Accused Attleboro child molester dead in apparent suicide

8-16-16 Massachusetts:

ATTLEBORO — Police confirmed an accused child molester was found dead Tuesday morning of an apparent suicide, the day after he was arraigned in Attleboro District Court.

The body of Selvin Perez, 42, of 140 South Main St. in Attleboro, was found by a woman around 8:30 a.m. in a parking lot behind the Gardner Terrace apartment complex off Pine Street.

Police Chief Kyle Heagney said Perez died from knife wounds, and left a suicide note. Heagney declined to comment on the details of the note.

Perez was released from court Monday afternoon after he was arraigned on charges he groped the 5-year-old daughter of a man who invited him over for beers at his South Main Street home last Friday.

Casa Grande sex offender commits suicide as police question him

3-18-16 Florida:

CASA GRANDE -- A man wanted in Pinal County for possessing thousands of files of child pornography committed suicide Thursday as police questioned him in Florida, authorities said.

In February, the Casa Grande Police Department assisted the Pinal County Adult Probation search the residence of 45-yar-old Albert Thomas Shade, a registered sex offender living in Casa Grande. During the search, probation officers seized numerous items of Shade’s property, including a computer, Casa Grande police said.

Shade absconded to Florida and Pinal County Adult Probation issued a warrant for his arrest, police said.

The computer was turned over to the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office Forensics Analysis Unit where over 800,000 files of child pornography were discovered, according to police. Casa Grande Police Detectives contacted the City of Sebastian Police Department in Florida and requested their assistance in locating Shade.

Man wanted on sex offender warrant kills himself in Kentucky

3-8-16 Kentucky:

A man wanted by police for a sex offender registration violation, and who was considered a suspect by the family members of a woman killed in late February, is dead after apparently taking his own life in Kentucky.

Wendy Whitney, 41, was killed on February 29th outside a home in the 1200 block of Foster Avenue. Whitney’s relatives and friends told police that they believed Christopher Deshun Long, 43, was a suspect in her death. Police said they were looking for Long, after a warrant was issued in Kalamazoo for a sex offender registration violation.

The Sheriff’s Department of Cumberland County in Kentucky called the Kalamazoo Township Police Department around 2 a.m. Tuesday. Deputies told them after making contact with Long, he stabbed himself repeatedly with a knife. Long was taken to a local hospital where he died.

In a release, police confirmed they are investigating Long’s involvement in Whitney’s death, but aren’t yet calling him a suspect. ..Source.. by

Akron sex offender kills himself during chase with Colorado police

4-27-15 Ohio:

A registered sex offender charged with having a sexual relationship with an Akron teenager stabbed himself Saturday after fleeing from police in Olathe, Colorado, officials said.

John E. Reynolds, 25, stabbed himself in the heart with a letter opener, according to Dr. Thomas Canfield, the Montrose County, Colorado coroner. He ruled Reynolds' death a suicide.

Olathe police tried to stop Reynolds' car about 12:30 a.m. Saturday on a highway in the western Colorado town about 100 miles southwest of Aspen.

Reynolds ran from police for about 100 yards. He showed the knife at police officers, who used a stun gun on him, according to the Olathe police. Police have not said whether officers used a stun gun on Reynolds before or after he stabbed himself.

Reynolds was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. The incident remains under investigation by the 7th Judicial District Critical Incident Team, which investigates officer-involved incidents. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is also investigating.

Crisis, mystery unfold after pedophile teacher kills himself in MN

5-13-2014 Minnesota:

He was one of the most beloved teachers in the small world of international schools that serve the children of diplomats, well-off American expatriates and local elites. He was often the first to arrive in the morning, and the last to leave each day. He led students on class trips to exotic places, treating them to cookies and milk at bedtime.

That was the public persona of William Vahey, carefully crafted over four decades until a maid cleaning his home in Nicaragua stole a 16-gigabyte memory drive. There, in photograph after photograph, was evidence that the model teacher had molested scores of adolescent boys, possibly more, in a career spanning 10 schools on four continents.

The discovery of a man the FBI regards as one of the most prolific pedophiles in memory has set off a crisis in the close-knit community of international schools, where horrified parents are being told their children may have been victims of a favorite teacher, and administrators are scurrying to close teacher-vetting loopholes revealed by Vahey's abuses.

"With the sheer volume, the sheer number of incidents in which this man molested, it surprises me that somehow this was not picked up by someone," said John Magagna, the founding director of Search Associates, the world's largest international school recruiting firm. "I don't know what went wrong."

Houston FBI leads global search for victims of predator teacher

4-22-2014 Texas, Minnesota:

FBI agents from Houston are spearheading an international probe to determine how many students at elite private schools in nine countries fell victim to a teacher who authorities contend was a serial predator for more than four decades.

The local agents went public with their investigation Tuesday, saying they may never know how many victims William James Vahey exploited during a global career that began in 1972 after he stopped registering for a molestation conviction in California.

A thumb drive holds photos that show he had at least 90 victims since 2008 alone, according to the Houston FBI agents who are leading the ongoing global probe to find his victims as well as determine the extent of his crime.

Vahey, 64, committed suicide in a Minnesota hotel room last month before he could be arrested and perhaps provide some answers.

Felony Sex Crime Suspect Stabs Himself In Neck Before Being Shot By Cops

7-30-2012 California:

MODESTO, CA - A 68-year-old felony sex crime suspect has died after before being shot by police earlier this month.

On July 12, David Mendez was visited by a uniformed officer and Detective Steve Anderson, who works on the Special Victims Unit. Mendez was a suspect in a sex crime and Anderson had interviewed Mendez previously. He was there today, with the other officer, to arrest Mendez.

Mendez answered the door and briefly spoke with the two men. He said he knew he would be arrested after they had completed their investigation and that he had written a confession. Mendez then walked to a nearby desk and retrieved a 12-inch “diver’s knife” that he used to repeatedly stab himself in the neck. According to Lt. Rick Armendariz, Mendez “repeatedly thrust the knife in and out, holding the knife with both his hands.”

Refusing to obey the officer’s demand to stop doing that, Mendez was Tased. This did not prove to be effective and Mendez continued to stab himself. When he rose the knife above his head and made a movement toward the officers, Anderson shot him. This did prove effective, and Mendez fell to the ground and released the knife.

He was rushed to the hospital but would die from his injuries this past Thursday from either the stab wounds, the gunshot wound or both. I looked around a bit but couldn’t find any information about what sex crime Mendez allegedly committed, but according to reports, a suicide note was found in the desk in which Mendez confessed to the crime and implied committing suicide by cop. ..Source..

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Officer Involved Shooting Suspect Dies

David Mendez, the suspect in the July 12th officer-involved shooting, died from his injuries yesterday.

On Thursday, July 12th, at about 2:30 P.M., Modesto Police Detective Steve Anderson and Officer Ron Lemings went to a residence in the 1200 block of Muirswood Way to follow-up on a felony sex crime investigation. Detective Anderson, a 12-year veteran of the Department, is assigned to the Special Victims Unit, which investigates crimes involving domestic violence, crimes against children, and sexually-based crimes. Officer Ron Lemings, a 24-year veteran of the Department, is currently assigned to the Operations Division as a uniformed patrol officer.

Detective Anderson had been investigating a case, wherein David Mendez, a 68-year-old Modesto resident, was the suspect of a felony sex crime. (The specific information and details of the felony sex crime case will be withheld in order to protect the identity and confidentially of the victims.)

Detective Anderson had been in contact with Mendez and during a recent interview, Mendez admitted his involvement in this crime. Mendez was aware he was the focus of the investigation and his eventual arrest once the investigation was complete.

On July 12th, Detective Anderson and Officer Lemings went to Mendez’s residence to arrest Mendez. When officers arrived, they contacted Mendez, who was home alone. Mendez opened the front door and the officers stood by the entryway as they spoke to Mendez. Mendez told the officers he had a written confession note for them and walked to a nearby desk in the front living room area, near the front entryway.

Mendez opened the desk drawer and removed a large aquatic “diver’s knife”, approximately 12-inches in length. Mendez immediately stabbed himself with the knife in his throat area and began to repeatedly thrust the knife in and out, holding the knife with both his hands.

Officers ordered Mendez to drop the knife and Officer Lemings deployed his taser in an effort to immobilize Mendez and prevent him from causing further injury to himself. The taser was ineffective as Mendez continued to stab himself.
Mendez then removed the knife and raised it above his head in a threatening manner, as he faced the officers. Mendez was within 10 feet of the officers, who were still standing near the front entryway. Detective Anderson responded to the threat by discharging his firearm and striking Mendez.

After Mendez was shot, he fell to the ground with the knife in his hand, refusing to let it go. After repeated demands to drop the knife, Mendez complied and was taken into custody. He was immediately provided medical attention and transported to a local hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery.

On Thursday July 26th, detectives were notified by medical staff at the hospital that Mendez had succumbed to his injuries. This morning, the Stanislaus County Corner’s Office conducted an autopsy on Mendez. The cause of death remains under investigation pending review of all medical records.

During the follow-up investigation, crime scene investigators located a hand-written letter in the same desk where Mendez had retrieved the knife. The letter was a confession and suicide note, detailing his actions in the felony sex crime and his intentions to kill himself rather than be arrested.

Although we will never know Mendez’s true intentions or motives for his erratic and violent behavior the day of the shooting, evidence suggests Mendez may have intended to threaten the officers and force them to respond to the threat with deadly force, in what is commonly referred to as a “suicide by cop”.

Three separate and independent investigations remain on-going, which is standard in any officer-involved shooting investigation in Stanislaus County. The Modesto Police Department is conducting a criminal investigation into this incident, Stanislaus County District Attorney’s office is conducting an independent criminal review of the incident and the officers’ actions, and the Modesto Police Department’s Internal Affairs Unit is conducting an administrative investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting.

Neither of the officers involved were injured during this incident. Detective Anderson was placed on paid administrative leave, also standard procedure after an officer is involved in a shooting incident. He has since returned to full duty as a criminal investigator within the Special Victims Unit. ..Source..

Washington County Jail inmate serving more than 100-year sentence fatally stabs himself in cell

1-22-2011 Oregon:

A man, convicted last month on several sex crime charges, who was already serving a 100-year prison sentence committed suicide while in custody at the Washington County Jail Friday morning.

A deputy about 11:35 a.m. discovered 40-year-old Alexander Lawrence Jay unconscious from a self-inflicted wound in his cell, said Sgt. Vance Stimler, a sheriff's office spokesman. Deputies began CPR until emergency medical units were able to arrive, but Jay was ultimately pronounced dead in his cell.

Stimler said Jay used a jail-issued pencil to stab himself in the arm and hit an artery.

Sheriff's office detectives are investigating the incident, and Jay's body was released to the medical examiner's office, both of which are standard procedure, Stimler said. Jay reportedly was held in a single cell, with a secure door.

The deputy who found Jay was interviewed Friday, and will be interviewed again, before the investigation is completed, Stimler said. Her name was not released.

Jay had been in custody since December 2009, Stimler said. He was charged in Washington County Circuit Court with nine counts of first-degree rape, nine counts of first-degree sodomy, three counts of incest, two counts of sexual penetration with a foreign object, four counts of fourth-degree assault, two counts of unlawful use of a weapon against another and three counts of coercion, records show.

The incidents, which involved child victims, occurred between June 2001 and January 2002, according to court records.

In a bench trial, Jay was convicted of six counts of first-degree rape, seven counts of first-degree sodomy, three counts of incest and one count of sexual penetration with a foreign object. His other charges were dismissed because of statute of limitation issues, said Washington County Deputy District Attorney Paul Maloney.

Jay's sentencing for those crimes was scheduled for Friday afternoon. Maloney said he planned to ask Judge Rick Knapp to impose a prison sentence of more than 100 years, to be served after the sentence Jay received in Marion County last year.

Jay went to trial before a jury in Marion County in October. He was found guilty on all counts, which included five counts of first-degree rape, one count of unlawful sexual penetration, two counts of first-degree sodomy, one count of second-degree assault, one count of coercion, two counts of second-degree sex abuse, one count of incest and one count of delivering meth.

According to court records, those incidents, involving four victims, occurred between 2004 and 2009. He was sentenced to more than 100 years in prison on those charges.

Maloney said since Jay's Washington County conviction, his mother died of cancer and his sister overdosed on painkillers. The extent of his sister's injuries is unknown.

Stimler said jail staff had no problems with Jay while he was in custody, and he showed no signs that he was suicidal. When someone is found guilty of serious crimes, Stimler said jail staff will talk to the inmate to see if they are having suicidal thoughts and will determine if they need to talk with medical staff.

Suicides in the jail, Stimler said, are relatively rare. Strangulation is the most common method of suicide in the jail.

Stimler said the last time an inmate committed suicide was July 28, 2008. In that incident, the inmate tied part of his jumpsuit around his neck. ..Source.. by Rebecca Woolington, The Oregonian

CA- Molest suspect found dead

Subject: John Alan Seitcher

8-1-2009 California:

Sex offender may have killed himself

Sheriff's deputies are investigating the death of a registered sex offender who was found in a home outside Castroville after his girlfriend reported catching him molesting her 10-year-old daughter Friday.

Sheriff's Cmdr. Mike Richards said it appears the 47-year-old man died of self-inflicted wounds caused by a sharp pointed object. An autopsy is pending.

The Herald is not naming the man because coroner's officials said they were still trying to notify his family Friday.

About 10:30 a.m., the woman called 911 and said she had arrived home and saw her boyfriend molesting her daughter. The woman called police after leaving the house with girl, Richards said.

She indicated the man was threatening to commit suicide.

Deputies responded to the house. After about an hour of trying to make contact, they entered the house and discovered the man dead in the master bathroom.

The man was a registered sex offender who was released from parole in May, Richards said. He had previously been convicted of lewd acts with a child under 14, sexual abuse of a child and indecent exposure, according to the state's Registered Sex Offender Information Web site.

Richards said it was unclear Friday how long the girl's mother was involved with the man or if she was aware of his history.

"There is still an ongoing investigation," he said, and that it was unclear if the girl and her mother were living in the same home as the man.

Deputies said the girl was taken to a Salinas hospital and later released to the custody of her father. ..Source.. by DANIEL LOPEZ, Herald Staff Writer

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Monterey County Coroner's Office Identified Body of Sex Offender in Castroville

8-2-2009 California:

Castroville, Calif- Monterey County Coroner's office has identified the sex offender who died Friday in Crastroville as 46 year old John Alan Seitcher. A postmotem examination will be made August 3rd to determine the cause of death.

Friday, Monterey County Sheriffs surrounded the home of a regisered sex offender at a house on Mira Loma in Castroville this morning.

According to Comander Mike Richards with the Sheriffs department around 10:30 AM, the mom of a 10 year-old comes home to find her boyfiriend on top of her daughter. Her boyfriend was a registered sex offender who was released from parole in May.

The mom took her daughter to another residence and called 911.

When deputies arrived around 11 AM they surrounded the house and asked for the sex offender to come out of the house. There was no response and they entered the house to find him dead.

The neighbors say that a gunshot was heard before the sheriffs department arrived. According to the sheriffs department, though the wounds were fatal, they do not appear to be gunshot wounds.

The victim was transported to the hospital then released to the custody of her father. The Sheriff's Office has no other information indicating there are additional victims in this case. ..Source.. by Fox 35.com

SC- Man wanted on sex charge found dead in home

6-11-2009

A man wanted on a criminal sexual conduct charge was found dead inside his Ansel Street home Wednesday when Richland County sheriff’s deputies forced their way inside to serve him a warrant, authorities said.

Thomas D. Montgomery, 47, had at least one self-inflicted stab wound to the chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:15 p.m., Richland County senior deputy coroner Ted Powell said. An autopsy is scheduled for today.

A fugitive investigator told Montgomery over the phone Wednesday morning that there was a warrant for his arrest, sheriff’s spokeswoman Deputy Monique Mack said.

Montgomery was charged with criminal sexual conduct, accused of sexually assaulting a 47-year-old female acquaintance May 21, Mack said.

He acknowledged his identity over the phone, then hung up, Mack said.

Members of the department’s Fugitive Task Force surrounded the home about 12:15 p.m. to serve the warrant and announced themselves, knocking on the front door and ringing the doorbell, Mack said.

They heard movement inside and waited an hour for Montgomery to come out, Mack said.

“We always like to give them every opportunity to come out before we make entry,” she said.

When he didn’t come out, deputies forced the locked back door and found him dead on a bedroom floor, Mack said.

No one else was inside the home east of Two Notch Road near Pinehurst Park.

Montgomery did not leave a suicide note and deputies had no reason to believe he would harm himself, Mack said. ..Source.. by LEE HIGGINS