Tucson week in review: Woman burned by flare, 'sextortion' case, teen hit by train
- Updated
Catch up on the crime stories you may have missed.
- Updated
A man and woman were seriously injured in a single-vehicle rollover crash on I-10 in Marana Saturday morning, authorities said.
Northwest Fire District responded to a 911 call at 8 a.m., reporting the wreck on westbound I-10, north of Marana Road, said Capt. Brian Keeley, a department spokesman.
Witnesses told police that the car "left the roadway, went into the median, crossed an empty irrigation canal and rolled at least once before it stopped on its wheels near the frontage road," Keeley said.
A passerby who witnessed the crash stopped to help, as did an off-duty Northwest firefighter who was returning home from work. They saw that two people were trapped in the car, which had caught fire, and quickly pulled the man and woman out of the burning vehicle, Keeley said.
Firefighters arrived and extinguished the fire while paramedics attended to the victims, who were transported to the hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries, Keeley said.
Marana Police Department and the Arizona Department of Public Safety are at the scene directing traffic and investigating the cause of the crash, which is currently unknown.
- Updated
Marana police arrested a 35-yearold man on suspicion of first-degree murder Thursday, after his mother was found dead with signs of trauma, officials said.
Shortly before 9 p.m., police went to a home in the 8900 block of North Valhalla Drive, near West Twin Peaks and North Silverbell roads, to perform a welfare check on 62-yearold Debra Elaine Fouts, said Sgt. Chris Warren, a Marana Police Department spokesman.
Police found Fouts dead in the home, Warren said. The original welfare check call came from the Pima County Sheriff's Department. Because she lived in Marana, the Sheriff's Department asked Marana police to visit the residence, Warren said. Marana detectives' investigation at the scene resulted in the arrest of Nathan Fouts, on charges of first-degree murder and unlawful possession of a weapon, police said.
He was booked into the Pima County jail and is being held on a $ 1 million bond, according to jail records.
Online state prison records show Nathan Fouts was sentenced in 2001 to 21/2 years in prison for aggravated robbery and aggravated assault convictions. He also had a series of arrests in Pima County for DUI, drug possession and disorderly conduct, online records show.
- Caitlin Schmidt
- Updated
The 21-year-old skateboarder injured in a Feb. 1 hit-and-run died from his injuries Thursday night, officials said.
Michael Hartman was critically injured after he was hit by a car in the area of South Swan Road and East Valencia Road, said Cody Gress, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokesman.
Traffic detectives went to the scene at 2 p.m. for reports of a man down, and learned that the suspect car was traveling northbound on Swan Road when it crashed into Hartman, who was riding his skateboard, Gress said.
Witnesses told detectives that the car didn't slow down or stop, and continued to drive northbound.
The driver of the vehicle who hit Hartman still hasn't been identified, but deputies are looking for a gold or tan 2004 to 2008 Toyota Corolla with front-end and windshield damage, Gress said.
Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or submit an anonymous tip to 88-CRIME, an anonymous tipster hotline.
- Carmen Duarte Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
A 39-year-old Utah man was sentenced to 20 years in prison Thursday in connection to two child pornography cases in federal court.
Donald Macarthur, of Lehi, Utah, was sentenced in Tucson by U.S. Chief District Judge Raner C. Collins to the prison term, which will be followed by lifetime supervised release. Macarthur must register as a sex offender, according to a news release.
Macarthur had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography in two cases.
Authorities said Macarthur used the internet to meet young girls on modeling and pro-anorexia web sites. He communicated with the girls through email and text messages.
One of the victims was a 13-year-old girl in Tucson, and the other was a 14-year-old girl in Mississippi. Macarthur manipulated the girls by acting as an anorexia coach who encouraged them to starve themselves, states the release.
He also requested that they send him sexually explicit photos. If the girls did not do it, he threatened not to coach them and he ridiculed them.
This case was part of the U.S. Department of Justice Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The project was launched in May 2006.
- Mike Christy / Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Tucson Police Department detectives and crime scene technicians work the scene where a man’s body was found shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday behind a Family Dollar store at 2160 E. Broadway. A 911 caller reported an unresponsive man behind the business. Authorities are waiting for an autopsy from the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office to determine the cause of death, said Sgt. Kimberly Bay, a police spokeswoman. Bay did not say whether the man’s identity is known.
- Carmen Duarte Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
A man who was riding a dirt bike and was killed after a crash with a minivan Thursday night in Vail was identified as Brian Highsmith, authorities said.
Highsmith, 47, was treated at the scene by paramedics and taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, said Deputy Cody Gress, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokesman.
Deputies responded to the crash, which was reported at about 6:30 p.m., near North Calle Rinconado and East Limestone Drive, Gress said.
The residential area is south of East Andrada and east of South Wentworth roads.
The driver of the minivan remained at the scene. Traffic detectives took over the investigation late Thursday night, Gress said.
No further information was immediately available.
- Curt Prendergast
- Updated
The teen who died Saturday in Vail after being struck by a train was identified as Nathan Hubble, 17, a student at Tanque Verde High School.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department was notified shortly after 2 p.m. that two pedestrians had been hit by a train in the area of Marsh Station Road and Interstate 10, said department spokesman Deputy Ryan Inglett.
Hubble was pronounced dead at the scene and the second victim, a 17-year-old girl, was taken to Banner-University Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the sheriff's department.
Witnesses told deputies that the victims were on the elevated trestle bridge when the train approached and that they weren’t able to get out of the way in time.
Hubble's parents issued a statement Monday saying they are grieving the loss of their son and asked for privacy.
"We ask that you please redirect all attention to the extreme hazards that remain due to the unsecured bridge access, and ensure that young people do not continue to be exposed to this kind of tragedy," they said in the statement.
Justin Jacobs, a spokesman for Union Pacific Railroad, declined to comment on the parents' statement. He called the incident "very unfortunate."
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family at this time," Jacobs said.
The high school said grief counselors were available Monday and will be available throughout the week at the school for students and staff.
An online fundraising effort was launched in Hubble's name.
- David Wichner
- Updated
A Graham County woman who was severely burned by an item she found in the desert last week apparently set off a military aircraft flare, officials said.
On Jan. 31, the Graham County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call in Fort Thomas, a small community about 20 miles northwest of Safford, and found 49-year-old Diane Briscoe at home suffering from severe burns.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, Briscoe and her boyfriend found an unknown object in the desert north of the victim’s home.
Briscoe apparently touched the item with a knife and it detonated, severely burning the entire front of her body. After treatment by first responders, she was flown to a hospital burn unit in Phoenix.
As of Tuesday, she was in critical condition at the Arizona Burn Center at Maricopa Integrated Health System.
The Sheriff’s Office notified the Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, but no other hazardous devices were found in the area. A team from the base visited the site Feb. 1 to gather information for an investigation, a D-M spokeswoman said.
“The item that was found by the Graham County Sheriff’s Office Jan. 31 was confirmed to be a U.S. Air Force flare that is used on many types of military aircraft,” said 2nd Lt. Sydney Smith, adding that the specific type of flare has yet to be determined.
“The source of the flare, how it came into the individual’s possession, and how it was activated remains under investigation,” Smith said.
Some hot-burning flares are dropped by military aircraft to lure away heat-seeking missiles, while others are used to mark or illuminate areas on the ground.
Fort Thomas is southwest of a military operating area, or MOU, used for pilot training by units including the Arizona Air National Guard 162nd Wing at Tucson International Airport.
- Caitlin Schmidt
- Updated
More than 50 cats and kittens were taken from a Tucson home Friday, in the third hoarding rescue in three weeks, authorities said.
Field services officers with the Pima County Animal Care Center removed 54 cats from the home, and members of the shelter team worked late into the night to check their weights, vaccinate and deworm them before transferring the animals to the medical team, according to a post on PACC's Facebook page.
Additional community agencies responded to the home, which was described as being in "deplorable" condition, and addressed safety concerns with the structure, said Pima County spokesman, Mark Evans.
PACC has reached out to rescue and shelter partners for help make room for the new cats, who need medical care and isolation time. Many organizations, including the Humane Society of Southern Arizona and Saving Animals From Euthanasia, have already agreed to take other PACC cats into their care to make room for the new arrivals, Evans said.
The 57 cats who were rescued from a Jan. 19 hoarding situation are ready to leave the shelter, and anyone who takes one home won't pay a fee, according to PACC's Facebook page.
Through Feb. 14, PACC is running a special on all other pets, with adoption fees priced at $14 or less. The fee includes the pet's spay or neuter surgery, vaccinations, microchip and vet visit. A standard licensing fee of $17 will apply for all dogs.
For those who can't adopt, PACC is asking the public to please consider helping in another way, by making a donation or gift of medical supplies.
It's currently unknown when the newly rescued cats will be available for adoption.
- Caitlin Schmidt
- Updated
Authorities arrested a 38-year-old man Wednesday, in connection with the October shooting death of Israel Dominguez Alfaro on Tucson's south side.
Joseph Torres was booked into the Pima County jail on one count of second-degree murder, after detectives found evidence that linked him to Alfaro's shooting, said Sgt. Pete Dugan, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.
Torres is being held on a $350,000 bond, according to jail records.
Shortly after 1 a.m. on Oct. 23, officers went to the area of South 7th Avenue and West Lincoln Street for reports of a possible shooting.
When they arrived, they found Alfaro in the street with obvious signs of gunshot trauma. He was taken to a hospital, but died shortly after arrival, Dugan said.
Detectives learned that Alfaro and 29-year-old Alice Puente had gotten into a physical altercation earlier that night, and hours later, when Alfaro was walking down the street with his brother, Puente and several men pulled up in an SUV and confronted the two, Dugan said.
A fight broke out and one of the suspects fired a gun, striking Alfaro, after which Puente and the men got back in the SUV and fled, Dugan said.
Puente was located shortly after and taken into custody. She's been charged with manslaughter, kidnapping, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, according to Pima County court records.
She remains in the Pima County jail on a $750,000 bond.
Detectives are still trying to identify the other suspects in this case. Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or 88-CRIME.
- Caitlin Schmidt
- Updated
The sheriff department's former second-in-command pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft charges on Friday in federal court.
Christopher Radtke, the Pima County Sheriff Department's former chief deputy, will be sentenced April 7 after pleading guilty to three counts of theft of government property before U.S. Magistrate Judge Eric Markovich.
Radtke's plea agreement with federal prosecutors resulted in each of the three counts being for theft of less than $1,000. He is facing up to one year of probation and an agreement to never work as a law enforcement officer or with Pima County again. The sentencing agreement has to be approved by the judge.
"We have reached a just outcome in this case," said U.S. Attorney John W. Huber of the District of Utah, which handled the case. "This investigation and prosecution has cleaned the Pima County Sheriff's Office of years of corruption and ensures it will not return."
Radtke was indicted in September on one felony charge of conspiracy to launder money and seven felony charges of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, according to U.S District Court records.
Radtke resigned from his job two weeks after the indictment, which followed a months-long investigation by the FBI into high ranking department officials who allegedly misused public funds, according to Arizona Daily Star archives.
The investigation revealed that Radtke embezzled roughly $500,000 dollars of money seized from alleged criminals under the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, otherwise known as RICO.
RICO funds are intended to be used for crime fighting and prevention, but the indictment says that Radtke was misusing those funds, making purchases that didn't fall under those requirements.
Radtke admitted that for 18 years personnel at the sheriff's department would circumvent the strict restrictions on the use of so-called RICO funds. The officers collaborated to make it appear the department was donating the RICO money to the sheriff's auxiliary volunteers fund, although the funds were being used by the sheriff's department, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Radtke admitted that he became part of the practice about six years ago, the release said.
The FBI investigation began after a November 2015 Star story about Radtke's niece, Nikki Thompson, running cafes inside sheriff's headquarters and the jail, without a county contract and rent-free.
Public records requests revealed that the sheriff's department spent more than $30,000 on renovations and equipment, the Star reported in November 2015.
Thompson was operating cafes inside headquarters and the Pima County Adult Detention Center without a county contract, and the department spent more than $30,000 in renovations and improvement to the locations.
The indictment listed a number of purchases, several of which were associated with cafe expenses.
The indictment listed a conspiracy charge and mentioned "other persons known and unknown to the grand jury," but no one else has been charged in connection with the investigation.
- Caitlin Schmidt
- Updated
A former Tucson group foster home worker was indicted Wednesday on federal charges of distributing and possessing child pornography, court records show.
A federal grand jury indicted 27-year-old Taylor Ray Freeman on one charge of distributing child pornography and two charges of possession of child pornography, according to U.S. District Court records.
The charges stem from a Dec. 27 online chat during which Freeman told an undercover police officer that he had a “sexual interest in children” and that he had naughty pictures to trade, according to a complaint filed in federal court in Tucson.
He emailed the officer a sexually explicit photo of a girl, resulting in the charge of distributing child pornography, according to the indictment.
Homeland Security Investigations agents were able to track the email to Freeman’s computer and served a federal warrant at his home Jan. 10. Agents seized a smartphone and internal hard drive, both of which contained photos and videos of child pornography. He was charged with one count of possession for each device, the indictment shows.
Pima County sheriff’s deputies arrested Freeman the same day and held him in jail for less than 24 hours before transferring him to the custody of federal authorities, Deputy Cody Gress, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman, previously told the Star.
On Jan. 11, U.S. Magistrate Judge Bernardo P. Velaso signed a detention order, remanding Freeman to federal detention until his trial. Velasco accepted the recommendation of Pretrial Services, which decided he posed a serious flight risk, the order shows.
Freeman was hired in 2013 by local nonprofit TMM Family Services, according to Arizona Department of Child Safety records.
TMM, which provides social services outreach, runs 10 group homes for up to 53 children ages 1 to 17, according to its website.
Donald Strauch, TMM’s executive director, did not immediately respond to the Star’s inquiry as to whether Freeman had contact with children.
A man and woman were seriously injured in a single-vehicle rollover crash on I-10 in Marana Saturday morning, authorities said.
Northwest Fire District responded to a 911 call at 8 a.m., reporting the wreck on westbound I-10, north of Marana Road, said Capt. Brian Keeley, a department spokesman.
Witnesses told police that the car "left the roadway, went into the median, crossed an empty irrigation canal and rolled at least once before it stopped on its wheels near the frontage road," Keeley said.
A passerby who witnessed the crash stopped to help, as did an off-duty Northwest firefighter who was returning home from work. They saw that two people were trapped in the car, which had caught fire, and quickly pulled the man and woman out of the burning vehicle, Keeley said.
Firefighters arrived and extinguished the fire while paramedics attended to the victims, who were transported to the hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries, Keeley said.
Marana Police Department and the Arizona Department of Public Safety are at the scene directing traffic and investigating the cause of the crash, which is currently unknown.
Marana police arrested a 35-yearold man on suspicion of first-degree murder Thursday, after his mother was found dead with signs of trauma, officials said.
Shortly before 9 p.m., police went to a home in the 8900 block of North Valhalla Drive, near West Twin Peaks and North Silverbell roads, to perform a welfare check on 62-yearold Debra Elaine Fouts, said Sgt. Chris Warren, a Marana Police Department spokesman.
Police found Fouts dead in the home, Warren said. The original welfare check call came from the Pima County Sheriff's Department. Because she lived in Marana, the Sheriff's Department asked Marana police to visit the residence, Warren said. Marana detectives' investigation at the scene resulted in the arrest of Nathan Fouts, on charges of first-degree murder and unlawful possession of a weapon, police said.
He was booked into the Pima County jail and is being held on a $ 1 million bond, according to jail records.
Online state prison records show Nathan Fouts was sentenced in 2001 to 21/2 years in prison for aggravated robbery and aggravated assault convictions. He also had a series of arrests in Pima County for DUI, drug possession and disorderly conduct, online records show.
- Caitlin Schmidt
The 21-year-old skateboarder injured in a Feb. 1 hit-and-run died from his injuries Thursday night, officials said.
Michael Hartman was critically injured after he was hit by a car in the area of South Swan Road and East Valencia Road, said Cody Gress, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokesman.
Traffic detectives went to the scene at 2 p.m. for reports of a man down, and learned that the suspect car was traveling northbound on Swan Road when it crashed into Hartman, who was riding his skateboard, Gress said.
Witnesses told detectives that the car didn't slow down or stop, and continued to drive northbound.
The driver of the vehicle who hit Hartman still hasn't been identified, but deputies are looking for a gold or tan 2004 to 2008 Toyota Corolla with front-end and windshield damage, Gress said.
Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or submit an anonymous tip to 88-CRIME, an anonymous tipster hotline.
- Carmen Duarte Arizona Daily Star
A 39-year-old Utah man was sentenced to 20 years in prison Thursday in connection to two child pornography cases in federal court.
Donald Macarthur, of Lehi, Utah, was sentenced in Tucson by U.S. Chief District Judge Raner C. Collins to the prison term, which will be followed by lifetime supervised release. Macarthur must register as a sex offender, according to a news release.
Macarthur had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography in two cases.
Authorities said Macarthur used the internet to meet young girls on modeling and pro-anorexia web sites. He communicated with the girls through email and text messages.
One of the victims was a 13-year-old girl in Tucson, and the other was a 14-year-old girl in Mississippi. Macarthur manipulated the girls by acting as an anorexia coach who encouraged them to starve themselves, states the release.
He also requested that they send him sexually explicit photos. If the girls did not do it, he threatened not to coach them and he ridiculed them.
This case was part of the U.S. Department of Justice Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. The project was launched in May 2006.
- Mike Christy / Arizona Daily Star
Tucson Police Department detectives and crime scene technicians work the scene where a man’s body was found shortly after 9 a.m. Tuesday behind a Family Dollar store at 2160 E. Broadway. A 911 caller reported an unresponsive man behind the business. Authorities are waiting for an autopsy from the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office to determine the cause of death, said Sgt. Kimberly Bay, a police spokeswoman. Bay did not say whether the man’s identity is known.
- Carmen Duarte Arizona Daily Star
A man who was riding a dirt bike and was killed after a crash with a minivan Thursday night in Vail was identified as Brian Highsmith, authorities said.
Highsmith, 47, was treated at the scene by paramedics and taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, said Deputy Cody Gress, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokesman.
Deputies responded to the crash, which was reported at about 6:30 p.m., near North Calle Rinconado and East Limestone Drive, Gress said.
The residential area is south of East Andrada and east of South Wentworth roads.
The driver of the minivan remained at the scene. Traffic detectives took over the investigation late Thursday night, Gress said.
No further information was immediately available.
- Curt Prendergast
The teen who died Saturday in Vail after being struck by a train was identified as Nathan Hubble, 17, a student at Tanque Verde High School.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department was notified shortly after 2 p.m. that two pedestrians had been hit by a train in the area of Marsh Station Road and Interstate 10, said department spokesman Deputy Ryan Inglett.
Hubble was pronounced dead at the scene and the second victim, a 17-year-old girl, was taken to Banner-University Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the sheriff's department.
Witnesses told deputies that the victims were on the elevated trestle bridge when the train approached and that they weren’t able to get out of the way in time.
Hubble's parents issued a statement Monday saying they are grieving the loss of their son and asked for privacy.
"We ask that you please redirect all attention to the extreme hazards that remain due to the unsecured bridge access, and ensure that young people do not continue to be exposed to this kind of tragedy," they said in the statement.
Justin Jacobs, a spokesman for Union Pacific Railroad, declined to comment on the parents' statement. He called the incident "very unfortunate."
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family at this time," Jacobs said.
The high school said grief counselors were available Monday and will be available throughout the week at the school for students and staff.
An online fundraising effort was launched in Hubble's name.
- David Wichner
A Graham County woman who was severely burned by an item she found in the desert last week apparently set off a military aircraft flare, officials said.
On Jan. 31, the Graham County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call in Fort Thomas, a small community about 20 miles northwest of Safford, and found 49-year-old Diane Briscoe at home suffering from severe burns.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, Briscoe and her boyfriend found an unknown object in the desert north of the victim’s home.
Briscoe apparently touched the item with a knife and it detonated, severely burning the entire front of her body. After treatment by first responders, she was flown to a hospital burn unit in Phoenix.
As of Tuesday, she was in critical condition at the Arizona Burn Center at Maricopa Integrated Health System.
The Sheriff’s Office notified the Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, but no other hazardous devices were found in the area. A team from the base visited the site Feb. 1 to gather information for an investigation, a D-M spokeswoman said.
“The item that was found by the Graham County Sheriff’s Office Jan. 31 was confirmed to be a U.S. Air Force flare that is used on many types of military aircraft,” said 2nd Lt. Sydney Smith, adding that the specific type of flare has yet to be determined.
“The source of the flare, how it came into the individual’s possession, and how it was activated remains under investigation,” Smith said.
Some hot-burning flares are dropped by military aircraft to lure away heat-seeking missiles, while others are used to mark or illuminate areas on the ground.
Fort Thomas is southwest of a military operating area, or MOU, used for pilot training by units including the Arizona Air National Guard 162nd Wing at Tucson International Airport.
- Caitlin Schmidt
More than 50 cats and kittens were taken from a Tucson home Friday, in the third hoarding rescue in three weeks, authorities said.
Field services officers with the Pima County Animal Care Center removed 54 cats from the home, and members of the shelter team worked late into the night to check their weights, vaccinate and deworm them before transferring the animals to the medical team, according to a post on PACC's Facebook page.
Additional community agencies responded to the home, which was described as being in "deplorable" condition, and addressed safety concerns with the structure, said Pima County spokesman, Mark Evans.
PACC has reached out to rescue and shelter partners for help make room for the new cats, who need medical care and isolation time. Many organizations, including the Humane Society of Southern Arizona and Saving Animals From Euthanasia, have already agreed to take other PACC cats into their care to make room for the new arrivals, Evans said.
The 57 cats who were rescued from a Jan. 19 hoarding situation are ready to leave the shelter, and anyone who takes one home won't pay a fee, according to PACC's Facebook page.
Through Feb. 14, PACC is running a special on all other pets, with adoption fees priced at $14 or less. The fee includes the pet's spay or neuter surgery, vaccinations, microchip and vet visit. A standard licensing fee of $17 will apply for all dogs.
For those who can't adopt, PACC is asking the public to please consider helping in another way, by making a donation or gift of medical supplies.
It's currently unknown when the newly rescued cats will be available for adoption.
- Caitlin Schmidt
Authorities arrested a 38-year-old man Wednesday, in connection with the October shooting death of Israel Dominguez Alfaro on Tucson's south side.
Joseph Torres was booked into the Pima County jail on one count of second-degree murder, after detectives found evidence that linked him to Alfaro's shooting, said Sgt. Pete Dugan, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.
Torres is being held on a $350,000 bond, according to jail records.
Shortly after 1 a.m. on Oct. 23, officers went to the area of South 7th Avenue and West Lincoln Street for reports of a possible shooting.
When they arrived, they found Alfaro in the street with obvious signs of gunshot trauma. He was taken to a hospital, but died shortly after arrival, Dugan said.
Detectives learned that Alfaro and 29-year-old Alice Puente had gotten into a physical altercation earlier that night, and hours later, when Alfaro was walking down the street with his brother, Puente and several men pulled up in an SUV and confronted the two, Dugan said.
A fight broke out and one of the suspects fired a gun, striking Alfaro, after which Puente and the men got back in the SUV and fled, Dugan said.
Puente was located shortly after and taken into custody. She's been charged with manslaughter, kidnapping, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, according to Pima County court records.
She remains in the Pima County jail on a $750,000 bond.
Detectives are still trying to identify the other suspects in this case. Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or 88-CRIME.
- Caitlin Schmidt
The sheriff department's former second-in-command pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft charges on Friday in federal court.
Christopher Radtke, the Pima County Sheriff Department's former chief deputy, will be sentenced April 7 after pleading guilty to three counts of theft of government property before U.S. Magistrate Judge Eric Markovich.
Radtke's plea agreement with federal prosecutors resulted in each of the three counts being for theft of less than $1,000. He is facing up to one year of probation and an agreement to never work as a law enforcement officer or with Pima County again. The sentencing agreement has to be approved by the judge.
"We have reached a just outcome in this case," said U.S. Attorney John W. Huber of the District of Utah, which handled the case. "This investigation and prosecution has cleaned the Pima County Sheriff's Office of years of corruption and ensures it will not return."
Radtke was indicted in September on one felony charge of conspiracy to launder money and seven felony charges of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, according to U.S District Court records.
Radtke resigned from his job two weeks after the indictment, which followed a months-long investigation by the FBI into high ranking department officials who allegedly misused public funds, according to Arizona Daily Star archives.
The investigation revealed that Radtke embezzled roughly $500,000 dollars of money seized from alleged criminals under the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, otherwise known as RICO.
RICO funds are intended to be used for crime fighting and prevention, but the indictment says that Radtke was misusing those funds, making purchases that didn't fall under those requirements.
Radtke admitted that for 18 years personnel at the sheriff's department would circumvent the strict restrictions on the use of so-called RICO funds. The officers collaborated to make it appear the department was donating the RICO money to the sheriff's auxiliary volunteers fund, although the funds were being used by the sheriff's department, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Radtke admitted that he became part of the practice about six years ago, the release said.
The FBI investigation began after a November 2015 Star story about Radtke's niece, Nikki Thompson, running cafes inside sheriff's headquarters and the jail, without a county contract and rent-free.
Public records requests revealed that the sheriff's department spent more than $30,000 on renovations and equipment, the Star reported in November 2015.
Thompson was operating cafes inside headquarters and the Pima County Adult Detention Center without a county contract, and the department spent more than $30,000 in renovations and improvement to the locations.
The indictment listed a number of purchases, several of which were associated with cafe expenses.
The indictment listed a conspiracy charge and mentioned "other persons known and unknown to the grand jury," but no one else has been charged in connection with the investigation.
- Caitlin Schmidt
A former Tucson group foster home worker was indicted Wednesday on federal charges of distributing and possessing child pornography, court records show.
A federal grand jury indicted 27-year-old Taylor Ray Freeman on one charge of distributing child pornography and two charges of possession of child pornography, according to U.S. District Court records.
The charges stem from a Dec. 27 online chat during which Freeman told an undercover police officer that he had a “sexual interest in children” and that he had naughty pictures to trade, according to a complaint filed in federal court in Tucson.
He emailed the officer a sexually explicit photo of a girl, resulting in the charge of distributing child pornography, according to the indictment.
Homeland Security Investigations agents were able to track the email to Freeman’s computer and served a federal warrant at his home Jan. 10. Agents seized a smartphone and internal hard drive, both of which contained photos and videos of child pornography. He was charged with one count of possession for each device, the indictment shows.
Pima County sheriff’s deputies arrested Freeman the same day and held him in jail for less than 24 hours before transferring him to the custody of federal authorities, Deputy Cody Gress, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman, previously told the Star.
On Jan. 11, U.S. Magistrate Judge Bernardo P. Velaso signed a detention order, remanding Freeman to federal detention until his trial. Velasco accepted the recommendation of Pretrial Services, which decided he posed a serious flight risk, the order shows.
Freeman was hired in 2013 by local nonprofit TMM Family Services, according to Arizona Department of Child Safety records.
TMM, which provides social services outreach, runs 10 group homes for up to 53 children ages 1 to 17, according to its website.
Donald Strauch, TMM’s executive director, did not immediately respond to the Star’s inquiry as to whether Freeman had contact with children.
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A pop-up ice skating rink in downtown Tucson opens this weekend
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Galloping into action: This new rescue calls for volunteers to care for horses in need