MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s top investigative body said Thursday that another suspect has been detained as an accomplice in the attack by gunmen on a suburban Moscow concert hall that killed 143 people.
A statement from the Investigative Committee said the latest person detained was involved in financing Friday’s attack on the Crocus City concert hall in which gunmen shot people who were waiting for a show by a popular rock band and then set the building on fire. It did not give further details of the suspect’s identity or alleged actions.
Officials previously said that 11 suspects had been arrested, including four who allegedly carried out the attack. Those four, identified as Tajik nationals, appeared in a Moscow court on Sunday on terrorism charges and showed signs of severe beatings. One appeared to be barely conscious during the hearing.
A faction of the Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the massacre. But Russian officials including President Vladimir Putin have persistently claimed, without presenting evidence, that Ukraine and the West had a role in the attack.
The Investigative Committee statement said it has “confirmed data that the perpetrators of the terrorist attack received significant amounts of money and cryptocurrency from Ukraine, which were used in preparing the crime.”
Ukraine denies involvement and its officials claim that Moscow is pushing the allegation as a pretext to intensify its fighting in Ukraine.
Health officials said Thursday that about 70 people remain hospitalized from injuries in the attack, many of them in severe condition.
Four people were killed and five others were wounded in and near Rockford, Illinois, Tuesday in what the city’s mayor called a “random and senseless act of violence.”
Some of the victims, including a woman who fled a home invasion in Winnebago County and a man who tried to help her, were stabbed, officials said.
A suspect has been taken into custody, and police are not looking for anyone else involved in the violence at “multiple scenes” in Rockford and an area of the county shortly after 1 p.m., authorities said.
“Words can’t even express my thoughts right now,” Rockford Police Chief Carla Redd told reporters. She said the suspect committed “heinous crimes.”
One person was injured and in critical condition, and four others were stable after an adult man “attacked and stabbed multiple individuals,” the police department said on X.
The causes of death and injury for all victims was not clear. Not all of the victims were stabbed, Redd said, and none were shot.
A report came into Rockford’s dispatch center at 1:14 p.m. about a medical call, Redd said, and other calls followed asking for police help.
In a neighborhood in the Rockford area that is part of Winnebago County, there was a home invasion and a woman fled but was stabbed in the hands and face, Sheriff Gary Caruana said.
She was taken to a hospital with serious injuries and has been intubated, he said. A man who intervened to help her suffered stab wounds, but “he’s fine” and being evaluated, Caruana said.
A sheriff’s deputy took the suspect, who has not been identified, into custody, Caruana said.
One of the victims was a mail carrier, Caruana said, without providing further details. The Postal Inspection Service said the victim was a letter carrier but released no other details, citing an active investigation.
Both law enforcement agencies are investigating and trying to piece together what happened. Redd asked residents to check surveillance cameras or doorbell cameras for any footage that might help investigators.
“Right now, we don’t have a clear motive in regards to what caused this individual to commit such heinous crimes,” Redd said.
Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara and other officials said their thoughts were with the victims and their families. The mayor said he was “just totally shaken by this act of violence and the impact that it’s having now on multiple families’ lives.”
“My prayers are with them as they’re just beginning to deal with what will be really difficult days and weeks ahead,” McNamara said.
Federal law enforcement officials are assisting in the investigation, police said.
The city announced emotional support and counseling services would be available at Flinn Middle School on Thursday and Friday.
Rockford is a city of around 150,000 about 60 miles northwest of Chicago.
CHICAGO (CBS) — Four people were killed and five others were injured in an attack on Wednesday afternoon in Rockford, Illinois. Police said some of the victims were stabbed.
Rockford Police Chief Carla Redd said the first call came in around 1:15 p.m. for a medical call in the 2300 block of Holmes. Soon after, there were additional calls for police and paramedics at multiple scenes in Rockford and surrounding parts of Winnebago County.
Winnebago County Sheriff Gary Caruana said there was a home invasion near the intersection of Florence and Eggleston. A young woman trying to get away was stabbed in the face and hands and seriously wounded. A Good Samaritan who tried to help her also was stabbed.
Redd said a total of four people were killed, one person was critically injured, and four other people were taken to hospitals, where their conditions were stabilized. Redd said not all of the victims were stabbed, but there were no gunshot victims. Caruana said one of the people killed was a postal worker.
A suspect was taken into custody by around 1:30 p.m., according to Caruana.
Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara said he was “totally shaken by this act of violence.”
Redd said police were questioning the suspect who was taken into custody, but there was no clear motive for the attack.
Todd Feurer
Todd Feurer is a web producer at CBS News Chicago. He has previously written for WBBM Newsradio, WUIS-FM, and the New City News Service.
The toy company Lego requested a Southern California police department refrain from using the company’s toy heads to hide the identities of suspects in photos shared on social media.
The Murrieta Police Department began using Lego heads to cover people’s faces in November 2022. The edited photos garnered attention last week after the department posted a statement titled “Why the covered faces?” on Facebook.
The police department’s “Why the covered faces?” post.Marietta Police Dept. / via Facebook
The online images prompted the toy company to contact the police department on March 19.
Lego “respectfully asked us to refrain from using their intellectual property in our social media content, which, of course, we understand and will comply with,” Lt. Jeremy Durrant said in a statement to the Associated Press.
“We are currently exploring other methods to continue publishing our content in a way that is engaging and interesting to our followers,” Durrant added.
Lego did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A post from February 26 about suspects in a traffic collision involving a parked vehicle the previous night.Marietta Police Dept. / via Facebook
The Murrieta Police Department protects the suspect’s identity in accordance with the law but uploads photos of their faces covered to openly share what is happening in the city.
“The Murrieta Police Department prides itself in its transparency with the community, but also honors everyone’s rights & protections as afforded by law; even suspects,” the department wrote on Facebook.
The California legislature amended Penal Code 13665 in July 2021 to prohibit law enforcement from sharing photos of suspects arrested for nonviolent crimes.
Additionally, the state passed Assembly Bill 994 in September 2023, requiring agencies to remove suspect mugshots from social media after 14 days unless special circumstances exist.
The law went into effect in January, according to the department.
First suspect in Moscow terror attack appears in court – CBS News
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The first of two suspects in a terror attack at a concert venue near Moscow appeared in court Sunday in Russia. At least 133 people were killed in the attack. Debora Patta has the latest.
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The man accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a sex worker in Oregon is believed to have targeted sex workers in prior crimes, the FBI said Tuesday.
Negasi Zuberi, 29, was arrested last month after a woman escaped a makeshift cinderblock cell where he allegedly kept her hostage, according to the FBI. The woman also accused him of “repeatedly” sexually assaulting her, FBI agent Stephanie Shark told NBC News.
Zuberi is being investigated in at least four other sexual assaults in at least four other states. The FBI is now looking for anyone else that may have been a victim of Zuberi.
“Based off the information that we have, sex workers were part of the population that he targeted, but also other roommates, or other people he felt that didn’t have connections to anybody else,” Shark said.
A cinderblock cell in a home in Klamath Falls, Ore.FBI Oregon
A note was also found at Zuberi’s residence in the investigation that indicated he had plans for other assaults.
One of the most “chilling” aspects of the note was that Zuberi allegedly wrote “make sure that they don’t have a bunch of people in their lives,” Shark said.
The FBI is asking any potential victims or tipsters to reach out by contacting their hotline, 1-800-CallFBI, or submit a tip at through the investigation website.
She noted that sex crimes are difficult investigations because victims don’t always feel they will be believed and suspects don’t always look like monsters.
“You know, a lot of them are the people next door and the people you’d never understand or believe would be capable of doing these things,” Shark said. “Which makes this case so shocking. Nobody thinks their neighbor will have a cinderblock cell next door in a family neighborhood.”
Officials said that Zuberi may have used several methods to target victims, including drugging drinks and impersonating a police officer. Some of the encounters may have been filmed and victims were threatened with violence if they notified police, the FBI said on its investigation web page.
“I’m hoping we caught him in time,” Shark said. “That’s always our goal with escalating violence, that we were able to stop him before someone actually died.”
According to a criminal complaint in the Oregon incident, Zuberi solicited the woman, a sex worker, in Seattle. He then posed as a police officer and took her into custody. They then traveled 450 miles to Klamath Falls, Oregon, where he had created a makeshift cell in a home he was renting.
The woman’s hands were bruised and bloody after “beating” on the cell “for hours,” Shark said.
“She spent upwards of several hours beating down the cell…which consisted of, obviously, the cinderblock walls but also some drywall and a metal gate with a screened mesh over that,” Shark said. “And she just kept beating any piece of that cell she could until she was able to break free and run for help across the street.”
Zuberi was taken into custody in Reno, Nevada, on July 16 after a 45-minute standoff with police.
Zuberi has lived in 12 states — California, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Florida, New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Illinois, Alabama and Nevada — over the last decade, the FBI said.
He has also used the aliases “Sakima,” “Justin Hyche” and “Justin Kouassi,” according to authorities.
The investigation timeline begins in July 2014 when Zuberi was in Orlando, Florida, and moves through several states until May 2023 in Denver, Colorado, according to information shared with NBC News. Major cities where Zuberi frequented also include New York City, Chicago, Las Vegas and Portland, Oregon.
He was also known to have been in several cities in California between 2012 and 2021: Antioch, Vacaville, Oakland, Azusa and Granada Hills.
“We would like any victims of his his crimes, to feel empowered to come forward so that they can rewrite their endings,” Shark said. “They no longer need to be afraid.”
KYIV — Ukraine said Monday it had detained an informant who was sharing intelligence with Russia as part of a plot to assassinate President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The woman “was preparing an enemy airstrike on Mykolaiv region” during a recent visit by Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s security service, the SBU, said in a statement released online.
The SBU said the woman, who was not identified, was collecting information including the time and list of locations that the Ukrainian leader planned to attend in the southern region.
A spokesperson for the SBU confirmed to NBC News that Ukraine was saying Zelenskyy was the target of the attack.
However, the SBU said it learned of the alleged plot in time and that “additional security measures were taken during the visit.”
Zelenskyy regularly moves around the country, visiting front lines and liberated cities, under strict security. In the early days of the war, the Ukrainian leader was thought to be a primary target for Moscow’s forces and the subject of a number of foiled assassination attempts.
The SBU’s statement said it continued to document the woman’s actions to learn more about her alleged Russian handlers, and learned that she was also instructed to locate Ukraine army’s strategic assets near the town of Ochakiv in Mykolaiv region, which the SBU claimed the Russians were planning to use to launch a massive air strike on the region.
The woman was ultimately apprehended “red-handed” as she was trying to pass intelligence to the Russians, the statement said.
She was only identified as a resident of Ochakiv and a former military shop saleswoman. She is facing up to 12 years in prison if convicted.
NBC News has not independently verified the Ukrainian claims. There was no immediate public reaction from the Kremlin.
Artem Grudinin reported from Kyiv, and Yuliya Talmazan reported from London.
A suspect who allegedly shot two Florida police officers during a traffic stop is dead, according to police.
Officers with the Orlando Police Department stopped a car at around 11 p.m. on Friday because it was wanted in connection with a homicide in Miami, Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith said at a news briefing on Saturday.
The suspect, identified by police as 28-year-old Daton Viel, shot both officers before carjacking another vehicle and fleeing the scene. A pursuit ensued.
Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith speaks at a press conference, on Aug. 5, 2023.Orlando Police Department via Facebook
Authorities eventually found Viel at a Holiday Inn in the 5900 block of Caravan Court, Smith said. Police evacuated the hotel and attempted to get Viel out of his room where he had barricaded himself.
At around 8:58 a.m., Viel shot at SWAT officers multiple times, who returned fire, killing the suspect, according to Smith.
Viel had an “extensive violent criminal history,” Smith said. A second suspect was determined to not be involved in the shooting.
Police are not looking for any additional suspects.
The officers, who were not identified, are expected to make a full recovery.
“This is a tragedy for our department any time you get officers shot, these officers are out here everyday protecting our community,” Smith said. “They put their lives on the line everyday to keep us safe and for some piece of crap to do this to them because they don’t want to go back to prison is ridiculous, and we’re not going to put up with it.”
Two Florida police officers were shot and critically injured during a traffic stop in Orlando late Friday, police said.
Orlando police caught the suspect — identified as Dayton Bale — at a Holiday Inn at Caravan Court at 6 a.m. on Saturday after an area-wide manhunt, Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith said during a news conference on Saturday afternoon. Police evacuated the hotel, Smith said.
SWAT officers shot the suspect multiple times after he barricaded himself in a room. The suspect died, said Smith.
The Orlando Police Department officers stopped a vehicle around 11 p.m. Friday as part of an investigation of a Miami homicide and were shot by a suspect in the car, Orlando Police Chief Eric Smith said during a press conference early Saturday.
Update: There is a large police presence in the 5900 block of Caravan Court in relation to the officer involved shooting. Please avoid the area at this time and expect traffic delays. Updates to follow. https://t.co/Ona1NwTGgG
The officers, who were not immediately identified, were transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center, Smith said.
“Officers are lucky to be alive,” Smith said on Saturday afternoon.
The suspect carjacked another vehicle and police pursued, but did not immediately catch the suspect.
“This is a sad day for our department,” Smith said during a separate news conference early Saturday morning. “For the suspects out there, we will find you and you will be brought to justice.”
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A former neighbor of a man accused of kidnapping a woman and holding her captive in a makeshift cell said the man also threatened him by text, which lead to seek a restraining order.
The neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous, lived in the same Vancouver, Washington, cul-de-sac as 29-year-old Negasi Zuberi around August 2022.
Zuberi has been charged in the kidnapping case and has been linked to at least four violent sexual assaults in four states, the FBI said. Officials fear he may have other victims.
The former neighbor said Zuberi stayed in the Washington State home for about six month, rented out rooms without notifying the landlord, kept pit bulls that ran loose and parked an RV camper in the driveway in violation of community rules.
Fire and police departments responded to the home more than once, according to the neighbor, who didn’t know the reason for the visits. A letter from the Prairie Park Commons Homeowners Association includes pictures of authorities on scene on Dec. 13 and Dec. 17, 2022.
The neighbor, who was a volunteer on the homewners’ association, said he documented Zuberi’s actions and worked to get Zuberi evicted.
“I would describe him as intimidating,” the neighbor told NBC News. “I tried to limit all communications and stay as far as possible from Negasi.”
The neighbor said that in March a young couple moved into Zuberi’s home and that he warned them about Zuberi, who they said was misleading potential tenants by telling them he owned the home and collecting security deposits.
The neighbor said that shortly after, Zuberi sent him a text message, warning, “I’m going to f— you up,” according to court documents.
This prompted the neighbor to seek a restraining order against Zuberi. In the court documents, he alleges that Zuberi had “previously threatened other neighbors.”
A few days later, Zuberi also filed for a restraining order against the neighbor, claiming he received a threatening message that used the n-word. Zuberi alleged the neighbor had harassed him for as long as he lived in the home.
The neighbor denies using a racial slur.
Both restraining orders were eventually dropped because of “non-appearance,” court documents state.
The neighbor said that after many situations involving Zuberi, the neighborhood no longer felt safe.
“We couldn’t even enjoy our community anymore, it was no longer safe after that,” he said. “I couldn’t sleep for like six months.”
Zuberi moved to Oregon following the incident that prompted the neighbor to file a restraining order.
Zuberi — who goes by the aliases “Sakima,” “Justin Hyche” and “Justin Kouassi” — was arrested in Nevada and accused of kidnapping a sex worker in Seattle and taking her to Klamath Falls, Oregon, where she was kept in a cinderblock cell he made in his garage. The woman was able to escape and flagged down a motorist for help, officials say.
A cinderblock cell in a home in Klamath Falls, Ore.FBI Oregon
He’s been charged with one count of interstate kidnapping.
Zuberi’s Washington state neighbor said he was “absolutely shocked” to hear the news.
“I always had a feeling that something was wrong, but not to this extent,” he said.
Zuberi also allegedly attacked, abused and threatened to kill another woman and their two children before she sought a protective order against him three years ago.
“He physically attacks me, he hits me, he brakes (sic) and throws things, he screams at the kids and me … we get woken up every night from him being drunk and loud and scares us,” the woman wrote in a 2020 petition for a domestic violence restraining order.
Zuberi’s neighbor says he remembers seeing a woman who lived at the Washington state home and appeared to travel with Zuberi, but wasn’t sure if that was his partner.
Zuberi’s lawyer in Oregon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Doha Madani
Doha Madani is a senior breaking news reporter for NBC News. Pronouns: she/her.
