Brazilian gets 21 years for killing and dismembering British teenage girl

By Calvin Palmer

A Brazilian man who confessed to killing and dismembering a British teenager has been sentenced to 21 years in prison.

A jury in Goiania, central Brazil, today convicted Mohamed D’Ali Carvalho Santos, 20. He acknowledged killing 17-year-old Cara Marie Burke, of Southfields, southwest London on July 25, 2008.

Santos told the court he had been smoking crack cocaine for four days when Burke threatened to tell his mother he was spending all his money on drugs if he did not give her an unspecified amount of cash, and to have her police officer boyfriend confiscate the drugs and sell them.

He said she went in the living room to telephone the police officer. He turned up the volume of the stereo, put one hand over her mouth and started stabbing her with a knife he had been using to cut up cocaine. She grabbed the knife and he bit her arm so she would let go.

“I don’t remember where I stabbed,” Santos said. “I kept on stabbing away, not knowing where, and when I saw what I had done, she was dead.”

Santos said he then took a bath and went to an all-night party. On the way home, he stopped at a supermarket and bought a larger knife so he could cut up her body.

He put her body in a bathtub and severed her limbs and head, putting them in one suitcase and her torso in another, disposing of the remains near two rivers in Goiania.

Police found a text message in Santos’ cell phone saying “the bitch is in the bag.” The message was written in English, accompanied by a smiley face, police said. The cell phone also contained photos of Burke’s severed head and torso.

Dressed in a white shirt and jeans, Santos bowed his head as Judge Jessair Coelho de Alcantara sentenced him to 19 years for the killing and two more for hiding the body — less than the maximum possible, 30 years.

Defense lawyer Carlos Trajano called the sentence “more or less fair,” but left open the possibility of appeal.

 He said that the sentence means Santos could spend eight years in prison and then be eligible for part-time custody.

“He’ll spend 21 years under the guidance of the justice system, but depending on his conduct, he could begin to leave prison to sleep at home, leave for work and later be on parole,” Trajano said.

During testimony, Santos spoke without emotion in response to questions by a prosecutor. And he laughed when the judge asked him to describe in English the verbal exchange he and Burke had just before her killing.

“She said, ‘I’m going to call your mother and tell her you spend your money on drugs,'” Santos testified in English. “I said, ‘I don’t give a s**t.'”

Santos also confirmed sending text messages complaining that Burke had backed off plans to marry him so he could apply for British citizenship — the main motive cited by the prosecution for the killing.

In response to a question from his lawyer, Santos said he liked Burke and was sorry he killed her.

Burke came to Brazil last year after she met Santos in London and he invited her for an extended stay in Goiania. The two were not a couple, according to testimony.

Santos’ aunt, Jeane Lucia de Sousa, testified that her nephew is normal when not using drugs but is addicted to cocaine and resorted to sniffing cooking gas to get high when he had no money to buy drugs.

“He’s a calm person when he’s not on drugs, but when he uses drugs he turns aggressive,” she said.

Santos’ girlfriend, Hellen de Matos, said he regrets killing Burke and hoped to enter drug treatment and reduce his sentence so he can spend time with his son before the boy becomes an adult.

Born in March, the child was conceived during a conjugal visit after Santos’ arrest last year.

Santos’ brother Bruce Lee Santos told the court that his brother was deeply affected as a child by the killing of his father, a police officer.

The aunt testified the father’s body was found with his genitals and legs cut off and his eyes gouged out.

The father named his sons after two of his heroes: boxer Muhammad Ali and martial arts star Bruce Lee.

[Based on a report by the Associated Press.]

Arizona reservist becomes oldest soldier killed in Iraq

By Calvin Palmer

The Army today confirmed that a reservist from Arizona who fought in the Vietnam War has become the oldest soldier to be killed in combat in Iraq.

Maj. Steven Hutchison, 60, of Scottsdale, was killed on Sunday when a homemade bomb went off near his vehicle in Al Farr, according to the Department of Defense.

His brother Richard said Hutchinson wanted to re-enlist immediately after the 9/11 attacks but his wife Candy did not want him to. But when she died of breast cancer, Hutchinson signed up again in July 2007.

“He was very devoted to the service and to his country,” Richard Hutchison said. “For somebody to go back into the military at 60 years old, obviously I didn’t want him to do it, but he had a mind of his own and that’s what he wanted to do. He’s been a soldier his whole life.”

Army spokesman Lt. Col. Nathan Banks today said that Hutchison was the oldest Army soldier killed in Iraq.

He is also the oldest member of any service branch killed since the start of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Hutchison was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division at Ft. Riley, Kansas.

[Based on a report by Northern Arizona Today.]

Man found guilty of $1.5m body parts scheme at UCLA

By Calvin Palmer

A man who carved up bodies donated to UCLA’s medical school and sold the body parts to medical research companies was convicted today in Los Angeles Superior Court of conspiring to commit grand theft, embezzlement and tax evasion.

Prosecutors said Ernest V. Nelson, 51, cut up heads, torsos and other parts from bodies donated to the medical school as part of its willed body program. He then sold the parts to unsuspecting medical and pharmaceutical research companies, amassing $1.5 million between 1999 and 2003.

Nelson, of Rancho Cucamonga, hatched the scheme with the director of the willed body program, Henry Reid, who pleaded guilty last year to conspiring to commit theft and was jailed for four years.

Prosecutors said Reid received checks totally $43,000 from Nelson in return for access to the bodies.

Other payments were in cash and were not documented, prosecutor Marisa Zarate said.

Nelson’s attorney Sean McDonald argued the payments to Reid were legitimate, accusing the program director of pocketing the money instead of forwarding it to the university.

Nelson, who ran a business transporting body parts to hospitals and medical research firms, had said he thought the sales were authorized by the university.

The scheme unraveled after a state health investigator became concerned about a sale in 2003 and contacted UCLA.

The scandal led to the suspension of UCLA’s cadaver program for a year in 2004. The school has since instituted procedures to prevent future abuses, including tracking systems for the bodies.

After the verdict Zarate said: “Nelson was willing to go into a willed body program and cut up body parts for his own personal financial gain.”

He could face a maximum of 12 years in prison and prosecutors want him to repay the $1.5 million to UCLA.

Sentencing is due to take place on June 12.

[Based on reports by the Los Angeles Times and newsday.com.]

‘Slumdog Millionaire’ child star’s home falls victim of demolition drive

By Calvin Palmer

It was a rude awakening this morning for one of the child stars of Slumdog Millionaire as he was ordered out of his home by a policeman wielding a bamboo stick.

Minutes later the home of Azharuddin Ismail, 10, was bulldozed along with dozens of other illegally-built shacks as part of what authorities in Mumbai called a “pre-monsoon demolition drive”.

His family was left huddling around the few possessions that they had time to stuff into plastic bags before the corrugated iron structure was demolished.

Azharuddin held his prized possession, a ripped promotional poster for Slumdog Millionaire on which Danny Boyle had written: “Azhar, With love and thanks, Danny Boyle x”.

“A policeman woke us all up early this morning, shouting,” he said. “He threatened me with a bamboo stick — I was very scared. I wish Danny-uncle would come. I wish I could go back to America.

“I don’t know what will happen now. We are just sitting here in the blazing sun. A lot of our possessions have been destroyed.”

His mother, Shameem Ismail, said they had no prior warning of the demolition.

“We didn’t even get a chance to remove our belongings,” she said. “We are now left with no roof over our head tonight and the monsoon will begin in a few weeks. We have lived here for 15 years. I don’t know what we will do next.

“We are not now asking for a house or money. All we need is some space and we will survive.”

U.D. Mistry, an official with the city’s Bombay Municipal Corporation, said the latest razing was part of a “pre-monsoon demolition drive.”

He said only illegally built shanties — not homes that were legally owned — were bulldozed.

“They were removed. That is the principle,” he said, adding he was not aware the young Slumdog Millionaire star lived in the slum.

Mistry said shanty dwellers who can prove they have lived there more than 15 years — which would include Azhar’s family — will be resettled elsewhere in government housing.

Such promises often fail to materialize. Even when slum-dwellers are given housing, it is often in poor-quality buildings on the outskirts of cities, far from jobs.

Azharuddin’s  nine-year-old co-star Rubina Ali has fared no better: her family’s shanty was flooded for days last month with sewage water from a backed-up drain.

Stardom in the film that has grossed $326 million in box office receipts has done little so far to improve the lives of the two child stars. They have received gifts and brief bursts of fame, but their day-to-day lives in the Garib Nagar slum — the “city of the poor” —  are little changed.

The filmmakers set up a trust to ensure the children get proper homes, a good education and a nest egg when they finish high school. They also donated $747,500 to a charity to help slum children in Mumbai.

Producer Christian Colson has described the trust as substantial, but will not reveal how much it contains — not even the children’s parents — for fear of making the youngsters vulnerable to exploitation.

Trustee Noshir Dadrawala said that the families were offered temporary rental apartments last week until permanent homes can be found, but they turned them down.

Azhar’s parents say the filmmakers have budgeted $30,000 to get them a new apartment, an inadequate amount in Mumbai’s expensive property market.

“I don’t want to take a house where life will be like a slum again,” said Azhar’s mother.

Dadrawala said the trustees wrote to Boyle and Colson last week to see if they could get more money, but have not heard back.

[Based on reports by the Associated Press and The Daily Telegraph.]

Rap star Willie D charged with iPhone scam

By Calvin Palmer

Rap artist Willie D, one of the Geto Boys, appeared in court today in Houston charged with a wire fraud scam involving Apple iPhones.

William James Dennis was arrested at Bush Intercontinental Airport yesterday as he returned from an overseas trip.

Dennis appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Milloy and is due to appear in court again tomorrow.

Prosecutors will fight bail on the grounds that Dennis is a flight risk.

The prosecution claim Dennis received thousands of dollars from foreigners through a front company and promised to ship bulk orders of iPhones.

But he always made excuses, never delivered the goods and kept the money, authorities said. He eventually stopped responding to e-mail complaints.

A wire fraud conviction carries up to 20 years in federal prison and up to a $250,000 fine.

[Based on a report by the Houston Chronicle.]

Brazilian stands trial accused of killing and dismembering British teenage girl

By Calvin Palmer

The trial of a Brazilian man who has confessed to the killing and dismembering of a British teenage girl opened today in Goiania, central Brazil.

Mohamed D’Ali Carvalho Santos, 20, became angry with 17-year-old Cara Marie Burke, of Southfields in south-west London  because she refused to marry him so he could apply for British residency and also threatened to tell his parents about his heavy drug use.

Police said the two were not boyfriend and girlfriend.

Santos alternately listened attentively and yawned as witnesses described how he killed Burke and stuffed her torso in a suitcase.

The prosecution is seeking the maximum penalty of 30 years.

The defense lawyer will argue for a reduced sentence on the grounds of Santos’ heavy drug use and mental problems.

State court records describe Santos as “a mentally perturbed, anti-social individual prone to having hallucinations”.

Police say Santos killed Burke with a butcher’s knife on July 25 and then went to a funk concert before returning to his apartment to cut up her body. He stuffed her torso in a suitcase, which he hid on the banks of a river near Goiania.

Santos allegedly sent his brother a text message saying “the bitch is in the bag.” The message, found in Santos’ cell phone, was written in English, accompanied by a smiley face, police said.

The cell phone also contained photos of Burke’s severed head and torso.

Santos scattered other body parts near another river. Police spent the following days searching for the teenager’s head, arms and legs, recovering the last part of her body in another river on August 6.

Burke’s remains were finally flown to London in September after Brazilian authorities had made sure they would not be required as evidence in a trial.

In court today, Santos’ aunt, Jeane Lucia de Sousa, testified that her nephew is normal when not using drugs but is addicted to cocaine and resorted to sniffing cooking gas to get high when he had no money to buy drugs.

“He’s a calm person when he’s not on drugs, but when he uses drugs he turns aggressive,” she said.

Santos’ girlfriend, Helen de Matos, said he regrets killing the teenager and wants to enter drug treatment so he can get a reduced sentence and spend time with his son before the boy becomes an adult.

The baby was born in March, and was conceived when Matos had a conjugal visit with Santos in jail after his arrest last year.

Santos is expected to be sentenced later today.

[Based on reports by the Associated Press and Press Association.]

Stanford executive pleads not guilty to criminal charges

By Calvin Palmer

Laura Pendergest-Holt, the chief investment officer of Stanford Financial Group, pleaded not guilty today in Houston to charges of obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice.

Pendergest-Holt, 35, is the first person to be criminally indicted in the federal investigation of R. Allen Stanford’s banking and network of financial services companies.

She was freed on a $300,000 bond. Her trial was set for July 20.

If convicted, Pendergest-Holt could face up to five years in prison on each count.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil lawsuit on February 17, alleging an $8 billion fraud by Pendergest-Holt, Stanford, finance chief James M. Davis and three Stanford Financial Group companies.

Billionaire Stanford has said he expects to be indicted. Davis is cooperating with the SEC investigation, according to his lawyers.

[Based on a report by the Associated Press.]

Police find couple and son shot dead at Texas home

By Calvin Palmer

Police called to a Texas home last night, following reports of shots being fired, found a couple and son shot dead.

Sgt. John Jordan with the League City Police Department said the bodies of Lewis Cantrell III, his father, Lewis Cantrell II, and stepmother, Gayle Cantrell, were found of the living room floor of their home on Chinaberry Park Lane.

A .38-caliber pistol was found next to the body of the younger Cantrell and police are investigating the incident as a double murder and suicide.

Two other people in the house, an 18-year-old male and elder female believed to be a son and stepdaughter, heard the gunfire and ran to a neighbor’s house and called 911.

According to Police Chief Michael Jez, the caller said someone had shot others inside the home. The shooter went outside, then returned to the home and fired again.

League City police and a SWAT team arrived at 7:50 p.m. and sealed off six blocks of a newer subdivision in the Brittany Lakes area.

Tear gas was fired and police moved into the house discovering the dead bodies.

The younger Cantrell did not live at the house, Jordan said. His brother and sister told police he and his parents had been discussing money earlier in the day.

A neighbor four houses down said she was getting her mail when she heard the shots.

She said she counted 10 to 12 shots from a small caliber gun, possibly a 9 mm pistol. She said the next thing she heard were the screams from a teenage girl and younger boy who ran from the house.

League City is situated halfway between Houston and Galveston.

[Based on reports by the Houston Chronicle and The Galveston County Daily News.]