Disturbing New Details Released in Case of Teen Who Was Torched by Classmates

October 19, 2009

Authorities in Deerfield Beach, Fla, have released new details in the case of a Michael Brewer, a 15-year-old who was recently set ablaze by a group of teens, leaving him hospitalized with burns over 80 percent of his body.

"Please, please, please,'' Michael is heard screaming on a 911 recording."Please help me."

It was those agonizing screams that alerted several residents of Lime Tree Village apartments that something terrible had happened on the afternoon of Oct. 12. When they ran outside to investigate, they were shocked to find Michael, with much of his body engulfed in flames. Acting on impulse, one neighbor ran for a fire extinguisher, while another dashed to the boy's aide. Once the flames were extinguished, Michael ripped off his shirt and jumped into the complex's swimming pool. Unfortunately, much of the damage had already been done. According to eyewitnesses, the top layer of Michael's skin was literally falling off his body.

"He's screaming; he's alert," an unidentified caller told a Deerfield 911 dispatcher.

When the caller asked the boy what had happened, he responded by saying, "Somebody poured stuff on me.''

**Warning Graphic Content**Listen to the 911 call

Once the paramedics arrived on the scene and transported the injured teen to the hospital, investigators with the Broward County Sheriff's Office secured the scene and began interviewing witnesses in an attempt to determine what had happened to Michael. It was during this questioning that an unidentified resident of the complex allegedly told an investigator that he or she had witnessed a group of teens surround Michael, and that one of them threw an unknown substance on him moments before flames engulfed his body.

Through the course of their investigation, authorities were able to identify the teens as Matthew Bent, 15; Denver Colorado Jarvis, 15; his brother, Jeremy Jarvis, 13; Steven Shelton, 15; and Jesus Mendez, 15.

According to police, Mendez was the only member of the group to confess to his involvement in the assault. He allegedly told a Broward County Sheriff's Office deputy that he made "a bad decision."

In speaking with the media about the case, Broward County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Steve Feeley said that the assault stemmed from a series of earlier incidents. Michael had allegedly failed to pay Bent $40 that he owed him for a video game. In retaliation, Bent allegedly attempted to get even by stealing a custom-made bicycle that was owned by Michael's father. However, the theft went south when Bent was caught in the act, and arrested.

The following day, neither Michael nor Bent went to school. Bent stayed home after his brief stay in a juvenile facility and Michael, according to his parents, did not attend because he was afraid of retaliation.

Later that day, Michael went to visit a friend at the Deerfield Beach apartment complex at 429 SE 13th Ct. Police say that Bent was also at the complex and, upon seeing Michael, he and the other teens hatched their plan.

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John Forehand Arrested for Allegedly Propositioning Daughter for Sex via Facebook

October 12, 2009

Authorities in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania arrested 39-year-old John Christopher Forehand last week for allegedly using the social networking Web site Facebook to locate and sexually proposition his estranged 13-year-old biological daughter.

According to the criminal complaint, Forehand, using the name "Bad Daddy," recently contacted his daughter and told her that he had been having "inappropriate" dreams about her. He graphically described a variety of sexual acts and proposed meeting her for sex, allegedly telling her, "Not many other fathers and daughters are this brave, so not many of them are so lucky to experience all these pleasures."

Police say the girl did not fully understand everything Forehand was saying to her and that it was not until she looked up the meaning of some of the words that he used that she realized what he was asking; at that point, she reported the situation to her mother, who, in turn, contacted the Ephrata Borough Police Department.

On Oct. 6, an agent with the state Child Predator Unit took over the girl's email account, during which time Forehand allegedly sent multiple messages, urging his daughter to meet him for a sexual liaison. Posing as the girl, the agent agreed to a meeting with Forehand.

"I'll take very good care of my little girl," Forehand wrote, according to the affidavit.

The following day, agents from the Child Predator Unit and Ephrata Police arrested Forehand when he arrived at a predetermined meeting place. During a search of Forehand's vehicle, authorities seized a camera, tripod and box of condoms. A second search, conducted at his home Lititz, resulted in the seizure of several additional items, including a digital camera, a camcorder and computers. Those items are currently being analyzed by the Attorney General's Computer Forensics Unit.

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Verdict Announced in Rekha Kumari-Baker Murder Trial

September 22, 2009

Last week I brought you the story of Rekha Kumari-Baker, a 41-year-old woman from the United Kingdom who recently went on trial for the 2007 murders of her two teenage daughters. The jury finished its deliberations in the case, and a verdict was announced yesterday.

During the two-week trial, prosecutors told the Cambridge Crown Court jury how Kumari-Baker murdered 16-year-old Davina Michelle Baker and 13-year-old Jasmine Baker in cold blood on the morning of June 13, 2007. Prosecutor John Farmer said that Kumari-Baker had launched a "frenzied" attack on the girls while they slept, stabbing them multiple times.

Farmer told the jury that Kumari-Baker killed her daughters because she was unhappy over the custody arrangement she had with her ex-husband. She disliked his new partner, and she resented the close relationship he had with the girls. The murders were, according to Farmer, intended to "wreak havoc in [David Baker's] life."

Kumari-Baker's lawyers did not attempt to deny she had killed her children. Instead, they argued that she suffered from a mental abnormality, which diminished her responsibility. They hoped she would be found guilty of nothing more than manslaughter.

The jury in the case deliberated for just 35 minutes yesterday before announcing that they had unanimously found Kumari-Baker guilty on both counts of murder.

During today's sentencing hearing, Farmer read extracts from a victim impact statement that was written by the girl's father, David Baker. It read in part:

"My words may not be sufficient. Having them taken away from me in such a brutal way and by the woman who was their mother has had an incalculable effect. I am haunted by the horror of the events of that night and probably will remain so for a long time."

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