They Cut Down a Sycamore Tree. Now They Have a 4-Year Prison Term
As two men are sentenced for cutting down the iconic British Sycamore Gap tree, WSJ's Alistair MacDonald explains why the act stoked anger and a criminal investigation. Photo: Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images; Owen Humphreys/Zuma Press
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Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
He Told Police His Child Had Been Raped — Then Was Gunned Down After Refusing $12,000 Bribe: Police
NEED TO KNOW The father of a teen who authorities say was the victim of a statutory rape refused an alleged bribe from the suspect's sister, Lavonda Harmon, and an unidentified man Months later, the father was killed by a man who was found fatally shot that same day Harmon is charged with tampering with a witness in a felony prosecutionA Missouri father who reported that his child had been the victim of statutory rape was allegedly offered several thousand dollars to stop participating in the investigation. Months after he refused, he was killed in his home. Later that day, the suspected murderer was found shot to death. The case dates back to March, when prosecutors in Missouri allege that Lavor Harmon had sexual intercourse with a teenager, according to a grand jury indictment filed in June and obtained by PEOPLE. From there, the case continued down a dark path. Police in Ferguson, Mo., allege in a criminal complaint that in May, Harmon's sister, Lavonda Harmon, and an unidentified man went to the home of the alleged victim's father and offered him $12,000. Authorities allege that Lavonda and the man went to the home in an attempt to dissuade the father from cooperating with the investigation into Lavor, who had not yet been charged. The father refused the alleged bribe, police claim. In a motion to increase Lavor Harmon's bail, obtained by PEOPLE, prosecutors say that on July 8, a man went to the father's home and shot and killed him while the alleged statutory rape victim and another minor were there. Prosecutors say a white Kia was seen driving away from the scene. Later that day, that same man was found killed in St. Louis while the car was discovered burned nearby. Lavonda Harmon, a resident of Houston, Texas, is now charged with one count of tampering with a witness in a felony Harmon is charged with three counts of second-degree statutory sodomy and one count of second-degree statutory rape. It is not immediately clear if either sibling has entered a plea in relation to the charges. Lavor Harmon's bond is now set at $2 million. 'The facts of the case are alarming enough,' prosecutors say in the motion, 'but while this warrant has been active, investigations have revealed that the Defendant, his family members, and associates have engaged in criminal activity that demonstrates the significant danger he poses to the victim and community.' Read the original article on People
CBS News
23 minutes ago
- CBS News
Two women found dead after shooting in Warren, police on scene
Two women are dead in the aftermath of a shooting in Warren, Michigan, local police report. About 10:40 a.m. Wednesday, dispatchers got a call of two women who were shot at a home on Joanne Smith Drive, near Mound and Frazho. Warren police and fire were sent to the scene and found the victims. Both women, one of whom is the homeowner, were pronounced dead at the scene, Warren police said. "Investigators are on scene gathering evidence and working to determine the circumstances surrounding this incident. Investigators are also working to notify the next of kin," a police spokesman said. "This is an ongoing and active investigation." This is a breaking news story. CBS Detroit has a news team en route to the location.
New York Times
23 minutes ago
- New York Times
Nicknames, Notes and a Waddle: How Colorado Fought a Bank Robbery Surge
Dressed in black pants, gloves, a ski mask and a white jacket, a man waddled into a Colorado bank on Jan. 2, 2024, and passed a handwritten note across the counter: 'Stay calm and I am not going to hurt you.' The teller, as trained, complied. The man left with $385 in cash — and a nickname. The Federal Bureau of Investigation would later call him the Penguin Bandit, a moniker born from his peculiar gait: a side-to-side shuffle that conjured the image of a windup toy or perhaps, yes, a penguin. But this was no isolated robbery. The Penguin Bandit was one in a parade of serial offenders who would help propel Colorado to lead the nation in bank robberies, per capita, for three years starting in 2021, according to F.B.I. statistics. Brian Dunn, an assistant U.S. attorney in Colorado, suggested that the Covid pandemic made it more acceptable for people to wear masks in public places, including banks. Also, as an opioid crisis deepened in Colorado, a growing number of people turned to increasingly reckless ways of sustaining their addictions, including robbing banks, law enforcement officials said. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
