Arrests

Kevin Hart's personal shopper took that title way too literally, according to prosecutors ... who say the guy swindled Kev out of more than a million bucks.

Dylan Syer was in a NYC court Wednesday for his arraignment for grand larceny and 9 other counts ... after he allegedly used Kevin's credit card info to launder cash into his own account, and then burn through it.

Queens County D.A. Melinda Katz says Syer built trust with Kevin, when he was hired in 2015, by making legit, authorized purchases on behalf of Kevin. However, Katz claims Syer started siphoning off hundreds of thousands from Hart's credit cards, depositing the dough into his own bank account.

He wasn't saving for a rainy day, either -- Syer allegedly spent lavishly on himself. All in all, prosecutors say Kevin was defrauded out of nearly $1.2 mil over nearly 2 years. Much of that was allegedly used to buy pricey jewelry, watches, art, collectibles and luxury handbags.

The D.A. says Syer's haul included 5 Patek Philippe watches worth more than $400k, a Sam Friedman painting, at least 16 Bearbrick collectible dolls, 5 KAWS collectible dolls and 2 Louis Vuitton bags.

Bruno Mars' "24K Magic" became a $100k nightmare for one Texas woman, who told cops she was hoodwinked into forking over a fortune to someone passing as the singer.

The alleged victim was 63 when she told cops in Houston she made an IG account in 2018, and connected with someone claiming to be Bruno. She says the person developed an online relationship with her and eventually asked for cash.

Of course, as is oftentimes the case with these stories, she says she cut a couple of checks and put 'em in the mail, as instructed -- one for $10k, and another $90k.

Police say the money found its way into the bank account of one Chinwendu Azuonwu -- a local man who was taken into custody on money laundering charges, along with an alleged accomplice, Basil Amadi, who's facing similar charges. Both men were in court this week.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, 2 cashier's checks were made out to "Chi Autos" at the behest of the fake Bruno, to cover “tour expenses” ... that's what he told the woman, anyway. She says he also told her he was leaving the tour to come be with her.

Cops told local news outlets they believe these men may be low-level crooks working for scammers overseas -- and are hoping they cooperate to help uncover a potentially bigger criminal ring.

Florida cops are feeling the heat over that video of a deputy's assault on a female high school student ... so much so, they're addressing the case in a news conference.

The Osceola County Sheriff's Office will discuss the case Wednesday morning after the horrific incident at Liberty High School Tuesday afternoon. Video showed a resource officer violently restraining a female student, and throwing her onto the ground ... head first.

In the video, you see the teenager hit the concrete hard, and her body goes limp. The officer proceeds to place handcuffs on her as the crowd around screams. Multiple people appeared to be recording, and caught the action from different angles. It looked like the student lost consciousness.

The only thing we've heard from OCSO thus far is that the officer was breaking up a fight, and that an investigation is underway.

Presumably, Sheriff Marcos Lopez -- who'll be at the podium shortly -- will have some sort of update on what they've learned at this point, and whether the officer will face any repercussions. It'll be interesting to hear if he denounces the act, or tries to justify it.

Several people have accused the officer of excessive force, with some supposed eyewitnesses claiming the girl was already under control and separated when the cop did what he did. Unclear how the student is doing, or what her condition is.

One of the Capitol insurrectionists had plans to kill Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ... according to the Department of Justice.

The DOJ revealed new charges against Garret Miller of Texas, alleging he posted online death threats against the New York congresswoman the day of the siege, including one tweet that simply read, "Assassinate AOC."

That's terrifying, considering Rep. Ocasio-Cortez herself said she felt her life was on the line that day, and that she didn't know if she'd live to see tomorrow. Turns out, she was on to something ... at least according to authorities.

In addition to the alleged AOC threat, the DOJ says Miller also threatened the officer who shot and killed Ashli Babbitt. He said the officer "deserved to die" and that he wouldn't live long, because it was "huntin season." The feds say he was posting a ton before and during the attempted coup, and was saying things like, "civil war could start" and "next time we bring the guns."

In addition to the new death threats charges, Miller faces charges of knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted buildings or grounds without lawful authority, violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, obstructing or impeding any official proceeding and certain acts during civil disorder. He's one of several rioters who've been rounded up.

Interestingly, Miller said on social media that he wanted to implicate himself in the siege, and was not shy about copping to the deed ... based on screenshots the feds attached as evidence. AOC herself latched onto his stupidity when she heard about this guy.

She took to Twitter -- where a lot of his activity was captured, including his own footage of himself from inside the Capitol that day -- and wrote, "'Just wanted to incriminate myself a little' Well, you did!"

Justin Bieber is looking back at his tumultuous teenage years with humility -- reminiscing on how much he's changed since getting arrested for DUI, and everything else in between.

Bieber posted a photo of himself getting hauled off by cops in Miami in 2014, when he was arrested on suspicion of DUI, resisting arrest and driving without a valid license. Cops say he was drag racing in the streets, and later blew below the legal limit for people under 21.

He was 19 at the time, and in his caption ... Justin says he's come a long way since then, mostly due to the grace of God. He writes, "7 years ago today I was arrested, not my finest hour. Not proud of where I was at in my life. I was hurting, unhappy, confused, angry, mislead, misunderstood and angry at god."

He adds, "I also wore too much leather for someone in Miami. All this to say God has brought me a long way. From then til now I do realize something.. God was as close to me then as he is right now. My encouragement to you is to ‘let your past be a reminder of how far god has brought you."

JB finishes by saying, "Don’t allow shame to ruin your “today” let the forgiveness of Jesus take over and watch your life blossom into all that God has designed you to be. LOVE YOU GUYS WITH MY WHOLE HEART"

It's true, Justin was going through a lot back then. Right around the time he was busted for DUI -- which was later reduced to reckless driving and resisting arrest after the Biebs copped a plea -- he got nailed for egging his neighbor's house.

Bieber was charged with vandalism and ended up copping a plea. The egging was also the subject of a lengthy lawsuit that dragged on for years, which was ultimately settled.

There were other bumps in the road -- namely, him getting sued by a photog, which resulted in Bieber sitting for an infamous deposition where he gave tons of lip. He's had several paparazzi run-ins in Hollywood, figuratively and literally with cars of his and otherwise.

He also peed in a mop bucket in 2013, and randomly shouted "F*** Bill Clinton." His legal woes go on and on, but as far as criminal arrests ... he's just got the DUI to look back on.

Ariel Robinson -- a former winner of 'Worst Cooks in America' -- jokingly discussed raising kids in a brutal manner before she was charged with killing one of her own ... and we've got the video.

We've obtained footage of Ariel performing an impromptu stand-up routine in Spartanburg, SC in 2019, in which she's discussing trying to adopt a daughter ... and a social worker coming to her home to make sure she was a fit parent.

As Ariel recounts the story, she talks about two other children of hers -- an 8-year-old boy and an 11-year-old boy, both of whom wanted a little sister -- and how they were acting wild while the worker was there. She says she should've locked them up in cages as a result.

Nothing too crazy ... but watch what she says next. She jokes that at one point, she turned around and screamed upstairs to the boys, "Shut up before I come in there and punch in your throat!" ... adding that she'd reached her "mommy level" of frustration.

It got a bit of a mixed reaction from the crowd, which Ariel also played up ... saying the social worker looked at her like they all were. Then, she says she got "approved." Unclear if this story relates to the adopted daughter she and her husband are accused of killing.

As we reported ... Ariel and Jerry Robinson were arrested and charged with homicide of a 3-year-old girl -- who has since been identified as Victoria Smith, a toddler who'd spent a majority of her life in foster care. Reports say the Robinsons adopted her at some point.

Authorities list a series of blunt force injuries that led to her death.

A Napa man was hoarding an absurd amount of guns and bombs fit for a small battalion ... so claim cops anyway, who busted the guy on a ton of weapons charges.

44-year-old Ian Benjamin Rogers was arrested Friday by the Napa County Sheriff's Office after they were tipped off about a huge stockpile of firepower at his house and business.

What deputies say they found is incredible, and not in a good way either -- more than 50 guns (several of which were unregistered/illegal), over 15,000 rounds of ammo and several POUNDS of gun powder.

Not only that, but the cops also claim they found 5 pipe bombs in Rogers' safe -- which were later rendered safe by NCSO's bomb squad.

Rogers was taken in and booked on multiple felony charges -- including possession of destructive devices or explosives, possession of an assault weapon, and more. One other thing too ... NCSO tells us Rogers was making "politically motivated" comments during their interview with him, but wouldn't elaborate on what was said.

One of the Capitol rioters who was arrested in the aftermath now has an audacious ask of President Trump ... she's begging for a pardon, saying she was just following his orders.

Texas realtor Jenna Ryan told CBS11 in Dallas she deserves a full pardon by 45 after she was arrested and charged by the FBI this past week during a national roundup of numerous insurrectionists.

Ryan faces 2 charges ... knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building or grounds without lawful authority and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. But, according to her, she's been grossly overcharged -- she feels she did nothing wrong.

Check out her full remarks ... kinda surreal hearing her defend her actions by saying the exact opposite of things she said on Jan. 6 as she breached the Capitol. She's blaming Trump for gathering the crowd and rising them up ... and because of that, she says she and all the other charged rioters should be let off the hook.

Ryan doesn't get into the details of her case, but does say she's not the person people have made her out to be online ... a privileged, tone-deaf Trump supporter. We say privileged because she reportedly flew to D.C. on a private jet with friends.

As for tone-deaf ... there are tons of photos and videos of Ryan posing in front of the Capitol and with rioters behind her, acting like she was on vacation or something. She also admits to criminality in videos she posted ... and proudly said she and the mob were there to take back their country.

A Virginia man got busted trying to breach a D.C. checkpoint with a stash of ammo and a couple of guns ... this just a few days before Joe Biden's inauguration.

Wesley Allen Beeler was arrested Friday night after coming across a checkpoint in downtown D.C., where Metro PD officers stopped and questioned him. According to CNN, the guy allegedly tried presenting fake inauguration credentials ... and while searching him, cops found out he was packing.

The outlet reports officers asked if he had any weapons on him, and Beeler allegedly admitted to having a Glock semi-automatic pistol on him. Turns out, he had a lot more than that, according to police ... who say they uncovered a treasure trove of ammo.

In the police report, obtained by TMZ, MPD lists 509 rounds of ammunition for a 9MM handgun -- matching the Glock Beeler allegedly had -- as well as 21 12-gauge shotgun shells and a 17-round magazine, which was loaded in the gun and ready to fire.

Unclear what Beeler told officers he was doing there with his bogus credentials, but in any case ... he was cuffed and hauled off to jail on a slew of weapons charges.

The guy was booked for possession of an unregistered firearm, possession of unregistered ammunition, unlawful possession of ammunition, possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device ... and for breaking the stay-at-home order in town.

A week after the chaos at the Capitol, and it appears bad actors are still trying to infiltrate the area leading up to Wednesday's inauguration.

The guy who was wearing animal fur and parading around with a policeman's shield inside the Capitol building during last week's riot is the son of a prominent judge in Brooklyn ... who now has to watch his boy go through the criminal justice system.

34-year-old Aaron Mostofsky was arrested Tuesday and brought before a Brooklyn judge -- not his father, Brooklyn Supreme Court Judge, Shlomo Mostofsky -- this judge is federal. He was released on $100k bail with strict conditions.

Mostofsky faces four counts -- theft of government property, illegal entry into a restricted area, illegal entry with intent to impede government functions, and disorderly conduct. Aaron was released to the custody of his older brother, and was ordered to stay in NYC (unless given permission) and wear an ankle monitor.

The judge also said Mostofsky's forbidden from communicating with his co-defendants, cannot participate in any political gatherings, and has to steer clear of all state capitals.

Mostofsky's attorney said his client is aware of the seriousness of the charges against him ... but insists he was just "caught up" in the moment.

Granted, he did get his hands on that Capitol Police shield ... and posed for some weird shots without hesitation, even giving on-camera interviews! The one thing he did do since getting back from D.C. to remain low-key, it seems ... get a haircut. The dude's almost unrecognizable now with his new 'do, but those glasses are a dead giveaway.

YFN Lucci is a wanted man in Atlanta -- because cops suspect he's involved in the shooting death of a man.

Atlanta PD's homicide unit tells us they're looking to bring in 29-year-old Rayshawn Bennett -- Lucci's real name -- on multiple charges ... including felony murder, aggravated assault, participation in criminal street gang activity, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

The reason ... he's suspected of being involved in a shooting incident in southwest Atlanta last month, which left one man dead from a gunshot wound to the head and another man injured. Cops say the second victim was shot only minutes after the first.

Cops say the shootings are related and have already made 2 arrests -- 23-year-old Ra'von Boyd and 17-year-old Leroy Pitts were booked for felony murder.

A Proud Boys leader is now in federal custody after taking part in the Capitol siege and then claiming he was there as a reporter ... something law enforcement clearly ain't buying.

Nicholas Ochs -- who heads up the Hawaii faction of the far-right extremist group -- was arrested by FBI agents after touching down at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu ... this following his trip to D.C. to storm the Capitol.

According to an unsealed indictment, the feds are charging Ochs with unlawful entry into restricted buildings or grounds -- and they cite evidence they say Ochs himself laid out on social media and CNN ... the later to whom he made the ridiculous "journalist" comment.

The day after the insurrection, he claimed he was there working as a professional journalist, seemingly saying he had a right to be there and was not part of the riot. He also said he didn't break in ... he simply entered without incident.

Adding insult to injury ... the guy also posted a photo of him smoking a cigarette with a buddy, with a caption attached that reads, "Hello from the Capital lol."

Miya Ponsetto's October DUI (the second such arrest in 4 months) was filmed by bystanders ... and yes, it's about as wild as we've come to expect, ending with this rant to cops: "There are gang members killing people right now and you're arresting a girl?"

TMZ has obtained video of Miya's arrest Oct. 3 in Ventura County -- for which she was charged with DUI, resisting arrest and obstructing/delaying a peace officer or EMT -- and the accusations against her seem pretty solid ... because she was absolutely out of control.

An eyewitness tells us ... the drama started when Miya and her mom, Nicole, stopped on the side of a road ... screaming and cussing at each other while outside of their Range Rover.

The witness says she tried seeing if they needed help, but Miya got back in the car and demanded her mom do the same ... at which point, the witness says they recklessly drove off. The witness called the cops and tailed them, fearing Miya might've been intoxicated by the way she was driving. Eventually, they all pulled into a gas station.

That's where things hit the fan, especially when cops showed up. They attempted to detain Miya, who threw a fit the entire time ... demanding to see a warrant, demanding to know what she'd done wrong, insulting the officers, squirming around to avoid cuffs ... everything.

You can watch for yourself and make up your own mind -- but her actions here are certainly in line with other behavior of hers on camera ... be it at the Arlo Hotel or with Gayle King.

Cops say they eventually were able to get a reading on her blood alcohol level -- .14, nearly twice the legal limit.

Remember, this is Miya's second arrest -- she was hit with the first DUI in Malibu (where she was also allegedly combative) back in May and pled no contest, so she was on probation. Getting arrested and charged with DUI could be enough for her to do jail time ... not to mention her NYC case. BTW ... there's also a pending case where she was charged with being drunk in public at the Peninsula hotel in Bev Hills.

Of course, Miya's now on the East Coast, where she faces a slew of charges for attacking Keyon Harrold's 14-year-old son and accusing him of stealing her phone. She was in Court Saturday for arraignment but did not enter a plea. She was then released from custody.

The family of the Southern California man who died after being arrested at a grocery store is following through with a lawsuit that describes the incident in eerily similar detail to George Floyd's death.

Ernie Serrano's mother, Maria Lowrie, has filed a wrongful death suit against the County of Riverside and its Sheriff's Dept -- along with the Stater Bros. Market where the incident occurred -- claiming they killed her son.

According to the legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Lowrie claims Serrano was shopping on December 15 when store security began to pester him and then physically confronted him.

Serrano's mom says the security contacted the sheriff's office and falsely accused him of assault with a deadly weapon -- she claims he was unarmed. The store claims he had reached for the security guard's weapon.

According to the suit ... when deputies showed up they immediately were hostile toward Serrano and "escalated a very minor situation, into a fatal situation."

Lowrie claims her son was not aggressive toward the officers, but they responded with unreasonable brute force -- including beating him and using a Taser.

According to the suit ... the deputies were not satisfied with tasing and beating Serrano with a baton, so they took him down and pummeled him with their fists. Lowrie claims they continued to torture him for nearly 7 minutes, including slamming him on his stomach on a checkout stand and cutting off his air supply.

Lowrie says while her son was pinned down, he screamed out "I can't breathe man" and pleaded for help. Instead, a spit mask was placed on him, which allegedly restricted his breathing even more ... and Serrano's mom claims he was spitting blood into it as he begged them to take it off.

According to the suit ... after 6 minutes and 40 seconds of being pinned down forcefully, a deputy realized he wasn't breathing and had lost consciousness. Lowrie believes he was likely already dead by the time of this discovery.

Serrano's mom's accusing the deputies of ignoring all of the factors that can lead to death by asphyxia, denying him proper medical care, and assault and battery leading to his death. She wants the Stater Bros. held accountable for negligence as well.

The family of a Southern California man who died in police custody says he got the same treatment as George Floyd ... which can now be seen on video as authorities investigate.

33-year-old Ernie Serrano died last Tuesday after he was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon following an incident that required police assistance at a grocery store in Jurupa Valley ... which left him bloodied, battered and, ultimately, unresponsive.

The Riverside County Sheriff's Dept. released body cam footage as well as witness and surveillance video from that day ... and it shows Serrano at a Stater Bros. attempting to check out at the register, when for some reason security intervenes ... and they tussle.

The fighting goes on for a few minutes -- reports say the guard Tasered him and used pepper spray on him as well ... and that's when several Sheriff's deputies arrived. In the video, you can see one of the deputies unloads on a stumbling Serrano with his baton, striking him several times in the arm and stomach -- until, eventually, the whole squad tackles and detains him.

Body cam video shows Serrano bleeding from his face as deputies attempt to handcuff him -- while pinning his torso against a countertop. He's screaming for them to let him go as cops try to calm him down. Serrano actually screamed, "Excessive force" at one point.

They then put a spit mask on him, and he quiets down ... at some point after that he lost consciousness. Deputies put him on the floor and tried to resuscitate him. Serrano was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.

RCSD held a press conference Monday, saying the department and the District Attorney's Office were investigating. They also released a preliminary autopsy report they say lists his cause of death as acute methamphetamine intoxication ... which the Sheriff's Dept. says caused a fatal arrhythmia as he struggled with deputies.

The Sherrif's Dept. also says the autopsy shows contusions on his right arm and stomach, consistent with baton strikes. They add there's no sign of asphyxiation or other forms of trauma. Of course, Serrano's fam and their attorney, Humberto Guizar, see things differently.

Guizar says it's clear the deputies held him down in a compromised position for too long, which he believes led to Serrano's death. He's calling for an independent autopsy to be done, while also signaling he and the family are ramping up for a lawsuit. Guizar believes what happened to Serrano was not dissimilar to George Floyd.

Peruvian cops take their sting operations quite seriously, especially around the holidays, as you can see in this drug bust featuring Saint Nick ... bashing in a door with a hammer!!!

This drug raid in Lima was captured on camera, and it shows 2 Peruvian police officers disguised as Santa and an elf literally busting into the home of a suspected drug dealer in town. Looks like they mighta been right, as they found tons of weed.

Imagine how deep undercover this duo had to go to make this collar. If it required sitting in as a mall Santa for even one day, they deserve medals!

BTW, apparently, this police force has gone undercover before as homeless people and street sweepers. In any case, their latest operation made for a dramatic payoff. It's not everyday ya get to see Santa and an elf hop out of a van, break down and a door ... and leave with a sack full of ganja.

In addition to the marijuana ... cops say they found guns and drug paraphernalia.