Former Congressman Anthony Weiner Checks Into Rehab Facility

The DailyMail.com reported on Wednesday that discredited former U.S. Representative Anthony Weiner has checked into a rehab facility that minister to sex addiction.

The online version of the British newspaper said electronic devices are banned at the facility, which

The facility segregates men from women. It treats a variety of addictions associated with anonymous sex, exhibitionism and cyber-sex and other acts. Electronics devices are also prohibited from the facility, the online version of the British newspaper said. The facility was not named in the report.

Weiner could not be reached for comment.

Last month, New York police and Federal prosecutors revealed they were investigating Weiner after a separate report by the DailyMail.com. It said he took part in sexually explicit online and cellphone messages with a 15-year-old girl from North Carolina.

Weiner, 52, told the Associated Press last month that he had “likely been the subject of a hoax.” But he did not respond at the time when Reuters’ requested for comment regarding the texting report.

An investigation into those messages also prompted a new FBI probe of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s emails. Sources close to the matter said some of her emails were discovered on a device connected to the Weiner investigation,

Weiner was once a popular congressman but resigned in 2011. This was after disclosing he had inadvertently sent a lewd picture over Twitter. His campaign for New York City mayor two years later was disrupted after explicit photos he had sent to a young woman in Indiana under the alias “Carlos Danger” surfaced.

Latest scandal triggers separation

After yet another scandal, Huma Abedin, Weiner’s wife and one of Clinton’s top aides, said in August that she was separating from her husband.

Abedin made her announcement after the New York Post reported that Weiner sent photos of his boxer-brief-clad genitals to another woman thru Twitter.

Abedin’s attorney could not immediately be reached to comment on the DailyMail.com report.

 

The post Former Congressman Anthony Weiner Checks Into Rehab Facility appeared first on Newsline.

Remaining Migrant Children Leaves Calais ‘Jungle’

A week after the demolition, French Authorities started transporting a total of 1,500 minor migrants out from the Calais ‘Jungle’ Camp.

Based on reports, French authorities first bussed the minor migrants out of the camp around 08:30 local time. The unaccompanied minors will be brought to the relocation centers. Before the demolition, the children were housed in converted shipping containers, hoping to move to the UK.

Citing asylum application, French authorities released a document stating that no UK application transfer will be processed in Calais.

French President Francois Hollande released a statement last Tuesday in La Voix du Nord newspaper. He said, “Their cases could now be investigated individually by UK officials once they have been transferred to reception centers in France”.

Meanwhile, the two countries, France and the UK argued over who should take the responsibility for the children in Calais.

Records show that the UK adopted around 270 minors with families residing in the UK or are considered as vulnerable.

“The others will be looked after in France”, Mr. Hollande said.

The first out of 30 some buses were scheduled to travel going to Carcassonne in south-western France. The next will go to Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer near Montpellier in southern France.

Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said, “more than half of the children had left Calais during the morning and expected the operation to be over by the end of the day.”

According to Mr. Holland, “No-one will be allowed back into the dismantled camp, a staging post for irregular migrants fleeing war and poverty and trying to cross the Channel to the UK.”

After transporting 7,000 people to relocation centers somewhere in France, authorities totally demolished the remaining houses in Calais.

Major scuffle

On Tuesday night riot police were called to the camp when fighting broke out between Eritrean Christian and Afghan Muslim teenagers.

Police said about 100 youths were involved. Dozens of Eritreans reportedly took sanctuary in a makeshift church due to the fighting.

The post Remaining Migrant Children Leaves Calais ‘Jungle’ appeared first on Newsline.

Suspect in Killing of 2 Police Officers Arrested in Iowa

Police officials launched a manhunt for Scott Greene a resident of Urbandale, Des Moines. Authorities suspect the 46-year-old man for fatally shooting 2 police officers while inside their patrol cars.

According to reports, authorities found the first police officer shot in Urbandale around 1:06 AM (06:06 GMT) on Wednesday. The second officer victim located a few blocks away from the first. Both appeared to be still inside their patrol cars when they were shot.

Des Moines police officials said the motive for shooting the officers remains unknown.

In spite of the unclear motive, police found substantial evidence leading to their suspect. Greene posted a video taken from a mobile phone. The video shows a man complaining to a police officer about a group of black people. According to Greene, the group mugged him and took the Confederate flag he was holding. The incident happened during a high school sports event.

The man in the video said, “I was peacefully protesting”. The police officer voice, audible in the background replied, “You have to understand that in the social climate that we’re in, when you fly a Confederate flag in front of a group of African-Americans, that’s going to cause a disturbance”.

However, Greene seemed to ignore the police officer’s advice. Since another video shows Greene holding the Confederate flag again in front of several African-American people.

Behind the ‘stars’ and ‘bars’

The Confederate flag serves as a symbol of slavery, particularly in the African-American community. Last year, it yielded another horrendous symbol on its back. In South Carolina, a man carrying a confederate flag killed nine black churchgoers.

Sergeant Paul Parizek of Des Moines Police Department said in a news conference, “somebody out there is shooting police officers”. He added that “We hope we find him before anybody else gets hurt. We definitely don’t want anybody in the public, here in the community to get hurt but there’s a clear and present danger to police officers right now, and we’ve doubled up our officers.”

Terry Branstad, the Governor in Iowa said that the shootings were “an attack on the public safety of all Iowans”. The governor deeply condemns the killing of the police officers.

The post Suspect in Killing of 2 Police Officers Arrested in Iowa appeared first on Newsline.

10-Year-Old Tears Up After Seeing His Mom’s Face For The First Time

When 10-year-old Benny Francey stared at his mom last Wednesday, something was different. He could see her face clearly for the first time, and it was enough to bring him to tears.

Benny is from Selkirk in Manitoba, Canada. He normally can’t perceive much more than silhouettes. He and his younger brother Ashton, 8, both live through a rare disease called Leber congenital amaurosis that affects their eyesight.

Their aunt Amanda Vitt, back in July, initiated a GoFundMe for the boys, with the aim of raising at least $15,000 U.S. for a pair of eSight glasses for Benny. Donations have already surpassed that goal.

The glasses have a small camera that picks up everything the user is looking at, then shows it on a powerful HD screen close to their eyes.

Benny finally got to try them on last week at a clinic in Toronto. “His first word was ‘wow,’” Benny’s mom, Jenna Cason, told CBC News. “It was very emotional.”

Vitt said the tears kept pouring when Cason showed Benny family photos. “He could finally point out people in the family.

In a video of his reaction, he teasingly told his mom she had a “big nose.” Whatever the size is, it was a detail he had never been able to see before.

Benny used Braille to read and write. Last week, he was able to see words on a piece of paper for the first time.

More importantly, the family was delighted to find out that the glasses actually worked for Benny as there was no assurance he would be able to see with them, Vitt said.

Currently, Benny is patiently waiting for his personalized glasses to be delivered at his home some time next month. He can’t wait to see his mom’s face again and begin surveying the world in a new way.

The rest of the money raised will assist in paying for curative horseback riding for Ashton. He has also been diagnosed with OCD and autism. His eyesight is so bad that the eSight glasses won’t help him. However, the family has left the GoFundMe campaign active to solicit more money for Ashton’s other needs.

The post 10-Year-Old Tears Up After Seeing His Mom’s Face For The First Time appeared first on Newsline.

Amazon Prime Lures Customers with New Marketing Strategy

Amazon, one of the leading online retail shops, rolled out a new strategy to boost more sales in their physical stores.

Currently, customers who subscribed to the $99 annual Prime Program will enjoy free shipping, free cloud storage, a variety of other Amazon services and now they are expanding it to ‘offline’ benefit too.

For the past months, cashier staff’s in Amazon physical stores are now asking customers if they are an Amazon Prime Member because members can now purchase books at the same discounted price listed on the website. However, non-members will pay the sticker price.

Amazon store did not attach price tags to their books so customers have to scan the book in the kiosk to see the price. After scanning the book, the kiosk will then show two prices, one for Prime Member and one for non-members.

This new Amazon Program is similar to Barnes & Noble’s $25-a-year membership plan, wherein members get free shipping for online orders and discounts of 10 to 40% off purchases in stores.

Amazon strategic plan

Amazon stores are a great tool for them to test what online strategies and tactics they can try and implement to hike up sales in physical stores. It is also a way to attract more Prime members due to the price differential. Amazon recently brought its online marketing strategy to local stores; they started posting book’s online reviews and star ratings and showcasing products such as the Kindle e-reader.

In a statement released by The Wall Street Journal, CEO Jeff Bezos has said “his company will open more stores in an effort to learn more about how to succeed at offline retailing. Amazon has opened modest-sized bookstores in Seattle, San Diego and Portland with plans to open soon in Chicago and a Boston suburb. The company is also planning to open a chain of small grocery stores.”

Meanwhile, Amazon hasn’t discussed much their ‘fashion products’.

According to Andy Jassy, Amazon Web Services Head said, “So far, we’re really pleased with the early results,”

The post Amazon Prime Lures Customers with New Marketing Strategy appeared first on Newsline.

Johnny Depp joins Harry Potter’s ‘Fantastic Beasts’ Sequel

Johnny Depp, a 53-year-old multi-awarded Hollywood actor will have a cameo in the 2018 J.K Rowling’s wizarding world of magic “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” sequel – a spin-off of the Harry Potter Series. It will be out in theaters on Nov. 18, 2018.

According to the report, Timer Warner Inc-owned Warner Bros Studios did not officially announce Depp’s role in the sequel. However, he will have a brief appearance in the first film.

The Fantastic Beasts which timeline is set in New York in 1926, featuring Oscar-winner Eddie Redmayne. The screenplay written by J.K. Rowling dated Fantastic Beasts long before the Harry Potter timeline, set in England during early 1990’s.

J.K Rowling, author of Harry Potter confirmed that there will be a total of 5 “Fantastic Beast’ movies.

The new movie series will feature the rise of a powerful wizard named Gellert Grindelwald. He will eventually challenge Albus Dumbledore, the future headmaster of Hogwarts from the Harry Potter series.

Throughout the years Harry Potter is one of the most successful in movie history. J.K Rowling’s Seven-Book Harry Potter Series, sold more than 450 million copies worldwide.   The “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 franchise, which ended in 2011 has accrued more than $7 billion at the globally.

Meanwhile, Johnny Depp known for his exceptional portrayal in the numerous Disney hit movies “”Pirates of the Caribbean,” in which he plays Captain Jack Sparrow, and “Alice in Wonderland,” in which he plays the Mad Hatter.

The post Johnny Depp joins Harry Potter’s ‘Fantastic Beasts’ Sequel appeared first on Newsline.

Philippines’ Duterte Condemns U.S. for Stopping Gun Sale

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte suggested on Wednesday that he might turn to China or Russia after the United States stopped the planned sale of 26,000 rifles to his country. He even called those behind the decision “fools” and “monkeys”.

Duterte’s outbursts against the former colonial power are customary during his speeches. He said on Wednesday he once had faith in Washington, but had since lost respect for the Philippines’ biggest ally.

Senate aides said on Monday that the U.S. State Department discontinued the sale of the assault rifles to the Philippine police following U.S. Senator Ben Cardin’s announcement that he would oppose it.

Cardin, the top Democrat on the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was hesitant for the United States to offer the weapons due to concerns about human rights violations in the Philippines throughout Duterte’s bloody, four-month-old war on drugs, aides said.

“Look at these monkeys, the 26,000 firearms we wanted to buy, they don’t want to sell,” Duterte said during a televised speech.

“Son of a bitch, we have many home-made guns here. These American fools.”

Anti-narcotics drive was the lynchpin of Duterte’s election campaign. Police and suspected vigilantes have killed more than 2,300 people in anti-drug operations as part this campaign.

Duterte has expressed his anger at the United States for bringing up concerns about the extra-judicial killings.

He said the reason why he was rude at them is because they were rude to him.

Based on procedures in Washington, the State Department notifies Congress when international weapons sales are in the works. Aides said the State Department had been advised Cardin would oppose the transaction during the pre-notification process, thus stopping the sale.

U.S. State Department officials declined to comment.

On Tuesday, Philippine police chief Ronald dela Rosa expressed displeasure that police would not get the M4 rifles, which he said were dependable.

Duterte reiterated that China and Russia had indicated willingness to sell arms to the Philippines. However, he would wait to see if his military sought to continue using U.S. weapons.

 

The post Philippines’ Duterte Condemns U.S. for Stopping Gun Sale appeared first on Newsline.

British Airways Pilot Suspended After Allegedly Pleasuring Himself While Flying

A British Airways pilot has been suspended after allegedly pleasuring himself in a cockpit of a plane at 38,000 feet.

BA Captain Colin Glover, 51 years old got suspended after a series of explicit images emerged of a man performing sexual acts while wearing black woman’s stockings. A pornographic magazine on top of the plane’s controls could also be seen in a picture.

The pictures are believed to have been taken on two separate long-haul flights and must have been taken at night.

Twice married Captain Glover, father of one, and lives in Dublin, denies he was the same man in the lewd photos.

He graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering from Edinburgh’s Heriot-Watt University in 1987 and employed with British Airways since 1990. He would face a permanent ban from flying any aircraft if found guilty performing sexual acts while flying.

In Captain Glover’s LinkedIn account shows he has flown B737s, B747s, B757s, B767s, and B777 aircraft.

British Airline spokesperson told MailOnline, “We are taking this matter very seriously and are investigating.”

Airline expert Chris Yates told The Sun on Sunday, “This is very dangerous if the plane is in mid-flight,” he added, “If you are flying, you can fly into serious turbulence.”

He said the pictures were likely taken in a simulator because of the plane’s lighting.

Cockpit simulators do not have any toilets. However, one picture shows a man naked in a plane lavatory.

BA officials confirmed that they are conducting an investigation and to identify whether the photos were taken during mid-flight.

Scandal-prone airline

The lewd photos are the latest serious scandals involving British Airline employees in recent years.

Pilots Sean Murphy and Paul Lytollis were recently placed under investigation after getting into a fight in Houston, Texas.

Last year, BA Special Services agent Matthew Underwood got suspended due to allegations of taking backhanders from celebrities and businessmen.

And in 2013, off-duty BA cabin crews were seen drinking bottles of champagne and red wine in front of First and Club Premium cabin passengers.

Passengers said the stewards and stewardesses started screaming and shouting like “spoiled brats”. Moreover, some were even kissing and petting each other.

The post British Airways Pilot Suspended After Allegedly Pleasuring Himself While Flying appeared first on Newsline.

Report Says MH370 Plane In ‘increasing Rate of Descent’ When It Disappeared

A report by the Australian Transport Safety Board (ATSB) on the missing Malaysia Airlines was released on Wednesday. The agency said the Australian safety investigator heading the search backs its assessment that the aircraft descended rapidly with no human intervention after it ran out of fuel.

Flight MH370 vanished in March 2014 on the way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur with 239 passengers and crew aboard. It is currently one of the world’s greatest aviation mysteries.

The evaluation of wing flap debris indicated the aircraft was not aligned for a landing, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau said.

Further, it revealed that satellite communications from the aircraft were constant with it being in a “high and increasing rate of decent” when it disappeared, colloquially acknowledged as a death dive.

The 28-page report includes new end-of-flight and drift simulations that indicate experts believe the existing search area is the most likely to cover the crash site. It overlaps with the start of a three-day meeting of international experts to work out potential plans to resume the search.

That analysis of a wing flap had “enhanced certainty” at what had occurred, ATSB search director Peter Foley told media on Wednesday

“It was probably in a non-extended position which means the aircraft wasn’t configured for a landing or a ditching,” said Foley. He was referring to the practice of extending wing flaps to allow an aircraft to travel safely at slower speeds in preparation for a landing.

“You can draw your own conclusions as to whether that means someone was in control or not.”

The issue of whether there was human intervention as the aircraft was descending is critical. If the aircraft glided, the wreckage could be beyond the 120,000 square km (46,330 square miles) search area. However, most of this expanse has already been thoroughly searched.

Authorities believe the plane was on auto-pilot and spiraled when it ran out of fuel. They assume it had no “inputs” during its final descent. This means there was no pilot or no conscious pilot.

But Fugro, the engineering group heading the search, has earlier raised the possibility that someone could have glided the aircraft. This is to rationalize why it hasn’t been located.

University of New South Wales head of aviation Jason Middleton said the wing flap analysis was of inadequate value.

Middleton said the analysis only meant the pilot was not awake, alert or planning a safe landing.

The new drift simulations only indicated that the aircraft was in that general area of the ocean that is being investigated. It did not aid in defining a new search area in the Indian Ocean, he said.

The post Report Says MH370 Plane In ‘increasing Rate of Descent’ When It Disappeared appeared first on Newsline.

North Korea To Launch Missile Within Few Days

North Korea has been preparing to launch another ballistic missile in the next three days. This was according to an unconfirmed report by Fox Business News.

Officials from South Korea said they are closely monitoring the activity of its neighbour, especially its military manoeuvres.

The Unification and Defense Ministry spokesperson told reporters on Wednesday, “I could say the government is fully prepared for possible various kinds of North Korean provocations and has been paying sharp attention to relevant movements.”

On October 20, North Korea tried to launch an intermediate-range Musudan missile, reports show the test failed after launch.

According to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, the intermediate-range Musudan missile has a lethal range of 1,500 to 2,500 miles. This is enough to threaten neighboring allied bases in South Korea, Japan, and Guam.

North Korea has been making “provocative” moves recently, firing ballistic missiles and developing nuclear warheads. Moreover, they have ignored U.N. sanctions to stop them from developing weapons of mass destruction.

On Tuesday, Ambassador Joseph Yun, a U.S. State Department Special Representative for North Korea Policy had a bilateral meeting with South Korean Foreign Ministry representative Kim Hong-Kyun. They discussed North Korea’s recent provocative moves.

The two officials also talked about a new U.N. Security Council resolution aimed to sanction North Korea and to improve the two countries mutual ties.

“We affirmed that hastily insisting on the need for dialogue is not helpful in solving the North Korean nuclear issue and that the most important thing was to proceed with further strengthening sanctions and pressure against North Korea,” the South Korea Minister said.

The post North Korea To Launch Missile Within Few Days appeared first on Newsline.

World Series goes to Game 7 as Cubs Rout Indians 9 – 3

The Chicago Cubs level Major League Baseball’s best-of-seven championship by routing the Cleveland Indians 9-3 on Tuesday. The win sets up a winner-take-all Game Seven of the World Series.

As the Cubs Face elimination, current Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta won his second of the series. He was ably supported by shortstop Addison Russell. The 22-year-old cracked a grand slam on his way to registering a World Series record-tying six runs batted in.

Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo also homered for Chicago, who erupted for 13 hits off six Indians pitchers. Bryant tallied four hits in the game.

For the second time in as many games, the Cubs put on hold the Indians celebration of a first World Series crown since 1948. More importantly, the victory kept alive the Cubs’ pursuit of winning their first Fall Classic title in 108 years.

One of the teams will certainly end their drought on Wednesday. However, Cleveland fans who came to celebrate a Game Six clincher on an unusually warm night were disheartened and left the ballpark early as the Cubs coasted.

“It’s OK,” said Leah Hoheaverger, “We are used to being the underdogs.” She left before the end of the eighth inning as fans spilled out of Progressive Field.

Arrieta pitched 5-2/3 innings. He gave up three hits and two runs while striking out nine in notching the win assisted by four relievers.

The determined Cubs entered the game with a team batting average of .210 with only 10 runs in the first five games and were shut out twice.

Moreover, the National League champions topped the majors with 103 wins in the regular season. They quickly transformed the game into a laugher with two big innings.

The Cubs thundered out of the gate with three runs in the first. Two of the runs came from a huge blunder by Cleveland outfielders.

Bryant crushed a hanging curve ball from losing pitcher Josh Tomlin to left-center for a two-out home run.

Anthony Rizzo and Ben Zobrist lined singles before Russell slapped a pop fly that center-fielder Tyler Naquin and right-fielder Lonnie Chisenhall allowed to drop between them in a communication lapse.

In a communication lapse, center-fielder Tyler Naquin and right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall allowed a slapped pop fly from Russell to drop between them. The gaffe allowed Anthony Rizzo and Ben Zobrist to score as they were lined up on bases via their singles.

Russell fully earned his next four RBIs.

The shortstop swung a grand slam over the wall in center to chalk up Kyle Schwarber, Rizzo and Zobrist before of him to make it 7-0.

The bases-loaded blast provided Russell six RBIs for the game. Furthermore, it tied him with Bobby Richardson (1960), Hideki Matsui (2009) and Albert Pujols (2011) for most in a World Series game.

In the fourth, Kipnis doubled and scored on Mike Napoli’s single for Cleveland’s first hit and first run. Kipnis homered in the fifth to make it 7-2.

Rizzo’s two-run shot in the ninth and a last-gasp run by Cleveland ended the contest.

Game Seven will be played in Cleveland on Wednesday. The Indians starting ace Corey Kluber won two games already this series. He will go up against the National League ERA leader, Chicago’s Kyle Hendricks.

“It’s Game Seven,” said Indians manager Terry Francona. “You’ve got two really, really good pitchers, and it will be exciting. It’s an honor to even be a part of it, and we’re going to give it everything we have.”

The post World Series goes to Game 7 as Cubs Rout Indians 9 – 3 appeared first on Newsline.

FBI Hits Dead End in Trump-Russia Link Investigation

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on-going inquiry of allegations regarding Donald Trumps’ connection with the Russians hit a dead end. The agency also launched multiple investigations involving Trump’s supporters to establish if there is any connection. However, the FBI found no criminal connection between the two parties.

Law enforcement agencies involved in the Democratic organization hacking incident speculate that Russian spies were involved in creating turmoil in the 2016 election. However, according to the intelligence officials, the Russian spies are not helping a specific candidate.

Furthermore, the US government blames top-level Russian officials in organizing intricate hacking incidents on the Democratic groups. Subsequently, the group released the confidential information online.

In spite of the allegations, the US government did not formally charge the Russian government of rigging the election. The US also turned silent on the issue of Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager John Podesta’s hacked emails. Likewise, the US kept quiet on the detected voter’s registration hacked databases.

Democrats Protest

The FBI did not disclose any information on its investigation regarding Trump’s Russian tie connection in his campaign.

Sure enough, Democrats protested, citing unfair treatment. The FBI recently released information about their separate email probe about Clinton’s use of private email when she was still the Secretary of State. The agency announced the details of their investigation within the final days of the election campaign.

The newly discovered email surfaced when authorities were doing another investigation. Law enforcement seized a laptop for their investigation of Anthony Weiner, the former New York Representative and the dishonored husband of Huma Abedin. Abedin serves as Clinton’s longtime aide.

Weiner was accused of a sexual misconduct involving a 15-year-old teenager and the laptop may serve as evidence in the case. It, coincidentally contains emails from Clinton.

Intricate web of controversies

According to a CNN report, Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was accused of having connections with pro-Putin personalities in Ukraine. A year into the investigation, the FBI stopped short when the case implicated other lobbying firms in Washington.

The investigation covered the Podesta Group owned by Tony Podesta, brother of John Podesta for having political ties with Ukraine.

Moreover, FBI scrutinized appointments of Trump’s former adviser, Carter page in individuals in Russia who are under US sanctions. The source of the information came from the Democratic leader, Sen. Harry Reid who made a public letter sent to the FBI. Democrats convinced of the notion that Russia is trying to rig the election challenged the idea of the conspiracy.

Page, on the other hand, denied all allegations and blamed democrats in mentioning the concern. In a CNN interview, Page said, “most of the accusations that have come have been sort of a downward circle … bouncing back and forth between media accounts and stories that are planted … by the Clinton campaign against me.”

A longer FBI investigation of six years, implicated a Trump supporter, Roger Stone in partaking email hacks relating to WikiLeaks. According to democrats, Stone conspired with Julian Assange of WikiLeaks to hacked emails from their party officials.

Stone denied accusations of conspiring with WikiLeaks, but said he has “back-channel communications with WikiLeaks”. In his defense, he added, “They certainly don’t clear or tell me in advance what they’re going to do”.

Leaked emails

Thanks to WikiLeaks, Podesta’s private email leaked for more than three weeks. Russia and WikiLeaks denied any corroboration with the Podesta’s leaked email. But a security firm discovered a link to the same Russian hackers who cracked into DNC using a phishing email.

The First Amendment protections hinder the FBI and Justice Department investigation. Because the newly formed organization obtains and distributes information, just like WikiLeaks only they handle hacked information. Also, WikiLeaks declines to say their sources, making it even harder for the FBI to discern their connection with the Russians.

The Senior Democrat Adam Schiff said that one would have turned a blind eye as not to notice Russia’s action. The California representative added to the House Intelligence Committee that the Russians are “trying to help one side over the other”.

Shiff pointed out that “The leaks speak for themselves. They are uniformly damaging Clinton, not Trump. And it’s an effort to damage one candidate’s campaign and American democracy.”

Democrats suspect FBI Director, James Comey for political motivation against them since he released new details regarding Clinton’s email server probe. Contrary to some media reports, Comey did not mention Russia assisting email hacks for the election.

The FBI cautiously handles the probe with diligence as not to compromise any cases leading to other investigations. When the details about Russia was made public, Comey and other top FBI cyber officials opposed the move.

The White House also reserved its silence on the issue because of the election and to show equality for both parties. The testimonies against Russia originated from Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

The post FBI Hits Dead End in Trump-Russia Link Investigation appeared first on Newsline.

FBI Files On Bill Clinton’s Pardon Of Marc Rich Released, Stirs Controversy

The FBI has made a fairly confusing announcement of information just one week from Election Day. The information is linked to a contentious pardon Bill Clinton made on his last day in office nearly 16 years ago.

The law enforcement agency released documents on Tuesday connected to the former president’s pardon of Marc Rich. The former hedge-fund manager had been charged on multiple counts of wire fraud, tax evasion, and racketeering.

The release came from an FBI Twitter account that had been inactive for at least a year until this past Sunday. The new documents turned up just days following FBI Director James Comey’s announcement last week. Comey revealed the previous week that the agency was examining new emails possibly associated to the former secretary of state’s private server. Hence, Clinton spokesman Brian Fallon called it an “odd” decision and immediately questioned the release.

So, an FBI account is tweeting things about the Clinton foundation. Appears to be from 2001 investigation into several of Clinton's pardons https://t.co/PDIwBYueIO

— Peter Stevenson (@PeterWStevenson) November 1, 2016

The files were part of a regular release of information that had been called for several times under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the FBI said in a statement late Tuesday evening.

“The FBI’s Records Management Division receives thousands of FOIA requests annually which are processed on a first in, first out (FIFO) basis. By law, FOIA materials that have been requested three or more times are posted electronically to the FBI’s public reading room shortly after they are processed. Per the standard procedure for FOIA, these materials became available for release and were posted automatically and electronically to the FBI’s public reading room in accordance with the law and established procedures.”

William J. Clinton Foundation: This initial release consists of material from the FBI's files related to the Will… https://t.co/Y4nz3aRSmG

— FBI Records Vault (@FBIRecordsVault) November 1, 2016

The 129 pages from the 2001 investigation are greatly redacted. Rich was a worldwide fugitive who had escaped to Switzerland at the time of the pardon. Further, his ex-wife had donated to the Clinton Presidential Library, the Democratic National Committee, and Hillary Clinton’s New York Senate campaign, causing suspicion about the pardon. The federal investigation was ended in 2005 without charges, and Rich died in 2013.

John Podesta, Clinton’s former White House chief of staff, is currently his wife’s campaign chairman. He attested before Congress that White House aides had implored Clinton not to pardon Rich. Former Obama Attorney General Eric Holder was then a deputy attorney general and was counseling Clinton on pardons.

There is an association between Rich and Comey, too. In the case against Rich, Comey was the prosecutor from 1987 until 1993. Further, when he was the U.S. attorney for Manhattan, he took charge of the investigation into President Clinton’s pardon in 2002. Comey wrote in a 2008 letter that he was “stunned” by the Rich pardon.

The FBI also tweeted out eight pages of documents on Sunday related to GOP nominee Donald Trump’s late father, Fred. They referred to a tax case he once appeared in and numerous real estate deals.

 

Fred C. Trump: Fred C. Trump (1905-1999) was a real estate developer and philanthropist. This release consists of… https://t.co/21KgtPpmzk

— FBI Records Vault (@FBIRecordsVault) October 30, 2016

The post FBI Files On Bill Clinton’s Pardon Of Marc Rich Released, Stirs Controversy appeared first on Newsline.

Cosby Lawyers Request to Exclude His 2005 Testimony From Trial

On Tuesday, Bill Cosby’s lawyers requested a Pennsylvania state judge to preclude jurors at his sexual assault trial from gathering potentially damaging testimony he gave under oath in 2005.

Lawyer Brian McMonagle argued at a trial in Norristown that a former Montgomery County prosecutor had assured never to prosecute Cosby over accusations by Andrea Constand that he attacked her at his Pennsylvania home in 2004. Constand is a former basketball coach at Temple University, Cosby’s alma mater.

McMonagle said without that promise, Cosby would never have consented to sit for a deposition in Constand’s civil lawsuit. In that testimony, Cosby admitted providing drugs to different women before participating in sexual acts. Constand’s case is the only one out of more than 60 to lead to criminal charges.

Cosby has continually denied any misconduct.

Prosecutors responded to McMonagle by replying that the assurance was never confirmed in writing. They also claimed that Cosby’s lawyers did not judiciously depend on the so-called “promise” in any case.

The two-day hearing was held before Judge Steven O’Neill of the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas. It focused on numerous disputes leading up to the trial slated for June. They involve the prosecution’s appeal to call as witnesses more than a dozen women who have charged Cosby.

‘Alcohol and drugs’

The once adored 79-year old comedian of the 1980’s TV hit show “The Cosby Show” has been accused by women of sexually assaulting them in a string of attacks dating back decades. The assault happens after loading them with alcohol and drugs, the women alleged.

Cosby is currently legally blind and has difficulty walking. He wore a dark suit and seemed focused throughout the hearing.

The morning session centered on Cosby’s sworn testimony in Constand’s 2005 civil lawsuit.

Cosby’s lawyer McMonagle said his client would have raised his constitutional right to avoid self-incrimination lacking the assurance from previous county District Attorney Bruce Castor.

“This was a sitting district attorney saying, ‘I’m not going to prosecute your client, ever,'” McMonagle said.

However, Castor’s own testimony on the matter at a February hearing was peppered with inconsistencies, Assistant District Attorney M. Stewart Ryan said. Ryan said that Castor also could not recall instances on which he seemed to tell reporters that the investigation could be reopened in the future.

 

 

The post Cosby Lawyers Request to Exclude His 2005 Testimony From Trial appeared first on Newsline.