John Gotti III goes 3-0

John Gotti III is still perfect as a professional fighter, needing 28 seconds to move to 3-0. The grandson of the infamous mob boss, Gotti III (3-0) caught a stray kick from opponent Josh Zuckerman (0-4) before delivering a right hand that sent him crashing to the floor. Rapid-fire punches on the floor sealed the deal less than half of a minute after the bout began.

NY developer Michael D’Alessio pleads guilty to $58M ponzi scheme

D’Alessio guaranteed monthly interest payments and a share in the profits.

Michael D’Alessio, 53, has pleaded guilty in New York to one count of committing wire fraud and one count of concealing assets from a bankruptcy court. He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines when he is sentenced next year. The elaborate scheme involved defrauding investors of luxury real estate developments in Manhattan, the Hamptons, and Westchester. He offered shares of a newly formed company, named after the location of the real estate to be developed and sold. The scheme began in 2015.

D'Alessio defrauded investors out of more than $58m. He used the loot to pay off debts and to fund gambling and other personal expenses. When D’Alessio eventually was petitioned into bankruptcy, he immediately perpetrated another fraud by trying to conceal his assets.

Cargo redirection scheme busted

Toronto Police are looking for a cache of stolen goods believed to be hidden in public storage lockers in the GTA. In August, police started an investigation into a cargo redirection scheme involving gold, jewelry and electronics. Commercial shipping accounts were hacked and goods redirected. The crook also ran an identity theft scheme by obtaining credit cards using identities of innocent victims. The cards were ordered to the victims’ addresses, then redirected. There are at least 38 victims.

Jerahmel Selvyn Wilson allegedly stole $500k in 3 months.

On Oct. 24, police conducted a search warrant at a Yorkville condo. A $36,000 watch, 25 forged Canadian certificates of citizenship, 28 credit cards obtained by identity theft, 26 pages of identity information, and cash were seized. Cops also located a large ring of keys believed to be for storage lockers. Jerahmel Selvyn Wilson, 28, of Toronto, faces numerous charges.

German police seize over a ton of cocaine, arrest 8

Cops in Hamburg have seized over a ton of cocaine and arrested eight following an investigation that lasted several months. Officers followed a truck they suspected was being used to transport drugs to a Hamburg haulage company.

By the time special forces arrived, five men had unloaded over a ton of cocaine in 1-kilo packets. The five — three Germans, an Italian and a Pole — were arrested. So were three others including a senior member of the Hell’s Angels. Police also seized 170,000 euros ($194,000) in cash.

Fentanyl-laced Crack - Deadly Newcomer

Within a recent four-day period, a Philadelphia hospital treated 18 patients for apparent opioid overdoses even though they'd only been smoking crack cocaine. None of them had intended to use opioids, but all had been exposed to high doses of fentanyl. 3 died. Between 2012 and 2016 there's been a 23-fold increase in the number of deaths involving cocaine in combination with synthetic opioids. That's 4,184 deaths in 2016 in the US.

Fentanyl has been increasingly making its way into both crack and powder cocaine. It's cheap, has a strong high and it makes people come back for more. A speedball is always a dangerous mixture. If one experience an overdose, the time to death is very short, minutes instead of hours. Fentanyls are not water soluble and would be sprinkled on the crack. The combination would be pressed. It would appear as crack but breaks apart easier.

Cocaine cutting agent levamisole causes brain damage

The functional and structural changes observed clearly indicate that levamisole could have a toxic effect.

People who take cocaine cut with anti-worming agent levamisole demonstrate impaired cognitive performance and a thinned prefrontal cortex. Findings are from two recent studies at the University of Zurich. The cocaine sold on the streets is usually cut with other substances such as local anesthetic agents, painkillers and caffeine. Around 10 years ago levamisole became popular as a cutting agent. Levamisole can lead to severe side effects such as changes to blood counts and blood vessels. Initial animal testing revealed that the substance attacks the nervous system.

The effect was proven: People who consumed cocaine with a high levamisole content clearly displayed a thinner prefrontal cortex—the area of the brain associated with executive functions.

'God Fearing Christian' nailed for $ 4.9m Ponzi scheme

Boise builder Nathan Pyles posed as a “God-fearing Christian” while he swindled his victims out of at least $4.9m. Pyles, president of Shiloh Management Services, paid himself a huge salary, used new investor money to repay older investors, failed to record property deeds in some instances and filed multiple deeds on others. He is also accused of using investor money for his lavish lifestyle. Pyles fixed up old houses and flipped them. Later, he bought land and built houses. To finance construction, Pyles recruited investors and offered short-term notes that paid between 10 and 30%.

Pyles raised at least $28.8 million from 55 investors. At first he made payments regularly, but he couldn't find enough new suckers to keep the scam going and it collapsed.