Crime & Arrests

Michelle Branch's criminal case has been called off by prosecutors ... this coming less than 2 weeks after she got arrested for alleged domestic assault against her estranged husband, Patrick Carney.

The disposition, obtained by TMZ, shows the case was dismissed at the request of the state, although the specifics as to why are still unclear.

As we reported, police were called to her and Patrick's home August 11 around 2 AM for a possible domestic disturbance -- cops say Michelle admitted she slapped Patrick "one or two times."

She was taken into custody, where her bail was set at $1,000 ... she was released early because she's breastfeeding the couple's 6-month-old.

Tyson Fury is still calling for harsher penalties for knife crime in the UK in the wake of his cousin's tragic death ... insisting officials should straight up castrate perpetrators.

The boxing superstar didn't mince words when expressing his outrage on talkSport on Wednesday ... demanding government officials do more to deter knife crime in his home country after his cousin was stabbed to death following an altercation outside of a bar earlier this month.

"What the government needs to do about this knife crime, anyone caught with a knife or stabbing someone needs castrating," the 34-year-old fighter said.

"It cost as a government too much money to house them in a prison. It costs them 50-to-60-grand a year to put these scumbags in jail. Castrate the little bastards. Castrate them."

Fury initially sounded off on the matter on his Instagram page on Sunday -- just hours after his relative, 31-year-old Rico Burton, was killed in Manchester.

Fury called for a big crackdown then -- but he expounded on it all on Wednesday ... saying people who are caught even carrying knives should be locked away behind bars for "5-to-7 years."

"We're supposed to be one of the safest countries in the world," he said. "But yet we can't go down the street with a watch on or anything because we're going to get stabbed."

"The government needs to make this tougher on these little cowards who carry knives and weapons."

He added, "What little scumbag coward needs to carry a knife around with them in our country?"

Florida rapper Hotboii’s career stalled last year when he got caught up in a RICO case that authorities claim involved warring gangs … but he just scored a legal victory that may help his chances of being released on bond.

Hotboii’s lawyer, Bradford Cohen, tells TMZ Hip Hop his client’s Miami gun possession case was dismissed on Tuesday … but the RICO case in Orlando remains open.

Hotboii's bond was revoked when he surrendered last month in Miami to deal with the gun case and Cohen thinks this dismissal could provide a silver lining to getting his bond reinstated.

Hotboii was also part of the 34-person indictment dubbed “Operation X-Force” … a concentrated effort to thwart the alleged crimes of rivals Army Gang and 438 Gang.

The 22-year-old rapper was riding high this past summer when Drake put the stamp of approval on his newly released “WTF” single … but saw the buzz fizzle when he surrendered to authorities last month.

Irene Bedard, the actor who voiced Pocahontas in the animated film, sounds like she had a rough day ... based on what cops are saying about her latest arrest.

The Disney star was arrested Friday in Greene County, Ohio for disorderly conduct ... and the arrest report paints a pretty sad picture.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, cops say officers were conducting a welfare check after receiving a report a woman had passed out in the bushes on a residential street.

When police arrived, they say they found Irene in a nearby parking lot and she displayed a roller coaster of emotions ... one moment she's talking calmly with cops and the next she's upset and crying.

Cops say Irene was with another woman, Sheila, who told police the name of someone they could contact for Irene ... causing Irene to scream about not wanting that person to get involved. Officers say Irene then dashed away from them and almost knocked over a table on the sidewalk.

The report says Irene stopped running and calmly walked with cops for a moment, then suddenly became furious over a previous interaction with police.

Remember ... Irene was arrested twice over a three-day period back in November 2020, and police body cam shows her getting hostile with the officers who showed up to talk to her.

After things allegedly got heated this time, cops say Irene backed into a large window while yelling at the officers, who grabbed her by the wrist for fear she would shatter the glass, escorting her away.

Police say they confirmed Irene had no one to call to care for her, then told Irene she was under arrest ... and that's when cops say she tensed her arms and tried to pull out of one officer's grip, resulting in other officers restraining Irene with handcuffs.

The drama didn't end there ... cops say Irene became dead weight when they were taking her to the police car, so she had to be held up.

Irene was taken to Greene County Jail, where she was booked for disorderly conduct ... and we're told she was released from custody on Sunday.

A group of men who were allegedly responsible for a rash of crimes in Atlanta, including the burglary at Mariah Carey's home have been arrested ... and MC is singing the praises of law enforcement for delivering justice.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ 24-year-old Jeremy Caldwell, Terryion Anderson and Jalen Huff are all in custody in connection to a crime spree in the area, which included the burglary at Mariah's home. The men were arrested in Miami.

The Sandy Springs PD says the three men are responsible for a string of armed robberies, home invasions and burglaries in the area. They say several celebrity homes were targeted during the home invasions ... and during one incident a man was shot.

Sources close to Mariah tell us the singer was out of town July 27 when her home was broken into, but add she's, "so grateful for the detectives who arrived on the scene immediately."

Mariah posted pics of herself on vacation shortly before the alleged crime happened ... so it's possible the perps were tipped off to the fact her home was empty.

Blueface's girlfriend is in police custody after punching him square in the face -- the second time in less than a month -- but he's begging cops to let her go free.

Chrisean Rock unloaded on the rapper Sunday night while they were in Whiskey Row bar in Scottsdale, AZ. Blueface was standing in front of Chrisean when she hauled back and struck him twice in the face.

She landed both shots, sending Blueface backward and he made no attempt to go back at her. Instead, security took her down ... pinning Chrisean to the ground until Scottsdale PD arrived to haul her off in handcuffs.

So, Blueface's reaction to the violent incident? "Free Rock!!!"

He posted a video saying, "We don't ever make the same mistake twice" ... clearly referring to their very public fight earlier this month.

TMZ broke the story when they both went at each other on the streets of Hollywood -- Chrisean threw the first punch, but Blueface, who's slated to box Nick Young in a celeb event next month, fought back, pinning her to the ground. Cops didn't witness the fight, but after seeing video said they'd opened an investigation.

Nothing's come of that incident yet, and the couple never broke up over it, but now -- with Chrisean in jail -- Blueface says he wants her freed, we think. He was kinda laughing during the video.

One thing he didn't laugh about was the punch, as he put it ... "She hit me with a banger. I was like, oooh!!!"

Three Arkansas sheriff's deputies have been benched after a video shows them wailing on a homeless man with alleged mental health issues.

The Crawford County Sheriff's Department confirms two of the men in uniform seen are their own deputies, and a third officer belongs to the Mulberry Police Dept. They were all teaming up Sunday on a young man -- kneeing him, slamming his head on the concrete and punching him in the face in order to restrain the man.

The brutal beating happened outside Kountry Xpress gas station, where the cops responded to a call for threats made to one of the clerks inside ... allegedly made by the man getting detained. Reports say the man was cooperative at first, but then things went south.

One report says the man allegedly tried to attack an officer, which is what apparently led to the beatdown. Regardless of what happened in the lead-up, the force shown by the officers is extreme.

At one point, the officers notice they're being filmed, and yell at bystanders to get lost. The Arkansas State Police is currently investigating.

"Black Ink Crew" member Richard "O'S***" Duncan must have been thinking, "Oh, s***" after getting pulled over by the police ... because the traffic stop resulted in his arrest.

The former reality TV star was busted for DUI in July after cops in Georgia say they stopped him for speeding.

According to the incident report, obtained by TMZ, Richard was pulled over for speeding. Cops say they smelled alcohol and did a field sobriety test.

Police say Richard admitted he had been drinking. During a search of his car, cops say they found a bag of cocaine in the center cupholder.

He was charged with speeding, DUI, driving with an open container of alcohol and possession of a controlled substance. The possession charge is a felony and the rest are misdemeanors. He has pled not guilty.

Richard has battled alcohol and substance abuse problems over the years ... even being put on professional leave to deal with his issues during the first season of the VH1 reality show. Now, he owns Drip Tattoo Collective in Atlanta.

Marcell Ozuna pulled the celeb card during his DUI arrest on Friday morning -- telling a cop during the stop, "Sorry, I'm Ozuna from the Braves" ... this according to a new police report obtained by TMZ Sports.

In the docs, a Norcross Police Dept. officer said he pulled over Ozuna -- who was driving in a black 2021 Mercedes-Benz -- at around 3:35 AM after he says the MLB slugger was speeding in a 35 MPH zone while failing to stay in a lane.

Moments after being stopped, Ozuna allegedly told the officer, "Sorry, sorry, I'm Ozuna from the Braves." The baseball player's car reeked of booze, the police officer said in the report. The officer also claimed Ozuna had red and watery eyes.

Ozuna told the cop, according to the docs, that he was in Norcross heading to "the party." The officer said that he later learned the 31-year-old was on his way to "a nearby after-hours nightclub."

When Ozuna went to hand his driver's license to the cop, the officer said in the docs he also handed over an MLB ID card showing that he played for the Braves.

According to the report, just before administering field sobriety tests on Ozuna, the outfielder admitted he had drank "like three or four" beers before getting behind the wheel.

"If I'm drunk, if I can't drive, I do like this," the officer said in the docs, claiming Ozuna -- who allegedly had $8,000 in cash in his pocket -- "motioned for me to take his car key."

After administering three tests, the officer arrested Ozuna. But, according to the cop, Ozuna refused both a breath test and a blood test.

Records show he was eventually booked on charges of DUI and failure to maintain lane.

Hours before the arrest, the Braves had won a huge game over the Mets in Atlanta -- but Ozuna did not play in the contest.

This is the second time Ozuna has been arrested in the last 15 months -- he was previously taken into custody in May 2021 after he was accused of roughing up his wife in an incident in Sandy Springs, GA.

Ozuna -- who agreed to enter into a pretrial diversion program to close out the case a few months after the incident -- was suspended 20 games by the MLB over it all.

He later said before this season began that he apologized to his teammates, adding, "I made a mistake."

Ozuna has played in 107 games for the Braves this season ... batting .214 with 20 home runs.

Dallas rapper Trapboy Freddy was arrested by cops for a weapons charge ... but it might've been a good idea for officers to bring a zookeeper along, too.

Officials say they discovered a tiger cub Wednesday caged inside Freddy's Oak Cliff house. Officials seized the cat, but at this time, he hasn't been charged with anything in relation to having the animal.

The Dallas rapper was charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and is due to appear in court on Friday.

As for the tiger, it was transported it to the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.

Three men have been charged in connection with the killing of James "Whitey" Bulger, one of America's most notorious mobsters, nearly 4 years after he was beaten to death in federal prison.

The U.S. Attorney's office charged Fotios "Freddy" Geas, Paul "Pauly" J. DeCologero, and Sean McKinnon with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder Thursday in connection with Bulger's killing back in 2018 at the U.S. Penitentiary Hazleton in Bruceton Mills, WV.

Geas and DeCologero are accused of hitting Bulger multiple times in the head, causing his death -- they've also been charged with aiding and abetting first-degree murder and assault resulting in serious bodily injury.

McKinnon faces a separate charge for making false statements to a federal agent.

As we reported, Bulger was beaten with a lock in a sock, away from security cameras, until he was unconscious -- the alleged perps also attempted to gouge out his eyes with some type of shiv, but were unsuccessful.

Young Thug sat in an Atlanta courtroom on Thursday only to be denied bond again in his ongoing YSL Rico case.

Thug’s lawyer, Brian Steel, informed the court the rapper was willing to comply with a 24-hour home confinement and argued the prosecution was creating a false narrative by using 2014 lyrics as evidence, but that still wasn't enough to sway the judge.

As for the prosecution, they referred to Thugger as the “General” of the entire YSL regime, and believe he should remain locked up.

This makes Thug’s third bond denial since he was arrested back in May, and at this rate, he will be behind bars until at least January.

Young Thug and Gunna have both been behind bars -- part of a 56-count indictment -- which included weapons and drugs charges. There were even allegations YT was tied to possible shootings and murders.

The hits keep coming for Britney Spears' first husband Jason Alexander ... after serving his sentence for crashing Britney's wedding, he's now facing felony charges for an old alleged crime.

The Napa County Sheriff tells TMZ ... Jason was booked today on an arrest warrant issued back in 2016 stemming from an alleged jewelry theft, and he's been charged with two felonies.

We're told Jason is charged with grand theft and buying/receiving stolen property ... and he was picked up Tuesday from Ventura County jail by Napa authorities after serving a 60-day sentence for crashing Britney's wedding.

TMZ broke the story ... Jason had a felony warrant out for his arrest in Napa County when he got busted in June at Britney's ceremony. Cops in Napa say Jason swiped a $2,000 bracelet from a woman there in 2015 when he was a houseguest.

As we first told you ... cops say Jason had been living in the woman's house for only a few weeks when she claims she noticed jewelry missing from her bedroom. Police say Jason later admitted to the woman he stole her diamond and sapphire tennis bracelet, valued at $2k, and pawned it off.

Now, the alleged theft is coming back to bite him.

Brittney Griner's plan to appeal her 9-year Russian prison sentence over a weed pen is underway ... but Onyx rapper Fredro Starr feels there are bigger political forces in play.

In a new interview clip from VladTV, Fredro actually admitted to smoking plenty of weed on Russian soil on several occasions!!!

According to Fredro's travels, Russia not only has better weed than top dog California, but they grow it too ... and from the picture he paints, recreational use sounds pretty common in the region.

He also suggests the country's hip hop scene is very liberal, alluding to the notion a 9-year punishment for a simple weed pen doesn't add up.

Griner officially filed her appeal on Monday, in conjunction with the United States government actively working for her release, calling her detainment unjust.

The last time we talked to Fredro, he was talking about a different kind of smoking ... as in torching Cypress Hill during their somewhat underpromoted Verzuz.

The Australian actress whose family claimed she went missing after going on a date with someone she met online has been found ... turns out, cops say she's been in jail the whole time!!!

Here's the deal ... Laura McCulloch, an actress and singer in Los Angeles, scared the crap out of her family back in Australia when she seemingly fell off the grid after going on a first date.

Laura's family cried to Australian news outlets over the weekend, saying she was last seen Friday at a restaurant in Santa Monica, then failed to show up to her day job and yoga class. The family says they became concerned when they couldn't reach her by phone and reported her as missing to the LAPD.

But, here's what really happened.

Santa Monica Police tell TMZ ... Laura was arrested Friday night in Santa Monica after police got a call to the popular 3rd Street Promenade for a reported battery.

Cops say when they got to the scene, they were told Laura threw a drink at a fellow diner and their kid.

It doesn't sound like Laura is getting a second date with her mystery man ... police say when they approached her, she showed obvious signs of intoxication and charged at the officers while shouting expletives.

Cops say they tried to calm her down, but Laura continued being aggressive ... and when police went to detain her, officers say she became physically combative, kicking at officers and biting a cop on the shoulder.

Laura was booked into Santa Monica Jail early Saturday morning for public intoxication and resisting arrest, and we're told she spent the weekend behind bars and did not contact anyone she knows.

We're told the actress went before a judge Tuesday and is still in custody.

Kim Zolciak's daughter, Ariana, denied drinking and driving after crashing into another vehicle ... but cops say she did admit to vaping the night before.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, the 20-year-old reality star denied drinking any alcohol during her DUI bust over the weekend. Officers informed Zolciak they could smell alcohol on her breath and she allegedly stated the smell could be coming from her clothing.

Cops say Ariana admitted she "smoked a THC vape pen the night before but did not drink." During the back and forth, she maintained she had not been drinking -- but cops say she had a "noticeable sway" during field sobriety tests.

TMZ broke the story -- Ariana was arrested in Forsyth County, GA, Saturday, and booked on 3 charges ... misdemeanor DUI, misdemeanor improper/erratic lane change, and misdemeanor underage alcohol possession/purchase of alcohol.

The whole thing happened after she allegedly hit another vehicle.

Ariana's attorney, Justin Spizman tells us, "Despite Ariana’s constant invocation that she was upset and anxious from the minor accident, the officer incorrectly concluded she was impaired by alcohol. That was not the case. She wholly denies these allegations and intends to fight these charges because she is not guilty of them.”