Crime & Arrests

Huge break for Adrian Peterson ... TMZ Sports has learned the future Hall of Famer will not face charges in his domestic violence case.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us ... Peterson had a City Attorney hearing in Los Angeles on April 29 -- but the former Minnesota Vikings running back and prosecutors met beforehand to resolve the matter.

We're told prosecutors declined to criminally charge Peterson ... and Adrian agreed to complete 20 sessions of domestic violence and alcohol counseling within the next 6 months.

It's a huge deal for A.P. -- because, as we previously reported, he could have been hit with misdemeanor charges for his alleged role in an altercation on a plane with his wife on Super Bowl Sunday back in February.

You'll recall, Peterson was thrown in jail after cops say Ashley Brown Peterson sustained a small mark on her hand following the alleged incident.

Peterson had denied ever getting physical with her -- saying, "We just had a disagreement."

The L.A. County District Attorney's Office declined to charge the 36-year-old with a felony just days after the arrest ... but kicked the case over to the L.A. City Attorney for possible misdemeanor charges.

A youth softball umpire in Mississippi claims an irate parent assaulted her, allegedly punching her in the face, all 'cause the mom didn't like the way she was calling the game ... and now the parent has been arrested for assault.

Ump, Kristi Moore, tells TMZ Sports the alleged incident went down Saturday, April 9 ... when she was umpiring a 12 and under softball game between MVP and Southern Select in Laurel, MS.

Moore says the mother of a child on MVP named Kiara Thomas allegedly began yelling profanities at her, saying, "I will slap the f*** outta you bitch," as Kristi was calling the game.

Kristi tells us Thomas was asked to leave the field, but refused to, and told her she'd be waiting to confront her after the game was over.

And, according to Moore, the mom kept her word. The ump claims Thomas walked up to her and punched her square in the eye, causing a black eye, cuts and scratches under Kristi's eye.

Moore says she didn't immediately go to the hospital, but did seek medical attention the next day ... when she went to see a doctor for severe bruising she says she sustained during the altercation.

Thankfully for Kristi, she says a staff member at the softball field jotted down the license plate of the vehicle Thomas was driving after she left the field following the alleged attack.

And, according to police docs we obtained, 32-year-old Thomas was apprehended by authorities after they initiated a traffic stop ... and arrested for simple assault.

Moore bonded out the same night she was locked up, per the Laurel PD incident report.

The longtime ump also says the USFA softball organization has banned Thomas and the team, MVP, from the league.

USFA has not directly confirmed the banning of MVP and Thomas.

As for Moore ... she tells us she's rescheduled her upcoming games in order to take a much-needed break, saying she isn't mentally ready to call games.

Rapper Pooh Shiesty won't be a completely free man even after he does his time for a wild shootout -- the artist will have some serious restrictions, according to legal documents.

Pooh's sentencing docs, obtained by TMZ, show he'll have to be on supervised release for 3 years once he completes his 63 months in prison, and the supervision comes with a bunch of rules attached.

During the 3 years, Pooh isn't allowed to associate with any of his co-defendants or gang members ... and his PO has permission to search Pooh and his property from time to time.

The rapper will also have to go through a treatment program for drugs and alcohol.

As we reported, he's currently serving the 5-plus year sentence over a South Florida shootout from back in October 2020.

Tennis legend Boris Becker was just sentenced to 2.5 years in prison after being convicted last month on charges he moved a large sum of money after declaring bankruptcy ... in an effort to hide the funds.

As we previously reported, 54-year-old Becker -- a 6-time Grand Slam winner -- was convicted by a jury earlier this month on multiple charges under the Insolvency Act in Britain ... including charges he concealed assets and debts.

Becker was also found guilty of transferring hundreds of thousands of dollars (well, pounds) from his business account to other accounts after declaring bankruptcy in 2017.

The judge who handed down the sentence said the former #1 ranked tennis player will have to serve half of his sentence, according to CNN.

And, it could've been much worse for Becker ... who was facing up to 7 years behind bars after his conviction.

The judge didn't spare the 3-time Wimbledon champ from taking a verbal beating during sentencing ...  the judge ripped into Boris as a remorseless criminal.

"I take into account what has been described as your fall from grace. You have lost your career and reputation and all of your property as a result of your bankruptcy," the judge said, according to the Press Association.

"You have not shown remorse, acceptance of your guilt and have sought to distance yourself from your offending and your bankruptcy."

The judge continued ... "While I accept your humiliation as part of the proceedings, there has been no humility."

As for Becker ... he seemed somewhat remorseful at times, even saying during his trial that he was embarrassed over the bankruptcy scandal, and even offered to part ways with his wedding ring to help satisfy his debts.

"American Idol" winner Laine Hardy has a warrant issued for his arrest ... but the allegations remain a mystery.

The 2019 'AI' is under "active investigation" by the Louisiana State University Police Dept. ... Ernie​ Ballard, a rep for the University tells TMZ. The rep declined to elaborate on the allegations.

Ditto the 21-year-old country singer ... who said on social media Thursday, "I understand that my career has thrust me into the public spotlight, and I embrace that wholeheartedly as my entire world belongs to my music and my fans."

Hardy, who says he's "fully cooperative" with the PD, added ... "due to the sensitive nature of this allegation, I humbly ask for privacy at this time. I have the utmost respect for the law and will assist in their investigation as needed moving forward."

It's unclear when Hardy will turn himself into authorities.

Caroline Schwitzky, famous for appearing on ''90 Day Fiancé," survived an alleged murder attempt by her boyfriend after witnesses say he tried to strangle and drown her ... this according to law enforcement.

Officers for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission say the alleged murder attempt went down Sunday in West Palm Beach, FL ... where witnesses told police Caroline and Cole Goldberg, whom she says is her boyfriend of 1 year, got into a heated argument on a boat.

According to the report, obtained by TMZ, witnesses told cops Caroline tried to get away from Cole, but he was holding and aggressively grabbing her to keep her onboard. The struggle went on for around 20 minutes, and then Caroline began punching Cole's arms to free herself.

Officers say they were told Caroline eventually managed to break free and jump off the boat, swimming toward a nearby boat. Cole apparently jumped in after her, caught up to her in the water and allegedly tried to push her under.

Witnesses also claimed Cole grabbed Caroline by the throat with both hands, attempting to strangle her while holding her under the water in a rage.

The people who claim they saw it all go down told officers ... they screamed at Cole to stop, to no avail ... he kept holding Caroline underwater.

According to the report, several people from a nearby boat jumped in the water to rescue her. They managed to pull Caroline up and away from Cole, and even used a stick to keep him at bay.

Officers arrested Cole for attempted first-degree murder. He was also hit with a battery charge.

The report says Caroline, a CEO of a Miami talent agency who appeared on "90 Day Fiance: Happily Ever After?" back in 2016, also had bruises on her arm.

According to jail records, 23-year-old Cole was booked just after midnight Monday and was released a few hours later after posting a $60,000 bond.

WWE star Jimmy Uso got so upset with the officer who arrested him for DUI back in July, he straight-up called the guy "an a**hole" during the stop ... new police video shows.

In the footage, you can see Uso -- real name Jonathan Fatu -- seemed to be triggered by a comment a Pensacola Police Dept. officer said to him shortly after the cop pulled him over for allegedly speeding and running a red light.

After the cop asked Uso to get out of his Dodge Charger after claiming he smelled an odor of booze coming from the wrestler's ride ... he appeared to sincerely wish Uso good luck in passing field sobriety tests.

"I'm hoping you beat it this time, too," the officer said.

For some reason, that remark seemed to set Uso off.

"Are you serious?!" Uso asked the cop. "Are you serious?! Why would you say that? I just -- it's all good."

A short time later, after the 36-year-old was taken to a nearby parking lot to attempt to prove his sobriety, Uso confronted the cop further about the comment.

"That's crazy, right?" Uso said. "He didn't have to say that s***."

"The nice thing?" the cop replied.

"The nice thing?!" Uso fired back, before adding, "Bro, you don't need to say the s*** you're saying. I get it. I've been here. Let's do it."

The cop then tried to conduct a field sobriety test ... putting a pen in front of Uso's eyes -- but the wrestler clearly wasn't over the cop's comment.

"You're an a***hole," Uso said. "You're the one that's worse. You had a remark -- you made a remark you shouldn't have did."

The cop seemed to try to apologize, saying, "I think you misunderstood. So, I'm sorry. I was actually being nice. But, I'm sorry."

Uso eventually dropped the beef -- but cops claim he failed field sobriety tests nonetheless ... and arrested him for DUI.

Uso, who cops say ultimately blew a .202 and .205 during the arrest, was eventually charged with misdemeanor DUI over the incident -- and court records show he cut a deal with prosecutors earlier this month to close out the case.

According to court docs, Uso agreed to plead no contest to the charge.

As part of the agreement, we're told Jimmy was required to complete several courses related to the incident. A source close to Uso tells us those classes were completed earlier this month.

Joe Exotic is taking cues from Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart -- he's got a new fiancé behind bars ... and their love is as deep as Edward's was for Bella.

The 'Tiger King' star details his latest relationship in an eye-opening letter sent from his federal prison in Butner, NC, in which he announces he's a groom-to-be with a man named John Graham -- somebody he was in the pokey with last year and apparently fell head over heels for.

In the correspondence, obtained by TMZ from Joe's attorney Autumn Blackledge, JE says he met John after he was released from solitary, when they were housed in the same unit. It wasn't long before they started seeing each other, he explains, and eventually ... somebody popped the question in August.

As for what John's all about ... well, Joe says he's the polar opposite of his soon-to-be-ex-hubby Dillon Passage -- whom he calls "selfish, younger ... and wanting to be famous."

John, meanwhile, is an old soul -- about 400 years, it seems -- who actually practices witchcraft ... this according to Joe. He describes John as someone who isn't seeking the limelight and who loves Joe for him ... the type of love Joe's never experienced, he says.

Sounds like John's a free man now ... but even so, Joe says they talk constantly -- up to 3 times a day -- and exchange mail nonstop. He says their bond is like the one depicted in 'Twilight' ... adding he still has one of John's shirts so he can smell him in the interim.

As we reported ... Dillon's signaled he's ready to finalize his divorce with Joe, with some conditions -- which Joe here calls "extortion," while noting he too wants to be done with it so he can hurry up and marry John.

Of course, he says he's still trying to have his case heard on appeal ... and believes his latest team of attorneys is going to achieve that with "new evidence" Joe says has been obtained in his favor.

It looks like people came to Coachella ready to party and break the law even more so on the second go-around this year -- because cops slapped on way more cuffs than Week 1.

The second-weekend data is out ... and according to Indio Police, officers made a total of 133 arrests from Friday through Sunday -- which is about 20 more busts than what they'd done the weekend prior ... and a whopping 36% more than Weekend 2 in 2019.

As for how the alleged crimes break down, IPD says 106 of those arrests were drug/alcohol or intoxication-related, 17 of them had to do with fake IDs, 5 were possession of drugs for sale and another 5 were miscellaneous.

Their ticket handouts were higher on the 2nd weekend as well compared to the first -- cops say they gave out 96 citations (compared to last week's 72) ... and that figure, they say, is 81% higher than what they doled out in 2019.

Seems lots of people were eager to whip out handicap placards ... because IPD says they gave 91 citations for the unlawful use of those. Four people allegedly parked in handicap stalls and 1 person brought an unregistered vehicle into the desert ... so claim the police.

Like we said ... the numbers are higher than they were on the week of the 15th, so it appears folks came down looking to go out with a bang seeing how Coachella won't be back for a full year.

Former MTV 'Making The Band' star Chopper has been busted for sex trafficking ... with law enforcement accusing him of being a pimp.

Chopper was arrested earlier this month in Maryland and he's being extradited to Las Vegas to face sex trafficking charges in Sin City.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, an undercover vice detective in Nevada posing as a sex worker says Chopper direct messaged them on Instagram with an apparent offer to make money through prostitution.

The undercover cop says they searched Chopper's IG account and noticed several posts related to prostitution and pimping, including posts where Chopper flaunted wealth and made references to being a pimp ... including one image of him inside a plane with a phone alongside the caption, "Sending em," with a money bag and crown emoji.

In the docs, the undercover cop says they launched an investigation into Chopper after seeing social media evidence of a potential sex trafficking operation.

The undercover says Chopper called them and bragged about frequent travel and having 7 homes across the country, including one in Las Vegas, while also telling the undercover Sin City was not a safe place to do business because law enforcement was cracking down.

What's more, the undercover says they had a phone interview with Chopper and after passing the test, Chopper told them he would make them part of his "team" and "stable."

The undercover says Chopper then became aggressive with them over the phone, ordering them around like he might do to a sex worker, telling them to pack their belongings, get to the airport and meet him in Charlotte, N.C. to join his "stable."

From there, the undercover says they stalled by telling Chopper they were scared to leave home ... with Chopper trying to verbally force them to make the trip, getting angry and demanding a $2,000 fee.

Between the alleged social media posts, direct messages, phone calls and fee demand ... the undercover says there was then enough evidence to arrest and charge Chopper with felony sex trafficking.

Chicago Bears WR Byron Pringle was arrested Saturday in Florida after state troopers say they busted him doing donuts in his sports car on a suspended license, with a child in the car, TMZ Sports has learned.

And, cops say Pringle was uncooperative ... becoming "verbally confrontational" with them during the stop.

28-year-old Pringle -- an NFL vet out of Kansas State -- was pulled over by Florida Highway Patrol in his Orange 2016 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat around 6 PM in Pasco County, FL after an FHP officer says he witnessed the car burning rubber, doing donuts on a public road, according to an incident report we obtained.

FYI, the Hellcat has over 700 HP ... and has a top speed of around 200 MPH. The car starts at over $65K.

Troopers say Byron was the driver of the vehicle. The car had two passengers ... an adult male in the front passenger seat, and a male child in the back seat. We're told the kid was Pringle's.

When police ran Pringle's license, they say it came back suspended.

Byron was taken into custody at 6:15 PM ... when he was taken to the county jail. He was arrested for Reckless Driving and driving on a suspended license.

The Hellcat was towed to a local yard.

Pringle was undrafted out of college ... before signing with the KC Chiefs as a free agent. He won a Super Bowl (LIV) during the 2019 season. Over his 4 years in Kansas City, he caught 67 balls for 4 touchdowns.

The man who got punched by Mike Tyson on a JetBlue plane has a long criminal record ... TMZ has learned.

His name -- Melvin Townsend, III, and this isn't his first encounter with cops, by any means. He's been convicted of fraud, grand theft, burglary, possession of controlled substances and trafficking in stolen property.

As for specifics, the 36-year-old broke onto a property in 2018 and stole a trailer that he hitched to his pickup. The drug possession offense was for oxycodone. Official docs don't mention other specifics. He served time twice -- one for 20 months and another time for 15 months.

TMZ broke the story ... Townsend looks like he was harassing Tyson after they boarded the flight Wednesday from San Francisco to Miami. Before the plane took off, Townsend, who was sitting behind Tyson, was hounding him. Mike's team claims Townsend threw a water bottle at him.

The boxing champ then snapped and unloaded on him with repeated punches, leaving him bloodied. Both men got off the plane and were met by cops. Townsend said he didn't want to press charges and they both were free to go.

"The Tinder Swindler" Simon Leviev could be facing serious prison time after an arrest warrant was issued against him for an incident back in 2019, where authorities claim he used a fake driver's license and got his luxury car stuck on a beach in Spain.

Police in Tarifa say they were able to link Leviev to a 2019 accident thanks to the Netflix doc, according to The Daily Mail. Cops say after getting his $100K Maserati stuck on the beach, Leviev offered up a fake ID, with the name Michael Bilton -- one of his alleged aliases.

Police apparently realized the connection upon watching the Netflix doc and seeing the name mentioned.

Cops reportedly suspected the license wasn't legit, but no arrests were made at the time ... the rented car was towed away, and he and his unknown date were free to go. He allegedly gave police an address in Costa del Sol pending an ongoing investigation.

Things apparently came to a halt after "Bilton" failed to answer his summons ... the case is being reopened after cops now think Leviev was the man in question.

Simon Leviev tells TMZ ... he's already served time for using a fake passport in 2019 -- he believes he can't be sentenced for the same crime twice.

A$AP Rocky was arrested as he flew into LAX Wednesday morning ... TMZ has confirmed.

Eyewitnesses at the airport tell TMZ the rapper flew in to Los Angeles from Barbados on a private jet, where he was met by cops at the terminal and taken away in handcuffs. We're told he was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon with a gun.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ the arrest stems from a November 6, 2021 incident, where an alleged victim claimed Rocky shot at them 3 or 4 times -- grazing his left hand -- NBC News was first with the info.

Unclear exactly where the alleged shooting happened ... Rocky performed at Complex Con in Long Beach on November 7, Rihanna was in attendance.

As we told you, Rocky and a pregnant Rihanna have been living it up in her native country, jet skiing (while RiRi watched with binoculars) and hanging with friends and family.

TMZ broke the story ... a recent Twitter rumor that the two had split because he cheated was 100% not true -- and evidence that all is good between them was shown in the vacation pics where they're clearly having a great time.

It's unclear when Rihanna's expected to give birth, but has said she's in her third trimester. The couple announced the pregnancy back in January.

Before NFL linebacker Damien Wilson was arrested last week and took a mug shot where he appeared to have a slight smile ... he told cops he did not assault anybody -- this according to new police documents obtained by TMZ Sports.

In the docs, police say after they pulled over the 28-year-old Carolina Panther on April 16 in Frisco, Texas following allegations that he choked a female ... Wilson explained to them he wasn't violent with anyone.

According to police, Wilson said he and Ryan Sokolosky, who he said he was in a "sexual relationship with," had gotten into a tiff on April 15 after he claims she saw him with another woman.

Cops say Wilson told them he believed Sokolosky had broken into his house and taken the other woman's belongings after seeing them together ... so he went to Sokolosky's place to "confront her."

In the docs, police say Wilson told them he confronted Sokolosky and her friend ... and then took Sokolosky's keys from the friend's hands. Cops say the football player then told them "there was no additional physical altercation" and that he left immediately after.

Cops, though, say in the docs Sokolosky and her friend had a different version of what went down when Wilson confronted them -- claiming he was violent with them.

Sokolosky's friend, according to the report, told cops he grabbed her neck before taking Sokolosky's keys -- and also grabbed her phone. Cops say she added that Wilson ripped a nail off her hand when he grabbed the keys.

Meanwhile, Sokolosky said, according to the report, that following the key-grabbing incident, he then smashed her $1,500 laptop before "he pushed her away from him," breaking two of her nails in the process.

In the docs, cops say they ultimately arrested Wilson for assault causing bodily injury to a family member due to his dating relationship with Sokolosky.

Wilson -- who signed with the Panthers this offseason after playing for the Cowboys, Chiefs and Jaguars -- was booked in Frisco on the misdemeanor charge ... and the docs show he was later released on bond.

Jacqueline Avant's murderer has just learned his fate after pleading guilty to the crime -- and he'll be doing some hard time for a good long while.

Aariel Maynor -- who was arrested and subsequently convicted of murdering Mrs. Avant after entering his plea in March -- was sentenced Tuesday in L.A. County ... and the judge threw the book at him, sending him to prison for the rest of his life.

As we reported ... Maynor copped to breaking into Jacqueline and her husband Clarence's Beverly Hills home in December -- and then opened fire with an "assault long barrel pistol" when he came upon Jacqueline, who wasn't with Clarence at the time. Maynor then fled the scene.

Jacqueline was taken to a hospital, but succumbed to her injuries and died.

Photos of the crime surfaced shortly thereafter, and it looks like Maynor broke through a sliding glass door on a side of the property ... leaving behind a ton of shattered glass.

Prosecutors pushed for a lengthy sentence, telling the judge Maynor bragged and joked with his friends about the situation from a jail phone. According to court docs, he also said he expected to serve a max of 25 years because the prosecutors did not file a so-called "special circumstances" murder charge.

Jacqueline was deeply involved in her community, serving as the President of the Neighborhood of Watts, as well as serving on the Board of Directors of UCLA's International Student Center. She was 81.

Clarence, of course, is known as the Godfather of Black music -- having had a hand in a number of classic records and albums throughout the years ... with the likes of Jay-Z, Diddy, L.A. Reid and others singing his praises for his influence in the culture.