Crime & Arrests

Two teens led police on a wild high-speed car chase through Minneapolis that ended with them crashing through an overpass railing and tumbling down an embankment ... and it was all caught on video.

Check out this surveillance footage showing the 14-year-old driver and 15-year-old passenger in a Kia ... racing along Interstate 94 as police gave chase. The Minnesota state trooper tried to pull over the stolen Kia, but the driver kept going, reaching speeds of 94 MPH.

At some point, the Kia lost control during the pursuit and crashed through the fence of the overpass, flipping over on the embankment. The teens ran across the busy highway from the wreckage, but police soon captured them. It's unclear what charges they may face.

Alex Murdaugh, who was sentenced to life Friday morning, already has a different look as he heads to prison ... with a completely shaved head.

The new mug shot was taken just a few hours after he was in a South Carolina courthouse to hear his sentence for murdering his wife and son.

Murdaugh had a full head of hair as the judge gave him 2 life sentences ... so they clearly put the razor to him shortly after he was walked out of court in handcuffs. We're told that's S.O.P., so it's not like he had a choice in the matter.

As we reported, a jury convicted him Thursday of 2 counts of murder and 2 counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. They reached the verdict after less than 3 hours of deliberations.

As you know, Murdaugh's wife Maggie and 22-year-old son Paul were found dead back in 2021 on the family property in Islandton, SC -- they'd been shot with 2 different guns.

Murdaugh was indicted last summer for their murders, but always maintained he was innocent and had an alibi ... but that was blown up when prosecutors presented video and audio proving he was on the property moments -- within earshot of Maggie and Paul -- before the murders.

Alex Murdaugh will spend the rest of his life behind bars for the murders of his wife and son ... and the judge seemed to say the death penalty might have been more appropriate.

The life sentence was handed down Friday in a South Carolina courthouse ... the sentencing comes a day after the jury convicted him of two counts of murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime -- a verdict reached by the jury after less than three hours of deliberations.

Before the judge handed down the sentence, Murdaugh maintained he did not commit the murders. The judge said it was heartbreaking for him to see Murdaugh going from a grieving husband and father to a killer. The judge noted prosecutors could have sought the death penalty, and seemed to say the death penalty may have been the right punishment.

After Murdaugh said he didn't commit the crime, the judge said he agreed it might have been an alter ego ... the monster within.

Murdaugh’s legal team told TMZ ... "We are disappointed in the jury’s verdict but we will not have any further comment until after sentencing."

Murdaugh's 22-year-old son Paul and his wife Maggie were found dead back in 2021 at their hunting property in Islandton, South Carolina. Murdaugh was originally described by authorities as only a "person of interest," largely because he claimed to have an airtight alibi.

During the trial, however, prosecutors introduced video and audio evidence showing that Alex’s alibi evidence was not credible, and placed him at the scene of the crime at about the time of the killings

Murdaugh later admitted on the stand that he had lied to authorities about not being at the property, but nevertheless insisted he had not killed his wife and son.

Oscar Pistorius could be released from prison at the end of this month ... the ex-Olympic sprinter is now up for parole in South Africa -- 10 years after he killed his girlfriend.

A hearing will go down on March 31, according to Pistorius' attorney, Julian Knight ... who added that if parole is granted during the proceedings, the convicted killer could be out from behind bars that same day.

Pistorius has completed more than half of the 13-year, 5-month sentence that he was given for shooting and killing 29-year-old Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day in Feb. 2013.

You'll recall, Pistorius, a double-amputee nicknamed "Blade Runner," admitted to shooting her in his South African home -- though he claimed it wasn't on purpose ... saying he thought she was an intruder. He was eventually convicted of manslaughter, which was later upgraded to murder.

According to The Independent, Steenkamp's family is against Pistorius' early release ... though South African law will allow Pistorius to seek it nonetheless, as offenders in the country can apply for parole once they've served at least half of their sentences.

Frank Gore just cut a deal with prosecutors, TMZ Sports has learned ... agreeing to plead guilty to an ordinance violation to close out his domestic violence case.

The San Francisco 49ers legend pled guilty to violating the public health nuisance code in New Jersey on Monday -- a downgrade from his initial charge of simple assault. He was ordered to pay fines and fees, which, according to court records, totaled around $2,000.

His other false imprisonment charge in the case was dismissed.

It's somewhat surprising, considering the heinous allegations against him. You'll recall, the former NFL running back was accused of grabbing a naked 28-year-old woman by her hair on July 31, 2022 and dragging her across the 59th floor of the Tropicana Casino's Havana Tower in Atlantic City.

At the time, police who spoke with the woman said she "did not exhibit signs of injury" following the incident. But, Gore was ultimately charged after cops said they further investigated the claims.

Frank, 39, never publicly commented on the matter.

Ron Jeremy is unable to make serious legal decisions on his own, so his sister is stepping in, asking a judge to get him a conservator STAT.

Ron’s sister, Susan Billotte, filed a petition — obtained by TMZ — to appoint attorney Ellen Finkelberg as his conservator, requesting Ellen be given authority to make decisions regarding the former porn star’s finances and health care.

The docs state, Ron is “concurrently incarcerated at the Twin Towers-Mens Central Jail. He has been found incompetent to stand trial in a criminal case due to a diagnosis with symptoms of Lewy body dementia and has a pending transfer to a state hospital.”

According to the docs, there is urgency to get a conservator now so Jeremy can get to a “private secured perimeter facility specializing in treatment of dementia.”

In other words, his sister says he’s in desperate need of a conservator but is unable to make the call due to his deteriorating health.

Alex Murdaugh's legal team tells TMZ ... “We are disappointed in the jury’s verdict but we will not have any further comment until after sentencing.”

Alex Murdaugh has been found guilty in the double murder trial of his son and wife.

The jury took less than 3 hours to reach a verdict Thursday, announcing it in a South Carolina courthouse.

As we reported, Murdaugh's wife Maggie and 22-year-old son Paul were found dead in 2021 at their hunting property, and investigators say they were shot with 2 different guns.

Murdaugh was originally a person of interest for more than a year but claimed he had an alibi. Still, a grand jury heard enough evidence last July to indict him for the murders of Maggie and Paul.

During the trial, which started back in January, Murdaugh's supposed alibi was blown up when prosecutors introduced a bombshell piece of evidence -- video from Paul's phone recorded at 8:44 PM in the family's dog kennel ... minutes before the murders.

In the video, Paul's father is heard in the background, meaning he actually was nearby when Paul and Maggie were murdered.

When Murdaugh took the stand last month he broke down as he recalled finding his wife and son dead -- however, due to Paul's video -- he was forced to admit lying to authorities about not being on the property when they were murdered.

Under cross-examination, prosecutors grilled Murdaugh over stealing millions from his law clients, and his decades-long addiction to prescription pills.

The trial hit one procedural snafu on Thursday -- Judge Clifton Newman said one of the jurors discussed her opinion about evidence with 3 people outside court ... so, she was replaced by an alternate juror.

James "Tim" Norman, star of the reality series "Welcome To Sweetie Pie's," has been sentenced to life in prison for his murder-for-hire plot against his nephew.

Norman was handed his sentence Thursday, according to legal docs obtained by TMZ -- this after being found guilty in September of setting up his 21-year-old nephew Andre's slaying back in 2016.

As we reported, Norman was convicted of murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Prosecutors said he tried cashing a life insurance policy on Andre worth $450K after working with a woman named Terica Ellis to pull off the killing.

FYI -- Ellis was charged with conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and has pled guilty -- getting sentenced in January to 3 years behind bars.

The boyfriend of Alana Thompson -- AKA Honey Boo Boo -- has been arrested for DUI ... following a police chase with Alana riding in the same vehicle.

21-year-old Dralin Carswell was cuffed Tuesday in Monroe County, according to police ... who says 17-year-old Alana was in the car with Dralin when the tags on his Dodge Charger were run by police, which showed the owner of the vehicle had outstanding warrants.

Monroe County Lt. John Thompson says an officer then attempted to do a traffic stop on Dralin, but instead was led on a chase that went about 3 miles -- ending in a pit maneuver, spinning the car out.

Officers say they found marijuana and Dralin was arrested for DUI and fleeing from cops, as well as outstanding warrants out of Wilkinson County. Another passenger, Julian Malik Divon Williams, was also arrested for outstanding warrants.

Alana reportedly wasn't taken into custody, and was later picked up by her sister, Pumpkin. Monroe County Reporter first had the story.

Alex Murdaugh's double murder trial hit a delay Thursday morning when the judge dismissed one of the jurors -- but she refused to leave court without some very valuable belongings.

Judge Clifton Newman announced one of the jurors had discussed her opinion about trial evidence with 3 people -- presumably not other jurors -- and therefore, she's being replaced with an alternate.

The jurors' dismissal also came with an inflationary sign of the times, as she demanded her belongings from the jury room before departing. Those items included her purse, a bottle ... and a dozen eggs!!!

The price of those eggs runs somewhere south of $4, on average, these days in South Carolina ... so ya get it.

Even the judge quipped, "We've had a lot of interesting things. But now a dozen eggs."

Alvin Kamara just pled not guilty to two criminal charges stemming from his alleged role in the beatdown of a man outside of a Las Vegas nightclub last year.

The New Orleans Saints superstar appeared in a Vegas courtroom on Thursday morning with his attorneys to enter the plea.

He wore all black, and said very few words during the hearing.

A trial date for the 27-year-old was tentatively set for July 31 -- right around the time the Saints will kick off their 2023 training camp.

Kamara's co-defendants in the case -- which includes Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Chris Lammons -- also pled not guilty to the charges at the hearing.

Prosecutors have charged Kamara with one gross misdemeanor count of conspiracy to commit battery and one felony count of battery with substantial bodily harm after they say he attacked a man inside The Cromwell Hotel and Casino in February 2022.

According to a lawsuit filed by the alleged victim, Darnell Greene, the altercation happened after he and Kamara got into an argument over the use of an elevator outside of the hotel's popular Drai's Nightclub.

Video of the incident, obtained by TMZ Sports, appears to show Kamara throwing multiple blows at Greene ... while others kicked and punched the man as well.

Kamara was initially arrested over it all after the 2022 Pro Bowl game. He went on to play the entire 2022 season, starting 13 games and rushing for 897 yards.

The FBI recovered a trove of evidence against accused Idaho student killer Bryan Kohberger at his Pennsylvania home, including a gun, knives and black face masks.

Newly unsealed search warrant docs, obtained by TMZ, show the Bureau's itemized list of property belonging to Kohberger that agents found inside his family house after he was arrested for the brutal stabbing murders of four University of Idaho students while wearing a mask.

Among the items listed were a Glock 22 semiautomatic .40 Caliber pistol, three empty Glock .40 Caliber magazines, a Smith & Wesson pocketknife, Taylor cutting knife with a sheath, black masks, black gloves, a black hat and a criminal psychology book.

The docs also say the FBI searched his white Hyundai Elantra, finding a knife. The warrant does not address whether the knife is the murder weapon. Authorities also found tire irons, a shovel, goggles, a Ziploc bag and other items in the car.

Top NFL prospect Jalen Carter -- the potential No. 1 overall pick in next month's draft -- turned himself in to police on Wednesday night ... posing for a mug shot -- before quickly being released.

The former Univ. of Georgia star defensive lineman was booked at 11:33 PM, according to jail records -- just hours after the Athens-Clarke County Police Department issued warrants for his arrest for his alleged role in a January car crash that killed two people.

The records show Carter was released just 16 minutes after he was initially booked. He's facing misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and racing.

In his mug shot, Carter -- wearing a white tank top -- appeared to be emotionless and stoic.

As we reported, cops have accused Carter of racing UGA staffer Chandler LeCroy in a 2021 Jeep Trackhawk ... before LeCroy's 2021 Ford Expedition veered off the road and crashed into power poles and trees.

Police said in a statement Wednesday morning, an investigation into the crash showed both Carter and LeCroy "switched between lanes, drove in the center turn lane, drove in opposite lanes of travel" -- adding that LeCroy reached speeds of 104 MPH before the accident.

Carter, who was at the NFL's combine in Indianapolis when the arrest warrant was made public, immediately left the league's scouting event to head back to Georgia. He later said in a statement, "There is no question in my mind that when all of the facts are known that I will be fully exonerated of any criminal wrongdoing."

Fyre Festival creator Billy McFarland is getting back into the cheese sandwich game -- but don't worry, these won't come in styrofoam while you're getting screwed out of a concert in the Bahamas.

Sources close to Billy tell TMZ he recently had a reunion, for the first time in 5 years, with Andy King. Yes, that Andy King from the Netflix documentary about Fyre ... the guy who says Billy asked him to give oral sex to a customs officer to get shipments of Evian water released!!!

Seems all is well between them now, though, because they shot a video together promoting their newest venture ... selling grilled cheeses at 7th Street Burger in NYC, and the clip is pretty funny.

The video features Andy makin' the sandwiches -- a tongue-in-cheek take on the ridiculous cheese-on-bread meals served at the doomed Bahamas festival back in 2017.

He's also taking swigs from Evian bottles -- yeah, they go there!

We're told 100% of the sales from the April 7 event will go to the workers in the Bahamas who are still owed money from Fyre Fest. They also tease a Coachella trip in the video, but we're told that hasn't been set in stone yet.

As you know, Billy was released early from his 6-year sentence a year ago, and he's already working on PYRT -- another tropical festival, only based in virtual reality this time around.

Willie McGinest is now facing serious time behind bars for his role in a December restaurant beatdown ... TMZ Sports has learned the ex-NFL star has just been charged with two felonies.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office filed the charges this week ... hitting the New England Patriots legend with one count of assault with a deadly weapon, and one count of assault by means of force likely to cause great bodily injury.

Each charge carries up to four years in prison.

McGinest's arraignment in the case has been set for April.

We broke the story, McGinest was initially arrested in the case back in late December ... after video showed him and several others beating the hell out of a man on Dec. 9 at Delilah in West Hollywood.

The footage appears to show McGinest socking the guy in the face ... before later picking up a bottle and smashing it into the man's head.

McGinest eventually apologized for his role in the brawl -- calling everything a "lapse in judgment and behavior."

"To my family, community, friends and youth I mentor," the 51-year-old said, "please know I feel horrible for my actions and take full responsibility."

Travis Scott is the suspect in a police investigation into an alleged assault at a NYC nightclub ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us around 3 AM Wednesday the rapper got into it with someone at Nebula, a club on 41st Street. We're told Scott allegedly punched that person and damaged property -- possibly a cell phone.

At this time, cops want to talk to Travis and his reps, but the official report is for an assault and criminal mischief.

As for why he was in town, it appears Don Toliver had a show in NYC Tuesday night, bringing out Travis -- much to the delight of fans.

Travis is set to headline Rolling Loud California in Los Angeles Saturday night ... unclear if that appearance will be impacted at all because of the investigation.

We've reached out to Travis' team ... so far, no word back.