Man jailed in Luzerne County is charged in Christmas Eve fatal shooting in Connecticut
Isaac D. Cintron, 32, addresses listed as Chicago, Ill., and New Haven, Conn., was charged by New Haven police this week with fatally shooting Heriberto Cotto, 43, on Dec. 24, 2024.
The State of Connecticut Superior Court on March 12 issued an arrest warrant charging Cintron with murder, criminal possession of a firearm and criminal possession of a pistol or revolver, according to court records.
Police in New Haven allege Cintron and Cotto were engaged in an argument prior to the shooting. Cotto died at New Haven Medical Center upon arrival, police in New Haven reported.
Cintron has been jailed without bail at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility since his arrest near Barnsville, Schuylkill County, following a pursuit that began outside a Dunkin Donuts store on North Hunter Highway in Butler Township, Luzerne County, on Dec. 30.
Court records say Butler Township police encountered a Ford Explorer reported stolen by the Fairlawn, New Jersey, police department parked outside the Dunkin Donuts.
Cintron fled the scene and traveled east in the westbound lanes of Interstate 80 where he struck another vehicle, court records say.
Court records allege Cintron abandoned the Ford, walked toward a stopped vehicle and fired two shots at the driver, who reversed his vehicle. After firing the shots, court records say, Cintron ran into the Sand Springs housing community, where he entered a residence on Refuge Circle by climbing through an open first-floor window.
Once inside the house, Cintron allegedly threatened the homeowner with a firearm and demanded keys to their vehicle, but was not able to start.
Cintron fled the house and allegedly carjacked a woman's Toyota Rav4 at gunpoint at Refuge Circle and Long Run Road, telling the woman to take her 3-year-old son with her.
State police troopers spotted Cintron and initiated a second pursuit on Interstate 80 and onto Route 54 where he was apprehended near Barnsville.
Cintron is facing 39 criminal offenses in Luzerne County Court, including criminal attempt to commit criminal homicide, aggravated assault, robbery, reckless endangerment and theft.
A search of the stolen Ford recovered numerous drug-related items, Cintron's Social Security card and a Chicago homeless card, a Connecticut identification card belonging to another person, numerous clothing items and a ski mask, according to the search warrant inventory receipt.
The search warrant affidavit says Cintron was "homeless" in New Haven, Conn., but due to an undisclosed incident, he left New Haven with intentions to visit a girlfriend in Chicago and stole the Ford while traveling through New Jersey.
Although Cintron is being held without bail on the charges in Luzerne County, his bail set in Connecticut for the fatal shooting is listed as $3 million, court records say.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Attorney for father of Abundant Life school shooter asks to dismiss case, citing 'disregard of truth'
MADISON – The father of the Abundant Life Christian School student who shot and killed two people at the school is asking a Dane County judge to dismiss the charges against him, citing a "reckless disregard of the truth" in the complaint filed against him. Jeffrey Rupnow and his attorney, Lisa Goldman, in an Aug. 18 motion, argued that the fact his daughter, Natalie Rupnow, was able to access the family's gun safe didn't mean her father allowed her to. The motion acknowledged that Jeffrey Rupnow told his daughter the combination to the safe was his Social Security number in reverse, but argued he never gave her the numbers or any other clues. More: Father of Abundant Life school shooter will stand trial for providing guns used in attack The document also points to text messages sent by Rupnow in the days before the shooting, in which he tells friends that "my kid would shoot me" if he left the safe open, which alluded to him believing that Natalie could not access the guns inside. "There are no facts in the Complaint or elicited at the Preliminary Hearing that assert Rupnow thought or knew his daughter could access the gun safe on December 16, 2024," the document says. By alleging that Rupnow owning guns led to his daughter's actions at the school, the state is violating his Second Amendment rights to bear arms, the motion says. The motion also argues that Rupnow did not know how his daughter was planning a school shooting online with older friends. The documents says Rupnow was not allowed access to Natalie's laptop or her room, which she had deemed a "safe space." It also states that Rupnow did not know his daughter to be suicidal or a danger to others. "The State's inference that Rupnow knew (Natalie Rupnow) was suicidal and contributed to her delinquency by joining a gun club, facilitating her participation in a gun class which she passed, encouraging her to participate in Rimfire at the gun club, is an impermissible inference given nobody believed N.R. was suicidal or homicidal since October 2021," the document says. More: Mother of Abundant Life Christian School shooter dies by apparent suicide Natalie Rupnow died by suicide after opening fire inside a study hall at Abundant Life in December, killing Teacher Erin West, 42, and freshman Rubi Vergara, 14. That morning, she arrived at the school carrying a .22-caliber Sig Sauer and a Glock handgun, both of which had been purchased by Jeffrey Rupnow and stored in a gun safe at his home. In an interview with authorities cited in the criminal complaint, Jeffrey Rupnow said the day before the shooting, he had retrieved his daughter's handgun from his gun safe for cleaning. He was uncertain whether she returned it to the safe. That gun and another handgun were used in the shooting. Her father told police she must have retrieved the second gun from the safe. Documents found in Natalie Rupnow's room after her death include statements describing humanity as "filth" and saying she lived in a "population of scum." She used a racial slur before saying, "Some of you guys deserve to be dead." She believed, according to the court record, that humanity had forced her into a hole. She also appeared to idolize mass shooters, according to the complaint. She also wrote she was able to obtain the firearms she would use in the Abundant Life shooting as a result of "lies and manipulation, and my father's stupidity," according to the complaint. Other notebooks showed maps of the school, how to best damage a body with a bullet and apparent timelines for when she would begin her attack, according to the complaint. Authorities also found a cardboard model that resembled the school in her room. Rupnow is scheduled to appear in court later this month for a bail hearing, and a pre-trial conference is scheduled for late September. No hearings have yet been scheduled on the motion to dismiss. If you or someone you know is dealing with suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or text "Hopeline" to the National Crisis Text Line at 741-741 Laura Schulte can be reached at leschulte@ and on X @SchulteLaura. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Lawyer for father of Abundant Life school shooter asks to dismiss case
Time Magazine
a day ago
- Time Magazine
How AT&T Customers Can File Claim in Data Breach Settlement
AT&T customers in the United States could be entitled to up to $7,500 after the telecommunications company reached a $177 million settlement over two major data breaches. The settlement is still awaiting a final green light, following the initial ruling from a federal judge in June, with an approval hearing set for Dec. 3. But eligible customers need to submit any claims ahead of that date. Here is everything you need to know about the breaches and the settlement, plus how you can file a claim. When did the AT&T data breaches occur? One breach occurred in March 2024, during which the personal information—including Social Security numbers—of around 7.6 million current account holders and 65.4 million former customers was leaked onto the dark web. Another breach was confirmed in July 2024, when AT&T said that it had become aware that hackers illegally downloaded customer data from a third-party cloud platform. The telecommunications firm said that calls and text message records that took place between May 1 and Oct. 31, 2022 were compromised for 'nearly all' cellular customers. Additionally, records from Jan. 2 2023 were compromised for a 'very small number of customers.' Regarding the breach dating back to 2022 and 2023, 'the data does not contain the content of calls or texts, personal information such as Social Security numbers, dates of birth, or other personally identifiable information,' according to AT&T. However, it's thought phone numbers could be linked to customers based on public information. Who is eligible to make a claim for a portion of the AT&T settlement? Those eligible to make a claim for one or both of the data breaches should receive an email from the address 'attsettlement@ with details on claimants' rights and options, according to Kroll Settlement Administration, the handlers of the settlement. AT&T has said that customers can claim compensation in relation to the March 2024 breach if they are a United States citizen and their personal information, including 'names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth, account passcodes, billing account numbers, and Social Security numbers,' was leaked. Claimants should receive notice that they could be entitled to a settlement payment, however, if people have not been contacted but think they may still be eligible, they can call Kroll—(833) 890-4930—for further assistance. Regarding the 2022 and 2023 breach, claimants are eligible if they were an 'AT&T account owner or line/end user.' Compensation could also be available to those with 'telephone numbers with which those customers interacted.' Some claimants may also be eligible to claim against both data breaches, this is known as 'overlap settlement class members.' How you can make a claim for a portion of the AT&T settlement Claimants must submit a form via the settlement website or by mail to AT&T, whose address is available on the aforementioned website. Submissions must be made by Nov. 18, 2025. Those eligible for compensation that want to be exempt from the settlement must send a letter to Kroll requesting exclusion by Oct. 17, 2025. Details for the postal address can be found on the website's FAQ page under the section 'How do I exclude myself from the settlement?' Claimants can also file an objection if they object to the settlement and or 'the application/s for attorneys' fees, costs, and service awards' relating to the settlement. This must also be done by Oct. 17. Contact details are available on the FAQ page under the title 'How do I object to the Settlement?' When can claimants expect to receive compensation from AT&T and how much could they receive? The final approval hearing for the settlement is scheduled for Dec. 3, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. Central Time. If approved, there could still be appeals from AT&T or other parties, which would likely delay the payment process. The roll-out of settlement payments will begin once the amounts have been approved and all appeal deadlines have expired. Claimants for the March 2024 data breach are entitled to up to $5,000. Meanwhile, up to $2,500 is available for those impacted by the data breach that took place in 2022 and 2023. Some claimants are entitled to both, and could receive up to $7,500 if their data was compromised in both breaches.
New York Post
2 days ago
- New York Post
FBI urged to probe NYC's seedy 'Market of Sweethearts'
Queens activists are demanding the FBI investigate the 'foreign national' crime syndicates turning seedy Roosevelt Avenue into a 'gangland' — claiming the criminals pose a national security threat. 'We request that you initiate an investigation into what we understand are gangs engaging in criminal enterprises including human trafficking, illegal narcotics sales and the mass distribution of fraudulent documents which poses a national security threat,' wrote Rosa Sanchez, head of the Restore Roosevelt Avenue Coalition, and Democratic district leader Hiram Monserrate in an Aug. 14 letter to FBI Director Kash Patel. Federal intervention is required because state and local laws are limited and inadequate to address the problem, the activists said. Advertisement 5 A suspected sex worker seen outside of a brothel on Roosevelt Avenue near 89th Street in Queens on Aug. 17, 2025. NY Post 5 Local activists are calling on the FBI to investigate 'foreign national' crime syndicates operating on Roosevelt Avenue. NY Post In their missive, Sanchez and Monserrate thanked the FBI and other agencies in the Trump administration for prosecuting members of migrant gangs — including the Venezuelan-based Tren de Aragua and the 18th Street gang, which regularly extort brothels, beat rivals and sell drugs and phony IDs to finance an illicit network based in El Salvador. Advertisement 'However, both gangs continue to operate in our community and we impress upon you that more needs to be done to keep our community safe,' they told the FBI director. They noted that the NYPD has made more than 500 prostitution-related arrests thus far this year along what is called 'The Market of Sweethearts,' but brothels continue to operate. 5 Suspected sex workers on the sidewalk in the 'Market of Sweethearts' on July 27, 2025. New York Post Many of them are controlled by Chinese gangs, Sanchez and Monserrate said. Advertisement 'According to our sources several locations are being operated and controlled by Chinese organized crime. … The information we have continued gathering is unsettling,' the Corona-Elmhurst neighborhood leaders said. Monserrate said the Triads are one of the Chinese groups involved in sex-trafficking. 5 Illegal street vendors seen on Roosevelt Avenue near 89th Street in Jackson Heights on Aug. 17, 2025. Gregory P. Mango 5 Vendors set up on the sidewalk in Jackson Heights near the 'Market of Sweethearts' on Aug. 17, 2025. Gregory P. Mango Advertisement The 18th Street Gang members are still selling fraudulent green cards, Social Security and driver's licenses on Roosevelt Avenue between 80th and 84th Streets, too, the letter writers said. 'Organized crime by both Latino and Chinese foreign nationals continues to wreak havoc in our community,' Sanchez and Monserrate said. 'We urge your agency to respond and rid our community of modern slavery and a dangerous criminal element that operates flagrantly.' They forwarded suspected addresses of brothels to the FBI. In the past year, The Post has exposed the seediness, crime, drug-peddling and illegal vending along the Roosevelt Avenue corridor. Gov. Kathy Hochul last year even dispatched state troopers to assist the NYPD to crack down the lawlessness.
