Latest news with #MorganCountySheriff'sOffice
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Yahoo
Theft suspect in jail without bond after missing arraignment
Jul. 3—A Moulton man convicted of first-degree theft of property in 2011 and currently out on bond for allegedly committing the same crime in 2023 was arrested Monday by the Morgan County Sheriff's Office for failing to appear at his June 24 arraignment, according to court records and affidavits. Jail records show Christopher Allen Haynes, 44, was being held without bond at the Morgan County Jail on Wednesday afternoon. Haynes was arrested June 15, 2024, by Decatur police for allegedly stealing a truck from a business in Northwest Decatur the previous year and then wrecking it. "It was later determined that Christopher Allen Haynes was driving the vehicle at the time of the wreck," according to the affidavit. The affidavit identified the truck as a gold 2007 Chevrolet Silverado. A state trooper contacted Haynes, who allegedly admitted to taking the truck but claimed he had permission to use it and had left his own vehicle in the parking lot. However, statements from the truck's owner and video surveillance footage directly contradicted Haynes' claims, according to the affidavit. Court records show Haynes was released from Morgan County Jail on July 3, 2024, after posting a $5,000 bond following his arrest for first-degree theft of property. Haynes was arrested by Priceville police on July 1, 2010, for stealing over $3,800 worth of jewelry from an individual, according to a complaint filed in Morgan County District Court. At the time, he resided in Trinity. Court records show Haynes pleaded guilty to first-degree theft of property on February 7, 2011, and received a 15-year prison sentence. Since his conviction, multiple alias warrants have been issued for his failure to appear in court or comply with court-ordered payments. — or 256-340-2442.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Yahoo
Testimony: Hartselle man had sex with minors, had hundreds of child porn images on phone
Jun. 25—At a preliminary hearing Tuesday, a Morgan County Sheriff's Office investigator testified that a 27-year-old Hartselle man charged with second-degree rape and possession of child pornography had sex with a 13-year-old girl in April and possessed an inappropriate image of her 15-year-old female cousin on his cellphone. Benjamin Preston Bolan is charged with three counts of second-degree rape and possession of child pornography with intent to disseminate. He has been held without bail in the Morgan County Jail since his May 14 arrest after Morgan County District Judge Stephen Brown revoked his bond from a previous third-degree burglary charge. Bolan appeared in District Judge Shelly Waters' courtroom Tuesday, handcuffed and shackled, and faced the bench with his attorney, Phoenix Iverson of Decatur. They were alongside Assistant District Attorney Courtney Schellack and Morgan County sheriff's Investigator Logan Mortensen. Schellack asked Mortensen to recount the initial investigation into Bolan's rape cases. He had conducted a forensic interview of one of the victims in May, according to an affidavit he signed. "The mother of the victim disclosed to me that Bolan and her daughter had sex," Mortensen said. "The victim met Bolan through Snapchat." According to an affidavit filed in the case, a man contacted Mortensen and said his 13-year-old daughter had sex with Bolan and the investigator was already working a case involving the man's 15-year-old niece. "The 13-year-old and her mother came to the Sheriff's Office and the girl pulled out her phone and showed a picture of her and Bolan together," Mortensen said. "I gave her a photo lineup and she ID'd Bolan in a photo lineup and also identified his vehicle." The juvenile told Mortensen she had sex with Bolan on three occasions, with two of those locations being at her grandmother's house, one being her "mimi's" house, and once inside his vehicle. She told him Bolan was aware she was under age. Mortensen on Tuesday testified the mother of the 15-year-old had taken photos of her daughter's phone, which showed messages from a Snapchat account registered to the name "John Wick" with a listed birthday of Sept. 3. He said he discovered in his investigation that Bolan had also smoked marijuana with both juveniles. "After this (interview), we issued a warrant for Bolan and got to the residence and the backdoor was open and his father was in the living room watching TV," Mortensen said. Bolan was then taken into custody and Mortensen said they got a second search warrant for his cellphone and his Snapchat account, which they located in his pants pocket at the time of the arrest. "We did a cellphone extraction and found several hundred images of child pornography, one of them being the 15-year-old victim," Mortensen said. Mortensen wrote in the affidavit that he discovered images, videos and chats from children ages 5 to 15 years old. Mortensen said while they were extracting data from Bolan's cellphone, he was heard on a recorded line in a jailhouse phone call to his parents admitting he had possession of child pornography. "Bolan told his family that nothing would be found on his phone because he had deleted everything," Mortensen said. At the conclusion of the hearing, Waters said she found probable cause to bind Bolan's case over to a grand jury and he shall remain in Morgan County Jail with no bond. Bolan also faces a charge of third-degree burglary from a case in 2024. According to an investigator's affidavit, Bolan broke into a storage unit in Hartselle and stole multiple items, including a guitar, amplifier and power tools. A Morgan County sheriff's deputy said he later discovered Bolan had pawned the items in Decatur on July 1 for $650 and then went back on July 22 to get them. He was arrested and taken to Morgan County Jail on Nov. 6, but was released the same day on $2,500 bail, according to court records. — or 256-340-2442.
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Yahoo
33-year-old man arrested for human trafficking after sting operation
MORGAN COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — A 33-year-old man was arrested for Human Trafficking after being a focus point of a sting operation that took place last year. The Morgan County Sheriff's Office Fugitive Unit executed a Grand Jury Arrest warrant for Human Trafficking on Jeremy Scott Peek, 33 of Danville on Monday, June 16. According to MCSO, a Sexual Predator Operation took place in 2024. The purpose of the operation was to identify, investigate, and arrest predators seeking children for sexual acts. On Friday, April 26, 2024, The Morgan County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigations Division, assisted by their Drug Enforcement Unit, Morgan County District Attorney's Office, US Army Cyber Special Agents and Limestone County Sheriff's Office conducted an operation focused on Child Sex Trafficking. As a result of the operation, Peek was arrested and charged with Electronic Solicitation of a Child and Traveling to Meet a Child for an Unlawful Sex Act. He was released on a $250,000 bond. For his human trafficking charge, Peek is currently being held with no bond at the Morgan County Jail. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Yahoo
Two Decatur men indicted for human trafficking after sting operation
Jun. 12—Two Decatur men who were initially charged with traveling to meet a child for sex and electronic solicitation and were released from jail after posting bond were arrested Tuesday and Wednesday and are now being held without bond after a grand jury also indicted them for first-degree human trafficking. Both men were arrested in a sting operation on April 26, 2024, after investigators with the Morgan County Sheriff's Office CID Unit attempted "to engage with individuals online who planned to engage in unlawful sex acts with children," according to an affidavit by Investigator Caleb Brooks. Daytron Shawntell Tolliver, 38, of North Street Southeast, contacted by phone and text an investigator posing as a 15-year-old, according to Brooks, and agreed to pay $40 for oral sex. The arrangement was for him to go to the fourth floor of Home2 Suites by Hilton on Island Way Northwest in Decatur. Tolliver drove there in his BMW 750Li and "entered the hotel and came to the 4th floor to meet the child with payment in hand," according to the affidavit. He was arrested without incident. Corey Dewayne Wynn Sr., 50, of Brookhaven Street Southwest, agreed to pay $50 for oral sex with a presumed 15-year-old, according to the affidavit, and also went to the fourth floor of Home 2 Suites "with payment in hand." The sting operation was conducted by the Morgan County Sheriff's Office, it said, in coordination with nonprofit Covenant Rescue Group, the Morgan County District Attorney's Office, U.S. Army Cyber Special Agents and the Limestone County Sheriff's Office. Electronic solicitation is a Class B felony, and traveling to meet a child for sex is a Class A felony. Tolliver was arrested April 26, 2024, and released two days later after posting a $250,000 bond. His case was bound over to a grand jury. Wynn was arrested April 26 and released the following day, also after posting a $250,000 bond. The grand jury indicted both on the same two counts, but added Class A felony first-degree human trafficking counts against both men. Under state law, one trigger for a human trafficking charge is if the defendant "knowingly gives, or attempts to give, monetary consideration or any other thing of value to engage in any sexual conduct with a minor or an individual he or she believes to be a minor." They are being held without bond under Aniah's Law. Aniah's Law allows defendants charged with certain offenses, including human trafficking, to be held without bond pending a hearing. A defendant can be held without bond until trial provided the prosecution demonstrates to the judge at the Aniah's Law hearing that "no condition or combination of conditions of release will reasonably ensure the defendant's appearance in court or protect the safety of the community or any person." Tolliver's Aniah's Law hearing is scheduled for Tuesday at 1 p.m. Wynn's hearing had not been scheduled as of Wednesday afternoon. — eric@ or 256-340-2435
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Two men accused of child sex crimes arrested after child predator operation
MORGAN COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — Two Decatur men accused of child sex crimes were arrested after a child predator operation took place. On April 26, 2024, authorities conducted an operation focused on Child Sex Trafficking. The purpose of the operation was to identify, investigate, and arrest predators seeking children for sexual acts. During the operation, investigators arrested Corey DeWayne Wynn, 50 of Decatur and Daytron Shawntrell Tolliver, 38, of Decatur. Wynn and Tolliver were both charged with Electronic Solicitation of a Child, and Traveling to Meet a Child for an Unlawful Sex Act. MCSO said the charges stem from the incident that took place in April. The Morgan County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigations Division, Morgan County Sheriff's Office Drug Enforcement Unit, Morgan County District Attorney's Office, US Army Cyber Special Agents and Limestone County Sheriff's Office all assisted during the investigation. Additionally, The Morgan County Sheriff's Fugitive Unit executed Grand Jury Arrests warrants for Human Trafficking for both men. Wynn and Tolliver were booked into the Morgan County Jail and are being held without bond. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
