Arrests

Members of the Iranian national soccer team could face arrests -- or, perhaps worse, brutal beatings -- upon their return home from the World Cup ... this according to multiple experts, who fear for the team's safety following Tuesday's loss to the U.S.

Kenneth R. Timmerman, a political author and an expert in Iran, told the NY Post this week that after the team's initial protest of its country's national anthem on Nov. 21, and its subsequent bouncing from the huge soccer tournament, players could now be facing retribution.

"I would be afraid of arrest," Timmerman said. "Even if they had won, they would have been arrested, soundly beaten, and warned, 'Don't ever do this again.'"

Former CIA covert operations officer Mike Baker added that punishments for the players could be "brutal."

"Given what we've seen from the Iranian regime … they've shown themselves to be brutal," Baker said, "and there's no reason to believe they're going to suddenly become rational."

Iran chose to not sing along to its national anthem ahead of its W.C.-opening game against England ... to show support for protestors in its home country.

But, four days later, against Wales, that protest ceded, and players sang to the tune. Prior to their loss to the U.S. on Tuesday, players sang once again ... amid reports that their families could face "violence and torture" if the protests picked back up.

Still, Baker said the initial protest, combined with the 1-0 loss to the Americans, could turn into fines or arrests.

"Neither is good if you’re an Iranian player upon returning home," he said.

Middle East Institute's Fatemeh Aman, however, said she believes the team could be spared ... telling the Post, "You can't arrest the entire national team at the same time, you can't do that."

Kanye West says Donald Trump credits him with freeing former federal prisoner Alice Marie Johnson ... but Alice doesn't see it that way.

Alice tells TMZ ... she's convinced she'd still be behind bars if it weren't for Kim Kardashian lobbying the White House on her behalf. That's not to say Kanye deserves no credit, but Alice is steadfast ... Kim was her angel.

Alice says Kim leveraged her relationship with longtime friend Ivanka Trump to strategically make a case for Alice's freedom. Kim knew Ivanka's husband, Jared Kushner, carried unique power and influence, and spent hours on the phone and in person with Jared, making her case.

Once Jared was on board, Kim was more than game to meet Trump in the Oval Office to lobby for Alice's release. What's more, Kim knew she'd be criticized by lots of her friends and fans for interacting with Trump, but she believed in Alice and did so anyway.

It worked ... just days after that meeting, Trump announced he would commute Alice's sentence. Short story -- Alice would probably be behind bars were it not for Kim.

Alice was sentenced to life in prison without parole in 1997 on drug conspiracy and money laundering charges -- her first offense.

Alice says Ye could have very well influenced Trump's decision... but Kanye and Alice did not speak while she was incarcerated -- she only spoke with Kim. She says Kanye was on her side, and when they met shortly after her release he was in tears.

Brittney Griner will face horrific conditions during her time in a Russian prison ... with environments that will include homophobia, racism and 16-hour work days.

According to The Nation's Dave Zirin, prisoners in Mordovia -- where Griner was taken to earlier this month -- are barely treated like humans.

Bigotry is commonplace, medical care is nearly nonexistent ... and, Zirin says, inmates are expected to sew the uniforms for police and guards.

In fact, it's unclear if Griner will even get a bed that will fit her 6-foot-8 frame.

Musician Nadya Tolokonnikova, a founder of the feminist group Pussy Riot, spent two years in Mordovia following a 2012 arrest, and per Zirin, described the place as hell, where "beatings and torture" are common.

Griner's camp, however, has insisted the WNBA star is trying to remain brave in the face of it all ... saying in a statement following her move to Mordovia earlier this month that "Brittney is doing as well as could be expected."

"Despite the fact she is alone and now nearing her ninth month in detention separated from her loved ones," her reps said, "she is trying to stay strong."

Griner has been detained in Russia since February after she was accused of bringing hashish oil in her luggage to a Moscow airport. In August, she was sentenced to nine years in prison. An appeal of that sentence was denied in October.

Israel Adesanya was arrested Wednesday afternoon for criminal possession of a weapon at JFK airport in NYC, TMZ Sports has learned ... after the UFC superstar was allegedly busted while going through security with metal knuckles.

The arrest was made by the Port Authority Police Department near the TSA screening area ... near the American Airlines terminal around 1:57 PM.

Brass knuckles are illegal (class A misdemeanor) in the state of New York. It's also illegal to carry them on your person or in your carry-on bag. It's unclear where the alleged brass knuckles were stored.

It's unclear if cops will issue Adesanya a Desk Appearance Ticket ... or if he'll remain in custody.

Of course, Adesanya isn't from the U.S. ... he lives in New Zealand.

Izzy, despite losing his belt to rival Alex Pereira during the main event at UFC 281 on Saturday at Madison Square Garden, is one of the best and most popular UFC fighters in the entire world.

Saturday's loss was just the 2nd in his MMA career.

If ultimately charged and convicted, Adesanya could face up to one year in jail, plus fines.

Chrisean Rock is flipping the bird to anyone who thinks she should dump Blueface after his arrest for attempted murder ... and she just might prove her loyalty with some fresh ink.

Chrisean got pissed off while Live on social media addressing Blueface's Las Vegas bust -- a number of people suggested she save herself, but CR wasn't having it! She pointed out Blueface never turned his back on her when she was locked up.

Chrisean was on the scene at the time of Blueface's arrest, and says she'll be front and center Wednesday during his first court appearance.

The ride-or-die GF also told haters she was debating getting another Blueface tattoo, and even worked in a plug for their upcoming documentary. There's always time for a promo!

TMZ Hip Hop broke the story ... undercover cops took down Blueface Tuesday in Vegas, outside a Lo-Lo's Chicken & Waffles restaurant.

He and Chrisean were sitting on a bench with their phones in their hands when the cops swarmed around, and slammed Blueface into a wall while making the bust.

Law enforcement sources tell us the 25-year-old rapper's arrest is over an October 8 incident, and he now faces 2 charges -- felony attempted murder with the use of a deadly firearm or tear gas, and firing a gun into a house, building, vehicle or craft.

An Alabama city councilman accused of using racial slurs was arrested after punching the town's Black mayor ... and it's all on video.

Police in Tarrant, AL just released the footage ... and cops say the video shows Councilman Thomas Bryant punching Mayor Wayman Newton in the face.

There's a bunch of people who cops say saw the punch, which went down Monday in the City Hall parking lot, with witnesses including the Tarrant Police Department's own police chief. Officers arrested Bryant at the scene and took him to jail.

Police say Bryant was initially charged with harassment, but the charge was since upgraded to third-degree assault.

The dispute reportedly arose from a heated meeting inside City Hall, where Bryant challenged the mayor to step down.

Video shows the guy who took the punch run away before falling to his knees and then getting back up and jumping around.

Bryant's been accused of racism in the past ... just last year he allegedly referred to another council member as a "house n*****" during a public meeting.

WNBA star Brittney Griner is transferring to a Russian penal colony -- known for its terrible living conditions -- and her team has no idea where exactly she is or how she's doing.

BG's move from the detention center in Iksha began on Friday ... which happened to be one day after she met with U.S. embassy officials.

It's something Griner's family and team have feared ever since her conviction in August ... as a penal colony is far worse than a detention center. Prisoners are forced to perform labor, and it's much more difficult to make contact to the outside world.

Griner's team was not made aware of the update until Tuesday ... and her current location is unclear. Her legal team says it may take up to two weeks to be notified of her destination.

Lindsay Colas, Griner's agent, released a statement saying the number one concern is her client's health and well-being.

Colas says Griner's camp continues to work with the U.S. government in an effort to bring her home and keep her safe in the meantime.

"We are thankful for everyone's support, and hope that as we near nine months of detention, that BG and all wrongfully detained Americans will be shown mercy and returned home to their families for the holidays," Colas said.

The White House also released a statement ... slamming the move.

"Every minute that Brittney Griner must endure wrongful detention in Russia is a minute too long," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

"As the Administration continues to work tirelessly to secure her release, the President has directed the Administration to prevail on her Russian captors to improve her treatment and the conditions she may be forced to endure in a penal colony."

Griner has been in custody in Russia since February ... after she was accused of bringing hashish oil in her luggage at a Moscow airport.

She pleaded guilty to drug charges in July ... and was sentenced to 9 years in prison.

Griner spent her 32nd birthday behind bars last month ... and her appeal was denied on October 25.

Tiger Woods was mistakenly -- and HORRIFYINGLY -- dragged into a political ad this week, calling for cop killers and mass murderers to be sentenced to death.

The legendary golfer's 2017 DUI arrest footage was front and center in the campaign ad, dubbed "Just Intentional," which was released Thursday by Kris Kobach, the Republican nominee for Kansas Attorney General.

In the ad, Kobach put his Democrat opponent, Chris Mann, on blast over his opposition to capital punishment, splicing in Wood's arrest along with images of two convicted murderers currently on Kansas’ death row.

Kobach’s spokesperson Danedri Herbert told FOX Digital the ad agency they hired was to blame for the error, but they caught it and fixed it within minutes.

Herbert went on ... "What a happy accident that media is going to pick this up and expose Chris Mann as a soft-on-crime liberal Democrat who will let cop killers and mass murderers off easy for their heinous crimes."

A new ad was cut, replacing the Woods footage with images of what appears to be a prison inmate.

Tory Lanez is going to be spending a lot more time inside -- a judge just placed him under house arrest until his trial against Megan Thee Stallion begins ... and it all stems from an alleged incident with August Alsina.

The order came down Wednesday during a court hearing in L.A. ... where it was ruled that Tory needs to be on lockdown until November 28 -- the start of the trial -- as a result of accusations he beat the crap out of Alsina in Chicago in September.

Prosecutors argued TL deserved to be remanded into custody because -- in their eyes -- he'd violated the conditions of his bail in the Meg case. They say he continues to pose a threat to public safety and that monetary bail alone wasn't enough of a deterrent.

Tory's attorney, Shawn Holley, pushed back, noting ... no charges had been filed in the Alsina case, and there were only allegations. As we reported, Alsina took to social media to allege Tory had sucker punched him, with bloody photos to boot -- this after he'd apparently been snubbed by the singer in passing earlier in the day.

The judge ended up splitting the difference, ordering Tory be confined to his home with a GPS ankle monitor beginning Friday.

Tory has to remain under house arrest until his felony assault trial gets underway. Remember, he's pleaded not guilty after being charged with firing the gun that seriously injured Meg in 2020.

Kyrie Irving took time out of a pre-game speech Wednesday to demand Joe Biden get Brittney Griner home ... saying straight up, "Do your job!"

The Nets star made the call-out just seconds before Brooklyn took on the New Orleans Pelicans ... right in the middle of the Barclays Center court.

The 30-year-old grabbed the mic, and urged fans to cheer his team and his teammates on ... before he turned the conversation to Griner and the U.S. President.

"I appreciate us being able to share this floor together, all of us as brothers," the point guard said, "but the big picture that's going in the world is free our sister, Brittney Griner, please!"

"POTUS, do your job!" he added. "Everybody do your job! Please bring our sister home."

Griner has been incarcerated in Russia since February ... after authorities accused her of bringing hashish oil in her luggage at a Moscow airport.

Biden has said repeatedly he's working hard to bring her home -- and U.S. officials have said they've made a substantial offer to Russia to get her out.

Griner's wife, Cherelle, said earlier this week on the basketball player's birthday that she appreciated the President's efforts.

Others around the NBA also used their season-opening platforms this week to raise awareness for Griner's situation ... with Steph Curry saying at the Warriors ring ceremony Tuesday that he didn't want anyone to forget about her.

A suspected serial killer is in custody in Northern California -- and police say they caught the guy while he was looking for his next victim ... this after 6 lives have already been taken.

43-year-old Wesley Brownlee was arrested Saturday morning in Stockton ... where Police Chief Stanley McFadden says he appeared to be scoping out a new person to kill. Stockton PD were surveilling him and stopped Brownlee after he left his house in a car around 2 AM. Upon a search, they say they found him armed with a gun and a mask around his neck.

Chief McFadden says there's no doubt in their minds he was "out hunting" and that they stopped another killing. Brownlee was booked for homicide -- although it's unclear if all of the murders are being pinned on him right off the bat.

Six men have been slain dating back to April 2021 -- all of whom were ambushed, shot and killed. Five took place in the Stockton area up through September, and the final one happened in Oakland more than a year ago. A seventh victim, a woman, was also shot in Stockton last year, but survived. A good handful of the victims are said to be homeless.

No motive has been ascribed ... none of the victims were beaten or robbed, simply shot and killed. Eventually, police declared they had evidence linking the murders -- and announced a manhunt to find the killer ... offering up as high as a $125k reward for help from the public.

Scary day for Kim Kardashian ... a would-be intruder nearly made his way into her home this weekend, but the guy was stopped just steps away from the front door.

Sources with knowledge tell TMZ ... a man was arrested Saturday around 11 AM after wandering onto Kim's Hidden Hills property unannounced and uninvited. We're told he somehow made it past her gated community entrance and found his way to Kim's mansion.

Our sources security intercepted him and actually detained him right on the grounds -- but he didn't go down easy ... we're told there was a scuffle before he was ultimately pinned.

The cops were called and the man ended up getting taken away in cuffs. Our law enforcement sources say he was booked on battery and trespassing charges. We're also told this gentleman is known to the sheriff's deputies in the area, specifically at this location ... where he's apparently been caught on surveillance video before.

Sources say the man has an infatuation with Kim, but luckily ... it didn't come to fruition today. Unclear if Kim or any of her kids were home -- but a close call either way.

It's far from the first alleged trespasser who's landed on the doorstep of a KarJenner -- it's happened to Kylie, Kendall and others in the family as well. Might be time to start building moats around these places ... seems way too easy for randos to access off the streets.

Kim Kardashian's new podcast, "The System," is under attack by 2 siblings who survived a brutal crime, claiming podcast producers never reached out to them about the project ... a claim creators behind the pod are denying.

"The System" dives into the story of convicted murderer Kevin Keith -- a man Kim believes is innocent. Quanita and Quentin Reeves, who were shot during the alleged crime when they were just kids, say they were never given a heads-up about the podcast until its release.

Quentin told Daily Mail, "She did not contact us, not one time. Why aren't they contacting the victims?" They also claim Keith is guilty of the crime, saying they saw him do it.

A statement to TMZ on behalf of Tenderfoot TV & Big City TV, states, "The production team of The System made multiple attempts to reach out to the Reeves siblings. At the time, they decided not to share their story and requested we no longer contact them."

Margot Robbie and Cara Delevingne were thrust into a dangerous situation in Argentina this weekend -- one that left a paparazzi photographer going to cops and alleging assault.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the two stars were dining in Buenos Aires early Sunday morning, and as they were leaving a restaurant (Patagonia Sur in the La Boca neighborhood), there was an Uber waiting for them -- but the pickup went awry.

We're told that as the ladies were entering the car, a pap rushed them and started taking photos aggressively, intruding in their space. Our sources say the encounter freaked out the driver, who took off -- with Cara fully in the car, and Margot halfway in and halfway out.

Margot actually had to jump out of the car to avoid being seriously hurt, we're told, but even after she was on the ground ... the photog continued snapping. That's when a couple of male friends of Margot's, who were on hand, jumped in to help -- per our sources.

Now, we're being told the photog ran off and fell on his own at this point -- but he's telling police there in Buenos Aires something very different ... namely, that he was brutally beaten by these two gents, whom he perceived as security guards, and hospitalized.

According to the online Argentine newspaper Infobae -- which has been in business since 2002 -- the pap, named Pedro Alberto Orquera, was left with a broken arm and a bloody scalp after the alleged beatdown ... this per a police report the outlet claims to have seen.

They go on to say that the guy wanted to press charges ... and since then, the two men -- Jac Rhis Hopkins and Josei Mac Namara Callum -- have been detained. Our sources tell us they are NOT bodyguards (just pals) but that they are, in fact, in police custody.

Unclear if they've been arrested/booked on any specific charges yet. We've tried reaching out to the local authorities for confirmation, but so far ... no luck in connecting with anyone for info. Infobae reports the authorities are interested in prosecuting, pending an investigation.

No word on what may have happened after the alleged incident as it pertains to Margot and Cara -- but on the face of things ... it sounds like an upsetting altercation to say the least.

We've reached out to Margot and Cara's reps to check in on how they're doing. The two women are obviously close friends -- proven in recent house visits Margot's made amid issues Cara's been dealing with. They also travel together often, like earlier this summer.

We haven't heard back from either of their camps.

Jeffrey Dahmer had a foreboding look, partly because of his eyewear ... and now the shades he wore in prison are up for sale, and they'll go for more than anything at LensCrafters.

Taylor James, who runs Cult Collectibles out of Vancouver, Canada, tells TMZ ... he's willing to part with the serial killer's prison glasses for $150,000.

Dahmer was convicted of 16 murders and sentenced to life in prison back in 1992, but he only lasted a few years behind bars before being beaten to death at the hands of a fellow inmate.

Taylor says he got his hands on the shades a couple years ago, along with a bunch of other Dahmer memorabilia, after being contacted by a former housekeeper for Jeffrey's father, Lionel. Taylor agreed to manage and sell the collection through his website for a portion of the profit.

Cult Collectibles sells a ton of items from its Jeffrey Dahmer collection online, including his cutlery, his bible, original family photos and a bunch of paperwork -- these items are up for sale. The prison glasses are not on the website, but interested parties are able to reach out to Taylor directly.

Ex-Baylor star Queen Egbo is going off on Kim Mulkey for shutting down a question about Brittney Griner during a press conference -- reminding her old coach that the WNBA superstar is the reason she won a national title in 2012.

Mulkey -- who's been LSU women's basketball coach since 2021 -- was speaking to the media on Monday when a reporter asked her thoughts on Griner's drug conviction in Russia, whom she coached at Baylor from 2009 to 2013.

"I don't think I've seen anything from you on that," the reporter asked ... and Mulkey made sure that would remain the case in a short response.

"And, you won't," Mulkey replied.

Egbo -- who played for the Baylor Bears from 2018 to 2022 -- felt some type of way about Mulkey's response ... and went on Twitter to speak against her former coach.

"A player that built Baylor, 2 national titles, & a 40-0 record," Egbo said, "Yet her former coach refuses to say anything or simply just show any kind of support."

"Keep that in mind when you’re choosing schools."

The WNBA center also retweeted former Bears' player Chloe Jackson's comment about Mulkey's shutdown .. who said, "And I will say it again. SILENCE SPEAKS VOLUMES, smh."

FYI, Egbo and Jackson helped get Mulkey her third national title in 2019.

The reason for Mulkey's response may be stemming from Griner's comments shortly after going #1 overall in the 2013 WNBA Draft ... when BG claimed Mulkey told players to keep quiet about their sexuality for recruiting purposes and the program's image.

Baylor's new HC Nicki Collen, however, did speak on Griner ... saying even though she never coached her, she knows BG made Baylor.