Crime & Arrests

Henry Ruggs will officially be sentenced to 3-to-10 years behind bars later this summer ... after a judge formally accepted his plea deal on Wednesday morning.

The former Las Vegas Raiders star appeared in court to enter guilty pleas to one felony count of a DUI resulting in death and one misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter after reaching an agreement with officials earlier this month.

As part of the deal, prosecutors agreed to drop the rest of the ex-football player's charges stemming from his November 2021 car crash.

The judge asked Ruggs -- who was wearing a navy suit with a blue tie -- several questions during the proceedings ... before she ultimately accepted the parameters of the agreement.

Ruggs will now learn whether it'll be closer to three or 10 years in prison at a sentencing hearing on August 9.

As we previously reported, Ruggs had been facing more than 50 years behind bars after prosecutors had initially hit him with five total charges following allegations he drunkenly slammed his Corvette into the back of Tina Tintor's Rav4 ... killing her and her dog.

They alleged at the time that Ruggs had traveled 156 MPH just before the crash with a BAC of .161.

Ruggs' attorneys, David Z. Chesnoff and Richard A. Schonfeld said last week when the 24-year-old first agreed to the plea deal that it all was "a fair resolution to this matter."

Clark County district attorney Steven B. Wolfson said of the ruling Wednesday, "This outcome accomplished our three most important goals: (1) convict Henry Ruggs of the strictest charge allowed by Nevada law for drunk driving; (2) send Henry Ruggs to prison; and (3) eliminate his ability to appeal his conviction and prison sentence."

Wolfson added, "Tina's family members are the most important people in this process, and I met with them several times before reaching this resolution."

George Santos has just been arrested for a variety of alleged misdeeds, including lying.

Santos has been charged with 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making false statements to the House of Representatives.

Santos was taken into custody by the FBI and is expected to be arraigned later today.

U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said when the indictment was unsealed, he "seeks to hold Santos accountable for various alleged fraudulent schemes and brazen misrepresentations," adding, "He used political contributions to line his pockets, unlawfully applied for unemployment benefits that should have gone to New Yorkers who had lost their jobs due to the pandemic, and lied to the House of Representatives."

Santos has been caught in a web of lies since his election victory last November. Some of his Republican colleagues wanted him expelled, but the leadership was radio silent on the issue.

According to the indictment, 2 of his supporters each transferred $25,000 to an account that was supposed to go to his campaign but was then transferred to a personal account. Santos allegedly used the funds to buy designer clothes and withdraw cash for personal debts.

It'll be interesting how Speaker Kevin McCarthy deals with Santos now.

Nate Diaz clearly ain't sweatin' his criminal case down in Louisiana ... the former UFC star actually had a laugh about it all with Jake Paul on Tuesday.

Paul was the one who brought up the choke-out incident to Diaz during a news conference to hype up their August boxing match ... wondering if the MMA fighter thought he was scrapping with his brother, Logan Paul, when he choked out a guy on Bourbon St. during an April 22 melee.

Diaz smiled and then pretended to truly believe it was Logan who he put to sleep on the popular New Orleans roadway.

"You're going to act like that wasn't Logan?" Nate said with a grin. "Come on, man!"

"You thought it was Logan?" Jake asked again ... before Diaz responded with a giggle, "It is Logan, what are you talking about?"

Of course, the case shouldn't be much of a laughing matter for Diaz ... officials have charged him with second-degree battery after they allege he caused the man to suffer a head wound during the incident. Diaz is now facing time behind bars if ultimately convicted.

Diaz, though, did get serious about it all for at least a few seconds during the presser ... appearing to say he took it easy on the guy by choking him instead of throwing hands.

"You don't want to just hit people out there," Nate said. "That's f****** dangerous. You know what I'm saying? Give him a little nap."

Diaz didn't elaborate on it all further ... but he's been adamant since the incident went down that he did nothing wrong -- and was simply acting in self-defense.

Jonathan Majors' big day in court turned out to be not so momentous after all -- because the charges he's facing remain in place ... something his attorney's not too happy about.

As you may have heard, the actor was due to appear before a judge Tuesday in what amounted to his first real chance to combat the criminal case that's been brought against him by the Manhattan D.A.'s Office -- but, in the end, nothing much came of it.

The D.A.'s Office tells us Majors' charges are still intact and unchanged from when they were first announced. For a refresher ... those charges include 3 counts of attempted assault as well as assault, a count of aggravated harassment and a separate count of harassment.

The D.A. says there'll be a future hearing to discuss a motion filed by Majors' legal team -- but it's unclear what exactly that's about. In any case, he's due back in court in June.

As for what happened -- or didn't, rather -- today ... Majors' defense attorney, Priya Chaudhry, tells TMZ ... she and her team forked over what they say is irrefutable evidence that supposedly exonerates their client ... but say the D.A. turned a blind eye to all of it.

She goes on to explain that the D.A. allegedly told her they would not "fix" their complaint against Majors based on what was submitted -- however, the attorney now says they recanted on that promise and changed the accuser’s story with her help. The attorney also says she has clear proof the alleged victim is lying about that night, and that Majors is the one who's being falsely prosecuted.

Chaudhry claims the D.A. is simply altering their approach to this case based on what she says is the woman's continuously changing story -- and that, she says, is a shame ... not to mention a classic witch hunt, which Chaudhry suggests might be racially motivated.

She says, "When Mr. Majors showed a white police officer the injuries the woman caused him, the white officer got in Mr. Majors' face and taunted him, saying that if the officer were to slap Mr. Majors, the officer wouldn't break his finger. None of the white officers present investigated the assault of Mr. Majors. Worse, the District Attorney has not indicated any intention to pursue charges against the woman, or even investigate the truth."

Chaudhry says this is an example of explicit and implicit bias that still exists in the criminal justice system -- as well as a glaring double standard JM was on the receiving end of that benefitted his accuser ... who, as his attorney has pointed out, is a white woman.

The attorney also claims to have obtained even more evidence that proves her client is innocent -- but says she's hesitant to share it out of fear of the D.A. tipping off the alleged victim to twist the narrative even further. We'll see what comes of this next month.

Franky Venegas, known to many as one of the viral Island Boys twins, has been arrested ... after his girlfriend told cops he slapped her and pushed her in the pool.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Venegas' girlfriend told police they got into an argument Saturday at the pool area of their Airbnb in Pompano Beach -- after she threatened to break up with him due to his "physical abusive behavior."

She told PD Venegas got upset and slapped her across the face and pushed her into the shallow part of the pool, causing her to hit her chin on the concrete floor below. Cops say they noted bruises on her chin, as well as on her legs and arms when they spoke to her at a nearby hospital.

Police say they then went to the Airbnb and arrested Venegas for domestic battery ... he let his fans know he's since gotten out -- posting a pretty enthusiastic vid outside the jail.

UFC fighter Tony Ferguson was no match for cops early Sunday ... he was busted for DUI.

Tony apparently crashed his pickup truck into 2 parked cars outside a Hollywood club just before 2 AM. His truck flipped on its side. Miraculously, he was not injured nor was anyone else.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Tony refused to take a field sobriety test and was "very uncooperative" at the scene.

According to our sources, the cops who eyeballed him say he reeked of alcohol and had bloodshot eyes.

Tony was arrested at the scene and is facing misdemeanor DUI. He's also facing license suspension for refusing the field sobriety test.

Rapper Cash Gotti, the owner of one of the cars Tony allegedly hit says he came out of the club to find his Mercedes destroyed.

Alana Thompson, AKA Honey Boo Boo, has grown up right before our very eyes ... and now Mama June is getting ready to send her youngest kid off to college!

We caught up with the reality TV star in NYC and she gave us an update on a few of her daughters ... touching on Alana's plans now that she's reached the end of her high school years.

Mama June tells us, Honey Boo Boo will most definitely be going to college, however, she kept the school under wraps over privacy concerns.

Alana went all out for prom last month in Georgia ... posing with her date, 21-year-old BF Dralin Carswell. They made a grand entrance with the help of a horse and buggy. It's now the preferred mode of transportation ... Dralin was arrested for DUI a month before following a police chase in her car.

Mama June supports her daughter's choices whether it be college or boyfriends ... she can date as she pleases since she's not a kid anymore.

Henry Ruggs was back at the Clark County Detention Center in Nevada this week ... where TMZ Sports has learned authorities made him pose for a new mug shot.

Because the former Raiders star took a plea deal from prosecutors in his DUI crash case on Tuesday, cops tell us he was required to head back to the Las Vegas jail on Thursday to be reprocessed.

As part of the procedure, Ruggs took a new photo ... and you can see, he didn't appear to be pleased to be back in front of a jail camera again.

Of course, the last time the 24-year-old had to pose for a mug shot was in 2021 ... after authorities accused him of drunkenly slamming his sports car into the back of Tina Tintor's Toyota, killing her and her dog.

At the time, Ruggs -- who was wearing a neck brace -- had visible cuts and bruises on his face in his mug shot.

Ruggs has since recovered from the injuries he suffered in the crash -- and his attorneys told a courtroom this week he reached an agreement with prosecutors to close out the criminal case against him.

Ruggs said he'll plead guilty to one felony count of DUI resulting in death and one misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter. In exchange, prosecutors said they'll drop the rest of the charges against the former NFL player.

Gervonta Davis just scored a big win in court -- he avoided a jail sentence in his hit-and-run case ... getting hit with three months of house arrest instead.

The star boxer learned his fate inside of a Baltimore courtroom minutes ago ... less than three months after he cut a plea deal with prosecutors in the case.

As part of the agreement he made with officials back on Feb. 16, Davis pleaded guilty to four lesser offenses ... and at his sentencing hearing on Friday, a judge did not throw him behind bars, instead ordering him to serve 90 days of home detention. The 28-year-old fighter was also ordered to complete 200 hours of community service.

Davis was initially hit with 14 charges in the case back in March 2021 ... after authorities alleged he ran a red light in his 2020 Lamborghini Urus and slammed it into a Toyota on Nov. 5, 2020 -- just days after his big win over Leo Santa Cruz.

Prosecutors claimed a woman in the car that Davis hit was pregnant at the time of the wreck. They accused Davis of never offering her assistance before fleeing the scene.

If convicted on all of the charges, Davis had faced a potential maximum of 7 YEARS and 55 days in prison.

Davis, who just scored the biggest win of his boxing career in a fight with Ryan Garcia last month, ain't out of the woods criminally just yet ... even though he closed out the case in Baltimore on Friday -- he still has a case lingering over his head in Broward County, Fla.

Young Thug's brother, Unfoonk, is a return inmate at Fulton County jail -- law enforcement sources tell TMZ Hip Hop he's been arrested and booked for firearm possession by a convicted felon.

Unfoonk joined Gunna last December in entering a plea in the high-profile YSL RICO trial ... but his latest run-in with the law could lead to a violation of his probation terms.

Cops in Atlanta say Unfoonk (real name Quantavious Grier) was pulled over in his neighborhood around 4 PM Thursday ... and during the stop, officers claimed to have smelled burnt marijuana inside the black Mercedes sedan.

We're told officers also say there was excessive tint on Unfoonk's windows, and the YSL rapper wasn't wearing his seatbelt.

They called in a police K9 to help with the narcotics search of the vehicle, and during that search ... we're told officers located a handgun in the driver's side door panel. As the owner of the car, Unfoonk was arrested for gun possession.

According to the docs, he was also dinged for criminal street gang activity -- and the much smaller infractions of improper window tint and a safety belt violation.

Jorge Masvidal's father has been arrested for attempted murder ... after he allegedly shot a man in the arms during a dispute at the ex-UFC star's Miami-area home on Thursday afternoon.

Jail records show Jorge Masvidal Sr. was booked at 1:33 AM Friday ... following allegations the 67-year-old opened fire on a man near the kitchen of Jorge Masvidal Jr.'s house roughly 12 hours earlier.

According to an arrest affidavit, obtained by TMZ Sports, Masvidal Sr. was at the Florida home with a man named Luis Leoncini -- when the two got into a verbal argument.

According to the docs, authorities say Leoncini told cops Masvidal Sr. shot him after the tiff, inflicting gunshot wounds to both of his arms.

It's unclear what sparked the alleged dispute ... but according to the affidavit, Leoncini was transported to a local hospital.

Meanwhile, Masvidal Sr., officials say in the docs, was taken into custody at 3:26 PM -- and later booked on a charge of attempted second-degree murder with a deadly weapon with a firearm.

Authorities added in the docs that following a search of the home, they found a .38 caliber revolver inside a kitchen cabinet.

It should be noted cops told us on Thursday evening that Masvidal Jr. was not present during the alleged shooting -- and "did not have any involvement" in it all.

Bryan Kohberger had an interaction with police exactly one month before the grizzly murders of 4 Idaho college students, and body cam video reveals how he schmoozed his way out of a ticket.

Police body cam footage shows Kohberger getting pulled over by a patrol cop on the Washington State University campus in October 2022.

What's striking about the nine-plus-minute video was just how nice and respectful Kohberger acted toward the officer. His demeanor belies any notion he would commit such a gruesome crime ... but authorities say that's exactly what he did.

The footage began with the officer walking up to the open driver's side window of a car in which Kohberger was seated behind the wheel.

The cop told Kohberger -- a WSU criminal justice graduate student at the time -- he was stopped for running a red light. Kohberger responded that he was forced to turn left because he got stuck at an intersection. The officer then schooled Kohberger on Washington state traffic laws, basically outlining for him what he did wrong.

Kohberger fully accepted the officer's reasoning, going so far as to apologize to her for asking too many questions. At one point, he admitted that he wasn't familiar with the traffic laws because he's originally from Pennsylvania.

After checking his license and registration, the officer let Kohberger go without writing him up. Of course, the cop had no clue that the following month Kohberger would be embroiled in a quadruple homicide involving four University of Idaho students.

As we reported, Kohberger allegedly slipped inside an off-campus home on November 13 and fatally stabbed Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin and his girlfriend, Xana Kernodle.

Kohberger was eventually arrested and charged with the murders after police discovered his DNA at the crime scene and unearthed more evidence pointing to his possible guilt. Investigators have not disclosed his motive.

Ralph Yarl, the boy who was shot in the head after ringing the wrong doorbell, is still dealing with health complications ... so much so, we're told he still hasn't been able to rejoin his pals at school.

Lee Merritt, attorney for the Yarl family, tells TMZ ... Ralph met with his doctor Monday to see if he had the green light to return to classes, but it was determined he's still not well enough to go back.

Ralph's been dealing with a traumatic brain injury after being shot by Andrew Lester -- and the part of his brain that deals with emotion and stress was damaged, so his doc didn't find it fitting to put him back in an environment requiring social interactions.

We're told Ralph's continuing to get his school assignments brought to him at home for the time being.

He also had an invite from Ahmaud Arbery's mom, Wanda, to join her at a 5K race for Ahmaud this weekend, but the Yarls didn't think it was a good idea for him to go to that ... for the same reasons his doctor said no to school.

A man was shot at Jorge Masvidal's Miami area home Thursday afternoon following a verbal altercation ... before being transported to the hospital with at least one gunshot wound to the arm area, TMZ Sports has learned.

The recently retired UFC superstar was NOT home at the time of the incident ... and was not involved in the incident in any way, according to officials.

However, Jorge's dad, Jorge Masvidal Sr., is currently in custody, where he is being interviewed by police.

Miami-Dade PD tell us they received a call around 3 PM. When they arrived, EMTs were already on the scene "rendering aid to an adult male who was shot in his upper extremities."

Cops say the victim told them he was "involved in an argument that escalated when the subject produced a firearm and shot him."

The cause of the argument, and who was involved, is currently unclear ... though police tell us the parties know each other.

We're told the victim was transported to a local hospital where he is now in stable condition.

38-year-old Masvidal recently retired from the UFC ... but is still one of the most popular fighters in the world.

Jorge is scheduled to have a Gamebred Bareknuckle event in South Florida on Friday night.

Cassidy is scoffing at people who are upset at R. Kelly for his sex crimes, but don't hold the same anger toward the average Joe who they observe doing the exact same thing.

The battle-tested Philly rapper spoke his mind on a recent episode of the Street Starz podcast and expressed his belief that people have a right to be upset over R. Kelly ... but should keep the same energy when it comes to seeing people in their neighborhood scoop up younger girls!

According to Cassidy's recollection, he observed plenty of middle and high-school-age girls dating older guys his entire life and feels all hoods have similar scenarios. He also didn't say anything about reporting anyone so he may be just as culpable if true 🤷🏽‍♂️.

Cassidy and Swizz Beatz scored a Top 5 Billboard Hot 100 hit back in 2003 with assistance from Robert Sylvester several years before the sexual abuse allegations poured in.

Erik and Lyle Menendez have at least 2 new pieces of evidence backing their claim their father was molesting them, and their new high-powered attorney says it's enough for them to get a new trial ... and perhaps a new verdict.

The Menendez brothers' attorney Mark Geragos joined us Thursday on "TMZ Live," explaining why a recently discovered letter written by Erik, as well as the rape claims made by former Menudo member Roy Rossello, are both crucial if they get their day back in court.

He says either piece of evidence -- the letter or Rossello's allegation -- could've resulted in a way different outcome in the 90s. Remember, they were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

As we reported, new legal docs filed by Geragos, and obtained by TMZ, reference Rossello's claim he was drugged and raped by the brothers' father, Jose. The petition also points to a letter Erik wrote to a cousin months before they shot their parents in which he says his father was molesting them.

We asked Geragos, hypothetically, if a judge grants the brothers a new trial ... how would he address the fact Erik and Lyle still premeditatively killed not only Jose, but their mother, Kitty, as well. He had a very interesting response.