San Diego Unified School District trustees voted to build an apartment complex on the site of a charter school despite objections from parents and residents in Scripps Ranch.

Scripps Ranch residents say they worry about the impact high density housing will have on the area schools.

The proposed development is at the corner of Spring Canyon Road and Scripps Poway Parkway, where the Innovations Academy Charter School now operates. Approximately 365 students attend the school now, only 75 of whom could attend neighborhood schools if the charter school has to relocate.

At Tuesday night's meeting, trustees approved a 66-year lease with Monarch Development, out of Laguna Niguel, to build a four-story, 264 unit apartment complex on the property.

Residents say they need more schools in the area to accommodate the growing population, and building a high density apartment complex will only add to the congestion in the budding area.

Board members estimate the project will bring about $500,000 in revenue and savings to their annual budget.

“If you look at the big picture, this benefits the entire city providing more housing stock, more affordable housing stock, but it also provides needed revenue for the school district to help educate its students throughout the city," said Lee Dulgeroff, SDUSD Chief of Facilities Planning.

The plan's opponents say they will take their fight to the San Diego City Council and California Board of Education. If necessary, they say they will sue the district to stop the proposal from moving forward.
 

In an effort to crackdown on inhumane breeding practices, the San Marcos City Council unanimously approved an ordinance Tuesday night that permanently bans pet shops from selling puppies, kittens and rabbits.

The ordinance was passed in a 4-0 vote.

At the city council meeting, the San Diego Humane Society’s Chief of Humane Law Enforcement, Steve MacKinnon, spoke on behalf of animals in support of the ban that will prohibit the retail sales of pets at stores that animal activists often refer to as “puppy mills.”

With the measure passed, San Marcos’ hotly-debated pet store, Mini Toy Puppies on Center Drive in San Marcos will have to stop sales of commercially-bred pets.

Now, pet shops in the community will only be allowed to sell dogs, cats and rabbits obtained from animal shelters or rescue organizations.

The ordinance argues pet shops “pose a threat to the public welfare of animals” due to the commercial breeding process by which the animals are often obtained by stores.

“Research shows that animals born and raised at puppy mills, kitten factories and rabbit mills are more likely to have genetic disorders and lack adequate socialization,” the ordinance states. “The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) asserts that animals used for breeding purposes at these facilities may be subject to inhumane housing conditions and indiscriminately disposed of when they reach the end of their profitable breeding cycle.”

The ordinance will go into effect 30 days after its adoption.
 

Eight Los Angeles Police Department officers who mistakenly opened fire on two newspaper delivery women during a manhunt for rogue ex-LAPD Officer Christopher Dorner will not face charges, prosecutors announced Wednesday.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said in a letter it found "insufficient admissible evidence" to prove the officers acted unreasonably.

On Feb. 7, 2013, Margie Carranza and her mother Emma Hernandez, then 71, were delivering newspapers before dawn in Torrance, where officers were posted on protective duty armed with shotguns and handguns. As the women slowly drove down the street, officers shot at their blue pickup truck mistaking it for Dorner’s gray or dark blue Nissan Titan.

"When the gun shots started, I started yelling I'm the person that delivers the LA Times!' I was thinking, 'What is the reason they're shooting at me?" Carranza recalled during a 2013 interview with NBC4.

Carranza was grazed by bullets and her mother was shot twice in the back and neck. They were ordered out of the truck and later taken to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

"Although the officers were mistaken, their perceptions were based on actual observations: a vehicle matching the suspect vehicle's description, with a partial matching license plate, being driven slowly on the wrong side of the street, followed by an object being thrown from the driver's side," the district attorney's letter said.

"The barrage of gunfire was tremendous, and troubling," the letter goes on to say, painting a picture of confusion among officers believing some of the gunfire was coming from Dorner inside the truck.

The women won a $4.2 million settlement after filing a claim against the city and LAPD. Carranza was also given money to replace her truck.

In February 2014, after LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said he believed the officers involved in the shooting violated the department's deadly force policy, Mayor Eric Garcetti questioned if the chief went far enough in his review. Beck later decided not to discipline the officers and would allow them to return to the field.

For 10 days in February 2013, Dorner waged what he called "unconventional and asymmetrical warfare" against those he blamed for his dismissal from the department four years earlier.

Dorner killed a police officer, a San Bernardino County sheriff's deputy and an Irvine couple that included the daughter of his lawyer before he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his mountain hideout.

Full Coverage: Dorner's Murderous Rampage

A 6-year-old New Jersey boy was attacked by a raccoon as he walked to school with his mother on Wednesday morning, authorities said.

The child and mother were trekking to 16th Avenue Elementary School in Elmwood Park at about 8:45 a.m. when the animal latched onto the child's back and began scratching and biting his face.

The boy's mother, Monali Gavali, described the horrifying enounter to NBC 4 New York outside Hackensack Medical Center, where her son was being treated Wednesday night.

"Within a second, he screamed, 'Mommy,' then I turn around and saw that he was on the ground -- something was there, something was on his back," she said. 

People living nearby heard the mother's screams and called 911. 

"There's a woman screaming 'please call 911,'" one caller said in an emergency dispatch tape recorded by Broadcastify. "I think her child is being attacked by something.

Danny Walls, meanwhile, saw the attack unfold. He told NBC 4 New York he was getting ready for work when he heard the mayhem. He grabbed a painter's pole and rushed to help. 

He tossed the animal to the ground and started beating it with the pole repeatedly until it died. 

"I guess I broke his rib because he yelled and I continued to hit him 'til he let go," Walls said.

Wall's wife, Diana, saw the mauling and described the boy's injuries. He had deep cuts on his face, with the worst injuries under his right eye.

"He had rips on his face," Diana Walls said. "Not just cuts, rips."

Gavali said she didn't have the words to thank Walls.

"He saved my boy today," she said, still wearing the blood-stained coat from when she hugged her son Aryan after the attack. "He came like an angel." 

Bergen County Animal Control took the raccoon's carcass for testing; results are expected by Friday.

Authorities said school officials in the town have been notified about the attack as many children walk to school.

According to the Humane Society, rabid animals can display a range of symptoms including foaming at the mouth, aggression and disoriented behavior. In raccoons, activity during the day can be an indicator of the deadly zoonotic virus as the species is typically nocturnal. 

It’s been more than 30 years since JCPenney department stores sold major home appliances to consumers, but that’s about to change – at least at five San Diego-area locations.

The company announced that starting Tuesday, 22 “pilot stores” nationwide will transform their home departments to begin selling large kitchen and laundry appliances, including refrigerators, washers and dryers.

According to JCPenney, five of those stores are in San Diego County: JCPenney at Plaza Bonita in National City; JCPenney at Plaza Camino Real in Carlsbad; JCPenney at Parkway Plaza in El Cajon; JCPenney at Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego; and JCPenney at North County Fair in Escondido.

Each one of those local stores will have between 90 and 150 appliance models on display, with showrooms filled with appliance models, including ranges and dishwashers from big brands such as GE, Hotpoint, LG and Samsung. Trained associates will help field questions from consumers in the market for new appliances.

In an effort to appeal to female consumers, the showrooms “will be styled with inspiring lifestyle vignettes to help customers visualize how appliances can look in their homes,” JCPenney says.

The company says it’s been more than three decades since JCPenney stores sold large-scale home appliances. The company has decided to re-enter the appliance business after customer data indicated that many JCPenney shoppers own homes and often search for major appliances on the retailer’s website.

San Diego is one of three markets chosen to launch the appliance sales program, joining 17 other pilot stores in San Antonio, Texas, and Tampa, Fla.

By spring, the company plans to offer customers an assortment of major appliances on its website.
 

One of the world’s most famous Yoga teachers, Bikram Choudhury, the founder of Bikram Yoga, was ordered to pay $6.4 million after being accused of sexual misconduct in the first of a series of lawsuits against him.

The jury in Los Angeles awarded the money in court Monday and Tuesday while hearing about the lawsuit involving Minakshi Jafa-Bodden.

According to Bodden, Choudhury sexually harassed her while she was one of his legal advisors. Court documents detail how Bodden was fired from her position because she looked into allegations of sexual assault against Choudhury.

Carla Minnard, Bodden’s attorney, said the jury found Choudhury and his businesses engaged in discrimination, harassment, retaliation and wrongful termination with malice.

“Our client is deeply appreciative of the jury's verdict,” Minnard said. “We are most appreciative for the opportunity to bring to light in a public forum all of the conduct that Bikram Choudhury and Rajashree Choudhury (the Vice President) have worked so hard to keep hidden and under wraps for many years.”

Throughout the court proceedings, Choudhury denied the allegations. No criminal charges have been filed against him related to the case.

Hundreds of Bikram "hot yoga" studios are located around the world. The rooms are kept at 105 degrees and very humid. On his website, Choudhury proudly calls his classrooms "torture chambers."

Last year, NBC 7 Investigates highlighted how other women, including one from San Diego, are stepping forward with allegations of sexual assault and emotional abuse against Choudhury.

Former Vista resident, Sarah Baughn is one of those women. She said Choudhury and his "hot yoga" method cured her back pain and depression.

"I was completely in awe of this man,” Baughn said. “I was really, really devoted to him as my teacher, my guru."

Click here to see the NBC 7 Investigates story.

A spokeswoman for Choudhury declined NBC 7 Investigates’ request for an interview and has not responded to written questions. In other media interviews, Choudhury has denied allegations of sexual assault and battery and rape.

Baughn is one of six women represented by attorneys Mary Shea and Carney Shegerian in lawsuits filed against Choudhury and Bikram’s Yoga College of India. They accuse the defendants of sexual battery, gender violence, false imprisonment and other wrongdoing. “It's about the conduct of this person towards six very vulnerable, very vulnerable and innocent women,” Shea told NBC 7 Investigates.

Those cases are expected to be in court beginning in April.

A hacker accused of stealing and giving information about American service members to ISIS faced terrorism charges on Wednesday, NBC News reported.

Ardit Ferizi, 20, appeared before a federal judge in Alexandria, Virginia.

Prosecutors say Ferizi hacked into an American retailer's database last year, then sent the names and addresses of about 1,300 U.S. military and government personnel to ISIS, who urged followers to attack them.

Ferizi was arrested in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia — where he was studying — last year at the request of the U.S., where he faces hacking and terrorism charges.  

Four bodies were recovered from the remains of a rural home near Columbia, Kentucky, that exploded on Tuesday, NBC News reported.

Relatives told NBC affiliate WAVE that all four, including an infant, were members of an extended family. Police did not identify the victims.

Kentucky State Police said two of the bodies were found inside the home, while the other two were found outside.

The house near exploded Tuesday afternoon. The cause of the explosion remains unknown.  

Republican frontrunner Donald Trump campaigns in South Carolina.  

Brazil’s Health Ministry reported fewer confirmed cases of a rare brain defect that may be tied to the Zika virus, NBC News reported.

In new figures released Wednesday, only 270 of 4,180 suspected cases have been confirmed as microcephaly. 

Officials in Brazil still believe there’s an increase in cases of microcephaly and suspect the Zika virus is to blame. The rare birth defect, which also can be caused by factors such as infections, malnutrition or drugs, means babies have unusually small heads.  

Concern about the virus has prompted a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warning to pregnant women to reconsider travel to areas where Zika is present.

A San Diego man pleaded not guilty to first degree murder in connection with the beating death of his roommate. 

David Charles Ashton, 62, stood expressionless as he appeared in court for the first time Wednesday, accused of beating his 48-year-old roommate to death at their Clairemont Mesa home. 

Ashton was arrested at his home on Mt. Everest Drive late Sunday. Earlier in the day, officers were called to an apartment at Missouri Street and Mission Boulevard in Pacific Beach, where they found a woman who was not breathing, but appeared to be suffering from no external injuries. 

San Diego Deputy District Attorney Nicole Rooney said Moore went to the home in Pacific Beach after sustaining injuries to her head and left arm, allegedly committed by Ashton. 

Moore and Ashton lived together for some time. Ashton worked for BAE Systems as an engineer for 38 years. 

When Moore reached her boyfriend's home, she told him she had been beaten by her roommate, prosecutors allege. She was found unconscious at her boyfriend's home by police. At a nearby hospital, however, medical staff told police the victim suffered severe trauma to the head and left arm. She later died. 

A judge set bail at $1 million dollars. Ashton faces 25 years to life if convicted. 

Investigators say anyone with information on this crime can call the Homicide Unit at (619) 531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.

Umbrellas and raincoats were offered along with other services at an annual event for the homeless in downtown San Diego Wednesday.

Organizers of the 10th annual Project Homeless Connect provided everything from meals to healthcare at Golden Hall.

Because San Diego has been warned to prepare for El Nino-fueled storms this winter, the volunteers made an effort to provide those living on the streets with some protection from the rain.

John McKenna decided he was going to be one of the first people in line for the event.

He is says he lost his job and his home after his landlord raised his rent.

McKenna was looking forward to the event offering medical, vision and dental screenings as well as identification cards, flu shots and haircuts.

“It means a lot to me because I can get a lot of things done,” he explains saying he plans to meet with attorneys for legal advice while also getting care for his pet.

San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer was on hand along with 200 volunteers to open the event.

“Unfortunately, one homeless individual is one too many but even if we were able to get one person off the street because of this event, it’s a benefit,” said Melissa Peterman with the San Diego Housing Commission.

The 2015 homeless census reported 5,538 homeless people living in the City of San Diego with more than 2,700 of those not staying in shelters.

There was a four-percent increase in the number of homeless in the county between 2014 and 2015, according to the report.

The next homeless census is scheduled for Friday, Jan. 29, 2016.

A dangerous new game becoming popular among teens sent a 14-year-old Washington resident to the hospital with 48 stitches, a shattered eye socket and a brain aneurysm.

Skylar Fish was severely injured playing the "Duct Tape Challenge," a trend circulating on social media in which the participant is taped up and is recorded on video trying to break free. Whoever removes the tape the fastest "wins" the challenge. 

Skylar took the challenge Jan. 16 with two of his friends. According to his mother, Sarah Fish, Skylar volunteered to be duct taped first, and was standing while taped up when he lost his balance. The fall caused Skylar to hit his head, and his friends immediately called 911. 

Skylar suffered extensive facial injuries. After a three-hour surgery, Skylar was left with metal plates and screws, and was on a temporary ventilator after the operation. His left eye socket shattered, and his facial injuries required 48 stitches and caused a substantial scar.

Doctors are still unsure if Skylar will be able to see out of his left eye, but Fish said her son's pupil reacted slightly to the light, a positive sign. Despite Skylar's improvements, Fish was deeply affected seeing her son in the hospital.

"That was the worst part for me — seeing my son helpless," Fish said.

Skylar, who was moved from Harborview Medical Center to a pediatric hospital on Monday, is set to be sent home Friday.

"Every time I look at him, I smile," Fish said. "Every time I talk about him being alive, I smile — I smile because my son's alive."

Fish, who hadn't heard of the "Duct Tape Challenge" prior to her son's injuries, wants to use Skylar's story as an opportunity to shed light on the dangers of these seemingly harmless viral games.

"(Skylar has) learned his lesson," she said. "Kids are just going to be kids, be we just want to bring awareness."

With speculation running rampant about whether or not the Chargers are going to stay in San Diego or leave for Los Angeles, little things can be magnified to look like big things.

So when the Chargers decided to change the logo on their Facebook page from this:

To this:

People took it as a sign the announcement of a move is imminent. Removing the city name and the Lightning Bolt logo would be a natural move or a team looking to relocate and re-brand. But the Chargers say there is no hidden meaning in the change.

"We change our logos on our social channels periodically both to improve aesthetics and to promote important messages such as Breast Cancer Awareness, Salute to Service, Seau Hall of Fame induction and others," said a Chargers team spokesperson through a statement to NBC 7 SportsWrap. "We apologize for any confusion the aesthetic changes may have caused."

When asked about the suspect timing of the alteration and if there is anything to read in to, the Chargers representative said simply, "Nothing."

The reasoning makes sense and NFL teams do often change their social media symbols to correspond with big events or causes. The interesting thing about this instance is the only thing the NFL is really promoting at the moment is the Super Bowl, which of course the Chargers are not involved with.

If the changing of the social media logo is truly just, "Business as usual," then the timing of it for a fan base that already wakes up each and every day with frayed nerves hoping not to hear more bad news is truly awful.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said he’s relying on voter turnout for his campaign’s success not just in Iowa, but in every part of the country, NBC News reported.

In an interview with NBC Nightly News’ Lester Holt, Sanders said if he comes in second place in Iowa, his campaign will move full steam ahead to the next three primaries on the calendar — New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.

He referred back to the central tenets of his policy platforms during the interview — universal healthcare, free tuition at public universities and reforming the country’s finance system.

Sanders told Holt he can "work with Republicans,” highlighting legislation for providing healthcare to veterans. He also said he hopes to bring millions of people into the political process to demand that Washington represent everyone, including the middle class.  

Surveillance video caught two men sneaking into a Carlsbad home under construction and stealing tools from the garage.

The victim reported the theft on Sunday evening in the 27000 block of Unicornio Street.

Police said when no one was home, the two suspects got into the home during the day.

They walked into the garage and began rummaging through the tool boxes there. A surveillance camera showed them stealing a number of items, which were being stored during the construction.

If you know who the suspects are, call the Carlsbad Police Department at 760-931-2154.

The Mexican attorney general’s office has released an animated video recreating what Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s escape may have looked like, NBC News reported.

The video shows Guzman escaping from a digitized version of the maximum security prison he busted out of in July 2015.

He escaped through a tunnel and used a makeshift railroad powered by a motorcycle. The video also shows him being helped by another person.

Guzman was recaptured in January after a secret interview with actor Sean Penn. Officials said his contact with Penn and producers helped authorities figure out his location.  

The federal government has joined the San Diego Police Department and the city of San Diego in arguing certain information about the use of “stingray” technology shouldn’t be provided to the public.

“Although the United States is not a party to this case, it has a direct interest in the protection of the information withheld by the SDPD,” Department of Justice Attorney Marcia Sowles said, according to a “Statement of Interest” filed by the DOJ on behalf of the federal government.

At the center of the argument is the stingray, a technology which allows law enforcement agencies like the SDPD to create fake cell sites that mimic cellphone towers, allowing police to capture information transmitted over the cell system.

The First Amendment Coalition of California is trying to compel the SDPD to provide more information about how the agency uses the stingray technology. The filing is the latest maneuver in the running legal battle.

The SDPD has responded to California Open Records Act requests by the nonprofit with pages of redactions. Local court hearings have sided with the department on the disclosure issues. The case is currently being heard by San Diego County Superior Judge Judith Hayes.

“In our society we don’t allow our police to operate in total secrecy,” the coalition’s attorney, Kelly Aviles, told NBC 7. “That has been the case with this stingray technology. For a long time it operated without the public even knowing it was used.”

On the other side of the argument is FBI Special Agent Bradley Morrison, a member of the agency's Tracking Technology Unit. In an affidavit accompanying the filing he said, “cell site simulator technology provides valuable assistance in support of important public safety objectives.”

According to Morrison, the technology helps apprehend fugitives, provides information for complex drug investigations and can help lead to the rescue of kidnapped children. It’s also an “important tool in the Federal Government's efforts to protect and defend the United States against terrorism and other threats to our national security,” he said.

The filing from DOJ attorney Sowles also included reasons why the SDPD’s information should be withheld, the primary one being because it is sensitive in nature. She said this includes the specifications and capabilities of the site simulator systems as well as the “techniques and tradecraft employed in operating cell site simulator equipment.”

According to Sowles, the release of the information would allow “criminals and terrorists to piece together information about cell site simulators' use and capabilities and thereby develop methods to evade them.”

Click here to read the “Statement of Interest of the United States.”

Aviles said counter measures for the technology already exist, including a mobile app that alerts people when the simulator is being used and a cellphone case that blocks the simulators access.

Criminals are no doubt aware of these options, Aviles said.

“It’s innocent citizens who aren’t aware their information is being gathered," she said. “To insure we have adequate safeguards for people who are innocent and not the subject of criminal investigations, we have to be able to have information about the technology in order to have an intelligent debate about the technology.”

Also included in the DOJ filing is a reference to a non-disclosure agreement with the FBI, signed by the SDPD. Without this agreement, Sowles said, the department could not buy the simulator equipment.

Part of that agreement includes this section:

“The San Diego Police Department will, at the request of the FBI, seek dismissal of the case in lieu of using or providing, or allowing others to use or provide, any information concerning the Harris Corporation wireless collection equipment/technology, its associated software, operating manuals and any related documentation (beyond the evidentiary results obtained through the use of the equipment/technology), if using or providing such information would potentially or actually compromise the equipment/technology. This point supposes that the agency has some control or influence over the prosecutorial process. Where such is not the case, or is limited so as to be inconsequential, it is the FBI's expectation that the law enforcement agency identify the applicable prosecuting agency, or agencies, for inclusion in this agreement.“

The sanitation worker sent to the hospital with injuries after he was assaulted on a Queens street has been arrested for lying about the attack, police say. 

Michael Morelli, 31, was issued a desk appearance ticket for filing a false report, police said Wednesday evening. It's not clear if he has an attorney.

Earlier in the morning, he told police he was pistol whipped and robbed while clearing snow from around a fire hydrant at Guy Brewer Boulevard and Liberty Avenue.

After investigating, police discovered Morelli had lied about the attack, the sources said. 

Morelli admitted he had actually been out soliciting a prostitute when he encountered two men on the street and got into an argument with them, law enforcement sources said. That's when the men assaulted him and fled. 

It's still not clear what sparked the altercation or who the aggressor was, the sources said.

Morelli was taken to the hospital for minor injuries.

The account was far different than the one he told his girlfriend, Jaclyn Franin, and her father earlier. She told NBC 4 that he called her after the attack and she met him at the hospital.

"Anytime you get called in the middle of the night, the first thing you're concerned about is safety -- is he OK, is he alive, what actually went down? So of course I was terrified," said Francin, a veterinarian who's known Morelli for 16 years and whom she calls her best friend. 

Her father, Rudy Francin, said Morelli was a hard worker, and had been working ever since the storm: "Comes in, working like 14 hours a day, leaves 7 at night, comes back in the morning." 

When reached on the phone for comment after Morelli's arrest, Rudy Francin was in shock and said he couldn't believe it. He declined further comment.

The Department of Sanitation declined to comment, saying it was a police matter. 

Police say they're continuing to investigate. 

Twenty-two people across the country have been indicted in a sophisticated criminal enterprise, led by former University of Southern California athlete Owen Hanson, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

A federal grand jury in Southern California charged the 22 people with participating in an international and national narcotics trafficking, money laundering and illegal sports gambling ring in an operation dubbed “ODOG.”

Nineteen of the 22 were arrested Wednesday in San Diego, Orange and Los Angeles counties as well as in Sacramento, Arizona, Louisiana and Virginia. Two men, Owen Hanson and Giovanni “Tank” Brandolino, were previously arrested. Hanson allegedly ran the organization and delegated a part of the responsibilities to Kenny Hilinski, an expatriate living in Peru who still remains a fugitive, according to the indictment.

“Transnational criminal organizations pose a significant threat to our country and our allies throughout the world,” said U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy in a statement. “Such criminal organizations are unhindered by national boundaries, and unrestricted in the types of crimes they will commit in the pursuit of illegal profits.”

In order to keep customers compliant, the organization would frequently use threats and violence to force customers to get their way, Duffy alleges. In one such case, the organization sent a video of a beheading and a photo of the customer’s family gravestone to extort an alleged $2 million debt payment.

“Utilizing the professional services of a Certified Public Account, the ODOG Enterprise laundered illicit funds through shell companies, phony bank accounts and structured bank deposits in an attempt to avoid detection by law enforcement,” said Erick Martinez, Special Agent in Charge for IRS Criminal Investigation, in a statement.

A nationwide network of bookies and runners helped ODOG accept wagers on professional and collegiate football and baseball games. Hilinski maintained a series of websites the gamblers used to place bets, the U.S. Attorney said. He also allegedly coordinated payment collections and directed runners to distribute proceeds through shell companies and cash deliveries.

When customers failed to pay their debts, Los Angeles-based Daniel Portley-Hanks, also charged in the indictment, helped find personal identification information for individuals and coordinate attacks to extort payments, authorities said.

“Today's indictment will begin the process of dismantling a sophisticated international criminal enterprise that used violence and intimidation to advance their criminal objectives," commented FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric S. Birnbaum in a statement.

In addition to illegal gambling and money laundering, the organization also distributed narcotics, including cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin and ecstasy, nationally and internationally in wholesale and retail quantities. Hanson shared the responsibilities with Brandolino, according to the indictment. Former professional football player Derek Loville was also arrested on suspicion of distributing drugs for ODOG in Arizona.

Certified public accountant Luke Fairfield, based in San Diego, is accused of helping to launder the proceeds of the gambling and drug trafficking networks by setting up shell corporations and methods to structure bank transactions. 

The case stems from a June 2013 indictment against the Macho Sports Enterprise. After identifying an international criminal web, the FBI began working with an Australian police force to uncover this case. 

Officials initially arrested Hanson on Sept. 9 for organizing the delivery of cocaine and methamphetamine. Hanson and his co-defendants are charged with a series of crimes relating to illegal gambling, racketeering, laundering and narcotics trafficking.