DULUTH, Minn- Ahead of Friday’s memorial for fallen K-9 Officer Haas, a non-profit group is preparing something special that people who attend the funeral. The non-profit Backing the Blue Line is preparing 750 blue roses to represent the sacrifice law of enforcement officers and their families. Each rose is tagged with a paw print and K-9 Haas’ name. K-9 Haas…
SEBRING, Fla. (AP) — An Indiana man accused of fatally shooting five people inside a Florida bank branch has long been fascinated with the idea of killing, but people who could have done something about it didn’t take his threats seriously, a woman who identified herself as his former girlfriend told a television station. Zephen Xaver, 21, “for some reason…
DULUTH, Minn. – An Indiana man has pleaded guilty to killing his girlfriend and burying her remains in a shallow grave on a property near Cook. Forty-year-old Daniel Lynn pleaded guilty to second-degree murder without intent on Wednesday for the murder of 28-year-old Christina Woods. Woods’ remains were found on July 2 in a shallow grave on a property owned…
DULUTH, Minn. – Two Duluth men have been convicted in federal court of trafficking a 15-year-old girl for sex. A jury in Duluth found 44-year-old Amos Kiprop Koech guilty Tuesday of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor and sex trafficking of a minor. Koech’s alleged co-conspirator, 33-year-old Andre Mathis Jr., pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor…
HIBBING, Minn. – A suspect charged in the murder of an Aurora man earlier this month has been ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation to determine his mentally competency. Deshon Bonnell, 18, is accused of shooting and killing 33-year-old Joshua Lavalley on January 6 in Hibbing. Lavalley’s body was found the same day by a snowmobiler on the Mesabi Trail…
TWIN LAKES, Wis. – A 14-year-old Kenosha County girl is accused of stabbing her father in the face after they argued about her online relationship. Police were called to an apartment in Twin Lakes Sunday where they found the wounded father. Investigators say they learned the 38-year-old man and his daughter were arguing about the online relationship before she attacked…
DULUTH, Minn. – Duluth Police Chief Mike Tusken spoke with park point residents in the aftermath of the January 2nd burglary and homicide there, which was the first homicide of the year in Duluth. Chief Tusken’s appearance at the Park Point Community Club was to answer questions about the recent crime that killed 70-year-old Larry Watczak and ease community fears….
DULUTH, Minn. — A 49-year-old man is under arrest after police say he threatened a female with a firearm during a domestic incident. The call for help came in around 1:44 p.m. Tuesday on the 200 block of Proco Court in the Gary-New Duluth neighborhood. “Responding officers located a vehicle leaving that area and stopped the vehicle. The vehicle was…
BARRON COUNTY, Wis. – The defendant in the Jayme Closs kidnapping case has been moved out of Barron County to another jail. The defendant, 21-year-old Jake Patterson of Gordon, has been moved from the Barron County Jail to the Polk County Jail in Balsam Lake. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald confirmed one of Jayme Closs’s relatives works at the Barron…
BARRON, Wis. – The man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs and killing her parents has been transferred to a different jail. Twenty-one-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson had been held in the Barron County Jail since his arrest Thursday. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald says he moved Patterson to adjoining Polk County Monday night. Fitzgerald confirmed that one of Jayme’s relatives…
DULUTH, Minn. — More serious charges are now filed against the man accused of attacking and ultimately killing a Park Point resident during a burglary and robbery of that man’s home. Darrel Mayhew, 30, of Duluth is now facing two counts of 2nd-degree murder — one with intent, one without. He is also charged with aggravated robbery and burglary of the…
DULUTH, Minn. – More serious charges are now filed against the man accused of attacking and ultimately killing Park Point resident Larry Watczak, 70, during a burglary and robbery at his home. Darrel Mayhew, 30, of Duluth is now facing two counts of 2nd-degree murder — one with intent, one without. He is also charged with aggravated robbery and burglary of…
BARRON, Wis.- The man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs for 88 days and killing her parents could be sentenced to life in prison. He’s facing four serious charges including two counts of first degree homicide, and one count of kidnapping, and armed burglary. The press conference on Monday was vastly different than the one held last Friday when Closs escaped….
DULUTH, Minn. — It was an emotional night Monday for the Duluth Police Department the Northland law enforcement community. A procession was held down Grand Avenue to transport the body of K-9 Haas for cremation. Haas was shot and killed in the line of duty Sunday night during a domestic assault call. Dozens of people lined up along Grand Avenue Monday…
BARRON, Wis. – A criminal complaint says a Wisconsin man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs spotted her getting on a school bus one day and made up his mind to take her. Jake Thomas Patterson was charged Monday with kidnapping and with killing Jayme’s parents. The criminal complaint says Patterson told investigators he was driving to his job at…
DULUTH, Minn.- Events of the shooting on West Skyline Parkway all began when officers responded to a domestic dispute around 6:30 Sunday night. For about an hour officers negotiated with a male suspect in a home before he fired shots at them, striking four year veteran Officer Aaron Haller and killing his K-9 partner Haas. (Click here for the procession…
BARRON, Wis. – A Wisconsin man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs and killing her parents sat impassively as a judge set his bail at $5 million. Prosecutors on Monday charged 21-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson with two counts of first-degree intentional homicide, one count of kidnapping and one count of armed burglary. Patterson appeared in court Monday afternoon via video…
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DULUTH, Minn. – A felony level domestic assault call on West Skyline Parkway ended Sunday evening with an officer shot and his K-9 partner dead, including the suspect, according to a press release from the Duluth Police Department. The incident began around 6:30 p.m. Sunday in a home on the 1000 block of West Skyline Parkway, according to police. Duluth…
DULUTH, Minn.- Even though the holiday season is over, that hasn’t stopped some more Grinches from stealing from Bentleyville Tour of Lights as the display is being taken down. Thursday night crooks sawed off a cable that was the major power supply of the light show, stole 150 gallons of diesel, a motor, and spotlights that lit up the “#Bentleyville2018”…
DULUTH, Minn. – Larry Watczak, the 70-year-old man assaulted in his Park Point home during January 2nd burglary, has died. Watczak died in Essentia Health early Saturday morning. Duluth Police Chief Mike Tusken says his death will count as the first Duluth homicide of 2019 because it was caused by another person while committing a burglary. A suspect, Darrell Darryl…
BARRON, Wis. – Authorities in Wisconsin say they believe the man suspected of abducting 13-year-old Jayme Closs was out looking for her when he was arrested. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said Friday that 21-year-old Jake Patterson wasn’t at home when Jayme escaped Thursday afternoon. Deputies arrested Patterson in his vehicle soon after Jayme turned up on a neighbor’s doorstep…
GORDON, Wis. – Jayme Closs’ disappearance and her parents’ murder have become international headlines. Many in her community have been feeling pain for the missing teen and her family. Jayme Closs escaped from captivity herself but was helped by good neighbors in Gordon, Wisconsin. “It has been 88 days of hope for her safe return, 88 days of prayers for…
MILWAUKEE – Notable events in the disappearance and discovery of Jayme Closs, a 13-year-old Wisconsin girl who went missing after her parents were killed in the family home. Investigators say she was found alive on Thursday and that a suspect is in custody. October 15, 2018 – James Closs, 56, and Denise Closs, 46, are found shot to death in…
(Jerry Holt/Star Tribune via AP, File)BARRON, Wis. – A woman who helped a Wisconsin girl who’d been missing for three months following her parents’ deaths says the girl told her she’d been held against her will. Kristin Kasinskas says she took 13-year-old Jayme Closs into her home after the girl and a woman she’d approached for help came to her…
The following has been posted to the Barron County Sheriff’s Department’s Facebook page: Jayme Closs has been located: On Thursday evening the Barron County Sheriff’s Department was notified by the Douglas CO WI Sheriff’s Department that they had located Jayme Closs alive. The Douglas County Sheriff says Closs was found at 4:43 p.m. Thursday in the Town of Gordon. A…
HIBBING, Minn.-Three suspects, including one juvenile, have been charged in connection with a homicide in Hibbing Sunday. Deshon Bonnell, 18, along with 20-year-old Anthony Howson, and a 17-year-old female, are all getting charged with second-degree murder, kidnapping, and aggravated robbery, for the murder of Joshua LaValley of Aurora. The 33-year-old LaValley’s body was found Sunday by a snowmobiler on the…
HIBBING, Minn. – Joshua LaValley was loved by so many and his murder has left people close to him heartbroken. A life cut short for man described by his friends as having a lot character and multiple talents. Joshua loved to draw and play guitar. His funny demeanor brought joy to those who cared for him. Filled with emotion, a…
DULUTH, Minn. – 30-year-old Darrel Mayhew of Duluth has been officially charged with three felonies in the violent attack of a 70-year-old man taking a nap in his Park Point home. That man is Larry Watczak who continues to fight for his life in a coma since the January 2nd attack to his head. Mayhew is facing First Degree Assault,…
Darrel MayhewDULUTH, Minn. – Formal charges have been filed against 30-year-old Darrel Mayhew who is accused of violently attacking a 70-year-old man and breaking into several homes in the Park Point neighborhood last week. Mayhew is charged with first-degree assault, first-degree aggravated robbery and first-degree burglary. According to the criminal complaint, officers were dispatched to the 800 block of South…
DULUTH, Minn. – The family of a Park Point resident who is in a coma after being violently attacked in his own home during a burglary is asking for help with growing medical bills. 70-year-old Larry Watczak’s family has set up a GoFundMe account to raise the funds. Watczak’s son, Erik, told FOX 21 that an intruder or intruder came…
DULUTH, Minn. – A Duluth man accused of shooting a woman outside a Hermtantown hotel in August of 2018 is headed to prison for more than eight years (98 months). Benny Urrutia Jr., 21, pleaded guilty to felony first-degree assault in October. He shot the woman outside the Econo Lodge on Haines Road. She survived but suffered organ damage. Categories:…
HIBBING, Minn.- The city of Hibbing is on edge after Hibbing Police make three arrests in the suspected murder of 33-year-old Joshua Lavalley of Aurora. Formal charges are pending against two men, 18 and 20, as well as a 17-year-old female all from Hibbing. Meanwhile residents, especially those who exercise on the Mesabi Trail, are shaken up. “We go running…
HIBBING, Minn. – Authorities announced Tuesday afternoon that three people have been arrested in the murder of 33-year-old Joshua Robert Lavalley. According to Hibbing Police an 18-year-old male and 20-year-old male were arrested Monday night and booked in the St. Louis County Jail. A 17-year-old female was arrested on Tuesday. Police were called to the Mesabi Trail east of Kerr…
HIBBING, Minn. – According to a recent StarTribune article, authorities have arrested an 18-year-old male on suspicion of second degree murder in the death of a man found on the Mesabi Trail. Police were called to the Mesabi Trail east of Kerr on Sunday afternoon after a snowmobiler came upon the body and called 911. Authorities determined the male to…
DULUTH, Minn.- Another suspect has been sentenced in the homicide of UMD student William Grahek. 23-year-old Deandre Davenport was given a mandatory life sentence, with possibility of parole in 30 years. Last month, Davenport was convicted of two counts of first degree murder and one count of intentional second degree murder. Davenport took part in the fatal shooting of Grahek…
WAUSAU, Wis. – A Wisconsin baby sitter accused of killing a 2-month-old boy has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide. A criminal complaint filed Friday says 28-year-old Marissa Tietsort of Wausau caused the infant’s death in October, then put him in a snowsuit and car seat and let his mother pick him up – without telling her the child was…
UPDATE: Authorities say they are investigating a homicide that occurred Sunday on the Mesabi Trail in Hibbing. A snowmobiler called 911 after finding a male on the snowmobile trail. Officers determined the male to be deceased and has been identified as 33-year-old Joshua Robert Lavalley, of Aurora. The Hibbing Police Department is conducting the investigation with assistance from the Minnesota…
DULUTH, Minn. – The Park Point resident who was violently attacked during a burglary in his home Jan. 2 is 70-year-old Larry Watczak, according to his son Erik Watczak. This comes as police announced an arrest Sunday night of a 30-year-old male suspect. Erik says his father remained in the hospitalized Sunday night in critical condition and has not come…
DULUTH, Minn. – Duluth police announced Sunday night that they have made an arrest of a suspect in what they call an assault and burglary of 70-year-old Larry Watczak in his Park Point home. The crime happened Wednesday, Jan. 2nd at 5:51 p.m. in the home on the 800-block of South Lake Avenue. Watczak was in critical condition and in…
DULUTH, Minn.- The number of missing or murdered indigenous women is hard to pinpoint, as many cases go unreported. Friday, an exhibit at AICHO focused not on the statistics, but on bringing the stories of these women home. The Bring Her Home exhibit started last year in Minneapolis, and is now ending its tour in Duluth. The exhibit features artwork which, AICHO…
DULUTH, Minn. – “The behavior and what you saw here does not represent the best of us and as a result I felt very strongly, I do feel very strongly that when you betray public trust that we cannot in this day and age in law enforcement tolerate that behavior,” said Duluth Police Chief Mike Tusken during a press conference on…
DULUTH, Minn. – A 70-year-old Park Point man is the victim of an assault after his home was burglarized while he was inside, according to the Duluth Police Department. Police Information Officer Ingrid Hornibrook said late Thursday that another home nearby was also burglarized, along with three other homes that reported “damage to property.” FOX 21 earlier reported three burglaries…
DULUTH, Minn. – A jury has found a Duluth man guilty of first degree murder in the February 2017 fatal shooting of 22-year-old UMD student William Grahek. Deandre Davenport, 23, was found guilty on December 28 first degree murder while committing a burglary, first degree murder while committing aggravated robbery and second degree intentional homicide. The verdict could mean a…
TOWN OF BASS LAKE, Wis. – A woman is under arrest and accused of stabbing a man at least five times in Sawyer County. The crime happened around 1:40 a.m. Dec. 16 in a home on Poppletown Lane in the Town of Bass Lake. The 27-year-old male victim was stabbed in the head, shoulder, back, chest and calf, according to…
DULUTH, Minn.- Mike Letica, owner of the Iron Mug, awoke to a startling call at 2am. His restaurant had been broken into, the side door glass smashed to pieces. Initially, both Letica and the police found nothing stolen. He posted his unfortunate morning on Facebook, and got over 500 shares by midday. The outpouring of support even led some to…
DULUTH, Minn.- Over two weeks have past since 35–year–old Kevin Weiss was shot outside a home in Gary-New Duluth. On Saturday night, the community turned out to honor Kevin with a candlelight vigil. After losing one of their own, the community as well as friends and family of Kevin John Weiss came out to celebrate his life, and bring awareness…
LITCHFIELD, Minn. – Authorities are looking for a man wanted for domestic assault and a lengthy law enforcement standoff in Meeker County. Sheriff’s officials say a caller who had fled from a home Harvey Township about noon Thursday said a man armed with a revolver remained in the residence. Tactical officers were called to the scene after the man refused…
HIBBING, Minn. – The Hibbing Police Department has identified the victims of the Christmas day shooting as 34-year-old Jeryel Octavius McBeth of Hibbing and 25-year-old Jamien Stukey also of Hibbing. Preliminary autopsy results show that McBeth died as a result of homicidal violence. Authorities responded to reports of a shooting around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 2400 Block of Third…
HIBBING, Minn. – The Minnesota Department of Public Safety BCA and the Hibbing Police Department are investigating a fatal Christmas day shooting in Hibbing. According to authorities, officers responded to reports of a shooting just before 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday. When officers arrived they found two individuals suffering from gunshot wounds in the 2400 block of Third Avenue East. A…
