On Q Professional Investigations

“A suspected serial thief was arrested after a security guard caught her in the act.

Jessica Chalfant was shopping at the Target on the 5900 block of Poplar Avenue when the guard noticed her selecting two purses and other various merchandise, according to the arrest affidavit.

Police said she started concealing items inside the purses, including school supplies and a razor.

Chalfant then tried to exit the store without paying. After she passed the registers, she was detained by the guard who called Memphis police.

According to the arrest affidavit, she then gave a name to MPD, who after finding her ID in a purse, that was deemed to be fake.

Jessica Chalfant had four misdemeanor warrants and her bail was set at $20,000.”

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“Victoria police say they discovered a stash of stolen goods worth an estimated $100,000 following an investigation triggered by a mall “grab and dash.”

Two men and a woman, all from Victoria, have been identified as suspects and are expected to face charges, police said police in a written release. One of the men remains in custody.

“This file is a great example of teamwork,” said acting Chief Const. Colin Watson. “Store staff, mall security personnel, private citizens and our RCMP partners all played a role in helping our officers with this investigation.”

According to police, a man tried to run off with a wooden elephant carving from Hillside Centre on June 10. Police said the suspect was identified and believed to be a “prolific property offender” based on surveillance footage.

The agency then worked with Sidney RCMP to eventually locate three suspects.

When investigators executed search warrants, they discovered hundreds of stolen items including dolls, bedding, statues and electronics.

The suspects are expected to face a number of charges including theft under $5,000 and possession of stolen goods.

Victoria police say the rightful owners should contact its non-emergency line to retrieve recovered items.”

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“Two Houston men have been charged in a scheme to steal more than $56,000 in jeans including more than 100 pairs of jeans in Southeast Texas.

Ramirez Nava Rodriguez, 41, and Jose Isabel Del Angel, 54, both of Houston, have been charged with felony charges of “Theft – Aggregate” according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by 12News from the Harris County District Court.

Del Angel, whose bond is set at $2000 was arrested on August 6, 2016 and it is unknown if Rodriquez has been arrested. Rodriguez bond will be set at $10,000 according to the affidavit.

The pair are suspected of stealing 980 pairs of men’s and women’s Levis jeans, valued at $56,722, from JC Penny stores in the Harris County and surrounding area including the Central Mall location in Port Arthur..

The thefts took place from December 2012 through July 2016 with the two most recent thefts taking place at Central Mall.

The affidavit alleges that Rodriguez stole the bulk of the jeans and Del Angel helped sell them at a Houston flea market.

Police believe that Rodriguez was the leader of a group of “professional boosters” who were committing the thefts.

The document alleges that on July 2, 2016 Rodriguez stole 64 pairs of jeans valued at $3918 and on July 30, 2016, he stole 44 pairs valued at $2552 from the JC Penny store in Central Mall.

Rodriquez was observed surveillance video using the “matador” method to commit the thefts using a shirt to hide several pairs of jeans at a time from store associates the affidavit said.

He would take the jeans out the camera’s range, use a tool to remove the “electronic Article Surveillance tag” and then put the jeans into a large JC Penny bag he had concealed in his pants pocket.

He would then take the stolen jeans to his car and repeat the process several times during one trip.

An investigator from JC Penny worked with Houston Police to track and capture the suspects.

The store’s investigator and an undercover Houston Police officer each purchased stolen jeans from Del Angel at separate times at Sunny Flea Market in the 8700 block of Airline Drive in Houston.”

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“After a spike in crime, two Chicago aldermen want to bring private security services to the Wicker Park and Bucktown neighborhoods to supplement what police are already doing.
Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) and Ald. Joe Moreno (1st) proposed a plan to use the taxpayer surplus Special Service Area, or SSA, funds for guards to help Chicago police patrol the Northwest Side communities. On Friday, the aldermen and 14th District Police Commander Fabian Saldana brought together dozens of residents to discuss the proposal.
“It’s no different than snow removal, beautification or the other things that SSA does. I believe security is important, and it’s important to augment it, not replace it,” Moreno said.
Since May, 1700 crimes from battery to arson were reported in the area, but only 200 arrests have been made, according to the aldermen.
“We’re trying to get a handle on that with this proposal,” Hopkins said.
The proposed budget amendment would use $100,000 of the $1.2 million SSA budget, allowing for the hiring of off-duty and retired police officers for late-night patrols.
Some residents expressed support, saying it would be “egregious” to not do anything about the crime.
“It’s a really good idea, but we need to think about standards and oversight,” said community resident Gretchen Vermuelen.
Others were not enthusiastic about the idea.
“Police service is a fundamental service that the city should be providing on its own. We should not be providing that,” said Steven Lipe.
The SSA district overlaps three wards, with two of the three aldermen backing the private security proposal. Ald. Hopkins said the SSA funding will expire if not spent by the end of the year.
“If we’re not able to come to an agreement or some compromise, a willingness to work together, then really the entire $1.2 million is in jeopardy,” said Kimberly Bares of the Wicker Park/Bucktown Chamber of Commerce.
The aldermen said they hope to work out a solution within the next week.”

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“A Nashville area pastor and his associate have been indicted after TBI agents said they secured state grant money for an addiction treatment program that didn’t exist.
Clinton Lewis, 48, of Hermitage and Aundre Trice, 38, of Antioch are charged with four counts of theft each, according to a news release from TBI.
Agents said between 2011 and 2015, Lewis, a Mt. Hopewell Baptist Church pastor since 2002, and Trice received more than $60,000 in grant money from the Tennessee Dept. of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services for an addiction recovery program.
TBI said the clients listed in the program never received any treatment. Some clients listed were even in jail, prison or had died. The counselors listed in the program weren’t aware it was in operation, agents said,

Lewis and Trice were booked into Davidson County Jail Friday on $10,000 bonds each.”

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“Men from Wallingford and Southington face felony charges after police said they worked together to adjust bets and receive excessive gambling credits.
Christian Elwood, 40, of 40 N. Orchard St., Wallingford and Jeremy Paul Howard, 40, of Southington were both charged with first-degree larceny and conspiracy to commit first-degree larceny.
According to the arrest warrant, in May officers from the Mohegan Tribal Police began a larceny investigation involving a Mohegan Sun dealer, identified as Elwood, a patron, identified by the New London Day as Howard and a Mohegan Sun Floor Supervisor, also identified by the Day as Joseph P. Marotta, 36, of Danielson.
Security personnel and the director of table games reviewed the security footage from May 4. Howard is seen placing $3,000 in “front money” at a cashier window, the arrest warrant said. “Front money” can be used to go to a table game and call up a marker for any amount up to the deposit amount, the warrant said. Howard went to a roulette table and bought in for $300, then asked for a $2,000 marker from his front money, the warrant said. Marotta took Howard’s identification to verify the information and placed the $2,000 in markers on the table, the warrant said. Elwood then took $20,000 in gaming cheques and placed them in front of Howard, the warrant said. Howard put the gaming cheques in his pocket and left the roulette table shortly after, the warrant continued. After Howard left, Marotta entered false ratings into the system showing Howard winning more than he did to account for the missing money, the warrant said.
On May 21, Howard went to a roulette table and placed $25 gaming cheques on numbers for several rounds of play, the warrant said. Howard did not win during the rounds, but Elwood moved his bets to the winning number, paying out around $4,375 per falsified win, the warrant said. During another round Howard did win $2,250, but Elwood moved more bet markers onto the space, doubling his win, the warrant said.
During an interview with tribal police Elwood admitted knowing Howard for about a year and a half. Elwood told police moving the bets to the winning numbers must have been a “mistake” and said the piles must have fallen over and when he was tidying up the bets he accidentally moved the markers, the warrant said. Elwood denied moving the bets on purpose, the warrant said. He also denied over paying Howard the $20,000 for the front money in the first incident, the warrant said.
Police spoke with Marotta, who eventually admitted talking to Elwood about financial difficulties and Elwood talked about intentionally overpaying a patron and they would “get a piece of the action if he looked the other way,” the warrant stated.”

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“After surviving a rocky divorce and custody dispute in 2007, all Christine Belford wanted was to settle back into a peaceful life with her three young daughters in her Delaware home.

Instead, her ex-husband, David T. Matusiewicz, and several members of his family stalked, harassed, and intimidated Belford for years leading up to her murder at a federal courthouse in Wilmington on February 11, 2013. The ensuing investigation, conducted by the FBI and the Delaware State Police, resulted in the first-ever convictions on charges of cyberstalking resulting in death, a violation contained in the federal Violence Against Women Act.

During their investigation, agents and detectives learned that David Matusiewicz hatched the plot to stalk and harass his ex-wife while in prison for kidnapping Belford’s children in 2007, when the couple was going through divorce proceedings. The Delaware optometrist enlisted the help of his mother, father, and sister, who waged an elaborate, years-long, online campaign against Christine Belford, alleging she endangered the lives of the daughters she had with Matusiewicz.

“Through our investigation, we discovered that the Matusiewicz family had a network of supporters helping them uncover information about Christine’s life,” said Special Agent Joseph Gordon, who investigated the case out of the Baltimore Field Office’s Wilmington Resident Agency. “They were convinced by the family’s claims that she was a child abuser, but they didn’t know the family’s real intent.”

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“Three people from out of state who were staying at a Tewksbury hotel are facing felony charges after Nashua police say they found them with over 250 allegedly counterfeit credit cards and debit cards.
Nashua police said in a press release that they were called to the Pheasant Lane Mall on Monday about 7:30 p.m. for a report of suspicious activity involving several people.
A mall security guard called police after being notified by employees of a store at the mall that on two different occasions a male and female tried to purchase gift cards with more than one credit card.
“It was learned that the male had used two credit cards to pay for one gift card, and that the female did not purchase the gift card because she could not get the exact money value she wanted on one gift card,” police said.
Security captured the female involved on surveillance video as she also entered another mall business to try and purchase a gift card. She then left the mall and got into the passenger seat of a vehicle outside.
Officers who responded to the call, along with detectives who were at the mall for an unrelated matter, stopped that vehicle as it left the mall and identified the occupants as Jovon William, 24, of Oakland, Calif., and Brittany Allen, 28, of East Orange, N.J.
Another male approached officers during that motor vehicle stop and identified himself as Queron Foreman, 22, of Oakland, Calif.
Nashua police said in a press release that officers found probable cause to take all three suspects into custody as they obtained a search warrant for the vehicle.
Once officers got a warrant, they searched the vehicle and said they found over 250 counterfeit credit and debit cards, over 20 gift cards and receipts, according to police.”

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Surf’s up and so are the drones at this popular spring break destination in Texas.

The South Padre Island police have ordered two drones and plan on flying them above partying college students, where more than 25,000 spring breakers are expected to pour in this March.

The pair of drones feature a crystal-clear 4K camera so police can keep a watchful eye in the sky on every beer pong match, keg stand and chugging contest on the beach.

But even with an extra point-of-view above the revelers, police don’t think the drones will be a buzz to any parties.

“I don’t think it’s going to change people’s behavior,” Gary Ainsworth, the city’s public information officer, told the Daily News. “Any time you have an eye in the sky, it’s better than having just eyes on the ground.”

Ainsworth said there won’t be a specific schedule during spring break their drones will be patrolling, and pointed out they were not specifically requested to watch over college students on the beach.

The officer told the News they had requested these drones a while ago, and it was just a coincidence they arrived so close to spring break.

This will be the first time the city’s police roll out their two drones in the popular town.

“We can use it for beach patrol,” police chief Randy Smith told Valley Central. “We’re looking at deploying some that have a safety feature that releases a life jacket over a subject that is in distress.”

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ELLOREE, SC (WIS) - An investigation by the Elloree Police Department uncovered an employee theft ring at the Dollar General store on Old Number 6 Highway.

Police say the store’s management reported a loss of merchandise costing more than $56,000 over eight months.

Seven employees have been arrested on charges of felony criminal conspiracy and breach of trust involving more than $10,000. They were booked into the Orangeburg-Calhoun Regional Detention Center where they have posted bail.

According to the arrest warrants, the employees, “while utilizing a scheme, did knowingly, with intent to permanently deprive the owner, remove, carry away or allowed to be carried away, retail merchandise without payment.”

“They would wait until the close of business at the end of the day and they would already pre-load buggies or shopping carts and right when it time to close the business, they would pull those buggies up, pretend to scan the items, and the buggies would be completely full,” Elloree Police Chief Joseph Avinger said. “Then we went back with the video and checked it along with the register tape to see how much money was spent at the register and it would be only a few dollars — $10 to $15 from buggies filled with merchandise.”

Avinger says the investigation was a cooperative effort between the store management, police department, and 1st Circuit Solicitor’s Office.

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