Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Crime Alert 01.03.23

Episode Date: January 3, 2023

Meth addict drowns newborn. Cat ladies cited for trespassing. For more crime and justice news go to crimeonline.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Crime Alert, I'm Nancy Grace, breaking crime news now. Taylor Blaha gives birth to a baby girl at home using meth as a pain reliever. The child starts to cry. Blaha and boyfriend Brandon Thoma, afraid her cries might attract attention of cops, drown the baby girl in the bathtub. Nancy, the couple was also afraid that cops would find meth in the baby's system and they would lose custody of their two-year-old. The couple held her under the water until she was dead. Tama then put the baby's body in a backpack buried it. Both Thoma 31 and Blaha 24 now charged with murder. Good riddance.

More crime and justice news after this. Now with the latest crime and justice breaking news, Crime Online's John Limley. A suspect arrested in connection with the slayings of four University of Idaho students plans to waive an extradition hearing so he can be quickly brought to Idaho to face murder charges. Sydney Sumner is with Crime Online. Brian Koberger, a 28-year-old Ph.D. student and teaching assistant in the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Washington State University, was taken into custody early Friday morning by the Pennsylvania State Police at his parents' home in Chestnut Hill Township. Investigators obtained samples of Koberger's

DNA directly from the suspect after he was arrested. During a press conference, Bill Thompson, a prosecutor in Latta County, Idaho, said that investigators believe Koberger broke into the University of Idaho students' home near campus, quote, with the intent to commit murder. The bodies of the students, Kaylee Gonsalves, Madison Mogan, Zainer Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin, were found November 13, several hours after investigators believed they died. An early morning dispute between two patrons at an adult entertainment club in Ohio led to gunfire that killed one man and wounded four others, one critically. The Franklin County Sheriff's Office says the gunfire was reported around 2.30 a.m. Sunday

at the Bucks Platinum Club in Columbus. Officials reported that 28-year-old Charles Westbrook was killed and another person was listed in critical condition, while the other three gunshot victims had non-life-threatening injuries. Authorities described the shooting as, quote, an argument between two patrons that escalated and some bystanders were struck by bullets. Authorities say no arrests were immediately reported.

A spokesman for the county sheriff's office says sheriff's office detectives and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation are investigating. A body found inside a donation bin in South Carolina had likely been dead for at least several months. Crime Online's Sydney Sumner. Someone found the body after checking the rusty bin off US Highway 1 in Lugov after smelling a bad odor. Investigators first thought the body might be from someone seeking shelter from the recent cold snap, but quickly determined the remains had been in the bin for at least several

months. The bin appeared to have not been emptied for years and had VHS tapes inside. Detectives are now treating the death as a homicide and took the bin and body away for further investigation. An autopsy has been scheduled for Wednesday. The gruesome discovery in South Carolina comes less than three months after a woman's body was found in a donation bin in Newhall, California. A man accused of attacking police with a machete near New York's Times Square on New Year's Eve was arrested on charges of attempting to murder officers, as authorities continue to investigate whether he was motivated by Islamic extremism. Nineteen-year-old Trevor Bickford also faces attempted assault charges from the attack that injured two officers at the edge of the high security zone where throngs of New Year's

revelers were gathered. Bickford, who lives in Wells, Maine, was hospitalized after police shot him in the shoulder during the confrontation and was awaiting arraignment. It wasn't immediately clear whether he had a lawyer who could speak to the allegations. The violence happened about two hours before midnight Saturday, just outside the area where revelers are screened for weapons before gaining entry to one of the world's biggest and most famous New Year's celebrations. The United States Embassy in the Central American nation of Belize has confirmed the death of a U.S. citizen there and says it is

closely monitoring the local investigation. Once again, Sydney Sumner with Crime Online. Belize Police Commissioner Chester Williams says that two men have been arrested and charged with murder in the killing that occurred Friday night in San Pedro on the island of Ambergus Cay, a popular tourist destination. The U.S. Embassy, in keeping with State Department policy, did not identify the victim. However, New Orleans media outlet NOLA.com identified her as Jabria Bowens, a nursing student at Louisiana State University. Bowens was apparently struck by gunfire outside a nightclub. Commissioner Williams says the attackers used an assault rifle and the intended target had been a local gang leader. Beverly Roberts, 85, and Mary Alston, 61, agree to feed, trap, and neuter local cats in their Alabama town. But not everyone sees it as a favor.

The food left out attracts animals much bigger than cats, who damage people's property. A cop spots the women setting up a trap in a private parking lot and asks them to leave. When he finds them there again an hour later, he charges both of them with criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct. I guess you could call them crazy cat ladies. For the latest crime and justice news, go to crimeonline.com.

With this crime alert, I'm Nancy Grace. This is an iHeart Podcast.