Man sentenced up to four years on firearm offense, online child solicitation
Apr. 10—WILKES-BARRE — A man who drove from Mississippi to meet who he believed was a 14-year-old girl for sex while in possession of a loaded firearm was sentenced to up to two years in state prison Thursday.
Luzerne County Judge Michael T. Vough sentenced Tyler Anthony Quintana, 32, address listed as homeless, to two-to-four years in prison on charges of possession of a firearm with an altered serial number and criminal solicitation to commit statutory sexual assault. Quintana pled guilty to the charges Jan. 3.
Kingston police charged Quintana based on information provided by a confidential witness not named in court records.
The cooperating witness contacted police when Quintana showed up at a pre-determined location on Wyoming Avenue on Dec. 8, 2023, according to court records.
Quintana drove from Mississippi to meet the girl after a series of online communications that began in December 2022, court records say.
Online messages listed in court records are sexually graphic with Quintana having intentions of taking the girl to Ohio to meet his mother.
The cooperating witness contacted police who arrested Quintana at the location.
During a search of the Jeep, police found a 9mm handgun handgun with two rounds and an altered serial number behind the driver's seat, court records say.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Yahoo
Prison for Instagram posts? L.A. authorities target street racing influencer
A man described by law enforcement as one of Southern California's most prominent street racing influencers has been charged by Los Angeles County prosecutors with 16 counts of conspiracy for organizing a number of so-called "street takeovers." Erick Romero Quintana, 22, pleaded not guilty during a brief court appearance Thursday in downtown L.A. He faces at least a decade in prison after authorities charged him with running the Instagram account @privatemeetz, which blasted out the locations of 16 different takeover events across South L.A. to its more than 60,000 followers from December 2022 to November 2023, according to a criminal complaint filed last month. At one of those events, a 24-year-old girl died after a spinning car careened into the crowd. Street racing events have long proved to be a deadly part of Southern California's broader car culture. A Times investigation found that at least 179 people were killed in street racing related incidents between 2000 and 2017. While people often think of street races as the quarter-mile one-on-one speed contests highlighted by the early installments in the "Fast & The Furious" film franchise, so-called "sideshows" or "takeovers" can often prove dangerous too. Read more: Ex-DEA agent charged with pointing gun at co-worker and motorist in separate incidents At takeover events, racers and spectators rush to an intersection and block traffic, while motorists perform stunts in a small space with little room between the asphalt they're skidding across and the audience itself. Drivers often perform "burnouts" or "doughnuts," trying to see how many times they can spin their car in a circle, or compete to see who can skid to a stop closest to a fixed object without crashing into it. The charges filed against Quintana represent a novel approach to target people involved in the racing scene who aren't drivers. Sgt. Arnold Castellanos, a member of the LAPD's Street Racing Task Force, said the first-of-its-kind prosecution is a necessary step. "Street takeovers have evolved into so much more than just cars doing donuts. Over time 'car clubs' have formed, these car clubs 'compete' against each other to see who has the better drivers and can 'bully' other drivers out of the pit," Castellanos said. "This has escalated tensions and has resulted in the car clubs acting like gangs." Quintana is due back in court in July. Each conspiracy count carries a minimum prison sentence of 16 months. Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman said the charges against Quintana are the beginning of a broader effort to rein in street racers. Hochman noted that the takeovers can attract large and unruly crowds, which commit secondary crimes in the areas where they take place. He pointed to the large mob that smashed their way into a Compton bakery and robbed it after a takeover last year. "People like Quintana are the ones bringing together the street racers and the spectators, they are as responsible and accountable for the crimes being committed as all the other participants in the conspiracy," Hochman said. Quintana's attorney, Bart Kaspero, said he was "puzzled" by law enforcement's approach to the case. While he didn't dispute that Quintana was behind the account or that he posted locations of takeovers, he said his client didn't attend the events or drive at any of them. He likened the prosecution to charging someone who handed out fliers to a party where a crime was committed. 'To target the guy who just announced where the meetings are, is a bit of overkill," he said. Read more: A coach is suspected of killing a 13-year-old. Did a case backlog seal the boy's fate? Kaspero described his client as a mere "car enthusiast" and rejected police and prosecutors' depictions of street takeovers as havens of criminality, or the idea that his client should have known something bad would happen at the events he allegedly organized. 'I think it's safe to say most people that are there are there for a spectacle," Kaspero said. Hochman said it would be impossible for Quintana to argue he didn't know something dangerous might happen at a takeover event, considering he allegedly organized 15 additional takeovers after a woman died the Christmas Day event he posted locations for in Hyde Park. Castellanos said Quintana's account would post Instagram stories with "symbols or abbreviations which coincided with intersections allowing for all to respond in a flash mob fashion and overwhelm the location." He said people like Quintana exploit the "carnage" that happens at takeover events to gain online clout, hoping they will gain enough of a following to monetize their accounts. Castellanos said people who attend takeovers have a "Grand Theft Auto" mentality — invoking the popular video game franchise where players can turn pixelated versions of Los Angeles, Miami and New York into violent lawless playgrounds — "where individuals believe they are untouchable and do not fear law enforcement or the criminal justice system." Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Yahoo
Man caught with meth while dumpster diving for ‘raccoon friend' in Nashville alleyway, police say
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A man who claimed to be searching for his 'raccoon friend' in a Nashville alleyway is now facing drug charges, officials said. According to court documents, officers were conducting patrol near a fire station in the 600 block of President Ronald Regan Way South when they observed a dark-colored Jeep parked in an alleyway. Man charged after attack leaves woman seriously injured in Antioch Authorities added the Jeep had its lights off and doors open. After approximately 20 minutes had passed, officers reportedly approached the vehicle and made contact with 46-year-old Jeremy Poole, who was confirmed to be the vehicle's registered owner. When asked what he was doing parked in the alley, Poole allegedly told officers that he was dumpster diving for his 'raccoon friend.' While speaking with Poole, police said they spotted a syringe sitting on the center console of the Jeep in plain view. Upon further inspection, officers observed the syringe was filled with 33 milliliters of a brown liquid, which Poole allegedly admitted was meth. | READ MORE | Police then conducted a 'probable cause search of the Jeep,' which led to the discovery of a backpack. Inside the backpack, officers said they found a 'sizable rock,' which they believed to be meth, adding that a field test of the rock resulted in a positive result. 'Given the size of the rock, officers believed it to be used to shave or cut off pieces for sale,' read the arrest report. Poole was charged with felony possession of a controlled substance and unlawful use of drug paraphernalia. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Los Angeles Times
20 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Prison for Instagram posts? L.A. authorities target street racing influencer
A man described by law enforcement as one of Southern California's most prominent street racing influencers has been charged by Los Angeles County prosecutors with 16 counts of conspiracy for organizing a number of so-called 'street takeovers.' Erick Romero Quintana, 22, pleaded not guilty during a brief court appearance Thursday in downtown L.A. He faces at least a decade in prison after authorities charged him with running the Instagram account @privatemeetz, which blasted out the locations of 16 different takeover events across South L.A. to its more than 60,000 followers from December 2022 to November 2023, according to a criminal complaint filed last month. At one of those events, a 24-year-old girl died after a spinning car careened into the crowd. Street racing events have long proved to be a deadly part of Southern California's broader car culture. A Times investigation found that at least 179 people were killed in street racing related incidents between 2000 and 2017. While people often think of street races as the quarter-mile one-on-one speed contests highlighted by the early installments in the 'Fast & The Furious' film franchise, so-called 'sideshows' or 'takeovers' can often prove dangerous too. At takeover events, racers and spectators rush to an intersection and block traffic, while motorists perform stunts in a small space with little room between the asphalt they're skidding across and the audience itself. Drivers often perform 'burnouts' or 'doughnuts,' trying to see how many times they can spin their car in a circle, or compete to see who can skid to a stop closest to a fixed object without crashing into it. The charges filed against Quintana represent a novel approach to target people involved in the racing scene who aren't drivers. Sgt. Arnold Castellanos, a member of the LAPD's Street Racing Task Force, said the first-of-its-kind prosecution is a necessary step. 'Street takeovers have evolved into so much more than just cars doing donuts. Over time 'car clubs' have formed, these car clubs 'compete' against each other to see who has the better drivers and can 'bully' other drivers out of the pit,' Castellanos said. 'This has escalated tensions and has resulted in the car clubs acting like gangs.' Quintana is due back in court in July. Each conspiracy count carries a minimum prison sentence of 16 months. Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman said the charges against Quintana are the beginning of a broader effort to rein in street racers. Hochman noted that the takeovers can attract large and unruly crowds, which commit secondary crimes in the areas where they take place. He pointed to the large mob that smashed their way into a Compton bakery and robbed it after a takeover last year. 'People like Quintana are the ones bringing together the street racers and the spectators, they are as responsible and accountable for the crimes being committed as all the other participants in the conspiracy,' Hochman said. Quintana's attorney, Bart Kaspero, said he was 'puzzled' by law enforcement's approach to the case. While he didn't dispute that Quintana was behind the account or that he posted locations of takeovers, he said his client didn't attend the events or drive at any of them. He likened the prosecution to charging someone who handed out fliers to a party where a crime was committed. 'To target the guy who just announced where the meetings are, is a bit of overkill,' he said. Kaspero described his client as a mere 'car enthusiast' and rejected police and prosecutors' depictions of street takeovers as havens of criminality, or the idea that his client should have known something bad would happen at the events he allegedly organized. 'I think it's safe to say most people that are there are there for a spectacle,' Kaspero said. Hochman said it would be impossible for Quintana to argue he didn't know something dangerous might happen at a takeover event, considering he allegedly organized 15 additional takeovers after a woman died the Christmas Day event he posted locations for in Hyde Park. Castellanos said Quintana's account would post Instagram stories with 'symbols or abbreviations which coincided with intersections allowing for all to respond in a flash mob fashion and overwhelm the location.' He said people like Quintana exploit the 'carnage' that happens at takeover events to gain online clout, hoping they will gain enough of a following to monetize their accounts. Castellanos said people who attend takeovers have a 'Grand Theft Auto' mentality — invoking the popular video game franchise where players can turn pixelated versions of Los Angeles, Miami and New York into violent lawless playgrounds — 'where individuals believe they are untouchable and do not fear law enforcement or the criminal justice system.'
