Crime Fix with Angenette Levy - Undocumented Man Charged with Murdering Texas Teen Cheerleader

Episode Date: December 11, 2023

Texas Rangers took Rafael Govea Romero into custody Saturday night for the murder of Lizbeth Medina, a 16-year-old teenager found dead in a bathtub by her mother. Police said Romero, 23, was undocumented and arrested about one hour north of the crime scene. The Law&Crime Network's Angenette Levy looks at the surveillance photos that likely led to Romero's capture in this episode of Crime Fix - a daily show about the biggest stories in the world of crime.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can binge all episodes of this law and crimes series ad free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple podcasts or Spotify. An arrest over the weekend in the murder of a high school cheerleader in Texas. Lizbeth Medina was found in the bathtub of her apartment in Edna last Tuesday. Over the weekend, after police released surveillance images of a man running away from Lizbeth's apartment, Texas Rangers and Edna police took an undocumented man into custody. He's Rafael Gouveia Romero. Police found Romero in Schellenberg, an hour from Edna. He likely wasn't hard to find. Those images police released showed him from the front wearing a hooded sweatshirt and driving a Silver Ford Taurus.

Lisbeth's family is grieving. She was the only child to her mother. Her mom found her after Lisbeth didn't show up for a Christmas parade last week. The family had just moved to Edna, Texas from Nebraska a year ago. Lisbeth's mom called her, My world, my everything. Her aunt has started a GoFundMe to pay for funeral expenses. So far, it has raised more than the $17,000 goal.

Romero is in jail, charged with capital murder in Jackson County. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy. It's Monday, and this is Crime Fix, law and crime's rundown of the top stories in the world of crime for the day. A third man has been charged in the murder of Crystal Rogers, a mother of five from Kentucky who's been missing from Bardstown, South of Louisville since 2015. Rogers was last seen alive on July 3rd, 2015 on the farm of her ex-boyfriend, Brooks Houck. He was charged with her murder back in September. Roger's body has never been found, but her car with her keys, purse, and cell phone, along with other belongings, were found abandoned on Bluegrass Parkway after her disappearance.

Now, Stephen Lawson has been indicted for conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with evidence. His son, Joseph Lawson, faces the same charges. Right now, Stephen Lawson is in jail in Indiana and will appear in court later this month. The RICO trial for Atlanta rapper Young Thug and several co-defendants is on hold after one of the alleged co-conspirators got stabbed in jail. Yeah, you heard me right. Shannon Stilwell, a member of Young Slime Life, or YSL, was stabbed overnight in the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta.

He was taken to a hospital, but right now we don't know his condition. Judge Ural Glanville spoke with the attorneys at the start of the trial Monday morning and decided to recess for the day and possibly longer. Okay, listen, ladies and gentlemen, there's something I need to take up with you. So don't get too comfortable, all right? Ladies and gentlemen, we've had a medical issue come up with one of our participants. So I'm going to have to recess for today, okay? And these things happen. So we'll come back tomorrow morning at 9.

I'd like you to be here for 9 o'clock for an anticipated 9.30 start time, and we'll just see how things go at that point in time. And we'll take the week as it comes. Stilwell is accused, along with Young Thug, of participating in gang activity. The RICO trial has been plagued with delays and complications due in part to the sheer number of people the district attorney originally charged. That number is now down to six defendants, but the trial could still take many, many months. Another horrific stabbing, this one in Minneapolis. A former ballet dancer working as a grocery store cashier was impaled by a golf club at work on Friday. Police say first responders found 66-year-old Robert Scafdi with a broken golf club in his torso. After a six-hour standoff at a nearby apartment,

police arrested a suspect, 44-year-old Taylor Schultz. Scafdi trained at the Westside School of Ballet in Santa Monica and performed with ballet companies in Kansas and Minneapolis. So far, no word on what could have prompted the assault. Back to Atlanta now, where we are getting a closer look at the woman accused of trying to burn down the childhood home of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. We showed you the video of her splashing gasoline all over the windows of the historic home. Now Atlanta police have released body camera footage from her arrest as police arrived and talked to witnesses. Take a look. in the gas can and watered the plants. And then she had trouble getting it open. So eventually she unscrewed the top and threw it to the ground

and walked up on the porch and under the rope and started dumping the gasoline on the porch. So instantly it's like, okay, this is not good. Lanisha Henderson faces an attempted arson charge. Two men in town on business from Utah saw her last Thursday night pouring gasoline all over the house in the bushes. Two New York City police officers were also there

and were able to stop Henderson before she was able to start the fire. It was a close call since one of the men said she had left the porch to grab a lighter. You know your name? No. Step back over here. What's your phone? No, I'm just... Honey, I'm just a leave. I'm over. I'm happy to help you. Oh my gosh, I'm just a mom. I'm sorry. Adam Seabrook.

What's your name? I'm so sorry. This is her phone? This is her phone. His phone. And that's her phone. You got the key? You can give it to him.

And this is the lighter that was on her? Okay. All right. Right now, Henderson is in the Fulton County Jail, and she could also face federal charges. The King Center was closed on Friday, but has since reopened. A man is accused of murdering his girlfriend days after being released from jail for beating her, then trying to drink bleach in a suicide attempt. A grand jury in Hennepin County has indicted Matthew Brenneman on first degree and second degree murder charges in the death of his girlfriend, Danica Bergeson, last July.

Days earlier, Brenneman had beaten Bergeson. He was charged with harming her and released. But the prosecutor says that didn't stop Brenneman. On July 8th, police were called to an apartment for complaints of banging. They said they found Brenneman inside where he had attempted to drink bleach. Bergeson's body was wrapped in blankets and a garbage bag. Her body was covered with bruises and abrasions, and investigators believe she'd been dead for at least one day. And get this.

Police say they found incriminating letters around Bergeson's body that Brenneman wrote saying he never loved a woman the way he did Bergeson. In one, he said, things happened abruptly. I didn't know what to do and tried to go on a couple of days. I can't try to live after this. The end, Matthew. Despite that, Brenneman's lawyer tried to get the charges against him tossed last week because the medical examiner was unable to determine a cause and manner of death. His lawyers called the letters and phone calls to family members where he made other incriminating statements ambiguous. The judge hasn't ruled on the motion just yet.

There were two other prior domestic violence calls between Brenneman and Bergeson. A man who had been accused of murdering a fellow nursing home resident by beating him to death with a walker won't face a murder charge after all. We told you about William Paschal a couple of weeks ago. Police in Joliet, Illinois, said he beat a fellow nursing home resident to death with a walker because he was upset after finding Michael Pappas in the laundry room with feces on top of a washing machine. Thepatch.com quotes Paschal as yelling, die mother effer at Pappas before beating him. Well, the Will County grand jury has indicted Paschal on two counts of aggravated assault, not murder. Why? The coroner ruled the manner of death for Pappas as undetermined, not homicide. Paschal told police he has a temper like a stick of dynamite, and apparently that day, it went boom.

He is in the Will County Jail. Detroit police are hoping that they get it right on their second try. A second person of interest is now in custody in connection with the death of Samantha Wohl. The synagogue leader attended a wedding on October 20th and returned home early on October 21st. That's when she was stabbed several times in her home, then stumbled outside and collapsed. Anonymous sources are saying this person of interest might be a random stranger. Last month, police took another person into custody who was an acquaintance of the victim, but that person was released after 72 hours with no charges filed. Detroit police have said they do not believe Wool's death was connected to her Jewish faith.

Authorities in Florida say they've arrested the man who shot and killed a newlywed couple in Palm Beach County. The victim's names have not been released publicly, but a woman told local news stations that they were her sister and brother-in-law who had only been married a week. The woman was a nurse, practitioner, the man was a pastor. Her three children were also inside the home on Saturday when the gunfire started. The suspect in the case is 46-year-old Sonny Josaphat.

He's being held without bond in the county jail. Police have not released a motive for the double murder. And finally, a high school basketball player benched for bad behavior apparently returned to school after the game to attack his coach, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office in Texas. Says the coach benched 17-year-old Jevin Allen

during a game last week because of his behavior toward a player on the other team. This apparently infuriated Jevin and his family, so they came back to the school after dark and waited for the coach in the parking lot. Authorities say it all started as an argument, then Jevin allegedly punched the coach in the face. That's when his 22-year-old brother, Jarek Allen, jumped into the fray. Bystanders were able to break up things. The coach had injuries to his neck, head, face, and arms. The suspects ran off, but the assault was caught on surveillance camera.

The two brothers were arrested and each posted a $23,000 bond. And that's it for Crime Fix on this Monday, December 11th, 2023. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy. Thanks so much for joining us. We will see you back here tomorrow. Until then, have a great night.