Lost In Lima Ohio - A true crime blog

Although the show already aired, I missed posting this previously and thought that in case any of you missed watching it tonight, you might like to catch a peek at what cases they highlighted. Dan Hiers: Dan Hiers -- a former cop as well as an accused murderer and child molester -- is on the U.S. Marshals' 15 Most Wanted List, and John Walsh has added him to his Dirty Dozen list -- the notorious group of fugitives he wants to see taken off the streets the most. Cops say he killed his wife, stole her truck, and fled three years ago, and he hasn't been seen since. http://www.amw.com/fugitives/brief.cfm?id=30956 Roy Hiatt: Cops say Roy Stephen Hyatt is a convicted sex offender on the run who still has an appetite for children. Police are looking for him on charges of downloading, possessing, and possibly distributing child pornography. http://www.amw.com/Fugitives/brief.cfm?id=44961 Dionne Garcia: After several years of hard work, the Chicago FBI's Joint Task F...

All Jennifer Richards of Texas wanted was a car, a place to live, and maybe a babysitter for her 10 month old daughter- so the thought that she's now sitting in jail over her efforts to fulfill these needs might seem a little odd. Until that is, you learn that Richards and her 40 year old boyfriend Sean Michael Block had planned on exchanging sex with Richard's five year old daughter for them. The pair was arrested Tuesday after an investigation by the FBI concluded that Richards and Block were prostituting the child. The FBI said the pair also intended to sell the younger child's sexual services later and to blackmail the informant, who had received the proposal via text message. According to the affidavit, an informant told the FBI about a text message allegedly sent by Block that read: "Nice piece 5 yrs old belongs to my gf and she wants to sell it." As if these two couldn't come off as being any more demented than they already do- reports indicated th...

This came in yesterday, and I thought I'd share it with you: AMW fugitives David Green and Luc Pierre-Charles have been named to the U.S. Marshals’ 15 Most Wanted list. You can find links to their stories here: http://www.amw.com/Fugitives/ brief.cfm?id=40060 http://www.amw.com/fugitives/ brief.cfm?id=58252 Also, while you’re at it. Be sure to check out our new video of recent capture Michael Bresnahan: http://www.amw.com/fugitives/ brief.cfm?id=54333

We are lead to believe that if we stand up, do the right thing and give voice to the victims in the world, then the rest of the world will react accordingly. We tell each other to put faith in justice, to trust that the truth will prevail and that in the end the victims will be vindicated by verdicts and sentences handed out. I wish that I could lead this into a post that would continue to support our basic desire to believe that justice is, well... justice. Instead, I have to find a way to explain that sometimes justice is nothing more than a laughable deal for a child molester and a slap in the face to his victims. In the case of Aaro n Nichols, the plea deal meant allowing a child molester who had upwards of 11 victims to go free from the Hamilton County Circuit Court- with not a day in jail. His youngest victim was just 6 months old- but that case will never even make it into a court room. The cases that did make it - just two of them- involved two young boys in 2002 and 2003...

Oh, the joys of being 11 and waiting nine months to meet your new baby sister- the thought is just darling. Until you realise that in order to meet your beloved, long awaited sibling is to go out back into the dumpster which your mom decided to toss her in hours after her birth. Shawn Sepulveda, 38, was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after an 11-year-old girl found the baby in a trash bin behind 30041 Tessier St. at about 9 a.m. Saturday, according to Jim Amormino of the Orange County Sheriff's Department. Neighbors said the girl who made the discovery is the newborn's sister. The baby was taken to Mission Hospital and was reported in good condition, he said. Amormino said a trail of blood led to Sepulveda. The baby was believed to have been born just hours earlier and placed in the trash only about 15 minutes before the girl got her out, Amormino said. Perhaps the story is even more angering to me because a law created in 2001 provides for a "safe su...

A baby boy who claimed the title of the first New Years Baby has passed away. His death though, isn't the result of some illness, or accident. Rather, it came at the hands of his own father, who was angered after having an argument with the child's mother. Camryn Jakeb Wilson born 33 minutes after the stoke of New Years, is now part of a statistic, being one of the 1,400 babies annually injured or killed by someone shaking them. Camryn's father, Craig R. Wilson, 28, of Cuyahoga Falls, is scheduled for a pretrial hearing on murder and other charges August 20. Police say he confessed to shaking and squeezing the infant after arguing with his wife, Crystal Wilson. But he has pleaded not guilty to all the charges and faces trial in September. "There are no excuses for this to happen to any baby," said Crystal Wilson, 26. "This is murder. He had no reason to die. He died because he cried" Source CNN

I was questioned today as to why it seems that every crime blogger worth their weight seems to be avoiding the current ongoing trial of Joseph Duncan. The deranged pedophile/murderer who plead guilty to the grisly murders of 13-year-old Slade Groene, his mother, Brenda Groene, and her fiance, Mark McKenzie, all murdered in order for him to kidnap Dylan and Shasta Groene. While I attempted to explain that I was sure no one was trying to avoid blogging about it, I cringed a little. I can not speak for others, but for myself- there was a hint of truth about my reluctance to read the articles from CNN, Fox or anywhere else. Part of me really doesn't want to know what happened in the mountains and in order to blog about the current proceedings- I would have to read the stories. If you were around any of the crime blogs back in the height of the case, you might of noticed the personal toll the case took on those covering every detail of it. I can easily say that many conversations b...

A father, who turns out to be a child rapist... his victims are his own three daughters. Robert Metz, raped his three daughters for years, assuring the silence of at least one by threatening her life, and the life of her mother. But, even that wasn't demented enough for Metz... Investigators found 20,000 images of child and infant pornography on Metz's computer. One of the images depicted Metz performing a sex act on Amber when she was an infant. Others showed babies being sodomized and defecated or urinated on. Metz is, a prosecutor said, the worst child predator she's seen in 22 years. He's been sentenced to 40 years in prison, not even close to being enough. Oh, and his family (mother, siblings, ect) spoke on his behalf... honestly, we ought to be able to charge them with something just for defending him Metz' mother, sister, brother-in-law and nephew spoke in his defense, saying he has led a good life, volunteering in civic organizations. "What...

One of the kindest, most selfless gifts a person can give, is one that they can only give after they are gone- and one that relies upon their remaining family to usually orchestrate. Deciding to give someone else a gift of life by donating an organ of a loved one is something that a lot of families struggle with. On one hand- they have a chance to do something wonderful in memory of their loved one; they spare another family from feeling the loss they feel; they get to, in a sort of way, see their loved one live on- if only a part of them. On the other hand, choosing to take a piece of their loved one away, to cut them open and allow for them to be dissected can be a frightful thought; not to mention the worry about the recipient. What if the life they save turns out to be tarnished? If they spare a piece of their beloved one, only to give life to someone monstrous. An 11 year old boy dies, a sad and heartbreaking moment in time for his family. They however, make the wonderful choi...

America's Most Wanted will be airing the following cases this Saturday, on your local Fox station at 9pm. Rashawn Brazell: Cops in New York found 19-year-old Rashawn Brazell's decapitated body stuffed into trash bags in a NYC subway station, and they say they need your help to catch his killer. Take a good look at the clues, and help police bring a grieving family some justice. http://www.amw.com/Fugitives/ brief.cfm?id=32526 James Bell: Parents near Providence, R.I., were in for the shock of their lives when they found out that James Bell -- the trusted gymnastics coach at a local YMCA -- was accused of molesting their children. What's more, cops say this is just one incident in a long history of sexual abuse and manipulation. But now, Bell has disappeared, and police are on the manhunt for a predator they say is responsible for victimizing girls across the country. http://www.amw.com/fugitives/ brief.cfm?id=39465 Robert Bowman: Since 1967, Ohio cops say Robert Bow...

Joyce Bernann McKinney  is turning out to be more than any proud parent of 5 clones puppies would want to be. Forget the bad checks, forget the stalking, go ahead and put the sexual predator issue aside- since none of that will land her in prison now- recent news has her with an open warrant , this time for failure to appear on charges of criminal conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The charges stem from a Nov. 9, 2004, incident in which the parents of a 15-year-old boy told the Carter County Sheriff’s Department that a woman driving a van with North Carolina license plates had approached their son and asked him to participate in a burglary of a residence in Hampton. The boy told investigators the woman was supposed to pick him up after school the next day. The boy and his parents agreed to have a microphone planted in his clothing and work with the sheriff’s department in apprehending the woman. According to the arrest re...

Members of the Living Faith Christian Center in Oak Harbor Wash. are really the forgiving type, almost to a fault. Well, actually to a fault. It seems that a member of their church, 21 year old Nathan Martinez has made a few mistakes, but since he's been such a helpful member of the church- volunteering as a youth counselor at the church, teaching Sunday school and showing kids how to dance- they just feel it would be wrong to hold those mistakes against him. Now, everyone makes mistakes, but when you look at the mistakes Martinez has admitted to making, along with the ones that police currently suspect him of- you might want to check the Living Faith Christian Center off your list of possible future places of worship. Martinez admitted to molesting three boys and girls between the ages of 3 and 13 since June 2007. He had been babysitting the children, whom he had met at his church, at the time. But wait, the church has an explanation for this behavior of 'loving' h...

I have to roll my eyes when hot shot anti death folks decide to jump in on a case, before it's even officially a 'death case'. I'm not shy about admitting that I'm pro death penalty, in fact I'm not even the least bit bothered to tell you- I think it ought to be used way more than it is. I'll give you a perfect example. Convicted sexual predator goes online with fake aliases, luring his own niece into a meeting with him. At some point, the 12 year old girl ends up dead and her body is disposed of. Of course, no one knows that the uncle has committed this crime, because he has a story about dropping her off to meet a friend. But then, during the few days that the national manhunt for this beautiful young girl is going on, another relative comes forward and says the uncle has been sexually abusing her. He gets arrested. And, as the facts of what really went on the day the 12 year old goes missing start to unravel, the missing persons case because a homicid...

For the record, I'm not sure if I am willing to buy  that the estranged wife 'accidentally texted' her ex husband. It takes effort to text someone... first putting their number in, then typing a message, then sending the message... it's not like she was walking down the street and bumped into him. But that's not the point I suppose. It seems that the 23 year old wife claims to have gotten a new cell phone, with a new number. She "accidentally" texted 40 year old Jesse Arnold Read. And from there, one thing lead to another and he ended up sitting in a car outside a gas station with the belief that he was meeting a 17  year old and 15 year old for sex. The woman played vengeful ex perfectly, contacted police who showed up to greet- and arrest- Read. Full story...

When the police officers that investigated previous cases involving the  main suspect a 'piece of shit' of a case half way across the country, you know that more than likely- the suspect's really are exactly what they have been called. I'd have to say that in this case, it rings more true than ever. Sheriff Keith Kellerman said he had to deal with Cutler a few times, including a domestic violence case and a few traffic infractions. Kellerman said, "He's a piece of (expletive)." The current case in which Charles Smith is being investigated involves a 3 year old girl who it's alleged he abused to the point that she had dead flesh on her arms and legs. Court documents obtained by KREM 2 NEWS say the deputy who found her took pictures of the child for evidence. The pictures show a "small, blonde-haired child" with "blood on her butt and thighs... caked-on feces... feet dark, dead flesh from ankles to toes black... hands showed same......

After delaying justice for longer than it should be, it seems that an arrest has been made in the tragic case of Coralrose Fullwood . She is the little girl that disappeared from her home, only to have her body later discovered nearby. The case itself opened a wormhole filled with investigations, including when her siblings were removed from the home and her father was arrested for possession of child porn. Police say DNA tied 27-year-old Patrick D. Murphy to the murder. "The warrant charges Murphy with the kidnapping, sexual battery and murder of 6 year-old Coralrose Fullwood," said North Port Police Chief Terry Lewis. When he was arrested and charged with Coralrose's death, Murphy was already in jail serving time for burglary. "All of have been saying since day one- we were more concerned about getting it right than doing it fast. I look you all in the eyes today and say I think we've done it right," said North Port Police Chief Terry Lewis. The fam...

Something tells me that My Name is Earl might not have been on the top of the "Must See TV" list of John Melchior. Had he even watched one single episode, he might have known that Karma always comes back to bite you in the ass, or as in his case- knock you off the motorcycle. Melchior was driving north at a high rate of speed on U.S. 42 and struck a southbound SUV head on driven by Susan Garret, of Valley City, according to the Medina Ohio State Highway Patrol, . The motorcycle then traveled on and hit another car driven by Dawn Wilker, 32, of Medina. Melchior was thrown off the motorcycle and struck the pavement. The other drivers were not injured. Melchior died from the accident, and I know.. you're wondering where karma comes into play. Turns out, Melchior was running from the police after a warrant was issued for him, in relation to a attempted rape and burglary . Parma police had issued an arrest warrant for Melchior after he was identified as a suspect in a burglary...

Wow, nothing says "morbid sex case" like a story about cloned puppies.... evidently. While I normally have no interest in stories about cloned puppies, I have to admit that when the story ends up solving a 30 year mystery of what happened to a deranged sexual maniac- it's going to catch my eye. The whole thing started years old, with American Joyce McKinney. Described by one former friend as 'beautiful' the young woman had apparently been blessed with the looks to win a Miss Wyoming USA pageant. She also had attended the Mormon based Brigham Young University. It was there that Joyce meet another student, a young man she grew very fond of to a dangerous level, Kirk Ewoll. When the young man went overseas on Missionary work, Joyce wasn't so willing to let him escape her, and according to reports she hired a PI to locate him, and then followed him to England. If that didn't put a few red flags in the air, then what police and courts have claimed she di...

Arthur Brown probably has learned a lot in the last 40 years, as he's continued to prey on children and refined his method of entrapping his victims. The 67 seven year old has a long history dating back 40 years of molesting children, and his latest run in with the court put a $100,000 bond on him after he pretended to be a doctor and approached a 10 year old who had been injured at a ball game. Brown began touching the boy but stopped when the boy's father intervened, they allege. According to prosecutors, Brown was charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor in 1966. In 1974, he received supervision on a charge of taking indecent liberties with a child. He was convicted of taking indecent liberties with a child in 1984 and of aggravated sexual abuse in 1988. He also has a 2008 disorderly conduct case pending. His next court date is Sept. 12. Currently, he's only charged with battery and with being a child sex offender in a public park zone stemming from the A...

Alan Woe, which by the way isn't his real name but just a name given to him so he can remain unknown in the court papers, thinks that sex offender registration is a punishment, rather than a 'tool for community safety'. So, he filed suit against the state of New York, based upon his claims. The offender, a Brookhaven resident who was given the pseudonym "Alan Woe" in court papers and who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity, had sued over a 2006 change that extended the length of time sex offenders must register. The change, the suit argued, unfairly deprived them of due process. The registration time for Level 1 offenders was increased from 10 to 20 years, while Level 2 and 3 offenders are now registered for life. Level 2 offenders may petition for removal from the registry after 30 years. The changes were enacted three days before the man, a Level 1 offender, would have reached 10 years on the registry, according to the lawsuit. Aww... poor sex offender. No...

I'm always getting asked about my thoughts on treatment programs for sexual offenders. ANd my answer is usually always the same "if they really do need treatment, they likely aren't going to be helped by getting it". I say it that way, because it's the only honest way to put it. Romeo doesn't need sex offender treatment, he needs to learn to hold off from consummating the love with his barely too young girlfriend. On the other hand, Molester Mike who preys on little kids as a hobby, well- he might need help, but no amount of help is going to end his twisted desires. Usually the second question asked, before anyone has had the chance to read the first answer is just how someone can "know" is treatment is working. Because I don't believe it can work, it's not a question that can really be answered. However, I can tell you some of the signs that sex offender treatment isn't working. The first sign treatment isn't working... the sexual de...

Not long ago, I mentioned a case where a convicted sexual predator was granted bond while his appeal of his conviction awaited hearings. The former teacher had been convicted on 13 counts involving the prolonged sexual abuse of a young boy. The judge in the case granted bond, allowing him to return to 'the free life' with little more than a ankle monitor, and not even a order to remain away from children. Everyone was outraged. Now, Aaron Mohanlal's case has been again given the 'once over', only this time the judge actually did something right, something that should have been done a year ago at the time he was convicted. When jurors returned 13 guilty verdicts in April 2007, the boy's father pulled him close. The boy wiped at tears. The prosecutor put her hand to her tear-stained face. It was the end, they thought, of a four-year ordeal. Instead, they were all incensed and distraught three months later to see Gold grant Mohanlal bond and allow him to be relea...

In 1986 Richard Cooey raped and killed to young women. For his crimes, he was tried, convicted and sentenced to die by Ohio's method of the death penalty- which happens to be lethal injection. After 22 years, Cooey will be facing the needle in October. Unless his lawyers have their way. According to Cooey, and papers filed on his behalf by his lawyers, he is just too fat to die. Actually, at 5'7 and 267 lbs, he likely could use a diet, but I don't think it really justifies keeping him alive that much longer. However, I do see the need for people to look their best when they go to meet their maker so to speak, so I get why why he'd think he might be a little too fat. Which is why I'm supportive of using tax payer funds to help rectify this situation. In fact, if he signs up now with http://www.mybodymakeover.com/ he could be fit and happy with his new body makeover just in time for them to insert the needle. Although, really something tells me that this is less abo...

Normally, I enjoy the weekends. Slow, relaxing and let's face it- weekends are usually rather low crime times. Times when I can actually read the news, and fill my minds with other headlines. And then, this weekend happened. Not one, not even two... but THREE different cases of people killing and beheading people. Really, I'm sort of like 'what the hell...' on this. The first case I came across involved a Brazilian drug dealer who was dating a 17 year old girl from London. The torso of Cara Marie Burke, from Southfields, southwest London, was identified by her mother from a photograph of a distinctive tattoo that said “Mum”. Mohamed D’Ali Carvalho dos Santos, 20, is alleged to have admitted taking photographs of Cara’s dismembered corpse on his mobile telephone after killing her in Goiânia, central Brazil. He told police that he murdered Cara on Saturday after she threatened to tell his parents, who live in London, that he was a drug dealer addicted to cocaine. He said...