‘Missing four hours were always red flag for me': Retired garda explains how Annie McCarrick case went awry
After 32 years of examining every possibility of who might have murdered American woman Annie McCarrick, gardaí have set their sights on one chief suspect.
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Metro
2 hours ago
- Metro
Chris Brown returns to Manchester for first show in city since prison release
It seems Chris Brown was keen to go incognito as he returned to Manchester for the first time since his arrest, later making a triumphant stage comeback on stage despite divided opinions. The American singer was released from prison last month after a second bail application was successful, having previously been detained and charged with grievous bodily harm with intent during an alleged 2023 nightclub bottle attack. Brown, 36, was staying at the five-star Lowry Hotel when police came knocking on May 15. A week later, Southwark Crown Court heard that he had been freed under bail conditions and ordered to pay a £5million security fee guaranteeing his return. It had been uncertain whether the R&B star would be continuing with his tour, which had been due to kick off just days after his release. However, a judge ruled that he was able to, meaning he recently jetted back to the UK for a string of shows. Despite thousands of social media users demanding his gigs be axed, Brown played in the new Co-op Live Arena tonight, where he'll do a second concert tomorrow before heading to Cardiff on June 19. Brown will then return to Manchester for a third show on June 24, which was added due to high demand. The Virginia-born Under The Influence artist was spotted ahead of the show this evening, being shielded by his team, who kept him dry with umbrellas. Brown cut a typically casual figure, wearing a graphic T-shirt and a beanie, plus designer diamond earrings. His face was barely visible as he was papped out in the city, staff also carrying a large board to cover him entirely. However, Brown was more than visible to thousands of paying fans later in the night as he received a warm reception for his Breezy Bowl XX European leg. Taking to X with footage from moments of the show, fans revealed that Brown brought out 50 Cent as a surprise guest. The rapper shared a handshake with Brown before launching into a tune, sending the venue wild. 50 Cent, real name Curtis James Jackson III, previously voiced support for Brown after he had been arrested, so it's perhaps not surprising at all that he was the famous friend he selected for a cameo in Manchester. The In da Club hitmaker, 49, took to his Instagram Story after Brown was denied bail for the first time, sharing a screenshot of a news story detailing the update. His caption read: 'Damn they doing CB dirty, they knew about this case for 2 years. This is gonna muck up the whole tour. WTF going on! @50centaction @bransoncognac.' He isn't the only A-lister to have displayed solidarity with the Grammy winner, as collaborator and long-time friend Justin Bieber has too. When Brown posted his first Insta feed snap after his release, which was a photo of him stepping off a private jet, Bieber commented: 'Welcome home'. After his world tour began, Brown actually made the most of his recent press attention and built it into his production. As reported by the Manchester Evening News, an intro VT to the tour's first night included interview footage from Brown's 2017 documentary Welcome To My Life, which was used alongside snippets from music videos, news stories about his arrest, and even a mugshot. His video was met with rapturous applause from the audience in Amsterdam, with many of his supporters featured in the short film to declare their love for 'Team Breezy,' stating that they always felt he would 'come back stronger'. Brown has made no secret of his feelings about being locked up, having declared in his social media return that he had been freed from a 'cage'. 'FROM THE CAGE TO THE STAGE!!! BREEZYBOWL,' he wrote in reference to his upcoming tour shortly after getting his phone back. The Go Crazy singer is accused of causing grievous bodily harm to Abraham Diaw in February 2023. Manchester Magistrates' Court heard last month that Mr Diaw was standing at the bar of the Tape nightclub when he was struck several times with a bottle. More Trending It's alleged that he was then pursued to a separate area of the club where he was punched and kicked repeatedly. Brown, who has maintained his innocence throughout, will next appear with his co-defendant, US national Omololu Akinlolu, 38, in court on June 20. His bail conditions state that he is now not allowed to visit the nightclub where the incident allegedly took place, and he cannot contact Mr Diaw. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Gwyneth Paltrow goes topless as she dishes up 'boyfriend breakfast' MORE: Cher 'doing everything she can' after son rushed to hospital with drug overdose MORE: Hollywood child star Betsy Gay dies aged 96
Spectator
8 hours ago
- Spectator
Minnesota is no longer the ‘state that works'
Fifty-two years ago, TIME magazine featured Governor Wendell Anderson on its cover, dressed in the state's unofficial uniform of a flannel shirt and large smile. He was on one of our 10,000 lakes, hoisting his catch of the day up in the air. This was 1973, and the headline read, 'The Good Life in Minnesota'. The story went on to describe Minnesota as the 'state that works'. Its people are mild-mannered do-gooders who are content with the reputation of being humble, hard-working, and unglamorous: 'California is the flashy blonde you like to take out once or twice. Minnesota is the girl you want to marry.' Five decades later, the state that worked no longer does. Just days after the state's 2025 legislative session ended, targeted political violence ended the lives of one state lawmaker and her husband and seriously injured two more people – a state senator and his wife. According to local news reports, 'State Rep. and Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman of Brooklyn Park and her husband, Mark, were killed early Saturday morning in what officials are calling 'targeted' attacks by a suspect posing as a law enforcement officer. State Sen. John Hoffman of Champlin and his wife, Yvette, were shot multiple times at their home but are recovering'. The suspect, who is still at large at the time of writing, has been identified by the Associated Press as 57-year-old Vance Boelter. It is unclear what the exact reasons are for the targeted attacks, but they are alleged to be politically motivated. It is not breaking news that modern politics has permeated much of the culture and forced deep ideological divides and tribes. Everything – from what car a person drives to the shops they buy groceries in and the music they listen to – is politicised. Politics, more than religious affiliation or cultural heritage, is most likely to form one's identity. And the divide has tested the very fabric of American society, family relations, and friendships. The Spectator World's editor-at-large Ben Domenech recently highlighted the trend: According to Cygnal's latest national survey of 1,500 likely voters (conducted 6–8 May, with a 3 per cent margin of error), more than half of voters (53 per cent) say 'it's at least somewhat common that their friends and neighbours have ended a friendship because of Donald Trump and the 2024 election', while '39 per cent say not that common or not at all common. Despite the 'Minnesota nice' image, a visible, vocal, dangerous ideological fringe has found, if not a home, a sympathetic ear with the political mainstream. Most Minnesotans had front-row seats to the destruction after George Floyd's death in 2020. Minneapolis and the Twin Cities still have not fully recovered from the psychological shock, nor the persistent unease that has prevented the state from moving forward with civility. When respect, and law and order, are cast aside by our leaders to score political points or to stoke emotional fires, generally, the people follow suit. Moreover, the hyperbolic messaging and one-upmanship rhetoric – 'othering' people of different political persuasions and labelling them as unredeemable villains in the fight for democracy – is a form of modern-day self-destruction. I have experienced that destruction first-hand: last year, my office in Golden Valley, Minnesota was firebombed. It was a politically motivated attack on our organisation and two others in the same building who work for conservative causes. It's the place where I brought my (now two-year-old) baby girl to work with me every day. Thankfully, no one was hurt. Yet it was barely a blip on the news. Debate, especially political debate, is crucial to sort out the myriad of nuances shaping our nation's policies and culture. But when unstable, unbearably radicalised people latch onto the unceasing firehose of the most intense and excessive political soliloquies – and when members of the media class take it all as fact – we have a problem. Because words aren't violence, but they do have power. Politicians flippantly use hyperbole and deranged rhetoric to appeal to their base's worst instincts, insisting that every step that strays towards compromise or compassion is the end of democracy. Those same politicians are often silent in the face of violence, which has a normalising effect. We've entered into an era of shoulder-shrugging at outrageous, anti-social behaviour: the kind we saw in LA last weekend, with cars set on fire in the name of social justice. None of this is an inevitability; it's a choice. After years of being on edge – due to rounds of rioting and violent protests at ground zero for the 'Summer of Love' – Minnesota is no longer what Governor Anderson described as 'remarkably civil'. Nor is any part of the country. The assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, the attacks on the US Supreme Court, the murder of two young Israeli embassy staff members, the arson at Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's residence, and assassination attempts on President Trump suggest every corner of the country has lost its way. A state that was seen as a representative of the nation's best qualities now reflects its worst. It remains to be seen if what is broken can ever be fixed.
Belfast Telegraph
9 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
‘Missing four hours were always red flag for me': Retired garda explains how Annie McCarrick case went awry
After 32 years of examining every possibility of who might have murdered American woman Annie McCarrick, gardaí have set their sights on one chief suspect.
