14 yr old Girl $exually abused at Lake County pot farm by Two Men.

SAN FRANCISCO — Two men are accused of forcing a 15-year-old girl to work on a Lake County marijuana grow, sexually abusing her and locking her in a metal toolbox for days, authorities said.
Ryan Balletto, 30, and Patrick Pearmain, 24, both allegedly had sex with the girl who was cutting marijuana buds for them at Balletto's Lake County property, according to a federal complaint unsealed Monday.
The girl, described as a runaway from the Los Angeles area, told investigators she was locked in a 4 by 2 by 2-foot box. Holes had been drilled in the box and water was run through the box to wash her without letting her out, the complaint said.
"Some in our community believe that marijuana grow operations are run by compassionate caregivers interested only in supplying medicine to the sick," said U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag in a statement Monday. "Unfortunately, this case illustrates what we in law enforcement see — marijuana grow operations that include heavily armed, violent individuals, motivated by profit, carrying out abuses of vulnerable victims."
The girl came to Lake County Sheriff's deputies' attention when the Los Angeles Police Department advised that Balletto may have kidnapped her. After deputies visited Balletto's home asking about the missing girl on April 29, the complaint said, she called authorities the next day to say she was OK and in Sacramento.
LAPD investigators traced the call and police located the girl at a West Sacramento hotel, where authorities arrested Pearmain, the complaint said.
Balletto was arrested when authorities raided his property on May 1. Court paper said officers found sex toys, a rope tied into a noose and a homemade device used "presumably to attach a human and immobilize them" in a trailer Balletto was living in.
Hundreds of marijuana plants and several firearms were found as part of the investigation.
Balletto and Pearmain were both charged with marijuana possession and using a minor in drug operations. Balletto is also charged with possession of a firearm to further a drug trafficking crime.
If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of life in prison.
It wasn't immediately clear whether Balletto and Pearmain have retained attorneys.
A call to the Lake County District Attorney's office to see whether they face charges related to the sexual abuse allegations was not immediately returned.
The U.S. Attorney's office said in a statement that Balletto and Pearmain have already had their first court appearance.

A call to the office seeking further details on the status of their case was not immediately returned. 

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Teenage kidnapper ‘called the FBI almost daily’ while holding woman as $ex slave

Bizarre details continue to emerge following the escape of a kidnapped woman who was allegedly held as a sex slave by a New York teenager. According to new reports, the woman’s captor made almost daily phone calls to the FBI.

Brandon Todd, 19, was arrested on July 10 and charged with the kidnapping of an unidentified woman. Todd reportedly met the woman on a cross-country bus, as the two traveled from Florida to San Diego. 

Once they arrived at their destination, Todd suggested they stay in a hotel together. 

Todd made clear his intentions to kidnap the woman, telling her that he was affiliated with a gang and would have her tracked down if she attempted to escape. After several days, Todd forced the woman to travel with him on another bus to Rochester, New York, threatening to kill the victim’s parents if she resisted. 

When the pair arrived in Rochester, Todd’s grandfather picked them up and drove them to his home, where the 19-year-old lived. 

According to an affidavit, the grandfather "would not talk to [the victim], would not look her in the eye, and did not seem to care that she was there.” 

But then, the story takes an even stranger turn – during the woman’s two-week stay in the home, Todd made almost daily calls to federal agents. 

Court documents say the teenager began making phone calls to the FBI – the majority of which were received by Agent Barry Crouch. Todd informed the agency that “he was involved in human sex trafficking” and had recently “recruited” a victim. 

"Todd stated that the reason he was calling the FBI was that he had recruited a certain woman, started to have personal feelings for her, and decided he did not want her involved with the trafficking," Crouch wrote. 

Disturbing details of the woman’s captivity, as explained in the affidavit, include physical abuse and sleep deprivation. Todd allegedly forced his victim into sex several times per day and injured her using a belt and heavy boots. 

In the move that eventually saved her, the woman faked an asthma attack so she could be admitted into the hospital. She took that opportunity to call her boyfriend, and the two then escaped to Florida together. 

After her escape, Todd contacted federal agents “hoping the FBI would assist him in locating the woman," Crouch wrote. 

According to the agent, the woman had heard Todd speaking with Crouch on the phone stating that he was “working with the feds.” The false information made the victim question whether she should file a police report. 

The FBI declined to respond to repeated phone calls from ABC News. 

The affidavit was filed by Crouch on July 9, and Todd was arrested the following day on charges of kidnapping across state lines – a charge that carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. 

Todd appeared in a US District Court in Rochester on July 22, at which point he requested a private attorney. He has not yet entered a plea, and no new court date has been set.

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Wales Gives College Student $25,000 Scholarship.

A Hampton University student says she can now afford to stay in college thanks to a $25,000 scholarship she won from Wale.

Wale recently helped a Hampton University student by "gifting" her with a $25,000 scholarship, according to thejasminebrand.com. Lauren Pryor, a sophomore Psychology student, won the Wale "The Gifted" Scholarship by calling into Norfolk, Virginia Hip Hop station 103 JAMZ.

“I was on my way to a friend’s home in Hampton when I heard the radio challenge that the twenty-fifth caller would win the prize," Pryor said to the Gloucester-Mathews Gazette-Journal, as per thejasminebrand.com. "The station said to call between 4 and 5 pm. I called four or five times. The line was always busy. On about the fourteenth call I told myself to give it a rest then, I heard a man say, ‘Hello.’ I didn’t believe it. He told me there were millions of calls and he only picked up the phone 14 times nationwide."

Wale attended Robert Morris College and Virginia State University on football scholarships before transferring to a third school, Bowie State, prior to his rap career.

Pryor received the scholarship at the album release party and concert for Wale’s The Gifted. Debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart, The Gifted is Wale's third studio album and the second to come out while signed to Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group. 

“Winning this scholarship was truly a blessing," Pryor says. "Almost not returning to Hampton University in the fall because of expenses, I was exceedingly fortunate to receive this scholarship. It was truly a test of faith.”

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Kanye Give Paparazzi A Nice Beat Down.....Yeezus Lay Hands On Him.

Kanye West allegedly just attacked another photog at LAX moments ago -- and it's so bad ... paramedics are on scene.

Sources connected with the photog tell us, Kanye was on his way out of the airport when he went ballistic, attacking the paparazzo. 

An eyewitness tells us, Kanye was leaving the terminal with a bodyguard and approximately five paparazzi surrounded him, snapping pictures. We're told one photog was especially aggressive -- not a TMZ photog -- and probed Kanye with tons of questions.

We're told Kanye told the man not to ask him questions, but he kept going -- and Kanye attacked, attempting several punches, and the man fell down. Paramedics and police are currently on scene.

Kanye has been out of the country since last week ... when he laid down his now-infamous anti-pap rules, telling our photog NEVER TO TALK TO HIM EVER.

The extent of the photog's injuries are unclear. Kanye is nowhere to be seen

Tampa 'first lady' of tax refund fraud gets 21 years in prison...Do You Think That's Too Much Of A Sentence For Her Crime.

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TAMPA — She taunted authorities to catch her as she stole millions from the IRS. They did.

Rashia Wilson must now spend 21 years in prison, apart from her three children, ages 2 to 12. After watching their mother get sentenced Tuesday, they wailed when the rules of federal marshals precluded a goodbye hug.

The self-proclaimed "first lady" of tax refund fraud, who admitted stealing more than $3 million and is suspected of taking as much as $20 million, dropped her head to a table and sobbed upon learning the punishment.

"She knew what she was doing was wrong," U.S. District Judge James. S. Moody Jr. concluded. "She reveled in the fact that it was wrong."

Wilson, 27, pleaded guilty earlier this year to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, both crimes stemming from tax fraud. In a separate case, she pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. Moody sentenced her Tuesday for all three offenses.

Her attorney, Mark J. O'Brien, asked Moody not to be swayed by public pressure. In a sentencing memorandum he quoted the late Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger: "Judges rule on the basis of law, not public opinion, and they should be totally indifferent to pressures of the times."

It was a reference to grandiose claims by Wilson on her Facebook page that she was untouchable by the Tampa Police Department, the agency that sounded an alarm about such crimes nationally. (IRS-Criminal Investigations, the Secret Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Hills*borough County Sheriff's Office joined TPD in the investigation.)

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mandy Riedel, who prosecuted the case with Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Sweeney, read excerpts of Wilson's Facebook posting in court.

"I'm Rashia, the queen of IRS tax fraud," the post stated, all in capital letters, with a little less punctuation than this:

"I'm a millionaire for the record, so if U think indicting me will B easy it won't, I promise you! U need more than black and white to hold me down N that's to da rat who went N told, as if 1st lady don't have da TPD under her spell. I run Tampa right now."

She predicted she would not serve time.

Where some might see audacity, psychologist Valerie McClain sees illness.

McClain testified for the defense Tuesday that Wilson suffers from bipolar disorder first diagnosed at age 14, and that the "adolescent bragging" in Facebook posts is consistent with manic-phase behavior. 

She was born to a mother addicted to cocaine and a father in prison. She failed fifth and sixth grade, then dropped out in seventh. Wilson grew up with nothing, her attorney said.

For a few years, tax fraud allowed an unimaginable lifestyle. She spent $30,000 on her 1-year-old's birthday party, and $90,000 on an Audi. 

In the end, dollar signs — not Facebook or a psychological report — caught the judge's attention. "I can't ignore the fact that she stole over $3 million from the government," he said.

The 21-year sentence includes 210 months for wire fraud, 24 months for aggravated identity theft and 18 months for the gun.

It's the harshest penalty yet in the Tampa Bay area for charges relating to stolen identity refund fraud, which sent car dealer Russell B. Simmons to prison for 15 years. 

"We respect the decision of the judge," attorney O'Brien said, "though we were hopeful there would have been a different outcome."

As required by law, Moody ordered Wilson to pay restitution. The amount, $3.1 million, reflects the government loss estimate at the time of plea discussions. Later investigation produced higher estimates, but Moody honored the agreement.

She will owe the restitution with co-defendant Maurice Larry, who has sentencing hearings scheduled for two tax fraud cases: Aug. 6 and Sept. 23. In the second case, his co-defendant is Marterrence "Quat" Holloway.

Holloway signed a plea agreement last week admitting to three counts: conspiracy to defraud the United States, aggravated identity theft and access device fraud. He is expected to plead guilty next week.

Kansas Man Killed By Officer Outside Chief Keef Concert

Oklahoma City police say an off-duty police officer shot and killed a Kansas man outside an Oklahoma City concert.

Capt. Dexter Nelson said Friday that Sgt. Paul Galyon shot 24-year-old Brian Simms Jr. of Olathe, Kan., late Thursday at the Farmers Public Market in Oklahoma City. Nelson says the shooting occurred outside a concert by Chicago-based rap artist Chief Keef.

Nelson says Galyon and another officer were working off-duty outside the concert venue when they saw a man who appeared to be unconscious in a car. Nelson says the officers approached and saw the man had a gun in his waistband.

Nelson says Galyon opened fire when Simms did not comply with orders and confronted the officers. Galyon has been placed on paid leave pending an investigation into the shooting.

Family members of a 24-year-old Kansas man shot and killed outside a rap concert Thursday night are angry, shocked and grieving, the man's sister said. An Oklahoma City police officer shot the man about 10:30 p.m. outside Farmers Public Market, 311 S Klein Ave., where 17-year-old Chicago rapper Chief Keef was scheduled to perform. The victim was identified by his sister as Brian Simms Jr., of Olathe, Kan. “We're angry at the police officers,” Mishellai Avery said, adding that she wanted police to release the names of the involved officers more quickly. “It's still a shock to my mom. She's probably not going to know the truth until she sees his actual body.” Oklahoma City police Capt. Dexter Nelson confirmed Friday that Simms was the shooting victim and released the name of the officer involved. Two off-duty police officers, working security for the concert, approached Simms in a car, Nelson said. The officers saw a gun in the man's waistband and gave him orders regarding the weapon. When he didn't comply, one of the officers shot him, Nelson said. A concertgoer who was nearby at the time said he saw the flashes and heard eight shots. The officer who shot Simms was Sgt. Paul Galyon, a 19-year police force member. Galyon was placed on paid administrative leave.

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Woman Arrested For Having Sex With Her Cat.

I Had Sex With My Cat And Everyone Knows," Aggrieved Oklahoma Woman Explained To Arresting Officer
Convinced that a neighbor spoke to others about her having sex with a cat, an Oklahoma woman allegedly threatened the man with a knife, saying, “Do you wanna die?”

Oklahoma City cops arrested Kristina Michelle Brown following her bizarre confrontation Monday afternoon with 72-year-old Elmer Morrison. The 23-year-old Brown was charged with assault and battery with a deadly weapon, a felony, and booked into jail, where she is being held in lieu of $5000 bail.

According to an Oklahoma City Police Department report, Morrison told a cop that Brown had been standing at the fence between their houses yelling, “Come outside I know you are in there.” With a small pocket knife in hand, Brown then repeatedly asked, “Do you wanna die?”

When police questioned Brown, she explained she was upset with Morrison “because of what he did to me.” When a cop asked what he did to her, she replied, “Because everyone knows.” She then said, “I had sex with my cat and everyone knows.”

A puzzled cop asked Brown (pictured above) what role Morrison had in the cat sex. She replied that her next-door neighbor had “no connection” to the act, saying that she was “just mad because everyone knows.”

Investigators reported that Brown said Morrison “does not know about what she did with the cat, she is just mad at him and wants him to die.”

In an interview, Morrison, a retired salesman, was incredulous when told of Brown’s statements to police. “This is news to me,” Morrison said, adding that he had little interaction with Brown, who has lived next to him (along with assorted family members, cats, and dogs) for several years.

Morrison said that Brown sometimes appeared “glassy-eyed,” and hung out with a crowd that assembled near a local head shop

NBA Players Stealing Each Others Girls.

KOBE/MALONE

In 2003 Karl Malone, then 40 years old, signed with the Lakers and struck up a friendship with a young hotshot by the name of Kobe Bryant. Unlike the tentative bond Bryant had with Dwight Howard, their relationship extended beyond the confines of the Staples Center.

They often went out together socially with wives and children in tow. So you can understand why Bryant told ESPN.com he was "upset" to learn the Mailman had been scamming on his longtime love, Vanessa, in December 2004.

There was no affair, or rumor of an affair, just a few skeevy incidents and some seriously misread social cues. Initially Malone denied any wrongdoing, but eventually he stepped that back and apologized for anything "that was out of line."

The old "I didn't do anything, but if I did, I am very sorry about that." Works every time...

KIDD/JIM JACKSON
Although there were no long-term relationships to come of their brief couplings, former Mavericks Jason Kidd and Jim Jackson were both romantically involved with singer Toni Braxton in the mid '90s. 

That probably wouldn't have been such a big deal if their short-lived relationships didn't overlap in such a noteworthy way. The two former teammates had a well-known rift during their time together, and Braxton is thought to be the cause. 

As relayed by ESPN's Jeff Merron, legend has it that the feud stemmed from an incident in which Braxton arrived at the Mavs' hotel in Atlanta to pick up Kidd for a night out, but left with Jackson instead.

In the years since the debacle, both players have denied the rumors, but it had been widely accepted as likely fact before the denials.

NASH/BARBOSA
When rapidly aging Lakers point guard Steve Nash split from ex-wife Alejandra Amarilla in February 2011, she had just given birth to the couple's second child.

The strange timing of their abrupt breakup led to a lot of speculation as to what could be behind the whole thing. Rumors ran rampant that Amarilla had given birth to a baby of mixed-race, which led to even more rumors about the potential paternity.

The rumors about the child seem to be unfounded, but those linking Amarilla with two of Nash's ex-teammates in Phoenix—first to Leandro Barbosa, then to Jason Richardson—have proven more difficult to shake.

And the fact that Richardson was considered persona non grata in Los Angeles after Nash signed with the Lakers in 2012? Well…it certainly didn't do anything to change that perception.

JORDAN/PIPPEN
Dennis Rodman isn't the only Bull that briefly won the affections of pop superstar Madonna in the '90s. He's just the most colorful. 

Before her high-profile affair with the Bulls bad boy, Ms. Madonna was sitting front-row center in Chicago eying up his teammate Scottie Pippen. 

And his teammate, Michael Jordan, was eying her up. 

But those were before the days of the interwebs, when superstars could still lead super private lives. So details on this one are sparse, but people are still buzzing about these three on message boards 20 years later.

PAU/SHANNON BROWN
Lakers big man Pau Gasol did not have a career year in the 2010-11 season, but he waited until the playoffs to really lay an egg. When the Lakers were swept by the Mavericks, his lackluster play was largely to blame.

Seriously, a man that big never looked so small.

Rumors about what was getting to Gasol began to circulate quickly and speculation abound problems with his girlfriend, Silvia Lopez Castro, could be the culprit. Castro was suspected of having a fling with Gasol's then-teammate Shannon Brown.

Brown decided the best way to address the issue was via Twitter: "Ok let me put a end to this right now before it goes any further. I DID NOT SLEEP WITH @paugasol woman!!! First and last time addressing it!"
Uh. Okay. Case closed, I guess.

ARENAS/SHAQ
In November 2009 TheYBF published a series of emails exchanged between the NBA's biggest big man, Shaquille O'Neal, and Basketball Wives L.A. cast member Laura Govan. 

Not only was Shaq married at the time, although he never cheated on his ex-wife Shaunie "disrespectfully," (seriously, he said that) but Govan was engaged to Wizards star Gilbert Arenas…and is the mother of his four children. 

Ugh. How does a mother of four find time to tend to the needs of that many young children and deal with the antics of Arenas annnnd still set aside some "me time" to sext with Shaq? She should teach a class on time management. 

TONY PARKER/BRENT BARRY
In November 2010 Spurs superstar point guard Tony Parker found himself on the receiving end of some seriously unflattering press coverage when it was revealed that his wife, actress Eva Longoria, had filed for divorce amid rumors of infidelity. 

It was a scandal that became even more scandalous with the revelation that the object of Parker's affection was a woman by the name of Erin Barry, with whom Longoria alleged he exchanged hundreds of texts. 

That woman happened to be the wife of Parker's teammate Brent Barry. Neither marriage survived the affair—both couples were divorced within months of the affair making headlines.

Govan tried to deny the allegations, claiming the emails were "fake" and insisting she had never cheated on Arenas. Shaq did nothing of the sort—respectfully. 

ANOTHER TRAYVON MARTIN TYPE CASE...76-year-old man to stand trial in shooting death of 13-year-old boy

In a case that bears some striking similarities to George Zimmerman's, a 76-year-old Milwaukee man  is set to stand trial this week in the 2012 shooting death a 13-year-old boy he had accused of stealing from him.

Police say John Henry Spooner confronted Darius Simmons, who lived next door with his mother, as the teen took out the trash. Spooner, who is white, had suspected that Simmons, who was black, stole $3,000 worth of shotguns from him, and demanded that the sixth-grader return them. Simmons denied stealing the guns, and his mother, Patricia Larry, told Spooner to go back inside.

Instead, prosecutors say, Spooner pulled out a handgun and shot the 13-year-old in the chest from near-point blank range.

"When police arrived, Spooner was still on the sidewalk, holding the gun," according to the criminal complaint. "When told to drop the weapon, he placed it on the ground and told police, 'Yeah, I shot him.'"

An autopsy showed that Simmons, who was unarmed, suffered a gunshot wound to his torso, according to the Associated Press. Spooner was charged with first degree murder. He pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett condemned the killing. "To have a boy who's taking out the garbage at 10:30 in the morning murdered should shock the conscience of the state," Barrett said at the time.

Just hours before the shooting, Spooner told a local politician he was frustrated police had not arrested the boy in the alleged burglary, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and hinted he might take the law into his own hands.

"There are other ways to deal with situations," Alderman Bob Donovan recalled Spooner saying.

Spooner's apparent reference to vigilantism drew comparisons to Zimmerman's killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin after the former neighborhood watchman followed him through a Sanford, Fla., housing complex. Zimmerman was acquitted of all charges on Saturday.

Last year, the Rev. Jesse Jackson's Rainbow PUSH Coalition called for Spooner to be charged with a federal hate crime. On Monday, an attorney representing Simmons' family said there's a clear "issue of profiling" and a "race component" to the case. But Spooner has denied race was a factor in the shooting.

The trial was supposed to begin in January but was delayed due to concerns about Spooner's health.

Lakers focused on pursuit of LeBron, Carmelo for 2014.

he Los Angeles Lakers are focused on signing LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony in the 2014 offseason, according to sources.The Lakers have refused to commit to contracts that extend beyond the 13-14 season to maximize cap space.One source described the plan as "realistic", while another calls it "far-fetched at this point.

"Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh could also become free agents, while Luol Deng, Danny Granger, Andrew Bogut and Dirk Nowitzki will be unrestricted free agents."It's all wishful thinking at this point," a league source with knowledge of the situation said.

"Teams are doing more wishing than LeBron is wanting right now."It's not about where LeBron wants to go [to win].

He already has two rings. If LeBron moved to Reno, teams would come to him." 

Privacy Group Asks FTC to Investigate Jay-Z's Samsung App

Two weeks ago, in the buildup to Jay-Z's release of Magna Carta Holy Grail, we asked: How much is too much information? The rapper paired with Samsung to release 1 million copies of the album through an exclusive app. The only catch was users had to grant Samsung access to storage, system tools, network communications, phone calls, and much more information.

But it seems the advocacy group Electronic Privacy Information Center, aka EPIC, has a problem with Samsung's data mining practices. They are asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate.

“Samsung failed to disclose material information about the privacy practices of the App, collected data unnecessary to the functioning of the Magna Carta App, deprived users of meaningful choice regarding the collection of their data, interfered with device functionality, and failed to implement reasonable data minimization procedures,” the group said in the complaint.

Samsung believes the complaint with the FTC is unwarranted and that the Magna Carta app's permissions are no different from any other apps on the market, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Samsung responded to the complaint in a statement: "Any information obtained through the application download process was purely for customer verification purposes, app functionality purposes, and for marketing communications, but only if the customer requests to receive those marketing communications. Samsung is in no way inappropriately using or selling any information obtained from users through the download process." 

And Jeremiah Reynolds, an intellectual property lawyer, agrees with the electronics company. 

“People may believe it’s intrusive, but as long is it’s correctly described and as long as the people give consent, I don’t see what the issue is,” he said.

To paraphrase Hov: Samsung's got 99 problems and a FTC investigation could be one.