International
Brazil bank robbers strap hostages to cars during deadly raid
AFP
Heavily armed gangsters strapped hostages to their getaway cars after robbing two banks in Brazil, in a rampage that left three people dead, police and reports said Monday.
Using explosives, drones and heavy weapons, the assailants took over downtown streets in the southeastern city of Aracatuba, home to some 200,000 people.
After robbing two banks, they made their escape by strapping hostages to the roofs and hoods of moving cars, according to shocking images broadcast by local news channels.
Two civilians and one of the bank robbers were killed during the assault, which left at least six injured, according to police.
The assailants placed explosives in different parts of the city and surrounded some police stations to delay the arrival of reinforcements.
They wore “bulletproof vests, rifles and helmets,” and looked like soldiers, a witness who asked not to be identified told Globo TV.
“The scenes of terror experienced by the population of Aracatuba will not go unpunished,” vowed Sao Paulo governor Joao Doria, who ordered a task force of 380 police officers to hunt the gang down.
“Two criminals were captured and a third died when confronting the police,” he said.
Brazil has seen other such robberies in recent years, marked by a high degree of planning and heavy weapons, and carried out in medium-sized cities to ensure an escape route and a significant cash haul from the banks.
In December of last year, two similar mega-assaults were carried out barely a day apart in cities in the states of Para, in the north, and Santa Catarina in the south.
A few months before, the Sao Paulo towns of Botucatu and Ourinhos suffered similar brazen attacks.
According to the Sao Paulo Security Department, both cases were resolved and “a good part of these gangs are in jail.”
International
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Judge Juan Merchan acquitted U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the case involving former porn actress Stormy Daniels.
“At this moment, I am issuing this verdict to cover all 34 charges,” Merchan stated. The judge also wished Trump good luck in his second term as president.
Trump will now become the first criminal president.
Merchan declined to impose any punishment. This decision strengthens Trump’s acquittal and clears the way for his return to the White House without the threat of prison or a fine.
“Never before has this court faced such a unique and remarkable set of circumstances,” Judge Merchan said.
International
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
Canada imposed sanctions on 14 high-ranking officials of the Venezuelan “regime” this Friday, including prominent members of the Military Counterintelligence Directorate (DGCIM), for their involvement in human rights violations in Venezuela.
Among those sanctioned are DGCIM prosecutors Dinorah Yoselin Bustamante Puerta and Farik Karin Salcedo Mora; the director of criminal investigations at the agency, Asdrubal José Brito Hernandez, as well as its former deputy director, Rafael Ramón Blanco Marrero.
The sanctions also target several members of the Bolivarian National Guard: its general commander, Elio Ramón Estrada Paredes; the commander of the capital region, Johan Alexander Hernández Lárez, and lieutenant colonel, Alexander Enrique Granko Arteaga.
Other individuals sanctioned include the director of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN), Alexis José Rodríguez Cabello, and his deputy director, Miguel Antonio Muñoz Palacios; Brigadier General of the Bolivarian National Police, Rubén Darío Santiago Servigna, and Domingo Antonio Hernández Lárez, commander of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces.
International
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said on Friday that she asked Edmundo González Urrutia, former candidate of the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), not to return to Venezuela to avoid putting himself at risk.
In a video message, Machado explained that the opposition evaluated the situation and concluded that González Urrutia would be in danger if he tried to enter Venezuela as he had planned.
González Urrutia, who claims to have won the July 28 elections with the support of more than 85% of the official voting records, had announced that he would return to Venezuela on January 10 to assume the presidency.
Earlier, Nicolás Maduro, who was declared the winner of those elections, took the oath of office for a third term.
Judge declares Donald Trump not guilty in Stormy Daniels case
Canada imposes sanctions on 14 venezuelan officials for human rights violations
María Corina Machado urges Edmundo González Urrutia not to return to Venezuela for his safety
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