Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Crime Alert 04.23.24

Episode Date: April 23, 2024

FBI agent kidnapped by drug smugglers. Fake cop "equipped to deceive."  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. Juan Alvarez-Sorto, Devin Morales, and Carla Gutierrez in a Ford Expedition heading from Colorado to South Dakota on a drug trafficking run. But the SUV runs out of gas. A South Dakota FBI agent pulls over to the stopped expedition and Alvarez Soto tackles the agent to the ground. The trio load the drugs and the agent into his car at gunpoint. When they stop at a gas station, the agent escapes and runs. Nancy, the FBI agent pulled over for the expedition because he believed it was a tribal officer in need of assistance. Alvarez-Sorto held a gun to the back of the agent's head,

forcing him back into his car. The trio stopped at a gas station in Hermosa, South Dakota, intending to buy zip ties to secure the agent, who used the distraction to escape. Morales and Alvarez-Sorto were arrested within the week. Lopez Gutierrez picked up months later in Loveland, Colorado. All three suspects convicted of carjacking, kidnapping, and drugs. Morales and Gutierrez await sentencing. Alvarez-Sorto sentenced to 35 years. Sean Arnold patrols a Houston, Texas racing event, making a few traffic stops. He flips on the red and blue lights again, surprising the driver who's actually an undercover sheriff working the event. The sheriff checks in with other marked units who confirm Arnold is not with them.

Real cops chase Arnold, who's found wearing a uniform shirt, a bulletproof vest, a body cam and a badge. Arnold also has a BB gun, a radio, and a taser. Sean Arnold, equipped to deceive, adds a fourth charge. Fourth. One, two, three, four. I'm impersonating an officer to his lengthy rap sheet. More crime and justice news after this. Now with the latest crime and justice breaking news, Crime Online's John Lemley.

In Tennessee, the writings of a school shooter may be made public after the investigation is formally concluded. This as a judge appears prepared to agree with a lawyer for Nashville police. With more, here's Sydney Sumner with Crime Online. Now, by claiming to have acquired legal ownership of the papers from the shooter's parents and to now possess the copyright, the parents of students of the Covenant School put a further twist to an already complicated case. During a two-day hearing, eight lawyers argued their cases before Davidson County Chancery Court Judge LaShaya Miles. However, none of the attorneys claimed to be experts in copyright law. At times, it seemed as though their responses to Miles'

sharp questioning concerning the relationship between the Tennessee Public Records Act and federal copyright laws served simply to further complicate matters. Ultimately, Miles stated that she would draft an order specifying the precise questions she wants answered. She will then decide whether the writings can be made public, if at all. Officials have stated that the records they have collected for their investigation into the March 27, 2023 incident at the Covenant School, an attack which resulted in the deaths of three nine-year-old children and three adult staff members, are public information. They have clarified, though, that they will not be released until their investigation is concluded. A Tennessee state senator, news outlets, a gun rights organization,

and a foundation dedicated to law enforcement are among those requesting that the materials be made available immediately. They contend that at this stage, the open investigation is merely a formality. The gunman was shot and killed by police at the scene, and there are no known additional suspects in the shooting. Three other organizations who were granted permission to intervene in the case countered that none of the articles should ever be released. Attorneys for the Covenant Parents, the Covenant School, and the Covenant Presbyterian Church united to argue that the writings are protected by a Tennessee law that safeguards the privacy of information, records, and plans pertaining to school security. They contended that by interpreting the rule broadly, the text could serve as a source of inspiration for imitators, therefore jeopardizing

the security of Covenant. Miles made it apparent at the conclusion of the hearing that this will not be an easy decision and wants more information on copyright law before ruling on the school shooter's writings. Now to New Hampshire, as a man has been granted parole after spending more than half of his life behind bars for his involvement in the 2001 stabbing deaths of two married Dartmouth College professors, part of a plot to rob and murder before escaping abroad. Once again, Crime Online's Sydney Sumner. At the age of 16, James Parker and his best friend hatched a plot that ended with the Hanover, New Hampshire murders of Haff and Suzanne Zantop. Years after

entering a guilty plea to second-degree murder conspiracy and serving almost the whole duration of his 25 years to life sentence, he's appeared before the state parole board just shy of 40 years old. According to his attorney and Department of Corrections employees, Parker has made several efforts over the years to improve his own life and that of his fellow prisoners. While incarcerated, he completed both his bachelor's and master's degrees and created paintings now on exhibit inside the facility. In addition to participating in athletics, theater, and music, he has assisted in the creation of prisoner education materials. Bored with their lives in nearby Chelsea, Vermont, Parker and then-17-year-old Robert Tulloch estimated they would need $10,000 to make a

move to Australia. Eventually, they came up with the scheme of knocking on residents' doors under the guise of performing an environmental survey, then tying up their victims and stealing their credit cards and ATM details. Before murdering their hostages, they intended to force them to disclose any related PIN numbers. Parker, who ultimately cooperated with prosecutors and volunteered to testify against Tulloch, stated that they chose the Zantop house because it appeared expensive and was surrounded by trees. Thanks, John. Ashley Summers, just 14, and relatives all live in the same Cleveland, Ohio neighborhood. The family members often spend the night at each other's home. Ashley's great uncle grounds Ashley, taking away her phone, but allows her to go to a pool party at another relative's. Ashley stays a few hours, but then wants to visit her Aunt Christina, a 10-minute walk away. Two days later, family members realize

Ashley never made it to the aunt's house. She's reported missing. Authorities initially consider her a runaway, but the family disagrees and canvases the neighborhood with no luck. The FBI now believes Ashley may have been kidnapped. Ashley Summers now missing 17 years. If you have info, call FBI Cleveland 216-522-1400. For the latest crime and justice news, go to crimeonline.com. With this crime alert, I'm Nancy Grace. This is an iHeart Podcast.