. Austin's wife was wounded and was able to walk more than a mile for help. Grinder is from Yellville and was convicted of capital murder, aggravated robbery and burglary in the 2003 beating death of Pat Gardner, 77, who lived near Springdale. Tyler said the fugitives did not display a weapon in any of the three sightings. She noted that they were each serving life without parole and pose a heightened risk to the public "because they don't have a whole lot to lose." Beebe said he didn't know what action would be taken against department employees over the escape, and said he was waiting on more details on how it occurred. "We don't know whether it was a breakdown at the gate where they left, we don't know if it's a breakdown with whoever was watching the cameras, we don't know whether it was a breakdown within the library. We don't know how much of it was inside in terms of cooperation," Beebe told The Associated Press. "Until we know all that, it's kind of hard to know what the ramifications will be, but I'm sure there will be some."

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Hundreds of thousands of dollars lying on a city street. It was a shocking discovery for two people on Syracuse's Northside.

One man walking out of a barber shop and another man walking to his car on North Salina Street discovered at least $250,000 had fallen out of an armored Brinks truck. At first, both men say they thought the bags were trash.

"I saw it and thought who dumped that trash off? As I got closer I realized that these bags were full of money, lots of money! Plastic bags full of hundred dollar bills and twenty dollar bills and I thought oh my goodness," said Syracuse Antiques Exchange owner David Jenks.

"Two postal bins rolled over, the money spilled. I tried to catch the one bag before it went down the drain and in the water," said Liverpool resident Hanson Herring.

Jenks took the money into his store where there happened to be a police officer inside.

        THIS STORY WAS REPORTED BY ANOTHER NEWS STATION

Thousands still missing after armored truck loses its load

Last updated 11:32 am

WSYR-TV Syracuse, New York

Syracuse, New York (WSYR-TV) - Hundreds of thousands of dollars fell out of an armored truck along North Salina Street in Syracuse on Friday night. While much of the money was recovered, about $60,000 is still missing.

The Brinks armored truck was carrying about $336,000 when the money somehow fell out of the truck. Two men, David Jenks and Hanson Herring, saw the money on North Salina Street and helped secure it. But Syracuse Police are now trying to figure out where roughly $60,000 of the money went.

Jenks, who owns the Syracuse Antiques Exchange near the corner of North Salina and Wolf Streets, says he had no idea what he stumbled across when he saw the bags of cash in the street.

“They were just clear plastic bags, they looked like trash bags,” Jenks said. “That’s what I thought when I first saw them.

“At first we thought it was trash,” Herring said. “We walked over, and looked at it, and it’s money!”

Jenks says the two men immediately flagged down a nearby police officer, who called for backup. All the bags of cash were put inside the Syracuse Antiques Exchange to keep them safe.

Syracuse Police are giving us an update on their investigation into the missing cash later today, and we’ll bring you the update as soon as we get it.

We had previously reported that the money fell out of Loomis truck, when in fact, a Brinks truck was carrying the money and Loomis had no involvment.

VIDEO LINK:

http://www.9wsyr.com/news/local/story/Thousands-still-missing-after-armored-truck-loses/PmY-yrWxqkihRu4U1W0Aqw.cspx

Bride saves family from burning house

 
BRIDGEPORT -- A North End family was trapped in their home Sunday, flames licking at the walls when suddenly their savior appeared, charging through the thick curtain of smoke in a wedding dress.

Later, the Eitelberg family sat huddled on a lawn across the street from their West McKinley Avenue colonial as firefighters blasted water into the blackened remains of their home. They lamented the loss of their two-story house, but were happy that they and their pets had been spirited to freedom.

A short distance away their rescuer, Georgette Clemons, of Bridgeport, was surrounded by her wedding entourage as she neatly folded her blackened and stained wedding dress.

"It's been an eventful day," she said matter of factly.

Shortly before 5:30 Sunday evening, Clemons, formerly Georgette Fogary, had just been married to Charles Clemons and was being driven from Testo's restaurant where the reception was held when she spotted smoke coming from the Eitelberg's home.

Hanifah Bost, who was driving the car, said Clemons suddenly yelled, "Stop the car, stop the car."

"There was smoke coming from this house and as soon as I stopped the car, Georgette got out in her wedding dress and ran toward the front door." She said Clemons ran through the smoke into the house and she ran after her.

"I don't know what she was thinking, she had just got married," Bost said.

Clemons said she saw flames on the outside of the house and yelled  for the occupants to get out. She said she could see someone inside and when they didn't come out, she ran in to get them.

"The woman was yelling about her animals and didn't want to get out so I had to pull her out," Clemons said.

The occupants, including two dogs and two ferrets, out safely, Clemons then ran next door to warn the neighbors of the fire.

"My shoes got messed up, but what are you going to do?" Clemons said later. "At least the people are OK." Firefighters arrived as a thick blanket of smoke covered the neighborhood. Residents, who had come out of their homes to see the fire, ran back covering their faces from the smoke.

"I smelled smoke and then in two seconds the whole place was up in smoke," said neighbor, Sean O'Regan. "It was unreal."

"There was smoke at first and then flames erupted," added Jim O'Donnell.

Assistant Fire Chief Christopher Martin said when firefighters arrived flames were shooting out of the second-floor windows.

"The right side of the house appears to have total damage. The people were out when we arrived, and fortunately there were no injuries," he said.

Martin said it appears the fire started in the rear of the house, but the Eitelbergs did not know what started it.

Georgette Clemons

POLICE officers who dragged a drunken driver from his car and bashed him with their fists, boots and batons are being investigated by the NSW Police Professional Standards Command and the NSW Ombudsman.

The investigation will determine whether unjust force was used during the arrest of Mount Druitt man Sione Peaua, 43, who was beaten by as many as five police officers after a 45-minute car chase on May 25 last year.

Video footage from a police patrol vehicle and the Polair police helicopter was tendered in court on Friday during Peaua's trial for serious traffic offences.

The videos show Peaua being dragged from his four-wheel drive after it hit a power pole, then being punched, kicked and bashed with retractable batons as he struggled on the ground.

Peaua, a Tongan father of six who is a boilermaker and local rugby league coach, had a blood-alcohol reading of 0.13 when he went on a high-speed rampage through Mount Druitt and Rooty Hill in a Toyota LandCruiser.

For the early part of the chase - during which speeds of 145km/h were reached - Peaua had his six-year-old daughter in the vehicle.

On Friday, he was sentenced to four months in jail after pleading guilty to driving with a suspended licence, mid-range drink-driving and dangerous driving.

Police prosecutor Alan Baghurst unsuccessfully argued in court that incriminating video footage should not be released to the public and described it as "not a pretty sight''.

He said both sets of footage were being investigated by the NSW Police Internal Affairs unit.

Ian Lloyd, QC, representing Peaua, told the court both sets of video were the subject of a NSW Ombudsman's inquiry. Peaua would be making a statement to the inquiry, Mr Lloyd said.

The court heard that Peaua did not receive any lasting injuries from the beating.

Mr Lloyd, however, called it a "savage and unjustified attack''.

A statement from Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione's office said the investigation had been initiated by police and was being ``closely oversighted by the NSW Ombudsman''.

Both videos were tendered to the court, along with photographs of Peaua's injuries. He suffered severe bruising to his upper arms and thighs, as well as an injury to his hand and left forearm.

The Sunday Telegraph understands Peaua is considering launching a civil action against police in relation to the injuries.

LINK TO VIDEO OF HIGH SPEED CHASE:

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,25562843-5001021,00.html

LINK TO VIDEO OF BRUISES:

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/gallery/0,22056,5055817-5010140,00.html

It is also understood a female constable who was at the scene contradicted statements by other officers that Peaua had resisted arrest and assaulted police before they used force to subdue him.

Two charges of resisting arrest and assaulting police were dropped by the police prosecutor. Peaua's legal defence received a $41,000 cost order as a result.

A fact sheet tendered to the court said Peaua had also been sprayed with a "burst'' of capsicum spray, but did not mention him being punched and kicked.

The fact sheet said Peaua grabbed one officer's left foot "with both hands'' and had "continued to pull away from police, swinging his arms around forcefully''.

Several critical moments of the beating were missed because the Polair crew panned the helicopter's camera away as police lashed out and used batons.

Nor is it clear why, at the beginning of the beating, three police officers stand in front of the police patrol car's video camera, obscuring vision of the incident.

The statement from the Commissioner's office says: "Standard operating procedure for police helicopters involved in pursuits is to resume patrol once an offender is in custody.''

In the sound track of the incident, a police officer can be heard saying, "Don't you f****** move'' before telling Peaua to lie on his side.

Peaua then screams, "Get me out of here'' and is told by the officer: "You shut the f*** up, c***, and lay there.''

Peaua: "You know what I'm going to do to you.''

The officer then tells Peaua: "Let go of my f***ing leg.''

Peaua can then be heard screaming, "What the f*** are you doing to me?''

Close examination of the Polair vision reveals four officers standing over a handcuffed Peaua, trying to hold him down, when one officer kicks him twice in the back of the thigh.

The same officer then punches him and kicks him again in the back of the thigh before punching him in the vicinity of his arm.

The vision then cuts to a wide shot, in which two officers can be seen punching and kicking.

As the shot becomes wider, it appears one or more officers is using a retractable baton.

Police began the pursuit when Peaua refused to stop after they saw him hit the kerb while making a turn in Zoe Place, Mount Druitt.

During the chase, Peaua ran seven red lights, drove on the wrong side of the road 11 times and knocked down two give-way signs before slamming into a power pole on the Great Western Highway at Rooty Hill.

Peaua, who was still serving a licence suspension from 2006 and had a prior drink-driving conviction, pleaded guilty to charges of driving with a suspended licence, mid-range drink-driving and dangerous driving.

He was sentenced to four months' jail and suspended from driving until 2014.

Peaua has lodged an appeal, which will be heard in the District Court later this year. He was granted conditional bail.

Monday, June 1, 2009

The piano stretches across the floor in a shop and it seems to have attracted a big audience.

The pianists demonstrating what it can do, manage to knock out an impressive tune as they jump across the keys at speed.

Looks like great fun.

Link to Video:

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Strange-News/Huge-Piano-Played-With-Feet-skynewscom-video/Article/200905415290099?f=rss

Classified Ad Seen As Assassination Threat Against Obama, Secret Service Investigating

AHN | May 31, 2009"

                  THIS IS A FOLLOW-UP TO A STORY I POSTED ON 5/29/09

Warren, PA (AHN) - A Pennsylvania town newspaper has publicly apologized for running a classified personal ad that may be an assassination threat against President Obama and reported the incident to the local police.

The Times Observer based in Warren also stopped running the ad that appeared on the newspaper's Thursday issue as the Secret Service was called in to investigate the person who placed the ad.

John Elchert, the publisher of Times Observer, said one advertising staff did not suspect anything wrong with the ad that read: "May Obama follow in the steps of Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley and Kennedy!"

Upon realizing that all four presidents were assassinated, the newspaper reported the matter to the police.

The newspaper did not reveal the name of the person who placed the personal ad, but said the name was turned over to the Warren City Police, which forwarded it to federal authorities.

Pizza Man Saves Abducted Woman

5/30/09

AP

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (May 29) — Chris Turner normally wouldn't drive 30 miles into the remote Tennessee mountains just to deliver a pizza. The one time he did, he came upon a scene that drained the color from his face and made him "numb from head to toe" — a woman with her hands tied, silently begging him to call 911.

It was no joke, and Turner, 32, rushed to a nearby house and made that call.

 

        Deliveryman to the Rescue

 

Pizza deliveryman Chris Turner, shown Friday with wife Nease, is being hailed as a hero. Turner was dropping off a pizza at a remote cabin in the Tennessee mountains on Tuesday when he saw a woman pop up from behind a couch. She held up her bound wrists and silently mouthed, "Please call 911." Turner left the house and made the call -- and police rescued the woman.

 

Police say the woman was whisked away from the Atlanta neighborhood she was jogging in by a man who frequented her business. Authorities say he raped her and held her captive inside a cabin. The 24-year-old woman was rescued by Sevier County deputies Tuesday evening because of Turner's quick thinking.

Turner told The Associated Press on Friday that he noticed the woman pop up from a couch while her abductor signed the credit card slip.

 

"While I was standing in the door all you could see was the back of the couch," Turner said. "And then she popped over the back of the couch and showed me that her hands were bound. And she was just mouthing, 'Please call 911.'"

Turner at first thought it was a joke. "When I realized what was going on, I went numb from head to toe and turned pale white," he said.

Turner tried to look calm. "Have a nice day. Enjoy your food," he told the suspect. Then he rushed back to his van, where his wife was waiting behind the wheel. "Go, go, go!" he told her.

 

The cabin was out of cell phone range. So they drove to a nearby house and called police. They waited to make sure the suspect didn't flee. Then Turner stayed to see the man arrested and the victim taken away in an ambulance. "I wanted to make sure she was OK," he said.

 

The woman told authorities she was jogging near her home in Atlanta about 11:50 a.m. Tuesday when a frequent customer at a restaurant and bar owned by the woman and her husband asked her to see his new car. She got into the vehicle, which turned out to be a rental, and was immediately tied up.

She told police the suspect drove her more than 200 miles to the cabin in Tennessee and raped her. The Associated Press does not identify alleged sexual assault victims.

 

Police arrested David J. Jansen, 46, of Snellville, Ga., without a struggle on charges of aggravated kidnapping and rape, Sheriff Ron Seals said in a statement. He was released on $800,000 bond late Thursday. His attorney, Donald Bosch of Knoxville, had no comment Friday.

 

Capt. Jeff McCarter refused to discuss the case Friday. But he earlier told The Mountain Press newspaper that officials believe the woman was in imminent danger.

The victim and her husband visited Turner at Capelli's Pizza and Subs in Gatlinburg before heading home Wednesday. "She was just thanking me ... for trusting her," Turner said. "She said he was going to kill her ... after he got done with her."

 

Turner's boss, John Henry, said the cabin was about 30 miles from his pizza shop.

"We usually don't go out that far," he said. "But he said, 'Yeah, I will take it.' It was just luck. For her, it was."

 

 

Link to Video:

http://news.aol.com/article/pizza-delivery-man-rescues-woman/503805

 

Conspired with others to make more than a ton of ecstasy … Paul Baker outside his home yesterday.
Photo: Adam Hollingworth

Les Kennedy
February 8, 2009

A CAR crash has already given Paul Baker a life sentence - next week it will be up to the NSW legal system to decide if he gets another.

Baker, 36, who is a quadriplegic, has pleaded guilty to conspiring with three other men to manufacture more than a tonne of ecstasy in 2005.

The charge carries a maximum of life imprisonment either in jail or by home detention. The decision on whether he is to become the first quadriplegic in NSW to serve a custodial term has fallen to Judge Robert Toner, who will next week hear sentencing submissions in the Downing Centre District Court.

Baker's solicitor, Michael Jokovic, declined to comment on the care needs of his client, which prison officials privately believe will outstrip the $301,000 average annual cost of keeping an inmate in the high-security supermax prison at Goulburn.

In written submissions to the court by Baker's defence, occupational therapist Sue Lukersmith said there was not a jail cell big enough to accommodate him and the equipment for his care. She evaluated assessments from 12 doctors and specialists on Baker's quadriplegia and also examined his care needs at his home in Colyton.

Baker, who uses his slight movement in one hand to get around on a motorised chair, became a quadriplegic in a motor vehicle accident in 1995.

Baker, a director of a number of import companies, pleaded guilty in 2007 to one count of conspiracy to manufacture a large commercial quantity of MDMA or ecstasy. The court heard that Baker was involved in the purchase of glassware used in the manufacture of the drug and a pill press was found in his home. These were used in a clandestine laboratory at Badgerys Creek.

The drug was to be manufactured with other chemicals and combined with 11 200-litre containers of methylamine, imported from China in 2005.

Police who broke up the syndicate said Baker was unaware of the plan until some months later but then helped his co-offenders research information, acquire other chemicals and equipment and search for properties for the covert lab.

In her report to the court, Ms Lukersmith said Baker required a minimum of 108 hours of personal care a week in a daily care regime of four shifts, which included his showering and feeding.

She listed among his requirements air-conditioned accommodation because he can no longer control his body temperature.

Her report said specialist equipment Baker required included electric wheelchairs, beds and hoists and voice-activated controls for lights and television. "He is dependent upon attendant carers for all aspects of personal care. This includes transfers, showering, drying, dressing, grooming, personal hygiene, toileting and eating," Ms Lukersmith said. She did not think the prison hospital system could provide Baker "with the minimum requirements" outlined in her report.

These included experienced personal attendant care and the training of any new carers that would be needed with staff shift changes.

A Department of Corrective Services spokesman said: "The department can't go into details about care issues in this case because it might be seen as trying to influence the sentencing process. However, where a court hands down a jail sentence, then the department has a duty to provide imprisonment."

Erie police searching for suspect in drive-by shooting

Erie Times News

Published: May 29. 2009 2:50PM

Erie police are searching for a 23-year-old man accused of a drive-by shooting early today.


Police said Sylvester D. Tate shot four times at a man in the 300 block of West 20th Street about 2 a.m.

The victim, who identified Tate as the shooter, was not injured.

Police said that after speeding away from the scene, Tate crashed his Chevrolet Trailblazer into a utility pole in the 400 block of West 26th Street.

Tate fled the scene after crashing the vehicle, police.

Police found a handgun inside the vehicle that had been reported stolen Jan. 30. Police did not say who reported the gun stolen.

Police have issued a warrant for Tate's arrest. Tate, whose last known address was in the 200 block of West 21st Street, is being charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, receiving stolen property and several traffic violations.

The city plans to charge convicted criminals up to $60 a night, depending on their ability to pay, when a new 100-bed lockup opens in October, Springfield Police Chief Jerry Smith says. Thus, the city could recoup most of its cost of about $70 a day.

"These people are the ones who cause the cost to operate a jail, so they ought to be the ones to pay it, not private citizens," Smith says.

The economic recession is spurring several local governments to turn to pay-to-stay programs, says Sara Totonchi, public policy director for the Atlanta-based Southern Center for Human Rights, which fights legislation that imposes such fees on inmates.

"In these difficult economic times, policymakers are looking for different options to save money," Totonchi says.

Springfield is one of at least five city and county jails that this year started billing inmates for jail time if they are found guilty.

• In Utah, the Salt Lake County Metro Jail charges inmates $40 each day, Sheriff James Winder says. The Box Elder County Jail in Brigham City, costs $10 per day. Since the plan started April 1, about a third of the inmates have paid the fee, Box Elder's jail commander Sandy Huthman says.

• Missouri's Taney County, which includes Branson, charges $45 for a day at the jail in Forsyth, county prosecuting attorney Jeffrey Merrell says.

•Richmond, Va., began charging inmates $1 per day April 15. The few who can't afford that small amount can work jobs in the jail to earn the money, Sheriff C.T. Woody Jr. says. The city hopes to raise between $60,000 and $200,000 a year, he says.

Woody says Richmond started the fee because taxpayers are tired of footing the bill to house criminals while other vital services are being cut from municipal budgets.

"I'm just getting on board to relieve some of the responsibility off of taxpayers," Woody says.

Not everyone can pay. In Springfield, unpaid accounts will be turned over to a collection service, Smith says, and debtors could end up in small claims court.

The Douglas County Jail in Roseburg, Ore., also uses a collection agency, jail spokesman Dwes Hutson says. The jail has charged inmates $60 per day since 2002 but recently cut the fee to $20.

"We found that inmates got such a huge bill that it was hard for them to pay," Hutson says. "We collect more money charging a more reasonable rate."

In Salt Lake County, indigent inmates are not billed, and some who participate in improvement programs can work off their debt, Winder says.

A few jails have been collecting similar fees for years. Klamath County Jail in Oregon has charged $60 per day since 2003, District Attorney Ed Caleb says. Overland Park, Kan., bills inmates $35 for a day in the county jail, Overland Park Municipal Court Administrator Robin Barnard says. Last year, though, Overland Park collected only 39% of the user fee, Barnard says.

Totonchi says the fee can be a burden on inmates' families, who often end up footing the bill. Jailers acknowledge that the fee can be difficult to collect.

"We're not stupid. We realize we're not going to recover 60 bucks from everybody," Springfield's Smith says.

Loew reports for the Statesman Journal in Salem, Ore.

Friday, May 29, 2009

Image from YouTube

A video posted on YouTube shows a man being beaten and robbed outside a nightclub in Lutz

By JOSH POLTILOVE | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 28, 2009

William T. Bogan

TAMPA - A strong armed robbery in Lutz was captured on videotape and placed on YouTube.

Hillsborough County deputies have arrested the man they say shot the footage, and they are continuing to search for two people who removed the victim's wallet.

The attack occurred in the early morning hours of March 31 at L.A. Hangout Bar, 16411 N. Florida Ave. in Lutz.

Alexander R. Fernandez, 21, of Tampa, was struck in the face by an unknown person while inside the bar. Fernandez left the bar so he could get a bat from his vehicle. Deputies say William T. Bogan, 25, of Thonotosassa, was recording the events on a digital video camera and that Fernandez returned to the front parking lot looking for the person who struck him.

That's when Bogan told an unknown male to hit Fernandez, deputies say.

"As seen on the video the victim was tackled from behind and landed on the pavement," a Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office news release states. "An unknown individual kicked the victim in the head while he was incapacitated on the ground. Another subject removed the bat from the victim's hand."

Bogan told people to remove Fernandez's money, and two males took Fernandez's wallet.

Fernandez was struck in the head with a bat.

Fernandez was treated at University Community Hospital. He has since been released, but details on his condition weren't immediately available.

Days after the incident, Bogan returned to the L.A. Hangout Bar and distributed copies of the video, deputies say. The video was placed on YouTube by Bogan, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.

"We were investigating the incident and went to the bar and found out that copies had been distributed," she said.

Deputies got a search warrant and went to Bogan's home Wednesday. Inside, they found Bogan and several others: Owen Reid, Perry Quinn Paremore, Whitney Bogan and Fedell Jackson.

William Bogan was charged with solicitation to commit strong armed robbery. His bail was set at $2,000, and he has since been released from jail.

Reid, 22, of Thonotosassa, was charged with possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance. He was seen narrating in the beginning of video, but Carter said he won't face additional charges for being involved in the video.

Paremore, 25, of Thonotosassa, was charged with marijuana possession. He was seen in the video but also won't face charges for that, Carter said.

Whitney Bogan, 23, of Thonotosassa, was charged with marijuana possession. Bogan, who is William Bogan's brother, was released on his own recognizance.

Fedell Jackson, 24, of Tampa, was charged with marijuana possession. He was released on his own recognizance.

Deputies are seeking the public's help finding the two people who took Fernandez's wallet.

NOTE: YouTube has removed the videotape

Man sentenced for breaking into jail to deal drugs

Fri May 29, 4:13 pm ET

TEXARKANA, Ark. – A man caught breaking into the Miller County Jail last summer will soon leave his cell there for one in an Arkansas prison. Bobby Finley, 20, was accused of planning to sell drugs and tobacco inside the jail. Finley pleaded guilty Thursday to five felony counts and was sentenced to a total of 19 years in prison. But the sentences are to run consecutively and top out at five years.

Guards caught Finley using bolt cutters to get through the chain-link fence that surrounds the jail. Prosecutors said Finley had cocaine and marijuana in his possession.

"In 19 years of prosecuting you always encounter cases that make you believe you've seen it all — until you see a case of this nature," Deputy Prosecutor Carlton Jones said. "It never ceases to amaze me."

Finley was found mentally competent to stand trial following a psychological evaluation.

Finley will get credit for time served for the 316 days he spent in jail since getting caught.

In his deal with prosecutors, Finley was sentenced to five years each on two possession counts and three years each on three counts of furnishing prohibited substances: cocaine, marijuana and tobacco.

When Finley was arrested last summer, Arkansas State Trooper Scott Clark investigated and said Finley was a moment away from getting inside the fence.

"This is the first one I've ever worked where somebody went to so much trouble to remove an obstacle so they could bring contraband into the jail," Clark said at the time. "It's definitely a first for me."

Original Story with Picture and Video

http://www.kpxj21.com/news/Break-in-at-Texarkana-jail-14230/