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Judge rejects Connecticut troopers’ union request bar release of names in fake ticket probe, for now

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. (AP) — A judge has rejected a bid by the Connecticut State Police Union to temporarily keep secret the names of 130 state police troopers under investigation for allegedly recording bogus traffic stops, but says it will get another chance.The troopers are under investigation after an audit identified thousands of traffic stops that may have never happened, making it appear they were stopping and citing more drivers than they actually were.Superior Court Judge Rupal Shah in Middletown denied the union’s request on technical grounds Thursday. Shah ruled the union’s request for an injunction was premature because the state Freedom of Information Commission has not yet decided whether the names should be publicly released.Media organizations including The Associated Press have requested the troopers’ names. State public safety officials denied a request for the names by The Connecticut Mirror, which has a pending appeal before the Freedom of Informati...

Quebec man facing arson charges in northern wildfires detained ahead of bail hearing

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

A Quebec man facing arson charges in connection with forest fires in the province’s north during the spring and summer will remain detained ahead of a bail hearing on Monday.Quebec provincial police say 37-year-old Brian Paré of Chibougamau, Que., was charged with two counts of arson on Thursday.Prosecutors say the charges are in connection with a fire that was allegedly ignited deliberately in a forest between July 8 and Tuesday, and a second blaze at a fishing cabin around May 31.Sgt. Hugues Beaulieu says police were assisted by behaviour analysis experts, criminal profilers, and forensic psychologists in their investigation.The major crimes unit is trying to determine whether the alleged arsons are connected to the forced evacuations in June of residents of Chibougamau, about 450 kilometres northwest of Quebec City.Chibougamau’s 7,500 residents were forced from their homes on June 6 for about one week because of wildfires and poor air quality.This report by The Canadi...

Greek ferry crews call a strike over work conditions after the death of a passenger pushed overboard

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Travelers to Greece’s popular island destinations will face disruptions next week because of a 24-hour strike on Sept. 13 by ferry crews who cite safety and labor concerns.The PNO union said the decision was made Friday “on the occasion of the repulsive incident” this week in Greece’s main port of Piraeus, in which a tardy passenger drowned after being pushed into the sea by a ferry crew member.The union didn’t directly link the reasons for the strike with Tuesday’s drowning, which sparked anger and condemnation across Greece.A PNO statement deplored what it called the improper implementation of laws and regulations on shipping and harbor safety. It said crew members are overworked and ferry sailing schedules are “unreasonable,” which PNO said raises severe safety concerns.The statement also called on the government to “take all necessary measures to protect human life at sea.”An island ferry captain and three of his crew were arrested and cha...

There will be no gold for the USA at the Basketball World Cup, after 113-111 loss to Germany

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — There will be no gold medal for the U.S. at this World Cup. And for the second consecutive time in FIBA’s biggest tournament, there might not be any medal at all for the Americans.Instead, it’s Germany on the cusp of a world title.Andreas Obst scored 24 points, Franz Wagner added 22 and Germany scored more points than any team ever has against a USA Basketball team featuring NBA players — earning a 113-111 win in the World Cup semifinals on Friday night.“This team is very worthy of winning a championship,” U.S. coach Steve Kerr said. “And we just didn’t get it done.”No, it didn’t, and now questions will fly once again. USA Basketball has been talking for years about how the continuity of top international teams has closed what was once a sizable gap between the Americans and the rest of the world. The U.S. has won the last four Olympic titles, but now it’s two straight World Cups with no gold for the winningest program on the planet.“Terr...

SpaceX can’t launch its giant rocket again until fixes are made, FAA says

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

SpaceX must take a series of steps before it can launch its mega rocket again after its debut ended in an explosion, federal regulators said Friday.The Federal Aviation Administration said it closed its investigation into SpaceX’s failed debut of Starship, the world’s biggest rocket. The agency is requiring SpaceX to take 63 corrective actions and to apply for a modified FAA license before launching again.FAA official said multiple problems led to the April launch explosion, which sent pieces of concrete and metal hurtling for thousands of feet (meters) and created a plume of pulverized concrete that spread for miles (kilometers) around.SpaceX founder Elon Musk said in the accident’s aftermath that he improved the 394-foot (120-meter) rocket and strengthened the launch pad. A new Starship is on the redesigned pad, awaiting liftoff. It will fly empty, as before.During the initial test flight, the rocketship had to be destroyed after it tumbled out of control shortly after lifto...

US-backed Kurdish fighters report the capture of a senior Islamic State group financier in Syria

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — U.S.-backed Syrian fighters detained a senior official with the Islamic State group who was in charge of financing and arming sleeper cells, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said Friday.Despite the group’s defeat in Syria in March 2019, IS sleeper cells still carry out deadly attacks in Syria and in neighboring Iraq. The extremists once controlled wide areas and declared a caliphate in the two countries.The Syrian Democratic Forces said its militia members, with the support of the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State group and the Counter Terrorism Group in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, apprehended senior IS financier Abdul-Ghafour Taber al-Diab, also known as Abu Amir. He was detained Thursday in the northern Syrian city of Raqqa, which was once seen as the capital of the extremists, according to the SDF.“He was responsible for financing the ISIS terrorist cells and their terrorist acts in the region, supplying them with weapons,” the militia said in ...

TMU men’s soccer team to play amid investigation into alleged ‘concerning behaviour’

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

Toronto Metropolitan University says its men’s soccer team will play its home opener this weekend despite an ongoing investigation into what the school describes as “serious and concerning behaviour.”TMU had suspended its men’s squad earlier this week after it received a report about the unspecified conduct, adding the team would be held off the field until “further notice.”The team has already forfeited two road games, but TMU said in a Friday statement that Saturday’s match in Toronto against Nipissing would go ahead as scheduled.“Ensuring the safety and well-being of our community members is a priority for TMU, and the university is conducting a thorough and independent investigation into these allegations,” Friday’s statement read. “At this time, based on the investigation to date, the university has determined that the home opener … can proceed.“The university continues to assess and address the situa...

Vigil planned for Massachusetts teen who died after taking part in One Chip Challenge

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — The family of a teenager who died after eating an extremely spicy tortilla chip as part of a social media challenge will gather to remember the promising basketball player at a vigil Friday while they await word from Massachusetts authorities about what caused his death.Harris Wolobah died on Sept. 1 and an autopsy is pending. But the 14-year-old’s family blamed the One Chip Challenge, which requires participants to eat the spicy chip and see how long they can go without consuming other food and water.Since his death, Texas-based manufacturer Paqui has asked retailers to stop selling the individually wrapped chips, a step 7-Eleven has already taken.The One Chip Challenge chip sells for about $10 and comes wrapped in a sealed foil pouch that is enclosed in a coffin-shaped cardboard box. The package warns the chip is made for the “vengeful pleasure of intense heat and pain,” is intended for adults and should be kept out of reach of children.Paqui, a...

Kroger and Albertsons sell hundreds of stores in a bid to clear merger of the 2 largest US groceries

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

Kroger and Albertsons will sell more than 400 stores and other assets for about $1.9 billion, seeking to clear a path for a merger with antitrust regulators reviewing a deal that would unify two of the nation's largest grocery chains.The 413 stores, along with QFC, Mariano’s and Carrs brand names, are being sold to to C&S Wholesale Grocers. Kroger will also divest the Debi Lilly Design, Primo Taglio, Open Nature, ReadyMeals and Waterfront Bistro private label brands. In addition, C&S will get eight distribution centers and two offices.All fuel centers and pharmacies associated with the divested stores will remain with the stores and continue to operate.Bloomberg reports the sale includes 14 Illinois stores that are Kroger owned.Kroger and Albertsons agreed to merge in October. Kroger, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, bid $20 billion for Albertsons. Kroger would also assume $4.7 billion of Albertsons’ debt. The deal is targeted to close early next year.The grocery chains say they m...

Lee dips to Category 4, remains 'powerful' hurricane

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:00:10 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Lee charged through warm Atlantic waters on Friday and threatened to unleash heavy swells across the northeast Caribbean. It became the season's first Category 5 storm before weakening slightly.Currently a Category 4 hurricane, it is not expected to make landfall, but meteorologists warned it would generate dangerous waves of up to 15 feet (5 meters) across the northern coast of Puerto Rico and other nearby islands. While Lee is on a path that would take it a couple hundred miles (kilometers) northeast of the Caribbean, tropical storm conditions are not forecast for the region. These are the strongest hurricane winds ever recorded in the Atlantic basin “Although the hurricane is incredibly powerful, its wind field is not particularly large,” the National Hurricane Center said.The hurricane was located about 565 miles (910 kilometers) east of the northern Leeward Islands. It had winds of up to 155 miles per hour (250 kilometers per hour) and w...