Defendant cut his court ordered location monitoring device while on pre-trial release
BOSTON – The former finance director of a Florida-based company has been sentenced in federal court in Boston for embezzling more than $5.8 million from his employer.
Paul Schnitzer, 52, of Clermont, Fla., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leo. T. Sorokin to 54 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Schnitzer was also ordered to pay $5,831,829 in restitution and to forfeit various assets that he obtained through his crime, including the full balances of two financial accounts, subscription ownership shares in certain artwork, and up to $50,000 in cash on deposit with Bulgari, the luxury jeweler.
Between January 2022 and May 2024, Schnitzer made over 100 transfers, most disguised as “equity distributions,” from his employer’s operating account into his personal account. He also secretly used a line of credit to replenish the company’s operating account after he had stolen from it and to transfer additional funds to his account. To hide these transfers, Schnitzer provided falsified financial reports with inflated cash balances for the company, to the Massachusetts-based investment firm that owned the company. He also spoofed email addresses and posed as representatives of the company’s bank and customers to send falsified confirmations to the company’s audit firms.
While on pre-trial release, Schnitzer was arrested after cutting his location monitoring device in June 2024 and using a company credit card to make over $10,000 in purchases in August 2024.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Holcomb of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carol E. Head, Chief of the Asset Recovery Unit handled the forfeiture aspects of the case.
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A resident of Long Beach, California, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of violating federal narcotics laws, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
Derrick Polk, 62, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Marilyn J. Horan to Counts One and Three of the Superseding Indictment on June 4, 2025.
In connection with the guilty plea, the Court was advised that, from in and around April 2019 to July 2021, in the Western District of Pennsylvania, Polk conspired to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture of methamphetamine. Further, in and around April 2021, Polk possessed with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture of methamphetamine. Polk was intercepted on a federal wiretap obtaining quantities of the drugs that he distributed to others.
Judge Horan scheduled sentencing for September 24, 2025. The law provides for a total sentence of not less than 10 years and up to life in prison, a fine of up to $10 million, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Maureen Sheehan-Balchon is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Laurel Highlands Resident Agency and Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Polk. Additional agencies participating in this investigation include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Internal Revenue Service–Criminal Investigation, United States Postal Inspection Service, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Pennsylvania State Police, Cambria County District Attorney’s Office, Indiana County District Attorney’s Office, Cambria County Sheriff’s Office, Cambria Township Police Department, Indiana Borough Police Department, Johnstown Police Department, Upper Yoder Township Police Department, Richland Police Department, Ferndale Police Department, and other local law enforcement agencies.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
Defendant allegedly possessed more than 9,000 CSAM files including images of infants being sexually assaulted
BOSTON – A Wareham man has been indicted for allegedly possessing and receiving child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Brandon Bendall, 49, was indicted on one count of possession of child pornography and one count of receipt of child pornography. He was arrested and charged by criminal complaint on May 2, 2028.
According to court documents, Bendall was allegedly a member of an online chat group in which members viewed and posted CSAM. During a search of Bendall’s residence and cell phone, approximately 9,400 images and videos of CSAM, including images of children as young as infants being sexually assaulted, were allegedly located.
The charges of receipt and possession of child pornography each provide for a sentence of at least five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Wareham, Marion and East Bridgewater Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney David G. Tobin of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Paul William Flett, age 44, from Humbolt, Iowa, was sentenced in federal court in Sioux City, Iowa, on June 3, 2025. Flett pled guilty January 23, 2025, to one count to sexual exploitation of a child.
Evidence in the case showed that Flett sent links and images of child pornography to underage girls and asked them to send images and videos of themselves to him. On June 6, 2024, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Flett’s home and in a consensual interview, Flett admitted to the conduct and that he threw his phone in a closet when law enforcement arrived because he knew they were there for him. Forensic analysis of Flett’s electronics and Kik account discovered a total of 16 videos and 60 images of child pornography including several that Flett had asked children to record of themselves. The images and videos contained material that portrayed sadistic or masochistic conduct, as well as prepubescent children, infants, and toddlers.
Sentencing was held before United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. Flett was sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment, ordered to pay $3,600 in restitution and assessments, and ordered to serve a term of supervised release of 5 years following imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. Flett remains in custody of the U.S. Marshals Service until he can be transported to a federal prison.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Cyber-Crime Unit, and Webster County Sheriff’s Office in Missouri and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kraig R. Hamit.
End-of-Mission press releases include statements of IMF staff teams that convey preliminary findings after a visit to a country. The views expressed in this statement are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF’s Executive Board. This mission will not result in a Board discussion.
The IMF mission held productive discussions with the Lebanese authorities on a comprehensive economic reform program. Discussions are expected to continue, both from IMF headquarters and through follow-up missions.
Bank restructuring remains a critical priority to restore the health of the banking sector, move away from the cash-based economy, restart credit to the private-sector, and protect depositors to the maximum extent possible.
Given Lebanon’s substantial reconstruction needs, limited fiscal space, and lack of capacity to borrow, the country will require significant support from external partners on highly concessional terms.
BEIRUT, Lebanon: At the authorities’ request, an International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission led by Ernesto Ramirez Rigo visited Lebanon from May 28 to June 5, 2025, to initiate discussions on policies and a reform program that could be supported by an IMF arrangement.
At the conclusion of the mission, Mr. Ramirez Rigo issued the following statement:
“The IMF mission held productive discussions with the Lebanese authorities on a comprehensive economic reform program aimed at restoring macroeconomic sustainability and supporting financing for reconstruction. These initial discussions covered several reform areas, including (i) restoring the viability of the banking sector and protecting depositors to the maximum extent possible, (ii) achieving fiscal and debt sustainability, while enhancing social safety nets and rebuilding institutional capacity, (iii) establishing credible monetary and exchange rate policy frameworks, (iv) strengthening governance and transparency, (v) enhancing the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regime, and (vi) reforming state-owned enterprises.
It was agreed that the rehabilitation of the banking system remains a critical priority to rebuild confidence in banks, move away from the current cash-based economy, and restart credit to the private-sector, which is necessary for growth. The authorities have made some progress recently, including the amendment of the Bank Secrecy Law and submission of a new bank resolution law to Parliament. The next step is for Parliament to approve this legislation, which will establish powers to underpin the recovery of orderly banking intermediation, while safeguarding the public interest. The mission also engaged with the authorities on their emerging bank restructuring and deposit recovery strategy. More work in close cooperation with the authorities will be needed to ensure this strategy is aligned with international standards and debt sustainability requirements.
“The mission also discussed the 2026 Budget and the development of a medium-term fiscal framework. For the 2026 Budget, given the limited fiscal space and available financing, it is critical that any additional expenditures be fully offset by corresponding revenue efforts, including by strengthening enforcement and compliance in tax and customs administration. An ambitious medium-term revenue mobilization and expenditure rationalization strategy along with improved fiscal transparency and public financial management is needed to strengthen public finances and create space for increased social protection and capital expenditures. The medium-term fiscal framework should also support the restructuring of Eurobonds to restore debt sustainability. Given Lebanon’s substantial reconstruction needs, the authorities’ reform efforts will require significant support from external partners, preferably on highly concessional terms. Enhanced support to Lebanon is also needed to help the country shoulder the continued burden of hosting a large refugee population.
“Building on these key reform pillars, discussions on formulating a comprehensive reform program are expected to continue, both from IMF headquarters and through follow-up missions. The mission reaffirmed the Fund’s commitment to supporting Lebanon during this challenging period, consistent with its mandate and policies.
“The mission thanks the Lebanese authorities and all stakeholders for their cooperation and constructive engagement.”
The Marine Economy Satellite Account statistics released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis show the marine economy accounted for $511.0 billion, or 1.8 percent, of current-dollar U.S. gross domestic product in 2023, an increase from $482.4 billion in 2022 (tables 2 and 3). The marine economy accounted for $826.6 billion, or 1.7 percent, of current-dollar gross output in 2023 (table 8).
Real (inflation-adjusted) gross domestic product (GDP) for the marine economy increased 2.9 percent from 2022 to 2023 (table 1), compared with a 2.9 percent increase for the overall U.S. economy. Marine economy compensation increased 9.4 percent, or $19.1 billion, and employment increased 4.5 percent, or 111,000 full- and part-time employees.
Today’s release also reflects updated statistics for 2014–2022. Gross output, value added, employment, and compensation were updated to include the results of the 2023 comprehensive update and the 2024 annual update of the National Economic Accounts, which includes the Industry Economic Accounts. The updated statistics reflect newly available and revised source data.
Marine economy by activity
To estimate the marine economy by activity, this satellite account reorganizes industry value added (or GDP) and gross output statistics and presents the data in a framework that reflects marine-related activities. Marine economy activities fall into the following 10 general categories:
Living resources, marine
Construction, coastal and marine
Research and education, marine
Transportation and warehousing, marine
Professional and technical services, marine
Minerals, offshore
Utilities, coastal
Ship and boat building, nonrecreational
Tourism and recreation, coastal and offshore
National defense and public administration
Marine economy real gross output—principally a measure of the marine economy’s inflation-adjusted sales or receipts, which includes sales to final users in the economy (GDP) and sales to other industries (intermediate inputs)—increased 3.5 percent, or $22.7 billion, in 2023 (tables 7 and 9). Marine economy activity highlights for 2023 include the following:
Tourism and recreation, coastal and offshore increased $8.6 billion, or 4.0 percent, to a level of $225.1 billion, making it the largest contributor to the growth in 2023 marine economy real gross output.
Minerals, offshore increased $6.8 billion, or 9.6 percent, to $77.2 billion, making it the second-largest contributor to the overall growth.
Living resources, marine increased $1.7 billion, or 5.1 percent, to $34.4 billion.
Ship and boat building, nonrecreational decreased $68 million, or 0.3 percent, to $19.5 billion, making it the largest offset to the overall growth in 2023 marine economy real gross output.
Marine economy by industry
Industry statistics show the contributions of industries to the marine economy, including their impact on value added (or GDP by industry), gross output, employment, and compensation.
Marine economy industry highlights for 2023 include the following:
Government, as a share of marine economy current-dollar value added, was the largest industry group and accounted for 32.6 percent, or $166.4 billion (table 6), and was the largest industry group for compensation ($101.3 billion) and for employment (about 793,000 full- and part-time jobs).
Finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing was the second-largest industry group as a share of the marine economy and accounted for 12.7 percent, or $64.7 billion, of current-dollar value added.
Transportation and warehousing accounted for 10.7 percent, or $54.7 billion, of marine economy value added.
Arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation, and food services accounted for 10.3 percent, or $52.6 billion, of value added and was the second-largest industry group for employment (about 652,000 full- and part-time jobs) in 2023, with the second-largest level of compensation ($26.8 billion).
The Marine Economy Satellite Account Estimation Methods
The Marine Economy Satellite Account (MESA) measures the economic activity associated with the marine economy, identifies the industries responsible for producing these goods and services, and measures the output, value added, compensation, and employment associated with that production. Like other BEA satellite accounts, the MESA was built on BEA’s comprehensive supply and use framework. The supply and use tables (SUTs) provide a detailed look at the relationships among industries and how each industry contributes to GDP. In practice, the MESA is a rearrangement of the published SUTs with new estimation methods that isolate marine-related spending and production. A variety of private and public data sources were used to identify marine-related spending and production to develop the MESA estimates.
An important feature of the MESA is the presentation of estimates of gross output and value added by marine economic activity, in addition to the standard presentation of estimates by industry. This allows for the marine economy to be better analyzed in areas where significant economic activity occurs across a variety of industries.
The geographic scope of the MESA includes the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic Oceans within the Exclusive Economic Zone (approximately 200 nautical miles off the U.S. coast) as well as marginal seas, such as the Chesapeake Bay, Puget Sound, Long Island Sound, San Francisco Bay, and others. Also included is the U.S. shoreline directly along these bodies of water. Furthermore, the Great Lakes are included up to the international boundary with Canada.
For additional information on the marine economy statistics as well as the data sources and methodology that underlie their preparation, refer to “Defining and Measuring the U.S. Ocean Economy.”
The Marine Economy Satellite Account was produced in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Data Availability
The complete set of detailed annual statistics for 2014–2023 are available on BEA’s website. Statistics include data on marine economy gross output and value added presented by both industry and activity as well as employment and compensation presented by industry.
For Marine Economy Satellite Account definitions and more, visit “Additional Information.”
Next release: Spring 2026 Marine Economy Satellite Account, 2024
PIERRE – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced a Saint Francis, South Dakota, man convicted of Prohibited Person in Possession of a Firearm. The sentencing took place on May 27, 2025.
Randy Harlan Arcoren Jr., age 42, was sentenced to two years and six months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Arcoren was indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2024. He pleaded guilty on February 26, 2025.
The conviction stems from an incident that occurred in January 2024 in the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation. On January 4, 2024, law enforcement was called to Arcoren’s home for an unrelated matter. Once inside the home, law enforcement located two firearms in Arcoren’s bedroom: a revolver and a shotgun. Law enforcement also found a small amount of methamphetamine and other drug paraphernalia in the bedroom.
Arcoren was convicted in U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota of Robbery in 2006 and Prohibited Person in Possession of Ammunition in 2015. As a result of these felony convictions, it is illegal for Arcoren to possess firearms or ammunition. Arcoren will forfeit ownership of the firearms to the United States.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
This case was investigated by Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan Dilges prosecuted the case.
Arcoren was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced today the seizure of approximately 145 darknet and traditional internet domains, and cryptocurrency funds associated with the BidenCash marketplace. The operators of the BidenCash marketplace use the platform to simplify the process of buying and selling stolen credit cards and associated personal information.
BidenCash commenced operations in March 2022. BidenCash administrators charged a fee for every transaction conducted on the website. The BidenCash marketplace had grown to support over 117,000 customers, facilitated the trafficking of over 15 million payment card numbers and personally identifiable information, and generated over $17 million in revenue during its operations.
The BidenCash marketplace domains will no longer be operational and will be redirected to a U.S. law enforcement-controlled server, preventing future criminal activity on these sites. The marketplace also sold compromised credentials that could be used to access computers without proper authorization.
Between October 2022 and February 2023, the BidenCash marketplace published 3.3 million individual stolen credit cards for free to promote the use of their services. The stolen data included credit card numbers, expiration dates, Card Verification Value (CVV) numbers, account holder names, addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers.
According to court records, the United States obtained court authorization to seize cryptocurrency funds that BidenCash marketplace used to receive illicit proceeds from its illegal sales.
Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; John Szydlik, Resident Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s Frankfurt Resident Office; and Philip Russell, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service’s Frankfurt Resident Office, the U.S. Secret Service’s Cyber Investigative Section, and the FBI Albuquerque Field Office.
The Department of Justice thanks the Dutch National High Tech Crime Unit, The Shadowserver Foundation and Searchlight Cyber for their assistance with the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Zoe Bedell in these matters.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
ALBUQUERQUE – A Newcomb man pleaded guilty to assault resulting in serious injury following a violent knife assault outside a local grocery store.
According to court records, on November 12, 2024, Josiah Bodie, 23, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, assaulted John Doe with a knife outside Basha’s Grocery Store in Shiprock, New Mexico. As a result of the assault, John Doe suffered serious bodily injury.
At sentencing, Bodie faces a maximum of 10 years in prison. Upon his release from prison, Bodie will be subject to up to five years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Philip Russell, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.
The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the assistance of the Navajo Nation Police Department and the Navajo Nation Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin L. Dillon is prosecuting the case.
Every year, massive data breaches harm the public. The targets are email service providers, retailers and government agencies that store information about people. Each breach includes sensitive personal information such as credit and debit card numbers, home addresses and account usernames and passwords from hundreds of thousands – and sometimes millions – of people.
When National Public Data, a company that does online background checks, was breached in 2024, criminals gained the names, addresses, dates of birth and national identification numbers such as Social Security numbers of 170 million people in the U.S., U.K. and Canada. The same year, hackers who targeted Ticketmaster stole the financial information and personal data of more than 560 million customers.
As a criminologist who researches cybercrime, I study the ways that hackers and cybercriminals steal and use people’s personal information. Understanding the people involved helps us to better recognize the ways that hacking and data breaches are intertwined. In so-called stolen data markets, hackers sell personal information they illegally obtain to others, who then use the data to engage in fraud and theft for profit.
The quantity problem
Every piece of personal data captured in a data breach – a passport number, Social Security number or login for a shopping service – has inherent value. Offenders can use the information in different ways. They can assume someone else’s identity, make a fraudulent purchase or steal services such as streaming media or music.
The quantity of information, whether Social Security numbers or credit card details, that can be stolen through data breaches is more than any one group of criminals can efficiently process, validate or use in a reasonable amount of time. The same is true for the millions of email account usernames and passwords, or access to streaming services that data breaches can expose.
This quantity problem has enabled the sale of information, including personal financial data, as part of the larger cybercrime online economy.
eg: In headline of the following chart, U.S. doesn’t need periods.
The sale of data, also known as carding, references the misuse of stolen credit card numbers or identity details. These illicit data markets began in the mid-1990s through the use of credit card number generators used by hackers. They shared programs that randomly generated credit card numbers and details and then checked to see whether the fake account details matched active cards that could then be used for fraudulent transactions.
As more financial services were created and banks allowed customers to access their accounts through the internet, it became easier for hackers and cybercriminals to steal personal information through data breaches and phishing. Phishing involves sending convincing emails or SMS text messages to people to trick them into giving up sensitive information such as logins and passwords, often by clicking a false link that seems legitimate.
One of the first phishing schemes targeted America Online users to get their account information to use their internet service at no charge.
Selling stolen data online
The large amount of information criminals were able to steal from such schemes led to more vendors offering stolen data to others through different online platforms.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, offenders used Internet Relay Chat, or IRC channels, to sell data. IRC was effectively like modern instant messaging systems, letting people communicate in real time through specialized software. Criminals used these channels to sell data and hacking services in an efficient place.
In the early 2000s, vendors transitioned to web forums where individuals advertised their services to other users. Forums quickly gained popularity and became successful businesses with vendors selling stolen credit cards, malware and related goods and services to misuse personal information and enable fraud.
One of the more prominent forums from this time was ShadowCrew, which formed in 2002 and operated until being taken down by a joint law enforcement operation in 2004. Their members trafficked over 1.7 million credit cards in less than three years.
Forums continue to be popular, though vendors transitioned to running their own web-based shops on the open internet and dark web, which is an encrypted portion of the web that can be accessed only through specialized browsers like TOR, starting in the early 2010s. These shops have their own web addresses and distinct branding to attract customers, and they work in the same way as other e-commerce stores. More recently, vendors of stolen data have also begun to operate on messaging platforms such as Telegram and Signal to quickly connect with customers.
Cybercriminals and customers
Many of the people who supply and operate the markets appear to be cybercriminals from Eastern Europe and Russia who steal data and then sell it to others. Markets have also been observed in Vietnam and other parts of the world, though they do not get the same visibility in the global cybersecurity landscape.
Stolen data is usually available in individual lots, such as a person’s credit or debit card and all the information associated with the account. These pieces are individually priced, with costs differing depending on the type of card, the victim’s location and the amount of data available related to the affected account.
Vendors frequently offer discounts and promotions to buyers to attract customers and keep them loyal. This is often done with credit or debit cards that are about to expire.
Some vendors also offer distinct products such as credit reports, Social Security numbers and login details for different paid services. The price for pieces of information varies. A recent analysis found credit card data sold for US$50 on average, while Walmart logins sold for $9. However, the pricing can vary widely across vendors and markets.
Illicit payments
Vendors typically accept payment through cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin that are difficult for law enforcement to trace.
Bitcoin is often used as payment for elicit information because it’s difficult to trace. AP Photo/Charles Krupa
Once payment is received, the vendor releases the data to the customer. Customers take on a great deal of the risk in this market because they cannot go to the police or a market regulator to complain about a fraudulent sale.
Vendors may send customers dead accounts that are unable to be used or give no data at all. Such scams are common in a market where buyers can depend only on signals of vendor trust to increase the odds that the data they purchase will be delivered, and if it is, that it pays off. If the data they buy is functional, they can use it to make fraudulent purchases or financial transactions for profit.
The rate of return can be exceptional. An offender who buys 100 cards for $500 can recoup costs if only 20 of those cards are active and can be used to make an average purchase of $30. The result is that data breaches are likely to continue as long as there is demand for illicit, profitable data.
This article is part of a series on data privacy that explores who collects your data, what and how they collect, who sells and buys your data, what they all do with it, and what you can do about it.
Thomas Holt does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
The dinner party is going well until someone decides to introduce a controversial topic. In today’s world, that could be anything from vaccines to government budget cuts to immigration policy. Conversation starts to get heated. Finally, someone announces with great authority that a scientific study supports their position. This causes the discussion to come to an abrupt halt because the dinner guests disagree on their belief in scientific evidence. Some may believe science always speaks the truth, some may think science can never be trusted, and others may disagree on which studies with contradicting claims are “right.”
How can the dinner party – or society – move beyond this kind of impasse? In today’s world of misinformation and disinformation, healthy skepticism is essential. At the same time, much scientific work is rigorous and trustworthy. How do you reach a healthy balance between trust and skepticism? How can researchers increase the transparency of their work to make it possible to evaluate how much confidence the public should have in any particular study?
As teachers and scholars, we see these problems in our own classrooms and in our students – and they are mirrored in society.
The concept of reproducibility may offer important answers to these questions.
Reproducibility is what it sounds like: reproducing results. In some ways, reproducibility is like a well-written recipe, such as a recipe for an award-winning cake at the county fair. To help others reproduce their cake, the proud prizewinner must clearly document the ingredients used and then describe each step of the process by which the ingredients were transformed into a cake. If others can follow the directions and come up with a cake of the same quality, then the recipe is reproducible.
Think of the English scholar who claims that Shakespeare did not author a play that has historically been attributed to him. A critical reader will want to know exactly how they arrived at that conclusion. What is the evidence? How was it chosen and interpreted? By parsing the analysis step by step, reproducibility allows a critical reader to gauge the strength of any kind of argument.
We are a group of researchers and professors from a wide range of disciplines who came together to discuss how we use reproducibility in our teaching and research.
Based on our expertise and the students we encounter, we collectively see a need for higher-education students to learn about reproducibility in their classes, across all majors. It has the potential to benefit students and, ultimately, to enhance the quality of public discourse.
The foundation of credibility
Reproducibility has always been a foundation of good science because it allows researchers to scrutinize each other’s studies for rigor and credibility and expand upon prior work to make new discoveries. Researchers are increasingly paying attention to reproducibility in the natural sciences, such as physics and medicine, and in the social sciences, such as economics and environmental studies. Even researchers in the humanities, such as history and philosophy, are concerned with reproducibility in studies involving analysis of texts and evidence, especially with digital and computational methods. Increased interest in transparency and accessibility has followed the rising importance of computer algorithms and numerical analysis in research. This work should be reproducible, but it often remains opaque.
Broadly, research is reproducible if it answers the question: “How do you know?” − such that another researcher could theoretically repeat the study and produce consistent results.
Reproducible research is explicit about the materials and methods that were used in a study to make discoveries and come to conclusions. Materials include everything from scientific instruments such as a tensiometer measuring soil moisture to surveys asking people about their daily diet. They also include digital data such as spreadsheets, digitized historic texts, satellite images and more. Methods include how researchers make observations and analyze data.
To reproduce a social science study, for example, we would ask: What is the central question or hypothesis? Who was in the study? How many individuals were included? What were they asked? After data was collected, how was it cleaned and prepared for analysis? How exactly was the analysis run?
Proper documentation of all these steps, plus making available the original data from the study, allows other scientists to redo the research, evaluate the decisions made during the process of gathering and analyzing information, and assess the credibility of the findings.
This short video, made by the National Academies, explains the key concepts in reproducing scientific findings and notes ways the process can be improved.
A highly contentious, retracted study from 1998 linked the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism. Scientists and journalists used their understanding of reproducibility to discover the flaws in the study.
The central question of the study was not about vaccines but aimed to explore a possible relationship between colitis − an inflammation of the large intestine − and developmental disorders. The authors explicitly wrote, “We did not prove an association between measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine and the syndrome described.”
The study observed just 12 patients who were referred to the authors’ gastroenterology clinic and had histories of recent behavioral disorders, including autism. This sample of children is simply too small and selective to be able to make definitive conclusions.
In this study, the researchers translated children’s medical charts into summary tables for comparison. When a journalist attempted to reproduce the published data tables from the children’s medical histories, they found pervasive inconsistencies.
Reproducibility allows for corrections in research. The article was published in a respected journal, but it lacked transparency with regard to patient recruitment, data analysis and conflicts of interest. Whereas traditional peer review involves critical evaluation of a manuscript, reproducibility also opens the door to evaluating the underlying data and methods. When independent researchers attempted to reproduce this study, they found deep flaws. The article was retracted by the journal and by most of its authors. Independent research teams conducted more robust studies, finding no relationship between vaccines and autism.
Each research discipline has its own set of best practices for achieving reproducibility. Disciplines in which researchers use computational or statistical analysis require sharing the data and software code for reproducing studies. In other disciplines, researchers interpret nonnumerical qualities of data sources such as interviews, historical texts, social media content and more. These disciplines are working to develop standards for sharing their data and research designs for reproducibility. Across disciplines, the core principles are the same: transparency of the evidence and arguments by which researchers arrived at their conclusions.
Reproducibility in the classroom
Colleges and universities are uniquely situated to promote reproducibility in research and public conversations. Critical thinking, effective communication and intellectual integrity, staples of higher-education mission statements, are all served by reproducibility.
Teaching faculty at colleges and universities have started taking some important steps toward incorporating reproducibility into a wide range of undergraduate and graduate courses. These include assignments to replicate existing studies, training in reproducible methods to conduct and document original research, preregistrationof hypotheses and analysis plans, and tools to facilitate open collaboration among peers. A number of initiatives to develop and disseminate resources for teaching reproducibility have been launched.
Despite some progress, reproducibility still needs a central place in higher education. It can be integrated into any course in which students weigh evidence, read published literature to make claims, or learn to conduct their own research. This change is urgently needed to train the next generation of researchers, but that is not the only reason.
Reproducibility is fundamental to constructing and communicating claims based on evidence. Through a reproducibility lens, students evaluate claims in published studies as contingent on the transparency and soundness of the evidence and analysis on which the claims are based. When faculty teach reproducibility as a core expectation from the beginning of a curriculum, they encourage students to internalize its principles in how they conduct their own research and engage with the research published by others.
Institutions of higher education already prioritize cultivating engaged, literate and critical citizens capable of solving the world’s most challenging contemporary problems. Teaching reproducibility equips students, and members of the public, with the skills they need to critically analyze claims in published research, in the media and even at dinner parties.
Also contributing to this article are participants in the 2024 Reproducibility and Replicability in the Liberal Arts workshop, funded by the Alliance to Advance Liberal Arts Colleges (AALAC) [in alphabetical order]: Ben Gebre-Medhin (Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Mount Holyoke College), Xavier Haro-Carrión (Department of Geography, Macalester College), Emmanuel Kaparakis (Quantitative Analysis Center, Wesleyan University), Scott LaCombe (Statistical and Data Sciences, Smith College), Matthew Lavin (Data Analytics Program, Denison University), Joseph J. Merry (Sociology Department, Furman University), Laurie Tupper (Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Mount Holyoke College).
Sarah Supp receives funding from the National Science Foundation, awards #1915913, #2120609, and #2227298.
Joseph Holler receives funding from the National Science Foundation, award #2049837.
Peter Kedron receives funding from the National Science Foundation, award #2049837 and from Esri.
Richard Ball has received funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the United Kingdom Reproducibility Network.
Anne M. Nurse and Nicholas J. Horton do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe – OSCE
Headline: OSCE-supported conference in Montenegro tackles challenges of transnational drug crime
(l-r) U.S. Ambassador Judy Rising Reinke, Special State Prosecutor Vladimir Novović, acting director of the Police Directorate Lazar Šćepanović, Head of the OSCE Mission to Montenegro Jan Haukaas and Security Co-operation and Governance Programme Manager Stephen Harmon at the opening of the three-day international conference in Budva, 4 June 2025. (OSCE/Marina Živaljević) Photo details
Transnational organized crime, specifically drug trafficking, remains a critical, shared threat that transcends national borders. It can only be effectively countered through co-ordinated, joint action grounded in international collaboration, sustained strategic commitment, and mutual trust.
This was emphasized at the opening of a three-day international conference “Connecting the Drugs: Challenges and Threats from Expanding Trans-Atlantic Collusion and Traffic in Drug Crime”, organized by the OSCE Mission to Montenegro and the Police Directorate of Montenegro, with support from the Embassy of the United States of America. The event is taking place from 4 to 6 June in Budva.
The conference brings together 70 regional law enforcement leaders, investigators, and prosecutors involved in organized crime investigations from countries of the Western Balkans region, Italy, Romania, Spain and the United States.
Opening the conference, acting director of the Police Directorate of Montenegro, Lazar Šćepanović, noted that the dominant criminal activity of high-risk organized crime groups from Montenegro continues to be cocaine smuggling at the international level, with these structures maintaining links to criminal groups across the Western Balkans. “Despite all the challenges, Montenegro has made significant progress in the fight against transnational organized crime and drug trafficking in the previous period, relying on strengthening police co-operation, adopting European standards, and intensive international co-ordination,” said director Šćepanović. He also emphasized that “the priority of the Montenegrin police will remain the strengthening and intensifying of international police co-operation”, which is one of the underlying themes of the conference.
Special State Prosecutor Vladimir Novović stated that he was proud that the Special State Prosecutor’s Office had developed relations and intensive co-operation with key international institutions. “Each of them, within their own jurisdiction, is dedicated to fighting this global problem,” said Special Prosecutor Novović. He further noted that this co-operation has already enabled the prosecution to achieve significant results, especially in terms of uncovering and prosecuting international drug trafficking rings.”
U.S. Ambassador Judy Rising Reinke highlighted that the fight against drug trafficking requires unwavering commitment, collaboration, innovation, and trust. “Montenegro has been an incredible partner in this fight, and their leadership in this regional event is testament to the effectiveness of the police and prosecutors who work tirelessly to dismantle criminal groups. The positive results are encouraging, but there is still so much more to be done. Thank you for joining us here today so that together we can degrade these criminal networks, protect our communities, and ensure a safer future,” said Ambassador Reinke.
Head of Mission Jan Haukaas stated that the OSCE’s regional presence and comprehensive mandate made it uniquely positioned to support cross-border co-operation. “The OSCE is well placed to facilitate trust among institutions, and promote holistic, cross-sectoral responses that address both the criminal, institutional, economic and societal risks posed by criminal networks. This conference can contribute to those efforts by bringing together law enforcement and prosecutorial institutions across Southeast Europe and beyond,” said Ambassador Haukaas.
This three-day conference provides a platform for participants to exchange regional and international expertise in combating drug crime, with a particular focus on emerging collusion between South East Europe and Latin American criminal organizations. It also explores challenges and threats criminal collaboration poses to the region and the rest of Europe. The event brings together representatives from leading international, regional, and national law enforcement and criminal justice agencies, with presentations by UNODC, INTERPOL, EUROPOL, EUDA, DEA and the FBI, among others. The conference also includes an in-depth expert presentation by the Vigilance Project on Latin American drug cartels and the threats they represent for Europe, including Southeast Europe.
McALLEN, Texas – A 20-year-old Edinburg man has been sentenced for attempting to coerce and entice the production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) from a Finnish minor, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Brandon Roy Alvarez pleaded guilty Oct. 9, 2024.
U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton has now sentenced Alvarez to 210 months in federal prison. At the hearing, the court heard additional information including that Alvarez would collect child pornography and store it on multiple devices. He would then pose as a minor and utilize the CSAM he collected to entice his victims to produce more. Alvarez will serve 10 years on supervised release following completion of his prison term. During that time, he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the internet. Alvarez will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.
The investigation began after authorities discovered a 10-year-old minor victim residing in Finland had received sexually explicit messages and CSAM videos from an English-speaking individual through various social media and other applications. They identified Alvarez as that person.
He had attempted to entice the minor victim into sending him a nude photo and/or a video of the victim masturbating from on or about Sept. 17-20, 2023.
Alvarez admitted he used his accounts to meet underage children online. He said he would pretend to be a minor female child to gain the other user’s trust and then use child pornography he collected to lure minors into sending sexually explicit photographs and videos.
FBI conducted the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexa D. Parcell is prosecuting the case, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section leads PSC, which marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and identifies and rescues victims. For more information about PSC, please visit DOJ’s PSC page. For more information about internet safety education, please visit the resources tab on that page.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
TAIYUAN, June 5 (Xinhua) — The cumulative gas output from the Daning-Jixian coalbed methane field in north China’s Shanxi Province exceeded 3.6 billion cubic meters as of the end of May 2025, coalbed methane producer PetroChina Coalbed Methane Co., Ltd. said Thursday.
As an unconventional natural gas, coal bed methane is considered a clean energy resource of strategic importance. Its use can help reduce risks in mining operations, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and alleviate gas shortages.
Shanxi Province has rich coal bed methane resources. The region’s reserves within 2,000 meters underground are estimated at 8.31 trillion cubic meters, accounting for about a third of the country’s total.
In recent years, thanks to technological advances in coalbed methane production, the production capacity of Daning-Jixian Methane Field has been steadily growing.
In 2024, the coalbed methane production at the Daning-Jixian field reached 1.96 billion cubic meters. -0-
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Speech
Report by OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, June 2025: UK and Canada joint statement to the OSCE
UK and Canada thank the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities for his active start in the role and urge continued prioritisation of support for Ukraine against Russian aggression.
Thank you, Mister Chair. I am delivering this statement on behalf of Canada and the UK.
High Commissioner, dear Christophe, welcome back to the Permanent Council. Since this is your first report in this capacity, allow us officially to congratulate you on your appointment and for hitting the ground running. You have had a very active start to your tenure, as demonstrated by your comprehensive report today.
The UK and Canada are strong supporters of your mandate and the work of your office in promoting the rights of persons belonging to national minorities.
We commend your extensive engagement with – and visits to – a number of our participating States, including Moldova and Central Asia. We welcome the transparency around your activities, which you have achieved without undermining the “quiet diplomacy” that is an important characteristic of your mandate.
The UK and Canada greatly value your Office’s continued attention to the intersectionality of gender and national minorities. It is in all our interests that we fully support women’s and girls’ full, equal and meaningful participation in all aspects of public life, including in peace and security. We agree with you, High Commissioner, that greater gender equality in societies contributes to greater comprehensive security for us all.
We also welcome that you have prioritised support to Ukraine, including an early visit. We commend the strides that the Ukrainian authorities have made in strengthening the legal and policy frameworks for protecting national minorities and preparing the ground for inclusive education reforms. This progress provides a promising foundation for Ukraine’s post-conflict recovery.
High Commissioner, your office plays a crucial role which is as important today as it was when created more than 30 years ago. But like most of the OSCE’s tools, it can only play this role when the political will exists to permit it.
The situation in Ukraine is a case in point. Your predecessor noted prior to the full-scale invasion that Ukraine was “working to maintain the delicate balance between the interests and rights of all groups in society”. Rather than engage in good faith dialogue, Russia has weaponised the issue of minorities. And the irony is that those Ukrainians who Russia claimed to be protecting, have suffered greatly from its invasion.
The UK and Canada support your office’s continued focus on the situation in the areas of Ukraine’s sovereign territory temporarily under Russian control. We condemn Russia’s systematic attempt to erase Ukrainian identity in these areas, including forced passportisation and the deportation of children. The deeply concerning situation in Crimea, including widescale repression of Crimean Tatars, has been well documented by numerous independent organisations.
High Commissioner, dear Christophe, we thank you and your team for your considerable efforts in the period covered by your report. You can rely on the UK and Canada’s continued support for your institution in the years ahead. Thank you.
Twenty-five years since the six-day war in Kisangani in Democratic Republic of Congo in which hundreds of civilians were killed and thousands more injured, victims are still waiting for truth, justice and, for the most part, reparations, Amnesty International said in a new briefing today.
The briefing Is anyone moved by Congo’s pain? 25 years without justice for the six-day war in Kisangani, documents how there has not been a single criminal investigation or trial since the bloody conflict between Rwandan and Ugandan forces. During the fighting in the north-eastern city, which started on 5 June 2000, both armies engaged in intense and indiscriminate shelling of heavily populated civilian areas, intentionally killed civilians, raped women and pillaged houses.
It is utterly unacceptable that for 25 years, not a single person has been held to account for crimes perpetrated in Kisangani, not one.
Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa
With the DRC courts’ failure to pursue justice and the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) lack of jurisdiction over crimes committed in DRC before 2002, those suspected of criminal responsibility for these crimes have never been prosecuted and punished.
“It is utterly unacceptable that for 25 years, not a single person has been held to account for crimes perpetrated in Kisangani, not one,” said Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa. “This lack of criminal accountability for past crimes has led to a cycle of violence in the DRC, with similar actors, similar weapons and similar suffering. Justice cannot wait another 25 years. It is the responsibility of Congolese judicial authorities to investigate and, if there is sufficient admissible evidence, prosecute those suspected of criminal responsibility for crimes committed on DRC territory.”
In 2022, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Uganda to pay reparations, following a case brought by the DRC against Uganda and Rwanda. The ICJ did not have jurisdiction over Rwanda. In 2024, some victims finally started to receive compensation, but the process by been wrought by complaints of mismanagement and embezzlement.
Amnesty International interviewed over 50 people, mostly survivors, as well as civil society organizations and justice sector officials.
The “Three-Day, One-Day and Six-Day wars” in Kisangani
The six-day war was one of a series of conflicts between the Ugandan and Rwandan armies in Kisangani between August 1999 and June 2000 that left behind a trail of death and destruction.
The first war – “the three-day war”, started on 14 June 1999, with the two armies exchanging indiscriminate fire and shelling, which killed more than 30 civilians and wounded more than 100.
After close to a year of relative quiet, fighting started again on 5 May 2000 and lasted only one day. Exactly a month later, the “six-day war”, which was more intense, started. Without differentiating between civilians and combatants, the two armies indiscriminately shelled Kisangani, killing several hundred civilians and injuring thousands.
A civil society activist who survived and reported on the three wars in Kisangani recounted:
“For six days there were only bombs falling, we did not know if we were going to live. There were a lot of fatalities…”
A woman who was seven at the time of the war, recalled:
“I was walking with my grandmother when I was struck by a bomb in my leg. I didn’t know how to get to hospitals, it was dangerous, so we were dealing with the injury at home, but the foot was rotting. On the fifth day I went to the hospital, but it was too late, they cut off my leg.
For six days there were only bombs falling, we did not know if we were going to live. There were a lot of fatalities.
Survivor, Kisangani
“A gentleman who could not go home until the war ended, returned at the end of the six days and found his wife and three children dead, their corpses decomposing. The house had been hit by bombs. “He went mad and died shortly after.”
People want truth, justice and reparations
Despite the lack of judicial criminal proceedings either in the DRC or internationally, the people’s demands for justice and reparations remain strong decades later.
A man, who also survived the wars, said: “My dearest wish was the establishment of courts. This is the wish of the Congolese people. Now we have a sense of frustration in the population. Why were there blockages? It is unclear why crimes that have already been documented have not been tried. Is there nobody emotionally moved by the crimes committed in Congo?”
At least 40 people interviewed told Amnesty International that there was no political will to institute criminal proceedings or deliver justice. Lack of judicial independence has also meant that without the support of political leaders, some of whom are former belligerents, judicial officials could not open investigations.
The complete lack of prosecutions has led to a loss of trust in the country’s justice system and the government.
With regards to reparation programmes, the Special Fund for the Distribution of Compensation to Victims of Uganda’s Illicit Activities in the DRC (FRIVAO), tasked to manage the millions of dollars Uganda has been ordered to pay for reparations by the ICJ, has been criticised for lack of transparency and adequate consultations with victims of the Kisangani wars.
Justice cannot wait another 25 years. It is the responsibility of Congolese judicial authorities to investigate and, if there is sufficient admissible evidence, prosecute those suspected of criminal responsibility for crimes committed on DRC territory
Tigere Chagutah
One activist said: “People have no decency; there has been bloodshed… and they are embezzling funds that were intended for public interest work and victims! That is not what we fought for.”
Tigere Chagutah said: “Amnesty International reminds DRC of its obligations to investigate and, if enough admissible evidence is found, to prosecute in fair trials those suspected of criminal responsibility for the serious crimes committed in the territory of the DRC for over 30 years, including the Kisangani war.”
“The government must also offer adequate, effective and prompt reparations to victims following genuine consultations with survivors and civil society.”
Question for written answer E-002104/2025 to the Council Rule 144 Özlem Demirel (The Left)
A number of employees from Libya’s Criminal Police, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Foreign Affairs have visited Europol, primarily in the context of the fight against migration. There are plans for further shadowing and training, including at Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre.
1.Which Libyan police authorities and ministries have visited Europol on the subject of ‘combating human trafficking and smuggling (and when), and what further visits are planned (and for when)?
2.What kind of possible future cooperation with Europol was envisaged with these visits, and to what extent has this cooperation taken shape since?
3.To what extent were the visits also undertaken with a view to setting up joint international investigation teams, a specialised team of criminal investigators in Libya or cooperation with Europol’s European Migrant Smuggling Centre, and what has been decided in this regard?
Three staffers from Papua New Guinea’s peak anti-corruption body are embroiled in a standoff that has brought into question the integrity of the organisation.
Police Commissioner David Manning has confirmed that he received a formal complaint.
Commissioner Manning said that initial inquiries were underway to inform the “sensitive investigation board’s” consideration of the referral.
That board itself is controversial, having been set up as a halfway point to decide if an investigation into a subject should proceed through the usual justice process.
Manning indicated if the board determined a criminal offence had occurred, the matter would be assigned to the National Fraud and Anti-Corruption Directorate for independent investigation.
Local news media reported PNG Prime Minister James Marape was being kept informed of the developments.
Marape has issued a statement acknowledging the internal tensions within ICAC and reaffirming his government’s commitment to the institution.
Long-standing goal The establishment of ICAC in Papua New Guinea has been a long-standing national aspiration, dating back to 1984. The enabling legislation for ICAC was passed on 20 November 2020, bringing the body into legal existence.
Marape said it was a proud moment of his leadership having achieved this in just 18 months after he took office in May 2019.
The appointments process for ICAC officials was described as rigorous and internationally supervised, making the current internal disputes disheartening for many.
Marape has reacted strongly to the crisis, expressing disappointment over the allegations and differences between the three ICAC leaders. He affirmed his government’s “unwavering commitment” to ICAC.
These developments have significant implications for Papua New Guinea, particularly concerning its international commitments related to combating financial crime.
Crucial for fighting corruption An effective and credible ICAC is crucial for demonstrating the country’s commitment to fighting corruption, a key component of a robust AML/CTF regime.
Furthermore, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) often includes governance and anti-corruption measures as part of its conditionalities for financial assistance and programme support.
Any perception of instability or compromised integrity within ICAC could hinder Papua New Guinea’s efforts to meet these international requirements, potentially affecting its financial standing and access to crucial development funds.
The current situation lays bare the urgent need for swift and decisive action to restore confidence in ICAC and ensure it can effectively fulfill its mandate.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Source: Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe – OSCE
Headline: OSCE strengthens regional law enforcement collaboration in Central Asia
Participants at the 2025 Regional Meeting of Heads of Law Enforcement and Security Co-operation Departments (HoLEDs), 5 June, Dushanbe. (OSCE) Photo details
The OSCE Secretariat, together with the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe, convened the 2025 Regional Meeting of Heads of Law Enforcement and Security Co-operation Departments (HoLEDs) on 4 and 5 June in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
The event brought together senior law enforcement officials from all five Central Asian OSCE field operations, alongside key international partners and stakeholders. The two-day event provided a vital platform for dialogue and co-ordination on shared security challenges including illicit drug trafficking, the misuse of small arms and light weapons, and the advancement of community policing initiatives aimed at enhancing security and resilience across the region.
In her opening remarks, Tatiana Turcan, deputy Head of the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe, emphasized the value of regional dialogue in strengthening security co-operation and sharing best practices. She added “it’s also an opportunity to exchange professional experiences and to discuss challenges in the region.”
“This forum plays a crucial role in enhancing the co-ordination between the TNTD/Strategic Police Matters Unit, the OSCE Central Asia field operations, and our wider network of international partners, ” added Umberto Severini, Head of the Strategic Police Matters Unit at the OSCE Transnational Threats Department.
A field visit to a Mobile Police Reception (MPR) unit – part of Tajikistan’s police reform efforts supported by the OSCE – offered a practical look at how community-oriented approaches are being implemented on the ground. Training sessions featured exchanges on project successes and challenges, as well as contributions from key international partners such as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Central Asia Drug Action Programme, 7th Phase (CADAP 7).
By fostering dialogue and operational collaboration, the Regional Meeting reinforced the OSCE’s collective contribution to strengthening law enforcement capacity, stability and community security across Central Asia.
PORTLAND, Ore.—Jered Hayward, 45, of Salem, Oregon, was sentenced today to 156 months in prison after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute over 1,000 kilograms of marijuana and conspiracy to launder the proceeds. He also agreed to forfeit assets worth more than $2 million dollars.
According to court documents, Hayward operated a large-scale THC and psilocybin production and distribution facility headquartered in Salem. As part of his operation, Hayward and his employees obtained cereal and candy products and infused or sprayed potent THC oils on them. They then inserted the edibles into packages which mimicked the legitimate consumer food products, and sold them throughout the United States and internationally. While there was no evidence Hayward deliberately targeted minors, the manner in which his organization packaged the edibles posed a risk to children, who are often unable to comprehend the fine print warnings that the packages contained THC products.
Hayward’s organization utilized encrypted communications such as Telegram to market, sell and process orders, and straw businesses to mask money laundering transactions. Hayward had no permits or licenses to produce or sell these products; the entire operation was illegal.
Hayward has an extensive criminal record, including three prior state and federal convictions for marijuana and fentanyl trafficking. Because of these convictions, he is a career criminal under federal law.
Hayward agreed to forfeit substantial assets which he admitted were related to his drug and money laundering enterprise. As part of his guilty plea Hayward agreed to forfeit:
The Salem production facility;
More than $1 million in cash;
$640,000 worth of cryptocurrency and bank account funds;
More than $400,000 worth of gold and silver;
Jewelry and a Rolex watch; and
Twelve vehicles, two UTV’s, and boats.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Portland Police Bureau, United States Postal Inspection, Oregon State Police, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Salem Police Department and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Kemp Strickland and Christopher Cardani, Assistant United States Attorneys for the District of Oregon.
PORTLAND, Ore.— A Portland area drug trafficker was sentenced to federal prison today for his role in distributing illicit fentanyl that resulted in the fatal overdose of a young man in Washington County, Oregon.
Efrain Roberto Diaz-Rangel, 35, a Mexican national unlawfully residing in Portland, was sentenced to 87 months in federal prison and four years’ supervised release.
According to court documents, in April 2023, the Westside Interagency Narcotics Team (WIN) began investigating a suspected fentanyl overdose of the adult male victim in Washington County. In May 2023, WIN requested investigative assistance from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Oregon-Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Interdiction Task Force (HIT), and Portland Police Bureau (PPB).
Investigators determined that several people were involved in a distribution chain responsible for selling counterfeit Oxycodone pills manufactured with illicit fentanyl. Investigators identified Diaz-Rangel as an originating source of fentanyl in Oregon and learned that he trafficked fentanyl and heroin for a Mexico-based drug dispatcher.
On June 27, 2023, as part of a controlled buy, HSI special agents arrested Diaz-Rangel. At the time of his arrest, Diaz-Rangel possessed approximately 1,000 counterfeit pills and a small quantity of heroin. Later that day, investigators executed a search warrant on Diaz-Rangel’s residence and located an additional 30,000 counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, four pounds of heroin, and more than $10,000 in cash.
On June 27, 2023, Diaz-Rangel was charged by criminal complaint with possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl and heroin.
On March 4, 2025, Diaz-Rangel pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
This case was jointly investigated by WIN and HSI with assistance from the HIDTA HIT and PPB. It was prosecuted by Scott M. Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 80 to 100 times more powerful than morphine and 30 to 50 times more powerful than heroin. A 3-milligram dose of fentanyl—a few grains of the substance—is enough to kill an average adult male. The wide availability of illicit fentanyl in Oregon has caused a dramatic increase in overdose deaths throughout the state.
If you are in immediate danger, please call 911.
If you or someone you know suffers from addiction, please call the Lines for Life substance abuse helpline at 1-800-923-4357 or visit www.linesforlife.org. Phone support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also text “RecoveryNow” to 839863 between 2pm and 6pm Pacific Time daily.
A man has been convicted of murdering a father in front of his young child in a barbershop in Leyton.
Josh McKay, 33, was stabbed in the neck by Renai Belle in a targeted attack and died from his injuries at the scene. During the Metropolitan Police investigation, officers discovered a rap video showing Belle threaten Josh before the attack.
On Wednesday, 4 June at the Old Bailey, Belle, 30 (20.02.95), of Swaythling Close, Edmonton was convicted of Josh’s murder and possession of a knife. A man and woman were also convicted of separate offences.
Detective Inspector Chris Griffith, from Specialist Crime North, who led the investigation, said: “This was a savage and pre-planned attack, committed in broad daylight and with scant regard for passers-by. What took place left the local community reeling, and two young children without their father.
“My heart goes out to Josh’s family and friends. He was a loving parent, whose life was ended in the most horrendous way.
“I hope that today’s result provides Josh’s family with some closure, and allows the community to feel safer knowing that Belle is no longer free to commit such heinous crimes.”
The court heard that Josh was at a barbershop on Lea Bridge Road with his son on Saturday, 6 July. Around 15:00hrs, as shown on CCTV seized by the investigation team, Belle entered the shop wearing a balaclava where he stabbed Josh in the neck in a pre-meditated attack following a long-standing dispute. Belle was then chased away by Josh.
Members of the public rushed to Josh’s aid and attempted to provide medical treatment until the arrival of officers and paramedics. Despite their best efforts, Josh died from his injuries.
A determined investigation began immediately in which officers painstakingly combed through more than 100 hours of CCTV footage to track Belle’s movements and understand what took place.
Officers discovered that Belle was the passenger in a car being driven by his partner, Tenika Parker. Having seen Josh enter the barbershop, the pair drove to the address of man called Daniel Copper. In doorbell footage later seized, Cooper was seen providing Belle with the balaclava and knife that would be used minutes later to murder Josh. Belle was then driven back to the barbers nearby before stabbing Josh. He was helped to escape by Parker in the waiting car.
A manhunt led to the arrest of Belle at an address in Pincott Road, SW19 on Monday 8 July, 2024.
As part of officers’ determination to further establish a watertight case against Belle, officers carried out further enquiries. They discovered a rap video on YouTube showing Belle threaten Josh in advance of the attack, further proof that it was pre-planned.
Parker was initially arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender on Sunday, 7 July in India Dock Road, Poplar. She was stopped by police while driving the car that had been identified as involved in the murder. During a search of Parker’s vehicle, officers found distinct black sliders Belle was seen wearing in CCTV footage, as well as traces of blood that officers sent for forensic testing. This provided a DNA match to Josh. Parker was rearrested on Wednesday, 2 October, and charged with perverting the course of justice after CCTV footage showed her attempting to clean her car after the attack to remove any evidence.
Cooper was arrested after handing himself in to police on Thursday, 11 July. During a search at Cooper’s property, officers discovered two knives matching the branding of the weapon that was left at the scene of Josh’s murder. Forensic testing on the balaclava and knife discarded by Belle at the scene of Josh’s murder found DNA that matched with Cooper.
Tenika Parker, 39 (21.02.86), of Canterbury Road, Leytonstone and Daniel Cooper, 22 (20.02.03) of Gosport Road, Leytonstone stood trial alongside Belle. Parker was convicted of possession of a knife and perverting the course of justice. Cooper had previously pleaded guilty to possession of a knife but was acquitted of other offences.
Cooper will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Friday, 6 June.
Belle and Parker will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Wednesday, 30 July.
Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services
The Northern Territory Police Force responded to multiple burglaries in Alice Springs yesterday and have arrested two male youths allegedly involved.
About 10:15am, the Joint Emergency Services Communication Centre (JESCC) received reports of a burglary at a residence in Braitling. It is alleged an unknown number of offenders caused damage before entering the residence and stealing personal items from within.
Later, about 3:10pm, the JESCC received reports of a burglary at a different address in Braitling. It is alleged four unknown offenders were dropped off by a vehicle before they unlawfully entered the residence by causing damage. It is unknown if anything was stolen before they fled the scene in the same vehicle that dropped them off nearby.
A short time later, about 4:30pm, the JESCC received reports of a burglary at a residence in East Side. It is alleged four to six unknown offenders unlawfully entered the residence and demanded car keys from a female inside. The victim retreated to the laundry, locking herself inside and called Triple Zero. The alleged offenders continued to rummage through the house, locating the keys to a white Toyota RAV4 before stealing it from the premises. As they were leaving the location they allegedly swerved towards responding police vehicles, narrowly missing.
The vehicle allegedly drove erratically through the Alice Springs CBD and further members from Strike Force Viper, Dog Operations Unit and general duties deployed.
A Tyre Deflation Device was unsuccessfully deployed as the vehicle travelled south along the Stuart Highway. Soon after, the vehicle allegedly targeted a police vehicle by throwing large rocks, causing minor damage.
The vehicle was later located abandoned just north of Braitling.
This morning, police arrested two male youths, aged 14 and 16-years-old, for their alleged involvement in the morning burglary in Braitling and the 4:30pm burglary in East Side. Charges are expected to follow.
Strike Force Viper has carriage of the investigation and are working to identify and apprehend anyone involved. It is not known at this stage if all three incidents are linked.
Anyone with information in relation to the incident is urged to contact police on 131 444. You can make an anonymous report via Crime Stoppers by calling 1800 333 000.
Bellerive body investigation: Police seek help of bus patrons
Thursday, 5 June 2025 – 3:48 pm.
Tasmania Police would like to speak with two women who were travelling on a Metro bus at Rokeby last Friday afternoon, as investigations continue into the discovery of a man’s body at Bellerive. The body of Luke Jon Telega, 45, was found in an industrial-sized garbage bin at Percy Street on Monday morning. Police are trying to piece together Mr Telega’s movements leading up to a garbage contractor finding his body. CCTV footage obtained from Metro shows that Mr Telega caught a bus at Tollard Drive, Rokeby, on Friday, May 30, at 4.34pm. A woman in a grey or white hoodie joins the bus at the same time and is then seen to exit the bus at the same stop as Mr Telega, in the car park of the Shoreline Hotel about 4.38pm. While on the bus, a second woman in a red top appears to acknowledge Mr Telega with a wave. There is no suggestion the women are involved with Mr Telega’s death, but police believe they may be able to help with inquiries. (See photos attached) Further, police still wish to speak with a woman shown on CCTV footage standing at a shopfront on Percy Street about 7:50pm on Sunday, June 1. Police believe the member of the public may have spoken with someone in Percy Street at the time and may be able to assist with inquiries. The woman was driving what is believed to be a light-coloured Toyota Prado. A second woman shown on CCTV footage standing near a red SUV in Percy Street on Sunday night has contacted police and no further action is required. If anyone has information that could assist with the investigation, please call police on 131 444 or report anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online crimestopperstas.com.au
Police Taskforce Accountable to target recidivist offenders in Clarence
Thursday, 5 June 2025 – 3:04 pm.
Police launched Taskforce Accountable yesterday to target recidivist offenders in the Clarence Division. Inspector Andrew Keane said Taskforce Accountable consists of plain clothes officers from Bellerive Police Station who will be patrolling major shopping and transit precincts in Clarence Division. “Taskforce Accountable will target the recidivist offenders who are responsible for the majority of our violent shop stealing and assaults on retail workers,” said inspector Keane. “The Taskforce will be supplemented by high visibility foot patrols over the coming months, and aims to detect and deter illegal and antisocial behaviours in the Clarence Division.” Between 9am and 9pm yesterday, Taskforce Accountable and Uniform Police detected, arrested and charged nine offenders (four adults and five youths) in relation to offences at Glebe Hill, Eastlands and Lindisfarne shopping centres as well as McDonalds Rosny. Offenders were charged with a range of offences including:
Stealing Stealing with force Unlawful possession Possession of dangerous articles Common assault Computer related fraud Trespass Possession of housebreaking implements Drug offences, and Fail to comply with police directions and/or court bail.
Property recovered and being returned to the owners included clothing, jewellery, cosmetics, and power tools. “Everyone has the right to be safe in our community, and illegal activities and anti-social behaviours will not be tolerated by police.” Anyone who witnesses antisocial or illegal behaviours is encouraged to report to police on 131 444 or Triple Zero (000) in an emergency. Information can also be reported anonymously through Crime Stoppers Tasmania at crimestopperstas.com.au or on 1800 333 000.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Chinese science fiction writers toured the Exhibition Hall of Evidences of Crime Committed by Unit 731 of the Japanese Imperial Army in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, late last month, with several sharing their shock and reflections on world peace with China.org.cn.
Chinese writers view displays at the Exhibition Hall of Evidences of Crime Committed by Unit 731 of the Japanese Imperial Army in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, May 24, 2025. [Photo courtesy of Harbin Huiwen Academy Cultural Media Group]
The visit coincided with the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.
More than 70 writers participated in the tour on May 24, many coming directly from a sci-fi-themed book fair and the 2025 Children’s Science Fiction Convention held in late May.
Renowned science fiction writer Bao Shu said he recently saw Japanese right-wing revisionist claims online that Unit 731 came to China for “epidemic prevention” and “treating Chinese people.” He said he was shocked by this clear distortion of history.
Bao said he gained a much deeper understanding of history after visiting the museum and witnessing firsthand evidence of these atrocities. He believes every Chinese person should visit the Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders and the Unit 731 Exhibition Hall, instead of just learning about World War II in school.
“While Unit 731’s death toll was smaller than Nanjing’s, its horrors were equally chilling — the systematic weaponization of science against humanity,” he said. “They perverted medicine into torture, treating people as lab specimens. This nightmare shows what can happen when technology is used without ethical restraints or regard for human dignity. It forces us to reflect on the essential relationship between technological progress and human values.”
Harbin’s Unit 731 war crimes museum preserves the original site of Japan’s biological warfare operations during World War II and holds approximately 100,000 pieces of war crime evidence. Visitors can see the remaining facilities, including the old headquarters ruins, bacterial labs, special prison remains, underground animal breeding rooms, frostbite labs, boiler rooms, and gas chambers. As the largest bacterial warfare base in history, the site documents Japan’s human experimentation program, which caused the deaths of at least 3,000 test subjects and more than 300,000 victims across China.
Dong Jing, assistant to the chair of the Chinese Nebula Awards organizing committee, reflected: “This history teaches us war’s most terrible lesson — how it grotesquely distorts humanity, amplifying our darkest impulses to commit unforgivable crimes against civilization.”
He noted that the Unit 731 site serves two vital purposes: “First, it exposes Japan’s undeniable wartime atrocities during its invasion of China, serving as a warning to modern militarists to acknowledge historical truth and renounce war. Equally important, it reminds citizens of both China and Japan to cherish peace and resist being drawn into conflict by groups pursuing their own interests.”
Sci-fi writer Lu Hang believes this history offers a crucial lesson for all nations. “As the saying goes, ‘Past experience, if not forgotten, is a guide for the future.’ We learn that national strength safeguards people — through building power to deter aggression and protect citizens. This conviction grew stronger after I visited the Harbin Institute of Technology, where I saw rockets and spacecraft modules displayed on campus. That experience revealed not just technological achievement but the nation’s growing overall strength.”
Zhang Mei, a renowned children’s literature critic, said the atrocities committed by Japan’s Unit 731 were among the most heinous crimes against humanity and an “extreme evil” that stains human civilization.
“We must go beyond surface-level condemnation and examine why Japan still lacks not only remorse, but also the fundamental virtues of reciprocity and human compassion,” she said.
Writer Shi Yongming noted that only through peace can humanity progress together, and all nations — whether powerful or vulnerable — must prioritize mutual respect, compassion and seeking common ground while respecting differences.
“Yet we must remain vigilant against ideologies that threaten humanity and possess both the awareness and the ability to contain their spread,” said Shi.
Writer Qin Yingliang described the visit as profoundly shocking. A native of northeastern China, Qin emphasized that Unit 731 is a source of deep, collective trauma for people in the region. She noted that Japan’s infiltration and occupation of northeast China lasted nearly 50 years, including prewar activities, and that the effects are still felt today through emotional legacies and subconscious memories passed down through generations.
“The museum’s essential role is to present this history through meticulously documented evidence, allowing every visitor to face historical truth directly. Our present is built on countless yesterdays; only by understanding the past can we properly move toward tomorrow,” she said.
“The exit route leads through a long, sunless tunnel — that’s the darkness of historical memory. Walking gradually upward toward the light at the end represents our emergence into today’s brightness,” Qin added. “Along the walls were carved survivors’ testimonies and war criminals’ confessions. As I ran my fingers over the stone inscriptions, I was suddenly reminded of that line from ‘The Three-Body Problem’: ‘Engrave words in stone.’”
Source: United States Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)
WATCH: Padilla Exposes Cruelty of Republican Plan to Cut $300 Billion in Essential SNAP Benefits
WATCH: Padilla highlights critical importance of federal nutrition services for helping American economy and vulnerable communities
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined a spotlight forum titled “Hunger by Design — The GOP’s Assault on SNAP” to question witnesses and expose President Trump and Republicans’ cruel budget proposal that would slash $300 billion in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits while giving tax cuts to billionaires. As Trump’s tariffs raise food costs for American families, the cuts to SNAP would threaten a vital lifeline for over 42 million Americans, including 16 million children, 8 million seniors, 4 million people with disabilities, and 1.2 million veterans.
Senator Padilla warned against the devastating SNAP cuts to pay for Republicans’ billionaire-first agenda.
“We’re here today because in order to make life easier for billionaires — apparently that’s an agenda item — Congressional Republicans are pushing a budget bill that would literally harm young children, would harm single mothers, would harm Americans with disabilities, would harm countless seniors, some of the most vulnerable members of our communities. And Republicans would have you believe that SNAP benefits are some sort of luxury the way they talk about it. Nobody aspires to live on food stamps. What food stamps are is a lifeline for millions of Americans.”
“It’s outright cruelty, literally taking from the poor to give to the rich. No one in our country should go hungry because billionaires need another tax break. That’s the Republican agenda. So today we’re here to expose these devastating cuts — literally the largest in history — for what they really are: tax breaks for billionaires paid for by the most vulnerable in our society.”
Padilla highlighted that the Republican budget reconciliation bill targets immigrants legally residing in the United States. He also underscored that Californians who are undocumented pay $8.5 billion dollars a year in taxes, yet are generally excluded from public programs like SNAP, the child tax credit, and Medicaid that their tax dollars pay for. He heard from Barbara C. Guinn, Commissioner of the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, about the devastating impacts of withholding food assistance for lawfully present immigrants who depend on SNAP.
PADILLA: “One of the most concerning elements of the bill is how it targets immigrant communities. There’s immigrants in every state in the nation. It targets them through deliberate exclusions of tax-paying noncitizens or their families from receiving child tax credit, Medicaid, and SNAP. … Commissioner Guinn, can you share how the bill would take food assistance away from lawfully present immigrants who have long been eligible for SNAP, and what the consequences would be for immigrant communities at large?”
GUINN: “… The SNAP program, first, already has some pretty stringent limitations on the extent to which noncitizens can receive benefits. So the fact that this bill goes even farther in reducing access for individuals who are legally, lawfully present in our country is of great concern. In New York State, we estimate that as a result of the provisions in the House bill to further prevent legal noncitizens from accessing food benefits would impact about 70,000 individuals. … SNAP is typically temporary. It is often received by individuals who are trying really hard to work, putting a couple of jobs together. That’s no different for these immigrants who are legally present in our country, and we believe that they should continue to receive SNAP benefits, and actually would prefer to move in a different direction, to expand access for additional legally [present] noncitizens.”
Padilla also questioned Northwestern University Professor Dr. Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach on the economic importance of preserving SNAP benefits. Dr. Schanzenbach emphasized that SNAP is especially important during economic downturns and after natural disasters, citing the critical safety net provided by expanding nutrition assistance during the Great Recession. SNAP supports roughly 390,000 jobs and $20 billion in wages every year.
PADILLA: “Dr. Schanzenbach, you’ve talked about how SNAP doesn’t just fight against hunger, it actually is a driver of local economies throughout the country, impacting farmers, food producers, grocery retailers, truck drivers, et cetera. Can you just expand on what those economic impacts would be?”
SCHANZENBACH: “… SNAP, and because of the full federal funding of SNAP, can very quickly expand in economic downturns. That means that people can still go to the grocery store, and it means that the grocery store doesn’t have to lay off certain people, and it has often been the most effective stimulus money that we’ve spent. Like during the Great Recession, they topped up benefits by like 15 percent. The studies came back and found… something like $1.75 return for every dollar that you spent on those increased benefits. SNAP is a very effective tool. It’s also particularly effective when, when there are natural disasters, like the fires in California. You know, we saw a little bit about the spillover effects on other people, right? Because we live in a society where our economic well-being is interconnected, and if we pull the rug out from one sector that’s going to have ripple effects.”
PADILLA: “Appreciate you mentioning that it’s not just economic downturns, but with the increasing frequency and scale of natural disasters, the role and impact of SNAP there as well.”
Video of Senator Padilla’s remarks and questioning is available here.
Last month, Senator Padilla issued a statement slamming House Republicans’ billionaire-first budget reconciliation bill that will gut critical programs, including SNAP, and devastate families in California and across the country. Padilla previously spoke on the Senate floor against the Republican budget resolution, and voted against advancing it in the Senate in both February and April.
Police have arrested a man after he allegedly used Facebook Marketplace to fleece people of more than $150,000 worth of goods.
This morning officers from Waitematā West Tactical Crime Unit assisted by the Armed Offenders Squad, conducted a search warrant at a Massey address.
Detective Senior Sergeant Ryan Bunting says Police had been looking for the male who was wanted in relation to 17 dodgy deals between November 2024 and April this year.
“This man was allegedly involved in Facebook Marketplace deals for 17 different vehicles or high value items including phones and jewellery.
“We allege this person has attended public places to meet the sellers and do ‘bank transfers’ described as looking very real, including using fake IDs and fake drivers licenses.
“Unfortunately the sellers have let the vehicles/goods go with the offender before later realising no transfer has occurred.”
Detective Senior Sergeant Bunting says the alleged offender has obtained goods to the tune of $150,000.
“Several vehicles have been recovered and further enquiries are ongoing.”
He says Police are not ruling out further charges.
“While it is a very effective buy and sell platform, it’s also a successful hunting ground for criminals to buy items using a fake bank transfer or sell items that don’t exist and don’t deliver.
“These types of scams can be difficult for Police to investigate so we are urging those who use the buy and sell platform to exercise caution and do their due-diligence first.”
Police encourage anyone choosing to use the buy and sell platform to follow the following advice:
• Insist on meeting to conduct transactions and examine the item before completing the transaction
• Meet in a public place and take a friend. DO NOT go into someone’s house or allow them into yours
• DO NOT deposit money into another person’s account before you have received the item
• Ensure that cleared funds have arrived in your account, don’t rely on sellers ID, screenshots or viewing funds being transferred on an app
• Learning more about the person you are buying from or selling to. Note: You can tap on a person’s profile on the product listing page to see if you have any friends in common, their marketplace activity, and any ratings they
may have received
• Ensure friends and family, especially anyone vulnerable, understand what to do to protect themselves. Be the person to provide that ongoing support and advice
• Trust your instincts – if it’s too good to be true or sounds like a scam, it probably is
If you believe you are or have been a victim of fraud, contact Police at www.police.govt.nz/use-105, or call Police on 105 and report the matter.
If you have handed over your bank details, contact your bank and immediately suspend your account.
A 36-year-old man will appear in Waitākere District Court today facing 17 charges of obtaining by deception.
BOSTON – A Boston man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Cess Frazier, 32, was charged with one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. Frazier was arrested and charged by complaint on April 29, 2025. The defendant was subsequently released on conditions following a detention hearing and will be arraigned in federal court in Boston at a later date.
According to the charging documents, on or about Feb. 20, 2025 through April 29, 2025, Frazier knowingly received and possessed files that depicted CSAM from unknown users on Telegram. It is alleged that the CSAM files depicted the sexual abuse of minor victims who appeared to be between approximately three and 10 years old.
The charge of receipt of child pornography provides for a sentence of at least five years and up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of possession of child pornography provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Boston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Allegra Flamm of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The sudden resignation this week of one of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s senior press secretaries was politically embarrassing, but also raises questions about how New Zealand law operates in such cases.
A Stuff investigation revealed the Beehive staffer allegedly recorded audio of sessions with sex workers, and whose phone contained images and video of women at the gym, supermarket shopping, and filmed through a window while getting dressed.
The man at the centre of the allegations has reportedly apologised and said he had sought professional help for his behaviour last year.
The police have said the case did not meet the threshold for prosecution. And this highlights the difficulties surrounding existing laws when it comes to non-consensual recording, harassment and image-based harm.
Describing his “shock” at the allegations against his former staffer, the prime minister said he was “open to revisiting” the laws around intimate audio recordings without consent. If that happens, there are several key areas to consider.
Are covert audio recordings illegal?
New Zealand law prohibits the non-consensual creation, possession and distribution of intimate visual recordings under sections 216H to 216J of the Crimes Act 1961. These provisions aim to protect individuals’ privacy and bodily autonomy in situations where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy.
The definition of “intimate visual recording” under these sections is limited to visual material, such as photographs, video or digital images, and does not extend to audio-only recordings.
As a result, covert audio recordings of sex workers engaged in sexual activity would fall outside the scope of these offences, even though the harm caused is similar.
If such audio or video recordings were ever shared with others or posted online, that may be a criminal offence under the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015 – if it can be proved this was done with the intention to cause serious emotional distress.
What about covert filming of women in public places?
Covert recording of women working out or walking down a road, including extreme closeups of clothed body parts, would unlikely meet the definition of “intimate visual recording”.
That is because they do not typically involve nudity, undergarments or private bodily activities, and they often occur in public places where there is no reasonable expectation of privacy.
Even extreme closeups may not meet the threshold unless they are taken from beneath or through clothing in a way that targets the genitals, buttocks or breasts. While they are invasive and degrading, they may remain lawful.
By contrast, it is more likely that covert filming of women dressing or undressing through a window would satisfy the definition, depending on where the women were. For example, were they in a place where they would have a reasonable expectation of privacy?
If the non-consensual recording captures a person in a state of undress, then the creation of such images or videos could be considered a crime.
Are any of these behaviours “harassment”?
Under the Harassment Act 1997, “harassment” is defined as a pattern of behaviour directed at a person that involves at least two specified acts within a 12-month period, or a single continuing act.
These acts can include following, watching, or any conduct that causes the person to fear for their safety. Although covert filming or audio recording is not expressly referenced, the acts of following and watching within alleged voyeuristic behaviour, if repeated, could fall within the definition.
But harassment is only a crime where it is done with the intent or knowledge that the behaviour will likely cause a person to fear for their safety. This is a threshold that might be difficult to prove in voyeurism or similar cases.
Covert recording of women’s bodies, whether audio or visual, is part of a broader pattern of gender-based violence facilitated by technology. Feminist legal scholars have framed this as “image-based sexual abuse”. The term captures how non-consensual creation, recording, sharing or threatening to share intimate content violates sexual autonomy and dignity.
Some forms of image-based sexual abuse are criminalised in New Zealand, but others are not. What we know of this case suggests some key gaps remain – largely because law reform has been piecemeal and reactive.
For example, the intimate visual recording offences in the Crimes Act were introduced in 2006 when wider access to digital cameras led to an upswing in covert filming (of women showering or “upskirting”, for example).
Therefore, the definition is limited to these behaviours. But the law was drafted before later advances in smartphone technology, now owned by many more people than in 2006.
Generally, laws are thought of as “living documents”, able to be read in line with the development of new or advanced technology. But when the legislation itself is drafted with certain technology or behaviours in mind, it is not necessarily future-proofed.
Where to now?
There is a risk to simply adding more offences to plug the gaps (and New Zealand is not alone in having to deal with this challenge). Amending the Crimes Act to include intimate audio recordings might address one issue. But new or advanced technologies will inevitably raise others.
Rather than responding to each new form of abuse as it arises, it would be better to take a step back and develop a more principled, future-focused criminal law framework.
That would mean defining offences in a technology-neutral way. Grounded in core values such as privacy, autonomy and consent, they would be more capable of adapting to new contexts and tools.
Only then can the law provide meaningful protection against the evolving forms of gendered harm facilitated by digital technologies.
Cassandra Mudgway does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
