After requesting help from the media to identify a wanted suspect, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division says one particular tip led to an arrest of an identity theft suspect.
Detectives say they were able to get the suspect’s number after the Crime Stopper’s tip led them to some of the suspect’s acquaintances.

 
Within two days, 25-year-old Marshall Ray Reeves, turned himself in to the Sheriff’s Office.  Reeves confessed to investigators that he used the cards after someone gave them to him after hitting his vehicle.

http://liarcatchers.com/identity_theft_investigation.html

 
He was charged with felony Financial Transaction Card Fraud and jailed under a $5000 secured bond.  Reeves made his first appearance in the Lincoln County District Court Friday.
“The great working relationship with our local media and our concerned citizens continue to be a great asset to Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.  We continue to work as a team in solving crimes all over Lincoln County and surrounding counties.  Everyone’s help is greatly appreciated and needed.  We can’t solve every crime, but we can solve many more when we work together,” Lieutenant Tim Johnson said.

A man accused in the shooting death of his daughter’s boyfriend was found guilty and sentenced by a grand jury Thursday.

Bill Cox was found guilty of manslaughter and two counts of wanton endangerment, accused of fatally shooting 21-year-old Ryan Abner in 2012. Cox was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

http://liarcatchers.com/wrongful_death.html

Cox was also found guilty of firing his handgun into a vehicle where his daughter and her baby were sitting

The Sioux Falls Police Department is looking for a missing person that is memory impaired.

Gene Richard Raymond Bergland, who is 73 years old, was last seen at home early Friday morning.  He was discovered missing around 11:30 a.m.

http://liarcatchers.com/missing_persons_investigations.html

Gene was last wearing a blue/gray coat, brown plaid shirt and jeans.  He may be in a tan colored 2001 Chevy Silverado, South Dakota License 1VV692.

If anyone sees Gene or his pickup, they are asked to call police.

The Internal Revenue Service issued its annual “Dirty Dozen” list of tax scams, reminding taxpayers to use caution during tax season to protect themselves against a wide range of schemes ranging from identity theft to return preparer fraud.

The Dirty Dozen listing, compiled by the IRS each year, lists a variety of common scams taxpayers can encounter at any point during the year. But many of these schemes peak during filing season as people prepare their tax returns.

http://liarcatchers.com/fraud_investigation.html

Identity theft leads the list – with scammers out to get your identity and your refund – followed by phone scams, phishing fake emails and promises of “free money.”

With phone scams, the IRS says crooks call and pretend to be with the IRS and claim the victims owe money or are entitled to a huge refund in order to get their information.

Phishing fake emails are also something to look out for, where someone claiming to be with the agency will email victims trying to lure them into revealing valuable information like their names, socials security number and date of birth.

The IRS also warns of false promises of “free money” from inflated refunds. They say scammers give people false hopes of receiving a large sum of money they didn’t expect in the first place. They may use strategies like flyers, ads and even storefronts.

Montgomery County Police are searching for a missing 16-year-old girl who was last seen in Silver Spring in late January.

Taylor Lynn Howling, of the 2200 block of Greenery Lane, was last seen by family members on Jan. 20, authorities say.

http://liarcatchers.com/missing_persons_investigations.html

She has not been in contact with her family since that time and has a medical condition that requires monitoring.

Howling is described as a black, 5-foot-3 female, weighing about 105 pounds. She has brown eyes and black hair.

Investigators say Howling has recently been seen in the area of West Deer Park Road and North Summit Avenue in Gaithersburg.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Howling is asked to call the Montgomery County Police-Family Crimes Division at 240-773-5400 or the police non-emergency number at 301-279-8000 (24 hour line).

Sheriff’s Deputies at the Rancho San Diego station ask public help to locate Henry Camarena, 38.  He has not been seen of heard from by family or friends since Sunday, February 16.

Camarena has health issues and requires daily medication, said Detective Moore.  He may be driving a white 2013 Nissan Versa with California license late 6ZAF275.

http://liarcatchers.com/missing_persons_investigations.html

Camarena is Hispanic, 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs 180 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.

If you see him , call the Sheriff’s Department at 858-565-5200 and refer to Missing Person Case #14108735, or contact Detective Moore at 619-660-7045.

A Louisville, Kentucky man was sentenced to 22 ½ years today by Senior United States District Judge Thomas B. Russell for violating federal child pornography laws, namely, the production of child pornography, announced David J. Hale, United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky.

Jamar Garrett, a/k/a Darnell Hamilton, age 35, admitted in court that during June through July 2012, he represented himself as Darnell Hamilton and lived in Jefferson County, Kentucky. During that time period, he rented a room in a home (where a 9-year-old female child also lived). On July 1, 2012, Garrett engaged in sexually explicit conduct with the 9-year-old female child. He used his cellular telephone to record the sexual activity in the form of a video. Approximately one week later, an adult living in the home viewed the contents of the cell phone, confronted the child, and called the police to report the matter.

http://liarcatchers.com/pedophile_tracking.html

According to court records, Garrett fled the jurisdiction. However, Louisville Metro Police obtained a federal arrest warrant for Garrett, which was recorded in the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Crime Information Center (NCIC). Law enforcement officials arrested Garrett on the outstanding warrant when he was stopped for a traffic violation in Toledo, Ohio.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, which called for a 22 ½-year term of imprisonment, followed by a life term of supervised release, Garrett also pleaded guilty in Jefferson Circuit Court to sexually abusing a 6-year-old child. The Jefferson Circuit Court case involved a different victim than the federal case. The state court sentence will run concurrently with the federal sentence.

Assistant United States Attorney Jo E. Lawless prosecuted the case. The Louisville Metro Police Department’s Crimes Against Children Unit, in conjunction with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, conducted the investigation as part of Kentucky’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “Resources.”

A Springfield Public Schools employee was charged with murder in the death of a 10-year-old Springfield girl who was abducted Tuesday evening.

According to police, the body of 10-year-old Hailey Owens was found inside the home of Craig Michael Wood, who is a coach and teacher’s aide at a Springfield Public Schools elementary school.

Wood, 45, was charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action, and child kidnapping, according to the Green County Prosecuting Attorney. The murder booking came just hours after police announced they had arrested Wood in the abduction of Hailey Owens.

http://liarcatchers.com/wrongful_death.html

According to the probable cause statement, a female witness saw Wood’s Ford Ranger pull up to Owens and ask her where Springfield Street was. The witness said Hailey tried to walk away from the vehicle, but Wood opened the door of his truck and said “Hey, come here for a minute,” extending his hand to her, and motioning for him to come to him.

“Our witnesses said it happened just that quick,” Police Chief Paul Williams said.

Neighbor Carlos Edwards told the Springfield News-Leader he ran after the truck as his wife tried to get the license plate number after seeing the abduction. Police say another witness got into a car and tried to pursue Wood’s vehicle, but lost track of it.

Police say witness accounts helped them identify Wood as the suspect. Amber Alerts were issued in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Authorities say Wood pulled up in the truck, belonging to his father, around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday as officers were waiting for him at his home in the 1500 block of E. Stanford St.

The officers approached Wood as he got out of the truck, and noticed he had a roll of duct tape in his hand. When he saw the officers, he threw the duct tape into the bed of the truck.

Wood was taken into police custody and questioned by investigators. According to the charging documents, he changed his story about where he was during the kidnapping several times during the course of the investigation.

According to the charging documents, Springfield officers and the FBI later executed a search warrant at his home early Wedesday mornning.

Authorities say that’s when they found a body believed to be Owen’s stuffed inside two garbage bags in a basement where the floor was still wet. Investigators also noted that empty bottles of bleach and the strong odor was apparent in the basement.

The Greene County Medical Examiner said Owens was killed by a single gunshot wound to the head. Spent .22 caliber shell casings were also found in the basement

Authorities won’t officially confirm that the body is Hailey’s until after an autopsy, but Springfield Police Chief Paul Williams said “we have a high degree of confidence” in the preliminary identification, which indicates that it is the girl.

Authorities say more than 100 law enforcement officers from the Springfield Police Department, Missouri Highway Patrol and FBI were involved in the investigation.

Police say they investigated at several locations, including the Dutch Maid Laundromat, in hopes of finding more evidence.

According to police, Wood is not talking to investigators and a motive for the alleged killing is unknown.

On Wednesday, Springfield Public School Superintendent Norm Ridder said Wood has worked as a coach and teacher’s aide in the district since Aug. 1998.

“He works as a paraprofessional and athletic coach at Pleasant View K-8 School,” Ridder said in a statement. “His employment has been suspended until this matter is resolved.

According to Ridder, Owens was a student at Westport Elementary School in Springfield. She attended Bowerman Elementary School last year.

Police say they do not believe Owens and Wood knew each other.

Court documents show Wood has a drug arrest on his record, but no violent crime convictions.

Clovis police want help finding Georgia Satterfield, a 14-year-old who has been missing since she left her home Saturday.

Georgia is 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. She has black hair and brown eyes.

http://liarcatchers.com/missing_persons_investigations.html

Police said she may be in the company of Estevan Villarreal, 18, who is 5 feet, 8 inches, weighs 135 poundsj and has brown hair and brown eyes. Police say a criminal protective order restraining Villarreal from making contact with Georgia is in force. Police think Georgia may be going to the city of Merced.

Anyone with information about the girl is asked to call (559) 324-2800.

A five-year-long missing person’s investigation in Butte has resulted in the arrest of the missing man’s son who is accused in his father’s murder.

Butte Sheriff Ed Lester said investigators have enough evidence to link 23-year-old Adam Hatfield to the murder of his 49-year-old father Matt Hatfield.

Matt Hatfield was reported missing by family on December 23, 2008.
Police searched the property at 415 Roosevelt Drive south of Butte for the missing man without success.

http://liarcatchers.com/wrongful_death.html
Despite not finding Matt Hatfield’s body, the Sheriff said they believe his son killed him.

Sheriff Lester said, “Through evidence that was recovered at the scene as well as additional items that were sent to the crime lab we now forensically can show that Matt had been, is deceased and we can also prove that Adam Hatfield purposely caused the death of his father.”

Adam Hatfield was arrested in Hot Springs, South Dakota, on Wednesday and faces a felony deliberate homicide charge in Butte.

“It’s a long involved case with a lot of information, a lot of forensic and scientific type testing has been performed and so it is rewarding to get to this stage, but it’s also one of those things that we’re never at the end until a conviction has been achieved,” Lester said.

The sheriff said Adam Hatfield should be extradited back to Butte to face the felony charge by next week if he doesn’t challenge his extradition.