Kansas City

Published on: December 21, 2025

Missouri Man Arrested in Case Involving AI-Assisted Escape

After a Missouri woman escaped from an alleged sex trafficking situation, a Kansas City man was arrested and charged with multiple felony offenses.

Investigators reported that the woman told police she first connected with the man through social media. What began as online communication allegedly led to the two staying together at an extended-stay motel for several weeks. During that time, the woman reported that she was pressured to engage in sex acts with numerous men each day, and the man allegedly set up the encounters.

The situation allegedly escalated a few days before she escaped. The woman told authorities that she was subjected to repeated physical assaults, including being struck, kicked, and choked to the point of losing consciousness. She also claimed the violence continued even after she experienced a miscarriage and that she was forced to continue participating in sex acts despite her condition. One allegation also involved a threat toward her child, with the suspect reportedly holding a knife near her 1-year-old son during a video call.

Continue reading →

Published on: May 23, 2022

Woman Imprisoned and Tortured by Man She Met on Dating App

by Staycie R. Sena

39-year-old James Larson Jr. was released from an 8-year prison term approximately two weeks ago. Since he was freed from the Oklahoma facility, Larson Jr. has been living at his father’s home in Lake Arrowhead, Missouri.

During the second week of May, Larson Jr. was using a dating app when he made the acquaintance of a 31-year-old woman from Kansas City.

According to reports, Larson Jr. invited the woman to come to his home for a visit. It is believed that she arrived on May 12.

Continue reading →

Published on: May 4, 2019

Video Showed Teacher Kicking 5-Year-Old Girl

by Staycie R. Sena

A teacher at a Kansas City elementary school was recorded on surveillance video as she allegedly caused injury to a child laying on the floor of the library.

Crystal Smith, a teacher at the Bluejacket-Flint Elementary School in the Shawnee Mission School District, was recently accused of using physical force on a young girl who was not appearing to follow her instruction in the video that was captured of the event.

The footage was publicly released in a presentation compiled of several different clips depicting the alleged narrative of the incident.

Continue reading →

Published on: March 28, 2017

A Mother Attacks a Man When He Tries to Sodomize Her Daughter at a Playground

by Staycie R. Sena

According to news reports a 24 year old man named William A Bates Jr., of Kansas City is charged with first degree attempted sodomy and attempted statutory sodomy with a person under 12.

At Kemp playground a two year old was playing on a swing when her mother noticed Bates allegedly “eyeballing her children.” The mother told police that Bates then approached her daughter and grabbed her off the swing before allegedly grabbing the girl by the hips and pulling down her diaper. The mother said that she saw Bates lift his shirt and pull down his pants, to which then he started thrusting against her daughter.

Reportedly the police say she ran after Bates, knocking him to the ground, and while he was down she was attacking him with her fists. Bates eventually freed himself and ran from the park, but the mother ran to a nearby homeless shelter and called the police. Officers arrested Bates near the playground.

Continue reading →