ARSON? FIRE DEATH TOLL RISING, LOOTERS ROAM, POLITICOS POINT FINGERS

Just after the new year  Ashley Elkins leaves home early in the morning. Her family sees her leave, wearing a long black coat with fur around the hood and black leggings, with the light freckles on her face.  Just 10 minutes after Ashley leaves her mother Monika arrives wanting to share a dream with her daughter.  Ashley Elkins leaves her home on January 2nd at 8:30 am. Her mother, Monika Elkins, arrives 10 minutes later, wanting to tell Ashley about a dream she had. Having just missed Ashley, Monika sends a text to her daughter about the dream she had involving Ashley taking her mom's truck while leaving her car in the driveway. Ashley replies to the description of the dream, writing "Awe, man." Monika feels this is a strange and uncharacteristic response for Ashley and attempts a "face time" call immediately upon receipt of the text from Ashley's phone.  But Ashley doesn't answer the facetime  Family members reach out to Ashley Elkins with minimal success. Hours after sending a text but not answering a face-time call from her mother, another family member gets a text from Ashley, saying she is going to a beauty supply store. This isn't the way Ashley Elkins usually communicates with the family and her mother says Ashley's phone is turned off after the text about going to beauty supply store, before it is turned back on again.    Joining Nancy Grace today Maurice Morton - Uncle to Ashley Elkins Ben Powers - Criminal Defense Attorney, Facebook: Legal Powers PLLC, https://legalpowers.com Dr. Shavaun Scott - Psychotherapist, Author of “The Minds of Mass Killers: Understanding and Interrupting the Pathway to Violence” Brian Fitzgibbons - Director of Operations for USPA Nationwide Security,  uspasecurity.com, Instagram: @uspa_nationwide_security, Fmr. Marine and Iraq war veteran Scott Eicher - founding member of the FBI’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team (C.A.S.T); Historical Cellular Analysis Expert; Former FBI agent of 22 years; Former Police Officer and Homicide Detective with Norfolk Virgina Police Dept.  Precision Cellular Analysis,   https://www.pcaexperts.com/ Alexis Tereszcuk  - Crime Online Investigative Reporter   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

17-year-old helpless to stop 32-year-old sister from beating their mother to death. Battery by burger.  For more crime and justice news go to crimeonline.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At least 24 people are dead, and dozens remain unaccounted for as fires fueled by severe drought conditions and strong Santa Ana winds continue to burn across Southern California. Thousands of firefighters are still battling blazes across 45 square miles in Los Angeles County. The Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades is the largest, spanning 24,000 acres. Thousands of homes and buildings have been destroyed, and the fire is only 11% contained. The Eaton Fire in Altadena has burned more than 14,000 acres and is 27% contained, while the Hurst Fire near Sylmar is 89% contained after burning nearly 800 acres. The Kenneth Fire has burned 1,025 acres and is fully contained. More than 105,000 people remain under mandatory evacuation orders, and another 87,000 are under evacuation warnings. The cause of the fires remains under investigation. Joining Nancy Grace today:  Allison Agsten - Witnessed looters as she was evacuating; Inaugural Director of USC’s Annenberg Center for Climate Journalism and Communications Center; Bill Walker - Fire Chief, City of Bedford, TX; Former Fire Chief in Santa Monica, CA  Dr. Bethany Marshall – Author: “Deal Breaker,”  featured in hit show: “Paris in Love” on Peacock https://www.drbethanymarshall.com/ , Instagram & TikTok: drbethanymarshall, X: @DrBethanyLive Nicolle Brock – Firefighter, EMT, and Arson Expert Dr. Kendall Crowns – Chief Medical Examiner Tarrant County (Ft Worth) and Lecturer: University of Texas Austin and Texas Christian University Medical School Courtney Friel - Anchor / Reporter at KTLA in Los Angeles; X & Instagram: @courtneyfriel See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Store clerk shot in robbery over amount of cash in register. Upset customer drives 'lemon' through dealership! For more crime and justice news go to crimeonline.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nineteen some odd months after the fatal San Francisco stabbing of tech exec Bob Lee, his accused killer learns his fate. Nima Momeni was arrested after a nine-day manhunt.  Tech entrepreneur and consultant Momeni's sister, who is at the center of the case testified.  During the prosecution's case, the lead police investigator lead jurors through the twists and turns of the two-day drug binge Lee was on with Khazar Momeni. Nima Momeni reportedly believed his sister was also attacked by Lee.   Bob Lee made a name for himself in the tech world, as a founder of Cash App. The 43-year-old exec recently move to Florida but was in San Francisco for business. Around 2:30 a.m. Lee calls police saying he had been stabbed. Surveillance footage captures Lee getting out of a car with another man. Quickly, the man drives away and Lee stumbles along Main Street in San Francisco's Rincon Hill neighborhood.  When police reach Lee, he has been stabbed three times, including two wounds in his upper left chest.   The man driving the car that sped away is identified as 38-year-old Nima Momeni, also a tech executive.  Texts from Momeni's married sister sent to Lee,  show a connection between the two. Nima Momeni reportedly confronted, Lee implying "improper behavior" Joining Nancy Grace Today: Jarrett Ferentino- Homicide Prosecutor in Pennsylvania, Facebook & Instagram: Jarrett Ferentino Dr. John Delatorre (D La Torrey) - Licensed Psychologist and Mediator (specializing in forensic psychology), Psychological Consultant to Project Absentis: a nonprofit organization that searches for missing persons; Twitter, IG, and TikTok: @drjohndelatorre Irv Brandt - Senior Inspector, US Marshals Service International Investigations Branch, Chief Inspector, DOJ Office of International Affairs; Author: “SOLO SHOT: CURSE OF THE BLUE STONE," and FLYING SOLO: Top of the World"  AVAILABLE ON AMAZON; Top of the World" Twitter: @JackSoloAuthor  Dr. Maneesha Pandey- Chief Forensic Pathologist for Forensic Pathologists LLC in Ohio, Board-certified forensic pathologist Ben Levitan- Telecommunications Expert, Columnist Jen Smith- Chief Reporter for DailyMail.com; Twitter: @Jen_e_smith  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Breaking crime news as it happens throughout the day! Follow "Crime Alert Hourly Update" now on your favorite podcast app: https://link.chtbl.com/Crime_Alert Here's three of our top stories this week:  Police confirm that a man has been arrested in connection to the deadly Kenneth Fire that is raging near the West Hills.   A Wisconsin judge grants the release of a woman who, at 12 years old, stabbed her classmate to gain favor with the fictional character Slender Man. A prominent You Tube personality & content creator is accused of kidnapping and attacking two women, then abandoning them on a desolate Texas highway.  Stay informed, stay safe, and stay ahead with "Crime Alert Hourly Update.” See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dawn Viens, the owner of a popular California eatery and wife of the chef, disappears. Many, including the police, initially believe Dawn left of her own accord, but the facts don’t add up. What led to her disappearance? When Dawn met her future husband, she was a beautiful, vivacious front-end hostess. The man of her dreams, David Viens, was a talented chef. The couple married and set out to make their mark in the food industry, eventually settling in California and opening a highly successful restaurant. Dawn disappeared after David claimed they had an argument. Police spoke with David and Dawn’s friends, but certain details didn’t add up. Then, a friend received a text from “Pixie,” Dawn’s nickname, saying she was starting over in another state. David appeared to have moved on as well. He had a new girlfriend who had taken Dawn’s place at the restaurant and in his home. Suspicion grew when the new girlfriend was seen throwing away Dawn’s clothes. Police decided to take another look at the evidence. The pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place, and detectives identified a new person of interest. Using traditional investigative methods, they worked tirelessly to uncover the truth about what happened to Dawn. Incriminating comments from David Viens’ daughter suggested that David himself was behind the suspicious text message. He quickly became the prime suspect. The answer may have been in plain sight all along. Join Nancy Grace, along with Dawn Viens’ siblings, as they discuss this case.                                                                                                      See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On a Tuesday afternoon, a driver in the 700 block of 15th street in Miami Beach sees a 6-year-old boy running across 15th street, unsupervised and in a high traffic area. Calling 911, the driver relates what he is seeing, and officers arrive on scene in a matter of minutes.  Police see the child leaving an apartment complex by himself and ask the boy where he lives. The child leads the officers to his apartment to show them he isn't lost and the apartment door is answered by the oldest person in the apartment, the boys 12-year-old sister.  Officers find there are a total of five children in the apartment between the ages of 6 and 12, with no adults in the home. The officers report a strong odor of urine, the children are not bathed, their clothes are dirty and there is no food in the house. The apartment doesn't have a functioning stove, no electricity, and no working toilet. . Asking the children if they are hungry, they all say 'yes' and tell the police their last meal had been around 10 p.m. the night before.  The children tell the police they have been without electricity for around two months. Trying to locate their parents, the children tell the police they have no way of contacting their mother, but they know she works at a hotel in Miami. They don't know where their father works.  Police officers finally contact the children's mother, Azra Nikocevic and get her to come to the police station.  Officers question Nikocevic about what the children have told them about going to bed hungry and having no electricity.  She tells investigators the electricity to their apartment has been cut off for about 6 weeks because they got behind on the bill. She also tells investigators she is trying to get assistance with food stamps but denies depriving her children of food.    Azra Nikocevic and Sanel Canovic are arrested after leaving their five children ages six to 12 unattended in a filthy apartment with no food, no electricity, and no working toilet. The mother gave a statement to police and denies depriving her children of food while the children's father refused to speak to police without an attorney.  Both are charged with five felony child neglect charges, and the children were taken into protective custody while authorities investigate.  Joining Nancy Grace today:  Derek Smith - Criminal Defense Attorney,  www.dwsmithlegal.com Dr. Jeff Kieliszewski  - Forensic Psychologist, Author: “Darksides", darksides.podia.com,   YouTube: Dr. Jeff Kieliszewski, Forensic Psychologist Officer Christopher Bess - Miami Beach Police Department Dr. Michelle DuPre - Forensic Pathologist, Medical Examiner and Detective: Lexington County Sheriff's Department, Author: “Money, Mischief, and Murder: The Murdaugh Dynasty...the Rest of the Story" ; "Homicide Investigation Field Guide" & "Child Abuse Investigation Field Guide", Forensic Consultant DMichelleDupreMD.com Paula Rohde  - Child abuse/welfare consultant and expert, Former Child Protective Services Administrator for Orange County, CA. abuse and neglect investigations.  Paula Rohde Consulting LLC, Twitter: @PaulaRohde2.  Chelsea Jones  - Weekend Evening Anchor / Reporter at CBS News Miami, Emmy Award winner for 2024 National coverage of the Stanley Cup Finals, website: www.cbsmiami.com, X, IG and FB: @ChelseaJonesTV See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Man holding his girlfriend hostage threatens her life and forces her to write goodbyes to her children. Air pods help cops catch disgruntled employee turned thief.  For more crime and justice news go to crimeonline.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.