Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Granny Arrested Running From A Crime Scene | Crime Alert Recap Saturday 05.03.25

Episode Date: May 3, 2025

Breaking crime news as it happens throughout the day! Follow "Crime Alert Hourly Update" now on your favorite podcast app: https://link.chtbl.com/Crime_Alert Here's three of our top stories this week:  An octogenarian arrested facing a felony. Underground tunnels reveal horrendous family child abuse.  Father killed after confronting daughter's abuser.         See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Crime Alert, hourly update, breaking crime news now. I'm Jackie Howard, an 88-year-old woman arrested for leaving the scene of a crash. Carolyn Segrist is driving her Buick Envision in the parking lot of a Clearwater Sam's Club when she hits Laverne Hampton's mobility scooter. Hampton is hospitalized after being thrown from the scooter. Four hours later, the retired octogenarian is booked for leaving the scene of a crash involving serious injury.

That's a felony. I'm Nicole Parton. Disturbing news out of New Mexico. A mother faced arraignment this week on charges of child abuse and allegations that she and her husband sexually assaulted their 16-year-old daughter and her siblings while living in extreme conditions on a sprawling 35-acre plot of land, which included living in underground tunnels. This according to prosecutors. Valerie Cordell, 41, from Deming, pleaded not guilty during her arraignment in Luna County, as recorded in online court documents. She faces 16 counts of child abuse, one count of criminal sexual

penetration, and one count of conspiracy to commit child abuse this following her arrest. According to prosecutors, Valerie and her husband, Melvin Cordell, 50, were involved in an abusive treatment of their daughter, coercing her into sexual acts with her siblings in front of other adults. The 6th Judicial District Attorney's Office reported in a press release that during a four-month investigation, authorities discovered that the family of nine was residing in a semi-rural area of Luna County. Investigators described the living environment as inhumane, like squalors detailing a rundown trailer, several unusable camping trailers, abandoned cars,

decaying food, heaps of trash, buckets filled with human waste scattered throughout the properties, while the children were living in man-made tunnels underground. Authorities became aware of the situation in October and began their investigation after receiving tips from New Mexico State Police about the alleged sexual abuse occurring at their residence. The couple's seven children, ages between 6 months and 16 years old, have been placed in protective custody by the state. The DA's office indicated that authorities were initially informed of a child who had been sexually assaulted by her father since she was 13 years old, spanning four years. The children

were reportedly found living in filthy conditions, spending their nights on a mattress in a semi-underground cave tunnel, or trying to seek shelter in a dilapidated vehicle. The 16-year-old victim allegedly told authorities that she had been pregnant at least twice before, with one pregnancy occurring when she was just 16 years old and another at 14. According to local news outlets, KRQB, prosecutors described the Cordell property as resembling a, quote, city trash landfill with trash and spoiled food scattered everywhere alongside the underground tunnels. The surrounding desert landscape was said to be filled with rundown campers and cars. Melvin Cordell is set to be arraigned on May 5. The couple is being held without bond. How could a beautiful young first grade teacher be stabbed 20 times, including in

the back, allegedly die of suicide? Yes, that was the medical examiner's official ruling. After a closed door meeting, he first named it a homicide. Why? What happened to Ellen Greenberg? A huge American miscarriage of justice. For an in-depth look at the facts, see what happened to Ellen on Amazon. All proceeds to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. I'm Drew Nelson, a bodybuilder father in New Jersey is beaten to death in front of his teenage daughter after confronting her alleged attacker on Easter Sunday. 54-year-old Louis Gus Serbeck of Millville drove with his 19-year-old daughter Brooke to a home on Leemings Mill Road in Vineland. Brooke had told him she was assaulted there the day before by a 17-year-old boy.

Serbeck hoped to speak with the boy and his father, 55-year-old Eric Hanna, who had been a family friend for years. The meeting quickly turned violent. Prosecutors said the teen punched Serbeck in the face, then smashed a window on his truck. When Serbeck tried to stop him, the boy beat him in the head with a metal baseball bat. Hanna then struck Serbeck in the face, then smashed a window on his truck. When Serbeck tried to stop him, the boy beat him in the head with a metal baseball bat. Hannah then struck Serbeck in the skull with a metal flashlight. Brooke was also hit in the head during the fight. Police arrived to find Serbeck critically injured. He died on the way to the hospital.

The teen and his father were arrested at the scene. Serbeck's brother Christopher told WPVI, quote, he literally laid down his life for his daughter. He would do anything for anyone. He would take the shirt off his back and give it to you just because you needed it. You know, you call him, he'd be there. Christopher says the family said known each other for decades. It was a friend.

No expectations of something like this happening at all. Sir Beck was a father of two daughters and a grandfather of two boys. He had grown especially close to Brooke in recent years. They often spent time together shopping or working on projects. Family members say he once even called off work just to take her to get her nails done. His obituary described him as, quote, a fierce protector who laid down his life to do what he does best to protect his family, to protect his baby girl. The obit also says, quote, he was never happier than when he had one of his daughters in his arms sharing a

big smiling cheek-to-cheek hug. He definitely won't be missed. A fundraiser created by a friend of the family has raised over $11,000. Both suspects were charged with homicide and weapons offenses. The teen also faces aggravated assault charges for allegedly hitting Brooke. He remains in a juvenile facility while prosecutors weigh whether to charge him as an adult. Hannah is being held at Cumberland County Jail. I'm Jennifer Gould. A chilling declaration of misogyny permanently inked across his chest allegedly foreshadowed a horrific crime spree that has left a Florida community reeling. David Earl Gibson, 40, a man bearing the words trust no bitch as a tattoo, is accused of a brutal rampage that ended the life of a 74-year-old woman and subjected another to a terrifying ordeal

of savage beating, kidnapping, rape, and ultimate confinement in a stifling toolbox. Washington County Sheriff Kevin Cruz spoke to ABC 13 News right after Gibson was taken into custody. This man needed taken off the street and it didn't need to go another day. It needed to happen today. The nightmare erupted around 10 p.m. when Gibson, fueled by a twisted delusion that the victim's relatives owed him money, allegedly stormed their home. Gibson allegedly began ransacking the residence, his rage quickly escalating into physical assault. He's accused of savagely beating the younger woman, repeatedly striking her head and face. He then allegedly handcuffed her and, in a further

act of degradation, stripped her of her clothing. Gibson's alleged fury then turned towards the woman's elderly mother-in-law, 74-year-old Letty Cooper Collins, whom he allegedly beat mercilessly. The younger woman's last horrifying glimpse of Collins alive was of her face drenched in blood, her eyes swollen shut from the brutal assault. The terror escalated to unimaginable levels when Gibson allegedly kidnapped the battered and naked younger woman. After duct taping her mouth shut, he allegedly forced her into Collins' PT Cruiser and drove her to his own home. There, in the confines of his residence, he allegedly sexually assaulted her. The ordeal continued as Gibson then shoved her into a large toolbox into a shed on his property.

Sheriff Cruz chillingly described the scene at the news conference. She was naked, still handcuffed, still handcuffed and still around her neck. He put her up around her neck and tucked her legs up underneath her. If you can an indomitable will to survive, she eventually found the strength to maneuver her bound arms, pushing the heavy lid of the toolbox open, and ran for her life towards a nearby road where, thankfully, a passing motorist found her and called for help. Deputies were then led back to the victim's home where they found Letty Cooper Collins' lifeless body. Gibson was finally apprehended after an hours-long manhunt involving state, federal, and local authorities. He is currently held without bond, facing charges of kidnapping, sexual assault, and aggravated battery.

Charges related to the brutal death of Letty Cooper Collins are pending as the investigation continues. For the latest crime and justice news, follow the Crime Alert hourly update on your favorite podcast app. With this Crime Alert, I'm Jennifer Gould. This is an iHeart Podcast.