Crime Wire Weekly 9/4/26 | Times Square Stabbing, Tupac Trial Verdict, Murder For Hire Plot

0:15 Hey, everyone. Welcome back to Crime Wire Weekly. A little look at the topics we're going to be covering today quickly. Louisiana crime crackdown. We're going to be reviewing the legislative session as it relates to crime. All of that has just come out in Louisiana. We'll do a quick review of that. In Florida, authorities have recovered 163 missing children in in a statewide sting that involves several departments. We're going to cover that. 40 pounds of beer goes missing. Have you been around a lot of beer lately, Jim? Well, it wouldn't. It ain't the type of beer I drink, but we'll get into that. A Lyft driver has been stabbed 11 times. We'll talk about that story. We're going to have a Labor Day weekend safety guide for you since you're hearing this just prior to Labor Day. In Times Square, a stabbing is making all the news. Horrific event occurred there in New York. We're going to be covering that. Tupac's murder trial has come to an end.

1:20 Kifidi was found guilty. We'll be bringing you all those details. In Wisconsin, a stalker has collected some human remains that you may not expect. So we're going to be covering that story. Got a whole lot more coming your way. I'm Jim Chapman. And I'm Kelli Jennings. And Kelli? I guess you're ready to get into it. Let's be honest, Jim. Before we walked in here, Jim and I had one. Of our weekly disagreements. If you tell Kelly anything that means anything, it's a big argument to her. If you don't agree with her 100%, that's it. No, it was a spat. See, we can't even agree about disagreeing.

2:01 That's true. That's a fact. All right, let's just get into the stories for today. How about we do that? And the 2026 session has come to an end in the state of Louisiana. And a lot of new crime bills have been passed and introduced. And we're going to get into the ones that really, I guess, matter and kind of stand out. The first is Act 309. That is the Caleb Wilson Hazing Prevention Act. And We talked a little bit about hazing and how some laws have been changed on that. This one is going to require that every student in Louisiana receive information on the dangers and prohibition of hazing.

2:44 I wonder how they're going to implement that, if that's going to be like a web-based training that they have to do, or is this going to be like actual discussion of how kids, you know, how these things come to be and how people get wrapped up into it? I'd be curious to know. I think it's just going to be a handout. I don't think it's going to be like a web-based thing. I think they're going to give them like a booklet that says you shouldn't force someone to drink alcohol before they join a frat. Well, you know, people may disagree with me, but I hope that's not all it is because nobody's going to read that. No young person is going to want to read all of that. It's obvious that you're not supposed to like force drinks on somebody. I think what should be more in the information towards the kids is that when you find yourself on the receiving end of something like this, You need to have tools to be able to avoid being caught up in a hazing situation. Not that it's the victim or potential victim's fault that this is happening, but I think peer pressure, when someone feels like they're in a power position over you, I think that you're more inclined to go along with it if you're wanting to get into a fraternity or something like that.

3:45 All right. There you have it. Act 539, Teacher Shield Act, requires principals to suspend from school a student formerly accused of committing a battery or assault of a school employee. That includes off-campus incidents if continuing from a documented altercation on campus, and it provides for the use of sick leave for those teachers. Yeah, and they should. Obviously, something happened for that to be now, you know, something we're putting into law. And it should extend outside of the classroom because why would you have motive to go attack your teacher? Right. That's uncalled for. It's ridiculous that we even have to make that a law.

4:26 All right. Act 120 creates a crime of second-degree cruelty to the elderly or persons with infirmities and provides for circumstances constituting first- and second-degree murder in When the victim is in a public place and the offender creates a risk of death or great bodily harm by rather two, three or more persons. So am I understanding that correctly? Because it's having to do with infirmities, correct? So you have people that are being cared for. Or the elderly. Or the elderly. So the definition of elderly is not what you would think. 65 or older would be what I think.

5:06 60? 60. Wow. So I'm eight years from being considered elderly. So if you come with my ass in eight years, you're getting some serious charges. It basically enhances the crime is what it does. You shouldn't be hitting me. And I think that's great. I do too. I like it. I think it's good. But I will be trying to hit you for the next few years until that date. Act 271 prohibits post-conviction bail for a defendant who is convicted of aggravated offenses against a victim who is a minor. It does what? Say it again. You want me to repeat it? Yeah. What did you say? A veil. What did you say? No, I said Act 271 prohibits post-conviction bail for a defendant who is convicted of aggravated offense against a victim who is a minor. So basically what that means is.

5:56 for those that are struggling to follow that one, is if you are a minor, okay, and someone gets convicted of an aggravated offense against you, they don't get post-conviction bail. So you can get bail pending sentencing. So you can actually spend time in jail, and then you get found guilty, but they're like, oh, we'll let him out until his sentencing date. You don't get that option here. Act 185 requires an online app provider to verify a person's age to create an account if a minor and they must have parental consent before a minor can download an app or make a purchase. Absolutely. That's a no brainer. Now, how they're going to enforce that, I'll be curious to know, because if it's put in your license or something, your kid goes and steals your license and inputs it for you. I mean, but I'm glad it's there.

6:49 Yeah. I'm glad it's there. It's a safety measure. I mean, certainly, Kelly, there's ways around every one of these laws. But I mean, they're safety measures. I'm glad. It's holding them accountable. So they're not preying on children to freely be able to get on their sites or whatever. Act 211 prohibits the use of AI to create child sex abuse materials. That should be. That 100% should be. That's disgusting. Act 552 in the Kids Online Prevention and Anti-Grooming Act defines a minor as a person under 18, provides for other restrictions on platform owners and operators.

7:29 That's good. I mean, we've got the grooming laws in place now, and it should extend to online platforms and everything else. I mean, I think all of these are good. So let's go to Florida now, and this one's huge. So Florida Attorney General James Uthmeyer and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement announced that a five-day multi-agency effort known as Operation Statewide Shield located 163 missing children ranging in age from two months to 17 years. How does that even happen? You're two months old and you go missing. Wow. So officials called it the first state-led statewide child recovery initiative and the largest operation of its kind in Florida history.

8:11 Investigators used real-time intelligence and field work to identify, find, and recover children listed as missing and then move them quickly into child-focused services. Many of these kids have been victimized by those who prey on the most vulnerable. Thanks to the outstanding work of FDLE, the Office of Statewide Prosecution, And our state and local partners, these children are now safe and receiving the care they deserve. Florida will continue leading the recovery of missing children, hunting down every predator and prosecuting abusers to the fullest extent of the law. FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass said that the operation showed what coordinated agencies can do with a single mission, find the children and bring them home. Regional recoveries inside Florida, as reported by officials, 46 children from Tampa Bay, 41 in Miami, 32 in Jacksonville. 21 from Orlando, 12 in Fort Myers, 8 in Pensacola, and 3 in Tallahassee. The same effort also produced recoveries in six other states plus one U.S. territory.

9:10 This is Alabama, California, Ohio, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Puerto Rico, and also in 12 countries including Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Dominica, Finland, Ghana, Guatemala, Italy, Jamaica, Mexico, Spain, and Taiwan. So all over the map. Authorities said many of the children had faced abuse, neglect, exploitation, or other criminal activity, including human trafficking. Once found, children who needed help were taken to local or by local officers to designated recovery hubs. They then received support from social services, welfare, child welfare, staff, medical providers, victim advocates, and other child-centered resources.

9:52 Partners included BayCare Behavioral Health and other nonprofits. Investigators closed each case in Florida's missing endangered persons. Information Clearinghouse. Custody then shifted to the Florida Department of Children and Families and the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice. Now, officials said multiple arrests were made and more were expected. The Attorney General's Office described three defendants, one wanted on three counts of lewd and lascivious acts where a minor was with a minor, plus a warrant for interference with child custody, another charge with lewd and lascivious battery on a victim aged 12 to 16, and a third charge with interference with child custody and resisting officers without violence. Local agencies included the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and Lee County Sheriff's Office were among those involved. The Office of Statewide Prosecution and the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office said that they were taking three felony cases generated by the operation and additional investigations remain open. FDLE led the effort with Rita Peters, special counsel to the attorney general for human trafficking, serving as legal advisor. Planners drew on earlier U.S. Marshals-led operations in Florida, and this was Operation Dragon Eye, which I like that, which recovered 60 missing children in 2025, and Operation Home for the Holidays, which found more than 120. Partners included a ton of organizations. There were municipal police departments, federal agencies, 13 sheriff's offices, and more. The success of Operation State

11:22 statewide shield reaffirms what partnership can accomplish when the government, faith organizations, not-for-profits, and the private sector come together. DJJ Secretary Matt Walsh said the work was not only about locating children, but keeping support in place afterward. I mean, that's great. That's a ton of children. I'm with it. I wonder sometimes when I go in Walmart and, you know, I look at those signs when I'm walking by that say, like, missing since, and they have their ages and their pictures. I'm wondering how many of those kids locally are the ones that had been moved off to Florida in these local states. Who knows? 163 children. I mean, that's like a whole grade in a school or something. 163 kids is a ton. I think five days' time, 163 kids, unbelievable.

12:11 Unbelievable. I think that, you know, that's what it takes to really make a difference like they made here is task force, working together. That's why it's so important that these law enforcement agencies share this information. That's been a problem for a long time. And, you know, everywhere is the fact that law enforcement agencies used to not be as open about sharing information with other agencies. We had serial killers. running around this area for years. And because agencies weren't communicating with each other very well, you know, I'm not blaming anybody. Everybody wanted to catch these serial killers.

12:56 But had information been freely shared and task force existed a lot earlier, maybe some of that could have been avoided. So anytime you have these operations where multiple agencies get together, you're going to see good results like that. I sure hope that they share information. With other agencies from different states, how they did what they did, they can replicate it, improve it. And then this could just be a national outreach, you know, because these kids are traveling across state lines and we really could solve this. I really appreciate my tax dollars in general being applied to something like this. Bringing kids home is something that you can never put a price on. I agree. That's excellent.

13:37 All right. Let's run a little segment here called They Stole What? They Stole What? What? Oh, wait. What did they steal? I'm sorry I messed that up. I knew it was going to happen. Well, this time they stole about 40,000 pounds of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer. You don't drink Blue Ribbon? Hell no. Why? What is your beer? It's gross. It's horse piss. I quit drinking that when I started making more than minimum wage, I guess. I don't know. But I don't drink Natty Light's. And I don't drink Pabst Blue Ribbon. Well, Natty Light is a high school. It's just my opinion. I'm sure people love it. It was a high school gold standard to get you a pack of that. Oh, I ain't saying I ain't never drank it, just since I made more minimum wage.

14:21 Look, I'm a neutral and a high noon girl myself. Yeah, well, when I could step up to a brand name beer, a more brand name beer, I did. But roughly 20,000 tons valued by police at about $ 25, 000 has disappeared from Anheuser-Busch's distribution center. This is in Montclair, California. Now, the company has turned the theft into a public hunt, complete with a countdown, a reward, and a plea to whoever took the beer. Police say the beer was not grabbed in your typical smash and go. Imagine that, 40,000 pounds? I wouldn't think so. A purported subcontracting company used fraudulent paperwork to arrange a pickup. This was at 11 a.m.

15:06 that day. Investigators are treating the incident as one of two similar cargo thefts at the same warehouse that morning. An hour earlier, around 10 a.m., a separate shipment valued at $ 45, 000 inbound for Tucson, Arizona, was picked up and never arrived at its destination. Combined losses are estimated at around $ 70, 000. Police say information given about the trucking company, driver, and vehicles contain discrepancies. The department has been blunt about one point on PAP's social media. It said, but no trucks were stolen, just the cargo inside. A Los Angeles review of an original police report described 40,000-pound haul as 860 cases of 15 packs of 25-ounce Pabst Blue Ribbon, 546 cases of 30 packs of 12-ounce Pabst Blue Ribbon, and 196 cases of old Milwaukee 12-ounce non-alcoholic That's the most shocking part. It wasn't even the alcoholic version. That's funny. 1,602 cases, nearly 34,000 cans plus pallets and packing. The marketing director for Pabst has separately described the missing load as about 14,000.

16:28 I'm not going to go through all those numbers, but his were a little bit different. Myers said a bad actor posed as a person who was supposed to collect the beer and they basically drove off with it. He said Pats would pay the cash equivalent of half the beer's value if the letters returned intact, which tells you how much their markup is. Most company posts have not named a dollar figure. On August 21st, the brand posted a stolen graphic and addressed the thief directly. To the thief, we don't fault you for wanting to brag to your friends how much Pats Blue Ribbon you have. We just wish you had obtained it in an honorable way. It then started the clock. Pabst is officially starting the clock. Now, you have exactly 18 days, 44 minutes to return our truckload of beer. We won't ask questions. Leading up to that time, we're offering an award to anyone who can help us solve this mystery. P.S. This is real and we are deadly serious. Four days later, it posted again.

17:34 Beer is getting warmer. Trail is getting colder. Clock is ticking. If you think you saw our truckload of beer, snap a photo and tag us or DM us with any info on its whereabouts. And a company said that a company representative said PAPS is working with lower local authorities and is grateful for all their hard work. And in unrelated news, hospitals show an uptick in horrible hangovers from beer. Right. Right? So, look, I think they're genius for the way that they're marketing the theft and that they're trying to basically devalue their product is what it is. Because if someone tries to go offload a ton of it, then someone will know. They'll turn them in. So, I think that's pretty smart. I like it. And it does show the markup on it. But for this issue, person or persons, these bad actors, to know that a shipment was to be picked up. It's just screaming inside job.

18:29 Someone knew that that load was supposed to be picked up. Someone was able to manufacture an invoice or whatever the paperwork was to make it look the same. And I have a feeling something internally will come out about this. Maybe not those who picked it up, but how they got the ability to do it. All right. You and I go off, I think, every single episode about you don't like Uber or Marketplace. You don't like people buying on Marketplace. And I don't like. I don't like people buying on... I mean, I don't have a problem. I don't like people meeting strangers in strange areas. Well, I don't like the fact that we get in cars with strangers. That's why I don't take Ubers or Lyfts and all that. So. This is going to go to South Carolina, where a Greenville County judge has again refused bond for a 22-year-old woman accused of ordering a Lyft ride, stabbing the driver 11 times— And driving off in his vehicle.

19:19 So that's the opposite of what you just said. It is. But either way, that's why I wouldn't do that rideshare service because I don't want to put strangers in my car. I mean, it goes both ways. Naziah Lanay Weatherall must remain in jail until a psychological evaluation is scheduled for September. The attack happened on the afternoon of April 22nd of 26 near an apartment complex in Greenville, South Carolina. According to the Greenville County Sheriff's Office, Weatherall requested a ride that she intended to take to a police station. When the driver arrived, authorities say she stabbed him repeatedly, including in the head, then stole his car and fled. A passerby found the driver with a visible head wound near a Circle K around 2.30 in the afternoon. Deputies treated him at the scene and took him to a hospital.

20:02 He spent time in intensive care and and about two days in the hospital before being released. His name has not been made public. Weatherall was arrested later the same day. She faces charges that include attempted murder, carjacking involving bodily injury, also described in court and arrest records as armed robbery and carjacking, and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. She has been held at the Greenville County Detention Center since the arrest. At a hearing on Friday, August 28th, prosecutors called the facts frightening and argued Weatherall poses an extreme danger to the public. The victim was simply just trying to do his job and was stabbed 11 times, the solicitor said. Not only was he stabbed 11 times, his car was then taken by this defendant. The driver's wife spoke because she said her husband was still too physically and emotionally shaken to appear himself. The alleged conduct was extremely violent, she told the court. The person was attacked, the person attacked vehemently with a knife, resulting in 11 stab wounds to multiple areas of his body. That demonstrates a level of violence that is deeply concerning for public safety.

21:09 She added, what concerns us most is that happened while my husband was simply working. He was not looking for any confrontation. He was providing a service to a person. If this level of violence could happen to someone who was simply doing his job, We are concerned about potential risks to other people in our community. Weatherall's attorney said she had no prior criminal record and was in a severe mental health crisis. The defense cited diagnoses including schizophrenia and said she was in the grip of delusions, believing she was being attacked, listening to, under attack, or listened to she was under attack and being trafficked. Counsel said she ordered the lift to reach a police station and report those fears and that her mother called the station to say she was on her way. During that, the crisis got worse, the attorney said. She was undergoing a delusion in which she believed she was being trafficked and panicked.

21:58 The Greenville County Sheriff's Office has repeatedly or separately said investigators believe she was having a mental health episode at the time and that there was little conversation between her and the driver. The defense asked that she be released so family and social workers could place her in a treatment facility, saying she has since been medicated and is now stable. Weatherall's mother apologized to the victim's family and told the judge that the alleged attack was out of character. She's not a criminal. She would never, ever, ever hurt anybody like that, she said. And I understand the family's side. I truly do, because we are all suffering. We all are. The judge denied bond and ordered that Weatherall stay in custody until the September evaluation is completed.

22:39 Yeah, on this one, you know, look, regardless of whether she was having a mental episode or not, she still stabbed someone 11 times. And put them in intensive care. And put them in intensive care. And there's no excuse for that. People seem to jump to the mental health. I was having a, you know, a moment or whatever. And that's why this happened. I don't care why it happened. There's an innocent person in a left driving you somewhere. You attack them for nothing. Right. And your rights end. I have no doubt. She went crazy for a second. I believe this story is very correct based on everyone that's talking on both sides. But your rights end where mine begins. And so maybe mental health is what happened. OK, but it doesn't negate what happened because you have got to be responsible for your mental health. And what I mean here is that if she was already diagnosed as schizophrenic, then there needs to be safeguards in place for her as well as to help her family out to ensure that she's staying on the up and up. And considering that her family here is saying, you know, she's not a criminal. She would never do this. Please release her to us so that we can get her in treatment.

23:56 You were not able to keep her under control. I don't know. There's better wording for that. But there was an inability to control her in this situation. And so the fear is that you won't be able to control her and she won't be able to control herself in future situations. And so while you have empathy for the mental health issues, it doesn't outweigh Now we're going to go to New York. A Bank of America vice president was fatally stabbed in Times Square on Monday afternoon in what police described as a random, unprovoked attack just blocks from the bank's midtown headquarters. Erin Piacenti, 32, of Chester, New Jersey, was knifed in the abdomen near 7th Avenue and West 42nd Street shortly after 4.24 p.m. This was on August 31st. She was taken to Bellevue Hospital and pronounced dead. A 68-year-old man stabbed seconds earlier was listed in stable condition. The suspect, Pamela Cisneros. Now, tell me you didn't expect that to be a male. I don't know why. I always, when I hear of a stabbing like that out in the crowd, I think it to be a male.

25:00 Why? But I don't know. My brain just goes, like a knifing to me always seems like a male would do it. Not always, but it just seems more probable to go around knifing men. I'd have to look. Maybe there's a stat in my head that I'm referring to. Well, probably violence in general. Yeah. A male is more apt than a female. Yeah. But let's see. Pamela Cisneros, she's 49, of Queens, was shot by NYPD officers after she advanced on them with two kitchen knives, and she died at the same hospital. Bank of America confirmed Piacente's identity on Tuesday. We are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss of our colleague, the bank said in a statement. She was a valued teammate who will be greatly missed. Our hearts go out to her family and all of her loved ones. Piacenti worked as vice president of business selection and conflicts in the bank's corporate and investment bank. The company's Manhattan offices at One Bryant Park sit a short walk from the scene.

25:53 She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2016 and from Fordham Law School in 2021, the same year as her husband, Frank Piacenti. The couple had marked their second wedding anniversary on August the 10th and bought their first home in Chester last fall. Fordham Law said it was heartbroken by her death. Now, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Cisneros pulled a pair of large kitchen knives from a shopping bag and stabbed the 68-year-old man in the abdomen after he left a subway station on West 41st Street. He had been waiting to cross with his wife. Within about 20 seconds, Cisneros moved north on 7th Avenue and stabbed Piacenti, also in the abdomen. Police called it an unprovoked double stabbing. Some witnesses said they heard Cisneros repeating, I'm over this, I'm over this, before the attacks. Officers confronted Cisneros as she still held the knives. Tisch said they spent several minutes ordering her to drop the weapons and deployed tasers, which did not stop her. When she rushed the officers, two fired their service weapons. The Force Investigation Division is reviewing the shooting. Cisneros had no New York City arrest record, Tisch said, but police documented mental health-related encounters with her in 2018 and in 2019. Investigators have not announced a motive beyond describing the attacks as random.

27:08 Mayor Mamdani said, The family's lives have been shattered by what took place today, and we will continue to hold them close as the hours and days and weeks continue from this moment. The attack unfolded in daylight in one of New York's most heavily policed tourist corridors, a few blocks from the theaters, the Port Authority area, and the Bank of America Tower. A video from the scene showed officers taping off 7th Avenue as firefighters washed down the pavement and emergency vehicles lined the intersection. The 68-year-old man, his name has not been released, Bloomberg Law identified him as a Rhode Island tourist. He remained in stable condition Tuesday. Piacente's relatives have not issued a public statement. The case is a homicide investigation against a dead suspect and a separate review of the officer's use of force. No other attacks have been named. For Piacente's colleagues and family, the official description, random, unprovoked, over in seconds, does not change the outcome. A 32-year-old lawyer and newly established homeowner was killed.

28:09 walking through Times Square on a Monday afternoon. Yeah, and I actually saw the police take down the suspect on this one via tasing. You know, horrific situation, and that lady obviously did not expect to die walking through Times Square, and I think that's a big problem, too. is the fact that this is Times Square and that is a huge destination point for travel for a lot of people in this world, not just in the United States. And so things like this happen and they crack down and they really start getting serious about it typically because that is a lot of money that they're going to lose if people start feeling like Times Square is not safe.

28:58 New York in general, has its own issues with safety. But Times Square is usually like the French Quarter in New Orleans, very protected. You know, when we were, I'll tell you real quick, we were in New York a few years ago and we were just walking down the street and it was right there in the middle of Times Square. And some dude slammed into my daughter for no reason, turned around and screamed that she was a bitch in her face and then took off running. And I mean, I didn't check up. I chased after that dude and was swiping at his hair. I was trying to grab his hair because it was blowing in the winds. But no, but I'm saying that some people just, in the crowds, they just, they don't know how to act. And it makes it dangerous. I also don't like big crowds for that reason. I don't like being around a lot of people like that. That is actually our second one. today that's stabbing.

29:42 Yeah, and mental health issues. Well, I think anybody that tries to kill somebody has mental health issues. But I'm saying the correlation there, mental health issues, and then it's strange, too, that we've got two women. Right. Yeah. Yeah, so... Women making a comeback. I guess. Who says there's not equal opportunity out there? Keefy D, let's talk about him. A Clark County jury on Monday actually convicted Dwayne Keefy D. Davis of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon in the 1996 drive-by shooting of Tupac Shakur. This is the first conviction in one of American music's most infamous cold cases ever. Some people would say it wasn't that cold, meaning a lot of people knew the circumstances 10 years ago. But jurors deliberated for less than three hours and after a week's long trial before returning the verdict against Davis, who is 63 and a former Southside Compton Crips figure. He is the only person ever charged in Shakur's death and sentencing is set for October 13th, where he faces life in prison again. He has said he would appeal. I'm not going to go into all the details of what happened with Tupac because most people know that already. He was shot in Vegas after a Mike Tyson fight. And his, I guess, friend and the guy who was kind of in charge of Death Row Records, Suge Knight, was also shot in that incident. But the bullet bounced off his head,

31:12 which is legit serious. He got shot and it bounced off his big arm. And so he just bled a lot, but it didn't penetrate his skull. Tupac was killed and Kifidi has now been charged with murder. And I want to explain something on this quickly. A lot of people say, well, he didn't pull the trigger because the whole gist of this case was he and three other people were in a Cadillac. They saw Tupac and Suge after the Mike Tyson fight. Tupac had jumped over. A gangster, a real gangster, y'all. You know, this guy was a straight up killer. Tupac and his boys jumped this guy because he had on a death row chain and beat the shit out of him.

32:02 So this was kind of payback for that. It occurred the same night and another guy shot him. It was not Kifidi. So people are like, well, how is Kifidi being charged with murder? Well, it's a simple case of if I drive Kelly to a bank, she robs the bank, and then I drive her away from that bank, we both committed robbery. Just because she was the one to actually go in the bank and pull the gun and demand the money, we're both getting charged with robbery. Yeah, it's principal to your principal. That's right. Well, there's principal, and then there's aiding and abetting before and after the fact. And so Keefe... He was charged with aiding and abetting first degree murder, which is looked at nearly the same way. There are some little sentencing differences. You know, he was not let out after the conviction because he's a flight risk. So they denied him bail. So he'll sit in jail until that conviction or rather until that sentencing. He's already been convicted.

33:05 But 30 years later and somebody is finally being held responsible now. The other three guys, all dead. That's why they're not being charged. Everybody in that vehicle, with the exception of Keefe, was killed. Right. So, I mean, if you're a main actor in something that happens to somebody else, just because your finger didn't pull the trigger, if you were very influential in the design of what went down, you should be accountable as if you did it. I mean, you're a part of it. No doubt you're a part of it and you set it up. And then it was what, his nephew? Yeah. It was his nephew, and he was also the shot caller for the Southside Compton Crips, which means nobody gets killed without Kifidi telling you to kill them. And he admitted in his own damn book that he passed Orlando Anderson the gun that shot Tupac. So you also gave them the weapon. They killed the guy.

33:59 This is the classic situation where someone gets too big for their damn britches and they think they can't be touched. And you can. And you absolutely will be. Even if it's 30 years later. Yeah. Well, there's no statute of limitations on murder, friends. So you can try to outrun it. And where this guy really screwed up was he's on three podcasts. See, he had a proffer agreement originally with the police. and the FBI, or rather the police department. And this proffer agreement said, anything you tell us, we can't hold against you. What he didn't realize was in the fine print of that proffer agreement, it only included Los Angeles. It didn't include Las Vegas. So when the Las Vegas police investigated him, that proffer agreement went out the window. Well, this moron Goes around on four or five different podcasts talking about this whole situation. Telling him every detail because he believed a proffer agreement protected him.

34:58 And it did not. And he found that out today. He's 63. So regardless of his sentence, which could be as little as 20 years. He's done. 20 years is life to this guy. Yeah, he's done. And he deserves it. Yeah, he does. All right, let's go to Wisconsin. So is it Fond du Lac? Is that where this is? I know I sound ignorant. A Fond du Lac County? It is Fond du Lac. Fond du Lac. Okay. A Fond du Lac County man charged with stalking a woman he briefly dated in 2013 kept a basement collection that included human skulls, serial killer memorabilia, and a jar marked as holding a piece of John Wayne Gacy's brain. And this is all according to a criminal complaint.

35:38 Wow. Benjamin Larson, 41, is charged with one count of felony stalking in Dane County. He posted $ 15, 000 bond. and is due for arraignment on September 11th. Oof, that's kind of dark. All of it's dark, like even the dates. So the woman, who has not been named publicly, contacted Madison police on July 31st. She said she dated Larson for about two months in 2013, seeing him only a handful of times. She described the relationship as very intense and said he seemed obsessed with Ed Gein. She told investigators she ended it after he called her while holding a gun to his head. I'm glad she saw that red flag. She later moved to Canada without giving him her address. The complaint says he still found ways to reach her. Letters sent through her mother, emails, cards, gifts, and professional complaints filed with therapy licensing boards in Wisconsin, Oregon, and North Carolina.

36:32 In 2015, he allegedly emailed that he had tattooed her initials and kept mementos from their relationship, including a voicemail. In late 2025, she received cards at her Dane County office saying, And at a home address, she said she had never shared with him. One card named her husband and child. Another said he would keep trying until I hear something from you, end quote, including possibly calling or knocking on her door. The charge covers alleged conduct from June of 2013 through July of 2026. That is a long time to have someone chasing after you. Jeez. It's a class one felony punishable by up to three years and six months in prison and a $ 10, 000 fine. Madison detectives and the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office searched Lawson's home and in the basement is where they found 10 binders labeled Edward Gein Book, a grave rubbing of Gein, items said to be from Gein's grave or home, a.

37:27 22 caliber cartridge displayed as matching those used by the Zodiac Killer, and vials labeled with names of poisons. Sounds like your classroom. I mean, it does. Kelly's thinking, is any of this going up for auction? That's kind of interesting. Including arsenic, cyanide, and ricin, also listed skeletal remains in a glass casket. A life-sized... Ooh, a glass casket. I know. That's kind of interesting. A life-sized Jason Voorhees mannequin. Oh, I do want that. And a mummy. What's wrong with this guy? He sounds like a true crime thing to me. Oh, my God. A mummy tagged Princess... Is it Tahib? Taheb? Taheb.

38:09 I'll take you at your word. 1600 BC. And a jar with a sign indicating it contained a piece of Gacy's brain. The authenticity of that jar's contents has not been independently confirmed. After Gacy's 1994 execution, his brain was removed for study by psychiatrist Helen Morrison, but there's no public confirmation that Larson possessed any of that tissue. In a padlocked basement room, officers reported a lifelike silicone doll on a bed, a painting of a nude woman who appeared to resemble the complainant papers with her name on it, and a 25-page handwritten portfolio about her. Bruh. This guy's nuts. This guy is nuts. One passage, as quoted in the complaint, said he was, quote, furious that she had a husband and a child. I've never really agreed with the whole if I can't have her, no one can thing, as I don't feel like I am that selfish. I just want her gone so I don't have to know she's still out there doing all of this with someone else. How does that only get you three years in? Wow. Another entry described watching her home from a car, writing down her license plate and taking bags of her garbage. He allegedly wrote um of that surveillance quote creepy strange stalkerish potentially dangerous question mark yes it is does it bother me not in the slightest end quote wow other local coverage of the same filing quotes him writing about approaching the house at night in

39:40 dark clothing with a machete A shelf held what looked like five human skulls, one partial skull, and two bones arranged as a cross. Investigators also noted material related to the 1990 Wisconsin killing of Barrett Beck and books talking about stalking. The sheriff's office opened a separate inquiry into the skeletal remains. A forensic anthropologist's initial exam suggested many may be ancient Native American remains. Other pieces still needed lab testing. Investigators are working with the Wisconsin Crime Lab and the Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Intertribal Repatriation Committee. So far, Larson has been charged only with stalking. When police spoke with him, he described his cards as, quote, very civil. and said a therapist had suggested the licensing board complaints as a way to get a response.

40:30 Wow. That's crazy. That stinks my spirit animal. I'm telling you. After a stalking warning letter from Madison police, he told them he understood her silence, quote, is a response itself, end quote. This dude got some issues, but I'll tell you what, it took that chick five dates to figure it out. I only saw him a handful of times. That's a good amount of times. Yeah, but he might not have shown his true self until like. you know, the third or fourth. It seems like that one was so weird. It would be easy to figure that out. I don't, I just find that there's got John Wayne. Although some of his stuff, his collection was kind of cool to me. Okay. I mean, yeah, but not in combination with this. Like if you just were a fan of crime or something, I guess I could get behind it. But what I don't understand is why aren't there enhancers in stalking laws that stalking is really bad, right? But he's outside of her home with a machete. He's, Yeah, he's making false claims to her licensing board, whatever she does for a job, and then admitting that he wants her gone.

41:33 Right. So I don't know. I know that you can't hold someone accountable for just what they said there, but there should be enhancers of some sort. Three years is not enough, and he's going to spend all three years thinking about what he's going. To do when he gets out. Yeah, that's not enough. And he's not going to serve three years. I mean, you get three years, what are you going to serve? That's max. A year and a half? Yeah. Maybe two. I really worry for this. He ain't going to be over her by that point. I really worry for this woman. I'm serious. I really worry for her. I would definitely move out of state and change. But to Canada. Yeah. I mean, where the hell is she going to do? It's true. All right. Let's go to Florida. We've been there a couple times today. And I'm going to tell you a pretty wild story about a murder for hire.

42:15 This happened in Duval County. A jury on Wednesday, August 26th convicted Mario Fernandez Saladana of first-degree murder and solicitation to commit capital felony in the 2022 roadside killing of Jared Bragan, a 33-year-old Microsoft design manager and father of four. This guy was shot twice on February 16th of 2022 in Jacksonville Beach. after he stopped his Volkswagen Atlas to move a tire that prosecutors say had been placed in the road on purpose. He had just dropped his twins at the home of his ex-wife, Shanna Gardner. His two-year-old daughter and his wife, Kristen, were in the vehicle. So he was already remarried to someone else. The attack went unsolved for months, and Brigham had no obvious enemies, and a toddler was in the backseat, as I said. Prosecutors told the jury Fernandez, Saladana, and Gardner, who were married to each other at the time, were the architects of the hit, and that Fernandez-Saladana hired his tenant, Henry Teenan, to carry it out. The state said the motive was a long, high-conflict custody fight over the twins and control of the family trust. And so, yeah, when kids get involved and emotions get high, this is when you see things like this happen. Now, what they're saying is he

43:49 recruited Tenon, and he had been evicted, and he had no money. And he said, hey, look, I'll pay you $ 10, 000 after this shooting. The couple said they wanted the decision-making process for these kids, and this was their way of solving it, basically. In closing, they said that Bragdon was unarmed, unaware, exposed, and vulnerable, and this guy just killed him right there on the street after placing a tire out in front of that vehicle and him getting out to move it. So there you have it.

44:29 I wonder, obviously doing this is just not smart, okay, but why would you take on someone else's. Like, For $ 10, 000? For $ 10, 000 and to not be evicted? Obviously, I'm not saying that's right, but the motive was money, obviously, for this guy who apparently didn't have a dollar in his name. But I'm saying— People do it for less, man. Yeah, but what I'm saying is move on, bro. Go find you another place to live, but you're willing to take on murder. Well, clearly. But to really quantify that, that's worth that. You're like, oh, yeah, I'll go kill some guy just so I don't have to be evicted. Like, that's insanity. And why would you take on the burden of someone else's hatred like that?

45:15 Well, how about the two that paid him? Yeah, just. His ex-wife and her new husband. And their trials are still ahead, incidentally. I'm glad that I don't understand it. I'm glad I don't understand it. Because if I did, that'd be kind of scary. But this is just nonsense. This is absolute nonsense. And the court's. As far as I know, I would be pissed too. If I had to get a divorce and send my children off and then, you know, I don't get to keep my kids with me. I understand that. I know that that makes people angry. I know that maybe the other one doesn't deserve in your eyes, you know, the other parent doesn't deserve to have the time with the kids. But the fact is, that's the way it is. And it sounds to me like this guy was a good daddy. Yeah. You know, and they were split in custody and apparently at the time they had 60-40, and she was on the 40% end of that.

46:06 Yeah, for probably cause. I'm sure the judges ruled in that way. I mean, if you're willing to hire someone to kill your ex, you apparently have something wrong with you. Clearly. And that's just devastating. You destroyed your children's lives as far as having their daddy. So let's go to Baton Rouge. So this one's kind of different. So a man who was previously arrested right here in Denham Springs, where we are, for secretly filming women in public locations, well, he was arrested again in Baton Rouge on Wednesday for video voyeurism. According to the arrest records, 23-year-old Tyler Washington was arrested after the security office at the Mall of Louisiana received a complaint that Washington was seen walking around Sephora and allegedly secretly filming women before leaving and going to the mall. Security followed Washington around on cameras before eventually detaining him. Officers with the Baton Rouge Police Department confirmed that Washington had previously been arrested three separate times for video voyeurism amongst other sexual charges. Washington was previously arrested in June after taking photos of women without their knowledge at Jubin Crossing and other retail locations. Following the interaction, Washington was again arrested for video voyeurism and issued a five-year ban from the Mall of Louisiana.

47:19 It ought to be a lifetime ban, sounds like to me. Like, this is the third time. How do you get arrested three times for the exact same thing? Because this is someone who can't control themselves. 100%. Let's go to Iberville, Louisiana, and a jury has convicted three in a Herman Harris murder-for-hire case. An Iberville parish jury convicted siblings Rolanda Brooks and David Brooks and alleged gunman Johnny Hicks in the 2024 killing of Herman Ayers, a 65-year-old Marigold man known as Rango. Deliberations lasted a little more than two hours after a nearly two-week trial.

48:01 Judge Alvin Batiste came out of retirement to preside in this one. Harris was found shot to death in his home on LA-76 around 9 a.m. on August 27, 2024. Prosecutors say he was killed in a murder-for-hire plot after he planned to sue his former employer over a workplace injury. 18th Judicial District Attorney Tony Clayton told jurors this case was about greed. Rolanda Brooks was found guilty of solicitation for murder, conspiracy to commit second-degree murder, principal to second-degree murder and numerous other charges. She was acquitted of racketeering. David Brooks was convicted on the same charges and also acquitted of racketeering. Hicks was found guilty of conspiracy to commit second-degree murder and the principal charge. Clayton called the two-hour review of 21 counts kind of record-setting. The family did not leave this courtroom, he said. They were Herman Harris strong, as they say. Harris' wife, Regina, thanked prosecutors and investigators. I feel like he finally had justice now, so we're going to rest good tonight, she said. And her grandson told WFB the killing had put a burden on the family and that he was glad to see Harris received justice. the justice he deserved. Granddaughter Shania said the verdict brought relief. Harris had worked for Rolanda Brooks Trucking Company, Hot Shot Trucking. Prosecutors said he was injured

49:31 in June of 2024 and he needed emergency surgery. He ran up some medical debt. He was going to sue these people over this. Dudley DeBosier was representing him as of that time and sent these people a letter. And 12 days later, he was dead. Clayton called Rolanda the mastermind, David the enforcer, and Hicks the trigger man. The siblings have received more than $ 4. 9 million in a December 2023 settlement after their mother was killed in a trucking crash. The state said Hicks, then in his mid-20s from Vicksburg, and co-defendant Javonda Lewis went to Harris' house. Lewis kept watch while Hicks fired. Detectives recovered 40 caliber casings they later matched to the gun found in David Brooks' backyard.

50:23 Clayton used license plate readers, home cameras, flock data, and phone records to map the hours around the killings. And he called Rolanda diabolically smart and argued her trip to Mississippi and camera footage of the Harris house were a manufactured alibi. Quote, you take this man, you turn into this because of your greed, because he pissed you off. He told the jurors showing a photo of Harris in a Saints cap in the crime scene. And so a close to that case. And I can tell you, I actually met both of this guy's sons. And the mother, and they are about as good a people as you would ever imagine. And it was just horrific what they've been through. But boy, were his kids raised right.

51:11 So unnecessary. That's why you have insurance for your business is so that if you do get sued, then you get coverage for that. And it sounds like they had the money to– To make the payments, right? Isn't that what you told me, that they had won a settlement themselves? I mean, I don't know whether they had the money. They did, but I don't know what they were suing for. Yeah, I got you. But regardless, you know, this poor guy. Another money situation. I thought you said they had won a $ 4 million. Well, they did, but maybe they were being sued for $ 12 million. But whether they had the money or not, you don't kill somebody over it. No, no, no. But my point was that it wasn't like this was going to be life-ending. I mean, lawsuits happen.

51:55 Workman's comp situations come up. I mean, that's just part of business. It happens. It's tragic. But the guy had the emergency surgery to prove that whatever happened apparently was tragic enough he needed help with his medical bills. But to go kill him over it, I agree. Tony Clayton nailed that one. Greed. Greed is a mother. And I'm glad that they got him. Yeah. I'm glad that they got him and his poor family. Yeah. You know, a guilty verdict doesn't bring him back. And we all know that. So but at least they got it on paper. These people are going to serve time for it. Absolutely. All right. You remember that couple that went and did the proposal at the top of the Empire State Building and they had the flag and all that kind of crap. All right. So those rooftoppers who got engaged on the Empire State Building's antenna last month came back to Manhattan Criminal Court wearing matching leather jacket jean, matching leather jackets, jeans. and decorative handcuff bracelets. Because that's not smearing it in the face of people that are there.

52:54 Ivan Berkus, 32, and Angela Nicolaou, 33, left the building hand in hand, showed off the faux cuffs, and kissed for cameras. Nicolaou also displayed her diamond engagement ring in public for the first time since police returned it. Prosecutors say, A plea deal may be in the works. Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Jessica Waldman told the court her office is in active plea discussions with the couple. Now, their next appearance is going to be September the 29th. But on July 1st, police say the East Orange, New Jersey pair reached the broadcast antenna, which is about 1,454 feet above Midtown. I would crap my pants if I was that high in the air. But they got up there, they unfurled a black banner reading, when the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace. And then Berkus proposed. All right, Nicolau posted photos from the spire, including the ring against the Manhattan skyline before they came down.

53:50 NYPD emergency service officers waited for the antenna to be powered off, then climbed after them, and then took custody of both of them without injury. Police later said a security door lock on a restricted upper floor had been broken. The highest public floor is the 102nd floor observation deck. Berkus told police he wanted to, quote, do something special for the engagement. Asked about the stunt after their July 2nd arraignment, he said, quote, we believe in love, end quote. I'm sorry, this is just over the top. Like, it's not even romantic. It's like, lame. I find it lame, do you? No. You like it? Yeah. Uh-uh. That's lame. Only because you didn't do it. No.

54:31 If my husband was like, we believe in love. Your husband ain't got the balls to do that. Yes, he do. No, he doesn't. But he wouldn't do it because that is lame. That's so girly. We believe in love. I thought it was pretty cool, actually. This is why we don't get along. I thought it was pretty awesome. This is why we don't get along. I really did. All right. Well, I'm getting you a flag. And you're going to mount it on the front of this building. And it's going to say, we believe in love. And I want it flown every day. Every day. You're talking about, oh, my God. Every day. You sound jelly. I'm not. Just because your husband didn't do that? My husband did even better. Oh, okay. He looked me in my eyes and he said, you want to get married? Well, he did it from 1,640 feet up. Well, there would have been. Hanging from a thing. I thought that was pretty awesome. You would. Yeah, but pretty awesome.

55:14 Oh, my God. Whatever. I would have crapped my pants if my husband would. Have wanted to go up there. Most people thought, well, you're in the minority. That's fine. Because that was a viral post like no other. I'm so glad for everyone. Everybody was putting their branding on there. You don't remember that? Yes, but I still think it's lame. Well, their lawyer, Jason Krinsky, argued the district attorney's office overcharged them. They face felony counts of burglary, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief, plus misdemeanor charges that have been listed as criminal trespass, criminal tampering, possession of burglar tools and disorderly conduct. Officials have said a conviction could mean up to seven years in prison. The charges are not bail eligible under New York law. They were released under court supervision after arraignment.

55:55 The ring was later returned. It was engraved and it's engraved with your full potential is on the other side of fear. Berkus and Nicolau starred in the 2024 Netflix documentary Skywalkers, a love story. Made a whole freaking documentary on it, but it's lame. I do think it's lame. Netflix and everybody thought it was lame. We don't all have to agree. I don't think anybody agrees with you. I think it's awesome. That's fine. Skywalkers, a lame love story. It's fine. I don't think that's what it was called. Which follows their unauthorized climbs and relationship. They have called the Empire State stunt art and a performance. Before the August 24th hearing, they posted that they would respect the process and accept the consequences of our choices. And after court, Nicolau wrote on Instagram, everything can be taken except this.

56:43 The case was adjourned until September. Followers called the fake handcuffs ironic. They have not been convicted and plea talks are ongoing. That's wonderful. And I'm going to tell you what, I think it's pretty awesome. What you don't know is the history of that couple. I don't. So they... That's what they do. They met each other climbing. They love heights. They love to do adventurous things like that. A lot of people propose like parachuting out of planes and stuff. This was just their thing. That's how they met. That's how they celebrated their love for each other. And I don't think it's stupid. I thought it was pretty freaking awesome. It was awesome until responders had to go up there and had to risk that. I'm being so serious. Have you watched the videos of the police trying to get to them because they wouldn't come down? Because they were taking photos.

57:31 Well, they were going to come down. Going to nothing. So they had burglar tools. They broke in. They went up where they weren't supposed to be. And if I had to go up there to get them because they believe in love, I'd be pissed. I would. I hope you also believe in fall and it's flattened all over. Well, I would too if I had to go up and get them. I would, too. I would be pissed. But that doesn't make what they did any less cool. But they're making like a mockery of the whole system when they're saying we'll take and accept it. And they've got their handcuffs on. What are they going to get? They're going to get probation, dude. They didn't have any records. It's just like people base jumping from places they're not supposed to base jump. That's cool. It's a thrill. I like the base jumping. It's the thrill. I like the base jumping. I just think this whole love story about it's stupid. That's why I don't run Netflix, Jim.

58:18 They didn't call me and say, Kelly, come run our shows. Yeah. They didn't say, you know. What? You asked me? I mean, did your husband propose to you? Is that how that went, Kelly? No. And if he would have done that, I would have said no. Proposed to you on the 50-yard line of Tiger Stadium? No. Exactly. He looked me into my blue eyes because he knows how I am. I don't want to hear that because anybody can do that. And this is what he said. He said, you want to get married? And I said, okay. And it was perfect. We didn't have to go climbing buildings and putting flags up and believing in them. They one-upped you. If that is one-upping me. That is one-upping everybody, pretty much. I'll be man enough to say he one-upped my ass. I didn't climb up no 1,500-foot tower.

59:00 They're dressed like they're going to a damn rave for the. But that's how they met. I think that's cool. I think it's lame. I don't like it. I want to. Well, you have that right. I do. You have that right. And I love... I'm going to respect your right to think that's dumb. I'm going to respect your thought that you think that that's awesome. Thank you. I do. I think it's awesome. We agreed on something. Shake it. Pound it. If you're not watching, you don't even know what's happening right now, but... Yeah. Yeah. All right, let's put everybody out there misery by ending this show. Deal. I don't know how much of this will actually make air, but I hope y'all enjoyed. Hey, y'all watch the news. I'm going to be at the top of the state capitol with a flag that says, I believe in podcasting, and it's going to be so amazing.

59:47 Right. That would be cool. You want to do it? You can do it. Publicity stunt. I mean, that's not a big deal. Everybody goes to the top of the state capitol. You got to do something like do it from the old Mississippi River Bridge. No, I don't want to be dangerous. I just want to like make. That takes all the publicity out of it. What are we going to do? Stay in front of the studio with a lot? No, that's what we do. We go to the top of the building, but we do it legally. And we just like troll all these things that make big news. I'm going to go hang from Tiger Stadium Saturday night. I can't wait. I can't wait. Don't say I won't do it. I'll catch you if you fall. Well, let's hope I don't. Okay. All right. Any final thoughts?

1:00:30 No, hell no. Bye. Y'all have a great time. You ain't got no final thoughts? No. That's it for Cromwell? Well, I have one. Okay. What? I want to say I hope everybody has a fabulous Labor Day this weekend because I care about our listeners and I want to tell them how much I love them and appreciate them. And I want to say go Tigers. And I want to say beat the fake Tigers, which is Clemson. You know, guys, I care about you, too, but I love you enough to tell you the truth that I thought that story was lame. So this is for next time. I'm Kelly Jennings. I'm what? I'm Jim Chapman. And we're the host of Overtime. Bravo, Overtime.