A Las Vegas convict faces charges of kidnapping an underage girl and forcing her into prostitution by threatening her with a gun. The girl was eventually able to return to her mother and provided the police with details about her kidnapper, Corey Canton.

According to the official report, on December 1, the police responded to a report filed by the girl’s mother in which the latter claimed that her daughter had been the victim of sex trafficking. As it turns out, the girl had, for unspecified reasons, run away from her family, which was staying in a hotel in Las Vegas.

While walking on the Las Vegas Strip, the girl met another female juvenile who asked her if she’d like to make a “quick buck.” While the eventual victim did not know what that meant, she went along with the other girl.

The Girl Became the Victim of Sex Trafficking

The two of them ended up in the Days Inn motel and met with Canton, who was the second girl’s boyfriend, the report says. Canton compelled the first girl to sleep with him and allegedly prevented her from leaving afterward by threatening her with a gun.

The two girls later went to the Luxor where they were paid $100 to sleep with a man they did not know. According to the police, Canton’s girlfriend stole $1,000 from that man’s pants.

On November 29, Canton had the two girls walk onto the Las Vegas Strip and offer sex services to men. According to the police, the criminal told them to charge $100 to $300 for the act. The next morning they returned to the motel room and were provided with some food, liquor and drugs before returning to the Strip.

In the end, the girl who had run away from her family was able to leave the motel room and reunite with her mother. The mother then contacted the police, prompting the investigation.

Canton Faces Seven Charges

The police raided Canton’s motel room and found the handgun the girl had mentioned. As it turns out, Canton was a convicted felon already and was prohibited from owning a firearm. Canton himself was later found in his residence in the 6100 block of Carmen Boulevard and taken into custody.

He now faces a number of charges, including two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of kidnapping of a minor and owning a gun by a prohibited person.

Canton is held in jail on a $25,000 bail as of the time of this writing. He is set to appear before court on Monday.

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A man, suspected of a robbery and murder of a casino employee in Sacramento, California, was recently convicted. The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office revealed Tuesday that the defendant, identified with the initials D.C., was found guilty of first-degree murder and robbery, related to a crime at Capitol Casino dating back to last year.

The defendant was convicted by a jury on Tuesday with the “allegation of personal use of a firearm causing death and the special circumstance of murder during the commission of robbery found true,” prosecutors revealed. Moreover, the 38-year-old was convicted of second-degree robbery with the allegation of personal use of a firearm, the intentional discharge of a firearm along with “aggravating factors.”

It’s important to note that the conviction isn’t the same as a sentence. A verdict by a jury or a judge can result in conviction whereas a sentence is usually ordered by a judge. In other words, the conviction means that a person was found guilty of a crime or has agreed to plead guilty to a crime after a trial.

Considering the defendant’s conviction, he may face a sentence of life imprisonment without parole. According to the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, the sentencing of the defendant is scheduled for January 12, 2024, before the Honorable Allen Sumner.

Attempted Robbery Results in the Death of a Casino Security Guard

The latest conviction against D.C. comes after a crime that occurred on August 22, 2022. At the time, the person tried to rob the Capitol Casino. Upon entering, the culprit was caught by a casino guard on duty with the initials S.B. Once the security guard caught the perpetrator, he walked him out of the casino property while holding him at a taser point.

Once the two were outside of the casino, D.C. drew up a firearm and ran back inside the venue. The robber made his way to one of the casino cash cages and pointed his gun at another casino employee. At that time, the security guard was able to catch up to the criminal and tried to tase him.

The reaction of the robber was instant as he shot the guard in the neck. The wound was fatal and resulted in the death of the casino security guard. The robber then took some $38,000 from the casino cash cage and left the venue.

An employee of the casino chased the culprit and saw him try to hide in a car parked nearby. Once law enforcement arrived, the criminal shot in the direction of the casino employee and tried to run away from the police on foot. Shortly after, he was arrested.

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A UK resident, that was convicted of rape went on a shopping spree after winning a £2.5 million ($3.2 million) jackpot more than a decade ago. The man, identified as Edward Putman, bought a few properties, luxury cars and obtained other assets. It has taken quite some time for Putman’s elaborate scam to be uncovered, as he actually won the jackpot by defrauding a lottery operator. Now, he is threatened to lose his home along with other assets while remaining incarcerated for nine years over the lottery fraud.

Back in 1993, Putman was sentenced to seven years in prison after he was found guilty of raping a 17-year-old pregnant girl. That prison sentence did not help rehabilitate the man as after going out of prison, he co-conspired to defraud a lottery operator by securing a jackpot with a forged ticket.

In 2019, Putman was sentenced to nine years in prison over the lottery scam and according to the Mirror, the Court may now repossess some if not all of his assets for his debt to be settled. Initially, he was ordered to pay back £940,000 ($1.2 million). However, Putman disagreed and wanted to challenge that decision, resulting in him paying only £100,000 ($125,100) out of the money he obtained via fraud. But now the tables have turned as the Court was greenlighted to take possession of Putman’s assets to resell them and put an end to the criminal case.

Defrauding the Lottery

The elaborate lottery scam dates back to 2009. At the time, Putman co-conspired with Giles Knibbs, who worked for Camelot, the operator that runs the National Lottery in the UK. Knibbs used to work as a part of the fraud detection team of the company. Using a fake winning ticket and collaborating with Knibbs, Putman was able to collect the multi-million-dollar jackpot.

It’s not unusual for such criminal co-conspirators to see their relationship deteriorate. This was precisely what happened between Knibbs and Putman. At some point, Knibbs thought that he didn’t receive the “fair share” of the lottery prize, considering the risk he had taken. Several years after the duo pulled off the scam, Knibbs eventually admitted to the crime before his family. However, it is likely that the crime had a significant psychological impact on the young man, considering that in 2015, he took his own life.

Knibbs’ suicide marked the downfall of Putman as well, considering that he left a note revealing details regarding the crime itself. Initially, the case didn’t lift off as there was not enough evidence. However, in 2017, the fraudulent ticket was uncovered which ultimately resulted in Putman’s sentence in 2019.

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A man has been sentenced to five years in jail after being found guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud against Bet365, an online gambling company. Jon Howard of Tawney Lane, Stapleford Tawney was also convicted of conspiracy to commit fraud against Santander Bank. 

Syndicate Bypasses Account Restrictions to Collect Bet365 Bonuses

The Basildon Crown Court heard how Jon Howard was part of a syndicate that created multiple online betting accounts to bypass the restrictions of a single account. According to court proceedings, individuals willingly provided their personal information to Howard, who subsequently impersonated them to gain access to Bet365 services.

By doing so, he collected bonuses that he would not have otherwise been entitled to. It was estimated that he received GPB236,000 ($294,369) over the course of the fraud, which dated back to 2008 and involved over 1,000 online betting accounts.

Howard was accused of being central to the criminal enterprise. This enabled him to utilize bonuses and bypass the company’s checks and balances. 

Despite consistently denying the charges, Howard was convicted at the end of a four-week trial and was subsequently detained in custody until sentencing. However, Jon Howard was acquitted of the charge of money laundering.

Police Officer Describes Online Betting Fraud as ‘Dishonest and Deceptive’

Detective Sergeant Mike Monkton, Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, commented on the Bet365 case: “Betting online in someone else’s name is against the terms of use. The whole enterprise was dishonest and designed to deceive the gambling company.”

Monkton further described the investigation as lengthy and complex and said that it took some time to unravel. When the police executed a warrant at Howard’s address in Stapleford Tawney in February 2019, they found paperwork in different names, receipts for luxury items, bank books, and 177 sim cards that had been seized from the address. The police also discovered considerable sums of money. 

Howard was not the sole individual to be apprehended, as two other co-defendants were also subjected to trial. Co-defendant Anna Nikolopoulos, 41, was found not guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and money laundering. 

Another co-defendant, Daniel Gorman, 45, was cleared of money laundering but pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud against Santander Bank. Gorman was sentenced to 16 months in prison, suspended for 12 months, and must complete 100 hours of unpaid work.

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