List of All Articles with Tag 'rica'

A Florida school teacher was killed in an apparent murder-suicide with her 10-month-old baby discovered crying and unharmed in a crib. Amanda Hicks, 26, was found stabbed to death on 27 May after police went to an apartment in Port St Lucie to carry out a welfare check that had been requested by the family of an adult male. Port St Lucie police say that when officers arrived at the home in Peacock Run Apartments they could hear the infant crying inside and when they entered discovered Hicks and the male - later identified as Hicks’ fiancé, dead on the floor from a gunshot wound. The baby was removed from the property and placed with a family member. Investigators said in a statement that Hicks “was killed by an adult male who then took his own life.” Police say that Hicks and the unidentified 25-year-old were “romantically involved.” Port St Lucie Police Sgt John Dellacroce told Fox News Digital that the man had repeatedly called a family member who didn’t pick up the phone - with the final call taking place at 11.50pm. About an hour later, the sound of a gunshot was captured on surveillance video. “His family member didn’t answer the phone and saw all these missed calls the next morning and tried to call him back but couldn’t get a hold of him,” Mr Dellacroce said. He said the relative called police to request a welfare check as soon as they say the missed calls the next morning. Hicks was a sixth-grade reading teacher at Dr David L Anderson Middle School in Martin County, school officials confirmed. In a message sent to parents and staff, school principal Darcia Borel said that Hick’s death was a tragedy. “It is with great sadness that we write to inform you about the tragic passing of one of our teachers, Ms Amanda Hicks,” Ms Borel wrote. “The Port St Lucie Police Department has confirmed that Ms Hicks was the victim of a homicide. While words will never be enough to convey the shock and sadness this news has brought to our school family, it is more important than ever to come together to support one another through our grief journey.” Read More Tourists flee Florida beach in terror as gunshots ring out in harrowing video of Hollywood shooting Hollywood beach shooting – live: Photos show suspects on the run after nine shot on Florida boardwalk A sunny Memorial Day at the beach upended by gunfire: What we know about the shooting in Hollywood, Florida

By Wendell Roelf CAPE TOWN BRICS foreign ministers on Thursday asserted their bloc's ambition to rival Western powers

Ghana’s pension funds are close to agreeing to a deal to restructure $2.6 billion worth of government bonds

A suspected “serial killer” and convicted child rapist was arrested in Austin, Texas, days after he identified himself in a chilling phone call to police. Austin Police Department and Texas’ Lone Star Fugitive Task Force apprehended Raul Meza Jr, 62, at bus stop near Parmer Lane on 29 May, days after he confessed to killing his 80-year-old roommate Jesse Fraga in Pflugerville last month. During a 14-minute phone call, on 24 May, Meza also implicated himself in the 2019 murder of Gloria Lofton at her home in Austin. “My name is Raul Meza and you’re looking for me,” Meza said on the call, Detective Patrick Reed told a press conference on Tuesday 30 May. Meza then detailed his relationship with Fraga and the manner in which he murdered him, including details that had not been made public, Mr Reed said. Fraga’s body was discovered at his home with a belt around his neck on 20 May after the former probation officer’s family requested a welfare check over concerns they hadn’t spoken to him in over a week. Meza reportedly fled the scene with Fraga’s car. Austin Police Sergeant Nathan Sexton added that the Travis County medical examiner noted a puncture mark on Fraga’s neck and a severed cervical spine. Meza also told Mr Reed he had been in and out of prison, adding: “I got out in 2016, I end up murdering a lady soon afterwards. It was on Sara Drive.” Based on details provided by Meza as well as medical information, Mr Reed and his partner Detective Katy Conner identified Meza’s second victim as Lofton, who was strangled on 9 May 2019. “I will let you know that Mr Meza said he was ready and prepared to kill again and he was looking forward to it,” Mr Reed informed the press. After his arrest, Meza was charged with two counts of capital murder, but authorities said they are investigating his ties to “multiple cold cases that have a similar M.O. [modus operandi]”. In 1982, Meza pled guilty to the rape and murder of eight-year-old Kendra Page while she was riding her bike near Langford Elementary School. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison but was released on parole in 1993, after serving 11 years. During the press conference on Tuesday, Deputy US Marshall Brandon Filla described Meza as “the worst of the worst” while interim assistant city manager Bruce Mills said it was a “travesty of justice” Meza had been allowed back on the streets. In an interview with KVUE, Kendra’s sister Shawn Page reacted to the news of Meza’s arrest. Explaining how her family tried to keep Meza in prison, Shawn said: “To find out this has happened to so many other people, it’s a tragedy. My dad knew he was dangerous, and no one would listen to us.” Meza’s rap sheet dates back to 1975, when he robbed a convenience store in Austin with three other teenagers. Meza, 14 at the time, shot the store attendant Derly Ramirez, paralysing him. In 1976, he was reportedly sentenced to 20 years in jail for aggravated robbery before being released on parole in 1981. Meza is being held in Travis County Jail. If you have been raped or sexually assaulted, you can contact your nearest Rape Crisis organisation for specialist, independent and confidential support. For more information, visit their website here. Read More Cameron Robbins: Search called off for teen who ‘jumped off cruise ship as a dare’ Debt ceiling news – live: House votes to approve McCarthy-Biden deal as opposition collapses Iowa building collapse – live: Survivor lost leg in rescue as two others feared trapped in Davenport wreckage Jeffrey Epstein’s island: What really happened there? Trump news – live: Trump ‘caught on tape’ discussing classified papers, trashes DeSantis and Christie

By Carien du Plessis JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South Africa is mulling its options over an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant

In a bombshell development in the classified documents case against Donald Trump, a report by CNN says federal prosecutors have obtained an audio recording of a summer 2021 meeting in which the former president acknowledges he held onto a classified Pentagon document about a potential attack on Iran — potentially undercutting his argument that he declassified everything. The recording indicates Mr Trump understood he retained classified papers after leaving the White House and suggests he would like to share the information but is aware of limitations on his ability post-presidency to declassify records. The network cites multiple sources. Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is investigating the classified papers case, is also looking at the former president’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss. In a new development he is examining Mr Trump’s firing of cybersecurity official Christopher Krebs, whose office said the vote was secure, The New York Times reports. Mr Krebs was fired by Mr Trump shortly after the election. Meanwhile, as more Republican contenders join the party’s primary race, Mr Trump has promised a year-long celebration of America to mark 250 years of independence if he wins the presidency again. Read More Trump caught on tape discussing classified documents he kept after leaving White House, reports say Trump legal team asks for judge in hush-money case to be removed Trump accuses DeSantis of faking his own name in wave of attacking social media posts

HSBC Holdings Plc has added its name to the list of banks looking to expand into a fast-growing

South Africa’s president will send four of his cabinet ministers to Group of Seven nations to explain the

Veering away from a default crisis, the House overwhelmingly approved a debt ceiling and budget cuts package, sending the deal that President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy negotiated to the Senate for swift passage in a matter of days, before a fast-approaching deadline. The hard-fought compromise pleased few, but lawmakers assessed it was better than the alternative — a devastating economic upheaval if Congress failed to act. Tensions ran high as hard-right Republicans refused the deal, but Biden and McCarthy assembled a bipartisan coalition to push to passage on a robust 314-117 vote late Wednesday. “We did pretty dang good,” McCarthy, R-Calif., said afterward. Amid deep discontent from Republicans who said the spending restrictions did not go far enough, McCarthy said it is only a “first step." Biden, watching the tally from Colorado Springs where Thursday he is scheduled to deliver the commencement address at the U.S. Air Force Academy, phoned McCarthy and the other congressional leaders after the vote. In a statement, he called the outcome “good news for the American people and the American economy.” Washington is rushing after a long slog of debate to wrap up work on the package to ensure the government can keep paying its bills, and prevent financial upheaval at home and abroad. Next Monday is when the Treasury has said the U.S. would run short of money and risk a dangerous default. Biden had been calling lawmakers directly to shore up backing. McCarthy worked to sell skeptical fellow Republicans, even fending off challenges to his leadership, in the rush to avert a potentially disastrous U.S. default. A similar bipartisan effort from Democrats and Republicans will be needed in the Senate to overcome objections. Overall, the 99-page bill would make some inroads in curbing the nation’s deficits as Republicans demanded, without rolling back Trump-era tax breaks as Biden wanted. To pass it, Biden and McCarthy counted on support from the political center, a rarity in divided Washington. A compromise, the package restricts spending for the next two years, suspends the debt ceiling into January 2025 and changes some policies, including imposing new work requirements for older Americans receiving food aid and greenlighting an Appalachian natural gas line that many Democrats oppose. It bolsters funds for defense and veterans, and guts new money for Internal Revenue Service agents. Raising the nation's debt limit, now $31 trillion, ensures Treasury can borrow to pay already incurred U.S. debts. Top GOP deal negotiator Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana said Republicans were fighting for budget cuts after the past years of extra spending, first during the COVID-19 crisis and later with Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, with its historic investment to fight climate change paid for with revenues elsewhere. But Republican Rep. Chip Roy, a member of the Freedom Caucus helping to lead the opposition, said, “My beef is that you cut a deal that shouldn’t have been cut.” For weeks negotiators labored late into the night to strike the deal with the White House, and for days McCarthy has worked to build support among skeptics. At one point, aides wheeled in pizza at the Capitol the night before the vote as he walked Republicans through the details, fielded questions and encouraged them not to lose sight of the bill’s budget savings. The speaker has faced a tough crowd. Cheered on by conservative senators and outside groups, the hard-right House Freedom Caucus lambasted the compromise as falling well short of the needed spending cuts, and they vowed to try to halt passage. A much larger conservative faction, the Republican Study Committee, declined to take a position. Even rank-and-file centrist conservatives were unsure, leaving McCarthy searching for votes from his slim Republican majority. Ominously, the conservatives warned of possibly trying to oust McCarthy over the compromise. One influential Republican, former President Donald Trump, held his fire: "It is what it is,” he said of the deal in an interview with Iowa radio host Simon Conway. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said it was up to McCarthy to turn out Republican votes in the 435-member chamber, where 218 votes are needed for approval. As the tally faltered on an afternoon procedural vote, Jeffries stood silently and raised his green voting card, signaling that the Democrats would fill in the gap to ensure passage. They did, advancing the bill that hard-right Republicans, many from the Freedom Caucus, refused to back. “Once again, House Democrats to the rescue to avoid a dangerous default,” said Jeffries, D-N.Y. “What does that say about this extreme MAGA Republican majority?” he said about the party aligned with Trump’s ”Make America Great Again” political movement. Then, on the final vote hours later, Democrats again ensured passage, leading the tally as 71 Republicans bucked their majority and voted against it. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the spending restrictions in the package would reduce deficits by $1.5 trillion over the decade, a top goal for the Republicans trying to curb the debt load. In a surprise that complicated Republicans' support, however, the CBO said their drive to impose work requirements on older Americans receiving food stamps would end up boosting spending by $2.1 billion over the time period. That's because the final deal exempts veterans and homeless people, expanding the food stamp rolls by 78,000 people monthly, the CBO said. Liberal discontent, though, ran strong as nearly four dozen Democrats also broke away, decrying the new work requirements for older Americans, those 50-54, in the food aid program. Some Democrats were also incensed that the White House negotiated into the deal changes to the landmark National Environmental Policy Act and approval of the controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline natural gas project. The energy development is important to Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., but many others oppose it as unhelpful in fighting climate change. On Wall Street, stock prices were down Wednesday. In the Senate, Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell are working for passage by week's end. Schumer warned there is ”no room for error." Senators, who have remained largely on the sidelines during much of the negotiations, are insisting on amendments to reshape the package. But making any changes at this stage seemed unlikely with so little time to spare before Monday's deadline. ___ AP White House Correspondent Zeke Miller, AP writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Seung Min Kim and Jill Colvin and video journalist Nathan Ellgren contributed to this report. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Debt ceiling deal advances pipeline and tweaks environmental rules. But more work remains. Republicans get their IRS cuts; Democrats say they expect little near-term impact Progressives and conservatives complain as Biden-McCarthy debt deal passes

The BRICS group of emerging markets is ramping up its bid for greater global influence, sensing a moment

Marjorie Taylor Greene has claimed without providing evidence that the FBI actually knows the identity of a person who left two pipe bombs near the Capitol a day before the Jan 6 insurrection. Investigators said they have been left stumped in trying to identify a suspect who placed the explosive devices outside the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington DC. Despite offering a $500,000 reward, the FBI is no nearer to making an arrest in the case, but that has not stopped Ms Greene from suggesting they actually know who did it. The far-right lawmaker from Georgia made the outrageous claim on her Battleground podcast. “The FBI can’t find the pipe bomber? This is ridiculous! This shows you that the FBI doesn’t care about finding the pipe bomber because they know exactly who the pipe bomber is,” she said. “And they use their resources and your hard-earned tax dollars to go after people because they support Trump and were mad about the election of 2020 and these people walked into the Capitol.” In January, David Sundberg, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Washington field office, said that for two years “a dedicated team of FBI agents, analysts, and law enforcement partners have been tirelessly reviewing evidence and digital media related to this case”. The FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Washington police had “conducted approximately 1,000 interviews, visited more than 1,200 residences and businesses, collected more than 39,000 video files, and assessed nearly 500 tips”, according to the bureau. “In raising the reward for information about the pipe bomb suspect from $100,000 to as much as $500,000, the FBI and our partners are seeking to encourage the American public to take a fresh look at our Seeking Information website, which includes images and video of the suspect, the suspect’s backpack, the suspect’s shoes, the explosive devices, and a map of the route the suspect walked the night the pipe bombs were placed,” the FBI said. Read More Marjorie Taylor Greene faces waves of mocking laughter after asking House to follow ‘decorum’ Gavin Newsom mocks Marjorie Taylor Greene in spat over Target pulling Pride products: ‘Are you the space laser person?’

At least three people were killed, including two children, in the latest Russian missile assault on Kyiv, Mayor