Crime & Arrests

A Pennsylvania man is dead because his loud snoring kept waking up his fed-up neighbor, who stabbed him to death to get him to stop.

The bizarre, real-life tale began last Sunday evening in Upper Moreland Township, where police responded to the home of Christopher Casey after receiving a 911 call from him to report a stabbing.

When they arrived, the cops discovered Casey's neighbor, Robert Wallace, about 50 feet from the house with two knife wounds in his body. Casey also had been stabbed in the right thigh. Police found blood inside and outside the residence.

Both men were rushed to a local hospital, where Wallace died, and Casey was treated for his non-life-threatening injuries.

Investigators were able to piece together that Wallace went over to Casey's home that night and stepped onto his porch to detach a screen from one of the windows.

Casey, who was eating dinner, was somehow alerted and confronted Wallace, getting into a heated argument.

During the verbal altercation, Casey produced a military-style knife, plunging the blade into Wallace twice. It was not clear how Casey suffered his wound. Police recovered the knife at the crime scene.

Perhaps the most stunning element of the story came when detectives learned the motive behind the attack ... the neighbors had been involved in an ongoing beef over Casey's loud snoring, which could be heard through a wall shared by their connected homes.

Suspected serial killer Rex Heuermann allegedly has a twisted internet search history ... but his lawyer says everyone Googles weird crap, and it doesn't make him a murderer.

Heuermann -- the alleged Gilgo Beach killer -- had his alleged internet search history revealed in new court documents, with prosecutors saying he was looking up autopsy photos, violent hardcore porn and deviant sex acts.

But his lawyer, Michael Brown, is pushing back ... telling reporters this week, "Searching the internet, ask yourselves what you search on your computers and your phones."

Brown brushed it off this way ... "One thing leads to another -- you see a show about something, you start searching, and they talk about how somebody got killed. You start searching, and then they talk about another way, and you start searching."

Prosecutors claim Heuermann's Google searches included ... "tied up fat girl porn," "medieval torture of women," "skinny black girl slave porn," "autopsy photos of female," "wooden pony porn," "skinny white teen crying porn" and "how I was raped audio" ... just to name a few.

What's more, Heuermann allegedly had over 200 searches about the Gilgo Beach murder case and other known serial killers.

But his lawyer says ... "Think about if they looked at your own personal search history, how all of a sudden you're guilty because of your search history?”

As we reported ... earlier this week Heuermann was hit with a fourth murder charge.

All four women worked as escorts near his home on Long Island ... and his internet history allegedly includes searches for all kinds of escorts -- running the gamut of identities ... racial, sexual and otherwise.

The fact Scott Peterson's case has been taken up by the L.A. Innocence Project could result in the convicted murderer getting a new trial ... and his former attorney couldn't be happier.

Mark Geragos, Peterson's lawyer during his 2004 trial, joined us Friday on "TMZ Live," and we asked him about the startling development -- Innocence Project lawyers citing "new evidence" in court filings obtained by ABC News.

Mark says he feels "gratified" to have another set of eyes looking over Scott's case ... and also cites Peterson's reduced sentence as just one of many reasons the case needs more review.

Peterson's death sentence -- for murdering his wife Laci Peterson and their unborn child -- was knocked down to life without parole after the California Supreme Court said some jurors were improperly dismissed during jury selection.

Geragos says a hearing was ordered at the same time as the resentencing, and he thinks that's what drew the Innocence Project's attention  ... plus, Mark says the case against Scott is an "abomination."

Geragos says he can debunk all of the evidence from Peterson's trial, but thinks the jury was laser focused on Peterson's admission he was cheating on his wife.

The Innocence Project is a nonprofit that works to exonerate people who've fallen victim to wrongful conviction -- something Peterson has maintained is the case since the beginning.

The org confirmed it's repping Peterson, and added it's "investigating his claim of actual innocence" -- though they haven't elaborated beyond that.

In the court filing, the L.A. Innocence Project claims Peterson's state and federal constitutional rights were violated and his claim of actual innocence "is supported by newly discovered evidence."

As you may know ... Laci was 8 months pregnant with Peterson's child when she disappeared on Christmas Eve 2002. Her body was found in the San Francisco Bay months later.

Peterson became a prime suspect when it was revealed he was having an affair with his massage therapist, and cops arrested him in April 2003. He was found guilty of first-degree murder and second-degree murder.

ABC says the Innocence Project's asking for a ton of items related to the case it couldn't find ... including Laci's watch, evidence from a 2002 burglary across the street from the Petersons' home, and interviews with several witnesses.

The Stanislaus County D.A.'s Office, which prosecuted Peterson, says, "Mr. Peterson, like all individuals convicted of crimes, is afforded the legal right to appeal his conviction with representation of his choosing."

Tekashi 6ix9ine has found himself in a familiar place – behind bars – after getting arrested on a warrant in the Dominican Republic, TMZ has confirmed.

The New York-born rapper was taken into custody Wednesday by Santo Domingo authorities for a domestic violence incident, apparently involving his girlfriend -- reggae singer Yailin la Mas Viral.

According to CNN ... Tekashi was accused of "physical and psychological violence against" Yailin, prompting the police to haul him into the Palace of Justice in the DR's capital city.

We're told the case is being investigated by the Department Of General Violence, which handles domestic violence cases.

Dominican authorities issued a press release Thursday confirming Tekashi's arrest without providing details about what happened. Tekashi is currently being held by the local police as he awaits his first court appearance this morning.

As you know ... Tekashi has been a magnet for trouble over the years and has been arrested numerous times for numerous offenses.

Lori Loughlin's daughter Olivia Jade may want to redub her "prison" comment in a YouTube video she created showing off her amazing kitchen.

Olivia gave everyone a tour of her luxurious Los Angeles home in the 17-plus minute video she shot and uploaded to her YT vlog. But things got weird once she stepped into the kitchen and alluded to Lori's imprisonment for her mom's role in the infamous college admissions scandal.

Check it out ... Talking directly into the camera, Olivia tells her audience she just ordered wallpaper, so the kitchen won't feel so sterile.

She repeats the phrase, "It's not gonna feel like," before she stops and thinks for a moment. Then she delivers the punchline -- "a prison."

Realizing what she just said, Olivia warns her viewers to “Save the jokes. I don’t want to hear it. I set you up and I don’t want you to tee off. OK?”

Of course, the 24-year-old influencer was referring to her mother Lori and father Mossimo Giannulli's federal convictions in the 2021 college admissions case.

Lori and Mossimo pled guilty to paying a fixer half a million dollars to get Olivia and her sister, Isabella Rose, accepted into the University of Southern California under the false pretense they were rowing recruits.

Todd Chrisley's disgusted by his living conditions in prison, but he's still really worried about a potential prison transfer ... TMZ has learned.

The reality star's attorney Jay Surgent tells TMZ ... his client doesn't want to move prisons because he's afraid guards and officials within the new facility will retaliate against him for speaking out against living conditions in his current pad, FPC Pensacola.

Basically, Todd -- who's doing a 12-year bid for a slew of fraud charges -- thinks his well-documented criticism of FPCP will have other prison officials taking aim at him ... and he's keeping his head on a swivel.

Jay says TC's heard through the grapevine he could be on his way out after ripping on Pensacola for disgusting food, possible mold and bad plumbing ... among other issues.

It's all hypothetical currently -- Jay hasn't received formal notice of transfer or anything like that -- but says if Todd is booted out of Florida, he'll most likely stay in the federal system, not a state prison ... as his daughter, Savannah, said he might be.

Family is another reason Todd's lookin' to stay in Pensacola ... Savannah's consistently visiting him and her mom, Julie, who's locked up in Kentucky. Todd's worried they'll move him too far away, and it'll make it harder for Savannah to visit him.

Plus, Surgent says Chrisley's become a mentor to Pensacola's other inmates ... a good thing too since Surgent told us a few months ago Todd believes God sent him to prison to help other inmates.

For its part, a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons said it doesn't comment on individual prison transfers, but explained it reassigns prisoners for a variety of reasons including medical needs and or security reasons.

The FBOP spokesperson adds the government agency's top priority is providing safe, secure and humane accommodations for prisoners. The org encourages incarcerated individuals to go through the proper channels when voicing their concerns.

Katt Williams is on the verge of reminding Ludacris that he also raps ... 'cause he's out here responding to him with bars of his own, spittin' to none other than Suge Knight himself.

Suge and Dave Mays dropped their latest 'Collect Call' podcast episode Tuesday ... with a first-ever preview of Katt's acidic words -- a direct response to the freestyle Luda kicked to combat the viral "Club Shay Shay" interview.

Katt's ether opens with a voiceover of Mike Epps admitting being jealous of not being mentioned in the viral "Club Shay Shay" interview.

Katt then lyrically lunges at Luda's jugular using metaphors that relate to him ... "Move Bitch," "Fast & Furious" -- the biggest burn just may be Katt called out Luda for NOT saying he was lying.

Remember, Katt dissed Luda first by (joking?) that the Atlanta rapper joined the Illuminati only to be rewarded with a wide-faced, light-skinned wife.

Katt is the first guest on "Collect Call" and he and Suge shared their unique origin story, ironically centered around their mutual love for Tupac Shakur.

Rex Heuermann -- the alleged Gilgo Beach serial killer -- has just been hit with a new murder charge ... an expected development, officially rounding out the 4 known victims.

Prosecutors lodged a new murder complaint against Heuermann Tuesday -- accusing him of killing Maureen Brainard-Barnes ... a woman who's long been tied to the Gilgo Beach case, but is now being connected to RH via law enforcement.

Maureen disappeared in 2007, and her remains were found in 2010. She was technically the first of the Gilgo Four that was discovered within days of each other -- with the other three women being Megan Waterman, Amber Costello and Melissa Barthelemy.

Heuermann had already been charged in connection to their murders ... and now, he's being rung up for Brainard-Barnes too -- mind you, there are outstanding women's disappearances that are currently being investigated that may well end up being linked to this.

The added murder charge for Brainard-Barnes was something that seemed to be coming -- investigators were waiting for DNA test results from hair recovered from her remains.

Now, it appears as though they feel they have enough evidence to point the finger. Heuermann has pled not guilty to the charges against him ... he'll have to answer for this one at some point down the line.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard is getting bombarded with criticism from Nick Godejohn supporters -- it's been going on since she got out of prison, but Gypsy feels the haters aren't giving her a fair shake.

Sources close to Gypsy Rose tell TMZ ... she's been inundated with folks expressing negative feelings toward her, because she's now free -- whereas Nick's serving a life sentence for murdering her mother Dee Dee.

We're told that fact of Gypsy's situation is one over which she feels a lot of guilt to this day.

Still, our sources say Gypsy feels it's not right she's being branded a murderer by some of these overzealous Nick fans ... and the reason for that is because she didn't actually carry out the act of taking her mother's life. Remember, Nick was the one who stabbed Dee Dee, and Gypsy was convicted of second-degree murder -- basically, for masterminding the slaying.

With that in mind, Gypsy also thinks it's strange Nick is getting sympathy from folks who want to see him freed. We're told she believes he enjoyed stabbing her mother 17 times, so the fact he's got a group of backers is sorta ass-backwards.

Remember ... Nick got life in prison without possibility of parole after his conviction for first-degree murder. Gypsy got a 10-year sentence, but was released on parole last month, after more than 8 years of incarceration.

Our sources tell us Gypsy feels like she tried to help Nick in his 2018 trial by testifying she came up with the plan to kill Dee Dee, because it was the only way she could escape her mother's abuse. She feels her testimony was the right thing to do to clear her conscience, and we're told doing so helped her forgive herself.

Now, we're told Gypsy has NO feelings towards Nick ... she doesn't want to communicate with him and she's trying to leave their past behind and move forward with her new life.

Our sources say Gypsy doesn't hate Nick, but she doesn't love him or feel sad for him either -- she just doesn't feel anything for him ... good or bad.

Some of the same folks attacking Gypsy online say Nick should be freed too ... but we're told she feels his punishment fits the crime. Our sources say Nick told Gypsy in text messages, before Dee Dee's murder, he was going to enjoy killing her mom ... and Gypsy feels her ex is a danger to society who needs extreme mental health care while behind bars.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard ha sido bombardeada por el odio de los partidarios de Nick Godejohn desde su salida de la cárcel y ella siente que está recibiendo un trato injusto.

Fuentes cercanas a Gypsy Rose le dicen a TMZ que ha estado experimentando sentimientos negativos hacia ella desde que fue puesta en libertad. Todo porque ella es la que ha asegurado su libertad, mientras que Nick está cumpliendo una cadena perpetua por asesinar a su madre Dee Dee.

Nos informan que la situación de Gypsy es un hecho por el que se siente muy culpable hasta el día de hoy.

Sin embargo, nuestras fuentes dicen que Gypsy siente que no es correcto que esté siendo tildada de asesina por algunos de los fans de Nick, y la razón de ello es que en realidad ella no le quitó la vida de su madre... recordemos que Nick fue quien apuñaló a Dee Dee y Gypsy fue condenada por asesinato en segundo grado, básicamente por ser la autora intelectual del crimen.

Nos dicen que Gypsy también piensa que es extraño, Nick está recibiendo la simpatía de la gente que quiere verlo en libertad. Nuestras fuentes dicen que ella cree que disfrutó de matar y apuñalar 17 veces a su madre, por lo que el hecho de que él tenga un grupo de seguidores es inaudito.

Recordemos que Nick fue declarado culpable de asesinato en primer grado y condenado a cadena perpetua sin posibilidad de libertad condicional, mientras que Gypsy fue condenada a 10 años pero salió en libertad condicional tras cumplir 8 años de prisión.

Nuestras fuentes nos dicen que Gypsy siente que trató de ayudar a Nick en su juicio penal de 2018 al testificar que ideó el plan para matar a Dee Dee porque era la única manera de escapar del abuso de su madre y nos dicen que Gypsy siente que su testimonio fue lo correcto en ese momento para limpiar su conciencia, lo que la ayudó a perdonarse a sí misma y seguir adelante.

Ahora, nos dicen Gypsy NO tiene sentimientos hacia Nick... ella no quiere comunicarse con él y ella está tratando de dejar su pasado atrás y seguir adelante con su nueva vida.

Nuestras fuentes dicen que Gypsy no odia a Nick, pero no lo ama o se siente triste por él tampoco... ella simplemente no siente nada hacia él, bueno o malo, y punto.

Algunas de las mismas personas que atacan a Gypsy en línea dicen que Nick debería ser liberado también, pero nos dicen que ella siente que su castigo se ajusta al crimen. Nuestras fuentes dicen que Nick le dijo a Gypsy en mensajes de texto antes del asesinato de Dee Dee que iba a disfrutar de matar a su madre y Gypsy siente que su ex es un peligro para la sociedad y necesita atención de salud mental extrema, mientras que está detrás de las rejas.

Blueface is behind bars over a probation violation that he got hauled into court over last week -- and now, we’ve learned he ain't due to get out for a while ... months, in fact.

The rapper was making headlines on Friday after officials say he violated one or more of the terms of his probation in his club beatdown assault case here in L.A. from a few years ago.

On Friday, there was a hearing scheduled in the case citing some type of probation violation ... although it's unclear what exactly he's alleged to have done. BTW, this was just the latest in several probation violation hearings during the case.

Anyway, there was video of him making the rounds online as well ... showing him presumably heading to court. In the clip, Blue said he was just there to handle some business -- although, he did hint at the possibility he might be jailed right on the spot.

As it turns out ... he was. TMZ can confirm Blueface is in custody at the county jail right now -- and according to online records ... he ain't scheduled to be released until the summer.

More specifically, Blueface is not scheduled to be cut loose until July 2, 2024 ... although, with overcrowding in the jail -- it's certainly possible he'll be released sooner than this. No word on which wing of the jail he's being housed in just yet ... it looks like they're still sorting that.

Still ... Blue will likely be out of the public eye for the foreseeable future -- something his mother was decrying on Friday, and also blaming on his baby mamas ... Chrisean and Jaidyn.

She claimed these ladies had brought him nothing but trouble -- a sentiment echoed by Blue's manager, Wack 100, as well. As you well know, he's been very active over the past 12 months on a number of fronts ... and it looks like somewhere along the way, law enforcement saw something they felt violated his probation terms -- and then rang him up for it.

We're still working to figure out what exactly Blue is accused of doing -- and getting clarity on a realistic timeline for his release. Until then, he's locked up.

R. Kelly se defiende de una enorme sentencia en su contra en una demanda que involucra a mujeres que afirmaron haber sido víctimas de él... dice que no sabía de la demanda y no debe ser considerado responsable.

Así es la cosa, seis mujeres recibieron 10.5 millones de dólares en agosto después de demandarlo a él y a su ex gerente, Donnell Russell, alegando que eran responsables de un esfuerzo por cerrar una proyección de diciembre de 2018 en Nueva York de la docuserie "Surviving R. Kelly" con una amenaza de tiroteo masivo.

Según los nuevos documentos legales obtenidos por TMZ, Kelly afirma que se habría defendido de la demanda si hubiera sabido sobre el asunto.

El cantante en desgracia afirma que su cabeza ya está dando vueltas sobre sus diversos casos penales y procesamientos y que ha sido demandado tantas veces últimamente que apenas puede mantenerse al día con todo desde su celda de la prisión en Carolina del Norte.

Kelly también afirma que también ha barajado los equipos legales desde que fue encerrado y dice que esta demanda debe haber deslizado a través de las grietas, o no han sido entregados a él detrás de las rejas en absoluto.

Aun si hubiese recibido la demanda, Kelly dice que no sería capaz de entenderla o distinguirla de cualquier otro documento legal, diciendo que confía en sus abogados para que le expliquen las cosas porque "no puedo leer o entender palabras más allá de la de un niño de primaria".

Lo que es más, Kelly afirma que Donnell nunca fue su manager como la demanda afirmó y dice que no tenía ni idea de que Russell estaba tratando de detener la proyección de "Surviving".

Kelly dice que no le pidió a Donnell que lo hiciera y dice que si Russell hizo una amenaza de tiroteo para detener la proyección, "lo hizo por sus propias razones."

R. Kelly is firing back against a huge judgment leveled against him in a lawsuit involving women who claimed they were victimized by him ... he says he didn't know about the suit and shouldn't be held accountable.

Here's the deal ... six women were awarded $10.5 million in August after suing him and his former manager, Donnell Russell, claiming they were responsible for an effort to shut down a December 2018 NYC screening of the 'Surviving R. Kelly' docuseries with a mass shooting threat.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Kelly claims he would have defended himself against the lawsuit if he knew about the darn thing.

The disgraced singer claims his head is already spinning over his various criminal cases and prosecutions ... and he's been sued so many times lately he can hardly keep up with it all from his prison cell in North Carolina.

Kelly also claims he's also shuffled legal teams since being locked up ... and he says this lawsuit must have slipped through the cracks, or not have been delivered to him behind bars at all.

Even if the lawsuit had been received, Kelly says he wouldn't be able to understand it or distinguish it from any other legal documents ... saying he relies on his lawyers to explain things to him because "I cannot read or understand words beyond that of a grade schooler."

What's more, Kelly claims Donnell was never his manager as the lawsuit claimed ... and he says he had no idea Russell was trying to stop the 'Surviving' screening.

Kelly says he didn't ask Donnell to do so and says if Russell did make a mass shooting threat to stop the screening, "he did that for his own reasons."

The trial for 2 men charged with murdering hip hop legend Jam Master Jay of the trailblazing group Run-DMC is all set to begin ... more than 20 years after the pioneering DJ was killed.

Jury selection began last week from a pool of more than 500 prospective candidates -- the process is scheduled to be completed by January 22, and the trial will begin one week later.

Karl Jordan Jr. and Ronald Washington are the defendants who were indicted back in August 2020.

Prosecutors charged a third defendant, Jay Bryant, in July 2023 and his trial will commence sometime in 2025.

Jay was shot and killed in October 2002 inside a Queens recording studio he owned and operated.

Lena Waithe is the latest celeb to fall victim to smash-and-grab burglars ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... a group of burglars smashed a window to the actress/comedian's Los Angeles-area home last week while she was out of town.

Our sources say the thieves made off with $200k worth of jewelry. One of Lena's staff discovered the break-in after coming to the home the following day and finding the front door unlocked.

Lena, best known as Denise from "Master of None" and creator of "The Chi," isn't alone ... several other stars have fallen victim to similar crimes in the past couple months.

Burglars in ski masks smashed one of Keanu Reeves' windows and entered his home in early December, and "Entourage" star Kevin Connolly's house was given similar treatment on Christmas Eve.

Model Abigail Ratchford might've endured the most terrifying situation of all ... actually being in the upstairs bedroom when someone broke in.

Donald Trump just got a cosign on his upstanding character -- but he received it from none other than a notorious mobster in Sammy the Bull ... and yet, he's still pretty thankful.

The ex-Prez sent a shoutout to the former Gambino crime family underboss on Truth Social -- reacting to a clip of an interview Sammy recently did on VladTV where he discussed once trying to "get to" DT back in the day ... when he was just a big-time developer in NYC.

As Sammy explains, he was able to press a lot of real estate dudes in the game during that time and have his way with them ... but, apparently, Donny himself wasn't having it.

STB goes so far as to say that despite repeated attempts to get into business with Trump -- and getting rebuffed at each stop -- he decided Don was "legitimate" and moved on. It's certainly an interesting anecdote, but Trump loved the "praise" ... and made it known online.

Trump wrote in response, "Thank you to Sammy the Bull. I hope Judges Engoron & Kaplan see this. We need fairness, strength and honesty in our New York Courts. We don’t have it now!" The robes he's referring to here are the ones overseeing a couple of his cases at the moment, BTW ... he seems to think they need to take a cue from Sam on morality.

1. Of course, the backdrop to this is Trump being in court on a number of different fronts as we head toward the '24 election. He's being prosecuted criminally, and being sued civilly too.

NY's Attorney General, Letitia James, for example claims DT is totally corrupt and a very shady business guy ... something she and her team have been trying to prove in court.