Task Force to Probe Mass. Fires
A task force of state, regional and federal officials is investigating a string of suspicious weekend fires in Massachusetts, including one in which two people died. At least nine fires were reported early Sunday in houses and cars within a half-mile radius in the college town of Northampton, Mass. Authorities say they suspect arson.
Officials are [...]
Lawyer Charged in Fraud Gave $6M to Non-Profits
A defunct South Florida law firm run by an attorney now charged with operating a huge Ponzi scheme gave more than $6 million in the past year to charities and nonprofit groups. A federal bankruptcy court filing details contributions by the firm Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler to more than 100 organizations. Former firm CEO Scott Rothstein [...]
Sex Offender Charged in Girl’s Disappearance
Maryland authorities are searching Christmas Eve for an 11-year-old girl last seen wearing red fuzzy Christmas pajamas, and they say a registered child sex offender has been charged in her disappearance. Sarah Haley Foxwell went missing from her home on Maryland’s Eastern Shore late Tuesday or early Wednesday. Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis said family [...]
Madoff had Dizziness, High Blood Pressure
A lawyer for the hospitalized Bernard Madoff says his client has experienced dizziness and high blood pressure. The Bureau of Prisons said Thursday that the 71-year-old disgraced financier remains under medical care for a seventh day. Prison officials have declined to reveal why he was transferred from a North Carolina federal prison to a hospital. [...]
Standoff Suspect Charged with Kidnapping
A Tennessee man accused of taking three people hostage at a small-town post office in Virginia has been charged with kidnapping. Warren A. “Gator” Taylor of Sullivan County, Tenn., was arraigned Thursday morning in U.S. District Court in Roanoke. U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Urbanski ordered the 53-year-old Taylor to be evaluated at a federal prison [...]
Woman Gives Three-Year-Old Granson Pot Cookie
A Denver grandmother who recently took her own lifecriminal law was under investigation for giving her 3-year-old grandson a marijuana cookie. Family members say 44-year-old Erin Marcove gave the toddler at least one peanut butter cookie made with cannabis butter on Dec. 4. The next day, she had trouble rousing the boy and called an [...]
Two Mi. Brothers Sentenced for Investment Scam
Two Lansing, Mich.-area brothers have been sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay $21.6 million in restitution as part of what authorities described as an oil and gas investment scheme. Fifty-five-year-old Eric Riley Merkle and 53-year-old Jay Vernon Merkle were sentenced Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids. The Williamston men [...]
Teen Set on Fire Suffers from Nightmares
The mother of a South Florida teen doused with rubbing alcohol and set on fire says her son suffers from nightmares and won’t be returning to the family’s old neighborhood. Valerie Brewer, whose son Michael was discharged from the hospital Tuesday, praised her son’s determination at a news conference in Miami on Wednesday. On his [...]
Fund Manager Settles Four of Eighteen Underage Sex Suits
A New York billionaire jailed for soliciting underage prostitutes in Florida has settled four out of 18 abuse lawsuits by young women. Jeffrey Epstein’s most recent settlement was approved Sunday by a U.S. District Court judge. It involved a woman who said she was 14 when Epstein paid her for sexual favors. The 55-year-old money [...]
Woman Asks Thief to Return $1K Wheelchair
A 72-year-old Vermont woman whose wheelchair was stolen out of her daughter’s car is pleading for the thief to return her lifeline. Lucille Riccio of Wilmington tells The Republican of Springfield, Mass., that the $1,000 chair is the only way she can leave her home. She says she bought it in April and hasn’t finished [...]