A Tuscaloosa man accused of killing his live-in girlfriend by setting her on fire in 2009 avoided a trial and potential death sentence by pleading guilty to murder on Wednesday. Clayton Benjamin Fleming, 51, will serve life in prison for killing Catherine Ann Provo at the Bonita Terrace apartment they shared. Fleming entered the plea before Tuscaloosa County Circuit Court Judge Brad Almond and expressed remorse at a hearing Wednesday afternoon. “If my in-laws were here, I would tell them… Read More »
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Tuscaloosa man pleads guilty to setting his girlfriend on fire in 2009 murder case
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Northport man accused of raping a child
A Northport man has been accused of raping a child. A grand jury returned indictments earlier this month charging Anthony Wayne Allen, 49, with two counts of first-degree rape against the same victim. The victim is a girl who is younger than 12, according to the indictment. Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s deputies booked Allen into the Tuscaloosa County Jail at 6:23 a.m. He was released on $60,000 bond at 11:11 a.m. Tuscaloosa County Circuit Court Judge Chuck Malone ordered that he… Read More »
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Teenagers charged in brick-throwing assault case plead guilty
Two teenagers accused of injuring a woman by throwing a landscaping brick from a highway overpass pleaded guilty in court Thursday afternoon. Jordan Price, 17, and Shane Adam Herren, 18, were granted youthful offender status, according to court documents. Details of the plea agreement and the punishments will not be made public because they were granted youthful offender status. Price and Herren were both 16 when they threw the 5-pound brick from the Keene’s Mill Road overpass of Interstate 20/59,… Read More »
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Man sought after two stabbed at Tuscaloosa bar
Homicide investigators are searching for a man they believe stabbed two victims in the parking lot of a bar early Saturday morning. John Taft Taylor, 48, is suspected of stabbing two men, 45 and 38, in the parking lot of Scooter’s Bar at 3620 Greensboro Ave. Both victims were in stable condition at DCH Regional Medical Center on Monday, said Tuscaloosa County Metro Homicide Unit commander Sgt. Dale Phillips. Investigators have spoken by phone with Taylor, but he has refused… Read More »
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Woman found dead after Holt house fire
A Holt woman returned home from work Sunday afternoon to find her daughter’s body inside their burned home. Lakendel Church, 28, was found in the bedroom of the home at 3950 Shaw Drive, said Tuscaloosa County Metro Homicide Unit commander Sgt. Dale Phillips. Investigators do not suspect foul play. “There are some things we’re trying to look into, but right now we don’t think foul play was involved,” he said. Church may have been asleep when the fire started, Phillips… Read More »
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Police release surveillance photo of women who used a stolen credit card
Tuscaloosa Police have released two surveillance photos of two people suspected of using a stolen credit card. Financial Crimes investigators released photos that show two women walking into the Walmart on Skyland Boulevard at 11 p.m. Jan. 24. The woman in a silver jacket used a debit/credit card that was stolen the same day, Tuscaloosa Police spokesman Sgt. Brent Blankley said. “It is unknown how the suspect obtained the card, but once obtained she used the card at multiple locations… Read More »
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Narcotics agents bust “major supplier” of steroids
A three-year investigation culminated with the arrest of a Coker man police call a “major supplier” of steroids in Tuscaloosa County and surrounding areas. Agents with the West Alabama Narcotics Task Force raided Ronald Eugene Wedgeworth Jr.’s home on Lake Robinwood Road in Coker at 7 a.m. Sunday, said Tuscaloosa Police Sgt. Brent Blankley. The agents seized liquid and powder steroids, powder Viagra, marijuana, two handguns, drug paraphernalia and equipment used to manufacture steroids. The street value of the steroids… Read More »
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Tuscaloosa man charged with rape of underage girl for the third time since 2009
A Tuscaloosa man has been accused of rape and sexual assault for the second time in less than a month and the third time in recent years. Marcus Steven McCorkle, 23, was arrested Monday on charges of first-degree rape and first-degree sodomy. He is accused of forcing a 12-year-old girl to have sexual intercourse in June or July 2013, according to court documents. His arrest this week came less than a month after a Feb. 3 arrest on second-degree sodomy… Read More »
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Preliminary report indicates Holt woman died from smoke inhalation
A woman found dead after a house fire in Holt likely died from smoke inhalation, investigators said. Lakendel Church, 28, was found in the bedroom of her home at 3950 Shaw Drive on Sunday. Preliminary findings by the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences indicate that she died after being overcome by smoke in the house, Tuscaloosa County Metro Homicide Unit assistant commander Lt. Kip Hart. The preliminary results reinforce investigators’ initial determination that foul play was not involved in her… Read More »
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Three Birmingham men accused of breaking into vehicles at Eddins Estates
Authorities captured three Birmingham men who they say were trying to break into cars at Eddins Estates apartment complex in Cottondale early Wednesday. Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the complex near the Interstate 20/59 Cottondale exit at 3 a.m., said Chief Deputy Ron Abernathy. The caller said that four or five men were breaking into vehicles. The men ran when deputies arrived. Three were quickly apprehended with the help of Tuscaloosa Police, Abernathy… Read More »
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Man, 18, accused of sexual contact with 15-year-old girl
Tuscaloosa Juvenile investigators have charged an 18-year-old who they say had sexual relations with a 15-year-old. O’Brien Jermel Cowley, 18, was charged with second-degree rape and second-degree sodomy on Monday. The incicent occurred at a location in the 3400 block of 29th Street, Tuscaloosa Police spokesman Sgt. Brent Blankley said. Cowley was released from the Tuscaloosa County Jail on $45,000 bond.
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Police use tracking dog to locate Dollar General theft suspect
Authorities used a tracking dog to find a man suspected of stealing a woman’s wallet at a Dollar General store on Bear Creek road Sunday night. The woman told officers that two men ran toward her as she loaded groceries into her vehicle at the 8:38 p.m., said Tuscaloosa Police spokesman Sgt. Brent Blankley. TPD officers requested assistance from a Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office’s tracking dog, a German Shepherd named Zeus. Zeus tracked the suspects from the store at 655… Read More »
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Ex-frat brother files lawsuit against former UA player Wilson Love
A Tuscaloosa man is seeking at least $100,000 after claiming he was assaulted by a former University of Alabama defensive lineman two years ago. Connor McKenna filed a lawsuit this weekend that claims fellow Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity member Wilson Love, a UA player between 2010 and December 2013, knocked him unconscious while on a spring break trip to Los Angeles in March 2012. “At the time of his attack on plaintiff, Defendant Wilson Love was a football player… Read More »
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Tuscaloosa man guilty of rape
A Tuscaloosa man has been sentenced to serve five years in prison for raping a woman last year. Putu Darmika Setiawan, 42, pleaded guilty to first-degree rape. The victim, 20 at the time, told investigators that she had gone to his house with friends on the night of May 15. She fell asleep and awoke to Setiawan assaulting her, according to investigators. The woman was able to escape the house, call authorities and seek medical treatment. Setiawan entered the plea… Read More »
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Crash claims Texas man on I-20/59
Alabama State Troopers are investigating the cause of a single-car crash that killed a Lubbock, Texas, man on Tuesday. Dominic Tartaglione, 92, died after the 2010 Toyota Prius he was driving left Interstate 20/59 and struck a tree. The accident occurred at about 10:05 a.m. near the interstate’s 84.6 mile marker, about five miles south of Brookwood. Alabama State Troopers spokesman Sgt. Steve Jarrett said seat belts were not in use at the time of the collision. No additional details… Read More »
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Two charged in bust of suspected meth lab
Tuscaloosa County sheriff’s deputies located a suspected methamphetamine lab on Monday that led to the arrests of two men on trafficking and drug manufacturing charges. Michael Jason Herren, 42, and Andrew Chase Blake, 22, remained jailed Wednesday at the Tuscaloosa County Jail. Herren, of Tuscaloosa, is charged with first-degree manufacturing, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and trafficking illegal drugs. His bail is set at $215,000. Blake, of Cottondale, faces charges of first-degree manufacturing, possession of drug… Read More »
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Construction worker remains hospitalized after injury
A construction worker is recovering at a Birmingham hospital after he was injured on the job Wednesday. The man, 52, was working for a subcontractor at The Avenue student housing complex on Alabama Highway 69 South. Heavy winds blew a staircase that had not been secured to the building, said Tuscaloosa Fire and Rescue Service Fire Marshal Gene Holcomb. The staircase struck the worker, causing serious injuries. The man’s name was not released. He was still being treated in the… Read More »
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Police say pair broke into TPD bait car parked at apartment building
Two people were accused of breaking into vehicles after the alarm on a Tuscaloosa Police bait car activated Thursday morning. The alarm on the vehicle, parked at an apartment building in the 2400 block of Denny Street, notified police at 10:55 a.m., said Tuscaloosa Police spokesman Sgt. Brent Blankley. Officers arrived and saw Deandre Shonquez Lockett,l 19, and Lanetta Ann Toney, 22, next to the car with the door ajar. The investigators found a purse that had stolen out of… Read More »
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Federal agents locate burglary suspect
Federal have agents located a Tuscaloosa man suspected of breaking into two Tuscaloosa businesses. Julian Bradford Moseley, 37, is suspected of stealing a truck and breaking into Fun Factory and a Dollar General store. Investigators believe that he broke through a metal and sheetrock wall at the Dollar General at 6520 Hargrove Road East on Oct. 10 and stole several cell phones. They say he is the same person who entered Fun Factory at 2741 Southside Drive on Feb. 13,… Read More »
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Deputies bust meth lab after house fire on Recreation Area Road
Two men have been jailed on charges related to an alleged meth lab uncovered by deputies Friday night, according to a press release from Lt. Andy Norris, spokesman for the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. The incident occurred at a residence in the 11000 block of Recreation Area Road in rural Tuscaloosa County after deputies went to the scene in response to a call from the Peterson Water Department about the possible theft of water. Arrested were Johnny Truman Brown, 41, and Timothy… Read More »
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