Crime

Faux-Armed Robbery of Payday Loan Store Foiled When Clerk Spills Her Guts

Lincoln Knight (left), Jeremy Parker (center), and Simone Parker (right) faked an armed robbery that would have netted about $37,000 -- if Knight had stuck to the plan.​First rule of staging an armed robbery: don't tell police it's fake. Second rule of staging an armed robbery: DON'T TELL POLICE I ... More >>

Woman Killed by Fall From Moving Van After Drinking With Friends; Husband to Be Charged With Impaired Driving

PCSOYep -- that's a beer can on the console of the van from which Stephanie Holliday fell.​A Pinal County woman is dead after falling from a moving car Wednesday night. Police suspect she was drunk, and her husband will likely be charged with impaired driving.About 9 p.m. Wednesday, 57-year-old To ... More >>

Phoenix Hate Crimes Rise 125 Percent from 2006 to 2010

democraticunderground.orgYes, Confederate Arizona is alive and well...Recently obtained statistics from the Phoenix Police Department show that hate crime in Arizona's most populous city continues its upward trend, with a 17.4 percent jump in bias incidents from 2009 to 2010.The PPD reported 115 suc ... More >>

Aaron Stackhouse Arrested for Sexually Abusing 8-Year-Old Daughter of Woman He Also Abused

MCSOPolice say Aaron Stackhouse sexually abused four minors, including the daughter of one of his earlier victims.​Aaron Stackhouse has a thing for 8-year-olds -- boys, and girls.Stackhouse was arrested yesterday for sexually abusing the 8-year-old daughter of a woman he'd sexually abused when she ... More >>

Rock Burglar Suspect Arrested

​What's a great way to divert attention from the fact that Mexican drug cartels have infiltrated the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office? Announcing the arrest of an infamous criminal who's been able to evade capture for 17 years certainly doesn't hurt. Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and County A ... More >>

Phoenix Police Rescue Kidnapping Victim. Now the Hard Part: Recording it as a Kidnapping

​Phoenix police rescued a 21-year-old man yesterday who was run off the road while driving his car in Tucson, kidnapped at gunpoint, bound, driven to Phoenix, and held for ransom.The Phoenix Police Department was alerted by a local media outlet that a woman called to report that her brother wa ... More >>

Morning Poll: Does Review of Phoenix Kidnapping Stats Vindicate Former Police Chief Jack Harris

Jack Harris, it turns out, is not a statistic-inflating liar.​Former Phoenix police Chief Jack Harris was forced out of office because of allegations that his department inflated kidnapping statistics in order to obtain extra federal bucks. However, a panel reviewing the Phoenix's kidnapping numbe ... More >>

Tempe Police Make 119 Alcohol-Related Arrests During ASU's Graduation Weekend

www.mywebsitelayouts.com​The results of a campaign to curb underage drinking and drunk driving during Arizona State University's commencement weekend are in and the Tempe Police Department is reporting a total of 141 arrests over the course of the campaign.Of the 141 arrests, 119 were alcohol rela ... More >>

Buckeye Cop Fatally Shot During Traffic Stop. Other Officer Wounded but Expected to Survive

Buckeye Police DepartmentOfficers Christopher Paz (left) and Rolando Tirado. Tirado was senselessly killed by thugs during a traffic stop early yesterday morning.​Two Buckeye police officers were shot early yesterday morning after stopping a truck that was being driven erratically in a west Phoeni ... More >>

Mark Spencer's PLEA Supported Kidnapping Stats

From PLEA's RECAP newsletter, dated June 2008As I've pointed out in my cover story this week on Phoenix Law Enforcement Association president Mark Spencer and his sleazy ways, PLEA swallowed the Phoenix Police Department's controversial kidnapping stats whole hog at one time. Long before they used ... More >>

Mesa Perv Videotaped Himself Molesting 1-Year-old -- and Others -- Cops Say

Mesa Police Department Being an alleged pederast aside, Brandon Jones' hair is about as cool as herpes.​A Mesa pervert already behind bars for sexually abusing a 5-year-old boy has been hit with several other charges for alleged crimes even more perverse than the ones that originally landed ... More >>

Kid Killer Jason Bush to Join Accomplice Shawna Forde on Death Row for Deadly 2009 Attack on Arivaca Family

Clear a spot on death row for kid killer Jason Bush.​Jason Bush, the kid-killing accomplice of Minutewoman Shawna Forde, will join his murderous cohort on death row, a Tucson jury decided today.Bush was found guilty last monthd in the murders of an Arivaca man and his daughter in May 2009.In ... More >>

Pinal County Man Jumps From Own Moving Vehicle to Escape Kidnapper

PCSOCops found this AK-47 in the victim's car. Holding it was the man's alleged kidnapper, 23-year-old Carlos Cervante-Lopez.​A Pinal County man really didn't want to drive the man who'd just kidnapped him from Eloy to Phoenix early yesterday morning, which prompted him to jump from his own moving ... More >>

Desert Hills Couple Charged With Murder in Death of Mentally Disabled Relative

MCSOJohn Chesser and his wife have been charged with murder in the death of Chesser's mentally disabled brother.​A Desert Hills couple has been charged with murder after the dead body of a 51-year-old relative was found emaciated in their backyard last summer.John and Tara Chesser were arrested Mo ... More >>

An Outside Panel Will Probe Whether the PPD's Numbers on Kidnappings Were Cooked

Man Robs Peoria Convenience Store With Rock the "Size of a Human Foot"

Peoria Police DepartmentWanted in connection with rock-armed robbery.​Peoria police detectives are still on the hunt for a man who reportedly robbed a gas station convenience store near 83rd Avenue and Bell Road with a rock last week.The suspect threatened to bash the clerk's head in with the rock ... More >>

Man Shot by Phoenix Cops Identified. His Accomplices: Two Chicks -- Now Charged With Murder

MCSOJennathea Nozie is now charged with the murder of her boyfriend, Ernesto Lopez, after he was shot by police during a robbery gone wrong.​The man fatally shot by Phoenix police officers early yesterday morning has been identified as 26-year-old Ernesto Lopez. And Lopez, it appears, left two wom ... More >>

Paul Larkin, Pinal County Assessor, Over Legal Limit in DUI Arrest

L. Paul Larkin, Pinal County Assessor, had a blood-alcohol level of .11 in his DUI arrest last month, officials say.​ Pinal County Assessor Paul Larkin had a .11 blood alcohol level the night he was arrested on suspicion of DUI last month. The elected official was arrested February 7 followi ... More >>

"First-Aid Bandit," Samuel Cresante, Sentenced to 19 Years in Prison for String of Valley Robberies

"First-Aid Bandit" Samuel Cresante hard at work. ​The only "first-aid" 45-year-old Samuel Cresante will be receiving for the next several years will be at a prison infirmary. Cresante was sentenced in federal court this morning to 19 years in prison for a string of at least 12 bank robberies lamel ... More >>

Jared Loughner Federally Indicted for Murders of All Victims -- Not Just Federal Employees

Jared Loughner, the lone suspect in the Tucson shooting rampage, has been formally charged with murder.​The U.S. Attorney's Office announced this morning that a 49-count federal indictment has been returned charging Jared Loughner, the lone suspect in the January 8, Tucson shooting rampage, ... More >>

State Farm Tried to Nail Its Customers for Arson, but the Bad Guys Were Firefighters

Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris Not Clear On The Real Issue Involving Inaccurate Kidnapping Stats; New Times Helps Set the Record Straight

Let's be clear about a few things regarding Phoenix's kidnapping statistics snafu.Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris tells the Arizona Republic that he is outraged at what is happening in the community regarding kidnappings and other crimes, and he adds:"If anyone doubts we have a home-inv ... More >>

Arsonist Sentenced to 16 Years in Prison; Still Faces Five Murder Charges

unodc.org Have fun trying to burn down your new place.​Arsonist and alleged penta-murderer William Craig Miller was sentenced today to 16 years in prison in a 2005 arson case, which probably doesn't sound that bad to Miller, since prosecutors will seek the death penalty in his upcoming murd ... More >>

Kiddy-Porn Star Gets Prison Time for Bizarre Kidnapping Plot and Sex With Teen Girl

Michael Raymond Ward​A Scottsdale pervert was sentenced to prison and a lifetime of probation by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Karen O'Connor today for recording himself having sex with a then-14-year-old girl and concocting a kidnapping scheme that was foiled by federal law enforceme ... More >>

Jared Loughner Attorneys Join Prosecutors in Request to Bar Release of Victims' Autopsy Reports

Jared Lee Loughner​Federal prosecutors handling the the trial of Jared Loughner, the lone suspect in the January 8, shooting rampage in Tucson, have requested a gag order that would bar the release of the autopsies of the six people killed during the attack. Today, Loughner's attorneys ... More >>

Coco Crisp, Oakland A's Outfielder, Latest Athlete to Get Busted for DUI in Scottsdale

www.thrilllist.com Coco Crisp joins several athletes who've been busted for DUI in Scottsdale.​If you're a professional athlete looking to get nabbed for a DUI, look no further than Scottsdale.In the past few years, celebrity athletes such as Mike Tyson, Charles Barkley, Seattle Seahawks ti ... More >>

Prosecutors Seek Gag Order for Autopsies of Tucson Shooting Victims

Jared Loughner​Federal prosecutors in the trial of Jared Loughner, the lone suspect in the January 8, shooting rampage in Tucson, have requested a gag order that would bar the release of the autopsies of the six people killed during the attack.The request was made to U.S. District Judge Larry Burn ... More >>

Jack Harris to Detectives: Don't Spend Federal Grant Money Awarded to Phoenix Police to Combat Border-Related Kidnappings

Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris​While a federal audit of the Phoenix Police Department's kidnapping statistics is under way, Police Chief Jack Harris has ordered his troops not to spend any of the $700,000 they collected from the feds to combat border-related kidnapping cases.The Depar ... More >>

Phoenix Man Arrested for Sexually Abusing His Own Kids; Injected Them With Meth, Too

​You'd think it doesn't get much more disgusting, depraved, and evil than someone sexually abusing their own children -- but that's because you've probably never met 29-year-old Juan Vidal Torres, who was arrested this morning on charges that he not only sexually abused his own kids, but injected ... More >>

Jeff Hausner's Conviction Upheld by Appeals Court; Brother of Serial Shooter Stabbed Victims

Jeff Hausner, brother of Dale Hausner, lost his appeal of a conviction for stabbing a random victim.​ Serial stabber Jeff Hausner's hope for leaving prison early has just been thwarted by the state Court of Appeals. This morning, the court upheld the conviction of Hausner on att ... More >>

Man Murdered in Phoenix Bar Shooting Identified; Suspect Loose

​A man killed during a shootout at a Phoenix bar early yesterday morning has been identified as 27-year-old Pedro Sanchez Galvan. The man who shot him, however, remains on the loose.Phoenix police spokesman Sergeant Trent Crump says the investigation into the shooting is ongoing, but, at the momen ... More >>

Phoenix Cops May Have Inflated Kidnapping Stats to Get Federal Bucks

Police Arrest Six Illegal Immigrants in Human Smuggling Operation; Cops Find a Bunch of Weed Too

MCSO Francisco Ruben Martinez-Granillo, charged with possession of marijuana for sale, kidnapping for ransom, smuggling humans for profit, and theft by extortion.​Police arrested six illegal immigrants in Phoenix Wednesday, accusing them of charges ranging from human smuggling, kidnapping f ... More >>

Serial Drunk Driver -- Once Caught Drunk With Baby Steering Car -- Sentenced to 20 Years in Hoosegow

Jack Mizer drives drunk...a lot.​A serial drunk driver prosecutors refer to as "one of the greatest threats to public safety in Maricopa County," has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to his two latest counts of driving under the influence, which is a shitload of time for ... More >>

Wade Ridley, Suspected of Murdering Ex-Girlfriend, Arrested in Las Vegas. Admits Involvement in Murder -- and More

Wade Ridley told police he was involved in the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Anne Marie Simenson.​The ex-boyfriend of a woman murdered in Phoenix last week was arrested in Las Vegas yesterday morning while driving the victim's car.Wade Ridely, 53, was originally considered an "investigative lead" i ... More >>

Glendale Man Shot in Front of Home Last Night Dies From Injuries; Suspect Still Loose

​A Glendale man who was shot in front of his home last night has died from his injuries, the Glendale Police Department announced this afternoon.The man's family has not yet been notified, so the Glendale PD hasn't released his identity but say they are treating the shooting as a homicide.About 8 ... More >>

Federal Grand Jury Indicts 34 in Gun and Drug Trafficking Ring

www.world.guns.ru​A federal grand jury has indicted 34 people in a massive drug and firearm trafficking ring. The indictment, unsealed this morning, alleges that defendants were helping supply Mexican drug cartels with weapons bought in Arizona. The indictment alleges that between September 2009 a ... More >>

Maricopa Man Arrested After Sexually Abusing Teen Girl for Years, Cops Say

PCSO Felipe Barrera Pacheco​A Maricopa man -- with a history of sexual misconduct -- was arrested Wednesday for sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl. The abuse, the girl told cops, had been going on since she was only 8 years old.Felipe Barrera Pacheco, 43, faces six counts of sexual assault ... More >>

Jared Loughner Indicted for Attempted Murder of Gabrielle Giffords and Others. More Charges Expected

Jared Lee Loughner was indicted on three counts of attempted murder by a federal grand jury.​A federal grand jury returned an indictment yesterday against Jared Lee Loughner for the attempted murders of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and two of her aids,Ron Barber and Pamela Simon."Today, the Gr ... More >>

Authorities Looking for Jared Loughner's Mysterious Black Bag

Authorities are looking for a black bag Jared Loughner's believed to have removed from a vehicle owned by his family on the morning of Saturday's tragedy in Tucson.​Authorities investigating the shooting rampage in Tucson on Saturday are looking for a black bag at the center of an argument between ... More >>

Tucson Rampage Adds to Long History of U.S. Shooting Sprees

​Saturday's shooting rampage in Tucson, which left six people dead and 14 others injured -- including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords -- is just the latest in at least 30 documented rampage shootings in American history.Listed below are 10 of the deadliest:

Gabrielle Giffords Shooting Spree Wasn't First Arizona Rampage

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is fighting for her life.​The Saturday shooting rampage in Tucson that felled Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and 13 others, six of whom died, wasn't the first such mass-killing spree in Arizona.Listed below are other Arizona mass shootin ... More >>

Gabrielle Giffords Shooting Update: Congresswoman Able to Communicate With Doctors; Second Suspect Sought

Pima County Sheriff's Office Authorities are looking for this man, who they say is a "person of interest" in yesterday's shooting rampage in Tucson.​Doctors treating Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords following yesterday's shooting rampage in Tucson that left six people dead and several injur ... More >>

Gabrielle Giffords Shooter: Chilling YouTube Video Believed to Be Made by Suspect, 22-Year-Old Jared Loughner; Doctors "Optimistic" Congresswoman Will Survive

Representative Gabrielle Giffords was shot this morning in Tucson.​Authorities confirm to New Times that the man suspected of shooting U.S. Congresswoman Gabriell Giffords and several others this morning in Tucson is 22-year-old Jared Loughner.A motive for the shooting is unknown at the ... More >>

Christopher Licon Charged With Murder and Kidnapping in Deaths of Brother and Nephew

Phoenix Police DepartmentChristopher Licon is accused of murdering his own brother and 6-year-old nephew.​It seemed only a matter of time, but the uncle of a 6-year-old boy found shot to death in a Phoenix alley last month has been charged with murder and kidnapping for the death of the boy and hi ... More >>

Arizona Sex Offender Brain Dead After Hanging Himself in Montana Jail

Phillip Humeyumptewa, multiple rapist, failed to kill himself on Monday.​A career scumbag believed to be responsible for multiple sexual assaults and kidnappings is brain dead after trying to hang himself in a Montana jail on Monday.Phillip Humeyumptewa was found dangling from a bed sheet in his j ... More >>

Christopher Smith, Influential Arizona Politico, Found Shot to Death in Phoenix. Friend Says He had "Problems"

Christopher Smith was found fatally shot in his car Saturday night.​A body found shot to death over the weekend has been identified as Christopher Smith, an influential Valley politico who once served as the chief of staff for the state Senate.Smith, 51, was found fatally shot in his car parked in ... More >>

Brother/ Uncle of Murdered Phoenix Father and Son Eyed in Slayings

Christopher Licon​The brother of a Phoenix man found shot to death in his home earlier this week is a suspect in the man's murder. He's also a suspect in the murder of his brother's son -- the suspect's 6-year-old nephew, who was found shot to death in alley, the Phoenix Police Department announce ... More >>

David William Curtis Jr., Local Lawyer, Found Guilty of Molesting 2-Year-Old and Possessing Child Porn

Image: Tempe policeDavid William Curtis Jr​A local lawyer arrested last year on suspicion of possessing child pornography was found guilty on all counts yesterday.But here's the sick part: A juror in the case tells us this morning that the lawyer, Davis William Curtis Jr., 64, did much more than l ... More >>

Murdered Father of Murdered 6-Year-Old Was a Drug Dealer

​A Phoenix man found shot to death at his home the day before his 6-year-old son was found murdered in an alley was a drug dealer, court records show.The boy, Xavier Jaquez, was found shot to death Tuesday morning in an alley near his mother's home, near 65th Avenue and Indian School Road, by a C ... More >>