A museum in New York claims to be the only collection focusing on the KGB’s espionage operations in the world. The newly opened exhibition hall, housed in a former warehouse on 14th Street, is home to 3,500 original period objects, which the designer of the museum, Julius Urbaitis, has gathered after 30 years of research around the world
Continue reading...Category Archives: New York
‘El Chapo’ defense lasts 30 minutes and calls just one witness
Prosecution case against accused Mexican drug lord had lasted 11 weeks
After a prosecution that spanned 11 weeks and had its share of bombshells, the defense case at the US trial of the alleged Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán clocked in on Tuesday at a mere 30 minutes.
Attorney Jeffrey Lichtman called one witness and entered one document into evidence before resting the defense’s case. The jury was sent home for the day with closing arguments set to begin on Wednesday.
Continue reading...Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid facing possible subpoenas over Fyre Festival
Subpoenas for financial information likely include Jenner and firms representing 25 models who starred in promotional video
Supermodels including Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid, Elsa Hosk and Emily Ratajkowski, are potentially steps away from facing demands to return sizeable payments they received for helping to promote the ill-fated Fyre Festival.
On Monday, a New York bankruptcy judge signed off on subpoenas submitted by the trustee overseeing the bankruptcy of the Bahamas music festival, which collapsed in chaos and discord before it had even got under way last April, requesting “information regarding the [Fyre Media’s] financial affairs from third parties”.
Continue reading...Woman trapped in billionaire’s elevator rescued after three days
Housekeeper Marites Fortaliza was alone in Warren Stephens’s townhouse when she became trapped on Friday night
A woman was rescued on Monday after being trapped in the elevator of a billionaire’s Manhattan townhouse for an entire weekend. She is now in the hospital in stable condition.
The house is owned by Warren Stephens, the chief executive of the investment bank Stephens. He has an estimated net worth of $2.4bn.
Continue reading...El Chapo trial: ex-bodyguard says he watched boss bury victim alive
Guzmán alleged to have committed three murders, marking first time in three-month trial he has been personally accused
A former bodyguard for the accused Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán has told a court that he watched his boss personally carry out three murders, including one in which the victim was buried alive.
The killings described by Isaías Valdéz Ríos in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, were the first in the three-month-old trial to be attributed to Guzmán himself, rather than underlings following his orders.
Continue reading...Deaths of Saudi sisters found bound together in New York river ruled suicide
Bodies of Rotana Farea and Tala Farea were found taped together, lying on rocks along the river last October
The tragic and mysterious death of two Saudi Arabian sisters whose bodies were found, taped together, along New York City’s waterfront last October appears to have been a double suicide.
Rotana and Tala Farea both drowned and the cause of death was suicide, New York medical examiner Barbara Sampson said in a brief report on Tuesday evening.
Continue reading...Vintage ski posters – in pictures
A collection of vintage ski and winter sports posters up to a century old – some worth thousands of dollars – is about to be auctioned in New York. The resorts advertised range from Europe’s Alpine jewels to the mountains of Canada, and all offer fun in the outdoors
Continue reading...A naked escape and bribed presidents: El Chapo trial’s shocking testimony
A New York court has heard how the Mexican drug lord Joaquín Guzmán eluded capture with his mistress while paying millions to politicians and police
That Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán – on trial in New York for heading the world’s biggest drug cartel – escaped a raid through a tunnel beneath his bath is legend; what is not known is that he did so stark naked with the mistress with whom he was abed when the Mexican marines arrived.
That Guzmán’s Sinaloa cartel bribed politicians and senior military officers is presumed by most Mexicans; that he bribed presidents would surprise few – what we had not heard is that he allegedly haggled down a presidential demand for $250m protection money to $100m.
Continue reading...El Chapo paid $100m bribe to former Mexican president Peña Nieto, witness says
Alex Cifuentes, a close associate of the cartel chief, testified that he told US authorities about the alleged bribe in 2016
A witness at the US trial of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán has testified that he told US authorities the accused Mexican drug lord once paid a $100m bribe to former Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto.
Alex Cifuentes, who has said he was a close associate of the Sinaloa cartel chief for years, discussed the alleged bribe under cross-examination by one of Guzman’s lawyers in Brooklyn federal court on Tuesday. Asked if he told authorities in 2016 that Guzman arranged the bribe, he answered: “That’s right.”
Continue reading...DNA discoverer James Watson loses honors over views on race
New York laboratory cuts ties with 90-year-old scientist who helped discover DNA, revoking all titles and honors
A New York laboratory has cut ties with James Watson, the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who helped discover DNA, over “reprehensible” comments in which he said race and intelligence are connected.
Related: Interview: James Watson
Continue reading...‘We didn’t respond fast enough’: Seattle lawmakers warn New York over Amazon
Council members urge New Yorkers to demand concessions like labor standards before company gains foothold in city
Two lawmakers from Amazon’s hometown in Seattle traveled to New York on Monday to warn the city of potential unintended consequences of the tech company’s planned new headquarters.
Lisa Herbold and Teresa Mosqueda, members of Seattle’s city council, addressed a summit of activist groups fighting Amazon’s plan for a new campus in Long Island City, Queens. They told the New Yorkers that Amazon’s presence in the west coast city had driven up housing costs, that the company had ducked efforts to make them help pay to address the crisis, and that they should resist it.
Continue reading...El Chapo v El Vicentillo: son of cartel’s co-founder testifies against drug lord
Vicente Zambada Niebla, son of the Joaquín Guzmán’s longtime partner, had been groomed to take over Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel
One of the greatest betrayals in mafia history emerged into open court this week at the New York trial of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, as the former heir-apparent to Guzmán’s Sinaloa federation turned against his own boss, the cartel – and apparently even his own father.
Related: Behind the El Chapo trial: what's been left unsaid in a New York courtroom
Continue reading...‘L-mageddon’ averted as New York calls off shutdown of subway line
Fifteen-month shutdown of subway tunnel between Manhattan and Brooklyn canceled after Andrew Cuomo announces new plan
Nearly a quarter million New Yorkers who for years dreaded “L-mageddon”, a planned 15-month shutdown of a key subway tunnel between Manhattan and Brooklyn, got a last-minute reprieve Thursday with a new plan that will allow repairs to go on during nights and weekends and the trains to keep running.
The New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, made the surprise announcement just weeks after convening a panel of top engineering experts to take another look at the L train tunnel beneath the East river to see if there was a way to fix flood damage from 2012’s Superstorm Sandy without doing as much demolition and disrupting so many lives. Turns out there was.
Continue reading...New Year’s Eve celebrations and fireworks around the world – in pictures
Photos from London, New York, Paris, Moscow, Sydney and elsewhere as major cities ring in 2019
Continue reading...Charter will pay $174.2m for defrauding New Yorkers over data speeds, …
Charter will pay $174.2m for defrauding New Yorkers over data speeds, the largest settlement ever paid by a US ISP Charter-Spectrum has settled a lawsuit brought by the New York Attorney General that accused the company of defrauding New Yorkers through false advertising about the data-speeds they could expect from their plans . The settlement, for $174.2 million, is the largest ever paid by a US ISP.
Robert De Niro reignites feud with Donald Trump and calls him a ‘nightmare’
Mr Mueller is in charge of the investigation into Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 presidential campaign. The president has dismissed the probe as a "witch hunt".
NYPD looking to arrest 12 in brawl outside Republican club
In a Friday, Sept. 14, 2018 file photo, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks to reporters during a news conference, in New York.
Cuomo: Clashes were GOP’s fault
Outside of the vandalized Metropolitan Republican Club in Manhattan, Oct. 12, 2018. Windows were broken and anarchist symbols were left on the clubA's doors in Manhattan before an appearance by Gavin McInnes, the founder of the Proud Boys.
FBI Has Evidence That ‘Directly Refutes’ Premise Of…
Reality Breaks Up a Prince Charming's Media Narrative - Just six months ago, American media outlets presented a sunny-side-up portrait of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia as he made a good-will tour of New York, Hollywood and Silicon Valley.
Bill, Hillary Clinton headlining 2018-2019 arena tour
Former President Bill Clinton and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton are going on a 13-date arena tour through 2019. "Attendees will have the opportunity to hear one-of-a-kind conversations with the two leaders as they tell their stories from some of the most impactful moments in modern history," Live Nation said in a statement .