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Marine Recruiter Pleads ‘No Contest’ After Being Held at Gunpoint by Homeowner

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A Marine Corps recruiter who entered a Michigan home in the middle of the night and stabbed an 11-year-old girl was sentenced to up to 40 years in prison — and got on his knees in court as he begged for forgiveness.

Ricardo Perez Castillo, 25, pleaded no contest to assault with intent to murder, first-degree home invasion, and second-degree assault with intent to commit criminal sexual conduct in the June 15, 2024 attack, according to the Kent County Prosecutor’s office.

“This case is disturbing on so many levels,” Judge Christina Mims said at last week’s sentencing, WOOD Grand Rapids reported. “What you engaged in was — just what comes to mind is a real-life horror movie or a horror show where you’re stabbing this child. It’s just by the grace of God that she wasn’t killed.” . . .

Castillo — a U.S. Marine Corps recruiter — made his way into a home in the 8000 block of Ella Terrace Court in Rockford through a side door in the early morning hours of June 15 before grabbing a knife from the kitchen and then taking off his pants and underwear. . .

Castillo allegedly walked into the bedroom where the homeowners daughter and her 11-year-old friend were sleeping, and stabbed the 11-year-old girl multiple times before he was stopped by the homeowner, who held him at gunpoint until police arrived. (Read more from “Marine Recruiter Pleads ‘No Contest’ After Being Held at Gunpoint by Homeowner” HERE)

Police: 40-Year-Old Man Drove into Church, Opened Fire, Was Shot Dead by Officers

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During a Sunday afternoon press conference, police said the Michigan church attacker drove a vehicle into the church building, opened fire, and was shot dead by officers.

UPDATE: During a Sunday night press conference, Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye indicated that two more bodies had been discovered in the burned church, bringing the total number of deaths to four.

Breitbart News reported that the shooter is down and that the church — the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc — was ablaze.

During the press conference, Grand Blanc Township police indicated the attacker “rammed the vehicle through the front door” of the church, then got out of the vehicle and began shooting. A church service was taking place — “there were hundreds of people in the church” — at the time of the attack.

(Read more from “Police: 40-Year-Old Man Drove into Church, Opened Fire, Was Shot Dead by Officers” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

Police Arrest 12-Year-Old Boy For Allegedly Stealing Cars, Basically Selling Them For Pocket Change

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Police in Michigan arrested a 12-year-old boy Friday after he allegedly stole multiple cars from a local business.

The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office announced Saturday the juvenile suspect allegedly robbed the business of three or four vehicles within the past month and “sold at least one of them for $30.”

“This young man is on a very bad path, attempting to live his own grand theft auto,” Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said. “Hopefully intervention by the courts will send him on a better life path as well as stopping the constant theft from this business.”

Police reported the boy stole from a local business in Pontiac, the Oakland County seat of government. Oakland County is the second-most populous county in Michigan. . .

“Our deputies are to be commended for their excellent work in stopping a young man, only 12 years old, who was on a path of grand theft auto,” the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a Facebook post. “This type of behavior typically does not end well. Thankfully, the business will not have to continue to suffer from this criminal behavior.” (Read more from “Police Arrest 12-Year-Old Boy For Allegedly Stealing Cars, Basically Selling Them For Pocket Change” HERE)

Chinese Nationals Charged With Smuggling Potential Agroterrorism Pathogen Into US

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FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital that the case involving two Chinese nationals who were charged Tuesday with allegedly smuggling a “dangerous biological pathogen” into the U.S. to study at the University of Michigan laboratory demonstrates a serious national security threat to America’s food supply.

“This case is a sobering reminder that the Chinese Communist Party continues to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate our institutions and target our food supply, an act that could cripple our economy and endanger American lives,” Patel told Fox in a statement. “Smuggling a known agroterrorism agent into the U.S. is not just a violation of law, it’s a direct threat to national security. I commend the FBI Detroit Division and our partners at CBP for stopping this biological threat before it could do real damage.”

University of Michigan research fellow Yunqing Jian and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu – both citizens of the People’s Republic of China – have been charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the United States, false statements, and visa fraud, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan announced Tuesday. The investigation is being conducted by the FBI and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The couple are accused of smuggling a fungus called Fusarium graminearum, which scientific literature classifies as a “potential agroterrorism weapon,” according to the Justice Department. Federal prosecutors note the noxious fungus causes “head blight,” a disease of wheat, barley, maize, and rice, and “is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year.”

The Justice Department also says fusarium graminearum’s toxins cause vomiting, liver damage, and “reproductive defects in humans and livestock.” (Read more from “Chinese Nationals Charged With Smuggling Potential Agroterrorism Pathogen Into US” HERE)

FBI Director Confirms Foiled ISIS Attack on US Soil

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By Townhall. FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed Thursday that an ISIS plot to murder Americans in Michigan was foiled.

“I can now confirm reports that our FBI teams and partners foiled an attempted ISIS attack on one of our U.S. military bases in Warren, Michigan,” Patel announced on X. “The individual, Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said, plotted a mass shooting at the U.S. Army’s Tank-Automotive & Armaments Command (TACOM) facility before multiple undercover law enforcement officers obtained information of his plans.”

“Said was arrested this week and will now face charges of supporting a foreign terrorist organization, among others,” he continued. “Our agents, intelligence teams, and partners acted quickly — and they saved lives. Well done to all on executing the mission.”

According to the Department of Justice, Said was a former member of the Michigan National Guard.

“This defendant is charged with planning a deadly attack on a U.S. military base here at home for ISIS,” DOJ National Security Division Director Sue Bai added in a statement. “Thanks to the tireless efforts of law enforcement, we foiled the attack before lives were lost. We will not hesitate to bring the full force of the Department to find and prosecute those who seek to harm our men and women in the military and to protect all Americans.”

(Read more from “FBI Director Confirms Foiled ISIS Attack on US Soil” HERE)

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FBI Thwarts ISIS-Inspired Attack on US Army Base; Former National Guard Member Charged

By ABC News. A former member of the Michigan Army National Guard has been arrested after he allegedly tried to carry out a plan to conduct a mass shooting at a U.S. military base in Michigan on behalf of the ISIS terrorist organization, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Ammar Abdulmajid-Mohamed Said, 19, was arrested on Tuesday, which authorities say was the scheduled day of the attack, after he visited an area near the military base and launched a drone in support of the attack plan, according to the Justice Department.

Said allegedly planned to attack the Army’s Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command, which is located in a Detroit suburb and manages the Army’s supply chain for tanks. According to federal prosecutors, Said offered to help undercover law enforcement officers carry out the attack by training them to use firearms and make Molotov cocktails and by providing armor-piercing ammunition and magazines for the attack.

Said has been charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and with distributing information related to a destructive device. Court documents did not list an attorney for Said.

Said spent two years in the Michigan Army National Guard until he was discharged in December, according to court documents. (Read more from “FBI Thwarts ISIS-Inspired Attack on US Army Base; Former National Guard Member Charged” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

3 Kids Found Living in ‘Absolute Squalor’ After Mom Abandoned Them 4 Years Ago

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Three children were found living in “absolute squalor” in a Michigan home riddled with mold and human waste after their mother abandoned them and left them to live on their own without soap or toilet paper for at least four years, authorities said.

The 34-year-old mother, who has not been identified as she shares the same name with one of her children, was arrested Friday, the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said.

Human waste, mold, and garbage piles towering up to four feet tall were found throughout the Pontiac rental home where the children survived on food their mother or a stranger dropped off each week.

The children, a 15-year-old boy, and two girls, ages 12 and 13, had been alone in the home without supervision since either 2020 or 2021, the boy told deputies, according to the sheriff’s office.

Photo credit: Oakland County Sheriff

Deputies found the home in “deplorable shape” when responding to a welfare check requested by their landlord, who was concerned something happened because he had not heard from the mother since December and had not received a rent payment since October.

Photo credit: Oakland County Sheriff

(Read more from “3 Kids Found Living in ‘Absolute Squalor’ After Mom Abandoned Them 4 Years Ago” HERE)

Husband, Wife Die in Separate Accidents Between Christmas and New Year’s

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A Michigan couple died in two separate accidents between Christmas and New Year’s Day, according to local officials.

Scott Levitan, 66, and Mary Lou Levitan, also 66, were both residents of Livonia, a suburb west of Detroit. According to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, the sequence of events unfolded after Scott Levitan fell into a frozen lake on Dec. 26.

The Michigan resident, who was ice-fishing with his 15-year-old grandson, was drilling a hole into the ice on Lake George in Addison Township at the time. . .

The next day, Mary Lou Levitan was on her way to pick up her husband’s vehicle when she was fatally injured in a car accident, according to police. Scott Levitan was on life support at that time.

The sheriff’s office said a 19-year-old driver crossed into the northbound lane of an Oakland Township road “for an unknown reason,” striking the car in which Mary Lou Levitan was riding. (Read more from “Husband, Wife Die in Separate Accidents Between Christmas and New Year’s” HERE)

Chinese National Who Allegedly Voted In Michigan Is Still On The Voter Rolls

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A Chinese student in Michigan, facing charges for ineligible voting, is still on the state voter rolls, The Federalist has learned.

Haoxiang Gao, 19, is a legal resident, but he is a Chinese citizen and thus not eligible to vote. He was studying at the University of Michigan when he allegedly voted on Oct. 27, according to a press release from the secretary of state’s office. Gao faces two felony charges: false swearing to register to vote and an unqualified elector attempting to vote. But officials still counted his ballot.

The Federalist has learned Gao is still on the state voter rolls, according to Qualified Voter File data provided by Check My Vote. Phani Mantravadi, the group’s co-founder, said it gets the data through Freedom of Information Act requests from the state bureau of elections.

“The fact that this noncitizen is still on the voter rolls shows ineptitude on the part of the SOS [secretary of state] towards maintaining accuracy in our voter rolls. Certainly doesn’t inspire confidence in our election systems,” said Mantravadi. “Makes one wonder where the tax dollars allocated to voter roll maintenance are going.”

Gao reportedly registered and voted on Oct. 27, listing an address on Observatory St. in Ann Arbor, according to the data from Check My Vote. He was still on the November voter rolls when Mantravadi’s group obtained them early this month. (Read more from “Chinese National Who Allegedly Voted In Michigan Is Still On The Voter Rolls” HERE)

Michigan Democrats Push National Popular Vote Measures In Final Moments Of Power

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Michigan Democrats are pushing National Popular Vote Compact measures during their last weeks in power. While former President Donald Trump won Michigan and the national popular vote, the majority-Democrat state House may still try to pass the bills on Thursday, according to a tentative agenda obtained by The Federalist.

“I can’t believe that they’re really willing to put this up, given we’re on the heels of this last election when a Republican took the national popular vote,” Republican state Rep. Rachelle Smit, who was recently elected as House speaker pro-tempore, told The Federalist.

Democrat state Rep. Carrie Rheingans sponsored HB 4156 and HB 4440, which would make Michigan join the National Popular Vote Compact, binding the state’s presidential electors to the winner of the popular vote. The compact would only take effect if enacted by states totaling 270 electoral votes. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia currently have National Popular Vote laws in place.

With vote counting nearing completion, Trump is winning the popular vote by 3.5 million, according to The New York Times. The last time a Republican won the popular vote was in 2004 when George W. Bush was the presidential candidate. Failed Democrat VP nominee Tim Walz had even called for a national popular vote, as The Federalist reported. (Read more from “Michigan Democrats Push National Popular Vote Measures In Final Moments Of Power” HERE)

FBI Arrests Man Over Alleged Threat to Slaughter Trump’s Christian Supporters: ‘Conservative Christan Filth’

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The FBI has arrested a Michigan man for allegedly threatening to murder conservative Christians if Donald Trump wins the election.

In a press release, the Justice Department said the FBI National Threat Operations Center received “an anonymous online threatening submission” on Nov. 2.

That message promised to attack Christians:

I shall carry out an attack against conservative christan, [sic] filth in the event trump wins the election. I have a stolen ar15 and a target I refuse to name so I can continue to get away with my plans. Without a specific victim or ability to find the place I hid the gun, there’s not a thing the FBI can do until I complete the attack

Officials reportedly traced the message via phone records and an IP address to 25-year-old Isaac Sissel. (Read more from “FBI Arrests Man Over Alleged Threat to Slaughter Trump’s Christian Supporters: ‘Conservative Christan Filth’” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr