Legal

The two suspects in NYC's crypto kidnapping and torture case just can't catch a break ... prosecutors just unsealed an indictment charging them with a series of felonies -- one day after their Kentucky home was raided by the feds.

Bitcoin investors John Woeltz and William Duplessie were indicted by a Manhattan grand jury on charges of kidnapping, assault, coercion, attempted grand larceny and criminal possession of a weapon, according to new court documents.

On Tuesday, federal agents with the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives descended on a Smithland, KY, estate owned by Woeltz and Duplessie, sources with direct knowledge told TMZ.

As Immigration Customs and Enforcement raids go down across the country, ICE now has its very own impersonator ... and he's wreaking his own brand of havoc in Philadelphia.

Detectives are searching for a man posing as an ICE agent, who they say tied up a woman and stole $1,000 in cash from her at a repair shop last weekend.

Police say the sham agent screamed "Immigration" before tying up the woman for more than 2 hours and swiping her money. The woman was eventually freed by a co-worker long after the suspect had fled in a white Ford van.

Diddy's ex-girlfriend was back on the stand Tuesday in the 20th day of witness testimony in the music mogul's federal criminal trial ... and she got testy with Diddy's defense team.

In a tense exchange, "Jane" got short with Diddy's defense attorney, Teny Geragos, while testifying about her jealousy over a Chanel bag Diddy gave to another woman while they were in a relationship.

Geragos asked Jane if she got a Chanel bag and Jane shot back, "I only got trauma." Geragos asked Jane about a Bottega Veneta bag and there was a verbal gasp in the courtroom when Jane retorted, "I'm sure you have one."

Claudia Jordan is not holding back when it comes to "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" reunion — and Brit Eady is at the center of it.

We caught up with Claudia outside Gravitas in Beverly Hills on Monday night and she had some sharp words for Brit, who skipped the 'RHOA' reunion last week ... "She chickened out and didn’t go. Then she had the nerve to sue Bravo? Whack," Claudia told our camera guy.

The former peach-holder didn’t stop there -- she says the franchise is long overdue for a reset, and in her mind that means bringing back the OGs like Nene Leakes, Kenya Moore, Cynthia Bailey, and Shereé Whitfield.

Justin Baldoni's lawyer is taking shots at his client's legal nemesis Blake Lively ... blasting Blake for what he says is a premature celebration.

Bryan Freedman joined us on "TMZ Live" Tuesday and we asked him how he and Justin reacted to Blake's big legal win Monday, when a judge tossed out Baldoni's defamation claims in a $400 million lawsuit against Blake and her husband, Ryan Reynolds.

While it seemed like the end of the legal beef, Bryan tells us this still has a long way to go ... which is why he thinks it's rich Blake is on what he calls a "false victory tour."

Diddy's ex-girlfriend "Jane" had a tense back-and-forth with defense attorney Teny Geragos ... after getting asked about the price of some designer handbags.

It all played out Tuesday in Diddy's federal criminal trial in New York, with Jane under cross-examination from Geragos, who is 4 months pregnant.

Jane -- who is testifying under a pseudonym to protect her identity -- was talking about an argument with Diddy over a Chanel bag he allegedly gave to another woman.

Feds are poking around a home owned by the two suspects charged with kidnapping and torturing an Italian man for weeks inside a swanky multimillion-dollar New York City townhouse in an alleged scheme to obtain a Bitcoin password.

Cryptocurrency investor John Woeltz and his alleged accomplice, Swiss businessman William Duplessie, own an estate in Kentucky ... and the property is currently crawling with law enforcement.

Federal agents from the ATF and officers from the Kentucky State Police and the New York Police Department are currently executing two warrants at the property ... sources with knowledge have confirmed to TMZ.

Diddy's ex-girlfriend "Jane" says a threesome they had with a male escort had them feeling like NBA ballers ... testifying she and Diddy compared themselves to Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan.

During cross-examination Tuesday in Diddy's federal criminal trial, Jane told jurors Diddy referred to a particular three-way as a "trifecta" and compared them to three NBA Hall of Fame basketball stars.

Jane -- who's testifying under a pseudonym to protect her identity -- said the trifecta included a male escort, Paul ... and she told jurors in this scenario she was Kobe, Diddy was MJ and Paul was Shaquille O'Neal.

Diddy's ex-girlfriend says the music mogul was so addicted to having sex with her he called her "crackpipe" ... and the jury heard it straight from Diddy's mouth in a voicemail.

During cross-examination, jurors in Diddy's federal criminal trial on Tuesday heard a voice message Diddy sent to "Jane" in March 2023 ... where he told her, "You are the crackpipe. That's my new nickname for you: crackpipe."

Diddy's defense attorney Teny Geragos asked Jane -- who's testifying under a pseudonym to protect her identity -- what Diddy meant by "crackpipe" ... and Jane said he was addicted to having sex with her.

Diddy's ex-girlfriend "Jane" took the stand on the 20th day of his federal racketeering and sex trafficking trial, saying the disgraced music mogul’s favorite show was the true-crime TV news magazine, "Dateline."

Jane -- who's testifying under a pseudonym to protect her identity -- dropped the "Dateline" info during cross-examination by Diddy's defense attorney, Teny Geragos.

Geragos kicked off her questioning by asking Jane if she loved Diddy. Jane said she loved spending time with her partner, prompting Geragos to ask Jane if she wanted to cuddle and give Diddy foot rubs.

The judge has finally weighed in on whether to grant Diddy a mistrial ... and he's giving the disgraced music mogul a big thumbs down.

Hell no, Judge Arun Subramanian told Diddy as the 20th day of his federal racketeering and sex trafficking trial kicked off Tuesday.

Remember, this whole issue came up last week when Bryana Bongolan -- Cassie's friend -- took the stand and testified Diddy dangled her over the edge of a 17th-floor balcony at Cassie's Los Angeles apartment around September 26, 2016.

8:00 AM PT -- In an earlier version ... TMZ inaccurately reported that Justin Baldoni's lawyers filed a motion to dismiss Blake Lively's claims in her lawsuit.

Blake Lively may have thought her legal drama with Justin Baldoni was finally behind her after her stunning court victory ... but JB's lawyer says the case is just getting started.

As you know ... Blake scored a big win Monday when a judge tossed out the claims Baldoni made against Lively, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and the New York Times in a $400 million lawsuit.

Baldoni accused them of defamation over an article about Justin's ugly feud with Blake behind the scenes of their 2024 film, "It Ends With Us." He insisted it was all part of a smear campaign against him.

Blake Lively was all smiles on the red carpet just hours after scoring a major legal win in her ongoing legal battle with Justin Baldoni.

The actress looked happy and relaxed when she stepped out at the Chanel Tribeca Festival Artists Dinner in New York City on Monday night. Blake was there with her niece, Kate Johnson, holding hands as they took on the red carpet together.

Her appearance at the event comes on the same day a judge dismissed the $400 million lawsuit Baldoni and his Wayfarer Studios filed against Blake, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and The New York Times.

Diddy's ex-girlfriend had a lot more to say about their relationship Monday on the 19th day of witness testimony in his criminal trial ... telling the jury about a violent exchange, and recalling the moment Diddy found out the Cassie beating video had been published.

The day began with the judge delaying a decision on Diddy's defense motion for a mistrial ... the decision will come down Tuesday morning, after prosecutors submit their response. This is all in relation to some prior testimony from Cassie and a friend about an alleged incident where Diddy held the friend over a balcony at Cassie's home.

"Jane" was back on the stand for more testimony, answering questions from prosecutor Maurene Comey ... telling jurors about a violent incident at her home.

Gavin Newsom is following up with his threat to sue President Trump over the deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles ... because the California Governor just filed a case against POTUS over it.

Newsom and the State of California are suing Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the U.S. Department of Defense over what Newsom says are "illegal actions" to deploy members of the California National Guard.

Trump sent the National Guard into L.A. Saturday after protests erupted over federal immigration raids ... a move Newsom says is unconstitutional.

Diddy's ex-girlfriend "Jane" says he beat the crap out of her a couple weeks after the Cassie beating video was released ... and she claims the violence all started with a verbal argument about another woman.

Jane testified Monday she didn't see Diddy for about a month after the Cassie beating video aired on CNN in May 2024 ... until they met up at her home in Los Angeles on June 18 in what she said ended up being "a very terrible day."

She told jurors Diddy had just come from a family trip to Utah and they were talking in her backyard and drinking champagne and tequila when she says she confronted him about who he was traveling with in Utah.