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Post by Admin on Aug 16, 2014 6:10:47 GMT
Stephen Howells II, 39, and Nicole Vaisey, 25, of Hermon, N.Y. were arrested Friday after being interviewed by investigators in St. Lawrence County, near the Canadian border. The couple is charged with snatching two Amish sisters from their family's roadside food stand around 7 p.m. Wednesday before dropping them off 35 miles away around 8 p.m. Thursday. An upstate couple was arrested and arraigned Friday on charges they planned to physically harm or sexually abuse two young Amish sisters they kidnapped from a roadside farm stand, authorities said. tephen Howells II, 39 and Nicole Vaisey, 25, of Hermon, N.Y. each face two counts of first-degree kidnapping for grabbing the girls in Oswegatchie, N.Y. just before 7 p.m. Wednesday, St. Lawrence County District Attorney Mary Rain told the Daily News. The girls were found around 8 p.m. Thursday after being dropped off in the hamlet of Richville, some 35 miles northwest of where they were abducted. “The girls are home, they were checked out at the hospital last night,” Rain said. “They are fine.” The St. Lawerence County Sheriff's Office said in a statement late Friday that the couple's arrest “no doubt saved young children from future abuse.” The Amish girls, 12-year-old Fannie Miller and Delila Miller, 7, were “extremely” instrumental to finding the perps, Rain said. Authorities are now trying to learn more about where the girls were kept during the 24 hours they were missing. Rain spoke from the couple’s home at 1380 County Route 21 in Hermon, where investigators were searching the house. The sisters vanished Wednesday evening after a witness said a small, white 4-door sedan drove up to the roadside stand in Oswegatchie and its passenger got out and threw “something in back,” state authorities said. Both girls were wearing dark blue dresses with blue aprons and black bonnets and had just returned from milking and were helping a customer at the stand, authorities said. An Amber Alert issued at 1 a.m. Thursday was canceled just before 10 p.m. that night.
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Post by Admin on Aug 17, 2014 13:50:10 GMT
Two Amish girls who were kidnapped this week were sexually assaulted during the 24 hours they were held captive, law enforcement officials told the Los Angeles Times on Saturday. St. Lawrence County Dist. Atty. Mary Rain said the victims, a 12-year-old girl and her 6-year-old sister, suffered the assaults after they were abducted near their family's home in Heuvelton, N.Y., on Wednesday. Stephen Howell II, 39, and Nicole Vaisey, 25, are charged with kidnapping the girls. Rain said Howell and Vaisey had been charged with first-degree kidnapping rather than sexual assault because in New York the first-degree charge applies if kidnapping victims suffer an injury or sexual assault. The Los Angeles Times and many other news organizations previously published the girls' names, which were revealed when they first went missing, but The Times is now withholding their identities because of the sexual assault allegations. Two young Amish girls were abducted Wednesday and were apparently released on Thursday. Stephen Howells II, 39, and Nicole Vaisey, 25 of 1380 County Rt. 21 in Hermon were arrested Friday night and charged with first degree kidnapping, a felony. Because it's an A-1 class offense, there was no immediate bail arrangement made and both have been taken to the St. County jail. Stephen Howells II and Nicole Vaisey have been charged with first degree kidnapping. Photos: St. Lawrence County Sheriff "Coercion was utilized" during the kidnapping, Wells said, though he declined to specify details. Wells added that investigators are looking to see "if there are other victims" and said that there is "definitely potential" that Howells and Vaisey attacked others prior to last week's kidnapping. Officials at the press conference Saturday also confirmed that the girls were instrumental in helping law enforcement find the suspect's house. Howells and Vaisey only face allegations at this point and are innocent until proved guilty. Details from the SLC Sheriff release:
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Post by Admin on Aug 18, 2014 7:51:36 GMT
The St. Lawrence County woman accused of helping her boyfriend kidnap two Amish girls studied the psychology of rape as a college student. Nicole Vaisey was a senior psychology major at Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa. in 2011 when she published research about the effects of watching pornography on attitudes toward rape. Vaisey's hypothesis was that participants who saw sexually suggestive images would blame the victims more than those who had not. Vaisey, 25, and Stephen M. Howells II, 39, of 1380 county Route 21 in Hermon, are both charged with two counts of first-degree kidnapping. Not guilty pleas have been entered on their behalf. More charges may be filed, according to the prosecutor. St. Lawrence County District Attorney Mary Rain has said the girls, ages 7 and 12, were sexually assaulted during their 24 hours in captivity. Vaisey and Howells are accused of kidnapping the girls from a roadside vegetable stand and taking them to their home, about 16 miles away, in rural northern New York. Neither Howells nor Vaisey had previously been arrested. The couple met online about a year and a half ago, according to a source familiar with their relationship. During her senior year at Mercyhurst College, Vaisey received a $1,500 Psi Chi undergraduate research grant to help defray the cost of her research, according to The Merciad Mercyhurst University newspaper. Vaisey was president of the Mercyhurst chapter of Psi Chi at the time, as well as a member of the Mercyhurst Psychology Club and the Mercyhurst Active Minds chapter, the newspaper reported. "I enjoy studying social psychology the most because I am fascinated by the way that people interact with each other and society as a whole and how they function as an individual in a group," Vaisey told the college newspaper. Vaisey told the college newspaper she planned to take a short break from her studies after graduation, but eventually attend graduate school and become psychology professor. After college, a source familiar with Vaisey said she worked as a substitute teacher at a day care center, then she worked at L.E.A.P. (Living: Exploring All Possibilities) that serves developmentally disabled individuals in St. Lawrence County. Then, while living with Howells, Vaisey worked twice a week as a dog groomer at Bows & Bandanas Pet Salon and Resort, the source said.
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Post by Admin on Aug 22, 2014 14:34:44 GMT
Hours after announcing a missing Fort Lauderdale teen was found safe at hotel, Fort Lauderdale Police arrested the 19-year-old man she was with. James Adam Pescovitz Gider is charged with two counts of lewd and lascivious battery on a minor. It’s believed they’ve been seeing each other since June. “Our investigators are still working this case. It’s active and ongoing and there are questions that still need to be answered,” Capt. Frank Sousa said. Before any of those details came to light, her father told reporters outside the police department he knew his daughter likely wasn’t at the hotel alone. “There had to be circumstances that got her where she was,” her father said. “It’s not like she had money to pay for a hotel. Something and someone had to be involved here.” The teen’s brother flew in from Idaho earlier this week to help find his sister. “She was in good spirits,” he said of his sister. “She was shocked that I was here all the way from Idaho. Last time I was here I didn’t have a beard and her first comment was, ‘Wow, you have a beard. Can I touch it?”
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Post by Admin on Aug 30, 2014 15:24:42 GMT
Fears are growing for The Only Way Is Essex star James Argent, who has been reported missing, police said today. Officers in Redbridge are growing increasingly concerned for the welfare of the missing 26 year old, best known as Arg for his time on the hit reality show, after he was last seen at around 3am on Friday at his home in Woodford Green, Essex. The TV star shot to fame when he joined the Towie cast along with his best friend Mark Wright when the series first aired in 2010. Since then he has seen his stock rise including collecting the show's Bafta Audience Award in 2011, amassing 1.4 million followers on Twitter and appearing on a host of chat shows. In 2012, he completed the London Marathon in a little over six hours in aid of Cancer Research. He is expected to appear in the next season of Towie due to be aired on new channel ITVBe in October. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "His family and friends knew him to be at his home address at the time. Obviously he has left home but it is not known where to. "It is unusual according to his family and his agent." He is described as white and of large build, about 6ft tall with dark hair. At the time of his disappearance Argent was wearing a blue tracksuit, believed to be a Nike, and was carrying a blue sports bag. The Only Way is Essex star James Argent has made contact with his mother to confirm that he is safe and well, his agent has told ITV News. The reality TV star had been reported missing after failing to turn up to an airport for a flight on Friday morning. He later tweeted and apologised for any worry he caused.
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