ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tyler police say Johnny Williams staked out this Wal-Mart parking lot Wednesday night for nearly two hours before he spotted Megan Holden walking to her pickup truck.
Police say this surveillance video shows Williams surprising the 19-year-old cashier from behind and forcing her into the truck. A minute later, the vehicle disappears into the darkness.
DON MARTIN, TYLER POLICE: She's getting closer to her vehicle. Then he starts running. And as she's opening up the truck, he comes in from behind her. So we don't think that she knew he was even there until she actually was contacted by the suspect.
LAVANDERA: Police say this was the last time Megan Holden was seen alive. A security guard approached Williams, but he was allowed to continue hanging out in the parking lot. Nearly 36 hours later, Williams was found in a Wilcox, Arizona, hospital, more than 900 miles from the kidnapping.
And Holden is found dead by oil field workers in the west Texas town of Stanton, 400 miles from her home.
CHIEF GARY SWINDLE, TYLER POLICE: That it is apparent that she has died of a gunshot wound.
LAVANDERA: Williams walked into the Arizona hospital and was treated for a minor gunshot wound. He was shot in the shoulder after police say he tried to rob this employee at an Arizona RV park early Friday morning. The man who shot Williams doesn't want his face seen on camera and asks that we call him Richie.
RICHIE: ... I asked him, Can I help you, sir? And with that, he said, This is a robbery. Give me all the money in the register. And he starts drawing a gun out. And as he draws the gun, I drew mine and fired. It was over in two seconds.
LAVANDERA: Williams is a 24-year-old Marine private based out of Camp Pendleton, California, but Pentagon officials say he's on leave pending disciplinary action. Tyler authorities say Williams has a minor criminal history, including a December arrest on drug charges.
Williams is now in FBI custody. He's asked for an attorney, and is not answering any questions.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: Investigators and prosecutors are still trying to figure out what charges to file against Johnny Williams. They have aggravated kidnapping so far, but they want to step that up. And the district attorney here in Tyler has already told us today that if he can, if the facts support it, he will seek the death penalty in this case.
Anderson, back to you.
COOPER: At this point, though, motive, does anybody know?
LAVANDERA: Well, you know, we've heard of various different things throughout the day. The latest we've heard from police is that they suspect perhaps that he just simply wanted a ride. We understand from the surveillance camera video that Johnny Williams, the police say, just appears in the parking lot, doesn't drive into the parking lot, doesn't -- isn't dropped off by anybody.
So they say that's one of the things. But I think until he answers questions from authorities, the bigger picture of what has happened here is still up in the air at this point.
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Wal-Mart attacker gets life plus 62 years
By LUKE MARTIN
lmartin@statesboroherald.net
912-489-9454
Posted: March 13, 2007 6 p.m.
Updated: March 13, 2007 6 p.m.
The man convicted of kidnapping, aggravated assault and other crimes at a Wal-Mart bathroom earlier this month was sentenced to life in prison plus 62 years Tuesday afternoon.
Stephen Mark Hall will likely spend the rest of his life in prison following the sentence handed down by Superior Court Judge Gates Peed.
"I'm relieved for the family," said Daphne Jarriel, assistant district attorney who prosecuted the case. "Hopefully this will provide some type of closure for Joy Adams and her family."
Adams and her granddaughter were in Wal-Mart's bathroom approximately three-and-a-half years ago when Hall attacked them, stinging her with a stun gun and acting "berserk," she testified at the trial.
He kept Adams and the child in the bathroom by holding the door closed despite efforts from other customers to enter the room. Another customer in the bathroom was able to grab the child and keep her safe while Adams tried to fend off Hall.
Eventually, other customers were able to force open the bathroom door, reach Adams' ankles and pull her to safety. Other customers then surrounded Hall until police arrived.
"I don't know that there's a sentence that's appropriate in this case because it was so hurtful," Jarriel said.
Hall sentence was lengthier than what the prosecution had been seeking. They'd recommended life in prison plus 55 years, suggesting to Peed that the misdemeanor counts of battery be served consecutively. But Peed decided to have him serve those consecutively, giving him the maximum possible sentence.
The defense had asked for life in prison plus 25 years.
Other crimes Hall was convicted of included terroristic threats, possession of a knife during the commission of a felony, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, cruelty to children and five counts of battery.
Prior to handing down the sentence, the court heard from Dr. Daniel Neller, who performed a mental examination of Hall prior to the trial. Neller testified that Hall suffered from pedophilia and other sexually deviant behaviors that, even with treatment, is not always curable.
Neller said studies don't definitively show one way or another if the treatment of sex offenders helps in the recidivism rate. He also testified that Hall indicated he would unlikely seek treatment in prison.
He said that Hall also fantasized about raping women and had a history of anti-social behavior.
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Teen accused of kidnapping, raping Wal-Mart customer
12:50 PM CST on Thursday, January 25, 2007
From 11 News Staff Reports
A 15-year-old runaway sits in a Harris County jail accused of kidnapping a woman from Wal-Mart and sexually assaulting her.
The suspect was arrested Thursday morning near the east Harris County store after the victim and the teen’s parents identified him from fliers and surveillance photos that were released Wednesday.
Deputies say the suspect was armed with a gun and carried a Game Station II with him at the time of the abduction.
Officials believe this man kidnapped, raped a local woman.
Officials say the suspect stalked women in the store on Wallisville Road near Beltway 8.
A store security camera captured his image as he walked around for three hours.
Authorities say the suspect approached the victim as she loaded groceries inside her van at the east Harris County store.
He reportedly asked her to go buy him cigarettes. When she refused, police say he pushed her in her van and took off.
The woman told police the man took her to a parking lot, sexually assaulted her then let her go.
Aggravated sexual assault charges are pending against the suspect.
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Local man charged in recent
Wal-Mart kidnapping
By Stacy Glick
An arrest on Jan. 10 may return kidnapping and sexual assault convictions for a local man. 54-year-old James R. McClung of Dawson was arrested after allegedly kidnapping and raping a 21-year-old Wal-Mart employee.
According to an affidavit, filed by Trooper J.L. Burdette, the woman was kidnapped after her Wal-Mart shift ended at around 11 p.m. on Jan. 3. An armed McClung allegedly took the woman to a secluded area a mile or two north of Lewisburg on Route 219, and raped her. McClung then took the woman back to her car in the Wal-Mart parking lot. According to Trooper J.A. Amos, State Police met the woman at the emergency room in the early hours of Jan. 4 where she filed an initial complaint. The woman had spoken with McClung prior to the incident, though at the time of the complaint she did not give McClung’s name to the troopers.
McClung returned to Wal-Mart on Jan. 10 and was recognized by the woman who contacted authorities.
After a Jan. 11 hearing, before Magistrate Doug Beard, McClung was remanded to the custody of Southern Regional jail. His case could possibly go before the grand jury, which meets next on Feb. 7. If convicted, McClung faces life imprisonment on the kidnapping charge, and 15 to 35 years on the sexual assault charge.
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Friday, June 16, 2006
WAL-MART KIDNAPPING IN TEXAS
This is a continuing nightmare for Bentonville -- problems in the parking lots of the company's stores. Could happen to anyone, but activists have made a big deal out of it the past, to the point that the company has increased security and even installed cameras. However, the cameras don't always do a lot of good, especially in Texas, where at least another high profile abduction took place not too long ago -- the abduction of a young woman, an employee. This time, we saw the same result. The video is a little hard to see, but comes courtesy of this Texas newspaper. You have to look at the dark-colored pickup truck near the top of the screen, driving off to your left. Here's more from a local television station...
HOUSTON -- A man was abducted from a Baytown Wal-Mart by three members of a white supremacist group who killed him, officials told KPRC Local 2.
Police said a group of men went to the store's gun department to purchase ammunition, but left when they found out the store did not have what they were looking for.
Detectives said the men found something they did want in the parking lot.
"They're just getting into their car when the victim just happens to drive by," Capt. Roger Clifford said. "They see the truck that they're looking for, they back out after he passes and follow him to his parking place where they confront him."
Police said the men forced Bobby McCartney, 49, into the passenger's seat, abducted him and stole his truck.
"That was the last he was seen before his body was found out in Liberty County," Clifford said.
Police said the three men arrested in connection with the killing are allegedly members of the Aryan Brotherhood, a prison-based white supremacy gang.
It always makes sense to play it safe in big parking lots, but this -- in broad daylight -- could leave some people frightened.
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Surveillance video released of man who fondled child at Wal-Mart
(8/28/06 - KTRK/HOUSTON) - Police need your help finding the man who fondled a little girl at a Wal-Mart store. It happened in late February at the Wal-Mart on Dunvale near Westheimer.
Police are just now releasing this surveillance video. They tell us it shows the man who fondled a lost three-year-old girl in the store's toy section.
Emma Rodriguez with HPD's Juvenile Sex Crimes unit said, "He did take her into the toy section and distracted her with a toy. According to the witness, the mother went to associates. They dropped a code Adam in the store."
A code Adam alerts employees and customers about a missing child. Police say the suspect took the child to an employee and then drove off in a blue Chevy pickup truck.
Monday afternoon, a Wal-Mart spokeswoman issued a statement:
"The safety and security of its customers and associates is a top priority for us. We're cooperating with the local authorities in their investigation."
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Person of interest" sought in kidnapping at Wal-Mart
By GREG WELTER - Staff Writer
Article Launched: 03/15/2007 12:30:00 AM PDT
Click photo to enlargePerson of interest - A man captured March 6 on bank surveillance video is being sought by police...«1»Chico police are asking for the public's help in locating a man who may have information about the abduction of a woman outside the Wal-Mart store on Forest Avenue, March 6.
The victim, a Chico resident in her late 40s, called police about 3:30 p.m. from the Bank of America on Notre Dame Boulevard, where two men had forced her to withdraw cash.
The woman said she was first confronted by the men in the Wal-Mart parking lot, where they jumped in her car and demanded that she drive them to the bank.
The men reportedly made numerous verbal threats, and one of them displayed a knife, the victim said.
After the money had been withdrawn from the bank, the men ordered the woman to drive them back to the corner of Forest and Baney avenues, where they got out of her car and disappeared on foot.
The victim returned to the bank to call police. She wasn't harmed.
The man being sought by police is a "person of interest" and not necessarily a suspect, said Sgt. Rob Merrifield. He is described as Hispanic, about 50 years old, 5-foot-5 and about 180 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes.
The man was captured by a security camera inside the bank.
A second man who was believed to be the one who wielded the knife,
described as Hispanic 20 to 28 years old, 6 feet tall and about 180 pounds.
The amount of money taken from the victim was not disclosed.
Merrifield said the photo of the person of interest was withheld in anticipation of the man being located by investigators.
He said he did not know why basic information about the incident was not released until Wednesday, eight days after the alleged abduction.
Anyone with information about the person of interest, or the suspect, is asked to call detectives at 897-5820.
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2000-06-27
Oxnard, CA. Crime in Wal-Mart Parking Lots
In January of 1998, if you had entered the Wal-Mart in Oxnard, California, you would have been under the watchful eye of no less than 204 security cameras, plus four security guards. But once you stepped out into the parking lot, your security was entirely in your own hands. That's what happened to Laura Tanaka, a hapless shopper at Wal-Mart. Tanaka went to Wal-Mart on January 9th of 1998, and parked her car just four spaces from the entrance to Wal-Mart. She was attacked in the Wal-Mart parking lot at roughly 10:40 pm by two men. Tanaka was kidnapped, robbed, and threatened at gunpoint, asked to unbutton her blouse, and was abandoned in an isolated area, whiile her two assailants drove off in her car. What Tanaka had no way of knowing is that the Oxnard Wal-Mart store had received no less than 933 calls for police service over the past two years. According to the Ventura County Star, many of those calls involved shoplifting and fraud, but more serious crimes of 31 stolen cars, dozens of assaults, narcotics, suspicious vehicles, and fights. In the two year period, 3 kidnappings occurred. The day that Tanaka was kidnapped, a similar kidnapping and carjacking had occurred earlier the same day. The two men who kidnapped Tanaka were eventually charged and convicted of the crime, but Tanaka also sued Wal-Mart for playing a role in the kidnapping. A jury in Ventury County, California sided with Tanaka, and awarded her $571,777 in damages for lost wages, medical costs, and the loss of property. Tanaka's attorney, Gary Dordick, told reporters that "Wal-Mart should have put as much resources and energy into the safety of their custoemrs as they do to protect their own profits and property." After the Tanaka kidnapping, Wal-Mart added a roving security guard, brighter lights, and exterior cameras mounted on the stores--a now familiar sight at a Wal-Mart it you look closely at their roofline. "We have placed additional safety measures at this particular store," a Wal-Mart spokesperson told the County Star, "and will continue to take the necessary steps to ensure our customer's safety." The jury found Wal-Mart guilty of negligence, and all of the "ensuring" in the world has come to late for Laura Tanaka.
What you can do: In 1993 Wal-Mart conducted a study of crime in their parking lots. That study has never been made public, despite several attempts in court to have it published during the discovery process. See the newsflash stories below about the "discovery sanctions" that were imposed against Wal-Mart in Texas for witholding this crucial study of crime at Wal-Mart. The Oxnard crime statisitics reveal that the police are out at Wal-Mart approximately 1.3 times every day of the year. Everyday low prices, and everyday crime...
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2 arrested in city for boy's kidnapping
By Jim Tiffin
Staff Writer
Victoria Lilly
Tina Roanhorse
GRANTS — The woman and her alleged female accomplice who allegedly abducted 10-year-old Colton Begay from Wal-Mart here Tuesday afternoon, were arrested in Gallup Wednesday and charged with kidnapping.
Colton was found safe in Crystal, on the Navajo Nation reservation about 11 p.m. Tuesday night after allegedly being abducted about 2:50 p.m. Tuesday. Victoria Lilly, 39, who is believed to be his aunt, was also at the residence where Colton was found. She is from Navajo, N.M.
On Wednesday, about 1:30 p.m., Lilly and Tina Tso Roanhorse, 34, of Lukachukai, Ariz., were arrested at the FBI office in Gallup by Grants Police detectives, assisted by the New Mexico State Police and the FBI.
Both have been booked into the Cibola County Detention Center on one charge each of kidnapping, a felony.
"They came off the reservation to the FBI office in Gallup and that's where we arrested them," said Marty Vigil, Grants police chief.
Grants police have no jurdisiction on the reservation, he said.
Apparently Lilly confronted Colton's mother Genevieve, while Colton was with her at Grants' Wal-Mart. After a brief confrontation, Lilly took Colton out of the store and got into a White Chevrolet Lumina, with blue Navajo nation emblems on it as Roundhorse, who was initially identified as Tina Tso, drove the vehicle that picked them up.
During the investigation, Grants Police obtained a copy of the store's videotape and watched as Colton's mother and Lilly confronted each other in the store.
Investigation revealed a child custody matter between Lilly and Begay. Further evidence disclosed a consensual note was approved by Begay for the victim to leave with Lilly, according to Window Rock Patrol Officer Gilbert Yazzie and Criminal Investigator Alvernon Tsosie. The custody matter is still being looked into.
The use of the Navajo Nation tribal vehicle was revealed during the interview with Roanhorse. Roanhorse is employed with the Navajo Nation and did not have proper authorization by her supervisor to use the tribal vehicle for anything but official business, according to the report.
The case was referred to Grants Police Department for further investigation. The victim was placed in temporary custody with the Navajo Nation Social Service Office pending the outcome of the investigation.
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Wal-Mart Sued By Abductee's Husband
By Kenneth A. Gailliard, The Sun News
CONWAY - Dec. 08, 2005 - The husband of a Galivants Ferry woman is suing Wal-Mart for $10 million more than three years after two men abducted her from the parking lot of the retail giant's Conway store and killed her.
The lawsuit accuses Wal-Mart of negligence and carelessness that resulted in Alice Donovan's injuries and death.
Donovan's husband, Barry, declined comment Wednesday, and his lawyer, Geoffrey H. Waggoner of Charleston, could not be reached.
Donovan has asked for a jury trial. No date has been set.
A pair of jail escapees abducted Donovan on Nov. 14, 2002, immediately after she drove into the Wal-Mart parking lot off U.S. 501. They then forced her to drive away from the parking lot in her car and into Brunswick County, N.C. They later killed her. Her body has not been found.
Federal juries convicted Chadrick Fulks and Branden Basham of her murder. Fulks received South Carolina's first federal death sentence, and Basham received the second.
Allegations in the lawsuit include that Wal-Mart failed to adequately monitor and control its premises, to effectively protect its patrons, to warn patrons of the nature and extent of crimes committed on the premises, and to ensure that existing security procedures were followed.
The suit also says Wal-Mart should have been aware of the potential for violent crimes to happen in its parking lot.
Wal-Mart spokesman Martin Heires said the company secures its parking lots, though he did not elaborate.
Premise liability suits are common and around 90 percent of them result in settlements.
Donovan drove into the store lot about 2:30 p.m. Nov. 14, 2002, unaware the men who pulled in behind her were escapees from a Kentucky jail riding in a stolen truck they wanted to ditch.
When she pulled into a parking space at the store, Basham jumped from the truck, got into Donovan's BMW and forced her to drive to the back of the parking lot.
There Fulks abandoned the truck and the two men forced Donovan to drive away. Police said the men drove her into Brunswick County, N.C., later that day, but police have not been able to determine where they took her.
Both men gave police several stories about her whereabouts, and extensive searches were conducted for her in North and South Carolina.
Prior to kidnapping Donovan, Fulks and Basham were in West Virginia, where they kidnapped and killed college student Samantha Burns.
Both men received life sentences in that state for Burns' death.
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2000-02-12
Castle Rock, CO. Murder in Wal-Mart Parking Lot
On the afternoon of February 7, 2000, 42 year old Richard Loiacono was shot and killed in the parking lot of a new Wal-Mart supercenter in Castle Rock. The murder was the final act in a drawn out series of domestic violence reports and restraining orders. The murderer was Arnold Pardun, a 38 year old United Airlines mechanic. Pardun was enmeshed in a bitter divorce, including a mysterious explosion that destroyed his home of his ex-wife. Despite the fact that Pardun was wanted by local police on trespassing and domestic violence charges, he went to the Castle Rock Wal-Mart looking for Loiacono. Inside the store, Loiacono spotted Pardun first, and chased him through the Wal-Mart, past an off-duty policeman, and out into the parking lot, yelling that Pardun was wanted by the police. Once in the parking lot, Pardun raced to his green Toyota hatchback, pulled out a handgun, and killed Loiacono on the spot. As authorities closed in, Pardun then shot and killed himself.
What you can do: A random act of violence--or a growing problem for large shopping malls? In many new Wal-Mart supsercenters you will find surveillance cameras mounted on the store's roofline. Both the parking lot and the interior store are under visual surveillance. Such precautions are generally used to prevent "shrinkage" for the stores--stolen merchandise. But over the years, Sprawl-Busters has recounted many examples of violent crimes, such as rape, kidnapping and murder that has taken place in Wal-Mart parking lots. This is a subject you won't see mentioned in any Wal-Mart Mr. Smiley ads on TV. Last spring, in Jefferson County Texas, a District Court judge fined Wal-Mart $18 million for a "pattern of false and misleading discovery answers" in a premises liability case involving kidnapping and rape. The plaintiff was trying to get Wal-Mart to release a study it had conducted in 1993 showing that 80% of crimes at Wal-Mart occur in the parking lot. The Castle Rock murder at Wal-Mart is just a piece of a larger security issue that is facing many large retailers today. Wal-Mart says they have adequate security in their parking lots--but it was not enough to save the life of Richard Loiacono.
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Wal-Mart employee admits sexually assaulting boy in store restroom
By The Associated Press(8/05/05 - HOUSTON) - A southeast Houston Wal-Mart employee has been charged with sexually assaulting a 13-year-old boy. The assault allegedly happened inside the bathroom at the store.
For the past two years, Amilcar Henriquez has cleaned the restrooms at the Wal-Mart store on El Dorado near the Gulf Freeway in southeast Houston. He never gave his employer reason for concern.
But Thursday night, HPD investigators say the 59-year-old did something that surprised even seasoned sexual assault detectives. While on the job and wearing his blue vest, Henriquez allegedly attacked a 13-year-old boy in one of the store's busiest bathrooms.
"He saw the young man in there. The opportunity was there where the two were alone. No other individuals were in the restrooms," said Sgt. Randall Upton with the Houston Police Department. "He approached him, and grabbed him, and forced him into the larger handicap stall and assaulted him."
Investigators say Henriquez then calmly walked out of the bathroom, clocked out, and went home. Police were able to identify him as a potential suspect, thanks to a surveillance camera that caught both the employee and the alleged victim entering and exiting the bathroom.
"The young man immediately went out and was very emotional. He was crying. He ran straight to his mother, who was at the checkout counter just a few feet away," said Sgt. Upton.
While police were at the scene, Henriquez returned to the Wal-Mart. He was taken into custody and questioned. Investigators say he gave them a full confession, including details of the sexual assault.
Henriquez is married, but we found no one at his southeast Houston home Friday. Investigators say the Wal-Mart employee claimed he had never done anything like this before, but they suspect there are more victims.
"Yes, he seemed, his demeanor, his body language when we discussed certain subjects alarmed us," said Detective JT Roscoe with HPD's sex crimes unit. "So we don't think this was his first time."
Wal-Mart officials say they are deeply shocked and saddened by what happened. If there any other victims, police ask that you call the department's juvenile division at 713-731-5335.
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Mother Says Man Tried To Kidnap 4-Year-Old
By STEPHANIE JETER
Staff Writer
Eva Alfaro, a mother of three, had trouble sleeping Friday night after she said her 4-year-old daughter was almost kidnapped.
The child and her 8-year-old sister were with Ms. Alfaro's sister-in-law on a shopping trip, getting some needed items from the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Texas Highway 64.
Around 8 p.m., she said her two girls were standing near the toy department when a Hispanic man in his 20s with a scar on his face took the 4-year-old by the hand and led her away from her caretaker.
"It all happened so fast," Ms. Alfaro said.
When the 8-year-old saw what was happening, she shouted the younger girl's name, causing Ms. Alfaro's sister-in-law to stick her head around the corner from where she was shopping.
Ms. Alfaro said as her sister-in-law rushed toward the man, he dropped the child's hand, blurted out, "I was just kidding," and then ran out of the store.
When Ms. Alfaro heard what happened, she rushed to the Wal-Mart, she said.
They called Tyler police, and an officer was dispatched to get a statement. Meanwhile, she said a Wal-Mart employee left to review the security tape.
Ms. Alfaro said when the employee returned, he said he couldn't share a description of the man in question as part of company policy.
"It worries me," she said. "This guy could be up here tomorrow."
The local Wal-Mart was unable to share any information about the attempted kidnapping. A Wal-Mart media relations spokesman said the company will work with law enforcement in whatever way needed.
Neither local nor national Wal-Mart officials knew whether the security tape had been given to police.
Sgt. David Hall of the Tyler Police Department said the case will be given to an investigator on Monday.
"I'm worried about other kids," Ms. Alfaro said. "This thing could have been a lot worse. This could happen to somebody else."
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Convicted Sex Offender Employed at Wal-Mart Molests Again
April 26th, 2006
Maria Hollins, mother of a 10-year-old girl who was fondled by a Wal-Mart employee, is suing the giant chain for gross negligence. Hollins faults the company for not performing background checks and not properly monitoring the convicted offender, Bobby Devon Randall, while he worked with children.Surveillance cameras captured Randall inappropriately touched the girl when she entered the electronics aisle where he worked. The cameras also recorded Randall following the girl and exposing himself until the girl’s sister led her away. Randall was convicted of performing a lewd act on a minor, and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Randall died six months into his sentence.
Wal-Mart’s attorneys admit that hiring managers did not perform a background check on Randall, but point to its surveillance system, supervisors, and good lighting as proof of adequate monitoring of employees. They also claim that the company is not legally required to do background checks on every employee. Attorney Steve Morrison counters Hollins’s depiction of Wal-Mart as callous by pointing to the $25 gift certificate offered to the girl in apology when she reported the incident. She never used the certificate.
Wal-Mart immediately suspended Randall after learning of his actions. Morrison informed the jury that the case should be about Randall, a man who committed a crime and paid for it. Morrison questions the motive of the victim’s family by reporting that Maria Hollins went to an attorney before taking her daughter to a physician.
Frances Parker testified on behalf of the plaintiff, citing an incident when her daughter witnessed Randall masturbating in the Wal-Mart parking lot. Parker informed several other employees, including the police, but received little response.
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Cops say woman, son held by rapist for two days
By Norman Miller/ MetroWest Daily News
Wednesday, December 21, 2005 - Updated: 08:30 AM EST
A lucky break probably saved the life of a Framingham woman who was kidnapped and viciously raped in front of her toddler son over nearly 48 hours, police say.
The woman’s nightmare ordeal only ended after she mouthed “help me” to a Plymouth liquor store clerk who happened to be a domestic violence counselor. The clerk called 911, leading to the woman’s dramatic rescue and the arrest of Evandro Doirado, 28, of Framingham.
The clerk, who gave only her first name, Sue, said she had no idea what had happened to the woman, but she sensed it was something bad and called the cops.
“Her guardian angel was with her that night,” Sue said. Police credit Sue for saving the lives of the 25-year-old Framingham woman and her 2-year-old son.
It began Saturday when, police said, Doirado believed he had stabbed a man to death in a botched drug deal.
“He wanted to ‘enjoy himself’ before he went to prison. Those are his words,” said Lt. Vincent Alfano. “Before I go to jail, I want to have a good time.’ ” Doirado picked out his victim at random in a Wal-Mart parking lot, Alfano said. “He approached her and kidnapped her by force with the child in the backseat.” Doirado drove the woman around Framingham, raping her several times and forcing her to withdraw $500 from an ATM. She was raped first in the parking lot of an apartment complex in Framingham then again in the lot of a Stop & Shop in Natick. She was also raped at a McDonald’s parking lot, but police said the woman does not recall where they were. Doirado made the woman drive to Plymouth, where he checked into the Pilgrim Sands Motel, Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz said.
“He basically committed unspeakable acts against her over two days,” Cruz said. “This is your worst nightmare here.”
Monday, Doirado took the woman to buy beer, Cruz said. She mouthed the words “Help me,” and “Pilgrim Sands.” Police rushed to the hotel. The woman saw the cops and jumped out of the car, hysterically yelling for help.
Doirado pleaded not guilty yesterday to rape, assault and battery, kidnapping and other charges, and was ordered held without bail.
Sue, the clerk, visited the woman at the hospital, where the woman embraced her and called her “my savior.”
“I knew she was safe, and that’s all that matters,” Sue said.
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WYNN, Judge. The record on appeal in this case shows that around 8:30 p.m. on 12 December 1996, two women--mother and daughter--entered their car parked in a Wal-Mart lot after just completing a shopping trip. However, before they were able to drive away, defendant Earl Kenneth Dominie, Jr. jumped into the back seat and instructed the daughter to drive until they reached a "real dark, deserted area where there is nothing."
The daughter complied and upon reaching the described area, the defendant robbed the women and ordered them out of the car. The daughter, however, pleaded with the defendant by stating “my mama is old and she can't walk up there to where there's some lighting. Can't we just drive up to the . . . shopping center and we'll let you have the car, we'll get out.” The defendant agreed and allowed her to drive to a fairly well lit residential area that was approximately one-quarter mile from the shopping center. There, the women got out of the car and the defendant drove the car away.
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Published: March 20, 2007 05:58 pm
Pennington gets 5 years for attempted kidnapping
By Dean Manning
Staff Writer
A London man was sentenced to five years in the state penitentiary Friday for attempting to kidnap a woman in the London Wal-Mart parking lot last year.
Billy R. Pennington, 19, appeared in Laurel Circuit Court where Judge Roderick Messer formally sentenced him to five years in prison. Pennington, who has been in the Laurel County Detention Center since the April 2006 incident received credit for 324 days in jail.
The remaining charges from the indictment, which included second-degree stalking and attempted theft of the value of $300 or more were dropped as part of a plea agreement. In addition, he agreed to have no contact with the victim, Carrie Kirby.
Pennington was arrested by London Police Officer Travis Dotson April 26, 2006 following a pursuit which ended in the Bill Subdivision off of KY 1006.
Kirby reportedly told police she was leaving Wal-Mart at 11:30 p.m. when Pennington approached her and asked for some change to use the pay phone.
“She wanted to get away from him, so she gave him some change, dropped her buggy by the entrance and proceeded to her car,” Dotson said.
Pennington reportedly followed Kirby to her car where he grabbed her and tried to force her into a vehicle. Kirby began screaming, attracting the attention of other people in the parking lot and causing Pennington to run toward the Tractor Supply Store.
An off-duty HazMat team member, who happened to be at the London Post Office, heard about the incident from a scanner in his vehicle and called dispatchers to say he had seen Pennington run across KY 192 and through the post office property.
Dotson searched the area behind the post office, entering the Bill Subdivision, where he found Pennington and took him into custody.
“He was running, out of breath and muddy,” Dotson said. “We found out he was trying to get back to his grandmother’s house.”
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Kidnap suspect pleads insanity
By: North County Times wire services -
VISTA -- A man accused of trying to kidnap two toddlers while referring to himself as "El Diablo" -- the devil -- outside a North County Wal-Mart changed his plea Tuesday to not guilty by reason of insanity.
A trial had been scheduled to begin today for Eloy Ambris Garcia, who is charged with two counts of attempted kidnapping. Instead, the 37-year-old defendant will undergo a battery of psychological tests.
Judge K. Michael Kirkman scheduled a new trial date of June 18.
The mother of one of the children testified in a previous hearing via a Spanish interpreter that she and various relatives had just exited a bus at the Wal-Mart on the Escondido-San Marcos city limits when the defendant approached them.
"He said, 'They are my daughters. I'm coming for them. I am the devil,' " the woman said.
Garcia repeated the words as he tugged at the toddler's hands, and she had to hold her daughter with all her strength to keep her in her grasp, the woman said.
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