Crime & Arrests

Cops are calling John Marshall Jones a hero ... not only for rushing out of his house in his underwear to douse a fire, but for chasing down the alleged arsonist behind the blaze.

John, who played special agent Jay Griffin on the Amazon hit "Bosch," tells TMZ ... he was watching TV early Tuesday morning when he looked out the window to see his neighbor's car, front porch and front door on fire.

The veteran actor says he instantly reacted -- bypassing any pants -- and ran out to grab a garden hose to put out the flames. While he was out there, John says a man wearing a ski mask and heavy jacket ran up to the porch and tried to grab something before fleeing.

Once again, Johnny-on-the-spot bolted after the mysterious guy ... who he says reached for a baseball bat. John -- who goes 6'3" and 240 lbs. -- says he wrestled him to the ground, though, and held him until cops arrived.

Law enforcement sources confirmed much of John's account about the 6 AM blaze and his chase of the suspect. We're told John's neighbors were able to escape the burning home, including a teenager and the family dog.

Now, John's being hailed as a true hero for saving lives and nabbing the suspect. Cops claim the guy started the fire with gasoline ... they found a container in his car, and arrested him for arson with great bodily injury.

A Donald Trump supporter is facing a felony child abuse charge after attacking a 13-year-old girl with a flagpole.

The confrontation went down in Clay County, Florida. 67-year-old Norbert Logsdon was demonstrating with Trumpers, when a car driven by Crystal Ledoux passed by. Ledoux says Logsdon was giving drivers -- presumably the ones who expressed opposing views -- the middle finger. Ledoux says she made a U-ey, returned to the area where Logsdon was demonstrating and she and her daughter screamed, "Biden 2020!"

That's when you see Logsdon beeline it for Ledoux's car and shove the flagpole inside, reportedly striking Ledoux's 13-year-old daughter in the chest and face.

Navarro College says Jerry Harris' arrest should not reflect on the school or its celebrated cheer squad ... because he wasn't part of their program even before the child pornography bust.

As you know ... Jerry, one of the stars of Netflix's cheerleading docuseries "Cheer," was arrested Thursday and hit with a charge of production of child pornography.

Navarro College, whose cheer team is featured on Netflix's uber-popular show, tells TMZ ... Jerry left campus in March due to the pandemic and completed his degree in May. We're told he did not return to Navarro this fall, despite the fact he could have continued cheering.

Remember ... at the end of "Cheer" season 1, Jerry goes off to the University of Louisville. We're told he enrolled there, and participated in cheer, but left in 2019 after one semester and returned to Navarro, rejoining its cheer team to resume filming with Netflix.

So, Jerry was cheering for Navarro before the coronavirus outbreak, but he hasn't been on campus since March, and hasn't been affiliated with the school since May, when he earned an associate's degree in science.

It's interesting ... Jerry did an interview before his arrest saying he wasn't sure what his plan was after graduating. He's since deleted his Instagram, which had pics of him in the Navarro cheer uniform.

Jerry Harris -- one of the stars of Netflix's cheerleading docuseries "Cheer" -- has been arrested for child pornography.

Jerry was arrested Thursday morning in Illinois and is being hit with a charge of production of child pornography ... according to Assistant U.S. Attorney, Joseph D. Fitzpatrick.

As we reported ... Harris was under investigation by the FBI for allegedly soliciting minors for sex back in May 2019. However, according to the criminal complaint, we're told he's been arrested because he allegedly asked teens for photos, which they sent to him.

According to the feds … the parent of 2 male children, both 14, claims Harris had contacted both of the boys online and “repeatedly solicited child pornography images and videos.” Harris allegedly began contacting the boys in December 2018.

The minors provided law enforcement with multiple screenshots of communications with Harris via Snapchat and text messages, along with evidence of apparent FaceTime calls with Harris.

According to the complaint, Harris was 19 at the time and the boys were 13.

The feds allege Harris also attempted to solicit sex with the boys on multiple occasions, including at cheerleading events.

The criminal complaint says Harris was interviewed on September 14 and admitted to engaging in continuous social media conversations with the minors that were sexual in nature, attempting to entice them into performing sex acts with him in person, and to soliciting and receiving child pornography on Snapchat from at least between 10 to 15 other individuals he knew were minors.

On top of that, Jerry's 2 alleged victims have sued him ... claiming he groomed them into sending the nude photos -- and they also claim he demanded sexual acts.

Jerry is scheduled to appear in federal court in Chicago Thursday afternoon for the child porn charge.

Amy Locane -- who played Sandy in the original "Melrose Place" -- was just resentenced for killing someone in a drunk driving accident ... and she's getting 8 years behind bars.

A New Jersey judge gave Locane 8 years in prison for 2nd-degree vehicular homicide, plus 18 months for 4th-degree assault by auto ... she will serve them concurrently.

Locane will have to spend 6 years and nearly 10 months in the joint before she's eligible for parole under the No Early Release Act. The judge also ordered her to serve 3 years of parole once she's released.

The sentence, handed down Thursday by Somerset County Superior Court Judge Angela Borkowski, was the fourth time Locane was sentenced for the fatal drunk-driving accident, which happened back in 2010, and resulted in the death of a 60-year-old woman.

As we reported, prosecutors said Locane plowed into the passenger side of another car, killing the woman sitting in the front seat. She was arrested at the crash scene for DUI.

Locane's attorney, James Wronko, tells TMZ ... Amy was surprised with the sentence and is very worried about her 3 daughters after spending the last 5 years together.

Due to the pandemic, we're told Locane will likely remain in custody at Somerset County Jail until state prison starts taking prisoners again.

According to Locane's lawyer, she was originally sentenced to 3 years, served all 3 in state prison, and was released.

We're told prosecutors appealed the original sentence, claiming the judge was too lenient by giving her a sentence BELOW the applicable sentencing guideline range of 5-10 years.

Locane's lawyer says after 4 appeals on the issue, prosecutors convinced the appeals court they were right, so the trial judge has now handed down this new sentence.

Even though Locane is now sentenced to 8 years, we're told she'll only have to serve 5 because of her previous time served.

Two men suspected of murdering Floyd Mayweather boxing prodigy Danny Gonzalez have been arrested, TMZ Sports has confirmed ... and cops say they're still on the hunt for a 3rd suspect.

Both 27-year-old Andre Richee and 32-year-old Lee Mooring were arrested Thursday for 1st-degree murder stemming from the Sept. 7 incident.

The Riverside County Sheriff's Office also says it's issued an arrest warrant for 28-year-old Joseph Goldsmith over his alleged involvement in the shooting as well.

As we previously reported ... 22-year-old Gonzalez -- who signed with Mayweather's The Money Team in 2016 -- was shot on Labor Day in Moreno Valley, Calif., just before 9 PM.

Cops say when they responded to the scene ... Gonzalez succumbed to his bullet wound injuries. They say two other men were also injured by gunfire in the incident.

What's still unclear ... why Gonzalez was killed? Officials have not revealed a possible motive.

Investigators say they not only spoke with multiple witnesses but also have evidence and surveillance footage pointing to Richee and Mooring as the killers.

If convicted of 1st-degree murder, both could face the death penalty.

The RCSO is now asking for help in finding Goldsmith.

Floyd was convinced Gonzalez was going to be a star after he signed with TMT Promotions when he was only 18 years old ... with Mayweather saying, "There are certain times when you know you've just struck gold and this is one of them."

Danny took 3 pro fights after signing with Floyd ... but eventually left the sport in 2017.

Cops in Arizona say they had to sic one of their K-9s on a guy who was allegedly fleeing in a high-speed chase -- and just released body camera footage shows they released a K-9 on him that bit him repeatedly ... despite the fact, he seemed to be compliant at the time.

Prescott Valley Police recently tried explaining what happened after reports of alleged excessive use of force back in May on a suspect -- 28-year-old Alfredo Saldivar ... in which one of their officers released the police dog on him when they appeared to have the guy trapped with guns drawn.

PVPD also released body cam video from at least one officer on the scene, and it seems to show that Saldivar complying with their commands to surrender when another cop, off-camera, released their K-9 partner for some reason.

It's very graphic, but we'll just say this ... the dude is screaming and begging for them to get the dog off. They look to be taking their time ... and even congratulate the K-9 as they approach, saying, "Good boy."

As for why the dog was used at all when it seemed like Saldivar -- whom cops allege was speeding through their town at high rates of speed and initially refusing to pull over -- was doing what he was told ... the department says it appeared he hesitated while standing up and there was concern he would try to flee (again).

Watch for yourself and draw your own conclusions. In any case, cops say he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and eventually arrested on a number of felony charges.

The 4 accused ex-cops involved in George Floyd's death appeared in court ... triggering hundreds to take the streets outside the courthouse to protest.

Derek Chauvin, Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and Alexander Kueng arrived in court Friday in Hennepin County, Minnesota for a hearing covering a number of things ... including motions about change of venue to jury sequestering. Floyd's family also attended the hearing.

Thao, Lane and Kueng appeared to have entered the courtroom undetected ... as hundreds marched outside the Hennepin County Family Justice Center.

Derek Chauvin, who pressed his knee on George's neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, has been in custody since his arrest in May. Thao, Lane and Kueng all posted bail. That trio has been charged with aiding and abetting murder. Chauvin's been charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, as well as an additional count of second-degree murder.

As we reported ... new body cam footage was released back in August showing Thao's point of view. He was the one who was doing crowd control during George's arrest. The new video showed that as Chauvin pressed his knee on George's neck, Thao had walked to the curb where a handful of onlookers could immediately tell George was in life-threatening distress.

The new angle also showed the crowd's worry increase with every minute that passed. It had been painfully obvious to them a man was dying, and they got more and more agitated as the clock ticked through the 8 minutes and 46 seconds.

The Minnesota Attorney General has said he would seek a harsh sentence for Chauvin.

NFL wide receiver Josh Bellamy was arrested Thursday after officials say he misused government loans intended to help struggling businesses survive the COVID pandemic on lavish items like Gucci, Dior and casino trips.

31-year-old Bellamy -- who was cut by the NY Jets just 2 days ago -- is essentially accused of participating in a scheme in which people applied for more than $24 MILLION in PPP loans, intended for business owners to help stay afloat during the pandemic.

But, prosecutors say neither Bellamy nor his co-conspirators put the money toward their businesses -- instead, Bellamy blew a fortune on things like custom jewelry, designer clothes and casino trips.

In fact, officials say Bellamy spent $95k on custom jewelry, $5,381 at Gucci and $2,014 at Dior.

They also claim he dropped more than $62k during a recent trip to the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.

Of the requested $24 mil, officials say Bellamy and his co-conspirators received roughly $17.4 million in PPP loans.

The alleged conspiracy is complicated but boils down to this ...

Officials believe Bellamy not only requested PPP loans for his own company based on false records ... but would then recruit others to apply for giant loans -- and when that money was received from the government, Bellamy would take a sizable kickback from the borrower.

By the way, prosecutors say Bellamy does technically own a business -- Drip Entertainment -- but officials say it hasnt been “active” since 2019.

Prosecutors say they have bank records showing Bellamy made large bank withdrawals recently -- taking around $302,800 between May and July 2020.

Officials say Bellamy executed the scheme while he was preparing for the 2020 NFL season.

If convicted, both the bank fraud and wire fraud charges carry lengthy prison sentences ... we're talkin' decades.

Bellamy was an undrafted free agent out of Louisville in 2012 -- and went on to play for the Chiefs, Bears, Jets and others.

Boxing star Gervonta Davis is finally admitting he was "wrong" for getting violent with his ex-GF back in February ... and claims he's since sought professional help.

As we previously reported ... the 25-year-old WBA lightweight champ was caught on camera aggressively grabbing his ex, whom he has a child with, at a celeb basketball game in Miami on Feb. 1.

Footage of the altercation was disturbing ... it showed the boxing superstar clearly putting his hands near the woman's neck and violently grabbing her away from her courtside seat.

In other angles of the incident, obtained by TMZ Sports, the footage appeared to show Davis later attempting to throw a punch at the woman when the two got inside the locker room area.

Police say the woman suffered injuries to her lip and left jaw in the altercation ... and Davis was eventually arrested and hit with two charges of misdemeanor battery.

Now, Davis -- who's pleaded not guilty to the charges -- is speaking out about it all ... admitting on the Last Stand Podcast with Brian Custer that he wishes things had gone differently.

"I was just mad," said Davis, who claimed the whole thing started because he was angry over the woman attending the event. "And, once I seen her, it's not [like] I grabbed her by her neck, I grabbed her shirt, like, you gotta get outta here type thing."

"And, I probably was wrong for doing that. I WAS wrong for doing that. But, it wasn't so much of not me trying to hit her, it was just me angry."

Davis -- who had said immediately after the incident he NEVER hit the woman -- insisted yet again on the podcast he did NOT physically strike his ex with his fists in the confrontation.

"I'm a fighter," Davis said. "If I touch you in any kind of way, like as far as fists, I'mma hurt you. So it wasn't that. It was just me removing her from that situation that she wasn't supposed to be in."

Davis, though, did say he believes he has "a little" anger problem ... and added he's gotten professional help over it all since the incident.

"It wasn't because I have to," Davis said of the help, "it's more so of because of the situation in the future -- knowing how to deal with stuff in the future."

Davis' battery case, meanwhile, is still playing out in the court system.

Davis is 23-0 as a pro fighter -- and has been hailed as one of the best young fighters in the world.

The City of Chicago wants a judge to force the FBI to hand over records of the Bureau's probe into the Jussie Smollett case -- especially his claim he was the target of a racist and homophobic threat before the infamous alleged attack.

According to new docs, obtained by TMZ, the City wants to know what the FBI dug up related to a letter that was sent to Fox Studios in Chicago on January 22, 2019 -- a week before Jussie claims he was attacked. The letter contained an "unknown substance" and contained "racist and homophobic imagery and slurs" ... according to Jussie.

The City also wants the FBI records about the "attack" itself ... according to the docs. Basically, Chi-town officials want to know if the FBI uncovered any evidence about Jussie faking the threatening letter or his "attack."

What's interesting here is the docs show the FBI told the City disclosing any of the requested material would "reveal information acquired as part of an ongoing criminal investigation."

Bottom line is ... as of now the FBI is refusing to hand over its investigation results because it still hasn't closed the case.

You'll recall ... in the aftermath of Jussie's "attack," President Trump mentioned the FBI was looking into the situation.

Kyle Rittenhouse shooting and killing 2 protesters with a semi-automatic rifle is just one of those stupid things all teens do ... at least that's Donald Trump Jr.'s absolutely shocking theory.

President Trump's oldest son shared that offensive take during an "Extra" interview with ex-'Bachelorette' star Rachel Lindsay ... who asked why his father still hasn't condemned Rittenhouse's actions.

Don Jr. says they're waiting for due process and don't want to jump to any conclusions -- which is ironic considering his dad does that all the time. Yet, he clearly defended the 17-year-old charged with 2 homicides.

Trump Jr. says if he puts himself in Rittenhouse's position ... "Maybe I shouldn't have been there. He's a young kid. I don't want 17-year-olds running around the street with AR-15s. Maybe I wouldn't have put myself in that situation, who knows. But, we all do stupid things at 17."

When Lindsay called him out for minimizing the incident, Don replied ... "Really stupid, fine."

The truth is ... Jr. and his daddy have no qualms whatsoever about condemning demonstrators against systemic racism and police brutality without getting all the facts straight. So, Don Jr.'s excuse for failing to condemn an alleged killer speaks volumes.

The NY Giants have officially cut ties with DeAndre Baker -- who's facing life in prison for his alleged role in an armed robbery.

The move was expected ever since Broward State Attorney Mike Satz announced prosecutors would be moving forward with 4 counts of robbery with a firearm against Baker stemming from a May 13 incident.

Baker was a star for the Georgia Bulldogs before being selected by the Giants with the 30th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He was expected to compete for a starting job this season.

As we previously reported, Baker -- along with Seattle Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar -- was arrested for allegedly robbing several people at gunpoint during a cookout in Miramar, FL.

Cops initially said ... witnesses told them Baker pulled out a semi-automatic firearm and directed Dunbar to start taking expensive watches and other valuables from people at the cookout.

Prosecutors later dropped ALL of the charges against Dunbar, but Baker has been formally charged with 4 counts of robbery with a firearm.

If convicted, Baker faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in state prison.

R. Kelly got put in a really bad spot by guards at the Chicago prison where he's locked up, and then they ignored his concerns of being in danger before he got attacked ... according to his legal team.

The disgraced singer's attorneys, Steven Greenberg and Nicole Blank Becker, tell TMZ ... a lot of the animosity toward Kelly within the Metropolitan Correctional Center is due to some of the prison guards telling the inmates that they had to go on lockdown because of protests outside the facility for R. Kelly.

Kelly's legal team suggests it's strange for guards to make such announcements, and believe this caused the other prisoners to become upset with him.

We're told, 3 weeks before Kelly's attack, he overheard his alleged attacker -- a fellow inmate -- outside his cell talking on a phone and saying things indicating he might attack the singer.

According to Kelly's side ... he expressed his concerns the next day to a prison guard when Kelly had to ride in the same elevator as the allegedly menacing inmate, saying he didn't trust him. We're told they had to ride together anyway.

A few days later ... Kelly allegedly told a doctor from medical he wished guards would stop telling everyone he's the reason for lockdowns because the other inmates were getting mad.

The singer claims he also told at least 2 other guards he feared for his safety in the 2-3 weeks leading up this his attack ... but says they didn't take his concerns seriously.

We broke the story ... a pissed off inmate allegedly walked into Kelly's cell and began kicking him. The fight didn't last long and Kelly didn't suffer any major injuries, but the altercation shows he's not immune to being a target of violence.

This is spooky, even for Zak Bagans ... he's the new owner of John Wayne Gacy's prison art, a potentially haunted haul which includes a creepy Killer Clown self-portrait.

The "Ghost Adventures" star tells TMZ ... he bought a bunch of the serial killer's paintings from prison, along with some letters Gacy sent to his stepdaughter ... and the clown themes are not unexpected but still striking.

Infamously known as the Killer Clown, Gacy was executed back in 1994 after being convicted of murdering 33 young men and boys in the '70s, burying most of the corpses in a crawl space under his Chicago-area home.

As you can see, Gacy painted himself as a clown while behind bars and sent the self-portrait to his stepdaughter, Tammy Hoff, along with letters decorated with clown stickers.

Zak tells us Tammy, who lives near his Haunted Museum in Vegas, recently contacted him about selling the items. Zak says Tammy lived with Gacy in Illinois during the murders, but didn't know her stepfather was a serial killer.

In addition to the weird art and letters, Zak also bought one of the last Polaroids Gacy snapped, plus his last pack of cigarettes before being executed.

Steven Spielberg's daughter no longer has to worry about her domestic violence case ... because TMZ's learned it's been tossed.

A spokesperson with the Office of the Attorney General in Nashville tells TMZ ... Mikaela Spielberg successfully completed court-ordered counseling classes after her February arrest. We're told Mikaela had already been attending counseling since October 2019, but the focus of her weekly classes changed following her arrest. We're told the final report was very good ... resulting in the judge dismissing her domestic violence case.

As we reported ... Mikaela was arrested following an argument with her BF after returning home from a bar. She allegedly erupted and hurled objects at him after he said something "rude" to her.

Cops observed a visible injury on the BF -- dry blood on his hand and a swollen wrist -- and determined Mikaela was the aggressor.