Swiatek ready to play 'wherever WTA decides' in Saudi link
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2023-07-01 20:18
Oklahoma prosecutor and sheriff at odds over BTK serial killer link to cold case
A sheriff’s office in Oklahoma said self-proclaimed BTK serial killer Dennis Rader is a “prime suspect” in Cynthia Dawn Kinney’s 1976 disappearance, but the local district attorney now says there’s not enough information despite recently requesting a formal investigation on the case. District Attorney Mike Fisher said during a press conference on Monday he’s not at a point where he could file charges against Rader, who is currently behind bars for the murders of 10 people between the 1970s and the 1990s. But Mr Fisher had asked the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation to open a formal investigation into Ms Kinney’s disappearance because of the public interest in the revived cold case, and he will file charges if he learns of evidence that would warrant it, he said. Osage County Sheriff Eddie Virden fired back at the DA in his own press conference the following day, saying that he was “absolutely furious” at the comments regarding the case. “District Attorney Fisher attempted to derail the investigation by contacting the prison where Dennis Rader is held in an attempt to halt further interviews between Dennis Rader and our Investigators,” the agency said in a release. He said the DA’s comments were based on incomplete information and did not accurately represent the OCSO’s efforts or the progress that has been made. The sheriff also revealed that while he was in an interview with Rader on Monday afternoon, the convicted killer told him, “guess I’m cleared,” according to what he heard from the DA on the news that officials “don’t have anything.” Sheriff Virden said the matter will be addressed in the proper channels. He added that they have numerous leads they will keep pursuing. “We’ll continue to push for justice, honest and true,” he said. “We have something behind us and that’s the honest truth.” Rader, now 78, gave himself the nickname BTK — for “bind, torture and kill,” played a cat-and-mouse game with investigators and reporters for decades before he was caught in 2005. He ultimately confessed to 10 killings in the Wichita, Kansas, area, about 90 miles (144.84 kilometers) north of Pawhuska. He is imprisoned for 10 consecutive life terms. Last month, Rader was named the prime suspect in the 1976 disappearance of 16-year-old Cynthia Dawn Kinney in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, and in the 1990 murder of 22-year-old Shawna Beth Garber in McDonald County, Missouri. Ms Kinney was last seen at a laundromat. A bank was installing new alarms across the street from that laundromat, Osage County Sheriff Eddie Virden has said. Rader was a regional installer for security system company ADT at the time, but Virden wasn’t able to confirm that Rader installed the bank’s systems. Sheriff Virden told KAKE-TV he decided to investigate when he learned that Rader had included the phrase “bad laundry day” in his writings. DA Fisher said he sat in on interviews that Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma investigators conducted with Rader about 90 days ago, but the sheriff has not shared any physical evidence with the DA’s office. On Monday, the DA called the information he has received so far “rumours because they’ve not been substantiated yet.” And he said he hadn’t seen anything “that at this point arises to the level of even reasonable suspicion.” He said he had seen things that gave him “pause and concern” about the sheriff’s department, including the way they handled a dig for evidence at Rader’s former property in Park City, Kansas, last month. And he called his relationship with the sheriff “broken.” “I’m not trying to create a conflict with the sheriff of Osage County,” he said. “But, there are certain ways to investigate a case, and I’m concerned that those proper investigative techniques have not been used. That’s why I asked the OSBI to assist.” The prosecutor said he was also concerned for Kinney’s parents, with whom he met for about two hours on Friday. He said they are both in their 80s, and the renewed speculation has taken a physical toll on them. “Cynthia went missing 47 years ago. They’ve got no answers,” Mr Fisher said. “We have reason to believe that it may have been a homicide. We can’t say that with any absolute certainty, but we’ve seen nothing to suggest otherwise as there’s been no contact with Cynthia Dawn since 1976, since her disappearance.” Hours after the DA said there was insufficient information to pursue charges against serial killer, the sheriff announced a National BTK Task Force to provide assistance in the cold case of Ms Kinney. The team includes several renowned experts in the field, including several agencies, Nancy Grace, Former Prosecutor & Media Personality, Sheryl “Mac” McCollum, Task Force Coordinator and CSI, Paul Holes, Cold Case Investigator and Rader’s own daughter Kerri Rawson who has been assisting investigators with the case. Last month, the Osage County Sheriff’s Office released never-before-seen drawings from the killer they believe may hold the key to solving a missing persons case and several homicides. The chilling images depict three different women who are bound and gagged in what appear to be barns, which investigators believe could be in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri. Hundreds of Rader’s drawings and writings were recovered after his arrest in 2005, but Sheriff Virden says the images may confirm more crimes were committed. Law enforcement also recently dug up Rader’s former family residence, and reportedly found a “pantyhose ligature”. Rader is currently incarcerated at the El Dorado Correctional Facility in Kansas. Read More Woman bound and gagged in BTK serial killer’s drawing has potentially been identified BTK serial killer’s chilling drawings released amid search for new victims The BTK killer’s need for notoriety led to his capture a decade ago. He’s now a ‘prime suspect’ in at least two other murders
2023-09-13 05:47
Victor Wembanyama ‘expected’ to work with Spurs legend in early career
Victor Wembanyama is expected to be selected by the San Antonio Spurs, and he is expected to be taken under the wing of a team legend.Throughout the 2022-23 season, NBA fans took note of which teams were not performing to expectations. Why's that? Well, that would increase their chances of ...
2023-05-21 05:15
St. Louis City rolls to 3-1 victory over Whitecaps
St. Louis City got an early goal from Eduard Löwen, a late goal from Miguel Perez and an own-goal from Tristan Blackmon in between en route to a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps
2023-05-28 11:52
Football transfer rumours: Why Man Utd avoided Martinez; Liverpool eye young Brazilian defender
Sunday's transfer rumours, including updates on Emiliano Martinez, Lucas Beraldo, Andre Onana, Julian Brandt and more.
2023-11-12 17:23
Ferrari finally find their chief strategist – and it’s Carlos Sainz
The twitchiness on the Ferrari pit wall was palpable. With five laps to go at the end of Sunday’s thrilling Singapore Grand Prix, less than two seconds separated race leader Carlos Sainz in first to Lewis Hamilton in fourth. McLaren’s Lando Norris in second was closing in, within the critical one-second DRS range. The warning from Sainz’s race engineer Riccardo Adami was quick: “Lando, 0.8 (seconds) behind with DRS.” But the Spaniard was a step ahead, deploying a meticulous balancing act which ultimately secured his second Formula 1 victory. “Yeah, it’s on purpose,” he replied. At which point it all made sense. For a team chasing its first victory in over a year, often maligned for their clangers in the strategy department, all it took was a clear sense of thought and direction from the driver in the cockpit. Sainz was not overly concerned with Norris’ pace behind him. On the contrary, the double threat posed by Mercedes’ George Russell and Hamilton, lapping over a second-a-lap quicker on fresh tyres in third and fourth, was the main focus of his thinking. What a fine balancing act it was. Keep Norris close enough behind him – one-second – to give him a crucial speed boost on the straights to defend from Russell, but not so close that Norris himself could make a move for the top spot. In the end, it was a masterstroke which worked to perfection. “I knew more or less my pace versus Lando and how difficult it is to overtake here,” Sainz explained afterwards. “I knew he was on a hard and if George and Lewis were going to overtake, I would be dead meat also. So I needed him to hold on for as long as possible. “A couple of laps I was 1.2 or 1.3 seconds ahead of Lando so I slowed down a bit to give him DRS into turn seven, which was just enough for him to hold onto them and keep my race under control. Not easy, because you are putting yourself under risk and you cannot do any mistakes, but it was my strategy and it worked.” Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur, beaming after securing his first win at the helm of the Scuderia, confirmed the ploy was Sainz’s idea. “He knew he was more at risk with Mercedes than with Norris,” the Frenchman said. “With Norris we had the same tyres and almost the same pace from the lap one. We were not really at risk with Norris except if we lost the tyres, so it was a clever move from Carlos to keep Norris into the DRS.” It was fitting that Norris was the beneficiary, too. Sainz and the Brit were team-mates at McLaren for two years and are still close friends. Norris admitted that the DRS-boost was “very generous” and despite finishing 0.812 seconds behind first place, was delighted with a ninth career podium. Still, that first win continues to elude him. As for Russell? The desire, bordering on desperation, to win in the end was his undoing. A light tip with the wall derailed his Mercedes on the final lap, slamming into the wall. It was a harsh, dramatic conclusion to the 62-lap, high-humidity race for the Brit, with Hamilton instead taking the final podium spot. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff insisted post-race that it would be an “arm round the shoulder” approach rather than any in-depth post-mortem. Quite right too, given Russell’s bold approach almost gave him a brilliant come-from-behind victory. But more so than Russell’s mistake and Sainz’s mastery, what Sunday really showed us – quite depressingly in a way – is what this season could have looked like. With Red Bull startlingly out of the picture – impacted by a lack of tyre grip and car balance on a notorious outlier of a circuit on the F1 calendar – the ensuing battle between Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes was enthralling to watch. The battle behind the No 1 team has been tight all year. Only this time, it was for first place. The Marina Bay Street Circuit spelled the end of Max Verstappen’s win streak and talk of an unprecedented perfect season for Red Bull. The flying Dutchman, who finished fifth after starting in 11th, can now not clinch his third world title in Japan this weekend, with his crowning moment likely to come a fortnight later in Qatar. Yet a return to a typical circuit at Suzuka will likely see Christian Horner’s team return to the top. Ferrari’s pace uptake in the last two races, having taken pole in Monza two weeks ago too, has undoubtedly created a sense of intrigue, a spark of something different in a season of Red Bull domination. Moving forward, though, there is plenty to learn and maintain for Ferrari after Sainz’s supreme Sunday drive. No more should chaos reign in the strategy department. No more should “Plans A-F” be bawled out over team radio, confusing drivers and spectators alike. No more should Sainz and Charles Leclerc sit idly by while choices on the pit wall dampen their aspirations. Sometimes it’s best to keep things simple – and leave the in-race decisions to the men behind the wheel. The team’s hunt for chief strategists was easier than they thought. Read More Carlos Sainz holds on for thrilling victory in Singapore as Red Bull winning run ends George Russell despondent after last-lap crash in Singapore Max Verstappen makes prediction for Japan after his winning run ends F1 Singapore Grand Prix LIVE: Race updates and times at Marina Bay Lance Stroll cleared to race in Singapore after high-speed qualifying crash F1 Juniors broadcast an admirable idea – but all kids want to be is grown up
2023-09-18 19:53
Venice entry fee will start next year
After talking about an entrance fee for several years, the Venetian authorities have now confirmed that a pilot project charging day-trippers will begin in spring 2024. Visitors will pay 5 euros to enter the city on busy days.
2023-09-06 21:47
US on track for June 1 default without debt ceiling hike, Treasury says
By David Lawder, Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Treasury Department reiterated Monday it expects to be able to pay
2023-05-16 15:48
Gannett tiptoes into generative AI, giving humans the last word
By Helen Coster NEW YORK Publisher Gannett plans to include generative artificial intelligence in the system it uses
2023-06-16 18:24
De Groot secures 11th straight Grand Slam title by winning the women's wheelchair final at Wimbledon
Diede De Groot won her 11th consecutive Grand Slam title by beating doubles partner Jiske Griffioen 6-2, 6-1 in the women’s wheelchair singles final at Wimbledon
2023-07-15 22:29
Surprise! Drake announces new album Scary Hours 3 is dropping at midnight
Drake is set to release 'Scary Hours 3' at midnight.
2023-11-16 19:47
'Fox & Friends' host Will Cain's Twitter poll comparing support for Ukraine and Maui wildfires aid splits internet
Will Cain criticized the government for the relief funds they provided for the Maui catastrophe, pointing out that Ukraine received much more
2023-08-18 15:23
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