Crime & Arrests

An ex-neighbor of the California man accused of plotting a local mass shooting in a coordinated attack with the Wisconsin school shooter is speaking out ... telling TMZ about the chilling, ominous energy he always carried.

The woman, choosing to remain anonymous, talked to us on "TMZ Live" Thursday, revealing that during the 5 to 6 years she lived near 20-year-old Alexander Paffendorf, he exhibited seriously creepy behavior -- never talking, avoiding eye contact, always wearing his hood up, and other unsettling anti-social habits.

Catch the video, because she dives into the specific moments when Paffendorf made her feel super uncomfortable around their apartment complex -- and it’s spine-chilling.

2:30 PM PT -- The federal U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York said in a press release ... the state of New York's separate prosecution against Luigi Mangione is currently expected to proceed to trial before the federal case.

Luigi Mangione just arrived in New York City after he waived extradition in Pennsylvania today, and was promptly slapped with a federal criminal court complaint.

According to the complaint filed by federal prosecutors in the Southern District of NY, Mangione is charged with murder through use of a firearm, two stalking charges, and a firearms offense.

Luigi Mangione planned the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson months in advance ... and, he'd clearly been thinking about it longer -- so say federal prosecutors.

In the federal criminal complaint -- filed Thursday -- prosecutors included several diary entries they claim Mangione made over the past few months ... all of which seem to point to Mangione as Thompson's killer.

An entry dated August 15 describes how he's "glad -- in a way -- that I've procrastinated" because it allowed him to learn more about a "Company-1" ... which is how the feds refer to UnitedHealthcare throughout the docs.

Luigi Mangione has arrived in New York to face state and federal charges after being extradited from Pennsylvania.

The suspected killer in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was spotted arriving in New York City Thursday, just hours after appearing in a Pennsylvania court where he formally waived extradition.

Luigi, sporting his fresh shave and new haircut, looked somber as he was led into a secure police vehicle. NYC Mayor Eric Adams was among the dozens of law enforcement personnel who escorted Mangione from a helicopter to the awaiting vehicle.

Luigi Mangione is on the move ... the suspected killer in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is being extradited from Pennsylvania to New York.

Luigi appeared in court Thursday in Pennsylvania and waived extradition ... and now he's being transported back to the scene of his alleged crime.

Mangione is accused of fatally shooting Thompson earlier this month outside a hotel in Manhattan ... and five days after the shooting he was arrested at a McDonald's in Altoona, PA.

Luigi Mangione was back in court Thursday morning for another extradition hearing ... and his admirers lost their minds 'cause he's cleaned up with a shave and a haircut.

Here's the deal ... Mangione formally waived extradition after he arrived at a Pennsylvania courthouse under heavy security -- he's been officially charged in NYC with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Video captured Mangione being led into the courthouse -- and he appeared to be more subdued than last time, when he lashed out at cameras shortly after he was apprehended.

7:07 AM PT -- Luigi Mangione formally waived extradition moments ago. He is expected to be taken from Pennsylvania to New York immediately.

Luigi Mangione arrived at a Pennsylvania court under heavy security Thursday morning for his extradition hearing -- and video briefly captured the Ivy League grad surrounded by police.

Check it out ... An Altoona, PA, police car initially drives past a scrum of photogs outside the courthouse and parks inside an open garage.

Police officers then help Mangione -- wearing an orange jumpsuit with hands cuffed behind him -- out of the backseat, escorting him inside the building. From the camera's vantage point, you can only catch a glimpse of the serious look on Luigi's face.

The French rape trial that's captured the world's attention has come to a close ... with the accused, Dominique Pelicot, being found guilty and hit with a hefty prison sentence.

A French court brought down the maximum 20 years in prison sentence for Dominique on Thursday, after he was found guilty on all charges brought against him in the case ... where he was accused of repeatedly drugging, raping, and inviting dozens of others to rape his wife, Gisèle Pelicot, while she was unconscious.

Dominique, who is currently 72 years old, could easily spend the rest of his life in prison given the lengthy sentence.

Real Housewives of Potomac star Karen Huger has been found guilty of DUI and other crimes months after she crashed her car in Maryland.

A jury convicted Huger on 7 of 8 charges prosecutors brought against her, including driving under the influence, negligent driving, failing to control her vehicle’s speed to avoid a collision, and failing to notify authorities of a change of address.

Huger dodged a conviction on a reckless driving charge during her Montgomery County trial Wednesday ... but she now faces up to 2 years in prison when a judge sentences her on January 29.

Luigi Mangione mentioned the big bucks he had in the bank on a trip to Thailand ... and also, repeatedly brought up a couple of revealing books -- TMZ has learned.

A source -- who doesn't want to be identified by name, but who spent significant time with Luigi back in April -- tells TMZ ... the two went to the popular tourism destination together, hitting up bars and visiting a weed shop, and cracking inside jokes over a period of two days.

According to his friend, Luigi was "making lawyer money" coding for TrueCar ... a telling statement because Mangione reportedly stopped working for them months before going to Thailand.

The suspect charged with fatally stabbing 3 little girls and injuring 10 others at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in the UK has pleaded not guilty to all 16 charges against him.

18-year-old Axel Rudakubana stayed silent during his appearance in Liverpool Crown Court via video link from London's Belmarsh prison Wednesday, where Justice Julian Goose directed the clerk to enter not guilty pleas across the board.

Rudakubana is charged with 3 counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder, and additional charges for allegedly possessing ricin and an Al-Qaeda manual related to the attack on July 29 this year.

Thomas Giuffra, the lawyer for three anonymous men who have accused Diddy of sodomizing them, says Diddy's a lot like another fallen Hollywood power player -- Harvey Weinstein.

The attorney stopped by CNN Wednesday to talk about the lawsuit he recently filed on behalf of his three clients ... and, he says the similar threads in their stories caught his attention early on.

Giuffra says abusers -- like Diddy's accused of being -- all have patterns ... adding former Hollywood producer Weinstein had them as well.

Luigi Mangione's mother knew he was capable of extreme actions -- hinting at his current state of mind when questioned by police just days before his arrest for the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Following Luigi's first-degree murder indictment Tuesday, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny revealed during a Manhattan D.A. press conference that, before his arrest, they called the suspect's mother, Kathleen Mangione, while vetting a tip from the San Francisco FBI office related to a missing-person case.

Kenny said Kathleen seemed unsurprised, saying, "They had a conversation where she didn’t indicate that it was her son in the photograph, but she said it might be something that she could see him doing."

Diddy's alleged mule, Brendan Paul, is off the hook in his felony drug case in Florida ... because all the charges have been dropped, TMZ has confirmed.

State prosecutors officially dismissed the charges against Paul Tuesday because he completed a pretrial diversion program ... according to his attorney, Brian Bieber.

Meanwhile, federal sources tell TMZ ... Paul did NOT strike a deal with federal prosecutors in the Diddy case.

5:07 PM PT -- Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Megan Thee Stallion's legal team has more proof connecting Tory and the blogger who's been bashing MTS. We're told they've obtained financial records of a handful of payments Tory's father allegedly made to Elizabeth Milagro Cooper between October 2020 and March 2022, and totaling $3,000.

We're told Megan's attorneys will bringing receipts to court ... for the restraining order case, and also for the lawsuit she filed against Cooper.

Tory Lanez being in prison isn't stopping his harassment of Megan Thee Stallion ... at least according to her, so, now she's back in court to battle him once again.

Megan filed a request for a restraining order Tuesday, detailing for the judge several months of abuse she's endured from Tory ... who, of course, is serving a 10-year sentence in California for shooting at Megan's feet back in 2020.

According to the docs, Megan says Tory's got an army of bloggers who he employs to spread defamatory statements about her -- including a woman named Elizabeth Milagro Cooper, who Meg actually sued a couple months ago.

James Kennedy is breaking his silence after domestic violence arrest ... saying he's going to take time off from work to focus on himself.

In a statement posted on his Instagram on Tuesday ... the "Vanderpump Rules" alum says, "I am committed to making meaningful changes in my life. I am taking time to focus on my sobriety, personal growth, and being present for my loved ones."

James adds ... "Navigating challenging moments is not easy, but I am determined to learn, grow, and move forward with the incredible support system around me."