The stage is now set in Virginia for the most important down-ballot election of 2023 -- a battle for control of the split legislature that will offer an important window into the mood of swing-state voters as next year's presidential race kicks off.

Dodging papers but serving jokes!

A New Jersey con man who was pardoned by former President Donald Trump has been arrested and is accused of defrauding investors out of millions of dollars. Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein was charged alongside four others with a number of crimes, including conspiring to defraud investors of more than $35m and conspiracy to obstruct justice, according to a statement from the office of the US attorney for New Jersey. Each of the five defendants was charged with one count of wire fraud conspiracy and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice. Mr Weinstein was given a 24-year federal prison sentence after being convicted of two separate investment fraud schemes — one that ran from 2004 through 2011, the other from 2012 through 2013 — across both of which he defrauded investors of roughly $230m, according to a court document. On 19 January, 2021, after Mr Weinstein had served less than eight of the 24 years, Mr Trump pardoned him. Shortly after his release from prison, Mr Weinstein started up a new scheme, the statement said. “We allege Mr. Weinstein took part in a new scheme to rip off investors by hiding his real identity,” Special Agent in Charge James E Dennehy of the Newark FBI said. Mr Weinstein allegedly used the alias “Mike Konig” in this new scheme outlined by the FBI. Mr Weinstein allegedly said in a “surreptitious audio” obtained by investigators August 2022: “We collectively did not tell everyone who I was, no one would ever give you a penny if they knew who I was . . . because I have a bad reputation.” He worked with four others, the court document states: Aryeh “Ari” Bromberg , Joel Wittels, Shlomo Erez, and Alaa Hattab. The men were accused of taking “tens of millions of dollars from investors” through the firm Optimus Investments Inc. Most of these investors were “family, friends, or close associates,” the document said. Mr Weinstein, Mr Bromberg, and Mr Wittels received a large portion of the money through Tryon Management Group LLC — another company that was owned and operated “by two other conspirators” — which promised investors opportunities to invest in deals involving Covid-19 face masks, “scarce baby formula,” and first-aid kits “bound for Ukraine,” according to the statement. However, unable to pay the investors with legitimate investment returns, the men decided to combine the funds from both Optimus and Tryon investors and “use it to make monthly payments to other investors in a Ponzi-like fashion” starting in February 2022, the document states. “Once the Tryon owners learned that Mike Konig was actually Weinstein, they agreed with the defendants to continue concealing Weinstein’s identity from investors and to raise additional money to pay off existing Tryon investors, all in an effort to stop the Ponzi scheme from falling apart and to cover up the fraud,” the statement said. The men are also charged with obstructing justice after allegedly “hiding Mr Weinstein’s assets” — $200m in restitution — owed to his previous victims, as well as allegedly “concealing his myriad business activities, which were expressly prohibited by the terms of his supervised release,” according to the court document. If convicted on both charges, each of the five men face a maximum of 25 years in prison and fines of “either $250,000 or twice the gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greatest,” according to the statement. On top of this, the Securities and Exchange Commission also filed a civil complaint against the men and two other individuals “based on the same and additional conduct,” the statement said. Mr Weinstein was one of the 143 people pardoned by former President Trump in the final hours of his term. Read More Donald Trump is the first former president arrested on federal charges. Can he still run in 2024? An inmate was pardoned by Oregon’s governor. Two years on he’s a person of interest in four suspicious deaths Egypt pardons jailed activists, including two prominent rights defenders, official reports say

The bullet was still lodged in Douglas Kalasinga’s head as he lay in the morgue

A Texas Christian University student was shot and killed outside a bar in Fort Worth by a man who admitted to the act, but couldn't provide a clear reason why, according to a police affidavit.

Authorities in the Dominican Republic are fanning out across the Caribbean country to evaluate the damage that Tropical Storm Franklin inflicted on crops and homes after causing heavy flooding that killed at least two people and left one missing

West Ham United players and staff will be recovering from the joy of winning their first major trophy for 43 years after beating Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final in what proved to be a dramatic night on and off the pitch in Prague. Jarrod Bowen’s 89th-minute goal gave the Hammers the most memorable of 2-1 wins, with celebrity supporters such as James Corden and Danny Dyer – whose daughter Dani is Bowen’s partner – celebrating the triumph. However, the match had earlier been marred when West Ham fans pelted Fiorentina captain Cristiano Biraghi with objects as he went to take a corner in the first half and left him bleeding from a gash in the back of his head. Hammers supporters then later clashed with riot police in Prague after setting off flares in celebration of victory, as a scuffle broke out after police officers tried to confiscate a lit flare in the Old Town area of the city. Riot police stormed a group after they lit a second flare, with fans responding by pelting the officers with bottles and missiles. Earlier in the day, Czech police said they had detained at least 16 Fiorentina fans after they attacked West Ham supporters outside a bar, with videos shared on social media showing chairs and fireworks being thrown. Follow all the latest news and reaction from West Ham’s European adventure below: Read More West Ham fans fight riot police in Prague after Europa Conference League win West Ham end trophy drought in most dramatic style as Jarrod Bowen plays the hero West Ham fans leave Fiorentina player bleeding after being hit by objects thrown from crowd

Barcelona footballer Joao Cancelo lit up social media after his most recent post-match interview – and not necessarily for the right reasons. The defender scored a dramatic late winner on Sunday against Celta Vigo, recording a player-of-the-match performance for his Catalan team. After full-time, Cancelo, 29, was modest about his performance, mentioning that he made “many technical errors that are not normal in my game”. “I had to improve and turn things around,” he told reporters. “I tried to give everything until the end and we were able to come back and to win is the most important thing. “If I perform, the club will love me. If not, they will kick me out.” However, rather than focus on his exceptional performance, many viewers were more fixated on his facial expressions during the interview. Here’s the footage: One person commented: “I’m convinced he's a vampire fighting the urge to eat that journalist.” Another wrote: “At first I thought this was a Snapchat filter.” While Cancelo quickly returned to normal after pulling the face, there was something rather bloodthirsty about it. Another person commented simply: “I’ve seen him in my nightmares.” The 29-year-old joined Barcelona on a season-long loan from Manchester City. Aside from the bizarre interview, he looks to have secured a place in Catalan hearts after the winner. Barcelona went down in the match, but managed to score one back through striker Robert Lewandowski. Then, with just one minute of normal time left, the Portuguese player sent the home crowd wild by finishing a second chance. Manager Xavi said: “We didn't play well (but) came up with the epic, showing winning character. “I think this generation fights until the end. What happened today is a tremendous turning point of winning character, we didn't play well but it's about character, faith, the epic.” Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Gerardo 'Tata' Martino reacts to Lionel Messi's starring performance as Inter Miami beat FC Dallas in the Leagues Cup.

With the threat of an unprecedented US debt crisis receding fast, the global economy looks to have dodged a huge shock. But there are still plenty of storm clouds darkening the outlook.

The war in Ukraine and its visiting president take center stage at the United Nations this week

Tensions between Canada and India have reached new heights with dueling diplomatic expulsions and an allegation of Indian government involvement in the killing of a Sikh activist on Canadian soil