KYIV, Feb 24 (Reuters) – Ukraine has defended its independence since Russia’s invasion and will not betray the sacrifices made by its people as it seeks peace, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in an address marking the fourth anniversary of the start of the war.
“Putin has not achieved his goals. He has not broken the Ukrainian people. He has not won this war,” Zelenskiy said on Tuesday. “We have preserved Ukraine, and we will do everything to achieve peace. And to ensure justice.”
Zelenskiy is due to welcome dignitaries from European allies, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in Kyiv later in the day for ceremonies four years on from Russia’s full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.
Hundreds of thousands of soldiers on both sides have died or been wounded in Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War Two. Russian forces have killed tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians and destroyed Ukrainian cities with years of missiles and drone strikes.
Ongoing peace talks with Russia, brokered by the United States, appear to have stalled over the question of territory.
Moscow, which is advancing slowly on the battlefield, has refused to drop its insistence that Ukraine cede the final 20% of the eastern region of Donetsk – while Kyiv is adamant it will not relinquish land that thousands have died to defend.
“We want peace. Strong, dignified, lasting peace,” Zelenskiy said in his address.
He added that he had told Ukraine’s peace negotiators: “Do not nullify all these years, do not devalue all the struggle, courage, dignity, everything that Ukraine has gone through. We cannot, we must not, give it away, forget it, betray it.”
(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Andrew Heavens)
Police said a person was shot Monday night at a shopping center near a massive apartment fire in Morrisville.
WRAL’s Sky 5 was flying over the scene at Park West Village and saw crime scene tape going up around Crumbl, a cookie store, inside the shopping center. Police said a person was shot at the restaurant and they have a suspect in custody.
The severity of the victim’s injuries is unclear, and WRAL News has reached out to police for more information.
TORONTO — Representatives of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI have been summoned to Ottawa after the company said last week that it considered but didn’t alert Canadian police about the activities of a person who months later committed one of the worst school shootings in the country’s history.
Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon said Monday that he expects the company’s top safety representatives to explain its protocols and how it decides to forward cases to law enforcement when he meets with them on Tuesday.
OpenAI said last June that the company identified the account of Jesse Van Rootselaar via abuse detection efforts for “furtherance of violent activities.”
The San Francisco technology company said that it considered whether to refer the account to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, or RCMP, but determined at the time that the account activity didn’t meet a threshold for referral to law enforcement. OpenAI banned the account in June for violating its usage policy.
The 18-year-old killed eight people in a remote part of British Columbia this month and died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
OpenAI said that the threshold for referring a user to law enforcement is whether the case involves an imminent and credible risk of serious physical harm to others. The company said that it didn’t identify credible or imminent planning. The Wall Street Journal first reported OpenAI’s revelation, reporting that about a dozen employees debated informing Canadian police.
OpenAI said that it wasn’t until after learning of the school shooting that employees reached out to RCMP with information on the individual and their use of ChatGPT
Solomon said that he contacted OpenAI immediately when he read the reports that OpenAI didn’t contact law enforcement in a timely manner.
“I have summoned the senior safety team from OpenAI to come here to Ottawa from the United States,” Solomon said. “Canadians expect, first of all, that their children particularly are kept safe and these organizations act in a responsible manner.”
Solomon said that some of his representatives already met with some OpenAI officials on Sunday. He wouldn’t say whether the Canadian government intends to regulate AI chatbots like ChatGPT, but insists that all options are on the table.
Police said Van Rootselaar first killed her mother and stepbrother at the family home before attacking the nearby school. Van Rootselaar had a history of mental health contacts with police.
The motive for the shooting remains unclear.
The town of Tumbler Ridge in the Canadian Rockies is more than 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) northeast of Vancouver, near the provincial border with Alberta. Police said the victims included a 39-year-old teaching assistant and five students, ages 12 to 13.
The attack was Canada’s deadliest rampage since 2020, when a gunman in Nova Scotia killed 13 people and set fires that left another nine dead.
Nick Reiner entered a plea of not guilty during his third appearance in Los Angeles Superior Court for his scheduled arraignment in the killing of his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner.
The 32-year-old faces two counts of first-degree murder with the special circumstance of multiple murders.
Deputy District Attorney Habib Balian said his office is still awaiting a full autopsy report in the case, but all other evidence has been turned over to the defence.
Reiner appeared in court in an enclosed custody area with his head shaved and wearing brown jail clothes. He talked to his lawyer briefly before the judge began the brief hearing. He spoke only to answer yes to a question from the judge.
Nick Reiner to be charged with 1st degree murder in parents’ deaths
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman spoke to reporters outside the courthouse following Reiner’s hearing.
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“The case is on track. We have provided the bulk of discovery to defence council and we are now waiting for the coroner’s report,” he said.
“This case is a death penalty-eligible case. Along those lines we take the process in which we determine whether or not the death penalty should be sought extremely seriously and it goes through a very rigorous process,” Hochman added.
“We have invited defence counsel to present to us — both in writing and orally — in a meeting, any arguments that they would like to make in consideration for our going forward or not going forward with the death penalty,” Hochman said.
Hochman did not take questions after sharing his statement outside the courthouse. A preliminary hearing has been set for April 29.
Nathan Hochman, the Los Angeles County district attorney speaks with reporters during Nick Reiner’s arraignment on charges of murdering his parents Rob and Michele Reiner, at Los Angeles Superior Court on February 23, 2026, in Los Angeles, California.
Frederic J. Brown / AFP via Getty Images
Reiner was set to enter a plea last month at a hearing in Los Angeles, before his defence attorney, Alan Jackson, announced that he was withdrawing from the case, and Reiner will now be represented by public defender Kimberly Greene.
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“This morning I had to withdraw as Nick Reiner’s counsel. Circumstances beyond our control but more importantly circumstances beyond Nick’s control have dictated that sadly it’s made it impossible for us to continue our representation,” Jackson told reporters outside the courthouse in January.
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“I’m legally and ethically prohibited from explaining all the reasons why. I know that’s a question on everybody’s mind. We expect the public defender to step in. They’ve already been appointed and very capably protect Nick Reiner’s interests as he moves forward through the system,” he added.
“Be very, very clear about this — my team and I remain deeply, deeply committed to Nick Reiner and to his best interests,” Jackson said. “In fact we know, we’re not just convinced, we know that the legal process will reveal the true facts of the circumstances surrounding this case.”
“What we’ve learned — and you can take this to the bank — is that pursuant to the law in this state, Nick Reiner is not guilty of murder. Print that,” Jackson added.
Alan Jackson, the former lawyer for Nick Reiner, leaves court after Reiner’s arraignment on murder charges for the deaths of Rob and Michele Reiner Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in Los Angeles.
AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes
Following the news, Reiner’s family told the New York Times in a statement that they “have the utmost trust in the legal process and will not comment further on matters related to the legal proceedings.”
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Reiner’s 78-year-old father and 70-year-old mother were found dead with stab wounds in their home in the upscale Brentwood section of Los Angeles on Dec. 14, 2025, authorities said.
The LA County Medical Examiner said in initial findings that they died from “multiple sharp force injuries,” but released no other details, and police have said nothing about possible motives.
Rob Reiner, son argued at party day before killings: reports
“I knew Rob and Michele, and then increasingly got closer and closer to them,” O’Brien said.
“They were just such lovely people,” he said of Rob and Michele. “And to have that experience of saying good night to somebody and having them leave and then find out the next day that they’re gone…. I think I was in shock for quite a while afterward. I mean, there’s no other word for it.”
“It’s just so awful,” O’Brien said of the deaths of Rob and Michele. “And I think about how Rob felt about things that are happening in the country, how involved he was, how much he put himself out there—and to have that voice go quiet in an instant is still hard for me to comprehend.”
Rob Reiner murder: Police say Nick Reiner taken off suicide watch, still dealing with “mental disability”
Reiner did not enter a plea during a brief first court appearance on Dec. 17. Jackson told the court it was “too early” to enter a plea and that he had already agreed with the prosecution to delay the arraignment until January.
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Reiner also faces a special allegation that he personally used a dangerous and deadly weapon, that being a knife, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced at a news conference on Dec. 16.
These charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty. No decision about the death penalty has been made as of yet, Hochman added.
“Charges are not evidence,” Hochman said. “Evidence is something we will be presenting in a court of law to meet the standard of proof we meet at every criminal case, which is beyond a reasonable doubt.
“Prosecuting these cases involving family members are some of the most challenging and most heart-wrenching cases that this office faces because of the intimate and often brutal nature of the crimes involved.”
Prosecutors have said they have not yet decided whether to seek the death penalty.
CINCINNATI — The U.S. 23 Major Crimes Task Force recently served three drug-related search warrants throughout Ross County, resulting in the seizure of narcotics, illegal firearms and thousands of dollars.
What You Need To Know
The search warrants were served this past week
Through the warrants, 12 firearms, approximately 180 grams of methamphetamine, approximately 28 grams of fentanyl, and $5,500 were seized
Three individuals with active warrants were also taken into custody
The search warrants were served this past week as part of ongoing efforts to stop narcotics trafficking and seize illegal firearms.
Through the warrants, 12 firearms, approximately 180 grams of methamphetamine, approximately 28 grams of fentanyl, and $5,500 were seized. The narcotics are valued between $15,000 and $22,000.
(U.S. 23 Major Crimes Task Force)
“These investigations demonstrate the continued commitment of our task force to remove dangerous drugs and illegal firearms from our communities,” said representatives of the U.S. 23 Major Crimes Task Force. “Through strong partnerships and coordinated enforcement, we are working to disrupt drug trafficking networks and improve safety for the citizens we serve.”
Three individuals with active warrants were also taken into custody and incarcerated at the Ross County Jail.
The task force comprises local, state and federal partners operating throughout Ross, Highland, Hocking, Fayette and Gallia counties to combat violent crime and narcotics activity in southern Ohio.
Feb 22 (Reuters) – Within hours of the killing of Mexican drug lord Nemesio Oseguera, better known as El Mencho, in a military raid on Sunday, gunmen suspected to be his supporters blocked highways across several states and set cars and businesses ablaze.
In some towns tourists and residents were urged to stay indoors, while truckers were advised to take safe routes or return to their depots until the violence abated.
Several airlines, including Air Canada, United Airlines and Aeromexico, on Sunday cancelled flights to Puerto Vallarta, a beachside resort town where stunned tourists filmed plumes of smoke rising into the sky from fires.
The burst of violence across more than half a dozen states painted a familiar scene for Mexicans who have spent two decades watching successive governments wage war on drug cartels, ravaging broad swaths of the country.
A member of Oseguera’s Jalisco New Generation Cartel told Reuters that the blazes and sporadic gunfire were carried out in revenge for the government’s killing of Oseguera, and warned of further bloodshed as groups move to take control of his cartel.
“The attacks were carried out in revenge for the leader’s death, at first against the government and out of discontent,” the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“But later the internal killings are coming, by the groups moving in to take over.”
In Mexico’s Pacific coast, a five-hour drive from the military operation in the town of Tapalpa that took down the leader of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, stunned beachgoers on a pier in Puerto Vallarta took out their cell phones to film thick waves of smoke obscuring blue ocean views, showed a video shared with Reuters.
Daniel Drolet, a Canadian who has wintered in Puerto Vallarta for years, said in a phone interview that he was concerned of a new era of violence taking root in the typically placid resort zone.
“I have never seen anything like this before,” he said.
In the state of Jalisco, authorities reported that gunmen had attacked a base for the National Guard military police, and recommended guests remain inside hotels and suspended public transit.
Other scenes of criminal activity and military response were captured in videos shared by government security sources with Reuters: A green military tank made its way through a residential neighborhood in the state of Aguascalientes. Roadblocks paralyzed the highly transited Mexico-Puebla highway. In the state of Colima, cartel members standing in pick-up trucks blocked a road.
A trucking industry group said in a statement it was “profoundly worried” by the highway violence and recommended that truckers keep to safe areas or return to their operating yards until conditions improved.
The state of Guanajuato, a CJNG stronghold, reported 55 incidents across 23 municipalities, with 18 arrests, but said by evening all incidents were under control.
Carlo Gutierrez, who lives in Guadalajara, Jalisco’s capital, said that friends on WhatsApp groups were encouraging people to stay home.
“There is fear and a lot of caution,” he said of the city, one of three main Mexican venues for World Cup soccer matches this summer.
VIOLENCE IN WAKE OF CARTEL ARRESTS, KILLINGS
Authorities have not reported any casualties beyond several cartel members and officials killed during the military operation.
Previous cartel arrests and killings have led to outbreaks of violence – whether by members avenging their fallen leader or rival gangs muscling in on their territory – prompting Mexican authorities to hesitate before launching major campaigns.
In 2019, Ovidio Guzman, a son of Sinaloa Cartel kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was detained but quickly released, setting off widespread gun battles. His arrest in 2023 set off more violence.
The 2024 arrest of Sinaloa Cartel boss Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada triggered a bloody power struggle in the criminal group that continues unabated more than a year later.
“I’m watching the scenes of violence from Mexico with great sadness and concern,” said U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, who previously served as ambassador to Mexico, in a post on social media.
“It’s not surprising that the bad guys are responding with terror. But we must never lose our nerve.”
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum in a social media post acknowledged the violence, but struck a tone of calm.
“In most of the national territory activities are happening with absolute normalcy,” she said.
(Reporting by Leila Miller in Buenos Aires, Emily Green and Lizbeth Diaz from Mexico City, Editing by Daina Beth Solomon and Michael Perry)
LOWELL — The Phan brothers charged in the 2020 killing of Tyrone Phet are asking a Middlesex Superior Court judge to reconsider the bail orders that have kept them behind bars for nearly five and a half years, arguing that new allegations of misconduct by a State Police homicide detective have thrown the case off course.
In a motion filed on Feb. 13, attorney Mark Wester — representing Billy Phan — argues that the recent disclosure that State Police Sgt. Scott Quigley’s alleged intoxication and speeding in a 2023 fatal crash qualifies as the kind of “changed circumstances” that Massachusetts law requires for bail reconsideration, writing that the revelations have “delayed the just resolution of this case.”
In the motion, Wester asks Judge Chris Barry‑Smith to reconsider holding Phan without bail and “grant him a reasonable cash bail.”
Attorneys Lorenzo Perez and William Dolan filed similar motions on behalf of Channa Phan and Billoeum Phan.
The three brothers, all in their 30s, each face life in prison without the possibility of parole after being charged with first‑degree murder in the shooting of 22‑year‑old Phet outside his home at 50 Spring Ave. in Lowell during the early‑morning hours of Sept. 14, 2020.
Phet — a 2016 Chelmsford High graduate and former high school football standout — was struck by gunfire eight times, with one bullet passing through both lungs and his heart and another entering and exiting his brain.
Police recovered 21 spent shell casings at the scene, including ten 10mm casings and eleven .40‑caliber casings.
The Phan brothers have been held without bail since their arrests in October 2020.
Dolan said earlier this month that while defendants in first‑degree murder cases are typically held without bail, the circumstances surrounding Quigley’s alleged misconduct justify reconsideration.
Quigley — a key investigator in the Phan case — is accused of being under the influence of alcohol and speeding while on duty in a State Police cruiser when he crossed into oncoming traffic and caused the December 2023 Woburn crash that killed 37‑year‑old Angelo Schettino, a paraplegic man with special needs.
Dolan also pointed to the outcome of the brothers’ first trial in November 2024, which ended in a hung jury and a mistrial, forcing the case into a second trial cycle.
“Because (the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office) didn’t meet their burden in their first trial and because of all the other things going on, they shouldn’t have to wait in jail,” Dolan said of the Phan brothers.
The defense had asked that the bail review be taken up alongside an evidentiary hearing they are seeking into the handling of Quigley’s 2023 crash.
The defense has argued that the evidentiary hearing is necessary because they believe the State Police and the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office covered up information about Quigley after the crash.
Quigley, who was assigned as a homicide investigator to the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and played a central role in the Phan investigation, has since been suspended without pay. His crash has been referred to the Suffolk District Attorney’s Office for possible criminal charges. Schettino’s mother, Lynn Schettino, is also pursuing a civil‑rights lawsuit against the State Police over her son’s death.
Michael Mahoney, who represents Schettino’s mother in the civil‑rights case, said of Quigley, “It keeps coming for this guy.”
In the motion requesting the evidentiary hearing, the Phan brothers’ defense team states testimony from Quigley and another 18 members of law enforcement is needed to determine whether there was an effort to shield him from scrutiny and to establish why his toxicology results were not disclosed to the Phan defense until jury selection in January.
Prosecutors were originally ordered to respond to the evidentiary‑hearing motion by Friday, but the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office requested — and was granted — an extension until Monday.
Dolan said on Friday that he and his client were frustrated to learn the extension had been granted to the DA’s office, calling it “just more of the same dragging their feet.”
The requests for the bail and evidentiary hearings come as the brothers’ retrial remains frozen, with Barry‑Smith halting jury selection late last month and dismissing the 12 jurors who had already been seated.
The judge paused the proceedings after the disclosures about Quigley surfaced during jury selection, prompting the court to order a full review before the case could continue.
Defense attorneys have also moved to dismiss the charges against the Phan brothers entirely, stating the delayed disclosures and questions surrounding Quigley’s conduct have irreparably tainted the prosecution.
In the meantime, a new retrial date is currently scheduled to begin on April 27.
The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office was unavailable for comment on the status of its response to the evidentiary‑hearing motion.
Follow Aaron Curtis on X @aselahcurtis, or on Bluesky @aaronscurtis.bsky.social.
A 21-year-old man from Carthage, North Carolina, was shot and killed Sunday by U.S. Secret Service agents at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
The suspect was identified as Austin Tucker Martin, 21, the Associated Press reports, according to a person familiar with the matter who remained anonymous.
According to the Moore County Sheriff’s Office, Martin was reported missing by family members in North Carolina. Officials told WRAL News the FBI was at Martin’s home in Carthage on Sunday afternoon.
Anthony Guglielmi, a Secret Service spokesman, confirmed the suspect was armed with a shotgun and gas can when he drove through the north gate of Mar-a-Lago after 1 a.m. as another vehicle was exiting and was confronted by Secret Service agents.
Investigators believe the suspect left North Carolina and headed south, picking up a shotgun along the way, Guglielmi said.
According to the Associated Press, Braeden Fields, Martin’s cousin, reacted with disbelief. He described Martin as quiet, afraid of guns and from a family of avid Trump supporters.
“He’s a good kid,” Fields, 19, said. He said they grew up together. “I wouldn’t believe he would do something like this. It’s mind-blowing,” Fields said.
He said Martin worked at a local golf course and would send money from each paycheck to charity.
“He wouldn’t even hurt an ant. He doesn’t even know how to use a gun,” Fields said. He said his cousin didn’t discuss politics. “We are big Trump supporters, all of us. Everybody,” Fields said, but his cousin was “real quiet, never really talked about anything.”
Trump, who often spends weekends at the resort, and first lady Melania Trump, were both at the White House at the time of the shooting. The motive is still under investigation.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Rick Bradshaw, speaking at a brief press conference, said the man was confronted by two Secret Service agents and a sheriff’s deputy.
“He was ordered to drop those two pieces of equipment that he had with them. At which time he put down the gas can, raised the shotgun to a shooting position,” Bradshaw said. The two agents and the deputy “fired their weapons to neutralize the threat.”
Trump was also wounded during an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024.
After Sunday’s shooting, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X:
“In the middle of the night while most Americans were asleep, the United States Secret Service acted quickly and decisively to neutralize a crazy person, armed with a gun and a gas canister, who intruded President Trump’s home. Federal law enforcement are working 24/7 to keep our country safe and protect all Americans. It’s shameful and reckless that Democrats have chosen to shut down their Department.”
FBI asks neighbors for help
The FBI asked area residents who live near Mar-a-Lago to check any security cameras they may have for footage that could help investigators.
FBI Director Kash Patel said in post on X that the bureau would be “dedicating all necessary resources” to the investigation.
This story will be updated as more details emerge.
Authorities are warning residents about a growing trend of online shopping scams after a local woman reported losing MOP 51,000 in a suspected impersonation scheme.
According to the Public Security Police (PSP), the incident occurred last Wednesday (Feb. 4) when a middle-aged woman received a phone call from someone claiming to be a Taobao customer service representative.
The caller falsely told her that her “payment security protection plan” was about to expire and that she would be charged MOP800 per month unless she canceled it.
Believing the call to be legitimate, the woman initially transferred around MOP250, which the scammers promptly “refunded.” The perpetrators then instructed her to conduct a screen-sharing session, citing “fund verification” and additional refund procedures. Following their instructions, she transferred MOP 51,000 but never received the promised refund.
The victim later realized she had likely fallen prey to a scam and reported the case to authorities.
Police are urging residents to exercise caution when receiving unsolicited calls or messages claiming to be from online platforms.
In a separate case, the Judiciary Police (PJ) uncovered a case where a jewelry store from a casino in Cotai was allegedly involved in illegal currency exchange worth HKD40 million for gamblers.
Earlier this week, the PJ reported that the store is suspected of engaging in illegal currency exchange since April last year.
A local female sales employee, a 36-year-old surnamed Chou was arrested, and HKD95,400 in cash was seized for investigation.
The PJ investigated the jewelry store inside the Cotai casino, where they found out Chou used her mobile phone and scanned a QR code shown to her by a middle-aged mainland Chinese male gambler and then was handed cash. The gambler subsequently proceeded to gamble in the casino.
The PJ took both individuals in for questioning and it was discovered that on that day, an amount of RMB1,726 was exchanged for HKD1,800 for gambling purposes.
It is suspected that the jewelry store has conducted illegal currency exchange involving nearly HKD40 million since it started operations in April last year, allegedly making an illegal profit of RMB1.35 million from these activities.
The PJ seized HKD95,400 in cash found in the store, along with one laptop and three mobile phones, for further investigation.
Authorities are continuing to pursue the whereabouts of the store owner involved in the case.
The case has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office for further investigation under the charge of “operating an illegal money exchange service for gambling purposes”. Ricaela Diputado
Authorities in Ohio have arrested and charged a former contestant on “American Idol” with shooting and killing his wife and staging the crime scene to mislead investigators.
Caleb Flynn, 39, pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of murder, assault and tampering with evidence.
“I just want to take care of my daughters. I’m not a risk,” he told Judge Samuel Huffman in a video of his arraignment from jail.
The judge set his bond at $2 million.
Ashley Flynn, 37, was found dead Monday after officers received a report of a burglary and shooting at a Tipp City home, according to a news release by Tipp City Police. Her husband and two children were inside the home when officers arrived.
In a 911 call released by authorities, a frantic Caleb Flynn tells a dispatcher someone broke into his home and killed his wife. He says she was shot multiple times in the head and he doesn’t know whether the intruder was still there.
“There’s blood everywhere, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god,” he says.
His attorney, Patrick Mulligan, said in a statement on Saturday he and Flynn were “disappointed and concerned about the short timeline and seeming rush to judgment in this case.” Police arrested Flynn on Thursday.
“When the government runs out of leads or can’t develop leads and looks at a surviving spouse in cases such as these, the chance of a wrongful conviction increases,” the statement said.
Tipp City Police Chief Greg Adkins defended the investigation, saying in an email on Saturday that it had “not moved fast.”
“Rather, it has progressed at a pace dictated by a thorough and deliberate investigative process,” he said.
Ashley Flynn was a middle school volleyball coach and substitute teacher, Tipp City Schools said on its Facebook page.
“She was known for her beautiful smile, warmth, kindness, and the positive impact she had on so many—both in and out of the classroom and on the court,” the post said.
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military said Friday that it has carried out another deadly strike on a vessel accused of trafficking drugs in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
U.S. Southern Command said on social media that the boat “was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations.” It said the strike killed three people. A video linked to the post shows a boat floating in the water before bursting into flames.
Friday’s attack raises the death toll from the Trump administration’s strikes on alleged drug boats to at least 148 people in at least 43 attacks carried out since early September in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean.
President Donald Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs. But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing “narcoterrorists.”
Critics have questioned the overall legality of the strikes as well as their effectiveness, in part because the fentanyl behind many fatal overdoses is typically trafficked to the U.S. over land from Mexico, where it is produced with chemicals imported from China and India.
The boat strikes also drew intense criticism following the revelation that the military killed survivors of the very first boat attack with a follow-up strike. The Trump administration and many Republican lawmakers said it was legal and necessary, while Democratic lawmakers and legal experts said the killings were murder, if not a war crime.
MARBLEHEAD — A panel of local immigration experts shared how people can push back against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, including donating to legal defense funds for immigrants or volunteering to accompany local immigrants to court hearings.
During a panel discussion on immigration enforcement Tuesday night, experts said people can also challenge local police departments’ use of security technology from companies such as Flock Security, which allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement to access license plate data collected by local law enforcement.
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A Fayetteville man is facing several
charges after deputies said he caused a fire at a store in Cumberland County.
Deputies were called at 11:39 p.m.
on Thursday to a reported fire at the Blue Sky Family Feed Store
on Sunnyside School Road. Deputies said 53-year-old Larry Ezella Baldwin was seen on
video pouring an ignitable fluid onto a pallet of firewood before leaving
the store.
Deputies said a fire started from the fluid.
Baldwin was arrested and now
faces several charges, including burn commercial structure-unoccupied, breaking
and entering and possession of drug paraphernalia.
He is being held in the Cumberland County
Detention Center on a $20,000 secured bond.
The investigation is still ongoing.
Deputies said anyone with information is asked to call the Fire Investigation
Unit Detective J. Morge at (910) 677-5573.
Anonymous tips can also be submitted
to the Fayetteville/Cumberland County Crimestoppers at (910) 483-TIPS (8477),
online or by downloading the free “P3 Tips” app available for Apple devices in
the Apple App Store and Android devices in Google Play.
The former Prince Andrew was arrested and held for hours by British police on suspicion of misconduct in public office related to his links to Jeffrey Epstein. The arrest Thursday was an extraordinary move in a country where authorities once…
Lee County deputies arrested a man accused of crimes associated with the criminal gang MS-13 on Wednesday.
According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, deputies and the State Highway Patrol were called to a crash with injuries in the southern portion of Lee County on U.S. Highway 1.
When law enforcement arrived, they tried to talk with one of the drivers involved in the crash.
He allegedly gave five different variations of his name to authorities. After they were unable to track down any of the provided names, matching the date of birth provided, deputies arrested the man for further investigation.
Initially unable to verify his identity, deputies charged him under the alias “Juan Doe” with resisting, delaying and obstructing an officer and identity theft.
A fingerprint scan identified the man as 30-year-old Jonathon Josue Ayala Melendez of El Salvador.
LCSO contacted U.S. Homeland Security Investigations agents, who then contacted FBI agents, who confirmed that Ayala Melendez is wanted for kidnapping, drug trafficking, homicide and attempted homicide charges in El Salvador.
FBI agents said Ayala Melendez is a transnational member of MS-13 (Mara Salvatrucha 13).
U.S. authorities had been searching for Ayala Melendez for some time, according to LCSO’s press release.
Ayala Melendez remains in the custody of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office without bond and has an immigration detainer, issued by the Department of Homeland Security.
SANTIAGO, Feb 19 (Reuters) – Chilean authorities on Thursday raided the homes of two recently dismissed executives of state copper miner Codelco as they continue their investigation into a deadly collapse at the El Teniente mine last year.
Officials during the searches seized digital equipment from ex-Chief Operations Officer Mauricio Barraza and former mine manager Claudio Sougarret, Chile’s prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
Codelco facilities were also searched, with some equipment voluntarily handed over by the company. Codelco declined to comment.
Authorities added that items belonging to Rodrigo Andrades, former El Teniente projects manager, had been seized in October.
The three executives were removed from their jobs last week after an internal audit found inconsistencies tied to a 2023 rock explosion at El Teniente, including in Codelco’s following reports to mining regulator Sernageomin.
Sernageomin said earlier this week it would file formal complaints to authorities.
Last year, the same mine was the site of a collapse that killed six people.
(Reporting by Kylie Madry and Fabian Cambero; Editing by Daina Beth Solomon)
As of February 18, the Guthrie family has been cleared of suspicion for their matriarch’s kidnapping. The FBI conducted a SWAT raid on a home February 13, detaining two people but arresting no one. There is a physical description of one suspect, obtained through home-surveillance footage, but no name has been attached.
Below, everything we can confirm about the disappearance and search for Nancy so far.
Guthrie was last seen the evening of Saturday, January 31, when she ate dinner at her daughter Annie’s Tucson home. Annie’s husband, Tommaso Cioni, dropped Nancy off at her house around 9:45 p.m. local time and says he made sure she made it inside safely before driving away.
When Nancy didn’t show up to her regular church service on Sunday, February 1, friends notified the Guthrie family, who went to her home to see if something was wrong. They discovered her belongings — including a wallet, phone, and daily medications — were there, but she was not. The family called 911, and after an initial investigation, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department determined this was a criminal case, not a situation involving a senior citizen who had willingly left or wandered off.
On February 16, Pima County sheriff Chris Nanos officially cleared the Guthrie family. “The family has been nothing but cooperative and gracious and are victims in this case,” he wrote. He’d previously told Arizona’s KTVK-TV, on February 13, that no one had been ruled out as a suspect, even the Guthries. “Everybody — particularly the Guthrie family, but everybody — has been very cooperative with us,” he said, but also “Nobody’s cleared.”
A DoorDash driver, who identified himself as Carlos Palazuelos, told Telemundo on Wednesday, February 11, that he was detained by law enforcement for questioning, then ultimately let go. He said that his Rio Rico house was searched with a warrant, during which both his front and back doors were damaged. Palazuelos said that, though he works as a delivery driver, he does not remember ever delivering anything to Nancy’s house.
On February 12, the FBI released a physical description of one suspect. Based on security camera footage, the suspect is thought to be a male between five-foot-nine and five-foot-ten, per the BBC.
On February 13, PCSD revealed it had found DNA at Nancy Guthrie’s home that does not belong to her or those in close contact with her. Police would not disclose anything else about the DNA or where exactly it was found. Police also said several gloves were found, with the closest being two miles from Guthrie’s home. No gloves were found on the property.
The FBI and PCSD worked with “private partners” to unearth photos from Nancy’s front-door camera, which they released on February 10, including via a tweet by FBI director Kash Patel. The images show an armed masked individual tampering with Nancy’s front-door camera on the same day that she went missing.
Clockwise from top left: Photo: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s Department
Clockwise from top left: Photo: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: P… Clockwise from top left: Photo: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s DepartmentPhoto: Pima County Sheriff’s Department
The PCSD arrived at Nancy’s home around noon on February 2 and discovered evidence that, according to Sheriff Chris Nanos, gave officers “grave concern.” This included red splatter on her front doorstep, signs of forced entry, and a missing doorbell camera. Homicide detectives were called in because of “what the scene was telling us,” according to Nanos. “It’s not standard. Typically, our homicide team comes out when he have a homicide, a body,” he said at a Sunday briefing. “She did not leave on her own; we know that.”
DNA testing later confirmed that the red splatter was Nancy’s blood. Investigators also learned that the missing camera was disconnected at 1:47 a.m. and that her security system had a “person on camera” alert at 2:12 a.m. At a February 5 press conference, Nanos said that Nancy’s cameras were not connected to a subscription service and there was no recording of the detected movement, which authorities said could have come from an animal and not necessarily a person. An external company’s efforts to recover the footage were unsuccessful, and PCSD is exploring other methods to extract any information from the software.
The immediate worries for Nancy’s safety include fears about her health. Her pacemaker disconnected from her Apple Watch and iPhone at 2:28 a.m., just after her security system detected movement. A cardiologist interviewed by the New York Postsaid the likely cause of the disconnection was Nancy being physically taken out of range of her devices and that the disconnect does not necessarily indicate anything medically worrisome occurred.
Law enforcement said Nancy is in good cognitive health but cannot walk more than 50 yards on her own and takes daily medication for unspecified pain and cardiac issues. Beyond the complications that the stress of the situation could have on her heart, the interruption in her medication regimen could be serious. Pharmacies in the area are on alert for anyone suspicious picking up the medicines she needs.
Savannah Guthrie didn’t appear on the Today show on February 2, with fellow anchor Craig Melvin reading a statement in her absence: “On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers, and messages of support. Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom. We thank law enforcement for their hard work on this case and encourage anyone with information to contact the Pima County Sheriff’s Department at 520-351-4900.”
Today co-hosts Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones shared the statement again during the third hour of the show, with Bush Hager reminding viewers that Nancy urgently needs her medications. It was later announced that Savannah would no longer be covering the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina.
On February 4, Savannah and her elder siblings, Annie and Camron, posted a video to Instagram, tearfully pleading for information about the whereabouts of their mother, whose husband, Charles, died in 1988. “Our mother is a kind, loyal, fiercely loving woman of goodness and light,” Savannah read from a statement. “We, too, have heard the reports about a possible ransom letter in the media. As a family, we are doing everything that we can. We are ready to talk. However, we live in a world where voices and images are easily manipulated. We need to know without a doubt that she is alive and that you have her. We want to hear from you and we are ready to listen.” The FBI provided “expertise” ahead of the video, but the Pima County sheriff was not made aware of it until his wife showed him the video on social media.
Later that day, President Trump called Savannah to offer support from federal law enforcement, a day after the White House encouraged anyone with information to come forward in an official post on X. Around 400 people from the Tucson area attended a candlelight prayer vigil at St. Philip’s in the Hills Episcopal Church to offer support for the Guthries, who did not attend.
On February 15, Savannah Guthrie posted another direct plea to her mother’s kidnappers on Instagram. “It’s been two weeks since our mom was taken, and I just wanted to come on and say that we still have hope,” she said. “I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is, it’s never too late. And you’re not lost, or alone. And it is never too late to do the right thing. And we are here. We believe. And we believe in the essential goodness of every human being. And it’s never too late.”
On February 3, TMZ and local news stations received ransom letters via e-mail from a purported kidnapper, asking for millions of dollars in bitcoin for Nancy’s safe return. The note allegedly included two deadlines for the payment — 5 p.m. on February 5 and 5 p.m. on February 9 — but did not specify a time zone. Law enforcement has not provided any more details, and no developments were publicly announced after the first deadline passed.
At 5 p.m. on February 5, Camron Guthrie released another statement via Savannah’s Instagram account, saying, “Whoever is out there holding our mother, we want to hear from you. We haven’t heard anything directly. We need you to reach out and we need a way to communicate with you so we can move forward. But first we have to know that you have our mom. We want to talk to you, and we are waiting for contact.”
Authorities haven’t revealed any specifics of the letter, but TMZ founder Harvey Levin told CNN the letter contained credible details about Nancy’s Apple watch and a floodlight on her property. Levin added that the author of the note took care to not reveal any identifying information but said Nancy is “okay but scared.” Without elaborating, Levin called the February 9 deadline “far more consequential.”
Also on February 5, the FBI arrested 42-year-old Derrick Callella of Hawthorne, California, for sending ransom text messages to the Guthrie family. FBI Phoenix special agent in charge Heith Janke said this “impostor ransom demand” was unrelated to the letters sent to the media. Callella allegedly sent the texts using an app that created a fake phone number for him, and authorities were able to trace it back to an email address he used. According to a DoJ press release, Callella is facing charges of “transmitting a demand for ransom in interstate commerce, and without disclosing his identity, utilizing a telecommunications device with the intent to abuse, threaten, or harass a person.”
On February 7, Savannah Guthrie released a video stating that the family would “pay” for the safe return of their mother. In the video, she is seated on a couch next to her brother, Camron, and sister, Annie. “We received your message and we understand,” Savannah Guthrie said. “We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace.”
It is unclear which ransom note Guthrie is directing her plea to. There have been three news outlets contacted with possible ransoms, and the video did not directly address any one in particular.
On Sunday, February 8, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said it was securing Nancy Guthrie’s residence. This came a day after police were seen searching the home. They were seen searching the septic tank on Saturday, per “Page Six.” According to Variety, PCSD will “maintain a presence at Nancy Guthrie’s residence for security” at the request of the family.
The FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said on Friday, February 6, that they were aware of a new message from the alleged kidnappers and that they were verifying its authenticity.
As of the press conference on February 5, PCSD and the FBI do not have any suspects or persons of interest in the disappearance. An Uber driver who dropped Nancy off at her daughter’s home for dinner was interviewed and cleared of suspicion. Several issues have hampered the investigation, including a lack of surveillance footage from neighbors’ security systems and the harsh outdoor conditions search parties could face in the Catalina Foothills area where Nancy lives. Per AZ Central, her neighborhood is close to both the sprawling desert and the Santa Catalina Mountains, so the ground and air-rescue teams are dealing with “uneven topography, limited visibility, and temperature changes” with nighttime temperatures in the upper 30s and low 40s.
The FBI also announced it is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to Nancy’s return. “If those that may have Nancy are watching this, the family is ready to talk, get proof of life, because there has been no contact after that ransom note went to the media,” Janke said at the briefing.
On CNN, James Gagliano, a retired FBI supervisory special agent with experience in hostage negotiations, said the family’s video pleas indicate “they have not received any other reach-outs and they’re basically in the dark right now, so that’s what makes this such a tough case from the motivation perspective. Was it revenge or was it for profit? I think investigators have reached a dead end, and that’s why the sheriff of Pima County is basically saying they’re going to start putting up literal physical billboards to try to crowdsource this and get more people to come forward with information.”
“Right now, we believe Nancy is still out there,” Nanos said at the Thursday press conference. “We want her home.”
The FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department are still asking anyone with tips to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
A Colorado medical device company admitted to orchestrating an elaborate health care fraud scheme that resulted in the overbilling of patients and insurers by hundreds of millions of dollars.
Zynex Inc., an Englewood-based firm that manufactures and sells medical devices used for pain management and rehabilitation, entered into an agreement Tuesday with the U.S. Department of Justice to avoid prosecution.
The company, as part of the deal, agreed to pay between $5 million and $12.5 million in penalties — the final tally will depend on its earnings and profit during the settlement period — and will forfeit millions of dollars in unpaid claims.
Zynex admitted to participating in a conspiracy to commit health care fraud, securities fraud, mail fraud and other violations, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island announced in a news release.
Zynex, in its deal with the government, also admitted to collecting more than $873 million for its products, including more than $600 million for supplies, “the vast majority of which were the result of fraud,” investigators said.
The company acknowledged that it shipped and billed for medically unnecessary supplies in excess quantities and misled investors who were unaware of the fraudulent billing practices.
Zynex agreed to implement enhanced compliance and corporate governance reforms “designed to prevent future misconduct,” the DOJ said, and will cooperate with the government’s ongoing investigations.
“This resolution addresses the seriousness of the fraud committed by Zynex while recognizing the substantial turnaround in conduct implemented under new management,” U.S. Attorney Charles C. Calenda said in the news release.
The company, in a subsequent news release, said the resolution “represents the fulfillment of the commitments we made as a new management team when we arrived in August 2025: to break from the past, rebuild the company as compliant-by-design and create a new future for the company, its customers and employees.”
Zynex leaders say they have completely overhauled their billing and supply replenishment practices, and enacted new marketing policies to ensure the company remains compliant with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Durham Mayor Leonardo Williams told WRAL News he is
putting plans in action this week to address the issue.
“I am working on pulling together an emergency
task force that can help mitigate the engagement of non-profits in our
community,” Williams said. “Crime is overall going down, I want to highlight
that, but our youth violence is out of control.”
Williams argued the priority for everyone,
including elected officials and community members, should be the issue of
crime.
“We have fare free busing. We have HEART. We have
our CIP. we have Vision Zero for transit; why can’t we have a Vision Zero for
our youth from killing each other? Why can’t we have more youth centers
downtown?” Williams said. “If we’re going to shoot down anything that
involves the police, we’re not going to keep people safe.”
Williams said community members who want to be involved
to attend community sessions for the joint City County Comprehensive Violence
Reduction Plan. He also encouraged people already working with youth to keep up
their endeavors.
“If you have an idea, go do it. Don’t come to the
city for funding yet, because we operate on a fiscal year. I say to our
corporate community, find a non-profit and invest in them,” Williams said.
“I do think they [the programs] should come back, but we’re going
to have to let the data tell us that,” Williams said. “What resources we
have are going to be data led.”
When it comes
to that long-term plan, the next community session you can participate in is
virtual, on Feb. 24. There are two more in-person meetings
scheduled for March 13 and March 20.
MARBLEHEAD — A panel of local immigration experts shared ways people can push back against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, including donating to legal defense funds for immigrants or volunteering to accompany local immigrants to court hearings.
During a panel discussion on immigration enforcement Tuesday night, experts said citizens can also challenge local police departments’ use of security technology from companies like Flock Security, which allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement to access license plate data collected by local law enforcement.
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