Smallville actress charged with sex trafficking offence relating to NXIVM group
Federal prosecutors say Allison Mack who played
Superman's close friend has been charged
The Associated Press
Smallville actress Allison Mack has been arrested for her alleged role in the notorious New York group called NXIVM. (Twitter)
Federal prosecutors say a television actress best known for playing a young Superman's close friend has been charged with sex trafficking for helping recruit women to be slaves of a man who sold himself as a self-improvement guru.
Allison Mack was accused in an indictment unsealed Friday in federal court in Brooklyn, N.Y. She was scheduled to appear in court later Friday.
Mack, 35, starred in The CW network's Smallville, ending in 2015, a re-imagining of the early life of Superman, but has played only minor roles since then.
Smallville was filmed right here in my home town of Abbotsford, British Columbia.
Prosecutors say she helped recruit sex slaves for leader Keith Raniere and his cult-like organization called NXIVM (NEX'-ee-um).
Raniere is being held on trafficking charges, and his attorneys have said he's innocent.
Keith Raniere is the founder and creator of NXIVM and its offshoot, Executive Success Programs, which is a marketing arm that sells self-development courses and seminars. (Executive Success Programs)
Teacher arrested in child sex case had contacted fifth-grader months before, incident unreported
By NATE GARTRELL Bay Area News Group
MARTINEZ — A Vallejo elementary school teacher arrested for alleged illicit contact with an undercover cop posing as a young teen violated his school’s policy last October when he contacted a fifth-grader through social media, records show.
Andrew Lund, 36, allegedly contacted the young student through a private message on social media, asked if she missed him, and told her to say behind in his classroom during recess periods. The move violated a school district policy barring teachers from contacting students through social media.
Lund’s punishment? He was given a written notice telling him the incident would not be placed in his personnel file, so long as he did not violate the policy again. The incident was not reported to authorities.
But according to police, Lund’s attempts to contact minors through the Internet did not end there. He was arrested Thursday after he allegedly sent a photo of his genitals to an undercover officer posing as a 14-year-old girl, the culmination of lengthy, sexually explicit conversations. He then arranged to meet at a Contra Costa mall, saying he’d bring condoms, according to police.
Lund agreed to a police interview Thursday, and admitted he had a “serious issue sexting with minors on the internet,” police wrote in a report. He said he wouldn’t have followed through with having sex, had he met with a real 14-year-old girl. He said he looked at child porn online, and police found child porn images on his devices, according to records.
Bay Area lawyer Micha Liberty, who handles sex abuse lawsuits but is not involved with this case, said the district should have immediately reported the October incident to police. She said the failure may have violated mandated reporting laws in California, which require school officials to call the cops or child protective services when they suspect child abuse is occurring.
“There is absolutely no excuse for them not reaching out to law enforcement. Even if you don’t think abuse is occurring, the idea that they would agree to not put any sort of documentation regarding the investigation conducted in his file is outrageous,” she said. “The whole concept that there could be some sort of secret agreement kept off the books should be criminal.”
Vallejo City School District Superintendent Adam Clark said he could not comment on the October incident because it is a “personnel matter.”
When the news of Lund’s arrest broke yesterday, Clark wrote a Facebook post saying the district would be cooperating with law enforcement.
“To our knowledge, there are no district students involved in this investigation. Moreover, we took great measures to ensure that student learning was not disrupted while law enforcement was on campus,” Clark wrote.
During the conversations with the undercover officer, Lund wrote that he “really liked small breasts and small butts.” He asked the “girl” to meet him at Sun Valley Mall in Concord and said he would bring condoms, according to the affidavit.
After police had gathered enough evidence against Lund, they went to Glen Cove Elementary in Vallejo to seize his files. They were met by Chief Academic Officer Cheri Summers, who refused to turn over devices that had been used by Lund. Investigators showed up later with a warrant to search the entire school and seized the electronic devices.
“That is an unusually hostile position to take,” Liberty said.
But Clark said he directed Summers to tell police to get a warrant. He said he did so to preserve the integrity of the investigation.
“I did not want the case jeopardized in any way shape or form, I just wanted to make sure we are going through protocol,” Clark said.
When police interviewed Lund, he told them that approximately 10 years ago he was living next door to two teen girls in Vallejo, and that he’d had a sexting relationship with one of them. He also mentioned the inappropriate contact he’d had with the fifth-grader, describing to police that he messaged her asked if she missed him.
Lund was arrested on suspicion of sending harmful material to a minor and trying to meet a minor for sex, both felonies. His bail was set at $500,000. Prosecutors expect to bring charges against Lund Friday afternoon.
Authorities are encouraging victims or anyone with more information to call Contra Costa District Attorney Senior Inspector Darryl Holcombe at 925-957-2263 or dholcombe@contracostada.org.
New York couple now facing predatory sexual assault
charges on 10 y/o girl
Victoria E. Freile
A Greece couple accused of sexually abusing a child is facing additional charges, according to a 10-count indictment by a Monroe County grand jury.
John P. Kohlmeier Jr., 36, and Bonnie L. Hughes, 33, were each charged with two counts of predatory sexual assault of a child and four counts of first-degree sexual abuse, both felonies, according to the Monroe County District Attorney's Office.
Kohlmeier was also charged with two counts of possessing sexual performance by a child, a felony, and Hughes is also facing two counts of use of a child in a sexual performance, a felony.
The couple was initially charged by Greece police last month after a lengthy investigation.
Kohlmeier and Hughes last week were charged (4th story in link) with production, receipt, and possession of child pornography, and coercing and enticing a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity and will face those charges in federal court.
It is alleged that on March 19, Hughes took sexually explicit photos of a 10-year-old girl, at Kohlmeier's request, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. That same day, Kohlmeier and Hughes allegedly engaged in sexual conduct with the child.
Further details on what transpired were not released.
Both are being held in the Monroe County Jail. Hughes is being held on $100,000 bail or bond and Kohlmeier is being held in lieu of $50,000 bail or bond. An arraignment date on the new charges has not yet been set.
Man sentenced to 45 years in prison in child abuse case
DELMARVA NOW STAFF REPORT
A Salisbury man will serve more than four decades in prison in connection with a 2017 child abuse incident in Fruitland, Wicomico prosecutors said.
Byron Maurice Simpson, 34, was sentenced in Wicomico County Circuit Court to serve 45 years active time for sexual abuse of a minor and second-degree rape, according to the county state's attorney's office.
Upon release, Simpson must register for life as a Tier III sex offender, prosecutors said. Simpson was already a Tier I sex offender for a 2004 conviction for fourth-degree sex offense and was non-compliant with registration requirements.
The sentence is to be served consecutive to a three-year sentence Simpson is serving for a second-degree assault conviction in Wicomico County.
A Wicomico County jury found Simpson, 34, guilty of charges stemming from an incident where Simpson raped a 13-year old female in a car at a family member’s home in Fruitland in the early morning hours of May 13, 2017, prosecutors said. Simpson was related to the child.
“Simpson is a repeat sexual offender preying on vulnerable children," said Interim State's Attorney Jamie Dykes in a news release. "Judge Sarbanes imposition of the maximum sentence reflects the depravity of the defendant’s conduct and the effect that his crimes have upon his victim. Children suffering at the hands of sexual offenders, oftentimes trusted relatives and caregivers, will pay a steep price for the crimes of the offender for years, sometimes decades.”
Child Sex Predator Arrested In Portland: Police
By Travis Loose, Patch Staff
PORTLAND, OR — After a brief undercover investigation, Portland police arrested a 32-year-old Portland man for using social media to lure a child for the purpose of sex.
Douglas Earl Brandow was taken to Multnomah County Jail. He is charged with attempted rape, attempted sodomy, and attempted sexual abuse, as well as purchasing sex with a minor, online sexual corruption of a child, and luring a minor. His bail is set at $51,500.
The Portland Police Bureau's Sex Trafficking Unit began investigating Brandow on April 18, after it received a tip from Washington State police that he may be participating in criminal activity.
To capture Brandow, a Portland undercover officer contacted him via social media. Assuming he was communicating with a young girl, Brandow contacted the undercover officer multiple times as he attempted to establish a sexual relationship, police said.
Arranging to meet the undercover officer for sex in Portland on April 19, Brandow dictated a time and place. Upon his arrival at the arranged meeting, Brandow was promptly arrested by East Precinct Sex Trafficking Unit officers.
While Brandow has no previous criminal history in Oregon related to minor sex abuse, Portland police reportedly have reason to believe there are additional victims to Brandow's exploits.
Anyone who may have information that could assist this investigation is asked to contact the PPB Sex Trafficking Unit at 503-823-4867.
Additionally, anyone who knows about a victim of sexual predation is encouraged to call the PPB at 503-823-4800, the Sexual Assault Resource Center hotline at 1-800-640-5311, or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678.
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