Kevin Clash

OK so the Elmo guy might be a perv — at least that’s what several accusers say. Kevin Clash, the actor, has resigned. He’s been Elmo for 28-years. He could do more than that if convicted.
This comes from the Associated Press:

Cecil Singleton

Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash resigned from “Sesame Street” on Tuesday amid allegations he sexually abused underage boys, bringing an end to a 28-year career in which he turned the furry red monster into one of the most beloved — and lucrative — characters on TV and in toy stores.

“Personal matters have diverted attention away from the important work ‘Sesame Street’ is doing and I cannot allow it to go on any longer,” the 52-year-old performer said in a statement. “I am deeply sorry to be leaving and am looking forward to resolving these personal matters privately.”

His departure came as a 24-year-old college student, Cecil Singleton, sued Clash for more than $5 million Tuesday, accusing the actor of engaging in sexual behavior with him when he was 15. Singleton charged that Clash made a habit of trolling gay chat lines for underage boys and meeting them for sex.

Sohiel Omar Kabir

A plot to enlist local men in an Al Qaeda terror organization fell apart Monday night with the arrests of four Southern California residents.
Here’s what the Pasadena Star-News is reporting so far.:

According to the story the arrested men were identified as:

Sohiel Omar Kabir, 34, an Afghanistan native and former resident of Pomona; Ralph Deleon, 23, of Ontario and a native of the Philippines; Miguel Alejandro Santana Vidriales 21, of Upland; and Arifeen David Gojali, 21, of Riverside, a United States citizen, were arrested on suspicion of plotting to join Al-Qaida and the Taliban in Afghanistan in hopes of killing Americans.

… the four conspired to provide material support to terrorists in preparation for or in carrying out acts of terrorism.

You can read the full complaint here

This from a Department of Homeland Security/ICE press release:

LOS ANGELES – The onetime head of a now defunct Los Angeles law firm was sentenced Thursday to 10 months in prison for his role in orchestrating a lengthy employment visa fraud scheme where the illicit profits were used to purchase several hundred thousand dollars’ worth of vacant cemetery plots and grave monuments.

Joseph Wai-Man Wu, 53, former president of the East West Law Group, pleaded guilty in August 2011 to one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud, one count of money laundering and one count of obstruction of justice. As part of a plea agreement reached in February, Wu surrendered a portion of his profits derived from the visa fraud scheme, forfeiting to the government 30 vacant cemetery plots and 20 grave monuments, all of which were purchased with proceeds from the scam. Wu used the cemetery plot purchasing scheme to launder some of the money he unlawfully obtained through the visa fraud scheme. The grave plots will now be sold at public auction and the proceeds given to the U.S. Treasury.

Wu’s sentencing is the latest development in a 2½-year investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) that also involved the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of the Inspector General and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) Fraud Detection and National Security Unit.

SNIP

The other two defendants charged in the case were Kelly Einstein Darwin Giles, 49, the only attorney at the former East West Law Group, and Wu’s wife, May Yim-man Wu, 46. Giles, who pleaded guilty Sept. 19 to conspiracy to commit visa fraud and obstruction of justice, is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 17, 2013. May Wu, who played a minor role in the conspiracy, is participating in a pretrial diversion program.