Wandering California man electronically tracked to Pearland

PEARLAND, Texas, April 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- A 73-year-old man with Alzheimer's disease is now safely back in the care of his family in the Pearland area thanks to the quick action of the Pearland Police Department and the help of a wearable locator device called EmSeeQ® that rapidly locates missing individuals.

On Wednesday, California resident James Seals, who was in town to visit his daughter's family and meet his new infant granddaughter, was out for his routine morning walk on his usual route. When he didn't return in 10 minutes, his wife Cecilia became concerned and set out to look for him.

"James has always loved walking and tends to become agitated if he's not able to go out," Mrs. Seals said. "We usually only let him go for a very short time – 10 minutes at most – and if he's not back in that time, we go out after him."


Mr. Seals had become confused and veered off his regular route. Unfamiliar with the area and unable to find his way back home, he flagged down Pearland PD Officer Gabriel Cortes, who was on patrol in the vicinity. Mr. Seals was unable to provide an address or phone numbers for family or friends in the area.

Officer Cortes discovered Mr. Seals' EmSeeQ bracelet, a watch-like locator device that uses cellular signal triangulation to quickly and accurately locate individuals who become lost or wander off - a common situation with Alzheimer's patients, as well as children with autism who are prone to running away. Officer Cortes asked dispatchers to call the toll-free number on the bracelet and they were immediately connected with EmFinders, makers of the life-saving system. EmFinders' operators were able to contact Mrs. Seals right away and provide her with her husband's exact location. Mr. Seals was reunited his family within 30 minutes of being discovered missing.

"The officer on the scene was unfamiliar with the EmSeeQ device, but I'm so grateful they were able to contact EmFinders to alert me to his location," Mrs. Seals said. "It all happened so quickly. He wasn't gone for more than 25 minutes total, which seems like a very long time when your loved one is missing, but it's nothing compared to previous situations we've been in."

Mr. Seals has a history of wandering off, which is what prompted Mrs. Seals to purchase the EmSeeQ system, consisting of a secure, unobtrusive bracelet and a round-the-clock location service that carries a monthly fee. Just a few months ago, Mr. Seals disappeared for nine hours, having walked from Long Beach, Calif., where the Seals had been visiting his brother, an astounding 21 miles to Hermosa Beach. The Seals were fortunate he was recovered without injury by the Long Beach Police Department, who recommended the EmSeeQ system to Mrs. Seals.

The next day she ordered the device. They went several weeks without incident until about three weeks ago when Mr. Seals walked away again, this time from his own home while Mrs. Seals was away for a doctor's appointment. In less than 35 minutes from the time she discovered and reported him missing, Mr. Seals was back at home in his wife's care.

"The EmSeeQ system has already proven itself to be a real lifesaver for us, and I highly recommend it to anyone who cares for an individual with Alzheimer's," Mrs. Seals said. "It definitely allows my husband to maintain his independence and relieves some of the worry I have about him becoming lost."

Alvin firm suspected in $8 million scam

Condé Nast has enlisted the feds to get back almost $8 million it lost to a scam involving a company with a similar name as one of its printers.

The magazine publisher received a single e-mail in early November that "appeared to have been sent by Quad/Graphics," the Wisconsin-based print shop that cranks out copies of Vogue, Glamour and GQ, according to court papers.

The e-mail allegedly asked that payment for the firm's services be sent to an account in the name of Quad Graph at a bank branch in Alvin, Texas.

Between Nov. 17 and Dec. 30, Condé wired a series of big-bucks payments to the Quad Graph account before learning that its printer hadn't received any of the money, and also "had not changed its banking information."

Condé reversed its final payment of more than $36,500, but was still out nearly $7.97 million, according to a civil suit filed by Manhattan federal prosecutors.

The suit says the Quad Graph account was opened Sept. 30 by Alvin resident Andy Ray Surface, 57. Condé Nast's missing cash -- minus about $52,000 -- was found in the Quad Graph account and another account in Surface's name, and was seized by the Secret Service, the suit says.

No criminal charges have been filed against Surface, a spokeswoman for the Manhattan US Attorney said.
Condé didn't return calls for comment.
Said one former Condé executive, "This is just another in a long line of lax accounting procedures that typifies the company.

READ MORE HERE

Houstonians feel pressure at the pump

by Lisa Chavarria / KHOU 11 News
khou.com
Posted on March 29, 2011 at 8:48 AM

HOUSTON NEWS 11 -- The price at the pump appears to be forcing drivers around Houston to figure out ways to save cash.

Gas prices were averaging $3.49 on Tuesday morning, and that is forcing some drivers to find ways to other means of transportation.


Several commuters at one of Metro's Park and Ride said although they usually choose the bus over their vehicles, now it's saving them more than ever.
"It makes me want to ride the bus more. It's cheaper for me to take the bus than it is for me to drive to work now," said John Young.

Gloria Chen, recently decided she couldn't take her car on her usual commute anymore. She added, "I used to drive all the way to the Medical Center from Katy, but because of increasing gas prices, I've decided to use the park and ride."

Pearland "nudist" gets 12 years

PEARLAND, Texas—A Pearland man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for attempting to distribute child pornography, U.S. Attorney Jose Angel Moreno said.

William Scott Nelson, 63, pleaded guilty to the crime in December of 2010.
The investigation into Nelson’s activities began in 2009 and involved the Texas City Office of the FBI, Pearland Police Department, Houston Police Department and Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.


Investigators focused on Nelson after an officer noticed a computer that was sharing 74 files online, most of which appeared to be child pornography.
The computer was linked to Nelson, and a search warrant was executed at his Pearland home on August 5, 2009.


During the search, officers found a computer, hard drives, a digital camera and magazines that contained photos of nude children.
Nelson admitted to Pearland police that he was a nudist and that he didn’t think nude photos of children were wrong.

READ THE REST OF THE STORY HERE AT KHOU

"Poop" not funny to TxDot.

by Tiffany Craig / 11 News
khou.com
Posted on March 14, 2011 at 4:54 PM

HOUSTON—A detour sign downtown has been getting a lot of attention over the past few days, but it’s sending the wrong message.

A prankster managed to hack into the electronic sign and change the message.
Britnie McFadden works in a building at Louisiana and Prairie.

"This morning when I came into work, I saw the LOL and smiley face and I thought it was hilarious," said McFadden. "I took a picture and posted it on Facebook."
The Monday morning message attracted plenty of attention, but it was the four-letter word a few days ago that really had people laughing out loud.

"Friday night it said ‘POOP,’" said Mustafa Guner. "I was coming back from a workout and I was shocked. Make a left turn if you need to poop!"
A similar prank happened in Austin two years ago. Somebody rigged a warning sign to say "Caution: Zombies Ahead," "Run for Cold Climates" and "The End is Near."
The sign is owned by a TxDOT contractor. They told us somebody broke into the guts of the trailer and hacked the system.

A man who goes by the name "John" believes it was all in good fun.
"You can’t get any better than that, you know what I mean," he said.
By Monday afternoon, the intended message was back, along with a new lock.
McFadden was a little upset to see the fun was over.

"I just think that somebody actually took the time to do it has given everybody a good laugh," said McFadden. "I mean, it’s all in good fun—not very legal -- but good fun nonetheless."

If caught, the hacker could be fined $500.
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NORAD exercise tomorrow over Houston

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) will conduct exercise flights tomorrow morning as they practice intercept and identification procedures. Exercise flights will take place over Southeastern Texas. Although they are scheduled for mid-morning, the exercise flights could be delayed due to weather concerns.

Those living southeast of Houston, specifically near Ellington Airport, may hear and/or see NORAD-controlled fighter jets in close proximity to a military or military contracted aircraft, which will be taking on the role of a Track of Interest (TOI).

In order to test responses, systems and equipment, NORAD continuously conducts exercises with a variety of scenarios, including airspace restriction violations, hijackings and responding to unknown aircraft. All NORAD exercises are carefully planned and closely controlled.

NORAD has conducted exercise flights of this nature throughout Canada and the U.S. since the start of Operation Noble Eagle, the command’s response to the terrorist attacks that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001.

18 charged in rape of 11 year old girl.

(CNN) -- Thirteen adults and five juveniles have been arrested as part of an investigation into the alleged rape of a Texas girl, police said.

Darrell Broussard, assistant police chief for the Cleveland, Texas, police department, said Monday that the investigation into the incident "is continuous," with more significant developments possible. Cleveland is about 50 miles northeast of Houston.

"There have been leads during our investigation that have alerted us to other possible persons of interest," Broussard told CNN. "The investigation is ongoing."
The 18 individuals charged thus far are between 14 and 27 years old, he said.

On Friday, the Cleveland police department announced that four students in the Cleveland independent school district had been arrested on charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child under 14.

They appeared Monday in a Liberty County court, in the town of Liberty, to face the charges.
Police noted that some but not all suspects are students at Cleveland High School, though all those named thus far are from the town.

Mike Little, the district attorney in Liberty County, said police would likely decide whether more people would be charged. He offered few other details, saying, "We are very careful about pretrial publicity."

The incident allegedly happened late last year in Cleveland. The case has sharply divided the community, according to CNN affiliate KHOU.

"It just seems like a dream," said Sherry Fletcher, whose 20-year-old son Devo Shaun Green is among those charged according to Cleveland police. "I just hope everything comes out well, because some of these kids are innocent."

Those adults arrested and charged with sexual abuse of a child, a first-degree felony in Texas, could face 25 year to life in prison if convicted, according to the police department.