The New Jersey escort whose 2010 disappearance led to the discovery of 11 butchered bodies on a Long Island beach may have been strangled, a newly released autopsy report found.

sets of human remains believed to be butchered by a serial killer, then dumped on a Long Island beach had signs of homicidal strangulation, a newly released autopsy report found.

The family of Shannan Gilbert announced that an autopsy performed by famed forensic pathologist Michael Baden didn't conclude how the 24-year-old escort died, but noted that she had been the victim of some violence.

"Michael Baden comes to disturbing conclusions," family attorney John Ray said.

Family members said the findings — which showed no evidence Gilbert died of natural causes, a drug overdose or by drowning — should spur authorities to open a murder investigation into Gilbert's death, which has never been ruled a homicide. 

"We're demanding they activate a homicide investigation for Shannan Gilbert," Ray said.

The findings' release comes years after Suffolk County medical examiners said the autopsy was inconclusive. Police had suggested Gilbert possibly drowned or succumbed to the elements not long after she vanished in May 2010. 

Gilbert was on a call on Long Island and was last seen screaming and running from a home in the Oak Beach complex, where she met her client. Before she disappeared, she called 911 from a client's home and told an operator someone was trying to kill her.

It was during the massive search for Gilbert that authorities discovered 11 sets of human remains believed to be linked to at least one serial killer. The first of those remains was found by a K-9 unit in December 2010.

Nine sets of remains — eight women and a man — belonged to prostitutes, authorities said. Another set of remains belonged to a baby girl. Five of them, including the infant, have not been identified. 

Gilbert's remains were found 18 months later, in December 2011, in a marshy area near Gilgo Beach, on the island’s south central shore. The client she was with the night of her disappearance has been ruled out as a suspect in her death. 

Gilbert’s family is involved in a civil suit with a doctor who lives on Gilgo Beach. They believe he may know more about her disappearance. 

No one has been charged or named as a suspect in the killings. Police don’t believe Gilbert's death is connected to the deaths of the others. 

Last month, it was announced that two FBI agents would assist Suffolk County police in their 5-year-old investigation into the human remains found along Gilgo Beach and Ocean Parkway.

Donald Trump has long questioned whether Sen. Ted Cruz, who was born in Canada, is eligible to be president. Now, Trump is threatening to sue Cruz over it.

Trump maintains Cruz may not be a natural born citizen, one of a few qualifications to be president     listed in the Constitution. Trump tweeted Friday he has standing to sue Cruz over the issue. 

Cruz has defended himself from the "birther" claim that he's disqualified from the office, including in a presidential debate in January. 

But Trump's latest remark, coming after a week of negative campaigning between the candidates, is the first time he's threatened to take action over it.

"If @TedCruz doesn’t clean up his act, stop cheating, & doing negative ads, I have standing to sue him for not being a natural born citizen," Trump tweeted Friday afternoon.

There was no immediate response on Ted Cruz's Twitter feed, and his campaign did not reply to a message requesting comment.

The president must be a "natural born citizen,"  35 years old and a 14-year resident of the nation, according to Article II of the Constitution. The 25th Amendment establishes the two-term limit.

Cruz was born a U.S. citizen because his mother was an American living in Canada. Some constitutional scholars – and Trump – have questioned whether the circumstances of Cruz's birth meet the "natural born citizen" requirement.

At the Jan. 17 debate, Trump suggested Cruz voluntarily submit the question to the court system, saying "there's a big question mark over your head." Trump said he wouldn't sue, but Democrats surely would if Cruz became the Republican nominee for president.

But Cruz countered that he was born a citizen, and that two Republicans born outside of the country had already run for president, including John McCain.

"I'm happy to consider naming you as vice president," Cruz quipped at the time. "And if you happen to be right you can get the top job at the end of the day." 

Eight on-duty police officers have already been killed by gunfire this year, including five this week, NBC News reported.

The five were shot in Colorado, Maryland, North Dakota and Georgia. The most recent was Officer Greg Barney, who was shot Thursday at an apartment complex in Riverdale, Georgia. He was serving a “no-knock” warrant, when the suspect ran and opened fire, striking the 25-year veteran.

Only one officer was shot dead between Jan. 1 and Feb. 11 last year, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. A total of 13 officers were killed in this time period last year; most of them traffic-related. That’s compared to 11 officers killed so far in 2016. 

There are no fat cats in this town.

Reno, Nevada appointed a four-legged mayor of the town on Thursday for the day. Mayor Everett, a Newfoundland- Lab mix, was adopted two years ago from Nevada’s Society for the Prevention of Cruelties to Animals (SPCA). According to the group, Everett’s owners attended their annual charity event, “An Affur to Remember," where they were the highest bidders for the mayoral prize.

Mayor Everett spent the day doing what any good statesman would do; he participated in many photo shoots around town with the escort of a limousine.

After his dutiful dog day, he received a retirement package of a dog bed, a bowl and 60-pounds of dog food from the Executive Director of the animal rights group.

It is unclear whether Everett will seek reelection.

The U.S. Senate passed legislation on Thursday placing a permanent ban on states’ taxing Internet access, NBC News reported.

The bill was approved with a 75-20 vote. It would toughen enforcement of U.S. duties on foreign goods and would ban some taxes on digital goods and services, according to Reuters.

"Most Americans pay $0 in taxes to connect to the Internet. And thanks to a bill that passed today, you will never have to pay taxes just to get online, or pay more taxes for goods and services just because they're bought online," Democratic Senator Ron Wyden said in a statement.

The legislation doesn’t address better enforcement of state sales tax collections on Internet purchases. Separate legislation could be considered by Congress later this year.

The measure will go to President Barack Obama for signing into law.
 

Guitar in hand, Olympian and professional snowboarder Shaun White dropped into his hometown of San Diego Friday for two of his favorite things: a burrito and a jam session with his band.

White, 29, visited Rico’s Taco Shop in Encinitas to join local radio station 91X on the station’s ongoing “Best Breakfast Burrito Tour,” which visits different Mexican food joints across San Diego County each Friday.

After grabbing a bite, he and his band, Bad Things, performed a free concert for young fans at Bro-Am Studios on S. Coast Highway. The young fans clapped and cheered as The Flying Tomato got into the groove.

“It’s nice to be in my hometown and feel the support,” White told NBC 7. “It’s humbling to come home and to see some familiar faces.”

White’s hometown performance comes a week ahead of a large-scale, two-day music and sports event he’s producing in Los Angeles dubbed “Air + Style.”

The festival takes place Feb. 20 and Feb. 21 at EXPO Park at the L.A. Coliseum and combines live music, art and the world’s best snowboarders going head-to-head on a 16-story snowboard jump. Musicians set to perform at White’s fest include Incubus, J. Cole, HAIM and Kaskade, among others.

White describes the event as a “Coachella-meets-X-Games type of thing” and said Air + Style represents each one of his passions and the close connection between sports and music.

“The idea is that you come there, you watch some music, you see the sports – you can try snowboarding for the first time. It really represents the culture behind the sports,” he explained.

White said the Air + Style fest began about 20 years ago in Austria. He competed in the event and later went on to host it. Years later, the X Games pro is now the owner of the event.

“My vision for it was to truly combine all the things, selfishly, that I love into one big event,” White told NBC 7. “I play in a band, I’ve played at music festivals; I’m a music festivalgoer. I obviously know the world of sports and snowboard contests, so I wanted to put it all together and really see what happens.”

White said he’s a walking, or rather, shredding, example of the bond between music and extreme sports. He said music “fell into his lap” through his career in sports

“I actually won a guitar at a snowboard contest. It was a prize – you really weren’t supposed to play it,” he recounted, with a smile. “It was a really nice Fender Strat and I learned how to play from that and fell in love with music. That’s how close the world of music is with action sports.”

White’s band most recently toured Europe with Jared Leto’s band, 30 Seconds to Mars.

For more information on White’s Air + Style event, or to purchase tickets to the music and snowboard fest, click here.
 

The overturned tandem trailer truck spilled contents onto the southbound lanes of Interstate 5 near Oceanside. 

At least two lanes were blocked at Aliso Creek after the crash occurred at approximately 5:30 a.m.

California Highway Patrol Officers issued a SigAlert to get the wreck cleared.

The truck was traveling about 65 to 70 miles per hour when the driver made an abrupt turn, according to the CHP.

The driver was not injured. No other vehicles were involved.

Cleanup could take several hours. CHP hopes to have all lanes open to traffic before 11 a.m.
 

A family of five escaped a raging house fire in National City early Friday.

Flames several stories high were spotted coming from a storage shed next to the home on Palm Avenue near E 15th Street around 4:30 a.m.

Neighbors told NBC 7 they were awakened by the fire and pounded on the family's door to wake them up.

“Mom was quick to respond and immediately evacuated the family,” National City Fire Marshal Robert Hernandez said.

The home did have smoke alarms but it appears the fire started in the garage and spread to the home, fire investigators said.

One woman suffered a burn to her right arm as she and her family were evacuating.

Three other homes nearby were evacuated as a precaution.

San Diego County officials have released images of several tattoos in the hopes they will help identify a man whose body was found in the ocean off the coast of Sunset Cliffs.

San Diego Lifeguards recovered the man's body around 12:15 p.m. Sunday from a location off Ocean Beach.

The man did not have clothes on when he was recovered from the ocean, lifeguards said.

The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office has released images of two distinctive tattoos in the hopes that someone may recognize the artwork and help identify the man.

First, from the man's Left upper arm and shoulder there was a tattoo that appears to show the Hindu god Ganesha, playing an instrument.

On the man's left forearm there was red Greek letters.

A third tattoo on the man's right ankle suggests a five-pointed black star or crossed bones, officials said.

The man was described as 6-feet, 1-inch tall and approximately 180 to 200 pounds. Officials do not know his age.

They believe he may have been in the water for two to seven days.

Anyone who believes they may know the identity of the man can contact the Medical Examiner’s Office at (858) 694-2895. The case number is 16-00352.

A San Diego dentist who employed an assistant accused of sexually assaulting a teenage patient says he’s baffled that something like this allegedly happened at his practice.

“It shocks me,” Dr. Steven Podstreleny told NBC 7 on Thursday, referring to the case against dental assistant Luis Ramos, 36. “The disappointing thing for me is that trust was violated, not only with the patient of course, but with me, with the other employees.”

Ramos, a resident of El Cajon who worked at Podstreleny’s Park Boulevard Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Office in University Heights, faces charges of sexual battery on an unconscious person and oral copulation by anesthetic.

Ramos was arrested on Feb. 3, two weeks after a 17-year-old girl told police she was inappropriately touched by the dental assistant during a procedure at the practice, while she was sedated.

Podstreleny said the accusations and arrest of Ramos came “out of the blue.” In the three years that Ramos has worked at the practice, Podstreleny said he has never heard any patient complaints like this against the dental assistant or any inclination of wrongdoing at the practice.

“He was just a stellar employee,” he explained. “It’s baffling. This is a person I looked at as a work brother.”

“[He] was someone that, honestly, I looked forward to working with,” Podstreleny added. “He was one of the best assistants I’ve ever worked with; 17 years in the business and I’ve probably had the pleasure of working with 150 maybe up to 200 assistants, and I’d rank him among the top five.”

Since Ramos’ arrest, San Diego Police Department (SDPD) investigators have been combing through more than 500 hours of surveillance video recorded inside the recovery room at the dental office where the alleged sexual assault took place.

This includes a seven-minute clip that captured the alleged Jan. 21 assault of the teenage patient.

Podstreleny said he’s had cameras installed throughout his dental office since he opened in 2009 to provide an “extra layer of protection” for patients and staffers and as “an effort at transparency.”

“It’s my duty to make patients feel comfortable and feel dignified,” said Postreleny of the cameras.

He said Ramos was fully aware he was being videotaped while working, which made the accusations even more surprising.

“I fully expected that this would be a misunderstanding. After looking at the tape though, we decided it was best to turn over this information to the authorities,” said Podstreleny.

According to the teenager, as her anesthesia wore off and she awaked from the procedure, she realized Ramos was touching her inappropriately.

Ramos appeared in court on Feb. 9 for a bail review hearing after being held on $2 million bail. His defense attorney argued against an increase in bail, saying Ramos has no criminal record and served in the U.S. military. His bail was reduced to $100,000.

According to prosecutor Deputy District Attorney Martin Doyle, police have received 15 calls from women concerned by Ramos’ case. Investigators have identified at least one of those women as a possible additional victim.

Ramos is no longer employed at the Park Boulevard Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Office.

He’s currently being held on nine counts at the George Bailey Detention Facility and is scheduled to appear in court on March 1.
 

A case involving two San Pasqual High School students who were found to have knives in their cars, which were parked on campus, is being investigated by police.

The Escondido Police Department (EPD) said Friday that investigators were reviewing the much-talked-about case, which has fired up fellow students and parents.

On Jan. 27, a detection dog alerted officials at San Pasqual High School in Escondido to two the cars of two students parked on school grounds – vehicles driven by 16-year-old Sam Serrato and 18-year-old Brandon Cappelletti.

According to EPD Lt. Ed Varso, an Escondido Police School Resource Officer (SRO) was called to the lot, and the students were also summoned to their cars.

School officials then began searching the students’ vehicles. Inside Serrato’s car, school officials found one knife. In Cappelletti’s car, three knives were discovered.

The students’ mothers were called to the school. With the mothers present, the SRO interviewed both students.

The EPD said Serrato told the SRO that he, with his parents’ knowledge, had purchased the knife – which had a 3.5-inch locking blade – about 10 days prior for his own personal protection. The juvenile told the officer he had been leaving the knife inside his car parked on school grounds every day since he bought it, the EPD said.

Meanwhile, during Cappelletti’s interview, he told the officer the knives were left in his car following a weekend fishing trip with his family.

Ultimately, the SRO found that both students were in violation of a misdemeanor crime by bringing the knives onto school property.

Due to his age, Serrato’s case was recommended for San Diego's Juvenile Diversion program, which addresses crimes by minors without the case being heard through the formal juvenile court process.

However Cappelletti, being 18, is considered an adult and was not deemed eligible for the diversion program. He was issued a misdemeanor citation and released at the school to his mother.

Both students were suspended from school over the incident. Now, they also face expulsion.

The EPD said the investigation is ongoing.

In the meantime, the case has gained much attention in the North County.

Earlier this week, hundreds of community members rallied behind Serrato at a school board meeting, asking for his suspension to be lifted.

According to the teen’s family, the entire ordeal is one big misunderstanding.

Serrato’s family said the knife found inside the high school junior’s car belongs to his father, who had purchased it at a swap meet. The father said he and his son had forgotten about it.

The teen’s family and supporters said Serrato is an honor roll student and active athlete, and has never before gotten into trouble at school.

At the Escondido Union High School District (EUHSD) board meeting, his mother, Yvonne Serrato, said her son’s punishment isn’t fair. Tearfully, she said the ordeal has changed her son in just a matter of weeks.

Cappelletti’s family also attended the board meeting and stood behind the student’s statement that the knives were used for a fishing trip.

Legally, board members said they’re required to follow due process, so nothing can be done at this point. Board members also said they do not have all of the information yet on the students’ cases.

A spokesperson for the EUHSD issued this statement Wednesday in relation to the cases: "EUHSD staff will be working directly with the families and other parties involved to help ensure the two current cases involving San Pasqual High School students are handled according to the framework established by the California legislature."

Due to high interest in Serrato’s case, his juvenile hearing was moved up to Friday from its original Feb. 25 date. Cappelletti's hearing was also set for Friday.

NBC 7 was at the hearing and, when it was over, Serrato came out feeling optimistic.

The EUHSD has three school days to make a decision on the student's case. Due to President's Day, school is not in session Monday or Tuesday.

The school board has a meeting Tuesday night. At that meeting, the board could recommend Serrato not be expelled. If that recommendation is approved, Serrato could be back in school by as early as Wednesday.

Ammon Bundy made a jailhouse recording to convince the last holdout in the standoff at an Oregon wildlife refuge to surrender Thursday, NBC News reported.

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"Please come out of there and let us work this out," Bundy told David Fry in the audio message, which was provided exclusively to NBC News by Bundy's attorney.

The attorney said the FBI played the recording to Fry, who threatened suicide. He was the last of the occupiers taken into custody.

Twenty-five people have been indicted on federal charges for taking over the bird sanctuary.

A clinic at Scripps Mercy Hospital in Hillcrest was temporarily evacuated Friday afternoon after a car fire sparked in the building’s parking garage, officials said.

For unknown reasons, a vehicle caught on fire inside the garage in the 4000 block of 5th Avenue at around 4:20 p.m. Crews with the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department (SDFD) rushed to the scene.

Patients and staffers were all safely evacuated for a short time while firefighters put out the blaze. No one was injured.

After the fire was out, patients and staffers were allowed back inside the clinic. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
 

A man missing nearly 30 years has been found alive, living just 80 miles away from where he disappeared. He had reportedly been suffering major memory loss due to a head injury.

Edgar Latulip vanished in September 1986 from a group home in Kitchener, Ontario. He was 21. According to local news reports at the time, Latulip, who had developmental delays, was being treated after attempting suicide.  

In January of this year, Latulip told a social worker in St. Catherines, Ontario, that he had a flashback and remembered his name.

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said on Friday that she regretted the way her support for Hillary Clinton was perceived, NBC News reported.

"I have spent much of my career as a diplomat. It is an occupation in which words and context matter a great deal. So one might assume I know better than to tell a large number of women to go to hell," Albright said in an op-ed published in the New York Times, in which she renewed her call to women to support each other.

Albright said earlier that “there’s a special place in hell for women who don’t help each other,” a line she has used many times in the past.

During the Democratic debate on Thursday, Clinton shrugged off the comment and said she is running on her own experience.  

The Ohio man who attacked four restaurant patrons with a machete and was later killed by police was under the attention of the FBI, NBC News reported.

Agents watched Mohamed Barry four years ago for making radical comments, but moved on, officials said. They did not elaborate on the nature of the radical comments.

Barry, 30, attacked patrons at Nazareth Restaurant and Deli in Columbus on Thursday. He was shot and killed by police after a chase following the rampage.

The survivors of the attack were identified as William Foley, 54, Neil McMeekin, 43, Gerald Russell, 43, and Debbie Russell, 43.

Police are still unclear as to what motivated the attack.

Brutally cold air sent temperatures plummeting to “life-threatening” lows across the Midwest and Northeast Saturday, with millions of Americans warned of dangers, NBC News reported.

The arctic blast is being driven by the cold air system — a polar vortex — that sits around the North Pole year-round, with the biggest danger being from frostbite, according to the Weather Channel.

Forecasters warned that wind chill readings could drop “below minus 30 degrees by Saturday night.” Sunday morning is likely to be the coldest for many, but it won’t be until Tuesday until temperatures reach normal levels for many.  

ISIS fighters are seizing civilian homes and even shaving their beards to take cover from Western airstrikes, according to Syrians who have fled militant occupied territory.

Many jihadist fighters are moving out of state buildings in Raqqa to blend into the community and avoid detection by drones, NBC News reported. Civilians say ISIS fighters will knock on doors and take over rooms or whole houses. Anyone who refuses entry may be executed.

ISIS may also be taxing citizens to make up for the hole in its finances created by coalition attacks on occupied oil refineries.

"They have introduced new taxation for cars," one civilian said. "There are now fines for crossing red lights. All the motorbikes now have new plates with the ISIS title on. Most of these new charges have come in the last three months."  

Islamist extremist group al Shabab has claimed responsibility for the bombing of a passenger jet earlier this month in Somalia, NBC News reported.

In a statement on Saturday, the group said the explosion targeted Western intelligence officials and Turkish NATO forces on a plane bound for Djibouti on Feb. 2. The bomb went off shortly after takeoff, blowing a hole in the fuselage and sucking out the suspected instigator.

The bomb was meant as “retribution” for acts against Somali Muslims.

The plan, according to al Shabab, was to destroy the entire plane, but it failed. The group has vowed to continue such attacks.