Author: rpnadmin

NEW YORK — A man accused of running a secret Chinese spy outpost in New York City was convicted Wednesday of acting as an illegal foreign agent and destroying text messages from a Chinese government handler. Lu Jianwang, 64, was acquitted of a related conspiracy charge in a case that pitted U.S. concerns about China’s crackdown on pro-democracy dissidents against the defense’s contention that prosecutors twisted a well-meaning Chinese American community leader’s bureaucratic misstep to put him in prison. Lu spoke to supporters as he left Brooklyn federal court but declined to answer questions from reporters. His lawyer, John Carman,…

NEW YORK — A former New York City judge who resigned last year while under investigation for professional misconduct was charged Wednesday with abusing his position to swindle real estate investors out of at least $5 million and then using some of the loot to pay his own bills. Edward Harold King, who left the bench at the end of last year, and Yechiel “Sam” Sprei, a politically connected real estate developer, were arrested by the FBI on wire fraud conspiracy charges after federal prosecutors say they duped a pair of investors into forking over $6.5 million for a bogus…

For five hours, the 11 survivors of a plane crash off the coast of Florida floated on a life raft, with no means of calling for help and no idea if anyone was coming to save them. As a thunderstorm approached, they gathered under a tarp for whatever protection it might offer. Then, search and rescue crews from the U.S. military appeared overhead, members of those crews recounted during a news conference Wednesday. “You could tell just by looking at them that they were in distress – physically, mentally and emotionally,” said Air Force Capt. Rory Whipple, a combat rescue…

NEW YORK — A man pleaded guilty Wednesday to repeatedly ramming his car into the Chabad Lubavitch world headquarters in New York City, telling a judge he did so because he was intent on damaging the Jewish landmark. Dan Sohail, 36, plowed an entrance to the packed Brooklyn synagogue with his car five consecutive times in January after clearing away stanchions and urging people to move out of the way, federal prosecutors said. He caused about $19,000 in damage, which he must repay. Sohail, of Carteret, New Jersey, resolved the case without a hate crime conviction, pleading guilty to a…

LAS VEGAS — Allegiant Air said Wednesday it has completed its purchase of Sun Country Airlines, finalizing a deal that combines two low-cost carriers at a turbulent time for the budget airline industry following the recent shutdown of rival Spirit Airlines. Las Vegas-based Allegiant said the transaction closed after receiving required regulatory and shareholder approvals. When the deal was first announced in January, Allegiant said it was valued at about $1.5 billion, including debt. “Today marks a defining moment in Allegiant’s history as we officially join forces with Sun Country,” Allegiant CEO Gregory Anderson said in a statement, adding that…

A 21-year-old Chinese man has pleaded guilty in federal court to photographing planes at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. Tianrui Liang pleaded guilty Thursday to the charges over photos he took of planes at the base from just outside its perimeter on March 31, according to court records. The planes included the E-4B, which acts as a “National Airborne Operations Center” when necessary, and the RC-135 reconnaissance plane, according to an affidavit filed against Liang. Liang admitted to law enforcement that he knew that taking pictures of the planes on the ground was illegal. He said that he wanted…

Seven in 10 U.S. adults surveyed in a recent Gallup poll said they do not want an AI data center built near them, with 48% “strongly oppose” it. The polling company reported Wednesday that just 27% of respondents supported construction of a hub near them, including 7% who “strongly favor” one. It’s the first time Gallup has posed the question, with the firm citing “fierce opposition from local residents in many parts of the country” as a reason for the survey. “These data centers house computing equipment that helps power AI technology used by businesses, universities and other institutions,” Gallup…

Democrat-led states are refusing to issue vehicle registrations to ICE officers working undercover, the Justice Department said Wednesday, accusing the states of putting criminals ahead of agents’ safety. Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate fired off letters to the governors of Oregon and Massachusetts and the attorneys general in Washington and Maine, demanding they find ways to revoke the policies. “It’s dangerous, shameful and unconstitutional. It needs to stop now,” Mr. Shumate said on social media as he released the letters publicly. The registrations are standard in law enforcement work, allowing agents and officers to blend in with regular traffic and…

An 88-year-old American woman who traveled to the Bahamas on board a Carnival cruise ship died after driving her mobility scooter off a pier. At about noon Saturday, the victim drove off the pier and fell into the water. She is believed to have hit her head on the hull of the boat as she did so, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said in a release.  The victim, whom police did not name, was retrieved from the water and taken for treatment aboard the ship, but ultimately succumbed to her injuries before being pronounced dead by a local doctor, the…

A hormonal condition affecting 1 in 8 women around the world just got a new name in hopes of improving care. It Is now called polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome instead of polycystic ovary syndrome. Researchers and supporters of the change said the old name, often shortened to PCOS, is inaccurate. It reduced a complex hormonal or endocrine disorder to a misunderstanding about cysts and a focus on ovaries, contributing to missed diagnoses and inadequate treatment, said the Endocrine Society, a global group of physicians and scientists. “The thought behind that is that one, there’s no cysts in the ovary, so…