Detroit TSA agent moonlighting as armed fast food robber

by Scott Carmichael on

A Detroit TSA agent has been arrested on suspicion of involvement in at least four robberies of local fast food restaurants. The men were caught on camera robbing a McDonalds where they used a brick to smash the windows and rob the staff. The camera footage shows the men using the same blue gloves as used by TSA staff at airport checkpoints.

The gang was made up of three men – but the TSA is most interested in Quantrez Sawyer as they are the ones that employ him to guard Detroit Metropolitan Airport. The arrest is just another embarrassment for the TSA who seem to have a pretty bad track record. In the past, TSA workers have been arrested on suspicion of luggage theft, theft of an HBO production camera and even possession of child porn.

The three are each being held on a $1 million bond, and if convicted, they may end up spending life sentences in jail.
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Tied to a chair and robbed in a five-star hotel

by Annie Scott on

No matter who you are or how fancy your hotel is, inviting strangers to your room is a risky business. Just ask Robert J. Anello, a New York Lawyer who was staying at the lovely Ritz-Carlton, San Juan in Puerto Rico’s posh Isla Verde district (shown). He was tied up in his room with lamp cords and a necktie just before dawn on Monday, and had $800 cash and his two cell phones stolen.

Associated Press reports, “Police say two of the suspects are women whom the victim invited to his room.” A 17-year-old girl was reportedly also in the room, but has not been charged.

According to Caribbean Business PR, this is how it went down:

“‘It was at his invitation that they gained access to the room,’ said Capt. Samuel Luciano, director of the Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Corps in Carolina.

‘Then they apparently called the other individuals over to stage the robbery,’ Luciano said.

According to published reports, the women tied Anello to a chair with lamp cords and a necktie at knifepoint and then let two male suspects into the room. The men then allegedly broke into the hotel room safe and swiped $800 cash, two cellular phones and four credit cards.

A third man allegedly waited outside the hotel in the getaway car. A hotel employee provided a good description of the vehicle and police nabbed the suspects a short time later.”

Anello seems to be okay; he declined medical attention, but as you might guess, it’s rough press for the Ritz-Carlton. As with hotels anywhere, they get their share of pool-crashers and other unwanted visitors — it’s to their credit that they were able to identify the criminals and help set justice in motion so quickly.

“The safety and security of our guests is our most important priority and we take very seriously the appropriate measures to protect the safety and security of our guests,” says Verona Carter, a rep for Ritz-Carlton’s Caribbean & Mexico resorts. They can’t really help it when guests make poor decisions (like inviting shady teenage girls to their rooms).

All five suspects, Alejandra Alicea Candelario, 18, Emanuel Alicea Candelario, 21, Julio Alicea Candelario, 24, Francheska Agosto Ríos, 21 and Luis Agosto Ríos, 25, have been jailed, and a preliminary hearing is set for November 30.

[via Huffington Post]

Visitors no longer able to see the world’s most expensive toilet (except on video)

by Josh Lew on

When Lam Sai-Wing’s Hong Kong-based jewelry business, 3D Gold, took off more than a decade ago, he made a rather unusual investment. He built the “Hall of Gold” in one of his showrooms. This unusual and extremely expensive structure was made of six tons of gold. The furnishings included a fully working solid gold toilet.

As gold prices rose, Lam began dismantling the hall, melting down the gold and selling it to finance his company’s expansion into mainland China. He never parted with the toilet, which is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s most expensive toilet. Here’s what it looked like:

But, visitors to Hong Kong won’t be seeing it any time soon. Lam died unexpected earlier this year and his company has become engulfed in scandal after five executives, including his own widow, were accused of stealing nearly $23 million worth of gold bars from the company vault. Public trading of the company has stopped and what remains of the Hall of Gold has been closed to the public indefinitely.

[Via Time’s China Blog]

Invasion of the Bag Snatchers in Phnom Penh

by Josh Lew on

If you’ve been to a backpacker ghetto anywhere in the world, you’ve seen them. For fear of having their belongings snatched, they guard their bags carefully. Perhaps wearing their rucksacks in the front and wrapping an arm around it for extra security. That might seem like overdoing it. After all, who is going to rob a backpack with a bunch of smelly clothes and out of date edition of Lonely Planet?

But the ease with which a practiced thief can snatch a bag is surprising. All two thieves on a motorcycle, perhaps with a razor blade, need to do is slice a strap or grab a purse or camera and pull hard. Then it’s bye-bye dirty clothes (or camera or passport or cash).

Bag snatching is on the rise in southeast Asian cities like Phnom Penh. It has always been a problem, but things are especially bad now that inflation has put the economy into a downward spin. Some thieves have completely abandoned the timeless art of bag snatching, and instead simply knock their victims off their motorbikes and make off with the loot before the unfortunate rider(s) can recover. Looks like it might take more than wearing your pack in the front to avoid a nasty situation these days. But that’s all part of the fun of travel, isn’t it?

Source

Robbers Super Glue Naked Man to Exercise Bike

by Justin Glow on

South Africa can be a dangerous place. According to a survey compiled by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, “South Africa was ranked second for assault and murder (by all means) per capita,” while the U.S. Department of State urges foreign visitors “to be vigilant and avoid any large gathering, particularly protests and demonstrations.”

However, things are evolving in the world of South African crime. Gone are the days where you could expect to be restrained and robbed with the classic tools consisting of rope or gaffer’s tape; Criminals in South Africa have a new weapon of choice: super glue.

The Register is reporting on a case where an unnamed man was pulled off the streets and forced to his home, where theives super-glued his naked body to an exercise bike. “They also glued his feet to the pedals and hands to the handlebars. Finally, his lips were sealed with the adhesive.”

Worried about being victim of this new trend in robbery? Just carry around some nail polish remover next time you’re traveling in unsavory places. “Even though Super Glue is incredibly strong, it has one weakness: acetone,” says the Superglue Corp’s guide to proper removal. “Fingernail polish remover with an acetone base has also been successful for removal of cured adhesive from skin.”