Headline

Teen, 15, Charged In Oxford School Shooting

Published

2 years ago

December 3, 2021

Editor

A teenager accused of killing four students at a Michigan high school was called to the office before the shooting but “no discipline was warranted,” the superintendent said Thursday in his first extended remarks since the tragedy.

Tim Throne, leader of Oxford Community Schools, said Oxford High School looks like a “war zone” and won’t be ready for weeks. But he repeatedly credited students and staff for how they responded to the violence Tuesday.

“To say that I am still in shock and numb is probably an understatement. These events that have occurred will not define us,” Throne, grim-faced and speaking slowly, said in a 12-minute video.

Ethan Crumbley, 15, has been charged as an adult with two dozen crimes, including murder, attempted murder and terrorism, for the shooting at the Oakland County school, roughly 30 miles (50 kilometers) north of Detroit.

“I want you to know that there’s been a lot of talk about the student who was apprehended, that he was called up to the office and all that kind of stuff. No discipline was warranted,” Throne said. “There are no discipline records at the high school. Yes this student did have contact with our front office, and, yes, his parents were on campus Nov. 30.”

Throne said he couldn’t immediately release additional details. Sheriff Mike Bouchard has said Crumbley’s classroom behavior was a concern on the day of the shooting.

In his remarks, the superintendent said he was asking the sheriff’s office to publicly release school video from Tuesday.

“I want you to be as proud of your sons and daughters as I am,” Throne said.

Earlier Thursday, a prosecutor repeated her criticism of Crumbley’s parents, saying their actions went “far beyond negligence” and that a charging decision would come by Friday.

“The parents were the only individuals in the position to know the access to weapons,” Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald said. The gun “seems to have been just freely available to that individual.”

Four students were killed and seven more people were injured, while three were hospitalized though in stable condition.

The semi-automatic gun was purchased legally by Crumbley’s father last week, according to investigators.

Parents in the U.S. are rarely charged in school shootings involving their children, even as most minors get guns from a parent or relative’s house, according to experts.

There’s no Michigan law that requires gun owners keep weapons locked away from children. McDonald, however, suggested there’s more to build a case on.

“All I can say at this point is those actions on mom and dad’s behalf go far beyond negligence,” she told WJR-AM. “We obviously are prosecuting the shooter to the fullest extent. … There are other individuals who should be held accountable.”

Later at a news conference, McDonald said she hoped to have an announcement “in the next 24 hours.” She had firmly signaled that Crumbley’s parents were under scrutiny when she filed charges against their son Wednesday.

Jennifer and James Crumbley did not return a message left by The Associated Press.

The sheriff disclosed Wednesday that the parents met with school officials about their son’s classroom behavior, just a few hours before the shooting.

Crumbley stayed in school Tuesday and later emerged from a bathroom with a gun, firing at students in the hallway, police said.

“Should there have been different decisions made?” McDonald said when asked about keeping the teen in school. “Probably they will come to that conclusion. … I have not seen anything that would make me think that there’s criminal culpability. It’s a terrible, terrible tragedy.”

William Swor, a defense lawyer who is not involved in the case, said charging the parents would require a “very fact-intensive investigation.”

“What did they know and when did they know it?” Swor said. “What advance information did they have about all these things? Did they know anything about his attitude, things of that nature. You’re talking about a very heavy burden to bring on the parents.”

Just over half of U.S. states have child access prevention laws related to guns, but they vary widely. Gun control advocates say the laws are often not enforced and the penalties are weak.

“Our laws haven’t really adapted to the reality of school shootings and the closest we have are these child access prevention laws,” said Kris Brown, president of the Brady gun control advocacy group.

In 2000, a Flint-area man pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter and was sentenced to two years in prison. A 6-year-old boy who was living with him had found a gun in a shoebox and killed a classmate at school.

In 2020, the mother of an Indiana teen was placed on probation for failing to remove guns from her home after her mentally ill son threatened to kill students. He fired shots inside his school in 2018. No one was injured but the boy killed himself.

In Texas, the parents of a student who was accused of killing 10 people at a school in 2018 have been sued over his access to guns.

Meanwhile, dozens of schools in southeastern Michigan canceled classes Thursday due to concerns about threatening messages on social media following the Oxford shooting. Others planned to join them and close on Friday.

“We know from research and experience that learning is nearly impossible when students and staff do not feel safe,” Grosse Pointe Superintendent Jon Dean told families.

Bouchard said no threats in Oakland County were found to be credible. Just to the north in Genesee County, a Flint teenager was charged with making a false threat when she recorded a video while riding a school bus and posted it online.

“If you’re making threats, we’re going to find you,” Bouchard said. “It is ridiculous you’re inflaming the fears of parents, teachers in the community in the midst of a real tragedy.”

Headline

Disregard Claim Of Me Bringing Investors To Nigeria – Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

Published

8 hours ago

May 18, 2024

Editor

The Director-General of the World Trade Organization, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has denied sending a WhatsApp message claiming she’s bringing investors to Nigeria due to Tinubu’s “commendable policies”.

A message had been circulating on Whatsapp alleging that former Minister of Finance has been contacted by President, respected instutitions and investors who congratulated her because Nigeria has finally found a “focused leader.”

Anything forwarded to you purporting to be a WhatsApp message from me is fake – Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala debunks news claiming she?s bringing investors to Nigeria due to Tinubu?s ?commendable policies?

Reacting via her X handle, Okonjo-Iweala described it as fake. She wrote;

‘’It’s been brought to my attention that another FAKE message has been manufactured and is being forwarded on WhatsApp in my name. I want to make clear that this fake message is not from me. I am pleased that those who know me instantly recognized this as fake.

“Thanks to friends who brought this to my attention. Please be aware that I do not use WhatsApp broadcasts, thus anything forwarded to you purporting to be a WhatsApp message from me is FAKE.

“This is a bad example of the use of social media. I want to warn those in the business of manufacturing FAKE messages, that they will not succeed.”

Headline

Moment Man Falls 40 Feet Onto Police Van After Climbing Building For ‘Drugs Stash’ [VIDEO]

Published

9 hours ago

May 17, 2024

Editor

This is the shocking moment a man fell 40 feet onto a police car and landed on the concrete road after climbing a building for a “drugs stash”.

The alleged drug dealer was trying to escape from police when he decided to jump from an apartment building in northern Brazil on Sunday night, May 12.

In response to the arrest of a teenager for drug-related offences in Marechal Floriano, the Espirito Santo Military Police launched an operation targeting neighbourhood drug dealers.

Authorities apprehended a 17-year-old youth carrying cocaine as he was making his way to the building to sell it to a 31-year-old man. The officers then had their attention drawn to a noise coming from an apartment building.

When they looked up at a window on the third floor, they saw two men attempting to escape.

One of the individuals involved jumped out, landed on the rear-view window of the police SUV and quickly ran away. But the escape didn’t work out as well for his 26-year-old accomplice.

In footage captured on a smart phone video, he is seen trying to climb down before losing his balance and hitting his head on the window.

He ended up on the floor beside the police car.

The unnamed suspect was quickly taken to Dr. Arthur Gerhardt Hospital by the Military Police for treatment of trauma. He was then moved to São Lucas Hospital and handed over to the police.

The suspect will be moved to a nearby jail once he is fit and ready to leave.

During the home search cops seized 295 crack rocks, 45 packages of cocaine, 10 grams of crack and 189 grams of cocaine paste, as well as $116.

The man who was supposedly meeting the teenager to buy drugs was released as cops lacked sufficient evidence to accuse him of actually making the purchase.

Meanwhile the teen admitted to drug trafficking in a logbook and was released to his family.

Watch a video from the scene below.

Tentou fugir da polícia e acabou se dando mal, em Marechal Floriano – ES pic.twitter.com/WCCoLd0f5U
— Narc_CAPIXABA (@Espirito0Santo) May 13, 2024

Headline

B-I-Z-A-R-R-E! Man Missing For 26 Years Found Alive In Neighbour’s House

Published

1 day ago

May 17, 2024

Editor

An Algerian man, Omar Bin Omran, who went missing at the age of 17, 26 years ago following an alleged kidnapping, has been found alive in his neighbour’s house.

According to Daily Mail on Wednesday, Omar was discovered in a hole in the ground within a sheep pen, concealed under stacks of hay.

Omar, one of nine children, disappeared in the city of Djelfa, Algeria, 26 years ago. His family believed he had been killed during the civil war that ravaged the nation in the 1990s and early 2000s.

According to reports, Omar was found less than 200 meters from his family’s home. A 61-year-old neighbour is now in police custody after Omar, now 45, was rescued on May 12.

Footage was shared on social media and broadcast on Algerian television networks of the moment that he was found in what appeared to be a hole in the ground, described by authorities as a sheep pen, within the home of his alleged captor.

The blurry video shows torchlights shining into a pit surrounded by hay as Omar furtively looks up, seemingly in shock at the search party surrounding him, with stray pieces of straw in his hair.

Other images have since been circulated of the bearded man emerging from the hole, thought to be a sheep pen, and of him as a teenager, sitting with a dog and with young children before he disappeared.

According to the Algerian newspaper El Khabar, his dog recognized his scent and stayed near where Omar was held. It was alleged that the captor poisoned the dog to ward the family off.

Omar went missing in 1998 while heading to a vocational school. He was found after the captor’s brother aired grievances on social media, reportedly over an inheritance dispute.

This led Omar’s family to search the neighbour’s house, where they found him. The captor attempted to flee but was restrained and arrested.

Tragically, Omar’s mother died in 2013 without knowing the fate of her son. Reports suggest Omar was informed of his mother’s death while in captivity.

A relative said on Facebook: ‘Thank god my cousin was found. Bin Imran Omar is in good health after 26 years of disappearance. Awaiting details of the case and investigations.’

Public prosecutors in Djelfa, a mountain city of around 500,000 people around 140 miles south of coastal capital Algiers, say Omar will receive psychological care after being rescued as they vowed to get him justice.

‘The Djelfa Attorney General’s Office informs the public that on May 12 at 8 pm local time, it found victim Omar B, aged 45, in the case of his neighbour, B.A., aged 61,’ they said in a statement.

A court official in Djelfa was quoted as saying: “Two days ago, on 12 May 2024, the Public Prosecutor’s Office received, through the regional department of the National Gendarmerie in El Jadid, a complaint against an anonymous person claiming that the complainant’s brother, Omar bin Omran, who has been missing for about 30 years, is in the house of one of his neighbours, inside a sheepfold.”

Following this report, the General Prosecutor of the Court of Idrisiya in the province of Djelfa ordered the National Gendarmerie to open an in-depth investigation and officers went to the house in question.

He added: “The Public Prosecutor’s Office ordered that the victim receive medical and psychological treatment, and the suspect will be presented to the Public Prosecutor’s Office immediately after the completion of the investigation.”

Officials have promised the ‘perpetrator of this heinous crime’ will be tried with ‘severity.’

The suspect, a civil servant, lived alone but was often seen buying enough food for two people. A neighbour recounted to Algerian TV station Bilad that Omar’s mother died without knowing her son was so close by.

Questions have arisen about why Omar did not call for help during his captivity. Some reports claim Omar said he was unable to call out because of a spell cast by his captor, while others suggest his psychological state may have prevented him from seeking help.

The case may be among the world’s longest-running kidnapping cases. Eleven-year-old Jaycee Dugard was kidnapped in Meyers, California in 1991 and remained missing for over 18 years after she was captured by Phillip and Nancy Garrido.

Dugard was kept in depraved conditions and was subjected to extreme sexual abuse, having two children by Phillip Garrido, and later said she adapted to sympathising with her captors to survive.