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Cops in New Mexico have arrested a failed GOP candidate in connection with multiple shootings at local Democrats' homes ... this after the guy proudly refused, in Trump fashion, to accept he lost.

Albuquerque PD took Solomon Peña into custody Monday, and the police chief says he believes Peña is the "mastermind" of 4 separate shootings that occurred between Dec. 4 and Jan. 3.

In each instance, police say Democratic politicians were targeted -- including the Bernalillo County Commissioner, the State House Speaker, a former county commissioner and a state senator. Cops claim they have evidence directly tying Peña to the scene of the latest shooting.

For the other incidents, ADP claims Peña hired at least 4 men to carry out the shootings. Police also say they believe this was politically motivated. Thankfully, nobody was harmed in any of the four shootings, but the homes were damaged.

Peña ran for a state House seat in 2022, but lost by a landslide to a Democrat. Up until recently, he'd been denying the results ... claiming he's the victim of election fraud. If that sounds familiar -- the answer to your question is yes, he's a staunch supporter of former President Trump.

BTW, Peña's reportedly got a rap sheet, including convictions for burglary and larceny.

Kaylee Goncalves came face-to-face with a police officer three months before she and her college roommates were murdered in Idaho -- and the whole encounter was caught on video.

The University of Idaho student was captured on police body cam video walking out of the house in Moscow, ID, August 16, approaching cops. As you know, Kaylee, Maddie Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin were fatally stabbed inside that home on November 13.

In the video, released Wednesday by Law & Crime Network, Kaylee was straightforward and compliant with the officer, who informed her that neighbors called 911 to complain about noise at her house party.

The officer said he had nothing against "overage" people drinking at a party, but once neighbors "start calling the cops, then we have an issue." Kaylee responded, "Fair."

After some more back-and-forth, the cop told Kaylee he would let her off with a warning, but if it happened again, he would write her a $300 to $400 noise ticket.

The officer ended by telling Kaylee "don't do it again" ... "I'd hate to come back in a few hours and have to issue that." Kaylee thanked the cop and wished him a nice day.

Fast forward to Dec. 30 ... Bryan Kohberger was arrested and later charged with the murders of Kaylee and the other three victims after allegedly stalking them. Kohberger, a Washington State University grad student, has denied any wrongdoing and says he'll fight the charges.

A San Francisco man seen turning a hose on a woman on the street is sparking outrage -- but law enforcement says, as of now, he will not face any criminal consequences.

The video, shot and posted Monday, shows an older gentleman spraying the woman who was sitting on the sidewalk in front of him, seemingly minding her business. Unclear if the woman was homeless, but you can see right off the bat, he's going to town with the water -- letting it run on her for several seconds.

You can also hear the woman screaming in protest, apparently asking him to stop. Eventually, he does, and tells her to move down the block.

Never mind the fact it's been rainy and cold in SF these past few days ... this act looks cruel and unnecessary, and as you can imagine -- it's gotten a lot of pissed off people online calling for accountability, as well as the identity of the sprayer.

Some thought he was associated with the bar behind him, but the business is distancing itself ... reps say they don't know the dude, or condone his behavior.

Now, we're told cops did respond, but no one was cited or arrested.

SFPD tells TMZ they responded to this incident -- described to them as a possible assault -- but say when they arrived, neither the man or the woman sought any further police action. So, unfortunately for those who wanted this guy in cuffs ... absolutely nothing came of it.

The west coast is still gettin' hit HARD with flash floods ... and one Target store's roof isn't holding up well -- based on the look of dozens of leaks caught throughout the store!

Video obtained by TMZ shows the makeshift response to a seriously leaky roof at the big-box store location in Irvine, CA Monday night. Employees appear to have set up tons of strategically-placed plastic bags that take water directly into buckets below.

It's a pretty crazy sight to see ... especially as you notice just how big the store is, and the bags just keep goin' and goin'.

As we reported, this new year weather is no joke -- Montecito locals, including Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Oprah, and Ellen DeGeneres, were ordered to evacuate after being hit with a TON of rainfall.

Bryan Kohberger's white Hyundai may have been caught on video driving near the crime scene after he had allegedly slaughtered 4 University of Idaho students.

Fox News published the footage Monday showing a white sedan cruising after daylight on the morning of November 13 in the proximity of the Moscow, ID, house where Kaylee Goncalves, Maddie Mogen, Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle were murdered.

Remember, police believe they were killed around 4 AM on November 13, so this video was recorded a few hours later.

In the video's background, you can clearly see the vehicle, which matches the description of Kohberger's Elantra, but it's hard to tell the make and model of the car.

Fox reporters recently reviewed the footage -- although it's not clear when they obtained it -- and found the potential evidence. The video could bolster what investigators said Kohberger's cell phone data already shows ... that he returned to the murder scene.

We already know from the police affidavit that a white Hyundai Elantra thought to be driven by Kohberger was seen passing by the students' home four times on the morning of the murders. Police say that same car was also captured on video speeding away from the area near the crime scene.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres and everyone living in Montecito have been ordered to evacuate immediately, as a fierce winter storm has pounded the area ... and there is great cause for concern.

The Montecito Fire Dept. has 2 words for Montecito residents, as well as people living in some of the surrounding communities -- "LEAVE NOW!"

Montecito has been hit with more than 8 inches of rain in the last 12 hours, and more -- a lot more -- is on the way. Trees have toppled onto roadways, making it next to impossible to drive ... and that will clearly make the evacuation problematic.

This is also an ominous anniversary for Montecito ... five years ago today, 23 people were killed by a mudslide, that also destroyed more than 100 homes.

A gaggle of celebs live in the town located 90 miles from L.A., including Oprah, Rob Lowe, Harry and Meghan, Ellen, Adam Levine, Gwyneth Paltrow and George Lucas.

Evacuation centers have been set up, but again, getting there is a whole different thing.

California has been blasted by the storm, which has killed 12 people in the past 10 days.

A Canadian TV journalist suffered a medical emergency in the middle of her report ... and the scary moment was broadcast live on air.

CTV reporter Jessica Robb was on a live shot Sunday night with anchor Nahreman Issa when Jessica suddenly became unable to get her message out, stumbling over her words and apologizing before appearing to lose her balance.

Before she starts to wabble, Jessica says ... "Sorry, Nahreman, I'm, I'm, I'm not feeling very well right now, and I'm about to just ..." and then the camera cuts away.

Nahreman assured viewers Jessica was not alone in the field and promised the news program would share an update on Jessica's status later on in the broadcast.

CTV Edmonton confirmed Jessica's medical issue in a tweet, but it sounds like she's going to pull through. The station says, "Thanks to everyone who inquired about our reporter who became ill during the 6 PM News. Jessica Robb is feeling better and is now resting."

Johnny Depp's star lawyer, Camille Vasquez, has a sweet new TV gig ... she's working for NBC as an on-air legal analyst, and on her first day she's tackling the biggest criminal case in the country.

Camille appeared Monday on the "Today" show, where she joined Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie to discuss Bryan Kohberger ... who's been charged for the quadruple murder in Idaho. The 2 cohosts asked her to size it all up, and to weigh in on how strong the state's case is against him, based on what we know so far.

According to CV ... Kohberger has a steep hill to climb, because she says investigators and prosecutors aren't in the habit of revealing all their cards from the get-go. On the contrary, she suggests there might be even more damning evidence beyond what's been revealed so far in the police affidavit ... which includes DNA, cell phone data and eyewitness accounts.

Camille says they probably put just enough in the docs to get probable cause for an arrest, but notes there could be more revealed in court. She also talked about the pros and cons of having the public so engaged in this case ... saying tips could certainly be helpful, but too much sleuthing could also be a red herring.

Pretty solid first outing as a media personality for Camille ... a job that came after 4 major networks were clamoring for her expertise since she won the defamation case for Depp.

She's not going fully Hollywood ... Camille is still a partner at her firm, Brown Rudnick, so she's quite busy these days.

Bryan Kohberger was a chatterbox in class -- often speaking up to talk shop -- but he clammed up whenever the U. of Idaho murders were mentioned, so says one of his former peers.

Washington State University student Ben Roberts -- who was in the same graduate program with Kohberger last fall -- tells the Idaho Statesman the man prosecutors allege is a cold-blooded killer wasn't shy when it came discussing criminology theory ... that is, until 4 University of Idaho students were killed in November.

Roberts says he recalls Kohberger as incredibly engaged when it came to classroom discussions about their subject matter -- especially on forensic psychology (understanding a criminal's mindset). According to him, Kohberger would talk during every session of theirs.

However, Roberts also says he remembers Kohberger suspiciously going radio silent in the later fall months of the semester -- around the time the quadruple murder happened, which was brought up in at least 4 different classes he says they shared.

In all instances, it sounds like Kohberger didn't wanna chime in like he normally would ... something that gives Roberts, and an anonymous ex-classmate, pause now.

One other thing ... Roberts says he remembers Kohberger eager to debate and talk down to female students in his program, as opposed to being more measured and nonconfrontational with the guys. Aside from that, Roberts says he was pretty normal.

As we reported ... Kohberger has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder for the 4 Idaho deaths. He has yet to enter a plea, but his attorney has said he'll be exonerated.

Brazil appears to be going through its own January 6th moment -- just a couple days after the 2-year anniversary of our own, no less -- all because Jair Bolsonaro lost the election.

The ex-Brazilian Prez -- who helmed a conservative first term, and was seeking a 2nd in the 2022 Brazilian general election -- was top of mind Sunday for thousands of his supporters ... who descended upon the National Congress in Brasilia during what quickly became a riot.

Tons of video is surfacing online that shows the mob breaching barriers and storming past officers to break into the Congress building, as well as the Supreme Federal Court and even the Presidential Palace itself, where just-sworn in President Luiz Lula da Silva now resides.

It seems all the buildings in question were empty prior to the break-ins, but this sight is an ugly one to say the least -- and very reminiscent to what happened at our Capitol.

The rioters are turning the grounds upside down ... destroying property and entering areas where they would obviously never be able to reach under normal circumstances. Just like here in the States, they seem to have busted through windows and locked doors -- and are making themselves at home in a chaotic scene. A lot of them are draped in Brazilian flags.

Some reports indicate that a good amount of these folks are actually armed, and threatening to occupy the premises for as long as it takes for their demands to be met -- which seem to lie in the fact that they think the election was stolen. Why does that sound familiar?

As for the response ... Brazil's Minister of Justice, Flavio Dino, is reported to have said he'll use the full extent of the law to prosecute these vandals -- but at the moment, it doesn't look like the police on the ground are having much luck in getting 'em the hell out of there.

Just like they were here, law enforcement is completely outnumbered and being overrun by civilians ... and some of the clashes have turned quite violent.

It's actually astonishing how much this parallels what happened here in the States -- some of the snapshots are almost identical -- with rioters entering offices, taking computers and posing for selfies all throughout the area and celebrating their unlawful infiltration.

Remember, we saw this exact type of behavior ourselves ... the only difference being that our lawmakers were in the middle of a live session, and had to go into hiding.

This current attempted coup is taking place on the weekend -- when federal workers and elected officials aren't around, it seems -- but it's no less discomforting to watch unfold live.

Time will tell what comes of this in Brazil. As we know, there was a special congressional committee formed that dug into the origins of Jan. 6 -- and they concluded by pointing the finger at Donald Trump ... claiming he incited the insurrectionists and should be prosecuted.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries was feeling musical on the House floor after being elected House Minority Leader for the Democratic Party ... and he let his song be heard by all, from A to Z.

The New York congressman -- who was the clear favorite among his peers for House Speaker as 15 rounds of voting were held -- delivered his speech early Saturday morning after Rep. Kevin McCarthy finally won the gavel among a divided Republican party.

We'll get to him in a minute, but first ... listen to Jeffries' ABCs of red, white and blue. He went through the entire alphabet to compare and contrast the core tenets of his caucus.

It starts with American Values over Autocracy, Benevolence over Bigotry, the Constitution over the Cult ... and finally ends with Zealous Representation over Zero Sum Confrontation, covering every letter in between. It's got good rhythm to it, much like the real alphabet song!

Jeffries got huge applause throughout, and what sounds like a standing O at the end.

You could argue there was just as much enthusiasm within the GOP, when now-House Speaker McCarthy delivered his remarks to cap off the long night ... when he promised to push a strong conservative agenda and to reign in a lot of Pres. Biden's policies.

McCarthy's win came after an excruciating 15 rounds of voting over 4 full days ... during which he slowly started to flip enough Republican votes in his favor among holdouts.

The notorious BTK serial killer is pouring cold water on the idea -- floated by his own daughter -- that he has a link to Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger.

BTK fired off an email to TMZ from prison after we reached out to him about a recent NewsNation article ... claiming Kohberger may have communicated with him through DeSales University professor Katherine Ramsland.

Kohberger, a Washington State University grad student, had previously studied at DeSales under Ramsland, who's also a famous true crime author and penned a book about the BTK killer.

In his January 5 message to us, BTK says, "No on Kohberger all around," in response to his daughter, Kerri Rawson, telling NN reporter Brian Entin she was "pretty shocked" there was "potentially a connection to my father."

Rawson also said she thought Bryan was likely influenced by BTK since he studied under Ramsland.

On this point, BTK agreed, stating, "I had thought some one may have study me." He also gave props to the Idaho investigators for nabbing a suspect, meaning Kohberger.

BTK went on to share his personal torment about not connecting with his family. "My family don't communicate with me at all. I love them all very much and [would] be happy if one did."

As you know ... BTK (real name: Dennis Rader) killed ten people during his sexually motivated, sadomasochistic rampage in Wichita, Kansas, from 1974 to 1991. He wrote taunting letters to the media, giving himself the moniker, "Bind, Torture, Kill."

He was finally captured in 2005 and confessed to the slayings, leading to his conviction. He is currently serving ten life sentences -- one for each of his murders.

Bryan Kohberger's DNA was found on a knife sheath at the scene of the Idaho murders ... and authorities made a match by rooting through trash at his family's house and finding his dad's DNA, which had enough of a match to the DNA taken from the sheath for cops to pin the murders on Bryan.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit just released, authorities had Kohberger in their crosshairs less than 2 weeks after the murders. As we reported, cops were on the hunt for a white Hyundai Elantra. On November 13 -- the date of the murders -- there were several videos showing the white Elantra making 3 passes by the murder house before finally stopping at 4:04 AM.

Multiple surveillance videos show the car leaving the area of the murder house at 4:20 AM at a high rate of speed.

Police initiated a video canvas around the murder scene and it appears the car traveled toward Washington State University, which Kohberger attends -- 10 miles from the murder house.

On November 25, cops released info to law enforcement that they were on the lookout for a white Hyundai Elantra. On November 29, a WSU cop pulled up a hit on Kohberger's vehicle and license plate number. Cops went to his apartment in the middle of the night and observed a white Elantra sitting in the driveway.

Now, what we didn't know -- one of the survivors in the murder house says she saw a man 5'10" or taller, not very muscular but athletically built with bushy eyebrows, wearing black clothing with a mask.

Her description is absolutely chilling ... she says the man walked right past her as she stood in a "frozen shock phase," and then he walked past her and left the house.

She had only looked out of her bedroom because she'd heard a female voice, possibly murder victim Kaylee Goncalves, say something like "there's someone here." She also heard a male voice say, "It's ok, I'm going to help you."

Cops got a driver's license picture of Kohberger who had a listed height of 6', 185 lbs and the pic shows he has bushy eyebrows.

Cops say they have WSU cams showing Kohberger's car leaving the campus area at 2:44 AM on Nov. 13. They also have a cell phone number and the records show on the night of the murders, at 2:47 AM the phone left his residence and traveled south through Pullman, Washington. It then stopped reporting, but picked up again at 5:30 AM and showed the phone traveling back to his residence. Cops think he deliberately disabled the phone to conceal his travels.

They also have WSU camera footage of him returning at 5:25 AM.

The cell records also indicate Kohberger returned to the scene of the crime just a few hours later -- between 9:12 AM and 9:21 AM. Worth noting is the fact police were not called to the home until 11:58 AM.

BTW ... the cell phone records also show since June 22, he had been near the murder house at least 12 times prior to the murders, and they were typically in the late evening or early morning hours.

And, there's this ... Kohberger applied for an internship with the Pullman PD in Fall 2022.

Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger stalked his victims for months before he allegedly murdered 4 innocent college students, according to the investigators who took him down.

Court records, obtained by TMZ, reveal Kohberger's cell phone was pinged close to the murder house at least twelve times between June 2022 and the date of the murders, November 13, 2022.

Investigators note that in all but one of those instances, the cell phone data was picked up in the late evening and early morning hours.

In one of the most chilling details from the murders, documents reveal one of the roommates told detectives she heard victim Kaylee Goncalves -- who lived a floor above -- around 4 AM the morning of the murder say "there's someone here."

The roommate says she looked outside, and didn't see anyone, but opened her door and heard what she thought was crying coming from victim Xana Kernodle's room. She then says she heard a male voice say something to the effect of, "It's ok, I'm going to help you."

What's not clear is who the male voice was, whether it was Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, who was also killed -- or whether it was Kohberger.

Investigators say a security camera on a neighbor's home picked up distorted audio of voices or a whimper followed by a thud starting at 4:17 AM.

The surviving roommate says when she opened her door a third time after she heard crying, and saw a man dressed in black clothing and a mask covering the man's mouth and nose walking towards her. The roommate says he was 5'10" or taller, not very muscular, but athletically built with bushy eyebrows.

She says she was in a "frozen shock phase" as he walked toward the sliding back door. The roommate says she locked herself in her room, and investigators believe the man left the residence at that time.

It's no coincidence Indiana cops pulled over Bryan Kohberger, the alleged murderer of 4 University of Idaho students, twice in one day -- the stops reportedly happened at the FBI's behest, as they built a case against him.

As we've reported, Kohberger and his father were pulled over on December 15 in Indiana as they were driving cross-country. Police body cameras captured audio and video of Kohberger, who was stopped for driving too close to a truck ... but oddly wasn't ticketed either time.

According to Fox News, that's because the FBI had been tracking the duo's trip from Washington State University to Pennsylvania, and needed more evidence. Specifically, the feds reportedly wanted the local cops to get images of Bryan's hands.

During the first traffic stop, a Hancock County Sheriff's Deputy had what seemed a strangely extensive convo with Kohberger and his father about their trip -- they even discussed a shooting that had occurred that day on the WSU campus.

However, all the while, the cop's body camera was capturing images of Kohberger. Pretty slick surveillance move by the FBI and the officer.

Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger is now in the company of 22 people who've allegedly committed crimes ... and some of the inmates are facing serious charges themselves.

Nearly 2 dozen inmates are locked up at the Latah County Jail in Moscow, where Kohberger's also landed  ... and while some are locked up for minor crimes like petty theft and driving without privileges, others are facing very serious charges.

One of his fellow inmates is Micah James DeMoss -- who's facing 8 counts of video voyeurism, 2 counts of child sexual exploitation material and a charge of rape, where the alleged victim is 16 or 17 and the alleged perpetrator is 3 years older.

Brandi Lea Holland is also spending time at Latah County ... charged with aggravated assault, possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor drug paraphernalia.

Jesse Allan Irby is behind bars for domestic violence with traumatic injury, DUI and unlawful possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.

Jesse Eugene Burnett is also in for lewd conduct with a child under 16 and 4 counts of promoting, publishing or producing child sexually exploitative material.

As for Kohberger, Latah County Sheriff Richard Skiles says he'll get a cell to himself and will be treated like the rest of his inmates -- adding that he can talk to his family on the phone.

As we reported, Kohberger is in ID just days after his arrest because he waived extradition from Pennsylvania ... pics obtained by TMZ showed him and a handful of armed officers stopping to refuel the plane Wednesday in Champaign, IL ... en route to Idaho.