Nearly 2 Decades Later, Man Wants Case for Freedom Heard

Did a scared teenage boy confess to a double murder he did not commit 17 years ago?

Daniel Villegas has been locked away in a Texas prison since being convicted of capital murder in the shooting of teenagers Armando "Mando" Lazo and Bobby England.

Police and prosecutors said Villegas, 16 at the time of the killings, was a member of a street gang that shot at four teens, fatally striking two on April 10, 1993.

Villegas, now 33, maintains that he is innocent, the victim of a detective who elicited a false confession during an unrelenting interrogation.

El Paso building contractor John Mimbela Sr. and other supporters of Villegas are seeking a new hearing following a two-year inquiry by a private investigator and a lawyer hired by Mimbela. Villegas' supporters point out that the confession he gave detectives differed from what witnesses said.

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Misinformation Spread by Private Investigator

The parents of Escondido teenager Amber Dubois say they are angry about misinformation being spread by a private investigator the family hired shortly after Amber disappeared in February 2009.

Amber’s father, Moe Dubois, said Monday that neither he nor Amber’s mother, Carrie McGonigle, have spoken to private investigator Bill Garcia since their daughter’s skeletal remains were discovered Saturday near Pala.

“Carrie is livid that he is going out and speaking on behalf of the family,” Dubois said. “We haven’t talked to him.”

Garcia told The San Diego Union-Tribune in a phone interview Sunday afternoon that the tip leading investigators to Amber’s remains did not come from John Albert Gardner III, the man now facing murder charges in connection with the death of 17-year-old Poway High School senior Chelsea King.

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Family Searches for Answers in Model's Death

MIAMI, Fl. (WXYZ) - The mother of a Playboy model with connections to Dearborn is demanding answers in the 26-year-old's death.

Paula Sladewski's body was found burning in a Miami area dumpster Sunday. She was so badly burned that investigators needed three days and dental records to identify her. She had been missing since leaving a popular nightclub at 7:00 a.m. Sunday.

Sladewski was in Miami for a weekend of celebrating and partying with her boyfriend, Kevin Klym. The couple, who lived together in both Michigan and California, arrived in the city on New Year's Eve. Klym has been named a person of interest in her death.

Read more here.

Family Frustrated with Police Hire PI

An east London family is accusing the police of gross incompetence for failing to arrest a suspect for the brutal attack and murder of local businessman Harry Henman.

His widow, Charlotte Henman, and her son Llewellyn told the Daily Dispatch that police had shown a lack of interest in trying to solve the murder, which took place in December 2006.

A local private investigator had even tracked down a suspect and got a confession from him, she claimed.

“The police are completely useless,” said Llewellyn. “They have been given all the information they need but keep coming up with different excuses of why they cannot arrest the man.”

Read the rest of the story at The Dispatch Online.