Man accused of defrauding comic book icon appears in court

A former business manager of the late comic book legend Stan Lee had his initial court appearance early Sunday in Arizona, where he was arrested after fleeing California charges of fiduciary elder abuse.

Keya Morgan appeared in Maricopa County Superior Court on a charge of being a fugitive of justice.

Court documents show Los Angeles police alerted authorities in the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale that Morgan's cellphone was being used in north Scottsdale.

FILE - In this Jan. 4, 2011 file photo, Comic book creator Stan Lee strikes the Spiderman pose as he poses after receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles. A former business manager of Stan Lee has been arrested on elder abuse charges involving the late comic book icon. Los Angeles police say Keya Morgan was taken into custody in Arizona early Saturday, May 25, 2019, on an outstanding arrest warrant. Morgan was charged earlier this month with felony allegations of theft, embezzlement, forgery or fraud against an elder adult, and false imprisonment of an elder adult. (AP PhotoChris Pizzello, File)

Morgan, 43, was found in a house with his mother and arrested without incident Saturday morning, police said.

It's unclear when Morgan will be extradited to California, where he's facing felony charges including theft, embezzlement, forgery or fraud against an elder adult, and false imprisonment of an elder adult. A misdemeanor count also alleges elder abuse.

Los Angeles County prosecutors say Morgan sought to capitalize on the Marvel Comic mastermind's wealth and exert influence over Lee even though he had no authority to act on his behalf.

FILE - In this March 21, 2006 file photo, comic book creator Stan Lee stands beside some of his drawings in the Marvel Super Heroes Science Exhibition at the California Science Center in Los Angeles. A former business manager of Stan Lee has been arrested on elder abuse charges involving the late comic book icon. Los Angeles police say Keya Morgan was taken into custody in Arizona early Saturday, May 25, 2019, on an outstanding arrest warrant. Morgan was charged earlier this month with felony allegations of theft, embezzlement, forgery or fraud against an elder adult, and false imprisonment of an elder adult. (AP PhotoDamian Dovarganes, File)

Lee died last November at age 95.

Prosecutors say Morgan pocketed more than $262,000 from autograph-signing sessions Lee did in May 2018.

Morgan at one point also took Lee from his Hollywood Hills home to a Beverly Hills condominium "where Morgan had more control over Lee," according to California authorities.

Lee's daughter said in a request for a restraining order last year that Morgan was manipulating the mentally declining Lee, preventing him from seeing family and friends, and trying to take control of his money and business affairs.

Alex Kessel, an attorney for Morgan, has said his client has never abused or taken advantage of Lee.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. intelligence officials have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin likely didn’t order the death of imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny in February, according to an official familiar with the determination.

While U.S. officials believe Putin was ultimately responsible for the death of Navalny, who endured brutal conditions during his confinement, the intelligence community has found “no smoking gun” that Putin was aware of the timing of Navalny's death — which came soon before the Russian president's reelection — or directly ordered it, according to the official.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter.

Soon after Navalny’s death, U.S. President Joe Biden said Putin was ultimately responsible but did not accuse the Russian president of directly ordering it.

At the time, Biden said the U.S. did not know exactly what had happened to Navalny but that “there is no doubt” that his death “was the consequence of something that Putin and his thugs did.”

Navalny, 47, Russia’s best-known opposition politician and Putin’s most persistent foe, died Feb. 16 in a remote penal colony above the Arctic Circle while serving a 19-year sentence on extremism charges that he rejected as politically motivated.

He had been behind bars since January 2021 after returning to Russia from Germany, where he had been recovering from nerve-agent poisoning that he blamed on the Kremlin.

Russian officials have said only that Navalny died of natural causes and have vehemently denied involvement both in the poisoning and in his death.

In March, a month after Navalny’s death, Putin won a landslide reelection for a fifth term, an outcome that was never in doubt.

The Wall Street Journal first reported about the U.S. intelligence determination.

FILE - Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny gestures while speaking during his interview to the Associated Press in Moscow, Russia on Dec. 18, 2017. U.S. intelligence officials have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin likely didn't order the death of Navalny, the imprisoned opposition leader, in February of 2024. An official says the U.S. intelligence community has found "no smoking gun" that Putin was aware of the timing of Navalny's death or directly ordered it. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)