Columbia, MD
Police & Fire
Howard County Carjacker Sought Howard County Carjacker Sought
Howard County Carjacker Sought Police are on the lookout for a carjacker in Howard County. The man demanded the victim out of the vehicle at gunpoint on the 6600 block of Marie Curie Drive in Elkridge around 7:50 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 7, the Howard County Police Department said. The car was later found in the area, police said. The suspect is described as a Black male standing approximately 6 feet tall and wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, police said. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Howard County Police Department.

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
Columbia, MD
Police & Fire
Police ID Driver Shot In I-95 Shooting Police ID Driver Shot In I-95 Shooting
Police ID Driver Shot In I-95 Shooting Maryland State Police have identified the driver killed in an Interstate 95 shooting last month. Charles Harrison Marks, IV, 42, of Pasadena, was heading north near Route 100 in Elkridge when he was struck by gunfire through the driver's side window around 3:40 p.m. Jan. 30, police said. He was rushed to the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center where he continues to receive treatment for injuries sustained during the incident. Marks was the driver and sole occupant of the white cargo van, pictured above.  Crime scene technicians responded to the scene to collect evidence. There were n…

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
Newark, NJ
News
NJ Tax Preparer Gets 5 Years In Fed Pen For $1.6M IRS Scam NJ Tax Preparer Gets 5 Years In Fed Pen For $1.6M IRS Scam
NJ Tax Preparer Gets 5 Years In Fed Pen For $1.6M IRS Scam A twice-convicted tax preparer who helped New Jersey clients scam the IRS out of $1.6 million is headed to federal prison for the next five years. Joseph Kenny Batts, 52, of Elkridge, MD became the third of five men sentenced for preparing bogus tax returns at Tax Pro’s and Tax Solutions & Associates in Essex and Union counties. Batts, who already had a federal tax fraud conviction on his record, was the only one of the group to go to trial. U.S. District Judge Michael A. Shipp convicted him of conspiracy to defraud the United States, as well as five counts of aiding in preparing fals…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Newark, NJ
Police & Fire
$900,000 Tax Scam Gets NJ Tax Preparer Four Years In Fed Pen $900,000 Tax Scam Gets NJ Tax Preparer Four Years In Fed Pen
$900,000 Tax Scam Gets NJ Tax Preparer Four Years In Fed Pen A federal judge sentenced a former tax preparer who worked in Essex and Union counties to a plea-bargained four years in prison for his role in a $900,000 income tax scam, authorities said. Because there’s no parole in the federal prison system, Tony V. Russell, 49, of Stone Mountain, GA must serve out the entire term for his guilty plea to conspiring to defraud the IRS. Russell was the first of five men sentenced for preparing bogus tax returns at Tax Pro’s and Tax Solutions & Associates, federal prosecutors said. A federal judge in Trenton last September convicted one of two co-owner…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Newark, NJ
Police & Fire
Essex Preparer Convicted In $900,000 Tax Scam Essex Preparer Convicted In $900,000 Tax Scam
Essex Preparer Convicted In $900,000 Tax Scam An Essex County tax preparer with a fraud conviction already on his record was found guilty of obtaining $900,000 in illegal returns for clients. Joseph Kenny Batts, 50, of Elkridge, MD went to trial after four associates pleaded guilty in the federal conspiracy case. He was convicted of conspiring to defraud the United States and five counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false federal income tax returns. Batts and co-conspirator Damien Askew operated Tax Pro’s, a tax return preparation and payroll business in West Orange for nearly six years, federal authorities said. In o…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco