Latest news with #StateBureauofInvestigation
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
FBI offers $15K reward after 12 hurt, 1 killed at Catawba County house party
Investigators were still collecting evidence Monday after 12 people were wounded and one was killed in a mass shooting that happened at about 12:30 a.m. Sunday on Walnut Acres Drive in Catawba County. The FBI is offering a $15,000 reward leading to the identity, arrest, and successful prosecution of suspects. READ MORE: Deputies respond to mass shooting at party in Catawba County At least two people fired shots where there were about 100 people at a house party, deputies said. Channel 9's Dave Faherty spoke with a witness who said a gunman fired from a wood line above the home. Deputies are looking into the possibility the gunmen walked in from the road. The FBI, State Bureau of Investigation and Catawba County sheriff's deputies were back at the scene Monday morning. Shawn Patrick Hood, 58, was shot and killed inside the home at the party that had people as young as 16 years old. There was a coverage charge for people without identification, according to a Snapchat post. Investigators said multiple weapons were used in the shooting and as many as 80 rounds were fired. No one has been charged in connection with the shooting. One of the shooting victims spoke with Faherty. Some people at the party returned fire possibly saving lives, said Quentin Malone, who still had a bullet lodged in his ankle. 'I was trying to run and get out but since there was so many people, people were just falling over each other and tripping over each other,' Malone said. 'I just, honestly, I froze. I didn't know what else to do. And if there weren't other people there that started firing back, I honestly think it would have been way worse than what it was.' Alcohol Law Enforcement is involved in the investigation and agents are looking into the possibility of people drinking underage. Investigators are expected to be at the scene until Wednesday. The FBI is asking anyone who has video, pictures , or tips about the shooting to contact them here. VIDEO: Deputies respond to mass shooting at party in Catawba County
Yahoo
5 days ago
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- Yahoo
Ukrainian commander faces trial for failing to stop torture within his unit
Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigation has completed its probe into Colonel Oleh Poberezhniuk, commander of the 211th Pontoon Bridge Brigade, accusing him of knowingly allowing torture and abuse of soldiers under his command to continue unchecked, the officials said on May 29. According to the official statement, investigators determined that from February to July 2024, Poberezhniuk was aware of repeated instances of torture and cruel treatment carried out by a subordinate officer but failed to take any action. The officer in question, Senior Lieutenant Vladyslav Pastukh, allegedly beat, humiliated, and tortured fellow servicemen. Pastukh, who is no longer with the unit, is the son of the brigade's chief of staff and a close associate of Poberezhniuk. Authorities say this personal connection likely influenced the commander's decision to conceal the crimes and avoid reporting them to law enforcement. Pastukh was charged with abusing his authority in December 2024 after allegedly beating, humiliating, and torturing fellow service members. The commander faces up to 12 years in prison if convicted."Instead of protecting the rights of his subordinates, the commander effectively became complicit through criminal inaction, enabling further abuse," the bureau said. Such actions, it added, not only violate the law but also pose a serious threat to the internal discipline of Ukraine's Armed Forces during wartime. Poberezhniuk has been charged with inaction of military authority under martial law, a serious offense under Ukraine's Criminal Code, carrying a sentence of seven to 10 years in prison. The case has been forwarded to Poberezhniuk and his legal team for review before being submitted to court. The Prosecutor General's Office is overseeing the case. The charges follow a December 2023 Ukrainska Pravda investigation that revealed a pattern of systemic abuse within the brigade, including beatings, extortion, and reports of a soldier being tied to a wooden cross. The report also highlighted widespread nepotism, with multiple family members serving within the same unit. Following public outcry, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi suspended Poberezhniuk, and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov ordered an internal investigation. How much does a Russian drone attack on Ukraine cost? The question is more complicated than it soundsBeginning overnight on Saturday, May 24, Russia rained down nearly a thousand drones and missiles on villages and cities across Ukraine in three nights of large-scale aerial attacks, as civilians spent hours sheltering underground. Russia's bombardment killed more than a dozen people and injured dozens more, in one ofThe Kyiv IndependentAndrea Januta We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
5 days ago
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- Yahoo
Portnov reportedly met controversial Zelensky staffer, Ukraine's investigations chief before being killed in Madrid
Former Ukrainian top official Andriy Portnov met in Ukraine with Oleh Tatarov, deputy head of the Presidential Office, and Oleksii Sukhachov, director of the State Bureau of Investigation, days before he was killed in Madrid, Ukrainska Pravda reported on May 29, citing undisclosed sources. Portnov was shot dead by unidentified attackers outside the American School in Madrid on May 21. Spanish newspaper El Pais reported that two or three people are believed to be involved in the attack, though no arrests have been made so far, and the motive remains unclear. Portnov served in the administration of pro-Kremlin President Viktor Yanukovych between 2010 and 2014. After the EuroMaidan Revolution, he lived alternately abroad and in Ukraine and was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2021 over allegations that he was involved in corruption. Four sources confirmed to Ukrainska Pravda that Portnov was in Ukraine between May 17 and 18 and held meetings with senior officials overseeing Ukraine's law enforcement agencies, including Tatarov and Sukhachov. The sources said they were unaware of the topics discussed. Tatarov is the most controversial official in President Volodymyr Zelensky's administration. He was charged with bribery before joining the administration, but the corruption case against him was obstructed by law enforcement agencies and courts and eventually closed. According to the media outlet's sources, Portnov has recently been seeking ways to have U.S. sanctions against him lifted. He also reportedly gathered information on the activities of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and civil society activists in Ukraine. The Kyiv Independent submitted official requests for comment to the Presidential Office and the State Bureau of Investigation but did not receive an immediate response. Portnov led the legal team of then-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko from 2005 to 2010 and sat in the parliament between 2006 and 2010. After 2010, he became the head of Yanukovych's main judiciary department and deputy head of his administration. The ex-official left Ukraine for Russia and later Austria after Yanukovych was ousted in the EuroMaidan Revolution in 2014, but returned to Ukraine in 2019. Portnov fled Ukraine again in 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion broke out, even though the travel ban for military-age men was already in effect. Read also: Hated, tainted, and covertly pro-Russian — Andriy Portnov, the top Ukrainian ex-official shot dead in Spain We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
6 days ago
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- Yahoo
Pro-Russian public figure Portnov met with some Ukrainian top officials on eve of his murder
Andrii Portnov, a shadow handler of the Ukrainian court system and a lawyer close to the fugitive former president Yanukovych, visited Ukraine a few days before his murder in Madrid. There he met with Oleh Tatarov, Deputy Head of the President's Office of Ukraine, and Oleksii Sukhachov, Director of the State Bureau of Investigation. Source: Ukrainska Pravda article Without trial or investigation. What was Andrii Portnov doing on the eve of his murder? Details: Four independent sources confirmed to Ukrainska Pravda that Portnov was in Ukraine on 17-18 May. It was also noted that Portnov had had meetings with top officials during those days. Quote from the article: "During this visit, Portnov met with top officials responsible for law enforcement, including Oleh Tatarov, Deputy Head of the President's Office, and Oleksii Sukhachov, Director of the State Bureau of Investigation." Details: Meanwhile, all of the sources stated that they did not know what topics were discussed at these meetings. For reference: Portnov was deputy head of the presidential administration under pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in 2010-2014. He denied crimes committed by security forces against participants in the Revolution of Dignity in the winter of 2013-2014 and fled Ukraine. He returned in 2019 on the eve of the inauguration of newly elected President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Portnov was also considered an influential shadow handler of Ukrainian courts. In 2018, criminal proceedings were opened against Portnov for treason. However, in 2019, Portnov stated on his Telegram that the Security Service of Ukraine had closed the criminal case against him, and published the relevant documents. In 2019, investigative journalists released recordings of conversations from the office of the notorious judge Pavlo Vovk. From the conversations on the tapes, journalists extrapolated that Portnov, together with Vovk and the then head of the President's Office, Andrii Bohdan, illegally influenced the dismissal of the head of the Constitutional Court, Stanislav Shevchuk. In April 2020, at the beginning of Iryna Venediktova's term as Prosecutor General, Portnov blackmailed her, saying that he had compromising information about her illegal activities. In the same year, Oleksandr Sokolov, then acting director of the State Bureau of Investigations, admitted that there were "influence groups" within law enforcement agencies that disclosed confidential information and important details of investigations to former officials, including Portnov. In December 2021, it became known that the US government had imposed sanctions against Andrii Portnov and his charitable foundation. Portnov was 51 years old. Background: Portnov was shot dead on the morning of 21 May near an American school in Madrid, Spain. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Yahoo
Former Ledford teacher convicted of abuse with student
DAVIDSON COUNTY — A former teacher and tennis coach at Ledford High School who was arrested in July 2023 and charged with coercing a student into sexual acts, including on school property, has been convicted. Andrew John Myers, 30, of Winston-Salem, was found guilty in Davidson County Superior Court earlier this month. Myers must stay on the N.C. Sex Offender Registry for a minimum of 10 years, according to information from a State Bureau of Investigation website. Myers' sentence includes a sentence of three years' probation, said Davidson County Sheriff Richie Simmons. Myers originally was arrested and charged with 18 counts of felony sexual activity with a student by a teacher, 18 counts of felony indecent liberties with a student and two counts of felony second-degree forcible sex. The charges were filed after administrators with Davidson County Schools learned about allegations of an inappropriate relationship between a faculty member and a 17-year-old female student at Ledford High School. School officials then contacted the Davidson County Sheriff's Office. Myers was suspended from his duties and later fired. Investigators determined that Myers had used his authority to groom and pressure the student into a relationship that is believed to have lasted for approximately three months and involved sexual encounters on and off school property, the sheriff's office said. Myers was a science teacher as well as the head coach for boys and girls tennis teams.
