Body of Matthew Kelemen found and roommate – who died in car chase last week – identified as suspect, officials say
The remains of a freelance writer in Las Vegas were found last week inside a container at a downtown business, authorities said.
Las Vegas police said in a news release that they discovered the body of Matthew Kelemen, 56, while responding to a report “of a foul-smelling odor” coming from the container.
Continue reading...Couple was found guilty in 2022 of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30m and tax evasion
The White House said on Tuesday that Donald Trump plans to pardon reality TV stars Julie and Todd Chrisley, the couple famous for Chrisley Knows Best, which followed their tightly knit family and extravagant lifestyle.
A jury in 2022 found them guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30m in fraudulent loans. The Chrisleys were also found guilty of tax evasion.
Continue reading...Wall Street up in early trading after US president commends bloc for calling to ‘quickly establish meeting dates’
Donald Trump has indicated there has been progress in US trade talks with the EU, helping send share prices rising on Wall Street, after he commended the bloc for calling to “quickly establish meeting dates”.
“I have just been informed that the EU has called to quickly establish meeting dates. This is a positive event, and I hope that they will,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, saying the EU would be “very happy and successful” if it agreed a deal.
Continue reading...US president launches fresh criticism of Russian counterpart and suggests US sanctions could be increased
Donald Trump has warned Vladimir Putin that he is “playing with fire”, launching a fresh broadside at his Russian counterpart over stalled Ukraine peace efforts.
Trump’s latest comments came after he called the Kremlin leader “CRAZY” over the weekend following a mass Russian air attack on Kyiv, and warned that Moscow risked new sanctions.
Continue reading...Antoine Massey and Derrick Groves still at large, while at least 11 people arrested on suspicion of aiding prisoners
Two of the 10 prisoners who escaped from New Orleans’s jail on 16 May remained on the run as of Tuesday, after three more of the group were rearrested on Monday, authorities said.
One of the men was arrested by local police in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, about 80 miles north-west of New Orleans. Two others were arrested in Walker county, Texas, Louisiana state police said on the Twitter/X.
Continue reading...Yaqeen Hammad is one of dozens of minors killed by Israeli attacks. Plus, US faces another summer of extreme heat
Good morning.
Eleven-year-old Yaqeen Hammad, Gaza’s youngest social media influencer, is among the dozens of children killed by Israel in recent strikes as its forces intensify their military offensive across the Palestinian territory.
How has Israel intensified its attacks on Gaza in recent days? Israeli airstrikes killed at least 52 people on Monday, including 31 in a school turned shelter that was struck as people slept, igniting their belongings, according to local health officials.
What is the latest with Israel’s aid blockade? A US-backed group tasked with delivering supplies said it had begun operations on Monday, in a plan endorsed by Israel but rejected by the UN.
How are Israel’s allies responding? The UK, France and Canada have called for Israel to end the siege of Gaza, with the British foreign secretary calling Israeli actions “monstrous”. But, as Patrick Wintour explains in Today in Focus, allies have not yet used all the tools at their disposal.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Trump advisers lose confidence in Pentagon leak investigation Hegseth used to justify firing three top aides
The White House has lost confidence in a Pentagon leak investigation that Pete Hegseth used to justify firing three top aides last month, after advisers were told that the aides had supposedly been outed by an illegal warrantless National Security Agency (NSA) wiretap.
The extraordinary explanation alarmed the advisers, who also raised it with people close to JD Vance, because such a wiretap would almost certainly be unconstitutional and an even bigger scandal than a number of leaks.
Continue reading...Fast-food chain’s plan on back of booming fried chicken market includes opening 500 new restaurants
KFC is to invest almost £1.5bn and create thousands of jobs in the UK and Ireland over the next five years, as the fast-food chain seeks to capitalise on the booming popularity of fried chicken.
The chain, which is celebrating its 60th year of operations in the UK, said it plans to invest £1.49bn to grow and upgrade its existing 1,000-outlet estate.
Continue reading...In today’s newsletter: As the US president becomes more disillusioned with Vladimir Putin, a look at how his stance towards the Russian leader is – and isn’t – shifting
Good morning. Nobody is more surprised than Donald Trump, but he is starting to think that Vladimir Putin is not a straight shooter. “I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him,” he wrote on Truth Social on Sunday. “He has gone absolutely CRAZY! I’ve always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia!”
As ever with Trump, a part of you admires the chutzpah: the idea that Trump has long been troubled by Putin’s imperial ambitions is, of course, an absolutely warped version of the real history. But – even if Trump also criticised Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, grumbling that “everything out of his mouth causes problems” – there does seem to be a sense that the US president is becoming more seriously disillusioned with Putin as a partner, and seeking ways to avoid blame for the consequences.
Israel-Gaza war | The UK must impose sanctions on the Israeli government and its ministers and also consider suspending it from the UN to meet its “fundamental international legal obligations”, more than 800 lawyers have said. Signatories to a letter to the prime minister include former supreme court justices, court of appeal judges and more than 70 KCs.
UK news | Liverpool FC’s Premier League victory parade descended into chaos on Monday evening after a car collided with pedestrians in the city centre, injuring nearly 50 people. A 53-year-old man was arrested at the scene of the incident, which is not being treated as terrorism.
The race report | Senior figures in British business have described a chilling effect on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, saying they are being “rebranded” to avoid attracting unwanted political attention.
Cost of living | Food inflation in the UK has risen for the fourth month in a row, figures show, driven by increases in the cost of fresh produce, including steak. The annual rate of food price rises hit 2.8% this month, after a 2.6% rise in April.
Gender guidance | Formal guidance on how organisations should implement the supreme court ruling on gender may not be fully signed off for months, officials and MPs have said. The warnings come amid increasing worries about the capability of the government’s equalities watchdog following criticisms of its chair, Kishwer Falkner.
Continue reading...European leaders call for ‘lowest possible’ border taxes after levies postponed from 1 June to 9 July
EU leaders have expressed hopes for a quick deal to resolve the trade war with the US after Donald Trump announced he was delaying his threatened 50% tariffs for the bloc until 9 July.
The US president said on Sunday he would pause the border tax due to be imposed on 1 June, which he had announced two days earlier, after what he called a “very nice call” with Ursula von der Leyen.
Continue reading...Agency also announced new inquiry into pipe bombs found outside Democratic and Republican offices in 2021
The FBI will launch new investigations into the 2023 discovery of a bag of cocaine at the White House during Joe Biden’s term, as well as into pipe bombs discovered at Democratic and Republican party headquarters before the 6 January 2021 Capitol riot by supporters of Donald Trump, and the leak of the supreme court’s draft opinion before the historic overturning of national abortion rights with the Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision that overturned Roe v Wade in 2022.
Dan Bongino, a rightwing podcaster turned deputy director of the FBI, made the announcement on X, where he said he had requested weekly briefings on any progress in looking into the old cases. The incidents have been popular talking points on America’s political right wing and among conspiracy theorists.
Continue reading...Enactment of 50% tariffs postponed until July so both sides can ‘reach a good deal’ after pressure from European leaders
Donald Trump has announced that he will pause his threatened 50% tariffs on the European Union until 9 July, after a “very nice call” with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen.
The European Commission president announced in a social media post that she had spoken with Trump and secured the delay to give the two sides more time to negotiate.
Continue reading...Prominent US senators warn Trump to ‘get serious’ about addressing budget deficit or they will block ‘beautiful bill’
Donald Trump has been warned by fiscal hawks within his own party in the US Senate that he must “get serious” about cutting government spending and reducing the national debt or else they will block the passage of his signature tax-cutting legislation known as the “big, beautiful bill”.
Ron Johnson, the Republican senator from Wisconsin who rose to prominence as a fiscal hardliner with the Tea Party movement, issued the warning to the president on Sunday. Asked by CNN’s State of the Union whether his faction had the numbers to halt the bill, he replied: “I think we have enough to stop the process until the president gets serious about spending reduction and reducing the deficit.”
Continue reading...NGO shelters along US-Mexico border, which have long provided aid, rattled by letter from Fema
The Trump administration has continued releasing people charged with being in the country illegally to non-governmental shelters along the US-Mexico border after previously telling those same organizations that providing immigrants with temporary housing and other aid may violate a law used to prosecute smugglers.
Border shelters, which have long provided lodging and meals before offering transportation to the nearest bus station or airport, were rattled by a letter from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) that raised “significant concerns” about potentially illegal activity and demanded detailed information in a wide-ranging investigation.
Continue reading...US state department says on website it may ‘actively review’ status of Americans who ‘serve as a foreign head of state’
Pope Leo XIV’s election as the first US-born leader of the Roman Catholic church elevated him to the rare, legally thorny, position of being an American citizen who now is also a foreign head of state.
Born in Chicago as Robert Prevost in 1955, the new pope for the past decade has held dual citizenship in the US and Peru, where he spent time as a missionary and bishop.
Continue reading...A potential agreement with survivors is in the works, but some parties are unhappy with settlement amount
The Catholic archbishop of New Orleans made a rare in-person appearance in federal bankruptcy court on Friday, days after announcing a potential agreement to settle claims with hundreds of clergy abuse survivors that has been met with pushback from some of the plaintiffs.
“I’m here because I’m concerned for the survivors,” Gregory Aymond said in an interview with WWL Louisiana away from the cameras after what is believed to have been his first appearance in person for an open court hearing in the five years since his archdiocese – one of the US’s oldest – joined roughly 40 Catholic institutions to file for bankruptcy protection amid the worldwide church’s long ongoing clergy molestation scandal.
Continue reading...A potential agreement with survivors is in the works, but some parties are unhappy with settlement amount
The Catholic archbishop of New Orleans made a rare in-person appearance in federal bankruptcy court on Friday, days after announcing a potential agreement to settle claims with hundreds of clergy abuse survivors that has been met with pushback from some of the plaintiffs.
“I’m here because I’m concerned for the survivors,” Gregory Aymond said in an interview with WWL Louisiana away from the cameras after what is believed to have been his first appearance in person for an open court hearing in the five years since his archdiocese – one of the US’s oldest – joined roughly 40 Catholic institutions to file for bankruptcy protection amid the worldwide church’s long ongoing clergy molestation scandal.
Continue reading...Nearly 2,000 applications for British citizenship submitted since since January, when Donald Trump took office
During the 12 months leading up to March, more than 6,000 US citizens have applied to either become British subjects or to live and work in the country indefinitely – the highest number since comparable records began in 2004, according to data released on Thursday by the UK’s Home Office.
Over the period, 6,618 Americans applied for British citizenship – with more than 1,900 of the applications received between January and March, most of which has been during the beginning of Donald Trump’s second US presidency.
Continue reading...Cases in New Mexico and Kansas give experts reason to be ‘concerned’ in second-worst US measles year since 2000
The measles outbreak in Texas is showing signs of slowing, though other states are seeing more cases and health officials are warning against complacency as the US continues to experience high rates of measles amid falling vaccination rates.
It has been a handful of days since anyone in Lubbock, Texas, has tested positive, and there are no known measles hospitalizations at the children’s hospital in the city, which has also cared for children from nearby Gaines county.
Continue reading...Cases in New Mexico and Kansas give experts reason to be ‘concerned’ in second-worst US measles year since 2000
The measles outbreak in Texas is showing signs of slowing, though other states are seeing more cases and health officials are warning against complacency as the US continues to experience high rates of measles amid falling vaccination rates.
It has been a handful of days since anyone in Lubbock, Texas, has tested positive, and there are no known measles hospitalizations at the children’s hospital in the city, which has also cared for children from nearby Gaines county.
Continue reading...