Crime

Anna Kepner’s accused killer isn’t showing up in court -- but he is showing his legal strategy ... pleading not guilty while staying out of sight.

The 16-year-old stepbrother -- identified in court docs only as T.H. -- waived his personal appearance at the arraignment Tuesday and entered a not guilty plea. He was originally expected to be in a Miami courtroom Wednesday morning.

The teen, who is now being prosecuted as an adult, is facing first-degree murder and aggravated sexual abuse charges tied to the death of his 18-year-old stepsister aboard a Carnival Cruise Line ship back in November 2025.

Mark Geragos is sticking to his guns ... telling us Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman is full of it when he says the D.A.'s office and the LAPD worked in lockstep to arrest and charge D4vd with Celeste Rivas' murder.

The famed defense attorney joined us on "TMZ Live" Tuesday and called BS on some of Hochman's claims from Monday's news conference, where Hochman refuted what Geragos told us -- that LAPD went rogue in arresting D4vd -- on the "2 Angry Men" podcast.

Geragos says Hochman is just trying to put on a united front when, in reality, cops were fed up with a lack of action from prosecutors and moved to arrest D4vd to force their hand.

Ivanna Lisette Ortiz -- the woman accused of shooting at Rihanna's L.A. home -- is now completely cut off from her kid … and the judge is leaving barely any wiggle room.

A Florida judge has ruled Ortiz will have zero contact with her child until further order of the court ... the only exception is if the child's father personally approves it. The court ordered the child's father to have 100% time-sharing … meaning full custody and control over the child's day-to-day life.

And this didn't start with Rihanna … Ortiz had already been previously placed on an involuntary psychiatric hold in Florida. She claimed it was based on false accusations, but the judge still flagged concerns.

"Unexpected" star Bella Vaughn's mom has been arrested in Arkansas ... and she got popped on a couple of charges.

Law enforcement tells TMZ ... Falen Vaughn was arrested on Monday for disorderly conduct and disrupting governmental operations. Both charges are misdemeanors.

We're still trying to get more about what led to her arrest ... but we do know Falen was booked in the Crawford County Jail yesterday and has since been released.

As fans know ... Falen is the mother of Bella on "Unexpected" and often appears on the reality show about teen pregnancy.

She is due in court June 8.

1:00 PM PST -- Frederick Alfred Jr. has been dropped by the Chainsaw Caucus just weeks after their endorsement. They tell TMZ ... "We take child safety and parental responsibility extremely seriously, and these allegations are inconsistent with the standards we expect from candidates we support. We have no further comment at this time."

A Republican running for a state senate seat in Colorado was arrested in Florida ... after cops say his daughter started drowning in a pool when he left his kids unattended while going to the bar for some booze.

Frederick Alfred Jr. was arrested Monday in Key West on two counts of felony child neglect without great harm.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, cops say his 4-year-old daughter began drowning in the pool, became unconscious, started foaming at the mouth, and eventually needed CPR from someone at the pool.

8:35 AM PT -- Burbank Police just announced a suspect was arrested Monday night … 30-year-old Sergio Fraire was taken into custody by a SWAT team serving a search warrant. Police say evidence related to the stabbings was recovered at the residence where he was detained. Fraire had been identified as a person of interest by investigators earlier Monday.

He was booked for murder and attempted murder. Police were working to determine a motive for the crime and the relationship between the suspect and the victims. The residence where Fraire was detained is about 2.5 miles from the scene of the crime.

Meera was listed in stable condition Tuesday morning.

A first-grade teacher in California has been killed and her daughter was critically injured in a stabbing early Monday morning ... and police are still looking for the suspect.

Burbank Police say officers got a call around 6 AM about a stabbing in a single-family home ... and found two women had been attacked at the scene.

Police later identified 59-year-old Arti Varma as the woman who was killed ... neighbors told news outlets her 25-year-old daughter Meera is the other victim.

BPD said they were taken to a nearby hospital, where one woman died from her injuries and the other remains hospitalized.

D4vd is getting cozy in a new jail cell -- he was transferred to the L.A. County Men's Central Jail just before 10 PM Monday, TMZ has learned.

The "Romantic Homicide" singer won't be able to make many friends in the clink -- a rep for the L.A. County Sheriff's Office tells us ... D4vd has been placed in segregation because he's a noteworthy inmate, which means he'll be alone with his thoughts most of the day.

The Men's Central Jail has an inmate bed capacity of 5,640 inmates and houses criminals of all security levels.

Blake Lively believes the “mean girl” label placed on her amid her battle with Justin Baldoni cost her upwards of $40 million in reputational damages ... TMZ has learned.

According to court docs obtained by TMZ, Blake breaks down the money she is seeking in the legal battle.

As TMZ first reported, Blake is seeking around $161 million from Baldoni’s company, including $56 million in past and future earnings, $49 million in losses to her haircare company, $22 million for her Betty Buzz beverage company, and more.

The Hollywood Hills home where D4vd had been living and where Celeste Rivas Hernandez spent time prior to her death is back up for rent ... marketed as a peaceful luxury escape despite its unsettling ties.

TMZ has learned the property, tucked along a quiet Hollywood Hills street, quietly hit the rental market about three weeks ago -- fully furnished with high end finishes, a private pool, and seamless indoor-outdoor living -- and it's going for $23,950 a month.

The 4-bedroom, 4.5-bath home spans about 4,300 square feet. Outside, terraces and lounge areas surround a secluded pool, creating a private, resort-like hillside setting.

This is the same property raided by the LAPD in September 2025 during the investigation, with officers swarming the home after a body was discovered in D4vd's Tesla.

D4vd has just pled not guilty to murder and other charges in connection with the death of Celeste Rivas ... and he is challenging the D.A. to put their cards on the table, or fold.

D4vd went before a judge just hours after being charged with first-degree murder with special circumstances, including lying in wait, committing the crime for financial gain, and murdering a witness to an investigation.

Prosecutors also charged D4vd with lewd and lascivious sexual acts with a person under 14 years old and the mutilation of a human body.

D4vd's lawyers asked the judge for a preliminary hearing within 10 days ... that's something to which a defendant is entitled. There's a clear strategic reason for the move -- given that D4vd was arrested just a few days ago, the defense seems to be banking on the case still being a work in progress.

The police investigating Madonna’s stolen clothes don’t believe the pop star was targeted ... TMZ has learned.

A rep for the Indio Police Department tells TMZ ... “On Saturday, April 18, 2026, at approximately 7:32 p.m., a missing property report was filed” by Madonna’s rep.

The police said the reported missing items included clothing and jewelry, “which were last seen on a golf cart at the Empire Polo Grounds on Saturday, April 18, 2026, shortly after 1:30 a.m., during weekend two of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.”

Celeste Rivas' cause of death has just been revealed ... and prosecutors in Los Angeles County say D4vd killed her with a "sharp instrument."

Prosecutors revealed the alleged cause of death Monday in documents charging D4vd with murdering Celeste.

A high-ranking source in the Los Angeles Police Department told us last week the Medical Examiner determined the manner of death as homicide ... but there was no indication how Celeste was murdered.

3:40 PM PT -- An expected news conference has been called off ... Celeste Rivas' family will not be speaking publicly from the courthouse this afternoon, according to a spokesperson for the D.A. at the scene.

Celeste Rivas' family was expected to speak out publicly after D4vd was charged in her violent death ... a news conference was set up, but the family later declined to appear for cameras.

Celeste's father, mother, and sister attended D4vd's court hearing this afternoon at the Hall of Justice in Downtown Los Angeles ... they had been set for a news conference with their attorney, Patrick Steinfeld. D4vd pled not guilty earlier this afternoon.

The family was set to make a brief statement through their attorney ... but they did not intend to take questions.

1:32 PM PT -- Savarino has posted bail and is out of jail, according to online records.

The grandson of legendary Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski was arrested for DWI over the weekend ... after cops say he was driving over the legal limit when he struck and killed a 15-year-old boy on a bike.

The tragic accident occurred around 9 PM in Durham, NC on Saturday ... when officials stated the boy rode in front of Joseph Savarino's Ford Explorer as they traveled in the same direction.

Cops say Savarino's vehicle collided with the boy ... who died at the scene.

John Gotti's grandson was sentenced to 15 months behind bars … a New York judge ruled Monday.

Carmine Agnello -- grandson of the infamous “Teflon Don” -- will do time for scamming the federal government out of $1.1 mil in Covid relief funds … multiple outlets report.

In 2020, he applied for at least three Covid relief loans for his auto parts business … and used over $400K of it to invest in crypto.

Madonna's hung up ... because her clothes have allegedly disappeared after her surprise Coachella appearance this weekend.

In an Instagram story posted Monday, Madonna said she was "flying high" after performing a new song from her upcoming album "Confessions II" in a "full circle moment" ... but the mysteriously missing costumes put a damper on the weekend.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... the iconic artist has filed a police report over the missing garments.

She said the vintage pieces she wore -- including her jacket, corset and dress -- have vanished ... as well as some other pieces "from the same era."