homicide

Texas teen, who went missing, charged with murder of man she met online while her boyfriend may have fled to Mexico

November 19, 2023 by Paul Sacca Leave a Comment

A Texas teen went missing and had an Amber Alert issued in an attempt to track her down. Just hours later, she was arrested and has since been charged with murder, according to police.

On Aug. 27, Arturo Pena was reported missing by his mother. She told law enforcement that her 21-year-old son never came home after going to “meet with a girl.”

Two days later, Pena’s body was found inside a vehicle at Audubon Park in Garland, Texas. Police said the victim had been fatally shot.

On Sept. 1, another local young person went missing. An AMBER Alert was issued for 17-year-old Natalie Navarro by the Dallas Police Department after her parents reported her missing.

Later that day, Navarro was located in Webb County near the Mexico border by officers with the Texas Department of Public Safety.

At that time, police had suspected Navarro and her 21-year-old boyfriend, Yordy Martinez, to be involved in the murder of Pena. Police obtained warrants for both Navarro and Martinez. Navarro was arrested the same day that she was found.

Martinez is still at large and may have fled into Mexico, according to authorities. Law enforcement is still trying to track down the suspect.

Investigators with the Garland Police Department suspect Navarro met Pena online two weeks before the deadly shooting, and planned to rob him with the help of Martinez. Police said Navarro and Pena agreed to meet at the park after talking online.

CBS News reported, “According to Navarro’s indictment record, she was ‘in the course of committing and attempting to commit’ robbery against Pena before he was shot.” Detectives believe that Navarro shot Pena during the robbery.

Last Tuesday, a Dallas County grand jury indicted Navarro on the accusation that she did “intentionally cause the death” of Pena, according to the indictment. Navarro was indicted on capital murder charges, according to online records.

Navarro reportedly told police that “she had spoken to Yordy once before online but had never met him in person the night of the actual murder,” said Garland Police Department spokesperson Richard Maldonado.

However, investigators allegedly have “reason to believe” Navarro could be lying.

Navarro is being held at the Dallas County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail.

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‘Happy-go-lucky’ California woman, 27, allegedly murdered by ‘super weird’ bartender, gruesome details tell horrific story

November 18, 2023 by Paul Sacca Leave a Comment

Ghastly details have emerged about the horrific death of a beloved young woman in Laguna Beach, California.

Around 8:20 p.m. on Nov. 12, a construction worker found a female body near a secluded alleyway near Carmelita’s Restaurant, according to KTTV.

Law enforcement identified the deceased woman as Tatum Goodwin – a 27-year-old from San Clemente, who worked at Carmelita’s Restaurant.

Friends of Goodwin told KTLA that she had joined them for post-work drinks the night before her body was discovered.

On Nov. 15, officers with the Laguna Beach Police Department arrested Dino Rojas-Moreno after securing “enough information and evidence,” authorities said during a press conference.

Rojas-Moreno was charged with one felony count of murder, one felony enhancement of special circumstances of committing the murder in the commission of a kidnapping, and one felony enhancement for the personal use of a weapon, according to the district attorney’s office.

Rojas-Moreno – a 26-year-old from Laguna Hills – is currently being detained without bail, according to reports.

The Orange County District Attorney’s Office suspects that Rojas-Moreno approached Goodwin in a parking lot around 1 a.m. on Nov. 12. Authorities believe that he assaulted Goodwin near her parked car.

“Rojas-Moreno then forcefully dragged her to the rear of the parking lot, down a short alley, and to a secluded area behind a movie theatre that was under construction,” the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said in a press release. “Rojas-Moreno is then accused of beating Goodwin to death with a fire extinguisher. Goodwin was found several hours later.”

Goodwin’s body was found under a chain link fence on a construction site and a sandbag had been placed on her head, authorities said.

Rojas-Moreno didn’t show up to his bartending job on the day of the murder, and claimed that he had been attacked by several men in Santa Ana.

Law enforcement and the victim’s family have no proof that Goodwin knew her alleged killer before her sudden and gruesome death.

Goodwin’s friend and neighbor, Georgette Schuda, told the Orange County Register that Rojas-Moreno “had no prior relationship or direct connection to Goodwin.”

Schuda recalled interacting with Rojas-Morena at a restaurant.

“I definitely have served him before and thought he was super weird because he was unnecessarily rude and aggressive,” Schuda said.

Goodwin’s friends and family gathered at the San Clemente Pier on Wednesday for a candlelight vigil to remember the slain young woman.

“She was just a happy-go-lucky person that would give you the shirt off her back. That’s who Tatum was,” said Stacy Goodwin-Pitino – Tatum’s mother.

A GoFundMe campaign was launched by Goodwin’s employer to raise funds for funeral services and to create a memorial in her honor.

Goodwin reportedly worked at Carmelita’s Restaurant for four years.

“Tatum was a very hard-working young lady and always kept a smile on her face,” said Marcos Salim Heredia – owner of the Carmelita’s Restaurant. “Over the years she had expressed her pleasure to be in Laguna and have her opportunity with us. We felt that we really had a family member here with us.”

Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer stated, “The loss of an innocent life is a travesty for the entire community. It is heartbreaking that a young woman with her entire future ahead of her had her life ended in such a brutal way and then discarded like her life never matter. She mattered, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office is committed to ensuring justice is served.”

Rojas-Moreno is scheduled to be arraigned on Nov. 20 at the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana.

Anyone with information on the murder is urged to contact the Laguna Beach Police Department at 949-497-0369. Tips can also be provided to Orange County Crime Stoppers at 855-TIP-OCCS.

Man arrested for murder after woman found dead in alley in Laguna Beachwww.youtube.com

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4 teen suspects accused of savagely beating Las Vegas classmate to death charged with murder as adults

November 18, 2023 by Paul Sacca Leave a Comment

Four of the eight high school students accused of savagely beating their Las Vegas schoolmate to death have been charged with murder and will be tried as adults.

As Blaze News previously reported, 17-year-old Jonathan Lewis Jr. was brutally beaten to death on Nov. 7 by fellow classmates in an alley near Rancho High School in North Las Vegas, Nevada.

Earlier this week, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department arrested eight suspects – all teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17.

Four of the teen suspects – ages 16 and 17 – appeared in court for the first time on Friday.

The Associated Press reported, “The students each face one count of murder but have not been formally charged, court records show.”

According to the New York Post, “Dontral Beaver, 16; Gianni Robinson, 17; and Damien Hernandez, 17, and Treavion Randolph, 16, face murder charges in connection to Lewis’ death on Nov. 7.”

The teenage suspects were being held without bail pending a formal hearing to address their custody status. The suspects are scheduled to return to court next week.

WXIN noted that one of the suspects turned 16 on the day of the deadly assault that took the life of Lewis Jr.

The other four suspects are awaiting a separate hearing because they are all under the age of 16.

“Because the other four teenagers are under the age of 16, they will need to go through a certification hearing in Family Court for a judge to determine if they will be tried as adults,” the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

On Friday, a prosecutor said in court that there are still two remaining suspects still at-large.

In Nevada, teens accused of murder who are age 16 or older are automatically transferred to the adult court system.

According to Nevada law, suspects as young as 13 years old can be charged with murder or attempted murder.

Cell phone video of the disturbing pile-on brawl went viral. The footage shows Lewis being mauled by a group of teenagers.

Police homicide Lt. Jason Johansson said investigators suspect that the fight stemmed from a pair of wireless headphones and a vape pen being stolen from a friend of Lewis. Johansson said Lewis was not originally involved in the melee, but walked into the alleyway with his friend after school.

“As you know, the video that has been shared widely on social media … is very graphic and in my opinion is very void of humanity,” said Johansson. “What you see in the video though is approximately 10 subjects kicking, stomping, and punching our victim Jonathan as he’s on the ground, not defending himself, until the point at where he becomes unconscious.”

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said race did not play a factor in the death of Lewis, and none of the suspects have been charged with any hate crimes.

(WARNING: Graphic video)

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Police arrest pro-Palestinian suspect over killing of elderly Jewish man holding Israeli flag at protest; $1 million bail set

November 16, 2023 by Dave Urbanski Leave a Comment

Police on Thursday arrested a pro-Palestinian suspect in connection with the
killing of an elderly Jewish man who was holding an Israeli flag amid dueling protests last week in Thousand Oaks, California.

What are the details?

Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji, 50, was charged with involuntary manslaughter and taken to Ventura County Jail on $1,000,000 bail,
Fox News reported, citing a Ventura County Sheriff’s Department news release.

Numerous news outlets have said the man seen in this image is Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji. Image source: Fox News video screenshot

Investigators said Alnaji caused Paul Kessler — a 69-year-old
pro-Israel protester — to fall, after which Kessler hit his head on the sidewalk, the cable network said.

The cable network noted that in video recorded after the altercation between Alnaji and Kessler, Alnaji can be seen seen sitting just feet away from Kessler, who’s lying on his back on the sidewalk and bleeding.

Image source: Fox News video screenshot

Alnaji can also be seen answering police officers’ questions. Ventura County Sheriff James Fryhoff said during a news conference last week that the then-unnamed suspect had been cooperative.

Image source: Fox News video screenshot

Kessler was taken to a hospital where he died the next day of his injuries.

More from Fox News:

Although police previously obtained a warrant to search Alnaji’s vehicle and home in Moorpark on Nov. 6, detaining the then-suspect for about two hours, they had insufficient evidence to carry out an arrest.
It is unclear what new evidence led to Alnaji’s arrest. In the weeks preceding his arrest, some witnesses have told Fox News Digital that the pro-Palestinian protester struck Kessler with his megaphone. An autopsy carried out by Ventura County Medical Examiner Christopher Young showed minor abrasions to the left side of Kessler’s mouth in addition to the brain swelling and bruising that killed him.
The department wrote that they are still crowdsourcing photos and video from 3 and 4 p.m. at the intersections of Westlake and Thousand Oaks Boulevards, and offering a $1,000 reward for any pertinent footage or information.

Alnaji is a full-time professor and teaches computer science on Ventura County Community College’s Moorpark campus, the cable network said, adding that the school didn’t immediately return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Alnaji was born in Kuwait, the cable network said, citing the Ventura County District Attorney’s office, but added that his citizenship status wasn’t clear.

Before they were taken down, Alnaji’s faculty page and linked YouTube introduction indicated he has taught college students since 2003 and holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in computer science and a doctorate in business administration, Fox News said.

The cable network added that Alnaji on his now-deleted Instagram account posted a video showing activist Shahid King Bolsen comparing the Hamas terror group to civil rights leaders Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi.

“If someone asked me to condemn Hamas, I would say, what’s the rush? Let’s let history decide,” Bolsen said in the video Alnaji shared, according to Fox News, adding that Bolsen also said, “Let’s wait to see because you might change your mind on this, too — you condemned Mahatma Gandhi until you didn’t.”

Fox News said witnesses at the scene have told the cable network that Alnaji “tried to bait” Kessler before their altercation and was using a megaphone to shout directly into the faces of pro-Israel protesters.

“I don’t know how many times I told him to take that out of my ear,” Jonathan Oswaks, Kessler’s friend and fellow protester, told Fox News in regard to Alnaji’s behavior. “And I wasn’t polite about it… He tried to bait me, and I didn’t take the bait. [Then] he walked across the street and tried to bait Paul.”

Another witness who didn’t want to be named told the cable network that Alnaji was “very aggressive” and appeared to want “to maybe not kill or hurt [Kessler] but to get in his face and get into an altercation.”

Alnaji is scheduled to appear Monday in Ventura County Superior Court, Fox News said.

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