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Thread: Busted Martial Artists

  1. #1051
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    Andrew Wagner

    This one is a little different. Here's someone taking a school rivalry with a fellow student way too far.

    Arson At Martial Arts Studio: Bolingbrook Man Charged, Bond Set
    28-year-old Andrew Wagner is accused of breaking into a Naperville martial arts studio and setting a fire that destroyed the building.
    Eileen O'Gorman's profile picture
    Eileen O'Gorman, Patch Staff
    Verified Patch Staff Badge
    Posted Wed, Apr 7, 2021 at 12:59 pm CT


    Andrew Wagner's bond was set at $400,000 for two felonies and one misdemeanor. (Naperville Police Department)
    NAPERVILLE, IL — A 28-year-old Bolingbrook man is accused of setting fire to a Naperville martial arts studio where he used to be a student, according to police.

    On March 26, Naperville police responded to an alarm at United Martial Arts studio at 1260 Chicago Avenue. Naperville Fire Department also arrived to find the building engulfed in flames. Fire officials said the smoke and fire damage left the building "uninhabitable."

    Police identified a former student of the studio, Andrew Wagner, as the accused arsonist. Wagner was voluntarily interviewed by Naperville police and taken into custody on April 6.

    Further investigation found that Wagner broke into the studio and used an accelerant to strengthen the fire, according to DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin.

    "Thankfully, no one was present at the studio when he allegedly started the fire and no patrons in any of the adjacent businesses were injured," Berlin said.

    Wagner's bond is set at $400,000. The Red Bud Court resident is charged with two arson-related felonies and one misdemeanor count of criminal damage to property for allegedly throwing a brick several times at the passenger window of a parked vehicle owned by a former classmate. The State's Attorney's office did not specify if the misdemeanor and felony charges are related.

    Naperville Chief of Police Robert Marshall said he hopes residents feel they are getting their questions on the incident answered.

    "Based on the serious nature with the crime of arson that occurred in this incident, it was important for the safety of the community to find out what happened," Marshall said.

    Wagner's next court appearance is scheduled for May 5.
    Gene Ching
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  2. #1052
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    Jeffrey Allan Buley

    Former Buncombe County jailer, martial arts instructor gets 22 years for child sex abuse
    Clarissa Donnelly-DeRoven
    Asheville Citizen Times


    Jeffrey Buley, sentenced to 22 years in prison, worked at the Buncombe County Jail from 2007 to 2014.
    A federal judge sentenced a former Buncombe County jailer and martial arts instructor to 22 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to sexually exploiting one of his students.

    Jeffrey Allan Buley, 58, was both a student and a volunteer instructor at a martial arts facility in Hendersonville. According to federal court documents, he used the position as a hunting ground. He worked at the Buncombe County jail from 2007-14.

    Buley befriended one of his students and then coerced that student into sending sexually explicit content on Discord, a popular messaging app among gamers and young people.

    The owner of the facility, said as soon as he discovered Buley's abuse he informed all of the parents and implemented additional safety measures. He strengthened background checks, added cameras, and created a policy prohibiting all adults from communicating with the students outside of class.

    According to a statement a close friend of Buley’s filed on his behalf, Buley told people he worked for the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, which oversees the state’s prisons. But the department has no record of a person with Buley’s name ever working there.

    A spokesman confirmed that Buley worked at the Buncombe County Jail. The statement also said Buley worked at the Henderson County Jail, but the department has not confirmed his employment.

    The investigation was spearheaded by Homeland Security Investigations, a department housed within Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Federal authorities took over the case from officials in North Carolina because Buley used the internet in his abuse, which is regulated by the interstate commerce clause and falls under federal jurisdiction.

    Authorities also found evidence that Buley accessed child pornography on his computers. Buley will pay a little over $7,600 in restitution to his victims, $3,000 of which will go to a person who appeared in a series of child pornography that he viewed. Buley was not accused or convicted of producing child pornography.

    Buley was arrested in July 2019, and pleaded guilty in May 2020. He was supposed to be sentenced in February 2021, but the court pushed back the sentencing due to winter storms.

    Buley faced up to 30 years in prison, and a possible fine of $250,000. The court ordered him to forfeit his two computers, Chromebook, cellphone and three USB drives to the government. Upon his release, he will remain on supervised release and need to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
    "he used the position as a hunting ground"
    Gene Ching
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  3. #1053
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    Flow Academy

    Changed the locks.

    Interior Health shuts down non-compliant Kelowna martial arts studio
    Winston Szeto 1 day ago
    Kelowna, B.C., martial arts studio Flow Academy was forcefully shut down by the Interior Health authority on Tuesday due to non-compliance with public health orders.© Brady Strachan/CBC Kelowna, B.C., martial arts studio Flow Academy was forcefully shut down by the Interior Health authority on Tuesday due to non-compliance with public health orders.
    The Interior Health authority has taken the unusual step of forcibly closing a Kelowna, B.C., martial arts studio for flouting public health orders.

    On Tuesday, Interior Health officers — accompanied by the City of Kelowna staff and RCMP — changed the locks of Flow Academy at 1151 Sutherland Avenue.

    The health authority says it took aggressive measures to close the premises because owner Tonya Aguiar ignored provincial health orders against indoor group exercises.

    Flow Academy provides classes such as Brazilian jiu-jitsu, kickboxing, yoga and meditation.

    In February, Aguiar was ticketed for interfering with health officers' inspection of the premises and was ordered by the health authority to stop hosting indoor group activities.

    Interior Health's chief medical health officer Dr. Albert de Villiers said the authority issued a closure order on April 20, but the studio ignored it and kept operating.

    "We still saw people coming and going and they were contravening the gathering order and … the closure order," de Villiers told CBC's Brady Strachan.

    "Unfortunately, [we] had to change their locks because there was nothing else we could do at that point."

    "This is the first time I actually had to go this far in changing locks and spending a lot of time to actually do this," de Villiers said. "It's the first time we've done that, and hopefully [it's] the last time."

    CBC News has reached out to Aguiar by email but hasn't heard back.

    Last month, Flow Academy announced on its website that it wouldn't take new membership applications from anyone who had taken a COVID-19 vaccine, inaccurately characterizing the vaccines as dangerous and a liability concern.

    Interior Health's closure notice posted on Flow Academy's door says the business failed to follow the authority's closure order issued on April 20.© Brady Strachan/CBC Interior Health's closure notice posted on Flow Academy's door says the business failed to follow the authority's closure order issued on April 20.
    Although the announcement was removed, de Villiers said he's troubled by the misinformation about coronavirus vaccines being spread in the local community.

    "It's always concerning to us because unfortunately … the public will actually believe and act on that [misinformation] as well, and then they might put other people at risk," he said.

    Flow Academy, which has been operating without a business licence since February, submitted an application for one but was turned down by the city due to non-compliance with provincial health orders.

    The City of Kelowna's risk manager Lance Kayfish said the city issued four violation tickets totalling $4,000 to Flow Academy for an unlicensed operation and failing to permit city inspections.

    "It [the amount of tickets issued] is quite unusual," Kayfish said.

    Group indoor fitness activities in gyms, yoga studios and other spaces are currently prohibited. The order is valid until May 25.
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  4. #1054
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    Kebi Raj

    CHENNAI
    CB CID probe ordered into complaints of sexual harassment against martial arts instructor

    SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT CHENNAI, JUNE 04, 2021 14:19 IST
    UPDATED: JUNE 04, 2021 14:19 IST



    Kebi Raj | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

    The accused Kebi Raj, 41, was arrested by the All Women Police, Anna Nagar on Monday, following a complaint from a 26-year-old woman who had been a trainee at his institute
    The Director General of Police (DGP) J.K. Tripathy has ordered a probe by the Crime Branch CID police into the complaints of sexual assault and harassment against E. Kebi Raj, a Chennai-based martial arts instructor, by his trainees.

    The CB CID probe was ordered by the DGP following a recommendation from Commissioner of Police Shankar Jiwal. Sources said the matter was taken up by the CB CID since the accused faces at least three complaints against him. A thorough investigation needs to be taken up to establish his involvement and to find out whether any other associates have been involved. An investigation will also be conducted in other districts and other States besides collecting electronic evidence.

    The accused Kebi Raj, 41, was arrested by the All Women Police, Anna Nagar on Monday. He was an instructor at a reputed city school and has been running Hi-Impact Martial Arts School in Anna Nagar.

    A 26-year-old woman who was a trainee with him alleged that in 2014, when they were returning to the city after participating in a judo tournament in Namakkal, he touched her inappropriately and attempted to rape her in a moving car. She also alleged she was sexually assaulted her in the trip and later, he threatened to murder her if she spoke about the incident. Due to the trauma, she dropped out of the institute, she said. However, the recent arrest of a school teacher for sexual harassment gave her the confidence to come forward and lodge a complaint against the perpetrator.

    Based on her complaint, the police registered a case under Section 376, read with Section 511 (attempt to rape), Section 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman) of the IPC and provisions of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Woman Act.
    In a moving car? Was there another driver?
    Gene Ching
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  5. #1055
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    Oran Delvon

    Slightly OT - did he really know Karate?

    Defendant Karate Chops McDonald’s Door, Breaks It; Judge Rules Rights Weren’t Violated
    Posted by Koda Slingluff Date: June 18, 2021in: Breaking News, Court Watch, Sacramento Region
    By Zoey Hou and Roselyn Poommai

    SACRAMENTO, CA – Defendant Oran Coleman is charged with felony charges after allegedly “karate-kicking” and breaking a McDonald’s restaurant door, but in a preliminary hearing Wednesday in Sacramento County Superior Court the defense moved to suppress his statements to responding police officers.

    The prosecution claims that at around 5 a.m. on Jan. 18, a McDonald’s employee was stocking supplies in the back of the fast-food restaurant when she heard a loud noise. She then checked the front of the restaurant to find broken glass but was unable to see what had happened.

    Officers were told about a suspicious 20- to 30-year-old African American male, later identified as defendant Oran Delvon Coleman. He was wearing grey sweatpants and a dark shirt outside the restaurant.

    Officer Mark Roddy confirmed from video footage that the suspect had run to the door and “karate chopped and kicked it” until it shattered. The male then landed on the door’s bar handle and stayed there for a minute. After speaking with a store co-owner, Officer Roddy determined that the door’s cost amounted to about $1,500.

    On the scene, two responding officers immediately found Coleman pacing back and forth in front of the door. He faces a felony complaint charge of unlawful defacing with graffiti and damaging property exceeding $400.

    Officer Ricardo Perez testified that he failed to Mirandize/read rights to the defendant, and noted he did not because the suspect was not in custody at the time and that their questions were “purely investigatory.”

    This admittance led to questions from Assistant Public Defender Joanne Virata, who argued that her client’s statements during the interaction should not be admissible in court as he was not properly notified of his Miranda rights.

    The PD asked, “Vandalism is a crime, correct? And you were provided with information on the suspect. And the suspect information was given to you as it was related to the vandalism, correct?”

    Officer Perez confirmed that he was looking for a Black male adult who matched the description. He also verified with the public defender that he did not tell the suspect that they were under arrest, nor did he Mirandize them.

    PD Virata alleged that “if [the defendant] was approached by two officers that were in full uniform, who were given the information that led them to believe that he was the sole suspect in the case, along with a series of questions asked to him, it would be fair for anyone in that position that they were not free to leave and that they were actually in custody.”

    The PD insisted the fact that two officers seeking one specific man and further interrogating him should be considered an instance of custody.

    Virata continued to assert that any admissions made by defendant Coleman should not be held against him due to the officers’ failure to Mirandize him. She further argued that any question made to the suspect should have been subject to Miranda.

    Law Clerk Chris Cantrell, a legal intern under Deputy District Attorney Rochelle Beardsley, countered that the number of officers present at the interrogation is unimportant and does not automatically put the suspect in custody. He also added that just because officers are on the premise does not necessarily imply arrest.

    He explained, “The question of two officers versus one is irrelevant, and there were two officers in the McDonald’s interviewing other people. [The defendant] was not under arrest—he was not detained and Mirandized.”

    Though PD Virata insisted that the nature of the interaction seemed like detention, Judge Kara K. Ueda ultimately denied the defense’s motion to suppress Coleman’s admissions. She determined that the initial exchange between the defendant and responding officers was voluntary rather than custodial.

    “It appeared on the given testimony that the two officers initially approached for the purposes of the investigation,” Judge Ueda ruled.

    Judge Ueda concluded the preliminary hearing, denying the defense’s motion to suppress Coleman’s statements, and said, based on the evidence given in the testimonies, there is probable cause to hold the defendant to answer. If found competent, the defendant faces the possibility of additional preliminary hearings.

    Matters for Oran Coleman will resume on June 21.
    Gene Ching
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  6. #1056
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    Sayle Kenneth Newson

    JUNE 24 2021 - 11:51AM
    Martial arts expert guilty of 2014 murder
    Margaret Scheikowski and Mark Russell
    National

    Sayle Newson has been found guilty of murdering mother-of-two Carly McBride.
    A martial arts expert has been found guilty of murdering his new girlfriend whose remains were found in bushland almost two years after she went missing.

    Sayle Kenneth Newson, of Buff Point on the NSW Central Coast, had denied murdering Carly McBride, 31, on September 30, 2014, at Muswellbrook or elsewhere.

    Her remains were found in bushland at Owens Gap, about 17 kilometres northwest of Scone, on August 7, 2016.

    After deliberating more than two weeks, a NSW Supreme Court jury in Newcastle on Thursday found the 43-year-old guilty of murder.

    A post-mortem examination revealed Ms McBride suffered blunt force trauma to her face and back of her head, indicating she suffered at least two blows to the skull and one to her back.

    The mother of two had met Newson at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre west of Wyong in late 2013, before beginning a relationship with him in early August 2014.

    The Crown alleged Newson had been motivated by jealousy and possessiveness.

    When interviewed by police before Ms McBride's remains had been found, Newson said she was the first woman he had loved in 14 years and he believed "Carly was given to me".

    Newson told police he thought she was dead and "God had made this decision".

    Justice Mark Ierace will sentence him at a later date.

    Australian Associated Press
    "Martial Arts expert" could be better defined here.
    Gene Ching
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  7. #1057
    Quote Originally Posted by GeneChing View Post
    "Martial Arts expert" could be better defined here.
    Search on name + muay thai

  8. #1058
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    4 months for Damien Tarel

    More on Damien

    Medieval martial arts teacher who slapped French leader gets jail time
    BY ELAINE COBBE

    UPDATED ON: JUNE 10, 2021 / 11:32 AM / CBS NEWS

    Paris — The 28-year-old man who gained instant infamy by slapping French President Emmanuel Macron has been handed an 18-month jail sentence, but will only serve four months behind bars as the rest of the sentence was suspended. He told investigators that he'd acted "without thinking" when he struck the president.

    The medieval history and martial arts enthusiast, identified only as Damien T., said he wanted to "express his unhappiness" with Macron's policies.

    The public prosecutor believed him, saying it was clear there was no premeditation, and that the man had acted on the spur of the moment when the president walked directly over to him as he went to greet a waiting crowd in the village of Tain-l'Hermitage in the southeast region of the Drome. A video of the incident was posted to Twitter.

    Macron's bodyguards immediately moved the president away and pulled the man to the ground. He and another man were arrested. Damien T. appeared in court Thursday, charged with assaulting a person in authority.
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  9. #1059
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    Masao Kagawa


    Karate-After long battle, karate gets long-awaited chance on biggest stage
    By Syndicated Content
    Jun 29, 2021 | 8:10 PM
    By Chang-Ran Kim

    TOKYO (Reuters) – Karate has fought a long, hard battle to earn its place as an Olympic sport.

    Despite its 100 million practitioners worldwide, a solid place in popular culture and a rich history that some say can be traced back to the 15th century, the Japanese martial art’s bid to join the Olympics had been rejected three times, including, initially, for Tokyo 2020.

    It was only thanks to the provision under the “Olympic Agenda 2020” reform blueprint adopted in 2014 that Games hosts were allowed to propose a number of sports and karate was granted a second shot.

    Lobbied by then-chief cabinet secretary and current prime minister Yoshihide Suga, karate officially won its place two years later to join fellow Asian martial arts judo and taekwondo on the big stage in Tokyo.

    Unfortunately for Japan’s karate federation, however, entering the Olympic sphere also exposed the rampant bullying of one of its leading athletes by a senior federation member in a scandal that sent shockwaves through the local karate world.

    With just four months to go until karate’s debut at the Games, Japan Karatedo Federation (JKF) technical director Masao Kagawa was forced to resign when karateka Ayumi Uekusa blew the whistle – through the Olympics hot-line – on his abuses and unsanctioned use of a bamboo stick during training that caused her a serious eye injury.

    The federation quickly dismissed Kagawa as head of the sport’s “Player Strengthening Committee” and replaced him with a popular former karate champion, Rika Usami, known as “the queen of kata”.

    With the scandal behind it, karate will be looking to Tokyo 2020 to demonstrate why it deserves to be a core Olympic sport.

    Karate has been ruled out for Paris 2024, though it will have a place at the postponed Youth Olympics in Dakar 2026 following a debut at the 2018 youth event in Buenos Aires.

    In the “kata” category, in which athletes demonstrate offensive and defensive techniques against a virtual opponent, Japan’s Ryo Kiyuna is a favourite to win what would be the first gold medal for his native Okinawa prefecture, the birthplace of karate.

    For female kata, a close contest is expected between Spanish world champion Sandra Sanchez and Japan’s Kiyou Shimizu after their memorable tie-breaker match at the sport’s top event in 2019.

    The “kumite” sparring category will involve 60 athletes in three weight categories each for men and women, with France’s Steve Dacosta, Azerbaijan’s Rafael Aghayev, China’s Xiaoyan Yin and Turkey’s Serap Ozcelik Arapoglu among those to watch.

    (Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim, editing by Ed Osmond)

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  10. #1060
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    Martin Yankey

    Martial arts instructor groomed 'vulnerable' teenage girl in care plying with her booze and so much cocaine her nose was left damaged
    Martin Yankey, 37, of Hindley, has now been jailed for 13 years

    By Chris Slater
    09:25, 24 JUL 2021
    NEWS


    Martin Yankey who was described by a judge as 'devious, selfish and manipulative' (Image: Greater Manchester Police (GMP))

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    A 'twisted and perverted' martial arts instructor who plied a vulnerable teenage girl with drunk and drugs before having sex with her has been jailed.

    Martin Yankey, 37, from Hindley, housed and 'exploited' the 15-year-old girl as she fled from her care and then foster parents before she was eventually found hiding in his kitchen cupboard.

    He had 'groomed' and 'brainwashed' her into thinking they were in a 'relationship' the court was told with the pair having sex on "numerous occasions."

    And she didn't realise what had happened to her until she saw a TV documentary on grooming gangs, the court was told.

    During the period of abuse which spanned four months, he gave her so much cocaine the septum in her nose was left damaged, whilst she also suffered 'severe psychological harm' with the girl, now 19, suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

    A judge today said he had shown "absolutely no remorse" as she jailed him for 13 years.

    Yankey, met the girl early in 2018, Rachel Shenton, prosecuting told Manchester Crown Court on Friday.

    Manchester's courts are some of the busiest in the country with a vast array of cases heard every week.

    To keep up to date with how justice is being served across Greater Manchester subscribe to our free weekly M.E.N. Court News newsletter put together by our court reporters Andrew Bardsley and Amy Walker.

    And over a four-month period that year, the girl went missing from the care home in Greater Manchester where she was being looked, after numerous times.

    On one occasion a taxi driver who dropped her at the house where Yankey was living in Atherton, described him as "looking a bit dodgy" as he looked up and down the street before she went inside.

    On several occasions when she had been reported missing, police visited Yankey's address, telling him how old she was and showing him pictures of her, but he denied ever knowing her.

    However, it is now believed she was likely hiding in the loft or a cupboard in the property.

    Due to the number of times she went missing she was moved to foster parents out of the area but the court heard within ten minutes of her arriving there Yankey arranged for a friend to pick her up in a white Range Rover.

    His crimes were uncovered when officers again attended at his home in 2018.

    He insisted she wasn't there and complained to officers for repeatedly bothering him until was found hiding in one of his kitchen cupboards.

    She told officers in a police interview that she thought they were in a 'relationship' and that he loved her.

    However she said on one occasion she lost an entire day due to her intoxication and that she only realised when she saw a Snapchat message she had sent the day before.
    13 years for this...
    Gene Ching
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  11. #1061
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    Robert Franco

    Miami Herald
    A child found hidden restroom cameras in a Broward martial arts school, police say

    David J. Neal, Miami Herald 1 day ago

    A girl’s discovery of hidden cameras in a Pembroke Pines martial arts studio’s restroom led to the arrest of the 64-year-old head instructor, Pembroke Pines police announced Saturday.

    Pines cops also want to hear from anyone who has used a restroom at Master Franco’s Taekwondo Academy, the school at 11090 Pines Blvd. named after Robert Franco. Franco, who turned himself in Friday, faces three counts of video voyeurism and one count of tampering with physical evidence.

    “The expectation of privacy was violated for other undressed and unsuspecting victims who remain unidentified,” Pines police said.

    Pines police say on July 29, a student noticed two cameras “discretely placed within picture frames on a shelf located in the academy’s restroom.”

    She used her camera to shoot those cameras, police said, and took what she saw and snapped to Franco. Franco destroyed the frames and the cameras. The girl left the studio and phoned her father, who, in turn, called 911.’

    Broward County online court records say Franco’s then-wife filed a temporary restraining order for domestic violence against him for two weeks after a Christmas Day, 2013 arrest on battery-domestic violence. The charges in the case were dropped. Franco filed for divorce in January 2014.

    Online court records also say two days before the alleged discovery of the hidden cameras, Franco’s ex-wife filed for suspension of his timesharing rights as a father. That was granted July 30, the day after the alleged camera discovery.
    Smart girl.
    Gene Ching
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  12. #1062
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    Follow up on the story above

    Jade is my hero.

    Teen martial arts student speaks out on confronting master about cameras hidden at Pembroke Pines taekwondo studio
    BY PATRICK FRASER
    AUGUST 10, 2021

    PEMBROKE PINES, FLA. (WSVN) - A teen confronted the owner of a taekwondo studio in Pembroke Pines about hidden cameras she found in the bathroom.

    Robert Franco has been arrested after police accused him of video voyeurism.

    About 150 children and adults train at Master Franco’s Taekwondo Academy, but police said something else was going on here. Not only was he teaching them taekwondo, they said he was using his students for his private show.

    In the martial arts world, this 17-year-old is good, very good.

    Jade: “I’m very passionate about that sport. I’ve been doing it for a long time.”

    And having a second-degree black belt in taekwondo may have given Jade, as we will call her, the confidence to do what she did.

    Patrick Fraser: “Who asked you to try on the chest protector?”

    Jade: “He did.”

    Patrick Fraser: “Franco asked you to try it on?”

    Jade: “Yes, he told me to put it on. I already tried it on before.”

    The master, Robert Franco, asked Jade to try on a chest protector again, which would require her to undress in the bathroom.

    Patrick Fraser: “So, he was setting you up to see you naked?”

    Jade: “Yes.”

    Jade felt something was wrong.

    As she went into the bathroom to change, she noticed two new picture frames that had been put up a month ago.

    Jade: “And it just sparked a red light in my head. I just felt like something was wrong.”

    Jade was not only an instructor at the studio, she is something else: very sharp.

    Jade: “So, I turned off the light in the bathroom. I turned on my flashlight on my phone, and I pointed at the picture, and I saw a glare of a camera lens.”

    This was the small camera in a Bruce Lee picture frame and another camera in the other new picture frame.

    Jade: “So, when I finally saw it I was shocked. Even though I was not surprised, I was shocked, so right away, I took a video of them in case he was going to destroy them.”

    Jade didn’t run, though.

    She said she walked straight over and confronted Franco about the hidden cameras.

    Jade: “He kept saying it was a gift from someone, and as I kept asking who gave that gift to him, he said he didn’t know, that it came in the mail, and that he didn’t know where it came from.”

    Franco calls himself the master, but on this day, Jade was in charge.

    Patrick Fraser: “Do you think your training in taekwondo gave you the confidence to confront him?”

    Jade: “Yeah, absolutely, yeah. I was not scared to confront him. He was the one that was scared.”

    As the 17-year-old called her father to come get her, she said Franco threw the video recording frames in the garbage. She said she took them out and called police.

    Franco was arrested and charged with three counts of video voyeurism.

    Stephan Lopez, attorney: “To secretly record a child, you are at a level of perversion and sickness that is beyond help.”

    Stephan Lopez is a former sex crimes detective and now an attorney. What Jade did, he said, amazes him.

    Stephan Lopez: “And she knew that if she didn’t speak up, if she didn’t confront this man, he would do it to other children younger than her, and she couldn’t stand for that, and for that, she should be applauded.”

    Jade said she is proud that police said she stopped the videotaping of naked children and adults and hopes other children who are the victims of sexual offenders learn from her: don’t stay quiet.

    Jade: “To not be scared to stand up for what you know is right, and in cases like this, people tend to get away with it because girls don’t speak up.”

    Pembroke Pines Police said they confiscated a cellphone and a computer from the studio. On that cellphone, they found video of Jade while she was in the bathroom. That’s why they want anyone who trained at Master Franco’s Taekwondo Academy is urged to call police because they might be a victim and not even know it.

    I asked Jade if she thought she would step forward like she did if she hadn’t had years of taekwondo training. She said, “I don’t know. I’ve always done taekwondo my entire life.”
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  13. #1063
    Quote Originally Posted by GeneChing View Post
    Jade is my hero.
    Yeah, he could have been "framed"...

  14. #1064
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,907

    Joseph Frank Grosso

    Owner of Kingsport martial arts business charged with continuous sexual abuse of child
    LOCAL
    by: Murry Lee
    Posted: Sep 1, 2021 / 04:38 PM EDT / Updated: Sep 1, 2021 / 06:26 PM EDT


    SULLIVAN COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) – The owner of a martial arts business is facing multiple sexual abuse charges, according to the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO).

    According to a release from SCSO, investigators were informed of possible sexual assault that had continued over a period of time. An investigation into Joseph Frank Grosso, 64 of Kingsport, began as a result.

    A victim told investigators she had been a student at Grosso Martial Arts, which is both owned and operated by Grosso.

    “The victim provided details of multiple incidents in which Joseph Frank Grosso had sexually abused her over a period of time while she was taking martial arts lessons,” the release states.

    According to the victim, the sexual assaults occurred while others were at the business, but Grosso would allegedly have her “step away from others” during the lessons.

    After presenting the case to a Sullivan County grand jury, a true bill was returned charging Grosso with the six counts of aggravated sexual battery and three counts of continuous sexual abuse of a child.

    Grosso was arrested Tuesday. As of Wednesday, he is being held in the Sullivan County Jail on a $200,000 bond, SCSO reports.
    There's a news vid behind the link. I prefer to post the pix of the perps because they must serve as bad examples for our community.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  15. #1065
    Join Date
    Jan 1970
    Location
    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
    Posts
    47,907

    Aziz Nabih

    Here's a refreshing change from all the pedophiles.

    Martial Arts Coach Beats Up Judge At Kickboxing Tournament: Suit
    The Astoria-based coach and gym owner attacked a judge who refused to reveal his trainee's score after a match, a lawsuit contends.

    Kayla Levy, Patch Staff
    Posted Thu, Sep 9, 2021 at 2:14 pm ET

    The Astoria-based coach and gym owner attacked a judge who refused to reveal his trainee’s score after a match, a lawsuit contends. (Shutterstock)
    ASTORIA, QUEENS — At this year's World Kickboxing Association National Championships, Aziz Nabih fought Joel Bekker. The two men, however, were not in a kickboxing match.

    Nabih, an Astoria-based trainer and gym owner, attacked Bekker, a tournament judge, when Bekker refused to show him his trainee's score after a match, a new lawsuit contends.

    The "violent and vicious" attack happened on the evening of Aug. 28, after Taj Rueda, a fighter who Nabih coaches, completed a match at the WKA tournament, records show.

    Shortly after, Nabih climbed down from the ring and walked up to Bekker — who was one of the people scoring the fight — demanding in a "loud and angry voice" to see the scorecards from his trainee's match, the lawsuit contends.

    Bekker, who didn't have access to the scorecards, told Nabih to speak with Brian Crenshaw, a chief official at the tournament, who was sitting at a nearby table in the center of the arena, according to the suit.

    Instead of speaking with Crenshaw, however, Nabih attacked Bekker, the suit contends.

    At a rules meeting the night before, all tournament coaches were told that any questions or issues with a match's scoring should be directed to Crenshaw, records show. According to the lawsuit, Nabih was at that meeting.

    After the fight, Nabih told other people to follow Bekker around the tournament site in a "menacing and threatening" way, prompting Bekker to fear for his "safety and life," according to the suit.

    Ultimately, the WKA judge was escorted away from the tournament, for his own safety, with the group of Nabih's supporters following him all the way to his car, records show.

    The attack injured Bekker to the point that nearly two weeks later he still can't fully work or participate in daily activities like he did before the attack, according to the suit.

    Patch reached out to Sitan Muay Thai Gym in Astoria, which Nabih owns, about this lawsuit, but didn't get an immediate response.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

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