Crime

Gwinnett serial rape suspect captured

Submitted by Kevin Rowson, 11Alive Reporter

Thursday, May 9th, 2013, 2:34pm

NORCROSS, Ga. -- Police in Gwinnett County have captured an accused serial rapist who lured his victims into a vacant apartment.

Joseph Tyler Sivonda, 23, was taken into custody Thursday morning at an apartment in Duluth.

He was staying with 30-year-old Tiffany Martin, who was also arrested and charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon.

Police said Sivonda hired female escorts online and arranging to meet them in a vacant apartment in the complex where he lives.

When the women showed up, police said Sivonda pulled out a gun, robbed them and raped them. Gwinnett police are investigating three incidents in the Bradford Gwinnett apartments off Beaver Ruin Road in unincorporated Norcross.

Police searched the apartment last week after not finding Sivonda at home. Neighbors said he lives in one of the apartments with his brother and mother. A SWAT team battered in the family's door and searched the apartment.

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'Office creeper' arrested in N.C.

Submitted by Beth Sawicki, Where U Live Producer

Thursday, April 4th, 2013, 7:39am

ATLANTA -- The man accused of stealing wallets from businesses across Georgia has finally been caught.

Antonio Hornsby, who was nicknamed the "officer creeper," was arrested Wednesday in Charlotte, N.C.

He is being held on $75,000 bond, according to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office. Jail records list his hometown as Tampa, Fla.

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Suspect holds knife to clerk's throat during robbery

Submitted by Kevin Rowson, 11Alive Reporter

Thursday, April 4th, 2013, 6:33am

Suspect holds knife to clerk's throat during robbery

DULUTH, Ga. -- Police are looking for a man who held a knife to a store clerk's throat while he threatened to kill her and rob the store. They released video of the robbery in hopes that someone will recognize the suspect.

It happened Mar. 25 at the Fresh 2 Def clothing store on Pleasant Hill Road in Duluth. While store clerk Linda Yoo was helping a customer with clothing, he pulled a knife out and held it to her throat.

"It was described as having brass knuckles around the handle and the blade was curved with serration," Gwinnett County Police Cpl. Jake Smith said of the suspect's weapon.

The suspect, described as between 15 and 20 years old, grabbed Yoo with his left hand, pulled the knife up to her throat and forced her to the back of the store.

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3 charged with stealing iPhones from students

Submitted by Beth Sawicki, Where U Live Producer

Friday, March 29th, 2013, 2:57pm

3 charged with stealing iPhones from students

SUWANEE, Ga. -- Three teenagers have been charged with stealing iPhones from four students at Peachtree Ridge High School on Mar. 8.

Kamoni Conley and Keanu Lewis were arrested Mar. 22, while a warrant was issued Monday for Derek Higgs. All three suspects are 17 years old.

Gwinnett County Police Cpl. Edwin Ritter said investigators learned of the thefts from one of the victims, who told them his iPhone had a tracking function and was pinging from a house in unincorporated Lawrenceville.

A woman at the Legacy Drive home told police she'd bought the phone from someone. After speaking with the woman and the person who sold her the phone, investigators were able to identify the three suspects, Ritter said.

Higgs has been charged with burglary and theft, while Conley and Lewis each face three charges of theft by receiving. All three were booked in the Gwinnett County Detention Center.

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10 students disciplined over marijuana brownies

Submitted by Associated Press

Wednesday, February 27th, 2013, 5:07pm

10 students disciplined over marijuana brownies

DACULA, Ga. -- Authorities say 10 students at a high school northeast of Atlanta have been disciplined after school officials say one of them brought marijuana brownies to school and shared them.

Gwinnett County schools spokesman Jorge Quintana says an 11th-grade student brought the brownies to Dacula High School on Feb. 20.

According to Quintana, the school began in investigation into the incident after receiving information that the brownies contained marijuana.

Quintana said a total of 10 students were disciplined because he said the students received the brownies knowing marijuana was in them.

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Teacher's son sentenced to prison for stealing retirement money

Submitted by Beth Sawicki, Where U Live Producer

Wednesday, January 30th, 2013, 11:42am

Teacher's son sentenced to prison for stealing retirement money

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. -- The son of a retired Atlanta schoolteacher has been sentenced in Gwinnett County Superior Court to two years in prison after being found guilty of violating Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

Levon Chett Barrett pleaded guilty to the charge against him. He will spend one year on house arrest and seven on probation after serving his time in prison.

According to Georgia Attorney General's spokeswoman Lauren Kane, Barrett's mother died in September 2007, but Barrett continued to collect her retirement benefits until February 2010.

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SPECIAL REPORT: Drug traffickers operating Sandy Springs rehab center

Submitted by Devin Fehely, 11Alive Reporter

Wednesday, December 19th, 2012, 3:45am

SPECIAL REPORT: Drug traffickers operating Sandy Springs rehab center

11Alive News has learned that two metro Atlanta men who recently pled guilty to federal drug trafficking charges have been operating a Sandy Springs facility for recovering addicts for several years.

In October, federal prosecutors announced the indictment of Drew T. Green, Thomas Malone Jr. and eight others for drug trafficking, money laundering and conspiracy, alleging they were operating one of the largest synthetic drug cartels in the country.

Federal prosecutors say Green and Malone's company Nutragenomics sold millions of dollars worth of chemicals used to manufacture so-called designer drugs like synthetic marijuana and bath salts.

"I've come to a point where I refuse to use the term synthetic marijuana. It gives these poisons too much credence," said Lance Dyer whose son Dakota committed suicide after smoking a synthetic marijuana product named "Mr. Miyagi."

"These drugs are literally poisons."

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