Latest news with #BrianHughes
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Multnomah County DA lobbies hard for retail theft budget
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Portland Police Bureau joined the Multnomah County District Attorney's office to share the results of a large-scale retail theft bust in Portland last Friday. The operation turned up Portland Police said this large mission stretched from the Eastport Plaza in Southeast Portland to downtown, and up to Jantzen Beach. Along with the thousands in stolen property recovered, police seized two guns and a stolen car. PPB's Central Precinct Commander Brian Hughes said operations like these are about more than just safety in the stores. 'It has a ripple effect on prices, public safety, and neighborhood quality of life,' he said. 'These missions are part of our broader strategy to address crime and restore a sense of safety across Portland. And I think that's one of the things we did last Friday.' A grant from the helps fund these operations in the city of Portland. Hughes said the real difference maker is having a prosecutor and investigator from the DA's office on-site with them for these missions. 'They work with us in real time on these cases as they're moving forward, which is so helpful when officers have legal questions,' he said. 'There's a DA front and center ready to answer those questions and enables us to be more effective in the work that we do.' Bend man who threatened mass shooting was armed with AR-15, police say Looming budget cuts means uncertainty for the District Attorney's office. DA Nathan Vasquez has said proposed cuts to his office would mean losing a prosecutor dedicated to focusing on retail theft. 'You're not going to see the very coordinated, organized effort, at least from our offices, ability to do that. You're going to see gaps, and there are going to be people that fall through the cracks,' Vasquez said. 'And that's what I'm fighting every day, is to make sure that we are holding people accountable, particularly the ones that are having a large impact on our community.' When the budget was first released in late April, Vasquez wasted no time voicing his displeasure. At the time, Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said in a statement that cuts to his office were some of the smallest in the county, and that The cuts come from a decision to not renew one-time funding. But Vasquez said the programs the money has gone towards are not one-time projects. 'It's really a need for an ongoing effort,' he said. 'You can't just hope that you stand up something and organize it, which we've done a tremendous job in that short period of time. But there's a lot more work to be done. And now's not the time to take our foot off the gas. We really need to continue fighting.' Vasquez said the work his office has done has shown that funding should be permanent, and he has provided information to county commissioners. The deadline to approve the county budget is June 12. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Stord acquires UPS specialty warehouse business for e-commerce logistics
Omnichannel fulfillment provider Stord has acquired Ware2Go, an on-demand warehousing and fulfillment network, from UPS, the companies announced on Monday. The deal gives the Atlanta-based startup an additional 21 e-commerce warehouses, with a total capacity of 2.5 million square feet of storage space, allowing it to expand much more quickly into new markets to meet growing demand from e-commerce brands. Stord has an extensive network of fulfillment centers concentrated in 11 major metropolitan areas. Stord, founded in 2015, serves as a one-stop shop for e-tailers, managing more than $6 billion of transactions from customers' online checkout to last-mile delivery and inventory management with a suite of warehouse management, order management and parcel transportation software. The Ware2Go acquisition follows the acquisition in recent years of Fulfillment Works, ProPack and Pitney Bowes E-commerce. Last week, Stord announced it has raised more than $200 million in Series E funding from several banks and venture funds, which valued the company at $1.5 billion.'We are in a unique period for e-commerce and retail as brands struggle to manage through shifting global trade policies. Even with macro uncertainty, e-commerce end consumers still expect rapid delivery, perfect order accuracy, easy returns, and more,' said Sean Henry, CEO and co-founder of Stord. 'This acquisition of Ware2Go is a strategic investment that expands our U.S. domestic footprint and capabilities while strengthening our partnership with UPS. This partnership will allow us to deploy our technology across the Ware2Go network, enhance offerings for our joint customers, and combine our scale to be one of the largest fulfillment networks in North America.' UPS (NYSE: UPS) launched Ware2Go in mid-2018 as a platform that matches a diverse range of smaller B2B and B2C e-merchants with available warehouse space. The business aimed at positioning inventory as close to end-users as possible so they can meet guaranteed one-to-two-day deliveries. Through its technology, Ware2Go identifies warehouse capacity that is close to merchants' end customers and vets warehouse operators. The network can scale quickly to meet a merchant's expansion needs. Service offerings include direct-to-consumer shipping, seller fulfillment for sales on Amazon Prime and retail-compliant B2B shipments. UPS, which is in the midst of major network consolidation and cost-reduction initiatives, said the sale of Ware2Go will allow the company to concentrate on its primary express parcel delivery and supply chain management businesses. 'Along with initiatives such as Efficiency Reimagined and the optimization of our U.S. Network, UPS continues to look at ways to provide the most value to customers. The strategic decision to sell Ware2Go allows us to put even greater focus on our core business. We are being selective in the markets we want to serve and intend to serve them better than anyone else,' said Brian Hughes, director of financial and strategy communications, in an email response. 'We look forward to strengthening our relationship with Stord and providing their customers access to UPS's end-to-end services and broad product portfolio.'Stord says it enabled nearly 1% of all Black Friday and Cyber Monday online sales in the United States and achieved record profitability last year. Customers include shower filter-maker Jolie, nonalcoholic beverage retailer and wholesaler The Zero Proof, oral wellness company Quip, and sunglass retailer Goodr. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch. UPS to eliminate 20K jobs as Amazon decoupling accelerates DHL cuts ties with cargo airlines as efficiency initiative ramps up The post Stord acquires UPS specialty warehouse business for e-commerce logistics appeared first on FreightWaves.
The Advertiser
10-05-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
India and Pakistan agree to a ceasefire
India and Pakistan have confirmed a ceasefire deal after US-led talks to end a conflict between the nuclear-armed rivals. It follows weeks of clashes that were triggered by a gun massacre on tourists in April that India blames Pakistan for. It was their most serious confrontation in decades and left dozens of civilian dead on both sides. Earlier, US President Donald Trump revealed the two sides had agreed to a truce. "Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" he posted on his Truth Social platform. Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the White House's National Security Council, posted on X: @POTUS is a force for peace" over a link to Trump's online statement about a ceasefire having been agreed to, but offered no more immediate details. Both India and Pakistan confirmed the news. Ishaq Dar, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Pakistan, said in a post on X: "Pakistan and India have agreed to a ceasefire with immediate effect. Pakistan has always strived for peace and security in the region, without compromising on its sovereignty and territorial integrity!" The ceasefire comes after foreign ministers of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US, alongside the high representative of the European Union, said they "strongly condemn the egregious terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22 and urge maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan". Violent clashes between the two countries were sparked after gunmen killed 26 people, mostly Hindu tourists, in Indian-controlled Kashmir in April. India accused Pakistan of being behind the murders, which Islamabad denies. Kashmir has been a contested territory between Pakistan and India since 1947 and the neighbours each run part of the region but claim ownership of it all. with PA India and Pakistan have confirmed a ceasefire deal after US-led talks to end a conflict between the nuclear-armed rivals. It follows weeks of clashes that were triggered by a gun massacre on tourists in April that India blames Pakistan for. It was their most serious confrontation in decades and left dozens of civilian dead on both sides. Earlier, US President Donald Trump revealed the two sides had agreed to a truce. "Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" he posted on his Truth Social platform. Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the White House's National Security Council, posted on X: @POTUS is a force for peace" over a link to Trump's online statement about a ceasefire having been agreed to, but offered no more immediate details. Both India and Pakistan confirmed the news. Ishaq Dar, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Pakistan, said in a post on X: "Pakistan and India have agreed to a ceasefire with immediate effect. Pakistan has always strived for peace and security in the region, without compromising on its sovereignty and territorial integrity!" The ceasefire comes after foreign ministers of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US, alongside the high representative of the European Union, said they "strongly condemn the egregious terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22 and urge maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan". Violent clashes between the two countries were sparked after gunmen killed 26 people, mostly Hindu tourists, in Indian-controlled Kashmir in April. India accused Pakistan of being behind the murders, which Islamabad denies. Kashmir has been a contested territory between Pakistan and India since 1947 and the neighbours each run part of the region but claim ownership of it all. with PA India and Pakistan have confirmed a ceasefire deal after US-led talks to end a conflict between the nuclear-armed rivals. It follows weeks of clashes that were triggered by a gun massacre on tourists in April that India blames Pakistan for. It was their most serious confrontation in decades and left dozens of civilian dead on both sides. Earlier, US President Donald Trump revealed the two sides had agreed to a truce. "Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" he posted on his Truth Social platform. Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the White House's National Security Council, posted on X: @POTUS is a force for peace" over a link to Trump's online statement about a ceasefire having been agreed to, but offered no more immediate details. Both India and Pakistan confirmed the news. Ishaq Dar, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Pakistan, said in a post on X: "Pakistan and India have agreed to a ceasefire with immediate effect. Pakistan has always strived for peace and security in the region, without compromising on its sovereignty and territorial integrity!" The ceasefire comes after foreign ministers of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US, alongside the high representative of the European Union, said they "strongly condemn the egregious terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22 and urge maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan". Violent clashes between the two countries were sparked after gunmen killed 26 people, mostly Hindu tourists, in Indian-controlled Kashmir in April. India accused Pakistan of being behind the murders, which Islamabad denies. Kashmir has been a contested territory between Pakistan and India since 1947 and the neighbours each run part of the region but claim ownership of it all. with PA India and Pakistan have confirmed a ceasefire deal after US-led talks to end a conflict between the nuclear-armed rivals. It follows weeks of clashes that were triggered by a gun massacre on tourists in April that India blames Pakistan for. It was their most serious confrontation in decades and left dozens of civilian dead on both sides. Earlier, US President Donald Trump revealed the two sides had agreed to a truce. "Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" he posted on his Truth Social platform. Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the White House's National Security Council, posted on X: @POTUS is a force for peace" over a link to Trump's online statement about a ceasefire having been agreed to, but offered no more immediate details. Both India and Pakistan confirmed the news. Ishaq Dar, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Pakistan, said in a post on X: "Pakistan and India have agreed to a ceasefire with immediate effect. Pakistan has always strived for peace and security in the region, without compromising on its sovereignty and territorial integrity!" The ceasefire comes after foreign ministers of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US, alongside the high representative of the European Union, said they "strongly condemn the egregious terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22 and urge maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan". Violent clashes between the two countries were sparked after gunmen killed 26 people, mostly Hindu tourists, in Indian-controlled Kashmir in April. India accused Pakistan of being behind the murders, which Islamabad denies. Kashmir has been a contested territory between Pakistan and India since 1947 and the neighbours each run part of the region but claim ownership of it all. with PA
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
WW2 hero's family traced 'because of an ice-cream'
When Wicklow man Brian Hughes stopped off in Groomsport to buy an ice-cream while on holiday, he had no idea how life changing it would prove to be. Beside the freezer was a stack of out-of-date local newspapers. His grandmother, Dorothy Tait, used to write a column for the County Down Spectator, and Brian thought he would buy one for old times' sake. "The girl in the shop said: 'You do know that's last week's paper?' And I said, oh that doesn't matter. I'm buying it for sentimental reasons,' he told BBC News NI. When the 74-year-old returned to his car, to his astonishment he recognised a picture at the top of the front page from a frame that sat above his late mother Beryl's piano. It was of RAF Sergeant John McCalla Tait, his mother's cousin. Brian Hughes, from Wicklow, was in Groomsport when he discovered where his relative was buried [Brian Hughes] The 21-year-old from Holywood, known to his family as Jackie, was killed in action when his Halifax MKII was shot down near Zelhem, Holland, in 1943. He had been piloting the plane and died alongside Sergeants Andrew Wilson and James Archibald Wilson. As he read on there was another huge surprise in store. Brian not only learned where his relative's final resting place was, but that his grave was being cared for by a Dutch woman. 'I was just absolutely blown away.' The grave of John 'Jackie' McCalla Tait in Doetinchem, Gelderland - he is buried beside the young men he died alongside [Nathalie te Wilt] Nathalie te Wilt, 31, adopted Jackie's grave and those who died alongside him in March this year. They are buried side-by-side in Doetinchem, Gelderland. "I found it sad that the graves of these three young men were the only ones not yet adopted in the cemetery,' Nathalie told BBC News NI. "It is important we remember these boys who sacrificed themselves and fought so hard for the freedoms we have now." Adopting a grave is a display of gratitude and remembrance. Nathalie takes care of the graves [Nathalie te Wilt] "I take care of the graves and bring roses for them. I also light candles," explained Nathalie. "They deserve love and attention for everything they've done for us, for our ancestors and for the generations who will come after us." Ahead of the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, Nathalie was determined to find out more about the young County Down airman and to trace his family. She knew he had studied medicine at Queen's University and that he was the only son of John James Tait and Jane C. Tait, from Holywood in County Down. Jackie and his father John James Tait, who was a ship engineer [Brian Hughes] With the help of friend Brenda Kelly, a former member of the Women's Royal Air Force, they put out a local newspaper appeal. 'I was amazed by how Brian found out. It is like a little angel said come and read the newspaper," Nathalie said. Nathalie attributes her passion for WW2 to her grandfather. "My grandad was in the war, he had to do forced labour. He taught his grandchildren to always have respect for those who fought for our freedom." In 2023 she became aware of the Netherlands War Graves Foundation and adopted six graves of a Lancaster squadron. Now she cares for nine - including Jackie's. The graves of Andrew Wilson, John 'Jackie' McCalla Tait and James Archibald Wilson [Nathalie te Wilt] After discovering what Nathalie had been doing, Brian was moved. "It is an incredible feeling of how this person can be so dedicated," Brian told BBC News NI. "It's such a wonderful human thing to do. It's the best of humanity." Brian now plans to travel to the Netherlands with his wife Marion, to visit the grave and meet Nathalie. "I am very excited to visit the grave and to see Nathalie and give her a hug." 'My mother spoke fondly of Jackie' Brian's mother, Beryl Hughes, and Jackie as children [Brian Hughes] "My mother would be absolutely amazed that this is happening. She used to speak very fondly of Jackie, and he died so young and far from home," he said. "It really brings it home, the terrible sacrifice of war. But it also means the freedom that we have, and we must never forget that." For Brian, the whole experience of being connected with Nathalie and Jackie's grave has been an emotional one. Remarkable too. "I feel so blessed that I bought this paper. And that all this has come about because of an ice-cream."
BBC News
06-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
WW2 hero's family traced 'because of an ice-cream'
When Wicklow man Brian Hughes stopped off in Groomsport to buy an ice-cream while on holiday, he had no idea how life changing it would prove to be. Beside the freezer was a stack of out-of-date local newspapers. His grandmother, Dorothy Tait, used to write a column for the County Down Spectator, external, and Brian thought he would buy one for old times' sake. "The girl in the shop said: 'You do know that's last week's paper?' And I said, oh that doesn't matter. I'm buying it for sentimental reasons,' he told BBC News NI. When the 74-year-old returned to his car, to his astonishment he recognised a picture at the top of the front page from a frame that sat above his late mother Beryl's piano. It was of RAF Sergeant John McCalla Tait, his mother's cousin.
