80-year-old military veteran killed over parking spot argument, police say
KTRK
(HOUSTON) — A military veteran died after allegedly being physically attacked during an argument over a parking space outside of a Houston, Texas grocery store, according to a statement from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
Earl Hollins, 80, was allegedly assaulted by Anthony Ray Boyce, 57, on Friday during the disagreement in a Food Town parking lot, the HCSO said. Boyce allegedly drove away in Hollins’ car after the attack, according to the HCSO.
Hollins suffered severe head trauma, fell into a coma and was not expected to recover, his family told ABC affiliate KTRK in Houston. He was pronounced dead on Dec. 7 at a local hospital, the HCSO confirmed to ABC News.
“What he [did], it wasn’t right,” Hollins’ niece, Elma Hollins-Washington, told KTRK. “It wasn’t human.”
The HCSO said it’s investigating the altercation between Hollins and Boyce, including how the two men may have been acquainted before the incident.
“Someone was saying that he knew the guy because they always used to be around Food Town,” Hollins-Washington said, adding that the family is still in disbelief over what happened.
“I said, ‘My god, over a parking spot. You’re going to injure my uncle, and now, finally, he’s dead, and it was over a parking spot,'” Hollins-Washington said. “You took something great from us, something that we will never get over.”
According to HCSO records, Boyce is being held in the Harris County Jail on $100,000 bond, charged with aggravated assault with serious bodily injury.
Detectives will meet with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office to determine if that charge will be upgraded following Hollins’ death, the HCSO told ABC News.
(NEWPORT, Ore.) — Several officials in Lincoln County, Oregon have received an anonymous letter urging people to report “brown folks” they suspect are undocumented immigrants, according to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.
“The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office recently learned about a letter being circulated throughout Lincoln County which encourages community members to track and report information regarding people of color, specifically community members that are believed to be undocumented,” the sheriff’s office posted on Facebook.
“We want to be unequivocal in our stance: this type of behavior is harmful, divisive, and inconsistent with the values we uphold as public servants and community members,” continued the post, signed by Sheriff Curtis Landers. “Targeting individuals in this manner erodes trust and undermines the sense of safety and inclusion that we strive to maintain in Lincoln County.”
The anonymous letter, a copy of which was obtained by ABC News, is riddled with typos and makes various threats against undocumented immigrants.
State and local officials have condemned the letter.
“Attempts to intimidate our communities and their leaders through racist letter-writing campaigns has no place in Oregon, and we will continue to stand together in opposition to those who seek to divide us,” said Oregon State Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum in a statement, adding that the state is an “open, welcoming, and safe for all individuals.”
“It is time to rise above these despicable tactics and demonstrate the true spirit of inclusivity and compassion that defines the Oregon way,” Rosenblum continued.
Toledo, Oregon Mayor Rod Cross announced at a Dec. 18 city council meeting that he had received the letter, bearing an invalid return address, a few days prior. That letter, obtained by ABC News, warns that in the latter part of January 2025, the Department of Homeland Security will begin “the largest round-up of brown illegals in our history.”
“I am livid because I don’t know if history is just not getting taught anymore or if the memories of my father and his generation have just been wiped out of existed but this is not America,” Mayor Cross said at the city council meeting. “This is not who we are.”
President-elect Donald Trump made campaign statements in which he vowed to conduct a large-scale deportation operation of migrants living in the U.S. without legal permission. Though the anonymous letter refers to a “round-up of brown illegals,” it does not reference Trump or his past statements.
Sheriff Landers told ABC News he also received a copy of the letter in his personal PO box. He added that although the speech in the letter may not constitute a crime, he has notified the FBI for awareness. He said the mayor of Lincoln City, as well as several city council members. also received the letter.
In his Facebook statement, Sheriff Landers also stated that “Oregon law generally prohibits the inquiry or collection of an individual’s immigration or citizenship status, or country of birth, with few specific exceptions” defined by law.
“Consistent with this, the Sheriff’s Office does not inquire about, document, or share such information with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE),” Landers’ statement continued. “These provisions are embedded in our policy manual and are essential to ensuring that our practices respect the rights and dignity of all individuals.”
According to the Oregon Department of Justice, Oregon became the first in the country to pass a statewide sanctuary law in 1987, which in part prohibits state and local law enforcement and government offices from “[participating] directly or indirectly in immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant.”
Luigi Mangione is seen inside the police station in Altoona, Pennsylvania, Dec. 9, 2024/Obtained by ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Luigi Mangione has been indicted in New York for the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and the grand jury has upgraded charges to first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism, prosecutors announced Tuesday.
Mangione, 26, is also charged with: two counts of second-degree murder, one of which is charged as killing as an act of terrorism; two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree; four counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree; one count of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree; and one count of criminal possession of a forged instrument in the second degree.
The slaying in the heart of Midtown Manhattan was “intended to evoke terror,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said at a news conference.
Mangione is accused of gunning down Thompson outside a hotel on Dec. 4 as the CEO headed to an investors conference.
“This type of premeditated, targeted gun violence cannot and will not be tolerated,” Bragg said in a statement Tuesday.
In Pennsylvania, where Mangione remains in custody, he faces charges including allegedly possessing an untraceable ghost gun.
He is expected to waive extradition from Pennsylvania during his next court appearance on Thursday, sources said.
Mangione has hired Karen Friedman Agnifilo as his lawyer in New York. She was a 25-year veteran of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and its second in command for eight years.
Mangione was arrested at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Dec. 9 after nearly one week on the run.
When Mangione was apprehended, he had a 9 mm handgun with a 3D-printed receiver, a homemade silencer, two ammunition magazines and live cartridges, prosecutors said.
Thompson’s murder ignited online anger at the health insurance industry. Many people online have celebrated the suspect and some have donated to a defense fund for Mangione.
“There is no heroism in what Mangione did. This was a senseless act of violence,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at Tuesday’s news conference.
“Any attempt to rationalize this is vile, reckless and offensive to our deeply held principles of justice,” she said.
“Just a cold-blooded, horrible killing,” President-elect Donald Trump said at a news conference Monday.
“It’s really terrible that some people seem to admire him, like him,” Trump said.
“It seems that there’s a certain appetite for him. I don’t get it,” Trump added.
Sources said writings police seized from Mangione suggest he was fixated on UnitedHealthcare for months and gradually developed a plan to kill the CEO.
Among the writings recovered from Mangione was a passage that allegedly said, “What do you do? You whack the CEO at the annual parasitic bean-counter convention,” according to law enforcement officials.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Authorities investigating the rash of recent burglaries at the homes of professional athletes have recovered a watch belonging to Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce in Providence, Rhode Island, sources familiar with the case told ABC News.
Kelce’s Leawood, Kansas, home was burglarized as the Chiefs were about to kick off Monday Night Football against the New Orleans Saints hours apart from a burglary at the home of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Police had not previously disclosed a watch was taken from Kelce but did confirm that $20,000 cash was stolen.
Police believe the athletes are being targeted based on their game schedules and are working to determine whether a crime ring is targeting them along with other luxury homeowners.
So far all of these thefts have occurred while nobody is home. There is a concern about what happens if the athlete or his/her family members are present, a security source told ABC News.
The burglars conduct extensive surveillance, sometimes posing as delivery men, maintenance workers or joggers to learn about residences, neighborhoods and security systems, according to an NFL memo obtained by ABC News.
One security source told ABC News the burglars appear to know what they’re looking for, where it is in the home and are in and out within 15 minutes.
