#7 - Inés Gómez Mont
In September of 2021, a Mexican news anchor went on the run with her husband after being accused
of stealing millions of dollars from the Ministry of the Interior. A warrant for Ines Gomez Mont’s
arrest was issued by a federal judge, on September the 10th, following an investigation into her
financial dealings from 2016 to 2017. It was revealed that Gomez Mont and her husband, Víctor
Manuel Álvarez Puga, had embezzled roughly $146 million from the government’s public resources
through nearly 1,500 banking operations with various shell companies. The couple consequently
faced charges of money laundering, operations with resources of illicit origin, and embezzlement,
which together carried a maximum sentence of 20 to 60 years in prison. On September the 14th,
an anonymous former employee claimed that the pair had fled to the United States with their children.
The Mexican Attorney General’s Office subsequently requested that Interpol
issue red notices for Gómez Mont and Álvarez Puga, which would allow investigators to
coordinate with foreign officials in their efforts to locate them. Gomez Mont has hosted
a variety of Mexican talk shows since the start of her career in the late 1990s. She’d previously
gained international attention for proposing to former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady
at the media day for the 2008 Super Bowl. #6 - Wallace Souza
In 2009, a popular Brazilian television presenter was accused of hiring hitmen to carry out various
murders in a twisted effort to boost his program’s ratings. The disquieting allegations were levied
against Wallace Souza, a former elected member of the Legislative Assembly of Amazonas who’d also
long served as the host of a controversial news program called Canal Livre. Prior to branching
out into broadcasting and politics, Souza had worked as a police officer but was fired from
his position, in 1987, after he was reportedly arrested for pension fraud and fuel theft. Canal
Livre was launched two years later, and it quickly became a ratings success due to the graphic,
hands-on nature of the investigative journalism being performed on the show. Souza regularly
covered raids and arrests while also being known for following closely behind police chases in a
helicopter. Suspicions began to arise concerning Souza’s remarkable ability to arrive at crime
scenes and gather footage before the advent of law enforcement. In response to mounting accusations
of criminal activity, the host claimed that he and his team used police informants and radio scanners
to stay updated on the latest crime scenes. However, the validity of his statements was called
into question by the testimony of Moacir Jorge da Costa, a former police officer. Da Costa alleged
that Souza had tasked him with killing someone in order for the TV host to get to the scene of the
crime before the authorities would become aware of the situation. A police investigation into the
television presenter’s seedy affairs was launched and it emerged that he and his accomplices had
arranged a total of five murders in their attempts to boost the show’s viewership. Warrants for the
arrest of Souza and his son were issued shortly thereafter. The disgraced host initially fled from
justice before ultimately turning himself into the police on October the 9th of 2009. He was charged
with murder, drug-trafficking, intimidation of witnesses, illegal carrying of arms and formation
of a criminal gang. Souza wouldn’t, however, face the punishment associated with his crimes. He
reportedly suffered from a rare medical condition known as Budd–Chiari syndrome. The former TV show
host went into cardiac arrest at a hospital in São Paulo, which ultimately led to his death.
#5 - Kamie Roesler A television news anchor was arrested for
smashing a beer bottle over a man’s head during a heated argument, on September the 27th of 2020.
The altercation, which reportedly took place in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was sparked by a
disagreement between 28-year-old Kamie Roesler and a male acquaintance of hers, as they were
discussing politics. The pair was sitting outside with a larger group of people, at about 4:30 pm,
when the dispute abruptly escalated. Roesler allegedly grabbed a glass bottle and swung it
at the victim’s head, leaving him with cuts on his face that required stitches to mend, according to
a report by local police. Roesler, who served as a morning news anchor for WIS-TV in Columbia, South
Carolina, was subsequently taken into custody and charged with aggravated assault. In the incident’s
wake, she was fired from her position. However, in January of 2021, she found employment at KXLT
TV in her home state of Minnesota. #4 - Feven Kiflegiorgis
On March the 20th of 2021, a morning news anchor from Las Vegas was found in a rather
compromising position by members of law enforcement. According to documents filed
by local authorities, Feven Kiflegiorgis was passed out, unclothed, and emitted the potent
stench of alcohol when police officers stopped her car on a residential street,
at around 7:30 in the morning. During the course of their interaction with the woman, the officers
reportedly requested that she exit her vehicle. When she tried to comply with their instructions,
Kiflegiorgis allegedly stumbled out onto the road, and the smell of alcohol became even stronger.
The woman, who’d appeared on the Fox 5 Las Vegas news program every weekday since 2018, reportedly
declined to submit to a blood test. Following her arrest, she was charged with reckless driving with
disregard for the safety of a person or property. She also faced a $1,000 fine, and was consequently
required to attend driving school. Kiflegiorgis didn’t appear on her regular television time slot
for an entire week following her run-in with the police. Upon her return, she issued an
on-air apology for her behavior, and vowed to use the incident as a learning experience.
#3 - Chuck Barris In an autobiography published in 1984,
well-regarded television presenter Chuck Barris claimed that he’d worked as an assassin for the
CIA. Barris had enjoyed a tremendously successful television career prior to writing his book. In
addition to hosting the NBC-produced series The Gong Show, he also aided in the creation of The
Dating Game and The Newlywed Game, both of which experienced extended runs on network television.
Barris continued to thrive in the entertainment industry until the second half of the 1970s,
during which many of the shows that he was closely involved with began posting decreased ratings
figures. In 1980, the man formerly known as the “King of Daytime TV” made the decision to sell his
production company for a reported $100 million. According to an article written for NBC news,
Barris subsequently checked into a New York City hotel and proceeded to write his entire
autobiography over the course of two months. Upon its publication, in 1984, the television host
faced widespread criticism for his assertions that he’d been living a double life as a CIA assassin
during the 1960s and ‘70s. The intelligence agency itself denied having had any relationship with
Barris. In 1984, on the Today Show, the TV star admitted to have made the whole story up but,
in 2010, he left a seed of doubt in a different interview by saying "I'll never say, one way or
the other". On March the 21st of 2017, Barris passed away of natural causes at his home in
Palisades, New York. The 2003 film “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” is based on his autobiography.
#2 - Suhaib Ilyasi
A former Indian television presenter faced a slew of legal repercussions in connection to the
death of his wife, which culminated in him being sentenced to life in prison, in December of 2017.
Suhaib Ilyasi rose to prominence during the 1990s as the host of the popular crime show
India’s Most Wanted. The series was credited with pioneering the crime-busting format on Indian
television. Each episode of the program documented law enforcement’s efforts to track down some
of the country’s most notorious criminals. The show’s subject matter led to Ilyasi and his family
regularly receiving death threats from members of the criminal underworld. In response to these
threats, Ilyasi requested that local police assign two officers to guard his residence. On the night
of January the 10th of 2000, Ilyasi reportedly told the constables patrolling his neighborhood
that his wife had stabbed herself. After being transported to the hospital, the woman eventually
passed away due to severe internal bleeding. Ilyasi faced criminal charges as a result of
the fatal incident. According to court records, he was charged with mental harassment, destroying
evidence and dowry death. The latter meant that Ilyasi had driven his wife to take her own life by
torturing her in pursuit of dowry money. Following a prolonged investigation, the allegations against
the former television star were upgraded. Nearly two decades since his wife’s death, Ilyasi was
convicted of her murder by a Delhi Court, and he was consequently sentenced to life imprisonment.
The Delhi High Court acquitted him a year later, however, stating that the evidence against him was
insufficient for the conviction to be sustained. #1 - Paul Ballard
In August of 2021, a former children’s television star was jailed for causing a fatal 8-vehicle
accident in Essex, England. According to testimony presented during the case’s legal proceedings,
Paul Ballard, aged 39, had taken a significant amount of cocaine prior to getting behind the
wheel of the car that ultimately instigated the accident. As he traveled on Squirrels Heath Road,
in Romford, Ballard suffered a seizure and lost control of the vehicle, which then accelerated
to speeds of up to 104 miles per hour. The posted speed limit on that particular stretch of road was
reportedly only 30 miles per hour. The oscillating trajectory of Ballard’s car eventually led it
directly into a vehicle driven by Eileen Haskell, aged 64. Ballard plowed into the back of Haskell’s
Ford Kuga while she was stopped at a red light. The collision triggered an 8-car pileup that not
only claimed Haskell’s life, but also that of a 48-year-old schoolteacher named Richard Trezise.
He, according to court records, was waiting at a bus stop at the time of the incident. After
the ensuing police investigation, Ballard pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving and
he was sentenced to 9 years in prison. The former co-presenter of the popular kids’ show Diggit
also faced charges stemming from the alleged assault of a woman at a hotel. Ballard contested
the allegations, but was ultimately found guilty following a trial at the Chelmsford Crown Court.
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