Sean “Diddy” Combs, a prominent figure in the rap industry, faces a new legal challenge as another woman, former porn star Adria English, has come forward with fresh accusations against him. Filed in New York, this complaint is the latest in a series of lawsuits alleging sexual assault and coercion against Combs in recent months.
Combs, known for his success as a rap mogul, has consistently denied all allegations of sexual assault and physical abuse, including these latest claims. Despite the mounting legal pressure, including a federal criminal investigation reported by NBC News, no imminent charges have been mentioned.
Earlier allegations by his ex-girlfriend Cassandra “Cassie” Ventura and footage from 2016 showing an altercation between Combs and Ventura have also contributed to his legal challenges. The new case from Adria English alleges that Combs forced her into sex work at parties and threatened her career if she did not comply, among other claims detailed in a 114-page filing covering events between 2004 and 2009.
Combs’s legal team maintains his innocence, stating, “No matter how many lawsuits are filed it won’t change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone,” expressing confidence in prevailing against the allegations in court.
This latest lawsuit follows a settlement in November with Ventura, where Combs resolved allegations of rape and sexual trafficking without admitting wrongdoing. Federal investigations into human trafficking, involving raids on Combs’s properties in Los Angeles and Miami earlier this year, continue, according to sources cited by NBC News. Specific details about the federal probe have not been disclosed by officials or Combs’s legal representatives.
New York is set to witness a historic event as Nana Oduro Nemapau II is to be enstooled as the New York Asantefuohene on Friday, July 5, 2024.
The ceremony, scheduled to take place at the Inspirational Gospel Assembly located at 1211 Brook Avenue, Bronx, New York 10456, will commence at 6 pm and continue until 1 am.
Dignitaries from the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi, Ghana, are expected to grace the occasion, adding to the grandeur of the event. The enstoolment will be accompanied by a display of rich Ashanti culture and quality Kente cloth, adding to the vibrancy of the ceremony.
Following the enstoolment, a grand party will be held on Saturday, July 6, 2024, at Eastwood Manor Caterers located at 3371 Eastchester Road, Bronx, New York 10469.
Additionally, a town hall meeting will be convened with the delegation from the Manhyia Palace, providing an opportunity for dialogue and engagement.
On July 7, a barbecue is planned at Crotona Park South in Bronx, New York 10456, further enhancing the celebratory atmosphere of the occasion.
The programme, organized by the Asantefuo Kuo Hene, Nana Oduro Nemapau II New York, North America, includes fundraising activities to support the development of the Okomfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, among other important initiatives.
Nana Oduro Nemapau II expressed his vision for the association, emphasizing its role in uniting not only Asantes in New York but also anyone from Ghana residing in the city. The association aims to provide support and solidarity to its members in times of need, fostering a strong sense of community and collaboration.
Donald Trump held a campaign rally in New York’s South Bronx neighborhood, aiming to win over black and Latino voters ahead of November’s presidential election.
Among those sharing the stage with him was Florida Republican Byron Donalds, a black congressman and rumored potential running mate.
This rally marked Trump’s first in New York in roughly eight years, as he tries to make inroads with ethnic minority voters.
A recent New York Times and Sienna poll suggests Democrat Joe Biden is losing support among this crucial voting bloc in key states.
The Bronx, a mainly Hispanic and black neighborhood, is a Democratic stronghold. Trump spoke directly to the New York audience about his impact on the city, where he built much of his fortune and fame.
He claimed that while the city once inspired the world, it is now spiraling into decline, citing crime and infrastructure issues.
He blamed Biden and record levels of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border for having an economic impact on minority voters.
“The biggest negative impact [of illegal immigration] is against our black population and our Hispanic population, who are losing their jobs, losing their housing, losing everything they can lose”, Mr Trump told the crowd.
Before Mr Trump’s arrival, there was concern about how he would be received in the Bronx.
“I wish he would just disappear,” one man told the New York Times ahead of the rally.
“Nobody I know supports him.”
Police presence was heavy at Crotona Park as counter-protesters gathered outside the rally.
They were eventually removed by New York police, according to the BBC’s US media partner CBS.
But people who spoke to the BBC said they appreciate Mr Trump’s willingness to step out of his comfort zone.
“It’s a bold move right here, him coming to the Bronx,” Geoffrey Davis said. “What he’s done here is very respectful.”
Mr Davis said he supports Mr Trump because “when he was president, there were no wars. No Ukraine-Russia. No Israel-Gaza”.
Thamar Corniel, a Trump supporter who was born in the Dominican Republic, said: “He’s America first.”
Mr. Trump has been increasingly trying to make inroads with minority communities, hoping to sway crucial swing states in his favor.
The race between Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump is tight ahead of the November 5th election. In April, during a break from his criminal hush-money trial in New York, Mr. Trump visited a Harlem corner store. He also spoke at a gala for the Black Conservative Federation, an organization working to expand Republican support among black voters, and has hired a black media director, Janiyah Thomas.
However, there have been missteps. In February, he was criticized for suggesting that his four criminal indictments boosted his appeal with black Americans because they see him as a victim of discrimination.
According to a recent New York Times and Sienna poll, Mr. Trump is leading Mr. Biden in five battleground states, partly due to black and Latino voters drifting away from the Democratic Party. President Biden has taken notice, as that bloc was crucial to his win in 2020, and has spent millions of dollars on targeted advertising blitzes.
Young and non-white voters appear to be losing faith in Mr. Biden and the Democrats, growing frustrated with issues like inflation and the White House’s support for Israel.
During President Biden’s recent commencement address at Morehouse University, a historically black college, several graduates turned their backs on him in protest of his handling of the war in Gaza.
Olive branch to Haley
After the rally, Mr Trump extended an olive branch to his Republican primaries rival Nikki Haley, calling her a “very capable person” who he expected to serve on his team “in some form”.
Earlier this week, Ms Haley said she would vote for the man who beat her in the race for the Republican presidential nomination – a race that saw the two sides trade bitter insults.
“We have a lot of the same ideas, the same thoughts,” commented Mr Trump, acknowledging that their slanging match had been “pretty nasty”.
She ultimately withdrew and challenged her adversary to win over the millions of voters who picked her in the contest. The Biden campaign has been looking to woo the same groups.
The actor from “Boardwalk Empire” and “Fargo”, who is 66 years old, was walking in midtown Manhattan on May 8 when a stranger hit him in the face, according to the city police. He was brought to a hospital because his left eye was bruised, swollen, and bleeding, but other than that he was fine, his spokesperson said.
The police arrested someone for the attack, but they haven’t said who it is or what they’re being charged with yet.
On Tuesday, they said they found the person who hit Buscemi. He is a 50-year-old man who might not have a home. They also showed pictures of him to the public. The police did not say right away on Friday if the person they arrested was the same man they had identified earlier in the week.
Buscemi’s publicist didn’t call back right away. In the past, they said the actor was “a victim of a random act of violence in the city” and that he was okay.
In March, Michael Stuhlbarg, who acted with Buscemi in “Boardwalk Empire,” got hit in the back of his neck with a rock while walking in Central Park in Manhattan. Stuhlbarg ran after the person who attacked him. The person was caught by the police outside the park.
The person was tied up with an electrical cord. A gold ring with the letters “PMcG” was found with her. It was engraved with some letters. There was also a bra, a dime from 1969, and a green toy soldier found with her. Ryan Glas from the New York City Police Department spoke to the media.
For over 20 years, the unidentified person was called “Midtown Jane Doe” because she was found in the Hell’s Kitchen area of New York City. This week, investigators found out who she was: Patricia Kathleen McGlone, a 16-year-old who lived in Brooklyn.
Investigators think that Patricia was murdered in late 1969 or early 1970 and her body was buried in the basement of the building. Using advanced investigation methods, they found out who her parents were and where they lived in Brooklyn. They also searched through public records in the area. The police found a lot of information, like her baptism card and school records. This gave them an idea of what her life was like in the last few years.
Many tests proved that her DNA matched with the DNA of several people, including the mother of a woman who died in the 9/11 attacks in New York City.
Many years ago, when Patricia was thought to have been killed, there was a nightclub called The Scene in the building, according to Glas. The rock-and-roll place, owned by a young person named Steve Paul, was a popular spot for famous people in the 1960s. It had music sessions with The Doors and Jimi Hendrix.
In 2003, the New York City Medical Examinerâs Office found out that the skeleton was of a teenage girl who was 5-foot-2. But the police couldn’t find her because nobody told them she was missing, Glas said.
Investigators began looking at the case again in 2017. The bones had been underground for a long time and were in bad condition, so it took some time to make a DNA profile. But last year, Glas said things got better because of advancements in modern forensic technology.
“Glas said they tried hard, but there was a delay in making a profile. ” “In March 2023, we had a good sample to put on websites like ancestry and genealogy for everyone to see. ” “And using that information, we found a far-off family member on her dad’s side. ”
Glas said that investigators knew they were on the right path because they had the relative’s name and the initials on the ring. Investigators began to determine which generation she belonged to and her place in the family.
They worked with genetic experts to find her mother’s family using their DNA. They were able to narrow it down and find a match using DNA that had been submitted. A family member who died in September 11 attack assaults, Glas said.
Based on the information, they found out she was the only child and was born on April 20, 1953, to Bernard McGlone and Patricia Gilligan.
Her parents are no longer alive. Investigators found papers that show she was getting money from her father who died in 1963. Her parents’ papers showed that she lived in Brooklyn and went to a Catholic school.
“We thought she had been baptized, taken communion, and hopefully received confirmation. ” “I got all three documents,” Glas said.
Investigators were able to see her grades and other information from when she was in middle school. This gave them more information about her life back then. She went to middle school. In late 1968 and early 1969, she didn’t go to most of her classes.
“Glas said that because of her age, religion, and early marriage, they thought the toy soldier might have something to do with her maybe being pregnant. ”
When she died, people thought she had run away, and they think she might have given her child to someone else to take care of.
Finding the child has been hard because when they were adopted, the birth certificate listed the adoptive parents’ names, not the birth parents’ names.
Her husband was related to the building where she was found, Glas said. But he didn’t give any more information because the investigation is still going on. The police know who her husband is and are trying to find out more about his life back then, according to Glas.
Glas wants Patricia’s family to come forward and share any information that might help find out what happened to her or how she passed away.
Glas said they want to talk to anyone who lived in the building at that time and can give them more information about her or the person she married. They want to follow up on any information they can get.
“I have three daughters, so I can only guess what kind of childhood she had before she was killed. ”
With Patricia’s true identity now known, Glas said the police have a clear next step: finding the person who killed her.
The court decided that the trial judge was wrong to allow testimony about alleged previous sexual acts that were not part of the current case. “The solution for these serious mistakes is to have a new trial. ”
The ruling by the state Court of Appeals brings back difficult memories of America dealing with powerful people behaving badly, especially in cases of sexual misconduct. This era started in 2017 with many accusations against Weinstein. The people who are accusing him might have to talk about their bad experiences in court again.
The majority of the court said that it’s not fair to allow unproven claims of bad behavior to ruin a defendant’s reputation without any evidence that it affects their credibility in the criminal charges against them.
Judge Madeline Singas strongly disagreed with the majority. She said that they were ignoring important information to make the case seem like it was just one person’s word against another. She also said that the Court of Appeals had been making a concerning pattern of overturning jury decisions in cases of sexual violence.
Singas wrote that most people’s decision continues old ideas about sexual violence and lets predators avoid being responsible.
Weinstein, who is 72 years old, has been in a New York prison for 23 years. He was found guilty of forcing a TV and film production assistant to have oral sex with him in 2006, and of raping an aspiring actress in 2013.
He was found guilty of another rape in Los Angeles in 2022 and will stay in prison for 16 years. Weinstein was found not guilty in Los Angeles for the charges related to one of the women who testified in New York.
Weinstein’s lawyers said that the judge’s decisions favored the prosecution, making the trial unfair for Harvey.
The decision to overturn Weinstein’s conviction is the second big setback for the #MeToo movement in the last two years, following the U. S reneging on its support. The highest court said no to listening to a request to change a decision made by a Pennsylvania court to cancel Bill Cosby’s conviction for sexual assault.
Weinstein’s conviction was celebrated by activists and advocates as a big win after more than four years. But his lawyers and the Court of Appeals quickly analyzed and discussed the case in February.
Accusations against Weinstein, who was a powerful and well-respected studio boss, led to the start of the #MeToo movement. Many women said that Weinstein did bad things to them, even famous actresses like Ashley Judd and Uma Thurman. His trial in New York got a lot of attention, and people outside the courthouse shouted “rapist. ”
Weinstein is in prison in New York at the Mohawk Correctional Facility, which is about 100 miles northwest of Albany.
He says he didn’t do it. He says that both people agreed to the sexual activity.
Weinstein’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, said in February in front of the appeals court that Judge Burke influenced the trial by letting three women talk about things that were not part of the case. He also said that the judge gave permission for the prosecutors to question Weinstein about his past bad behavior if he had testified.
Aidala said that the extra testimony included too much information about things like why, how, or when the crime happened, and made it seem like Weinstein was being accused of crimes he didn’t actually do.
Weinstein wanted to speak in court but chose not to because the judge’s decision would have meant he had to answer questions about more than twenty-five incidents of bad behavior that happened forty years ago, according to Aidala. He fought with his brother who makes movies, got angry and flipped a table, yelled at the waiters and assistants.
“We had a person accused of something who really wanted to explain what happened from their point of view. ” It’s a case of one person saying one thing and another person saying something else. He is saying “that’s not how it happened. ” Aidala said, “I’ll explain how I did it. ” Instead, the people deciding in court heard about bad things Weinstein did in the past that didn’t have anything to do with telling the truth. He is a bad person.
Aidala didn’t like that Burke wouldn’t replace a juror who wrote a book about older men who harm others, which Aidala thinks is too similar to Weinstein’s case.
A lawyer from the Manhattan district attorney’s office said that the judge made the right decisions and that the extra evidence and testimony he allowed was important. It was to help the jury understand how Harvey Weinstein behaved and treated women.
“Steven Wu, who is the head lawyer of the appeal, said that the person accused of a crime claimed that they had a loving and agreed upon relationship with the woman they were charged with hurting, both before and after the incidents. ” The new evidence completely disagreed with that description.
Wu stated that Weinstein’s not-guilty verdict on the most serious charges meant that the jurors were listening carefully and were not confused or overwhelmed by the other evidence presented.
The Associated Press usually does not say the names of people who claim they were sexually attacked unless they agree; Sciorra has talked openly about what she says happened to her.
Last year, the Court of Appeals decided to review Weinstein’s case after another appeals court confirmed his conviction. Before making their decision, judges on the lower court questioned if Burke behaved properly during the spoken arguments. One noticed that Burke allowed prosecutors to bring in very biased testimony from more witnesses.
Burke’s means belonging to or related to someone named Burke.
The man was on fire for a few minutes where everyone could see him on TV, outside the courthouse. This is where they’re holding the very first trial of a former US president.
Authorities said the man lived and was in very serious condition at a nearby hospital.
Onlookers saw the man take some papers out of a bag and throw them in the air. Then he poured a liquid on himself and lit a fire. A brochure talked about “really rich people” being bad, but the part that a Reuters person saw didn’t talk about Trump.
“Right now we are calling him a conspiracy theorist, and we are investigating further,” said Tarik Sheppard, a deputy commissioner with the Police Department, at a press conference.
In a message online, a man said he lit himself on fire and said sorry to his friends, people who saw it happen, and the first people who helped him. The post talks about a very bad takeover by a fascist group and is not happy with cryptocurrency and US politicians. It does not mention Trump specifically.
People who saw what happened said they were troubled by what he did.
“He was burning for a long time,” a person who didn’t want to share their name told the news. “It was really scary. ”
There was a lingering smell of smoke in the plaza after the incident. A person who saw what happened said a police officer used a fire extinguisher on the ground. A backpack was on fire and there was a gas can nearby.
The court in downtown Manhattan had a lot of police guarding it. Many people protested and watched the trial on the first day, but fewer people have come since then.
Jury has been chosen.
The big news came right after the jury was chosen for the trial. This means that the prosecutors and defense lawyers will be able to start making their arguments next week. The trial is about money that was paid to a porn star to keep quiet.
12 people who decide things, along with six backups, will look at evidence in a trial to decide if a former US president broke the law.
The jury has seven men and five women. They mostly have jobs in offices and wear white collared shirts. Some of the jobs include corporate lawyer, software engineer, speech therapist, and English teacher.
Many people are not from New York originally, they come from different places in the United States and other countries like Ireland and Lebanon. The alternates are backup jurors kept in case one of the regular jurors has to leave because they are sick or for some other reason.
Trump is said to have hidden a $130,000 payment his lawyer made to a porn star to keep her quiet about an affair they had before the 2016 election.
Trump says he didn’t do anything wrong. He’s been accused of lying about his business records. He also denies having any dealings with Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford.
Trump said he did not commit the crimes in three other cases. This case is the only one that will definitely go to trial before November. The Republican politician wants to run for president against Joe Biden again in the next election.
A conviction would not stop him from holding a government job.
The New York Department of Health and Mental Hygiene issued a health advisory following a rise in reported cases of human leptospirosis in New York City.
Leptospirosis is an infection linked to exposure to rat urine.
In 2023, the city recorded 24 cases of leptospirosis, the highest number in any previous year. However, in the first quarter of this year alone, there have already been six reported cases.
“For comparison, the average number of locally acquired cases during 2021 to 2023 was 15 per year, and 3 cases per year during 2001 to 2020,” health officials said. “This year, 6 cases have been reported as of April 10, 2024.”
“Among the 98 locally acquired cases reported from 2001 to 2023, the median case age was 50 years (range 20 to 80 years), usually male (94%) and, reported most often from the Bronx (37), followed by Brooklyn (19), Manhattan (28), Queens (10), and Staten Island (4),” said the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
According to health officials in New York City, severe cases of leptospirosis can lead to acute renal and hepatic failure, along with occasional severe pulmonary issues. Symptoms of the infection may include fever, headache, chills, muscle aches, vomiting, diarrhea, cough, conjunctival suffusion, jaundice, and rash.
The incubation period for leptospirosis typically ranges from 5 to 14 days, although it can last anywhere from 2 to 30 days. If left untreated, the infection can result in kidney failure, meningitis, liver damage, and respiratory distress.
Between 2001 and 2023, New York City recorded a total of six deaths attributed to leptospirosis, as reported by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
“In NYC, locally acquired cases typically have a history of a residential or occupational exposure to rat urine or environments (including soil and water) and materials contaminated with rat urine (e.g., handling trash bags or bins containing food waste), health officials said in their press release regarding the uptick in cases of leptospirosis. “Person-to-person transmission is rare. The NYC Health Department conducts inspections and works with property owners to remediate rat conditions, if indicated.”
According to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, leptospira bacteria are fragile and can die within minutes in dry heat or freezing temperatures.
“The cold winters of NYC likely limit the extent to which leptospires can survive in the environment,” health officials said. “However excessive rain and unseasonably warm temperatures, factors associated with climate change, may support the persistence of leptospires in more temperate areas like NYC.”
According to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, in 2023, half of the locally acquired cases were reported in the warmer and wetter months of June (5) and October (5), which experienced excessive rain and unseasonably warm days compared to previous years.
Instances of leptospirosis must be reported to the NYC Health Department within 24 hours. For further information about the illness, individuals can visit the websites of the New York City Health Department and the CDC.
“As always, we appreciate your collaboration in improving the health of New Yorkers and helping us direct remediation efforts in New York City,” said Celia Quinn, Deputy Commissioner of the Division of Disease Control in New York City.
A tragic case involving a Ghanaian couple based in New York has reached its conclusion as they are sentenced for the fatal beating of their 5-year-old son.
The Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office announced the conviction of Valerie Owusu and Emmanuel Addae on March 22, following the death of Owusu’s son, King, nearly three years ago in Brentwood, N.Y.
District Attorney Raymond Tierney emphasised the severity of the crime, stating, “This little boy was beaten and suffered for days at the hands of these defendants, one of whom was his own mother, until he unfortunately succumbed to his severe and extensive injuries.”
The investigation revealed that Owusu and Addae subjected the child to beatings using “at least four different instruments” over a three-day period in 2021, leading to his eventual loss of consciousness.
Shockingly, neither of the defendants sought medical assistance or called 911 for the boy. The tragic events unfolded further on April 1, 2021, when King was left at a family member’s house by Addae and Owusu.
Upon the family member’s return, the child was discovered dead, with authorities determining that he had sustained multiple injuries from head to toe as a result of the beatings.
The ex-president said on social media that the gag order was not allowed by the law, not in line with American values and not in accordance with the Constitution. He mentioned the name of the judge, Juan M. Merchan was trying to stop me from speaking out against the use of law enforcement as a weapon by my Democratic rivals.
The likely Republican candidate for president criticized Merchan’s daughter, who works for the Democrats, for sharing a picture of him in jail on social media. Loren Merchan’s account on X, which used to be called Twitter, has a picture of Trump in prison as its profile picture. Loren Merchan’s company had connected to that account in a social media post before.
The gag order doesn’t stop people from talking about Merchan or his family, and it also doesn’t prevent Trump from criticizing the Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who is prosecuting him.
We left messages asking for comments from Judge Merchan, Loren Merchan, and a court spokesperson. Bragg’s office said they wouldn’t comment on the gag order.
Trump posted on Truth Social for the first time after Merchan issued a gag order. This happened the day after he set the trial to start on April 15th. Hours before the judge made a decision, Trump called Merchan a “very distinguished looking man” and a “true and certified Trump Hater” in a post on Truth Social.
Merchan’s request for a gag order was approved because Trump has a history of making mean and threatening comments about people involved in his legal cases. The gag order is meant to be very specific and limited.
While it wasn’t included in the gag order, Merchan mentioned Trump’s different remarks about him as a type of his speech. The limitations are the same as the ones put in place by a court in Trump’s election interference case in Washington, D. C
Trump’s lawyers did not want to be restricted from speaking, saying it would violate his right to free speech. Trump said the same thing in a post on Truth Social.
Merchan didn’t want to stop Trump from speaking out, because he used to be the president and is now running for office. He wanted to make sure Trump could still defend himself openly. However, as the trial gets closer, he realized that it is more important to make sure the case is fair than to worry about freedom of speech. He said that Trump’s words have made people afraid and made it necessary to have extra security to protect the people he talks about and look into any threats.
Trump posted on Truth Social saying that the Judge’s daughter can post pictures of her wishing to put him in jail, the Manhattan DA can say lies about him, and the Judge violates the law and the constitution. He thinks it’s not fair that he can’t talk about the attacks against him and people trying to ruin his life and stop him from winning the 2024 Presidential Election. He believes he is in the lead for the election.
“Maybe the Judge doesn’t like me because his daughter works to hurt Trump and every time he rules against me, her company makes more money,” Trump said. “How is this okay. ”
Trump said that President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland and their supporters are targeting and watching him all over the country, trying to punish him, even though he claims he has not done anything wrong.
The gag order stops Trump from talking or telling others to talk about the hush-money trial jurors and possible witnesses, like his former lawyer Michael Cohen and porn star Stormy Daniels. It also says you can’t say things that bother or bother the court’s staff, the prosecution team, or their families.
Trump could get in trouble for not following the rules of the court. He might have to pay money or go to jail.
Trump’s hush-money case is about claims that he incorrectly recorded payments to Cohen, who was his personal lawyer, as legal fees for his company. In reality, the payments were for Cohen’s efforts to hide negative stories about Trump during the 2016 campaign. This means that Cohen gave $130,000 to Daniels so that she wouldn’t tell anyone about her saying she had a sexual encounter with Trump a while back.
Trump said he didn’t do the bad things he was accused of last April. He was accused of lying about his business records, which is a serious crime. He could go to jail for up to four years, but it’s not for sure if he will actually get jail time if he is found guilty. He says he didn’t have sex with Daniels, and his lawyers said the money paid to Cohen was for legal fees, not to hide anything.
The ex-president’s lawyers asked a judge in Manhattan to delay the New York criminal trial until his claim of immunity in his election interference case in Washington, D.C, is resolved
Merchan did not make a decision right away on Monday, the judge scolded Trump’s lawyers for not filing a document on time and for waiting too long to bring up the issue of immunity. The judge also said that from now on, both Trump’s lawyers and the prosecutors need to ask for permission before making any other legal requests before the trial.
Trump says he cannot be prosecuted for things he did while being president. His lawyers say that some of the evidence and alleged actions in the hush money case happened while he was in the White House and were part of his official duties.
The highest court will listen to arguments on April 25. This is a month after jury selection was supposed to start in Trump’s hush money case. He has four criminal cases and the first one is going to trial. He is trying to become the Republican presidential nominee and win the White House again.
The Manhattan district attorney’s office did not want to say anything. Lawyers need to give their answer to Trump’s request for a delay in court this week.
Trump first brought up the immunity issue in his criminal case in Washington, D.C. It’s about claims that he tried to change the 2020 election results before his followers rioted at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The hush money case is about claims that Trump lied about his company’s records to hide payments to his lawyer Michael Cohen, who helped Trump keep bad stories secret during his 2016 presidential campaign. Cohen gave Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet about her saying she had sex with Trump while he was married.
Trump’s lawyers say that the evidence prosecutors want to use in the hush money trial, like the messages he posted on social media in 2018 about paying Cohen, were from when he was president and were part of his official duties.
Last year, Trump said he did not do the 34 crimes of lying about his business records. He said he didn’t have sex with Daniels, and his lawyers say the money given to Cohen was for legal costs, not to hide anything.
Last year, a judge said no to Trump’s request to move a case from state court to federal court. Trump had said the case was about his job as president, but the judge disagreed. If the case had been transferred to federal court, Trump’s lawyers could have tried to get the charges dismissed because federal officials are protected from prosecution for things they do as part of their job.
The proof strongly shows that the President was just trying to hide something embarrassing that was personal to him, according to US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in July. “Money paid to keep a movie star quiet is not connected to the President’s official actions. ” It does not show the President’s official duties at all.
It’s not clear if a past president can be charged for things they did while in office.
The prosecutors in the Washington, DC case said Trump doesn’t have immunity and the things he’s accused of doing after losing the election aren’t considered official actions.
The judge in Washington and a higher court didn’t agree with Trump, but now the high court is going to look at it again, which means the case in Washington will be delayed and we’re not sure when it will go to trial.
Facebook influencer, Innocent Tino, based in New York, has set social media ablaze with a heart-wrenching tale of a Jamaican man who recently discovered that he is not the biological father of his 18-year-old daughter.
The distraught man, whose identity remains undisclosed, had been planning to bring his daughter to the United States when the shocking revelation came to light.
According to Tino, the devastated Jamaican neighbour has secluded himself in his house for the past three days, grappling with the emotional turmoil caused by the unexpected news.
“So, a Jamaican man that lives close to me has refused to see anyone for three days now, locking himself inside the house because he wanted to bring his 18-year daughter over to the USA from Jamaica when it turns out he wasn’t the father. Man is broken,” shared Tino on his social media platforms.
The revelation has stirred massive reactions online, with sympathies pouring in for the heartbroken man.
Tino disclosed that the Jamaican father had only recently learned the truth about his daughter’s paternity, leading to an emotional breakdown.
Innocent Tino, known for his social media presence and engagement, highlighted the gravity of the situation by citing a report from a DNA testing centre, claiming that 26% of Nigerian men are not the biological fathers of their supposed children.
This statistic adds a layer of complexity to the widespread issue of paternity fraud.
When contacted for an update on the situation, Tino confirmed that the Jamaican man remains locked inside his house, refusing to see even his colleagues from work.
Tino quoted the man, saying, “He said he needs some time to reflect alone.” The shocking revelation has reignited discussions surrounding the importance of honest communication and the potential impact of paternity deception on individuals and families.
As the story continues to unfold, it serves as a stark reminder of the emotional toll that such revelations can have on unsuspecting individuals, challenging societal norms and raising awareness about the prevalence of paternity fraud.
A heartbreaking encounter unfolded on the streets of New York when a homeless Ghanaian man, Yaw Kennah, approached a fellow Ghanaian brother, begging for money to buy food.
The homeless man, who has been living on the streets without a job for years, shared his harrowing story with his compatriot.
According to him, he arrived in the United States about 16 years ago to attend a conference. However, he never returned home and instead sought employment at a car wash company in Virginia.
He hoped that previous governments would pass an immigration bill that would allow him to obtain the necessary documents to stay legally in the country.
Unfortunately, his plans did not materialize, and he found himself without a home, sleeping at shelters, train stations and on trains at times.
Despite his efforts to make a living, the man’s dreams were shattered, leaving him destitute and in desperate need of assistance.
“Please I am struggling. Can I get some money to buy food,” Yaw told his fellow brother.
Yaw’s mum hails from Sehwi Bekwai in Western Region and his father, Koforidua, Korantumi in the Eastern Region.
A homeless Ghanaian man approached his fellow Ghanaian brother on the streets of New York to beg for a small amount of money in order to buy food, as he has been homeless and jobless for years now.
The old president, his grown-up sons, and his company were found guilty of lying about the value of their assets to get more money from banks.
The lawyers want the judge to make Mr. Trump pay a large amount of money and limit his business activities in the state.
That is a huge amount of money, even for someone who is extremely rich. Legal experts told the BBC that a really big fine, along with a possible final decision that could greatly affect his real estate business, could really hurt Mr.
“He won’t just start being a working class person,” said Diana Florence, a former federal prosecutor. It will just be a big amount of money. His money will be much less.
She figured out the total using three things: money Trump may have made from interest on loans by giving incorrect information about his assets; extra pay for Trump Organization workers involved in the plan; and money from two property deals that James claims were obtained dishonestly.
Judge Arthur Engoron will decide how much money will need to be paid when he gives his decision.
No matter how much it is, Mr. Trump would also have to pay interest every year on the fine. The interest would go back several years to when the alleged crimes happened. The 9% interest rate in New York means that Mr. Trump may have to pay a lot more money in addition to the penalty.
If he doesn’t want to pay the fine or risk losing his belongings while waiting for the appeal, he still needs to give all the money to the court within 30 days.
A Ghanaian attorney, Kofi Amankwaa, and his son, Kofi Amankwaa Jnr, who are based in the United States of America, are collectively facing a potential fifteen years in prison for orchestrating an immigration fraud scheme in the U.S.
Operating a law firm in New York, the duo is accused of defrauding numerous clients over an extended period, as disclosed by prosecutors in the United States.
Allegedly exploiting their clients, a majority of whom were immigrants seeking legal status in the U.S., Kofi Amankwaa and his son Junior are now under scrutiny for their involvement in what the Department of Justice describes as a “large-scale immigration fraud scheme.”
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: “As alleged, Kofi Amankwaa, an immigration attorney, and his son, Kofi Amankwaa, Jr., sought to make a mockery of the U.S. immigration system by conspiring to defraud the United States and commit immigration fraud.
“Amankwaa and his son allegedly exploited the Violence Against Women Act — a law that allows noncitizen victims of domestic abuse a path to lawful permanent residence status — for their own financial gain by falsely claiming that their clients were victims of domestic abuse.
“Thanks to the dedicated actions of our law enforcement partners and the career prosecutors of this Office, the defendants must now answer for these crimes.”
Added HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Alfonso said: “Kofi Amankwaa is charged with deceitful practices whereby he allegedly victimized clients who relied on his legal assistance with their immigration process. HSI is committed to protecting the applicants, petitioners, and requestors of U.S. citizenship who, unfortunately, are often at risk of falling for scams or fraud.
“HSI is thankful for the collaboration in this investigation with other Department of Homeland Security components, as well as other federal agencies, who continue to help us combat document and benefit fraud.”
New-York based Ghanaian immigration lawyer, Kofi Amankwaa, faces 15 years in jail for duping thousands of innocent immigrants with the promise of securing a green card for them.
Kofi Amankwaa didn’t operate his fraudulent schemes alone; he was assisted by his son, Kofi Amankwaa… pic.twitter.com/rj5HhXOnn5
A Ghanaian immigration lawyer based in New York, Kofi Amankwaa, is now at the center of a legal storm facing allegations of defrauding thousands of Ghanaians living in America seeking green cards.
The charges involve causing financial loss to the American state, orchestrating deportations for some immigrants, and denying green card applications through an illegal scheme, with hundreds falling victim.
According to reports from the New York Post, Amankwaa, along with his associates, including his son Kofi Amankwaa Jnr, Sylvester Boateng, Nana Adoma Kontoh, and Betty Smith, is accused of charging immigrants $6000 each, promising to secure green cards for them.
The illegal scheme is also alleged to exploit the Violence Against Women Act by falsely instructing clients to claim they are victims of domestic abuse, facilitating their bid for legal residency in the U.S. In some instances, Amankwaa is said to have asked clients to falsely report abuse of their children to expedite immigration applications.
The New York State Attorney, Letitia James, is seeking a maximum 15-year jail term for the accused, emphasizing that Amankwaa and his associates ran an illegal scheme that scammed hundreds of vulnerable immigrants. James stated, “When these immigrants sought help from attorneys claiming to act in their interests, they were taken advantage of and harmed instead. This cruel and illegal scheme led to them being separated from their families and deported.”
Amankwaa and his son were arraigned before the federal court on January 22, charged with conspiracy to commit immigration fraud and committing immigration fraud. Damian Williams, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, remarked that the father and son team “sought to make a mockery of the US immigration system” and allegedly exploited the Violence Against Women Act for financial gain.
New York lawmaker Catalina Cruz Esq, who reported the case, stated that Amankwa’s scheme resulted in the deportation of families and denied them the American dream. In the lawsuit, the State Attorney seeks to halt the defendants’ illegal activities, along with restitution and damages for affected persons, and civil penalties to the state.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York has also filed a parallel criminal action against Mr. Amankwaa and his son, charging them with a large-scale immigration fraud scheme.
The civil trial is about mean things Mr. Trump said about Ms. Carroll in 2019 when he was in the White House.
He was caught for sexually attacking Ms. Carroll in the 1990s, but he still says he didn’t do it.
However, the court had to spend a lot of time discussing the extent of his testimony on Thursday for this reason.
Judge Lewis Kaplan, who is in charge of the case, said the former US president can only talk about certain things in court because he was found responsible for sexually assaulting Ms Carroll in a different trial.
This caused the judge and lawyers to argue for a long time about what Mr. Trump could talk about, which was much longer than his four minutes of testimony.
Judge Kaplan said the first trial proved what happened and now the only thing left to decide is how much money Mr Trump has to give Ms Carroll, if any.
He didn’t give the current top Republican candidate any chance to speak beyond what was agreed. This made it impossible for the candidate to talk a lot or promote their campaign while testifying.
Maybe this is something Mr. Trump has learned from his other legal fights. In a trial for fraud in New York, Mr. Trump was first told he could not give his final statement. The judge in that case wanted to know if Mr. Trump would be brief and only talk about the important parts of the case.
Mr Trump talked for six minutes and said that he feels unfairly treated by politics.
The old person didn’t have as much freedom during the defamation trial on Thursday.
When he was asked if he still agreed with what he said before, Mr. Trump said, “Yes, absolutely. ”
His lawyer, Alina Habba, then asked if he said he didn’t do what Ms Carroll said he did. “He said, ‘Yes, that’s correct, I did. ‘”
He said “She said something that I thought was a lie – completely untrue”.
However, Judge Kaplan quickly stopped Mr. Trump and told the jury to pay no attention to his last statement.
Finally, Ms Habba asked if her client told anyone to hurt Ms Carroll. Mr Trump said, “No, I just wanted to protect myself, my family and the presidency. ” The judge again removed the last part from the record.
And that’s the end of the testimony. A WCBS reporter heard Mr. Trump say, as he left the courtroom, that it’s not the America he knows. This is not the United States.
Earlier today, Judge Kaplan told him to not talk loudly and interrupt the proceedings. He was overheard quietly saying that he had never met Ms Carroll.
It feels like we’ve seen this before when watching one of Mr. Trump’s trials In court, he has often pushed the boundaries and taken big legal risks.
If Trump had given evidence that went beyond what the judge allowed on Thursday, he could have been fined a lot of money or even sent to jail for lying.
However, Trump’s followers are staying interested and paying attention to his legal issues because he is doing things his own way.
And most importantly, it’s getting a lot of attention from the media at a very important time for the politician. After winning in New Hampshire, the former real estate businessman from New York is likely to be the Republican candidate for president.
Ronnell Andersen Jones, who teaches law at the University of Utah, said to media that this case demonstrates the big difference between Mr Trump’s legal tactics and his actions during the election.
The ex-president and his lawyers are trying to tell the jury that his words in the White House were not bad enough to deserve punishment, but it’s hard to believe that considering what he did.
“Ms Jones said it will be difficult because the jury keeps hearing new evidence that the defendant is still spreading lies outside the courtroom. ”
The trial for slander will start again on Friday at 09:30 ET (14:30 GMT) with final statements from both sides. We don’t know yet if Mr. Trump will go.
Two Madonna fans are reportedly suing the US singer for being consistently late by more than two hours for a show last month in New York, according to court documents.
The fans claim that the scheduled start time was 20:30 EST for all three nights, but in each case, the show did not begin until after 22:30, concluding around 01:00.
The lawsuit suggests that the fans “would not have paid for tickets” had they been aware the show would conclude so late. The BBC has sought comments from Madonna, Live Nation, and the Barclays Center, but there has been no response as of now.
The case, brought by Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden, states that “many ticketholders who attended concerts on a weeknight had to get up early to go to work and/or take care of their family responsibilities the next day”.
They are suing promoter Live Nation and venue the Barclays Center for “false advertising, negligent misrepresentation, and unfair and deceptive trade practices”.
Mr. Fellows and Mr. Hadden attended the show on Wednesday, December 13, 2023. The legal documents highlight that, according to reports, other nights at the same venue on December 14 and 16 also began more than two hours late.
“Defendants failed to provide any notice to the ticketholders that the concerts would start much later than the start time printed on the ticket and as advertised, which resulted in the ticketholders waiting for hours,” the document state.
The court papers also say Madonna “has a long history of arriving and starting her concerts late, sometimes several hours late”, citing examples including “her 2016 Rebel Heart Tour, her 2019-2020 Madame X Tour, and prior tours, where Madonna continuously started her concerts over two hours late”.
The plaintiffs are reportedly suing for unspecified damages. This legal action follows a pattern where fans have expressed dissatisfaction with the singer’s tardiness for her shows. In a previous incident in 2019, a fan filed a lawsuit over a delay for a US show, but the case was voluntarily dismissed a month later, as reported by ABC News.
In the same year, Madonna had shared a post of her live on stage, in which she told fans: “There’s something that you all need to understand. And that is, that a queen is never late.”
Madonna’s sold-out Celebration tour was a compilation of her greatest hits, featuring more than 40 songs from her illustrious career. The tour aimed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of her breakout single, “Holiday,” and spanned various venues in the US, Canada, and Europe.
The singer faced a health scare last summer when she was found unconscious in her New York apartment in June. Madonna was subsequently rushed to the hospital, where she received treatment for a serious bacterial infection. Following the health incident, she expressed gratitude for being alive but had to postpone the start of the tour from July to October of the same year.
The US government wants to execute a white man who killed 10 people in a racist shooting in 2022.
The US government, under President Biden, approved the death penalty for the shooter because of the impact on the victims.
Last year, 20-year-old Payton Gendron was given a life sentence in prison for the shooting in Buffalo, New York.
Gendron confessed to killing people that day because of their race.
The justice department explained why they think the death penalty should be used in a court paper on Friday. President Joe Biden does not want to give the death penalty. This is different from the government before him.
The agency said in court that Gendron deserved the sentence because he purposely targeted the victims based on their race when he shot at a grocery store on May 14, 2022.
Ten black people were killed in a shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo. The people who were hurt were between 32 and 86 years old. They included eight people who were shopping at the grocery store, a security guard at the store, and a church deacon who drove people to the store.
The person who shot people that day had planned it and wanted to hurt Black people because he didn’t like them.
Merrick Garland, the person in charge of the justice department in the US, stopped federal executions for a while in 2021. He wants to check the procedures first. This document says that the review is finished.
New York state doesn’t have the death penalty, but the shooter is being charged with hate crime and gun charges in a different federal case. In those federal cases, the government can ask for the death penalty.
Even though New York doesn’t use the death penalty, Governor Kathy Hochul supports that choice.
“This follows the rules set by the Department of Justice for what is considered a crime eligible for the death penalty,” Ms. Hochul said at a press meeting on Friday.
The lawyers representing the victims and their families in the shooting case are glad that the Department of Justice wants to seek the death penalty.
The lawyers said that the decision made by the Department of Justice today will help the victims and their families feel some relief and a sense of closure. “They have been asking for fair treatment for almost two years, and today they are getting closer to it. ”
The person who shot people was 18 years old. They drove more than 320km to a mostly black area and then attacked.
He says he is a fascist and believes in white supremacy in a long document he wrote before the shooting. He admitted to committing murder and terrorism in 2022.
At his punishment, the judge told the shooter that his hateful and evil ideas have no place in our society.
Judge Susan Eagan from Erie County said that there will be no compassion, no tolerance, and no opportunities for a second chance for you. “You will never be a free man and see the sun again. “
Trump and his two grown-up sons have been found guilty of making their properties seem much more valuable than they really are, by hundreds of millions of dollars.
They say they didn’t do anything wrong.
The trial is only looking at six specific fraud charges and how much money the Trumps have to pay if they are found guilty.
The attorney general of New York wants the judge to make Trump pay a $370 million fine for what she says are very bad plans.
Trump might not be allowed to do business in New York anymore, where he owns a lot of properties. He might also have to give up control of Trump Tower.
The judge won’t give a decision today. Judge Engoron will give it later, maybe at the end of January.
Nine people from a Jewish community in New York were arrested and charged because they built a secret tunnel that connected to an old synagogue.
They clashed with the police when city officials and Chabad-Lubavitch leaders tried to shut down the tunnel.
The men are accused of causing damage, putting people in danger, and getting in the way of the government’s work.
A representative for the Chabad said that they are a “group of extreme students”.
The tunnels were made under a big street in Brooklyn, where the Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters are. The building is very important to the Jewish community in the city.
City inspectors went to the Chabad on Monday to check if the building was safe. It was an emergency inspection. Many people were worried that the secret tunnel might have harmed the well-known building.
A fight started after the police found some young men stopping the inspection and cement filling of the tunnel. Some of the men smashed through the wall of the prayer area. Those actions caused the police to take people into custody.
Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, who leads the Chabad, said thank you to the police for helping and said the community was sad about the vandalism done by a group of troublemakers.
“He said they will look into these terrible actions, and make the synagogue safe again. ”
We don’t know who made the tunnel, how it was made, or why they made it. It looks like the tunnel connects to at least one other building on the street in Brooklyn.
One person from the area told the New York Times that the men wanted to build the tunnel to make the synagogue bigger more quickly.
Some people who have gone to events at the Chabad have said that the building has been too crowded in the last few years.
Videos and pictures from inside the building on Monday showed a few young men trying to stop the tunnel from getting filled with cement.
Some people were taking wood panels off the walls and using benches to stop the police in the videos and pictures. The BBC watched a video that showed a police officer using spray to stop a fight from getting worse.
The building used to be where Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the leader of the Orthodox Jewish movement, lived. Many people visit it every year.
The rabbi is praised for guiding and bringing new life to the Hasidic religious community called Chabad-Lubavitch after it was hurt in the Holocaust. He passed away in 1994, but his headquarters is still a famous place for the Jewish religion.
The Chabad-Lubavitcher movement is big and wants to welcome all Jews, no matter how religious they are. But there are also important groups inside the movement. The arguments between different groups seemed to have caused problems in the tunnel dispute at 770 Eastern Parkway this month.
A small group of very religious people in the Chabad think Rabbi Schneerson is the Jewish Messiah, but most people in the Chabad don’t agree with this idea. The argument is said to be part of the fight in the tunnel.
The building is closed because the tunnels are still being inspected.
Donald Trump says Mar-a-Lago is very valuable, like the famous painting Mona Lisa. But people are trying to figure out exactly how much it’s worth in a trial that could harm his family’s business.
It’s a number that everyone disagrees on – from $18 million to over $1 billion.
During the 10-week trial in New York, the lawyers arguing for and against Mr. Trump have debated how much his private club in Florida is worth, and whether the way it was valued is honest or fraud.
Mr Trump, his two grown-up sons, and the Trump Organization are being accused of making their assets, like Trump Tower and golf resorts, seem more valuable than they really are. They did this so they could borrow money at lower interest rates, to the sum of $2 billion.
Mr Trump’s businesses saved over $150 million over 10 years because of the low rates, said New York Attorney General Letitia James. She wants to stop him from doing business in the state.
The trial is almost finished, but Judge Arthur Engoron, who is a Democrat, said before it started that the financial documents in the case clearly have fake values that the defendants used in their business.
“He said it’s not real, it’s all made up,” he decided, and held them responsible for lying.
Mr Trump has asked for another judge to look at the decision before the trial starts. The judge (no jury in this trial) has to decide on six more fraud charges. They all need proof that the person meant to commit the fraud.
The former president was supposed to go back to court on Monday but said on social media on Sunday night that he didn’t have anything else to say about the case because he thinks it’s just for politics.
Again, he was most upset about the accusation that he made Mar-a-Lago seem more valuable than it actually is. He said they valued it at $18,000,000, when it is really worth 50 to 100 times that amount.
The white elephant that no one could buy.
The actual worth of Mar-a-Lago is not easy to understand. The old Palm Beach property has rules that say it can only be used as a club for members only.
The land cannot be split up and it costs a lot to keep the estate that was built in 1927 for Marjorie Merriweather Post, a rich and famous businesswoman.
This happened in the 1990s when Mr. Trump said that Mar-a-Lago was too expensive to keep as a private home. He called it a “white elephant” and said it was very hard to sell.
He wanted to make it a private club so that he could use the expensive fees that members have to pay to help take care of the place and keep it in good condition.
Rosalind Clarke, a real estate agent from Palm Beach who has been working since the 1980s and was once president of the Palm Beach Board of Realtors, told BBC News that the issue with pricing Mar-a-Lago was due to certain limitations.
Ms Clarke said that the price is determined by how much money the club makes, not by how much the land is worth. She said that if there were no rules about what can be done with the property, it would be worth a lot more money.
From 2011 to 2021, people say Trump acted like Mar-a-Lago didn’t have any rules about how it could be used.
What value did Trump put on financial papers?
Before the trial, Judge Engoron said that the Palm Beach County Assessor valued Mar-a-Lago at between $18 million and $27. 6 million for taxes.
On the other hand, Mr Trump said Mar-a-Lago was worth $426. 5 million to $612 million, which is way more than what the assessor thought.
Real estate experts say that the tax assessor’s value is usually less than what a property could actually sell for, so it’s not a direct comparison.
The New York attorney general says that the Trump business made the numbers look higher by comparing them to the prices of similar properties, but those properties did not have the same restrictions on them.
The attorney general says that the Trump Organization committed fraud by ignoring deed restrictions at Mar-a-Lago and pretending it was just a private home.
A house suitable for a very important person.
The most important part of the lawsuit is within all of these numbers. Trump spends time with wealthy and powerful people at Mar-a-Lago, even though he owns many other properties.
That’s where he lives. This is where the old president would hang out when he wasn’t at the White House.
In one of the fancy bathrooms made of marble, federal special counsel Jack Smith says Mr. Trump hid important papers.
He is upset about people saying Mar-a-Lago is worth less money, and he talks about it a lot in the news and on social media.
Trump’s lawyers asked a fancy real estate broker named Lawrence Moens to be a witness. He said in court that Mar-a-Lago is worth more than $1 billion.
Mr Moens said very rich and important people like Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and even rulers would want to buy the property.
And if there were no rules about what you can do, he might be right.
Ms Clarke, the real estate agent in Palm Beach, said that Mar-a-Lago is a 17. 5 acre property with an old building, a piece of land by the ocean, and the potential to build seven lots in a very desirable area.
She said that without the rules on the property, it could sell for around $500 million. But it might sell for even more if a lot of people are interested in it because of where it is and where it came from.
What’s on the line?
During the trial, Mr. Trump said in court that he doesn’t have to follow the rules in the Mar-a-Lago deed. He also said the prices would have been higher if they had considered the Trump brand.
His lawyers said that the values of assets don’t really matter because banks do their research and don’t just rely on financial statements to make loan decisions.
The last expert witness for the defence, Eli Bartov, who is an accounting expert and professor at New York University, said in court that there were mistakes in the financial documents, but they were not meant to hide fraud or show any wrongful intention.
He said that these “statements of financial condition” are just a beginning for banks and lenders to figure out how much something is worth, and that value can be different depending on who you ask.
Mr Trump often says that banks don’t care because they made money. No bank had any problems. “Nobody hurt any banks,” he said when the trial began.
The prosecutors don’t have to show that people were harmed, they just have to show that someone committed fraud on purpose. When the lawsuit started, the New York lawyer said “even former presidents must follow the same rules as everyone else. ”
After hearing the last testimony this week, Judge Engoron will take a long break and then decide on the remaining fraud charges and any penalties in January.
Mr Trump has a problem because the judge found that the most important documents in the case were all false, according to attorney Mitchell Epner.
Mr Trump and his friends could be banned from doing business in New York and have to pay fines of at least $250 million in the worst situation.
The Trump Organization might have to give up control to someone chosen by a court, or they might have to sell some of their most famous buildings, like Mar-a-Lago.
Gao Yaojie, a famous doctor who spoke out about the Aids outbreak in rural China, has passed away at the age of 95.
Dr Gao died in New York from natural causes. She had been living in exile there since 2009, according to a friend who spoke with the BBC.
She found out that businesses selling blood caused HIV to spread in rural areas.
She was a leader in fighting against Aids in China and traveled around the country to help sick people, sometimes using her own money.
She was born in Shandong province in 1927. Her family had to run away to the central Henan province during World War II.
She was a doctor for women’s health and met her first Aids patient in Henan province in 1996.
A Chinese activist who was sent away from his country feels sad about his old life.
In the 1980s and 1990s, many people in rural areas like Henan would sell their blood. Farming communities didn’t have many job choices, so they often sold their blood to make money. The government sometimes supported this. However, because only a small number of people in rural China were found to have HIV, and most people didn’t know much about Aids, blood from HIV+ patients was also collected, which caused the disease to spread.
At the time, Chinese officials believed that HIV was spread through sex or from a mother to her baby during pregnancy. Gao had a sudden realization when she found out that one of her patients had a history of receiving a blood transfusion and didn’t fit into either category.
She is called “Grandma Gao” and she went to Henan villages to look at how many people have Aids. It is said that she visited over 100 villages affected by AIDS and met with over 1,000 families. She would often give food, clothes, and printed resources about AIDS to people, usually using her own money.
In the beginning, Henan officials hid the fact that people were selling their blood, but later on they closed down the businesses in the mid-1990s. However,Gao continued to talk about how HIV is spreading in the country.
“It is larger. ” It’s all across the country, in all places. I have personally seen everything. Selling blood is against the law. In the old days, it was open for everyone to see. “In 2010, she talked to the BBC and said it’s now underground. ”
DrGao said that 10 million people in China have HIV, which is a lot more than the 740,000 people the government says have it. But official disagreed about this.
Although she wasn’t the first Chinese doctor to talk about the AIDS epidemic, she was the one who made people in the country and around the world aware of the situation.
would clarify it with. Gao could not get the Henan government to notice AIDS spreading from blood stations. Instead, she told a New York Times reporter. Professor Nathan at Columbia University assisted her in moving to New York. The Henan blood-sales Aids epidemic was in the news and it became a big problem. This made the Chinese government take action.
This made more news outlets talk about Dr. Gao’s discoveries in the early 2000s. She got many awards from her own country and from other countries too.
At first, the Chinese government was easy on her. CCTV, China’s main TV station, praised her in 2003 for being a person who influenced China. They said she had a lot of knowledge and good thinking that helped people feel less afraid and prejudiced. They also said she had a motherly love and gave a lot of herself to help people who were vulnerable.
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that Dr. Gao is one of the bravest people she knows.
But the Henan authorities started to feel uneasy with her complaints about government officials. She moved away from China in 2009 because the government was watching her and putting more and more pressure on her.
She went to live in New York and stayed there until she passed away. Her husband Guo Mingjiu passed away in 2006. She has two daughters and a son who are still alive.
Even though people admire Dr. Gao for being a doctor, she has no relationship with her children.
Shiyu Lin wrote that Gao Yaojie’s oldest daughter said their mom helped others but made their family fall apart.
“MsLin remembered when Grandma Gao told her that she was a good doctor, but not a good mother. ”
Even though she was away from China for a long time, some Chinese people on the internet are sad about her death.
She was an important person. “But nowadays, young people may not know about that history,” said someone on Weibo.
“Our generation of people who work in news or read news know about her and remember her. ” Chinese journalist Li Weiao said on Weibo that the news reminded him of other Chinese doctors like Jiang Yanyong and Li Wenliang, who spoke out about the Sars outbreak and Covid pandemic.
The singer who sang Fairytale of New York, who was 65 years old, passed away after being diagnosed with encephalitis. His wife Victoria Mary Clarke said he died from pneumonia.
MacGowan’s coffin is being taken around the south part of Dublin in a carriage pulled by horses. It is his last journey in the city.
The funeral will be in Nenagh, County Tipperary, near where the singer used to spend his summers as a child, at his mother’s family cottage.
Jonathan Majors‘s former girlfriend told the court that the Marvel actor became more and more abusive during their relationship.
Grace Jabbari, a dancer, said Mr Majors hurt her in the back of a rented car in New York in March after months of abuse.
She was crying and needed to stop talking at times. She said he threw glass candles at her and yelled at her for talking about her ex-boyfriend.
Mr Majors said that he did not do the things he was accused of.
If he’s found guilty, he could go to jail for a year.
His career has been on hold since he was arrested in March. The release date for the movie he stars in has been delayed by Marvel.
Mr Majors is being accused of hurting Ms Jabbari in a car last month. She was left with bruises and a broken finger. She said he hit her and grabbed her neck in her complaint.
During the trial, Jabbari, who is 30 years old, talked about meeting Mr Majors while working on the movie Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania as a movement coach in September 2021.
They began dating, but it became more and more abusive, she told the court.
The jury was told that the 34-year-old action star threw objects that made dents in the wall while she tried to hide. He ignored her for a few days because she went to a music festival. Grace Jabbari is wearing a black shirt with a high neck and a long grey skirt. Her elbows are lifted up.
The lawyers showed a recording of Mr. Majors shouting, in which he said he was a great man and wanted a woman like Coretta Scott King or Michelle Obama.
On 25 March, they were sitting in the back of a car when Mr. Majors got a text from another woman, and he doesn’t deny it.
Ms Jabbari said she took the phone from him, and then he grabbed her arm and hit her in the head to try to get it back.
They left the car and she ran after him on the streets, as seen in a video from security cameras that was shown to the jury.
Afterwards, Ms Jabbari went to a nightclub with people she didn’t know and was filmed smiling and dancing.
She said in court on Tuesday, “I was having the best time I could have in that situation,” according to AP.
But Majors says that Ms. Jabbari attacked him, not the other way around.
On Monday, his lawyer Priya Chaudhry said that her client was bloody and had scratches when he came out of the SUV.
Ms Jabbari tore off two buttons from his coat and ripped the pocket with her hands during the attack, the court was told.
A man from Britain and Nigeria admitted in a US court that he stole over $6 million in seven years.
Idris Dayo Mustapha, who is 33 years old, was involved in a group of hackers who broke into email and brokerage accounts of US companies from 2011 to 2018. They caused $6 million in losses.
Mustapha is a citizen of both the UK and Nigeria. He was sent back to Nigeria from the UK in August, two years after he was arrested.
He could go to jail for up to 20 years for his crimes.
He has not yet been told what his punishment will be.
Mustapha admitted in court in Brooklyn, New York, on Tuesday that he is guilty of four charges: hacking into computers, committing fraud with securities, using wires for fraud, and using unauthorized access devices.
Officials say Mustapha and his group broke into the computers of banks in the US to get secret user information.
Then they used the stolen information and passwords to move money and transfer investments from the victims’ accounts to their own accounts.
They also used the hacked accounts to do stock trades without the account holder knowing.
The US government had been trying to catch Mustapha for many years.
Minneapolis ex-cop Derek Chauvin, sentenced in the homicide of George Floyd, has been cut at an Arizona jail, US media reports say.
A source told AP the 47-year-old was truly harmed by another detainee.
The New York Times, refering to two individuals with information on the circumstance, likewise announced that he was gone after.
Chauvin, who is white, is carrying out various punishments for the person of color’s demise, which set off enormous fights against police fierceness and prejudice.
The Department of Penitentiaries affirmed in an explanation that a detainee at a government jail in the city of Tucson was cut at 12:30 nearby time (19:30 GMT) on Friday.
The office said workers contained the episode and “life-saving measures” were performed on the detainee, who was then taken to emergency clinic. The name of the detainee was not given.
No other individual is remembered to have been harmed and Chauvin is accounted for to have endure the assault.
The detailed occurrence comes days after the High Court dismissed his allure, in which it was contended that he had not gotten a fair preliminary for the killing of Mr Floyd – who kicked the bucket after Chauvin stooped on his neck for over nine minutes in 2020.
The killing – caught on an observer’s telephone camera – started worldwide shock and a rush of shows against racial bad form and police utilization of power.
Chauvin was subsequently viewed as at fault for Mr Floyd’s homicide and condemned to 22 years in jail. He was given a further 20-year sentence in July 2022 for disregarding Mr Floyd’s social liberties.
Previous US President Donald Trump has clashed more than once with the judge whereas affirming in Modern York at a respectful extortion trial that undermines his property empiLater on, Mr Kise said that with Mr Trump “it’s distant more productive to tune in and take it all in” – inciting giggling from a legal counselor on the lawyer general’s group.
Judge Engoron’s voice rose as he said: “No, I’m not here to listen what he should say. I’m here to listen him reply questions.”
Like his two children in their declaration final week, Mr Trump said it was the Trump Organization bookkeepers who bore duty for the monetary reports.
“All I did was approve and provide individuals anything was fundamental for the bookkeepers to do the explanation,” Mr Trump said.
He moreover refuted charges that the company’s properties were exaggerated.
Mr Trump instep contended they were in reality underestimated.
He said his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and a few of his golf courses were worth more than he had claimed and had been supported by his individual brand.
Renato Mariotti, a previous government prosecutor, told the BBC he accepts Mr Trump’s forceful reactions demonstrate his lawful group accepts “they’ve already misplaced”.
“They’re attempting to turn or include a few colour to a really awful result,” Mr Mariotti included.
Mr Mariotti said that whereas it would be a legitimately more secure technique for Mr Trump to conjure his right beneath the Fifth Revision of the US Structure and decay to reply questions, endeavors at “diversion” were more likely.
“He’s centered on inciting a battle with the judge,” he said. “None of that makes a difference, from a lawful point of view.”
Mr Trump final showed up in court at the conclusion of October to observe the declaration of his previous lawyer, Michael Cohen, a star witness within the case against him.
The previous president’s girl, Ivanka, is anticipated to affirm on Wednesday. She is not recorded as a co-defendant within the case.
The respectful case in Modern York is one of a few lawful fights in which Mr Trump is entangled.
He moreover faces three criminal prosecutions over his affirmed endeavors to upset the comes about of the 2020 race, his taking care of of classified reports and another affirming untrue bookkeeping including quiet cash. siness.
Judge Engoron has as of now ruled the Trump Organization committed extortion.
Prosecutors charge that Mr Trump, his grown-up children Eric and Donald Jr and other Trump Organization officials expanded company resources to secure positive advances.
The trial will decide what punishments ought to be forced.
In court on Monday, prosecutors started by addressing Mr Trump almost his company, where its resources are held and around the valuation of its properties.
Mr Trump reacted attimes with long comments approximately the genuine bequest and why he contributed in it, provoking reproaches from Judge Engoron.
At one point, the judge said: “If it’s not too much trouble fair reply the questions, no talks.
“A few of your answers have not been responsive to the questions.”
Mr Trump afterward told the court: “I’m beyond any doubt the judge will run the show against me since he continuously rules against me.”
Judge Engoron fired back: “You’ll be able assault me in whichever way you need, but if it’s not too much trouble reply the questions.”
The tone got to be more bad tempered as the judge inquired Mr Trump’s legal counselor, Christopher Kise: “Mr Kise, can you control your client? This can be not a political rally, typically a court.”
“I entreat you to control him,” the judge included. “On the off chance that you can’t, I will.” Afterward on, Mr Kise said that with Mr Trump “it’s distant more productive to tune in and take it all in” – provoking chuckling from a attorney on the attorney general’s group.
Judge Engoron’s voice rose as he said: “No, I’m not here to listen what he must say. I’m here to listen him answer questions.”
Like his two children in their declaration final week, Mr Trump said it was the Trump Organization bookkeepers who bore duty for the money related reports.
“All I did was approve and give people anything was vital for the bookkeepers to do the explanation,” Mr Trump said.
He too refuted affirmations that the company’s properties were exaggerated.
Mr Trump instep contended they were in reality underestimated.
He said his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and a few of his golf courses were worth more than he had claimed and had been reinforced by his individual brand.
Renato Mariotti, a previous government prosecutor, told the BBC he accepts Mr Trump’s aggressive reactions demonstrate his lawful group accepts “they’ve as of now misplaced”.
“They’re attempting to turn or include a few colour to a really awful result,” Mr Mariotti included.
Mr Mariotti said that whereas it would be a lawfully more secure methodology for Mr Trump to conjure his right beneath the Fifth Revision of the US Structure and decay to reply questions, endeavors at “diversion” were more likely.
“He’s centered on inciting a battle with the judge,” he said. “None of that makes a difference, from a legitimate viewpoint.”
Mr Trump final showed up in court at the conclusion of October to watch the declaration of his previous lawyer, Michael Cohen, a star witness within the case against him.
The previous president’s girl, Ivanka, is anticipated to affirm on Wednesday. She is not recorded as a co-defendant within the case.
The respectful case in Unused York is one of a few legitimate fights in which Mr Trump is involved.
The oldest son of former President Donald Trump said he did not help with the financial papers that are causing problems for the family’s property business in a court case about fraud.
Donald Trump Jr, who is 45 years old, seemed calm and laid back in court in New York City. He made some funny remarks and insisted that he had not done anything wrong.
His brother and sister, Ivanka and Eric Trump, are going to give testimony soon.
The judge has already said that the Trump Organization made its wealth seem bigger than it really was and lied about its business records.
The court case will decide what punishment should be given. Letitia James, who is in charge of the legal affairs in New York and belongs to the Democratic Party, wants to punish the former president with a fine of $250 million and prevent him from carrying out any business activities in New York.
Donald Trump Jr is the first of Donald Trump‘s children to provide information in this legal matter. Earlier this week, he went on the conservative Newsmax network and said that the trial was a fake and unfair court.
He and Eric Trump are both being sued together with their father. The two brothers have important positions at the Trump Organization.
Mr Trump Jr, wearing a blue suit and a bright pink tie, answered questions for a little more than an hour. His statement will continue on Thursday.
He started his presentation by talking about Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), which are the rules and guidelines businesses follow to keep their financial records accurate.
Mr admitted that he didn’t know much about GAAP, except for some things he remembered from his college business classes.
When the state attorney asked him about his understanding of the topic, he made the courtroom laugh by saying, “I don’t understand anything. ”
“I let my accountants handle it,” Mr.
During the trial, Mr. Trump Jr apologized to the judge because he was talking too fast for the court stenographer to type everything accurately.
“I’m sorry, Your Honour, I moved to Florida, but I continued to live at the fast pace of New York,” he said jokingly.
He said in court that he had done “every single thing” while working for the family business. He’s not an accountant, though.
Mrsaid that his position in the company became more important after his father, who is a Republican and the president of the United States, was elected.
“He said that we no longer informed my father about the business decisions. ”
Both of Trump’s brothers were appointed as trustees of the company when their father became president in 2017, in order to prevent any conflicts of interest.
On Wednesday, someone asked Mr. Trump Jr if he had approved his father’s “statement of financial condition. ” He responded by saying that he did not remember doing so.
The afternoon in court was mostly quiet, but there were a few intense arguments between Mr. Trump’s lawyers and the New York attorney general’s team towards the end of questioning.
The lawyers asked Mr. Trump Jr if he helped make the company’s financial papers.
He mentioned that he depended on others to “create a document like this”.
The accountants were doing it. “He said that is exactly why we gave them money. ” Mrinformed the court that the responsibility for the task was with Allen Weisselberg, a long-serving finance chief. Weisselberg had been charged in this case and admitted his guilt last year for committing tax crimes.
“I had to listen to the people who knew a lot about those things,” he said, and he trusted Weisselberg and his accounting team.
Judge Arthur Engoron, a Democrat from New York, is overseeing the trial and has already determined that Mr Trump is responsible for exaggerating his assets in order to obtain loans that were advantageous to him.
A short time before his son was going to speak in court, Mr. Trump posted on his Truth Social account: “Stop bothering my kids, Engoron. ” You bring shame to the job of being a lawyer.
Last week, the judge gave a penalty to the former president for breaking a rule twice. The penalty was $15,000 because he talked about a court worker when he wasn’t supposed to.
At first, Ivanka Trump was named as one of the people being accused in the case. However, she was later taken off the list and made to testify as a witness instead.
On Wednesday, Ms. Trump’s lawyers asked for the order to testify to be changed. She is supposed to testify on 8 November.
The person who used to be the president and is currently the top contender to be the Republican choice for president in 2024, is expected to give evidence on Monday.
Last week, he went to court to see his old lawyer Michael Cohen testify. Cohen said that one of his jobs at the Trump Organization was to increase the value of assets by using a number chosen randomly by Mr.
MrTrump is currently dealing with four criminal trials. These include cases in Georgia and Washington DC where he is being accused of trying to change the outcome of the 2020 election that he lost.
A 39-year-old woman from Ireland was shot and killed at a house in New York.
Denise Morgan, who came from Tullyallen in County Louth, was found dead on Saturday morning.
The New York Police Department (NYPD) reported that a man and a woman were discovered with gunshot injuries to their heads in the borough of Queens in New York City.
A person who speaks for the police said that officers were called at 02:44 in the morning on Saturday, or 07:44 in the morning in another time zone.
The man and woman were declared dead at the location.
The police found a gun near the dead man, who they said was named Joed Taveras and was 33 years old. Ms Morgan’s relatives expressed their sadness and grief by sharing messages about her on the internet. They mentioned that they were feeling very devastated.
People also prayed for her during a church service at the Church of the Assumption in Tullyallen.
The local priest, Father Seán Dooley, said prayers to bring comfort to the family and friends of Ms. Morgan during this very difficult and painful period they are experiencing.
The government department in Ireland that deals with foreign affairs knows about the situation and is helping the person involved.
Ryan Carson, who was 32 years old, was killed close to a bus station in a neighborhood called Crown Heights in Brooklyn on the 2nd of October.
The person being accused, who is not known by their name, was behaving in a restless or irritated way before the sudden attack happened without any reason.
Mayor Eric Adams promised that the police will keep working until someone is arrested.
The video from a surveillance camera shows the person suspected of a crime wearing dark clothes. Carson and another woman, who is not known, were seen sitting on a bench near a bus stop around 4:00 in the morning.
Officials say that Mr. Carson and his friend started to leave when they saw the suspect knocking over scooters. But then the suspect came up to them and started yelling rude words.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said that Mr. Carson quickly positioned himself between the man and his female friend to keep her safe. Kenny also mentioned that Carson was trying to make the situation less intense.
Shortly after, the person being accused stabbed Mr. Carson three times. One of the stabs hit Mr. Carson’s chest and went into his heart, which caused his death.
Mr Carson was laying on the sidewalk, close to death. A man with a knife kicked him in the chest. He also threatened to stab the woman with him and spat in her face, said Mr Kenny.
A woman who we don’t know arrived shortly after and said sorry. She is believed to be the suspect’s girlfriend.
On Wednesday, the police shared a picture of the person they suspect and his girlfriend. They asked the public to help find them.
Local news sources report that the police are not revealing the name of the person they suspect of committing a crime. The suspect is 18 years old and has a past of behaving in a disruptive manner. The police will only make an arrest if they gather enough evidence that strongly suggests the suspect’s guilt.
MrCarson had been living in New York for 13 years. He spent ten years helping to plan campaigns for the New York Public Interest Research Group, a group that focuses on waste policy.
MrCarson also helped make a campaign called “No OD NY” to help more people know about overdose prevention centers.
According to a news source called Gothamist, in 2021, he walked more than 150 miles from New York City to Albany to make people more aware of harm reduction methods and centers.
“He always spoke up and supported others, and his generous nature brought happiness to everyone,” wrote New York Mayor Eric Adams on X (previously called Twitter). “We cannot even imagine someone killing him, and the police will keep working until we make sure the person responsible is punished. ”
Senator Chuck Schumer said that Mr. Carson is a talented and exceptional activist, after they both worked together at a town hall meeting about inflation.
“May we be inspired by his memory and accomplishments,” the Senator wrote on X.
After nearly five decades, a man from New York has been proven innocent using new DNA tests. The tests confirmed that he was not the one who committed a rape in 1975.
This is the most extended case where someone was wrongly convicted in US history, but later proven innocent by DNA evidence.
The person who actually did the crime, a person who has been found guilty of sexually harming others, has admitted to raping someone.
Leonard Mack, who is now 72 years old, was wrongly sent to prison for more than seven years starting in 1976. He was convicted for a crime he did not commit.
MrMack said, “I always believed that someday I would be shown that I did not do anything wrong. ”
In May 1975, two young girls were going back to their house after school in a mostly white town called Greenburgh, New York. Suddenly, a man approached them and threatened them with a gun.
One of the girls was sexually assaulted two times while the other was able to get away and seek assistance.
The Greenburgh Police Department sent out a message to their officers to be alert and search for a young black man in his early twenties.
Soon after the attack, the police stopped Mr. Mack, who was driving in the neighborhood by chance.
MrMack was arrested by the police even though he had a good reason for not being at the scene of the crime and was wearing different clothes than the person they were looking for.
The Westchester County District Attorney’s Conviction Review Unit and the Innocence Project worked together to test DNA evidence for a rape case in 2022. The Innocence Project is a nonprofit organization that helps prove the innocence of those wrongly convicted.
It turned out that the real person who committed the crime was a man who had been found guilty of breaking into someone’s home and sexually assaulting them in Queens a few weeks after this incident.
The man was found guilty in 2004 for breaking into someone’s house and sexually attacking a woman in Westchester County.
District attorney Miriam E. Rocah said in a statement that this proof of innocence shows that when people are wrongly found guilty, it harms not only them but also puts everyone in danger.
MsRocah said that Mr. Mack showed great determination and never gave up in trying to prove that he was innocent for almost five decades.
According to the Innocence Project, the main reason why people are wrongly convicted is because witnesses mistakenly identify the wrong person. In this situation, the girls recognized Mr. Mack because of a mistake in how the police identified him.
The organization also mentioned that prejudice based on race and having a narrow focus were reasons for what happened to Mr.
MrMack, who fought in the Vietnam War, has been living in South Carolina for almost 21 years with his wife.
“Now I know the truth and I can finally relax. ” He said, “I am no longer restricted or confined. ”
On Friday, August 18, 2023, shareholders of Anglogold Ashanti voted overwhelmingly in favor of the company’s plan to transition its primary stock exchange listing from Johannesburg to New York.
This pivotal decision marks Anglogold’s exit from South Africa.
In a statement released by the company, it was revealed that over 98% of Anglogold shareholders supported this transition, surpassing the required majority threshold of at least 75%. The vote took place during a virtual meeting held on Friday.
This reorganization strategy also encompasses the relocation of Anglogold’s corporate headquarters from Johannesburg to London.
AngloGold Ashanti, with roots dating back to the establishment of its forerunner by industrialist Ernest Oppenheimer a century ago, completed the divestment of its South African mines in 2020.
The challenging geological conditions associated with some of the world’s deepest gold deposits had made mining in South Africa increasingly difficult and costly. Consequently, the company redirected its focus towards more lucrative mining operations in countries such as Ghana, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Australia, and the Americas.
Alberto Calderon, the CEO of Anglogold, has emphasized that a primary listing in New York would provide the company with access to the largest pool of gold capital in the world.
Venus Williams, who beat Veronika Kudermetova in an incredible triumph at the age of 43, was thrilled to defeat a top-20 player for the first time in four years.
The Russian world No. 16 was defeated 6-3, 7-5, by the No. 533-ranked American tennis superstar at the Cincinnati Masters.
Williams found herself 4-1 down in both sets, but she overcame it by going back in time.
Williams is getting ready for the US Open, which starts on August 28, when she is expected to be given a wildcard.
Williams was overjoyed with her straight-sets victory over Kudermetova, which is a great boost ahead of the year’s last major tournament in New York. Williams is a seven-time Grand Slam champion.
Williams laughed when it was suggested to her that instead of continuing to compete on the WTA Tour, she could be enjoying retirement on a yacht: “Where would the yacht be? Do not tempt me!
“I love this game; it’s what I do, and the injuries over the past few years have been challenging.”
“I want to be strong and able to be myself when I come out here.” I want to get there because it’s important to me. Being able to win despite having little time to prepare is [gratifying].
When you’re down a double break, you may start to have simple ideas like, “Well, I at least want to just hold serve for the rest of this set,” or something like.
Then you begin to draw nearer. There are some significant holes today that I normally don’t play from, and you think, “Okay, maybe I just want to win another point.” That’s tennis, though. What makes it exciting is that.
Williams’ victory over Kudermetova put a stop to a string of three consecutive singles losses to Jelena Ostapenko, Elina Svitolina, and Madison Keys.
Williams fell to Svitolina in the opening round of Wimbledon last month, screaming in pain and appearing to twist her knee as she went down.
Svitolina won 6-4, 6-3, but Williams stood up and continued to play, focusing now on the US Open while the veteran turned her attention to the contest.
The 17-year-old defendant pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder in the context of a hate crime after fatally stabbing a gay man in New York.
On 29 July, O’Shae Sibley and his pals were voguing at a petrol station in Brooklyn when a fight with some teens started.
Before the suspect stabbed Mr. Sibley in the chest, according to the prosecution, the minors allegedly screamed homophobic and racist epithets.
The attacker, charged as an adult, might spend the rest of their lives behind bars.
He was identified as Dmitriy Popov, a final-year student at a nearby secondary school, at his first court appearance on Friday.
His attorney, Mark Pollard, told reporters that “nothing about his past or history shows that he’s the kind of person to commit this crime.”
He implied that his client might claim he acted in self-defense while denying that his client had uttered any insults.
The prosecution wants to show that the suspect’s “targeted” and “senseless” conduct were motivated by prejudice towards Black people and LGBT people.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez stated during a news conference on Thursday, “We’re going to stand up for Mr. Sibley, for the right he had to dance and be exuberant, for the right he had not to stop dancing because it offended someone else.”
Hate crimes affect the victim, but they also affect the community. It deprives not just the family but also the entire community of their sense of security.
A skilled dancer and choreographer named Mr Sibley and his companions were leaving the beach when they stopped at a petrol station in the Midwood neighbourhood of Brooklyn.
They were dancing to songs from Renaissance, a Beyoncé album that is regarded as a love letter to black gay dance culture, while at the petrol station. Voguing is a dance style connected to artistic expression and resistance in LGBT communities.
The two sides of a heated argument can be seen walking away in the surveillance video before Mr. Sibley comes and confronts the 17-year-old with his phone before lunging at him.
The teenager allegedly stabbed Mr. Sibley in plain sight of the cameras, according to the prosecution, who also said they did not think Mr. Sibley’s actions “caused for someone to take a weapon and do what was done in this case.”
In response to a murder, protests and candlelight vigils with voguing have been conducted in New York, Los Angeles, and other cities.
A murder that has touched a nerve within the LGBT community has sparked protests and vigils in New York, Los Angeles, and other cities.
At Mr. Sibley’s funeral, held on Tuesday in a historic opera house in his birthplace of Philadelphia, about 200 people paid their respects.
Otis Pena, a close friend who was at the petrol station, said of O’Shae, “He had the power to touch everyone’s heart, whoever met him.” For many of us in our community, O’Shae was a guiding light.
Others praised Mr. Sibley’s career in dance, which began when he was three years old and included teaching at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre and performing with the Philadelphia Dance Company.
The dancing group declared that it has created a scholarship in his honour “to inspire other students to follow their dreams, like he did.”
From showcasing Jay-Z’s lyrical prowess on the Brooklyn Library’s exterior to hosting a legendary rap pioneers’ concert within the iconic Yankee Stadium, New York City commemorates the golden jubilee of hip-hop. This genre, born within the city’s urban neighborhoods, has now asserted its dominance across the global musical landscape.
Within the confines of the library, an expansive exhibition unfolds, meticulously tracing the trajectory of one of Brooklyn’s most illustrious offspring. This journey encapsulates his evolution from a street-smart hustler to a universally acclaimed music mogul of immense influence.
Shawn Carter, the creative force behind the artistic identity of Jay-Z, has chronicled his early life’s encounters with drug dealing within the Marcy Houses housing project — the very crucible that nurtured him. Over time, his metamorphosis led him to become a billionaire rapper, while his union with Beyoncé forged one of contemporary pop culture’s most enchanting and captivating partnerships.
“I’ve never really been to a lot of exhibitions,” said 31-year-old warehouse worker Jamarly Thomas, joking that he goes by “Jay-T.”
“So to witness something like this from my favorite rapper is pretty mind-blowing. For a lot of African American kids coming up here, he can set an example for them that they can be bigger,” Thom-as added.
The free exhibition, which opened Friday and was conceived by Jay-Z’s entertainment empire Roc Nation, is entitled “The Book of HOV,” a reference to one of the 53-year-old’s nicknames.
Jay-Z’s string of hits include 1998’s “Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)” and “Izzo (H.O.V.A.)” from 2001.
He also crossed rap’s boundaries, including with his megahit “Empire State of Mind,” and holds the record for the most number-one albums of any solo artist on the Billboard 200 with 14. Only the Beatles have more, with 19.
Long queues formed over the weekend as fans rushed to visit the exhibition or register for one of thirteen Brooklyn Library cards stamped with the artist’s album covers.
The tribute precedes the opening of another immersive retrospective about the history of hip-hop at the Hall des Lumieres on August 2 as the Big Apple marks half a century of the genre with a slew of events.
– ‘Amazing’ –
Although early forms of hip-hop expression were bubbling years earlier, musicologists cite August 11, 1973 as the date of its birth.
On that day, on the ground floor of a low-income building at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, Jamaican-born DJ Clive Campbell, aka DJ Kool Herc, broke new ground.
He spun the same record on two turntables, isolating the sequences of rhythms and percussion to extend the beat, an essential component of hip-hop music.
Lil Kim, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Run DMC and The Sugarhill Gang, whose song “Rapper’s Delight” is known as the first commercially successful hip-hop single, are also due to take the stage.
“When we first started, nobody was interested in hiring a hip-hop DJ, or getting an emcee or getting some breakdancers,” said Ralph McDaniels, hip-hop coordinator for the Queens Public Library.
“To be celebrating 50 years is amazing because there was no value on this,” he told AFP.
Other concerts, block parties and graffiti and breakdance sessions are scheduled to take place across the Big Apple.
– ‘Recognition’ –
The hip-hop movement was born as a way for African Americans and Hispanics to escape poverty and discrimination.
Then, few people would have predicted it would become a billion-dollar phenomenon that inspires not only music, but also sports and fashion.
Another sign of how far it has come: this week, Sotheby’s offered a ruby and diamond ring worn by rapper Tupac Shakur, the Harlem-born icon of California’s West Coast who was murdered in 1996. It is estimated to sell for up to $300,000.
Back at the Jay-Z exhibit, Brooklyn-born Amanda Brown said she was happy the rapper was being honored with the retrospective while he is still alive.
“Singers that did a lot don’t get the recognition until they are gone so this is nice,” the 28-year-old told AFP.
Buckwyld Media Network and BHM have teamed up to bring you Naija To The World, a groundbreaking series of international showcases that will celebrate the diversity and richness of Nigeria’s culture and creativity.’
The first edition of Naija To The World will kick off at the legendary Apollo Theatre in New York City on September 16, 2023, after touring several Nigerian cities from Lagos to Port Harcourt, Benin, Abuja, Jos.
The theme of the debut showcase is the Niger Delta Experience, a tribute to the region that has produced some of the most influential talents in the creative industry over the past 25 years. The Niger Delta is also home to most of Nigeria’s crude oil, but it has faced many challenges such as environmental degradation, poverty, and violence.
Naija To The World will shine a light on the positive aspects of the Niger Delta, such as its vibrant music, its delicious cuisine, its colorful fashion, and its inspiring literature. You will hear stories that you have never heard before, from the people who have lived them. You will see performances that will blow your mind, from the stars who have made it big. You will discover the culture that has shaped Nigeria’s national identity and global influence.
Ayeni Adekunle, founder of BHM, says: ‘We are thrilled to co-host this new series of cultural showcases around the US and later other parts of the world. The aim is to tell original African stories through live concerts, exhibitions, films, documentaries, and so on. And the first instalment will focus on the Niger Delta region of Nigeria where most of Nigeria’s crude oil comes from but which continues to be troubled, abandoned, and impoverished. The world already knows this and many have had cause to use the oil directly or indirectly. But what many do not know is that most of the African pop music dominating the world right now also comes from there (Burna Boy For example). So we want to showcase the music, the food, the fashion, and the literature from a place many only previously associated with oil and violence…’
Efe Omorogbe, Chief Executive Officer of Buckwyld Media Network, adds: ‘Against a backdrop of multi-billion dollar operations and squalid communities, confounding extremes that seem to leave the polity constantly tethering on the brink of crisis, the Niger Delta region remains the premiere incubator for talent in Nigeria. Talent who have continually shaped the course of creative enterprise in Nigeria; talent who are driving the redefinition of Nigeria’s national identity and burgeoning soft power; talent who are primed for world domination and seem unwilling to let anything deter them from reaching their goal.’
Naija To The World – The Niger Delta Experience will feature a star-studded line-up of emerging and leading actors, comedians, designers, chefs, musicians and performers from Nigeria’s Niger Delta. You will witness the culture of Ken Saro-Wiwa; the culture of Burna Boy; the culture of Don Jazzy; the culture of Timaya; Rema and so many more. Only 1,500 lucky fans will get to watch live at the Apollo Theatre, while millions more will tune in through broadcast partners across North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa.
N2TW is the first instalment of the original African exhibition concert series which will happen annually and feature the brightest and biggest stars from Nigeria and other parts of Africa headlining at the most iconic music venues around the world.
Apart from live-curated concerts, the series will also produce themed biographies, biopics, and documentaries in partnership with select platforms.
The cost ofcocoa, a crucial raw material for chocolate production, surged to its highest level in over 12 years in New York on Tuesday, July 18.
This rise in prices comes shortly after cocoa reached its highest point in 46 years in London. The situation has put traders and chocolate manufacturers in a challenging position due to limited supplies.
During the trading session, the benchmark cocoa contract at the Intercontinental Exchange in New York reached $3,429 per metric tonne, the highest level since March 2011. It closed at $3,407, representing a 1.4% increase.
Cocoa has become one of the most sought-after agricultural commodities, primarily because of an unusual decline in production in the western part of Africa. This region is a major supplier of raw cocoa to chocolate makers worldwide.
Moreover, the prospect of potentially adverse weather conditions in the future is also impacting the market.
Analysts have expressed concerns about the areas of Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, and Cameroon, where drier-than-normal weather is anticipated for the coming months due to the developing El Nino pattern. These factors have combined to drive cocoa prices to their current soaring levels.
“Cocoa production is usually weaker in an El Nino year. We don’t know how strong this current El Nino will be, but forecasters say it will probably be strong,” said Rabobank cocoa analyst Paul Joules.
“The 2023/24 mid crop could be affected, as well as the 2024/25 main crop,” he added, referring to the two annual cocoa crops African countries harvest.
On Monday, exporters estimated that the volume of cocoa arriving at ports in Ivory Coast, the world’s leading cocoa producer, has decreased by 4% compared to the previous year, indicating a smaller production for the season.
In London, cocoa futures settled with an increase of 18 pounds, equivalent to 0.7%, reaching 2,532 pounds per metric tonne.
As for other commodities, raw sugar settled up by 0.3% at 23.86 cents per pound, remaining within a recent narrow range and below the 11-year peak above 27 cents reached in late April.
Arabica coffee experienced a rise of 0.3%, settling at $1.563 per pound, while robusta coffee, on the other hand, settled down by $20, or 0.8%, at $2,532 per metric tonne.
Tony Bennett, the iconic pop and jazz singer from New York, has passed away at the age of 96.
Bennett was renowned for his timeless songs, including “The Way You Look Tonight,” “Body and Soul,” and “(I Left My Heart) In San Francisco.” Throughout his illustrious career, he collaborated with celebrated performers such as Lady Gaga, Aretha Franklin, and Frank Sinatra, who famously dubbed him “the best singer in the business.”
Over eight decades, the crooner sold millions of records and earned an impressive 20 Grammy Awards, including a prestigious lifetime achievement award.
His publicist, Sylvia Weiner, confirmed his death in a statement to the Associated Press. Bennett passed away in his hometown of New York, and though no specific cause of death was mentioned, he had been battling Alzheimer’s disease since 2016.
Singer Paul Young was among those paying tribute on Twitter, writing: “Ahhh, RIP Tony Bennett, truly one of the greats. An incredible singer live, saw him many times.
Star Trek actor George Takei posted: “Tony Bennett was the last of his kind, a master of the American songbook.
“He may have left his Heart in San Francisco, but he won all of our hearts, from Sinatra to Lady Gaga. Be at peace, and sing to us now from the stars, Tony.”
Musician Nile Rogers added: “My most heartfelt condolences go out to Tony Bennett’s family and friends.”
Image caption,Bennett (pictured in 2003) won 19 competitive Grammys as well as an additional lifetime achievement award
Born Anthony Dominick Benedetto to a family of Italian immigrants, Bennett faced hardship at a young age when his father passed away, leaving the family in poverty.
As a teenager, he worked as a singing waiter before pursuing studies in music and painting at New York’s School of Industrial Art.
In 1944, during World War Two, he was drafted into the US army and served in France and Germany. He candidly described the experience as “legalized murder” in a 2013 interview with The Guardian.
Upon his return home, Bennett’s singing career flourished, initially under the name Joe Bari. He achieved a breakthrough in 1951 with the song “Because of You,” which became his first number one hit.
Bennett quickly became a teenage sensation, releasing his debut album in 1952. His music continued to top charts in the US during every subsequent decade of his life, with hits such as “Blue Velvet” and “Rags to Riches.”
Throughout his career, the legendary singer garnered a reputation for creating timeless swinging pop hits and later, show tunes, and big band numbers.
IMAGE SOURCE, REUTERS: Image caption, Bennet pictured performing with singer KD Lang in New York in 2002
His 1962 version of a song form the previous decade, I Left My Heart in San Francisco, sent his star into an even bigger orbit, winning him two Grammys.
Bennett was also a supporter of the civil rights movement and took part in the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches while also refusing to perform in apartheid-era South Africa.
However, with the arrival of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones into the US, as the decade rolled on his relevance faded.
Personal problems followed, including the end of two marriages and drug addiction.
He performed through the pain, recording two records with pianist Bill Evans.
After hiring his son Danny to become his manager and reuniting with his pianist and musical director Ralph Sharon, his fortunes began to change.
He enjoyed a revival in the 1980s and 1990s, when Grammy awards flooded in for the star, then in his sixties.
His 1986 comeback album, The Art of Excellence, got the ball rolling again for the star who had returned to New York from Las Vegas.
Image caption,Bennett was interviews on BBC Breakfast during a visit to the UK in 2010
He followed it with the chart-topping Perfectly Frank, a tribute to his musical hero Sinatra, before 1994’s MTV Unplugged saw Bennett win the Grammy for album of the year.
In an interview with the Independent in 2008, Bennett said he had not been surprised by his renewed success.
“Good music is good music,” he said. “I’m not concerned with whether someone who listens to me is old or young. In fact, in many ways, I’m not interested in the young at all.
“I’m interested in age. People learn to live properly when they get of an age, you know? The late Duke Ellington once said to me that he was really offended by the word category.
“Music has no category; it’s either good or it isn’t, and I sing good songs, great songs, written by the best songwriters. It’s that kind of quality that makes them last. Trust me, people will be singing these songs forever.”
Bennett remained perpetually cool enough to win over new legions of fans.
He collaborated with a host of younger artists – who adored him – including Amy Winehouse, Queen Latifah and Diana Krall; as well as the likes of Paul McCartney, Elton John and George Michael on the 2006 album, Duets: An American Classic.
in 2014, his joint album with Lady Gaga, Cheek to Cheek, made him the oldest living act to reach the top the US charts, breaking his own previous record.
Shortly after his 90th birthday he told the New York Times: “I could have retired 16 years ago, but I just love what I’m doing.”
In 2021, five years after his 2016 Alzheimer’s diagosis, Bennett performed his final shows alongside Gaga, with whom, for younger fans, he became closely associated.
He posted on social media at the time: “Life is a gift – even with Alzheimer’s.”
Away from music, as a keen painter, Bennett had his work displayed in galleries.
He also founded the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in his hometown Queens.
He is survived by four children: Danny, Dae, Joanna and Antonia, as well as his wife Susan Crow.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, in collaboration with New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, is making a strong bid to host the final match of the2026 World Cup.
The United States, Canada, and Mexico are set to co-host the prestigious global soccer event, and the selection of the final venue is still underway.
Cities such as Dallas, Houston, Miami, Los Angeles, and the state-of-the-art $5.5 billion SoFi Stadium are expected to compete for the opportunity.
However, Adams and Murphy emphasized, during a call with Reuters, that they firmly believe there is only one choice for the world’s biggest game to be played on the world’s biggest stage – New York/New Jersey.
“The biggest game should be played on the biggest stage and there is no stage bigger on the globe than this region,” Adams told Reuters.
A YouGov online survey of professional football fans from across the US released on Wednesday agreed with Adams and Murphy that New York/New Jersey was the preferred place for the final.
The survey found 21% of those polled wanted the final in New York/New Jersey followed by Los Angeles with 17% and Miami 10%.
But 25% polled expect to see Los Angeles awarded the marquee match with New York/New Jersey on 23%.
FIFA is expected to announce the locations for marquee games, including the World Cup Final, later this year.
Co-hosting is nothing new to New York/New Jersey, the cities having combined resources to stage the 2014 Super Bowl with New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium the venue for the game and New York providing the glitz and glamour.
The plan would be the same for the final with the 82,000 seat MetLife getting the match and the Big Apple being party central, hosting the many other events.
“If I had to guess we will get eight or nine games no matter what, that’s eight or nine Super Bowls in six weeks with an enormity of scale,” said Murphy. “Obviously we think we are absolutely well suited to host the final.
“It’s going to be a huge event unlike any other… this is sort of the grand daddy of them all.”
New York is also one of the world’s largest media markets and has infrastructure in place to handle hundreds of thousands of visitors.
“No team or player will come to our region and feel homesick,” assured Adams. “You point to a country on the globe and you are going to find a community here.
“That is our biggest selling point, our diversity and how everyone is going to feel at home playing here.”
While the New York/New Jersey bid has its obvious strengths there are questions about violent crime which has made headlines recently.
“We are going to tell the real story,” said Adams. “We must now go in and get away from the fiction and show people the facts, this is the safest big city in America and we have one of the finest police departments on the globe and we know how to host big events.”
Ghana’s rap sensation, Sarkodie, elevates his ongoing Jamz world tour to new heights with a remarkable debut concert at the iconic Town Hall in New York City on July 15, 2023.
The resounding success of this inaugural show in New York has left fans exhilarated and eagerly looking forward to his upcoming performances.
Sarkodie’s debut concert at New York City’s Town Hall was nothing short of spectacular. The renowned venue, with its rich musical history, served as an exquisite backdrop for the electrifying performance.
From the moment the first beat dropped, Sarkodie had the audience in the palm of his hand. His seamless blend of rap, Afrobeat, and infectious melodies had concertgoers on their feet, singing along to every word.
Backed by a talented live band, Sarkodie’s high-energy performance left an indelible impression on the New York crowd.
The concert was a showcase of Sarkodie’s impressive catalog of hits, including fan favorites like ‘Adonai’, ‘U Go Kill Me’, ‘Can’t Let You Go’, and ‘Lucky’.
Additionally, Sarkodie surprised the audience with special guest appearances from the legend Kojo Antwi and Kranium, adding an extra layer of excitement to an already incredible night.
“Sarkodie’s concert was a celebration of music and culture. The artist’s ability to connect with his fans and create a sense of unity was palpable throughout the event was just amazing”, Terry Masson, organizer of the event said.
With the New York concert setting the bar high, Sarkodie’s Jamz world tour promises to be an unforgettable experience for fans across North America.
The tour will continue to captivate audiences in major cities, including Toronto, Atlanta, Houston, and Los Angeles, among others, culminating in a grand finale on September 3rd with which stop on the tour is anticipated to deliver the same level of energy, excitement, and outstanding performance.
The Sarkodie Jamz World North America tour [New York concert] was beautifully executed by TM Entertainmentz & Nayasa Entertainment.
SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM CONCERT:
From Newark to New York City just in time for the King’s performance. Rapper @sarkodie is live at the @townhallnyc on his Jamz World Tour in New York 🇬🇭🇬🇭🇬🇭🔥🔥🔥🔥
The price of cocoa, a crucial raw material for chocolate production, has surged to its highest levels in over a decade. On Tuesday, cocoa prices reached a peak in New York, just weeks after hitting a 46-year high in London. This surge comes as traders and chocolate manufacturers grapple with limited supplies.
The benchmark cocoa contract at the Intercontinental Exchange in New York soared to $3,429 per metric ton during the trading session, marking the highest level since mid-March 2011. It eventually closed at $3,407, reflecting a 1.4% increase.
Cocoa has emerged as one of the hottest agricultural commodities, primarily due to a significant decrease in production in the western part of Africa, which serves as a major supplier of raw cocoa to chocolate makers worldwide. Additionally, concerns about potentially adverse weather conditions in the future have also contributed to the price surge.
Analysts have pointed out that regions like Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, and Cameroon are susceptible to drier-than-normal weather in the coming months due to the development of the El Niño pattern. As a result, the supply of cocoa from these regions may face further challenges, leading to the current price hike in the cocoa market.
“Cocoa production is usually weaker in an El Nino year. We don’t know how strong this current El Nino will be, but forecasters say it will probably be strong,” said Rabobank cocoa analyst Paul Joules.
“The 2023/24 mid crop could be affected, as well as the 2024/25 main crop,” he added, referring to the two annual cocoa crops African countries harvest.
The amount of cocoa arriving at ports to be exported in number one grower Ivory Coast is down 4% in the season compared with the previous year, exporters estimated on Monday, indicating smaller production.
London cocoa futures settled up 18 pounds, or 0.7%, at 2,532 pounds per metric ton.
Among other commodities, raw sugar settled up 0.3%, at 23.86 cents per pound, still trading in a recent narrow range, below the 11-year peak above 27 cents hit late in April.
Arabica coffee rose 0.3%, to $1.563 per pound, while robusta coffee settled down $20, or 0.8%, at $2,532 a metric ton.
Human Rights Watch, a New York-based organization, claims that there have been numerous homicides, rapes, and acts of looting in northeast Mali this year, prompting thousands of people to escape and seek safety.
Six attacks were reported in the Gao region and two in Menaka between January and June, according to a report released by the rights organization on Thursday. Unconfirmed claims from aid workers and eyewitness indicate that thousands of residents were forced to evacuate and hundreds were killed.
Numerous witnesses told authorities that the fighters rode motorbikes and pickup trucks, carried assault rifles and occasionally rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and wore recognizable turbans.
A collision involving a double-decker tour bus and an MTA bus in Manhattan, New York, has left up to 18 people hospitalised.
On Thursday night, it occurred on First Avenue, and numerous people needed medical attention right away for their wounds.
According to Paul Hopper, Division 1 deputy chief of New York EMS, the injured had cuts, bruises and scrapes in addition to head and neck injuries and possible fractures.
About 63 persons were evaluated at the scene by a doctor, and none of the injured have injuries that are life-threatening.
‘We’ve had a few minor challenges in the double-decker bus – going through the windows, taking people out,’ Mr Hopper confirmed.
Ropes and ladders were also used to rescue people from the buses, Kevin Murphy from the New York Fire Department confirmed.
Around 18 people taken to hospital after a crash involving a MTA bus and a double decker tour bus in Manhattan (Picture: Getty Images)
‘I heard the lady next to me scream, so I looked up and I saw this bus barrelling towards us,’ said Ishrak Jahan, a passenger on one bus.
‘I just saw glass everywhere for a second. It was honestly like I was in a movie… I saw blood. I immediately called 911.’
After entering a not guilty plea to accusations of cheating campaign contributors and squandering COVID-19 relief funds, embattled New York lawmaker and alleged fraudster George Santos appeared in court once more.
Indignant demonstrators who called him a “dog killer” met the humiliated lawmaker when he went to court on Friday.
Santos, a Republican who represents portions of Queens and Long Island in the House of Representatives, rose to fame after it was discovered that he had made up a significant portion of his biography and past.
In May, federal prosecutors charged Santos with seven counts of counts of wire fraud, three counts of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds, and two counts of lying to congress.
‘The allegations in the indictment charge Santos with relying on repeated dishonesty and deception to ascend to the halls of Congress and enrich himself,’ said Breon Peace, the US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
Santos pleaded not guilty to all charges, and called the investigation into his finances a ‘witch hunt.’
On Friday, he returned to court for another hearing for his trial’s discovery phase.
As he walked from his car into the courthouse, one protester shouted ‘dog killer!’ at the congressman.
The protester is believed to be Rich Osthoff, a disabled veteran who previously accused Santos of stealing money raised for his service dog’s veterinary care.
In the courtroom, Santos’s lawyers revealed they turned over more than 80,000 pages of documents during the discovery process.
Santos sat silently through the court proceedings. As he left the courtroom, he wished his prosecutors a ‘happy Fourth of July.’
The New York congressman is scheduled to return to court on September 7, just days before the next session of Congress begins.
Santos left the courthouse flanked by attorneys, carrying a miniature American flag. Osthoff could be heard in the distance again screaming: ‘You killed Sapphire George! You killed my dog!’
Santos did not acknowledge any of the protesters. He has not made any public statements since his appearance on Friday.
Santos continues to remain out of jail on bail.
He was released after his indictment when another party cosigned his $500,000 bond. Last week, the court publicly released his benefactors’ identities: his father, Gercino Dos Santos, and his aunt, Elma Santos Preven.
The captain of the team deployed to try to save the Titan submersible choked back tears as he remembered the moment they discovered Titan submersible wreckage on the ocean below.
Pelagic Research Services CEO Edward Cassano provided a timeline of his company’s actions following a request for assistance in locating the missing submarine during a news conference on Friday.
He said that on June 18, Titan’s owners OceanGate contacted them and asked to use its deep-water remotely operated vehicle (ROV), Odysseus 6K. He claimed that OceanGate “immediately began assembling a team.”
Mr Cassano told reporters in New York they started heading to the scene the following day, adding: ‘We were always conscious of the crew of the Titan. Plain and simple, we were focused on rescue.’
They joined the huge ongoing search operation within 24 hours and soon launched the ROV, which took 90 minutes to reach the bottom of the North Atlantic.
He said: ‘Shortly after arriving on the seafloor, we discovered the debris of the Titan submersible. Of course, we continued to document the site, and by 12 o’clock, sadly a rescue turned into a recovery.’
Visibly moved, he apologised for pausing, adding: ‘It’s a lot of emotions. People are tired.’
Asked what he thought of the Titan’s voyage, Mr Cassano said that, based on his own experience with a company that focuses on deep-sea research, he believes the crew was motivated by ‘a passion and a joy for exploration’.
British adventurer Hamish Harding and father and son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood were killed on board the deep-sea vessel, alongside OceanGate Expeditions’ chief executive Stockton Rush and French national Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
Officials announced the Titan suffered a ‘catastrophic implosion’ after a piece of the vessel was discovered near the bow of the Titanic. The wreckage was then recovered from the ocean floor.
Further debris from the sub were unloaded in St John’s, Canada, on Wednesday, along with what is presumed to have been human remains.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has said it is looking into the five deaths.
Safety investigators from the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) of Canada made inquiries on Titan’s main support ship, the Polar Prince, after it docked in St John’s harbour.
The Titan submersible lost contact with tour operator OceanGate Expeditions an hour and 45 minutes into the two-hour descent to the wreckage, with the vessel reported missing eight hours after communication was lost.
The company charged passengers $250,000 each to participate in the voyage.
Ghanaian journalist and private legal practitioner, Robert Nii Arday Clegg, has passed the bar exams in the state of New York, USA, and now works in the capacity of Counselor & Attorney-at-law.
Mr. Clegg shared the great news of his admission in a recent Facebook post. He revealed that he was grateful to God for being among 473 attorneys from 25 countries and 29 US states who were granted admission.
During his stay in Ghana, he worked with Multimedia Group Limited as a morning show host on Joy FM.
Profile
Robert Nii Arday Clegg currently serves as the Managing Partner of his own corporate law firm, Nii Arday Clegg & Co., where he provides expert counsel on various corporate, commercial, and transactional matters.
Additionally, he is a recognized corporate law and governance trainer, often invited to speak at corporate governance events and deliver teaching sessions to law schools and professional organizations.
He is frequently sought after to share his insights on corporate governance through radio and television appearances.
Robert’s expertise extends to his notable academic achievements. He holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) with 2 Honors in Corporate Law, Finance & Governance Concentration from Harvard Law School, where he cross-registered in Boards of Directors & Corporate Governance at Harvard Business School.
He also obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) with First Class Honors from the University of Ghana, Legon, where he was recognized on the Vice-Chancellor’s Honors List for outstanding academic performance. At the same university, he was named the Best Graduating Student in Law and received the prestigious Bentsi-Enchill Prize in recognition of his academic excellence.
During his call to the Ghana Bar, Robert received multiple awards for his outstanding performance in various areas of law. These accolades include the S.Y. Bimpong-Buta Prize for excellence in the interpretation of deeds and statutes, the Alhajj Dramani Yakubu Prize for being the top male student in the interpretation of deeds and statutes, the Prof. Akua Kuenyehia Prize for excellence in industrial law, and the S.K. Kodjovie Memorial Prize for excellence in the law of taxation.
Mr Robert was honored with the Television Current Affairs Talk Show Host of the Year award at the 2012 RTP Awards. Outside of his professional achievements, he is a devoted husband to Mabel and a loving father to their three sons: David, Samuel, and Robert Junior.
A former US Marine who was caught on video putting a homeless man in a fatal chokehold on a subway train has been indicted by a New York grand jury.
The decision to indict Daniel Penny on second-degree manslaughter charges comes after prosecutors had already charged him last month.
The grand jury’s decision was necessary to formally proceed with the charges, and Penny is currently out on bail. Penny claims that he acted in self-defense during the incident that took place on May 1st.
Details of the formal charging document are expected to be disclosed at a later date. If convicted of second-degree manslaughter, Penny could face a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.
The 24-year-old former Marine was initially allowed to leave the scene of Jordan Neely’s death but was later arrested on May 12th. He was taken into custody, handcuffed, and brought to a police station before being released on a $100,000 in-cash bail.
In a video posted on social media on Sunday, Penny stated that he did not have the intention to kill Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man who had reportedly been shouting at subway riders prior to the altercation.
“There’s a common misconception that Marines don’t get scared,” he said in the video.
“We’re actually taught one of our core values is courage, and courage is not the absence of fear but how you handle fear,” he added, saying he felt compelled to confront Mr Neely as he acted erratically towards passengers.
“I was scared for myself but I looked around there were women and children, he was yelling in their faces saying these threats. I just couldn’t sit still.”
Video of the incident captured by a freelance journalist on the train shows the former Marine holding Mr Neely around the neck for two minutes and 55 seconds.
In the video released on Sunday, Mr Penny said the whole interaction was less than five minutes.
“I was listening to music at the time, and he was yelling, so I took my headphones out to hear what he was yelling,” he said.
“And the three main threats that he repeated over and over was ‘I’m going to kill you,’ ‘I’m prepared to go to jail for life,’ and ‘I’m willing to die.’”
Family of Mr Neely say that the second-degree manslaughter charge should be upgraded to murder.
The killing shocked the city and led to questions about the safety of public transit and treatment for mentally ill homeless New Yorkers.
A tour boat that sank inside a cave in upstateNew York has resulted in one death and multiple hospitalisations.
On Monday at 11:25 a.m. in Lockport Cave, a boat capsized, according to authorities.
According to WIVB, the deceased was a 60-year-old male who was not immediately identified by authorities. He may have become trapped beneath the boat and suffered injuries before passing away. The tour boat also carried his wife.
Eleven additional people were taken to hospitals with minor wounds, according to Lockport officials.
About 16 people were rescued by first responders. Some passengers were able to walk out of the water because it was shallow.
There were 28 passengers on board the Lockport Cave & Underground tour boat. All of them were from western New York and part of a Destination Niagara USA tour.
The water temperature was an estimated 60 degrees Fahrenheit due to it being shallower than the frigid surrounding waters.
Rescuers were able to account for every person within about an hour, officials said. No one was wearing a life jacket.
The cause of boat capsizing is under investigation by state agencies as well as the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
However, the Lockport Union-Sun Journal reported that it flipped because of a sudden shift in the weight distribution.
Four people with injuries that were not critical were being treated at the Eastern Niagara Health System, according to WKBW. Seven others ere taken to a nearby hospital.
Multiple agencies including the Lockport police and fire departments worked ‘to assist parties that were on a boat that capsized in the Lockport Cave tours,’ stated the Lockport Police Department on Facebook earlier on Monday.
‘Crews are working to assist all parties safely out of the area.’
Streets surrounding the cave, which is about 20 miles east of Niagara Falls, were closed to allow rescue vehicles to enter.
Tours have operated inside the cave system since 1977, according to WIVB. Water in the cave is about 4 to 6 feet deep, the TV station reported in 2021.
The Lockport incident happened two weeks after four people died when a tourist boat capsized on Lake Maggiore in Italy during a storm.
After growing ill on a journey from Istanbul to New York, an 11-year-old kid passed away.
About an hour and a half after takeoff on Sunday, the Turkish Airlines aircraft made an emergency landing in Hungary.
According to Hungarian media accounts, the infant was first given help by cabin crew before receiving CPR from a doctor who just happened to be on board.
When the jet touched down atBudapest International Airport, medical personnel were waiting to board, but the kid was beyond saving.
It’s thought the 11-year-old was a US citizen with a disability and was travelling with his family.
A spokesperson from the airport said: ‘Airport Medical Service (AMS), the medical service operating at Ferenc Liszt International Airport, was alerted to the aircraft and continued to resuscitate the child
‘Despite the rapid and professional intervention, unfortunately, his life could not be saved. The aircraft continued its journey to its original destination.’
Officials have not commented on the cause of death.
