Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Crime Alert 03.06.24

Episode Date: March 6, 2024

Woman finds terrifying video on cellphone she stole from her date. In Florida, the events of "Cocaine Bear" are apparently a real life concern.  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. Brian Smith's date steals a cell phone while he sleeps. She discovers video of Smith violently killing a woman. Terrified, the date secretly copies the video and returns the cell phone. As soon as Smith leaves, she turns the video over to Alaska cops, who ID the woman pictured as Kathleen Henry. After his arrest, Smith admits to a second murder of Veronica Abuchuk. Nancy, both victims were Alaska Native women. Police had discovered Veronica Abuchuk's body, but did not correctly identify her until Smith's confession. At trial, Smith's date was a key witness, and while the graphic video was only played for jurors,

observers were allowed to hear the audio. The jurors came to a verdict after only two hours of deliberation. Brian Smith, 52, found guilty, 14 charges, including murder, sex assault, and tampering with evidence. In Florida, the events of a movie, Cocaine Bear, are apparently real life. After several close encounters and attack from black bears, the state Senate has approved a bill allowing residents to shoot bears deemed, quote, an imminent threat. The bill has been nicknamed the Cocaine Bear Bill after Representative Jason Schoaf says Floridians have the right to protect themselves against bears that are on crack. If passed, the bill eliminates fines and penalties for killing bears that threaten residents and pets.

More crime and justice news after this. Now with the latest crime and justice breaking news, Crime Online's John Limley. Following the discovery of a pregnant Amish woman's body last week, a Pennsylvania man has now been taken into custody and charged with her murder. Here's Sydney Sumner with Crime Online with more. We're now learning through court filings that 52-year-old Sean C. Cranston, a resident of Corey, Pennsylvania, is facing charges of criminal homicide, criminal homicide of an unborn child, burglary, and criminal trespass. At a preliminary arraignment, Cranston was denied bond and is currently being held at the Crawford County

Jail with a preliminary hearing set for March 15th. It was less than a week after 23-year-old Rebecca A. Beiler was discovered dead in the living room of her Spartansburg area home that Cranston was arrested. Beiler looked to have cut wounds on her head and neck, according to police, and the defendant is charged in a criminal complaint with killing the victim by, quote, shooting her in the head and or slashing her throat. A spokesperson with the court has said an affidavit detailing the specifics of what police believe happened will be made public later. The murder was a complete shock to the residents of the rural northwestern Pennsylvania community, a place where the Amish are known to live in harmony with their neighbors.

Andy Beiler, the victim's husband, discovered his wife's body inside the home just after noon on February 26, prompting the police investigation. Our friends with the Associated Press spoke with trooper Cynthia Schick, who says that the autopsy and investigation have provided police with a potential murder weapon. Schick has stated that the two young Beiler children were at the residence but were unharmed. The Beiler's home is situated in a relatively isolated rural farming area along a dirt road. Locals say that the Amish are well integrated into the neighborhood and have lived in the area for a long time. Residents have also reported that Amish and non-Amish socialize at one another's homes and that the Amish also labor for the non-Amish socialize at one another's homes and that the Amish also

labor for the non-Amish and attend fish fries and other activities together. Neighbors in the area have been raising funds in support of the Byler family. Authorities in North Carolina say that a mother has been accused of killing her twin four-year-old sons whose bodies were found by their father when he arrived to pick them up. Once again, Crime Online's Sydney Sumner. According to the Cherokee County Sheriff's Department, the father arrived at the Murphy, North Carolina home of his wife, Genevieve Ellen Springer. The father had visited the house for a custody exchange because the couple are separated. When exactly the children died is something that the investigators are still working to determine.

The father, whose identity police are not revealing at the moment, claimed to have last seen the children on February 26th. The Cherokee County Sheriff's Department has released a statement saying that the victims will undergo autopsies, which should provide information on when exactly the children died. Springer is currently being jailed without bond at the Cherokee County Detention Center after being charged with two counts of first-degree murder. The sheriff's office has reported that Springer was hospitalized for a short while following her arrest. Thanks, John. Jiminy Posey moves in with her boyfriend in Fort Todd, North Dakota just before she gives birth to their child. After the baby turns seven months, Jiminy tells her mom she thinks she's moving back to Devil's Lake for more help with

the baby and even brings home some of her things, but ends up going back to Fort Totten shortly after. Gemini tells her boyfriend she's going out with a friend one afternoon, but when she doesn't come home that evening, he gets concerned. Gemini's family spends days trying to get a hold of her, and the new mom is reported missing four days later. No one saw who picked her up that afternoon and searches of the area turn up nothing. If you have info on Gemini Posey now missing two months, please call Fort Totten, North Dakota PD 701-766-4231. For the latest crime and justice news, go to crimeonline.com.

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