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Homeless man taken in by elderly Iron Range couple is charged with fatally beating them

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

VIRGINIA, Minn. — A formerly homeless Iron Range man allegedly used a tire iron and hammer to fatally bludgeon an elderly Babbitt couple who had taken him into their home.Roger Allen Beldo, 54, was arraigned Wednesday in St. Louis County District Court on two counts of intentional second-degree murder in the Saturday killings of Clifford Johnson, 78, and Christine Johnson, 79.Beldo allegedly drove the victims’ car to Duluth and asked to be taken to jail, confessing several times to the killings. Authorities indicated he may suffer from mental health issues and that he claimed to police that the couple was trying to take his housing and food benefits.According to a criminal complaint:Beldo called 911 multiple times from the emergency room at Essentia Health-St. Mary’s Medical Center around 11:15 p.m. Saturday, saying he had done some “really bad things.”A Duluth police officer found Beldo in a nearby parking lot, reporting he smelled of alcohol, had slurred sp...

Troubled White Bear Township manufacturer Water Gremlin files for bankruptcy, plans sale

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

Water Gremlin, a White Bear Township manufacturer that has been fined millions of dollars by state regulators in recent years for polluting the area’s air and water, filed for bankruptcy protection last week.The company plans to sell its assets and has secured a commitment from a lender for $10 million in financing to cover its operating expenses during the bankruptcy process, according to a Chapter 11 petition filed on Oct. 27 in U.S. District Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.Water Gremlin, which produces lead battery terminals and fishing equipment, said in a news release that it is “evaluating multiple compelling offers from interested parties to acquire substantially all of the assets of its U.S. and European divisions.”“After a thorough review, we determined that a sale is the most advantageous path forward for our stakeholders — and one that will help Water Gremlin achieve its full potential,” company president Bradley J. Hartsell said in the ne...

Sam Bankman-Fried found guilty on all counts as jury returns swift verdict

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

Beleaguered cryptocurrency king and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was convicted on seven counts in his fraud trial in New York Thursday, ending a storied ascent that brought in millions in political donations and sparked criminal probes across agencies when FTX collapsed.Bankman-Fried was convicted of charges including wire fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud in his case tried in the Southern District of New York. Bankman-Fried, 31, faced several charges over allegations that he defrauded his customers and investors of billions of dollars in a scheme that prosecutors have called “one of the biggest financial frauds in American history.”“[It was] a multibillion-dollar scheme designed to make him the King of Crypto – but while the cryptocurrency industry might be new and the players like Sam Bankman-Fried might be new, this kind of corruption is as old as time," Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement."This case has alw...

Girl Scouts host birthday party for adults

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

COLONIE, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York held an event Thursday to bring back former Girl Scouts for a birthday party. The party was held in honor of Juliette Gordon Low's birthday, the founder of the Girl Scouts. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Adults who were former Girl Scouts and Girl Scout volunteers gathered for the celebration on Wolf Road. The event was also used to allow them to network and catch up with friends.

Series of failures? Family blames broken system for inmate's death

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

FRANKLIN COUNTY, Mo. – The family of a man who died while in police custody blames a broken system that led to his last breath behind bars.Chris Cox, 43, was found dead in his Franklin County jail cell on April 22, 2023, hours after he was involved in a car crash.Chris' parents, Jeff and Catherine Cox, said their son was constantly trying to get help for drug addiction."He was probably in high school, and he just started to have trouble," Catherine said. "I thought it was something that would go away eventually."Catherine said they did not realize the grip it would have on Chris and his life. Florida kidnapping victims rescued from downtown St. Louis hotel Beginning of the EndA newly-released bodycam video captured the moment officers started interacting with Chris on April 21. St. Clair Police responded to a single-car crash on I-44 where the driver drove off the interstate and into a tree line."I think there's something up with you. So, we're going to take some field sobriety te...

Vehicle slams into Florissant family-owned business, suspects not yet caught

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

FLORISSANT, Mo. - Years of work were trashed in a matter of minutes after a vehicle rammed into a family-owned business overnight in Florissant. FOX 2 obtained security video of the incident, which shows an individual in a gray Kia smash into J&J Market on Waterford Drive. Investigators say suspects smashed a car into the building as part of a planned break-in. Florida kidnapping victims rescued from downtown St. Louis hotel "It's disheartening and sad because someone does something nice for the community," said the nephew of the J&J Market owner. "You create a safe place for people to come shop, and then something like this happens."Florissant police say the matter is being investigated, though note that J&J Market may not have been the only target in the city early Thursday morning. Police believe the car connected to it all was stolen just a few blocks away. In the aftermath, J&J is dealing with damaged walls and busted-out windows. "They did more damage outsi...

Addressing the fentanyl-driven overdose crisis in St. Louis

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

ST. LOUIS - There have been an alarming number of calls for drug overdoses in the St. Louis area in recent years. There’s a growing feeling that reversing course may go beyond "law and order."  Fentanyl continues to be a deadly driving force.  Users may be looking for cocaine or methamphetamine, but 90–95% of the time they’re also getting fentanyl mixed into it, according to St. Louis County Public Health Director, Dr. Kanika Cunningham.  While the number of drug overdoses is not necessarily climbing, it’s also not letting up. School bus driver on leave after Halloween candy cannabis scare An overdose call at the St. Louis City Jail on Thursday was the 40th for the St. Louis Fire Department in the past week. It was not fatal.  St. Louis City Police have had 19 overdose calls for service in the past week.St. Louis County Police reported 196 through the first 10 months of the year, compared to 235 over the same period last year.  It’s a welcome drop, but still hugely concerning. A r...

Local landscaping company hopes to uncover headstones in much-needed cemetery clean up

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. - There are several hundred headstones at the Washington Park Cemetery in North County that are easily visible and well-kept, but along the northside of the cemetery it’s a different story.   “A lot of those headstones have been buried,” Focal Pointe’s Dan Schaefer said.  For years, plants have overtaken the corner of the cemetery along Interstate 70, and what’s left can simply be described as a canopy of shrubs, hiding names and stories.    School bus driver on leave after Halloween candy cannabis scare “There’s one specific headstone that really affected me,” Schaefer told Fox 2. “It’s a five-year-old baby headstone that’s just buried within that mass.”Dan Schaefer with the landscaping company Focal Pointe estimates there are about 25 headstones buried underneath. Focal Pointe is helping clean up the cemetery Friday for its third annual fall community outreach cleanup. It all came together because of sign posted along the highway . “We saw the 'volunteers n...

St. Louis drivers sound off on reckless driving

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

ST. LOUIS - St. Louis drivers are frustrated not only over the number of crashes they see, but also over the amount of reckless driving they witness. The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department continues to look for the driver accused in a pedestrian crash near Crown Candy earlier this week. An elderly man was struck in broad daylight after the vehicle failed to stop. On Thursday, an April court date was set for a 2022 hit-and-run case that took the life of 17-year-old Mathew Nikolai. He was walking across Chippewa Street near Ted Drewes when he was struck and killed. Florida kidnapping victims rescued from downtown St. Louis hotel St. Louis resident Susan Fanter says she’s scared to cross a street, even if she uses the crosswalk and has the right of way.“You never know if they’re going to run the red light and if you’re going to get hit,” she said.  We’ve reported in the past on the city’s efforts to address traffic violence. Enforcement efforts from St. Louis police include the...

Keanna Rosenburgh charged as an adult in Denver bar shooting that injured five

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:34:54 GMT

The 17-year-old girl accused of shooting five people outside Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row in LoDo will be charged as an adult, the Denver District Attorney’s Office announced Thursday.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Alamosa man shot, killed in confrontation with deputy Crime and Public Safety | Former U.S. Attorney John Walsh enters 2024 Denver district attorney’s race Crime and Public Safety | 52-year-old man arrested for murder, assault in Englewood shooting Crime and Public Safety | Man pleads guilty to lesser murder charge in 2021 Aurora shooting, carjacking spree Crime and Public Safety | Man arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder in Regis Motel shooting in Denver Keanna Rosenburgh is facing 28 charges, including seven counts of attempted murder and 15 counts of assault, in connection with the shooting in the 1900 block of Market Street on Sept. 16.Denver police allege Rosenbur...