Man arrested after boat capsizes near Statue of Liberty killing woman and infant

A US judge in New Mexico on Thursday ordered Meta to pay another $567m (£421m) for its failure to warn the public about dangers its platforms posed to children, marking the largest ruling against the company over child safety.Judge Bryan Biedscheid said the social media giant is a "public nuisance" akin to air pollution and that it must put the money in a fund aimed at reducing future harms. The ruling is in addition to $375m in fines Meta was already ordered to pay in the case, for a total of $942m.Judge Biedscheid compared Meta to a factory, with advertising and content as its product and "the psychological harm and sexual exploitation of children to be the pollution that must be abated".A spokesman for Meta, which owns and operates Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and Threads, said Thursday: "We disagree with the ruling and will appeal.""We work hard to keep people safe on our platforms and have been transparent about the challenges of identifying and removing bad actors and harmful content. We remain confident in our record of protecting teens online and will continue to defend ourselves against claims that misrepresent the facts."Regarding the earlier $375m verdict against in the case, Meta had said it intended to appeal the ruling and gave a similar explanation. It was the first time that a state had successfully sued Meta over child safety issues.Meta is currently facing thousands of lawsuits in the US over similar issues. In addition to the New Mexico rulings, Meta earlier this year lost a case in Los Angeles making similar claims.The New Mexico case stems from a 2023 lawsuit brought by attorneys for the State of New Mexico, arguing Meta should be held liable for the way in which its platforms endangered children and exposed them to sexually explicit material and contact with sexual predators.In the first phase of the trial, Meta was found to have repeatedly violated New Mexico's Unfair Practices Act as its recommendation algorithms essentially "steered" young users toward harmful content and contacts.Recommendation algorithms are the tools that Meta uses to automatically curate the content a user sees on its platforms.In ruling on this second phase of the trial, Judge Biedscheid found that Meta's harms reached the level of "public nuisance", or an issue of health and safety that has become so widespread it is negatively impacting a general public.In addition to being the largest fine Meta has received over child safety issues, the ruling also appears to be the first time that a social media company has been deemed a public nuisance."Just as noxious pollution produced by the factory can harm the common public right to reasonably clean air, the harmful effects of Meta's platforms on children do not stay contained by its platforms and, instead, migrate to the internet as a whole and, perhaps most concerning, to the real world and create a common, societal burden on and harm to the affected children and their families and schools, as well as hospitals and law enforcement," the judge wrote.The fund that Meta has been ordered to create will be used to pay for efforts to mitigate "the wide-ranging impacts of the harm", Judge Biedscheid said.A vast majority of the money, totaling $420m, will go towards treatment of harms Meta's platforms have already caused, through the funding of "appropriate clinical or other behavioral health programs and professionals," according to the order.Another chunk of the money will go towards training around awareness and prevention, including for teachers and health professionals on how to deal with social media harms against children.The judge also ordered Meta to enact other measures, including ensuring that no account of a user under age 18 is recommended to an adult and that no adult can message an underage user, banning the sending or receiving of nudity by underage users and enacting a "1-strike policy for adult users who engage in child sexual exploitation."In addition, Meta was ordered to:

WARNING: Readers may find details in this article distressing.Texts between singer D4vd and Celeste Rivas Hernandez, the 14-year-old he is accused of murdering, reveal she had been pregnant and had had an abortion before her death. The messages were shown during a hearing for a judge to determine if the singer, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, should go on trial for the teen's death last year."What [if] the first abortion didn't work?" Celeste texted Burke in June 2024, according to prosecutors. She was 13 years old at the time and he was 19. Prosecutors say Burke killed her after she threatened to reveal he had been abusing a minor and destroy his career. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of murdering and sexually abusing the girl.In an exchange from January 2024, Burke apologised to the teen for "putting her through this", according to messages shown in the Los Angeles court on Friday.She responded, "neither of us are capable of watching and taking care of the baby. it's for the best no?"Burke asked, "also my mother always told me to ask this question if I was ever in this situation … it is mine right?" Celeste replied "of course its yours David", according to testimony from a detective.The court heard that in another text to Celeste, sent in June 2024, Burke wrote: "Let's let this abortion be the last one til we have the real one…" Prosecutors presented iCloud data recovered from the defendant's iPhone, showing texts between him and Celeste dating back to 8 August 2022, when she was 11 years old and Burke was 17.The phone belonging to Burke also had explicit photos of the teenager during the alleged abuse, prosecutors and Los Angeles Police Detective Corey Farell said on Friday.The victim's mother, Mercedes Rivas Hernandez, became visibly emotional and left the court with her husband as details of some of the photos were read aloud during the proceedings.D4vd, who rose to fame on TikTok with the viral hits Romantic Homicide and Here With Me, was on tour when police found Celeste's body in the front truck of his Tesla in September 2025 - the day after she would have turned 15. His worldwide tour was cancelled and he largely retreated from public life and social media.Police announced his arrest in April this year.Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman filed seven criminal charges against him, including murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child and the mutilation of remains.They said the teen was reported missing by her family and was last seen at Burke's Hollywood Hills home on 3 April 2025 - five months before her remains were discovered in the Tesla.Prosecutors have said he met Celeste online when she was 11, and allege he started sexually abusing her when she was 13 and he was 18.

A modelling scout linked to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has been found dead at his home.Daniel Siad, 69, was discovered on Monday in Colombes, a north-west suburb of Paris, the Nanterre prosecutor's office confirmed to the BBC.An investigation to determine the cause of death was opened on Monday evening, the office said, adding that a post-mortem examination would be carried out.Siad's name appeared thousands of times in the Epstein files released by the US government. He denied knowing of the threat Epstein had posed.His lawyer stressed that Siad, who had been the subject of several complaints in France including allegations of rape, had "never been prosecuted"."He is dead and he was innocent," Ménya Arab-Tigrine said in a statement.Epstein victim Anya - not her real name - previously told the BBC that Siad had introduced her to Epstein."It was a complete set-up," she said, describing Siad as "essentially a professional trafficker".During one email to Epstein released in the files, Siad wrote in badly spelled English: "In This busyness I feel like fisherman some time I cache quick, some time no fish."Ahead of a BBC investigation on the subject published on Saturday, Arab-Tigrine had said her client was not available for comment.However, in a recent CNN interview, Siad said he had not known the women were being abused by Epstein. "I trusted him, I believed this guy is a professional person," he said.The first complaints against Siad in France were filed in February. He denied wrongdoing in multiple recent media interviews, telling BFMTV in May: "I have never raped anyone in my life."Lawyers for the former model who made the first complaint said they were "stunned" by his death."We are at a loss for words to describe the anger and sadness we feel," they said, with alleged victims "denied a criminal trial".The lawyers said they felt "immense anger toward the Paris Public Prosecutor's Office, which announced last February that it was opening an investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's French accomplices". They accused the office of "scandalous" inaction which they said demonstrated "the public authorities' contempt for victims of sexual crimes, even when these crimes are linked to the human trafficking network established by Epstein and his accomplices".The BBC has contacted the prosecutor's office for comment.Another former model who gave a deposition to police in June as part of the investigation into Siad told the BBC his death meant any information he might have had about Epstein was now lost."An important link in the chain has just vanished into thin air, without there even having been a chance to recover the information Daniel Siad might have possessed, given that he was never questioned," she said."Too much time has been lost... and it is yet another way for the leads to go cold. I hope we won't have to wait another seven years to see his home searched, even though I think it is already too late."Anne-Claire Le Jeune, who represents six women who made complaints about Siad, said victims had been deprived of justice: "My clients found the strength to break a particularly heavy silence, given Daniel Siad's ties to Jeffrey Epstein"They faced every stage of the proceedings with remarkable courage."It is deeply regrettable that the slow pace of the investigation resulted in his death before he could be questioned or taken into police custody, thereby depriving the victims of a crucial step in their pursuit of truth and justice."Another associate of Epstein, French modelling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, was found hanged in his Paris prison cell in 2022.The 76-year-old had been held in custody for more than a year as he was investigated on suspicion of the rape of minors and trafficking of minors for sexual exploitation. Brunel denied any wrongdoing.Brunel founded MC2 Model Management with funding from Epstein and was suspected of transporting and housing girls or young women for Epstein.Epstein, 66, died by suicide in

The former government minister is believed to have been attacked on Wednesday, a full day before her body was discovered.A man who was arrested on suspicion of murdering former British government minister Ann Widdecombe has been released and is no longer part of the investigation, police said.This comes as detectives revealed the killing took place a day before Widdecombe’s body was found at her home in rural southwest England on Thursday.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Police probe donations to Britain’s far-right Reform partylist 2 of 4Andy Burnham apology for Labour stance on Gaza: Is UK’s position shifting?list 3 of 4UK police arrest man suspected of murdering former MP Ann Widdecombelist 4 of 4Could far-right Reform really win a UK general election now?end of listDevon and Cornwall Police said a 26-year-old white British national was arrested in Newton Abbot, about 14.5 kilometres (nine miles) from Widdecombe’s home, on Friday, before being freed on Saturday.Officers now believe the 78-year-old was attacked on Wednesday around 11:30 GMT, a day before ambulance workers called police to her home, where she was found dead with serious injuries.Police said they had found no evidence the killing was “terrorism”-related or politically motivated.They also said the suspect was believed to be a white male and that there was no wider risk to the public.Widdecombe was known for her socially conservative views, first as ⁠a junior minister in Conservative Prime Minister John Major’s 1992-1997 government and latterly as an immigration spokesperson for Nigel Farage’s far-right populist Reform UK.She converted to Catholicism partly in protest at the Church of England’s ordination of women as priests and was opposed to abortion and to equalising ⁠the age of consent for homosexual and heterosexual relationships.She also defended a policy of shackling pregnant prisoners during childbirth to prevent their escape and viewed single mothers as poor role ⁠models, but was unusual among Conservative lawmakers in opposing the hunting of ⁠foxes with hounds.News of her death led to tributes on Friday from across the political spectrum in the UK, including from Prime Minister Keir Starmer and from Farage, who described her as “an extraordinary woman”.“She stood up and fought for what she believed in – a devout Christian and somebody with strong, socially ‌conservative views,” Farage said in a video clip posted on his X account.Two serving British members of parliament have been murdered in the last decade.The Labour lawmaker Jo Cox was shot and stabbed by a Nazi-obsessed loner during the Brexit ‌campaign in 2016.The Conservative lawmaker David Amess was stabbed to death in 2021 by a man inspired by the ISIL (ISIS) group.

A US toddler who was found unresponsive in an Arizona pool and declared dead was later discovered to be alive in the hospital's "cold room", a newly released police report shows.The family of the 18-month-old frantically called police after they found him face down in the pool at a home in the Phoenix-area suburb of Gilbert on 8 February.First responders were dispatched and performed life-saving measures, before the child was transported to hospital and declared dead an hour later. According to the police report, officers told a physician at the hospital, Dr Aryan Toosi, that they had seen signs of life. The doctor responded, "please do your thing and let me do my thing", the report says."I went to medical school for a reason," Toosi said, according to the report.Family had gathered to watch the NFL Super Bowl game when police were called to the scene for a reported drowning. Gilbert police arrived to the home around 17:30 MST (00:30 GMT), before the child was taken to Mercy Gilbert Medical Center and pronounced dead at 18:20. "If there's no objections, I'd like to call time of death," Toosi said, according to police officer bodycam video obtained by a local NBC News affiliate. "Time of death 18:20. Moment of silence," the doctor said.A transporter from the Maricopa County Medical Examiner's Office arrived to hospital five hours later and found the child was still breathing, according to police. He was flown to another hospital where he recovered and has since been released. Medical records for the child were not included in the police report, leaving uncertainty about what exactly happened. The doctor's attorney, Scott Holden, told the BBC in an emailed statement: "Out of courtesy to the family and patient confidentiality, we respectfully decline to make a statement at this time."Police are recommending negligence charges against the parents. According to the police report, investigators said there was a strong smell of marijuana at the home, which led them to believe the child could have had unsupervised access to the pool. The Maricopa County Attorney's Office has not yet said if it would seek to press charges.Mercy Gilbert Medical Center said in a statement that the hospital conducted "a thorough review of all aspects of the care provided to learn what happened and to make meaningful changes to strengthen our care". The hospital called it "a heartbreaking situation" and has declined to release any further details.

Two people have been found dead as an out-of-control wildfire burns in northern Greece, forcing residents of a nearby village to evacuate.The body of a man was discovered in a charred area near Liti, about 15km (nine miles) north-west of the city of Thessaloniki. A second body - yet to be identified - was found later in a house in a forested area near the village.A woman rescued near the house with burn injuries is now said to be in a stable condition in hospital. A 12-year-old child is also reported missing.More than 100 firefighters, dozens of fire engines and at least seven aircraft are trying to contain the fire, reportedly facing a wall of flame some 5km long and still spreading.The cause of the blaze, which broke out at about 14:30 local time (11:30 GMT) on Tuesday and quickly spread to a nearby forest, has not yet been determined. The region was under a high wildfire risk warning, with dry conditions and high winds making it harder to contain the fire and causing repeated flare-ups.Residents in Liti were urged to flee their homes while Greek broadcaster ERT reported a small number of properties had been damaged by the fire, which was spreading towards the nearby village of Melissochori on Tuesday evening.The reported missing child is believed to be the son of the man found dead earlier and the injured woman.It is Greece's latest forest fire in recent days as it heads towards its peak tourist season. Wildfires have become a common occurrence for the country during summers of regular droughts and heatwaves.

An Australian man has been charged with murder after the body of a 17-year-old girl was found in a suitcase in Thailand.Police in the coastal city of Pattaya said they found Tunchanok Donhomla "stuffed" in the bag, which had been discarded near a railway track, in the early hours of Saturday.Thai police said they arrested Simon Peter Carman at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport in connection with the death as he was allegedly "preparing to flee the country".He denies the charges. In a message issued to the victim's family after his arrest, Carman said: "I feel bad for what happened to your daughter. It was out of my control."Pattaya City Police said the 17-year-old had been reported missing at 17:00 local time (12:00 GMT) on Friday. In a statement on social media, the force said it reviewed CCTV footage that allegedly showed Carman entering a condominium with Donholma at 03:34 on Thursday. Late that evening, he emerged alone "carrying a large suitcase".The statement said he loaded the bag onto a motorbike before driving towards a railway line.Officers questioned and arrested Carman at the airport in Bangkok, some 150km (93 miles) north of Pattaya, at 01:15 on Saturday.The teenager's naked body was found in a suitcase about 15 minutes later, the force said.Carman denied murder and further charges related to moving or concealing a body and taking a minor for sexual purposes, and claimed he had acted in self defence.Media reports state that Carman told police he had agreed to pay Donholma 1,000 baht (£23, US$30, A$43) for sexual services, but that they had an argument when they returned to his apartment and he offered only 500 baht. Thai police told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that Carman also claimed Donhomla had "disappeared from the room" while he was asleep.In a video recorded while he was in custody, the suspect issued a message to the Donholma's family, saying: "I feel bad for what happened to your daughter. It was out of my control.""I know you'll be very sad, upset… same [as] me."He added: "Please tell other girls… just to be careful."Colonel Anek Srathongyoo, Superintendent of the Pattaya City Police Station, told the ABC that Carman "has fingernail scratches across his body that are consistent with a struggle, but he denies killing her".In another police video clip Carman is seen being asked about the scratch marks. "I think it's a spider; they always get in here," he replies.Donhomla's family told the ABC she was an only child who lived with her father and step-mother in the province of Kalasin, about 480km northeast of Pattaya. The teen, whose nickname was Cake, had told her parents she wanted to go on holiday with a friend, and had travelled to Pattaya on 16 June.Her father, Thongchai Donhomla, said he was "deeply saddened" by his daughter's death. "My daughter had no mother, so whenever she wanted anything, she would find a way herself, and she always helped me too," he told a local reporter.Her step-mother, Oradee Bussarakum, said "We were scared. We just hoped it wouldn't turn out the way we feared. Now our eyes are swollen from crying.""I just want him executed ... I even asked the police if I could hit him, if I could beat him," she added.If convicted of murder, Carman could face the death penalty.

In this file photo from 2023, then-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg (R), husband Chasten Buttigieg and their children Penelope and Gus attend the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House on April 10, 2023 in Washington, DC. Buttigieg said his family was subject to a CPS investigation after a false report on June 26, 2026. Drew Angerer/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Drew Angerer/Getty Images Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says he and his children were the subject of an investigation by Child Protective Services following an anonymous report that was later determined to be false. Buttigieg, who lives with his husband and their twin four-year-old children in Traverse City, Michigan detailed the experience in a Substack post on Friday, saying that a police officer and CPS worker had come to his home and notified him of an anonymous report that alleged his children were at risk. In response to the claim, Buttigieg shared that both children had to participate in forensic interviews where no family could be present. Because he was not permitted to be alone with his children until after the interviews, he added they went to stay with their grandparents, away from their fathers. "The twenty-four hours until they returned are among the darkest hours of my life," Buttigieg wrote. When asked for comment, the Michigan State Police told NPR they had received an anonymous report this week that state police and CPS responded to and "determined the report was false." Buttigieg, a rising star within the Democratic Party and potential 2028 presidential contender, first garnered national attention when he ran for president in 2020, making history as the first openly gay person to run a competitive election for a major party nomination. The Michigan State Police have not shared any additional information on a potential motive for the false report against Buttigieg and his family. But in his statement Friday, Buttigieg noted the incident had taken place during Pride Month, meant to celebrate LGBTQ+ people. "It's not lost on me that this happened soon after we shared photos of our family on social media for Father's Day," Buttigieg said in his statement. "Or that this occurred during a month meant to make families like ours feel welcome and safe." News of the incident prompted bipartisan support for Buttigieg, including from Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wisc., who replied to the Michigan Democrat's post on X saying, "this has happened to our family and I agree, this is horrible." "I hope they find the folks that did this and send them to prison," he added. NPR has not independently confirmed Van Orden's claims. Buttigieg, who in his statement described himself as "reasonable" and said he tries to remain calm and low-key, shared his strong emotions sparked by the involvement of his children. "I cannot describe the mix of rage and sadness that I feel at the idea that someone brought our children into this. They are four years old. Four," he said. "They do not know or care what a Democrat or a Republican is. They don't know how politics works. They don't know about hate."