Man accused of killing brother of Lapu-Lapu Day murder suspect pleads guilty
Alexander Lo, 31, was found dead in a home near Knight Street and East 33rd Avenue in Vancouver in the early morning hours of Jan. 29, 2024.
Dwight William Kematch, 39, was arrested at the scene and charged with the killing. He pleaded guilty to the single count of second-degree murder on Friday.
Kematch's sentencing hearing has been scheduled for Aug. 11 at 10 a.m. PT in Vancouver.
Investigators have not said how Alexander Lo died.
Three months ago, his younger brother, Kai-Ji Adam Lo, was arrested after allegedly driving his SUV into a crowd at the Lapu-Lapu Day festival in Vancouver, killing 11 people and injuring dozens more.
He is facing 11 counts of second-degree murder and is currently the subject of a court hearing to determine whether he is fit to stand trial on those charges.
Police have said Kai-Ji Adam Lo was under the care of a mental health team at the time of the alleged car ramming attack.
According to a February 2024 story in the Detroit Free Press, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) alleges Kematch sent death threats over Facebook to the then-mayor and council of Hamtramck, Mich., three days before Alexander Lo was murdered in Vancouver.
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Yahoo
9 minutes ago
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'Judge Jeanine' Pirro pushed election falsehoods. She's Trump's pick for D.C. prosecutor.
The top federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C. used her Fox News show to question the legitimacy of the 2020 election and became so outspoken that the network canceled one of her episodes out of fear for what she might say. Jeanine Pirro, who hosted "Justice with Judge Jeanine" for 11 years, was one of eight prominent personalities on the network named in a defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems that ended in a $787.5 million settlement. Many of Pirro's comments advanced the false theory that machines made by Dominion were being used to flip votes from Trump to Biden. A 2022 report from conservative legal experts found that Trump's allies did not provide evidence of widespread election fraud, and judges threw out virtually all of Trump's cases based on lack of evidence. Since May, she has been the acting U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., after President Donald Trump tapped her for the powerful post. The Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee voted along party lines to advance her nomination for permanent appointment July 17, and the Senate could confirm her as soon as this week. While the U.S. attorney job doesn't generally involve election issues, the office led the prosecutions of Trump supporters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 in effort to overturn Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 election. Democrats and other critics say Pirro's record of espousing debunked conspiracy theories make her unqualified for the position. 'I have serious concerns over somebody who was such a vocal proponent of these completely false election theories in 2020 taking over the office that was primarily responsible for prosecuting the perpetrators of a violent attack on the Capitol,' said Jonathan Diaz, the voting advocacy director for the left-leaning Campaign Legal Center. Harrison Fields, a spokesperson for the White House, defended Pirro's qualifications. The Department of Justice did not respond to a request for comment, nor did the U.S. attorney's Office for the District of Columbia. 'Judge Jeanine, a highly respected and accomplished attorney and judge, is dedicated to President Trump's agenda to restore safety and justice in our nation's capital,' Fields said in a statement. 'Baseless, last-minute character assassination attempts are desperate and undermine the safety of D.C. residents and tourists who would benefit from her swift confirmation.' Here's what to know about Pirro and her record of promoting baseless accusations of voting fraud. Pirro's career as judge, district attorney Pirro had a long career as a prosecutor in Westchester County, New York before becoming part of Trump's inner circle. She worked as an assistant district attorney for 15 years before being elected judge on the Westchester County Court. She later spent 12 years as the elected Westchester district attorney. She was the first woman president of the New York District Attorneys Association, and she started the first domestic violence unit in a prosecutors office in the nation, according to her Justice Department bio. For nearly two decades, Pirro largely has been known to Americans a television personality with a lawyer's punch and a New Yorker's bluntness. She hosted "Justice with Judge Jeanine" on Fox News and later joined the network's roundtable program "The Five." Since the U.S. Attorney's office for D.C. also functions as the local prosecutor for the district, Pirro is leaning on her local prosecution record and emphasizing how she will help victims in the community. 'No more tolerance of hatred,' Pirro said after her swearing in at the White House. 'No more mercy for criminals. Violence will be addressed directly with the appropriate punishment. And this city again will become a shining city on a hill in an America that President Trump has promised to make great again and will make safe again.' Sen. Alex Padilla, a Democrat from California, said shortly before voting against her confirmation that this experience was not enough. Padilla noted she hasn't litigated in more than 20 years, is not admitted to the D.C. bar, and never practiced in a federal court before Trump appointed her. 'These are serious law enforcement jobs,' Padilla said of being U.S. attorney. 'They are not patronage positions to be handed out to the president's unqualified friends and allies as a thank you for their loyalty.' Trump has appointed many other Fox News hosts to his administration, most notably Pete Hegseth to run the Department of Defense and Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Some of his judicial appointments have been criticized for their perceived lack of experience. 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A Fox News spokeswoman said in a statement that the network acknowledged the court's rulings that some Dominion statements were false, and that the settlement reflected the network's commitment to high journalistic standards. By Nov. 7, 2020, the Saturday after the presidential election, executives were 'worried about her discussion conspiracy of theories' and canceled her show for that day. A few days later, a Fox producer emailed Pirro saying she would need to include statements from Dominion on her show, and then forwarded it to another person calling her a 'reckless maniac.' Pirro cited a Hugo Chavez conspiracy theory On Nov. 14, 2020, the day of her next scheduled show, the lawsuit says a Fox News producer received information from the network's internal research department debunking conspiracy theories about the Dominion machines. The lawsuit also says Pirro 'flashed Dominion's general denial on air for fifteen seconds.' That night, she hosted Sidney Powell, another Trump-affiliated lawyer who aggressively challenged the legitimacy of the 2020 election results. Before introducing Powell to discuss 'what she has unearthed in the creation of Dominion," Pirro said: 'The Dominion software system has been tagged as one allegedly capable of flipping votes.'' Pirro discussed with Powell how she might 'get to the bottom of exactly what Dominion is, who started Dominion, how it can be manipulated if it is manipulated at all.' Powell suggested Dominion machines were originally designed to alter votes for Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chávez, and that military intelligence officials should investigate the issue. Pirro agreed about the investigation. 'Yes, and it — hopefully, the Department of Justice, but — but who knows anymore,' Pirro replied. 'Sidney Powell, good luck on your mission.' 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Thug strangled pregnant girlfriend in front of her two children
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