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News.com.au
14 hours ago
- General
- News.com.au
New search in Madeleine McCann case finished: Portuguese police
A new search launched this week into the disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann ended Thursday, said police in Portugal, where she went missing 18 years ago. Investigators, who spent three days scouring areas near the southern beach resort where Madeleine disappeared during a family holiday, did not detail the results of their latest searches. Madeleine was just three years old when she vanished from the apartment where her family was vacationing on the Algarve coast, triggering a race to find her -- and massive global media coverage. The new search, which began Tuesday, was carried out at the request of investigators in Germany, who are probing whether a convicted German sex offender was implicated in the disappearance. Between Tuesday morning and Thursday afternoon, around 25 German police officers assisting Portuguese authorities searched for evidence near the Praia da Luz seaside resort, where Madeleine disappeared on May 3, 2007, while her parents had dinner nearby. Using shovels, rakes and a weed whip, investigators combed an overgrown wooded area bordered by several dilapidated, abandoned houses between Praia da Luz and the nearby city of Lagos, said AFP journalists at the scene. They also used ground-penetrating radar and an excavator to search another area around the village of Atalaia, Portuguese media reports said. A previous search in 2023 of a lake near the Ocean Club resort in Praia da Luz yielded no results. That is near one of the lodgings where Christian Brueckner, a convicted rapist now serving a prison sentence in his native Germany, stayed during a stint in Portugal in the 1990s and 2000s. Brueckner, a drifter with a criminal record, was living in a camper van on the Algarve coast at the time Madeleine vanished. A mobile phone registered in his name was traced close to the family's accommodation on the night she went missing. Authorities have played down expectations for the new search effort. "As to whether or not something will be found, personally I'd remain rather prudent towards the results we can expect," Christian Wolters, a spokesman for the Braunschweig prosecutor's office in Germany, which issued the new search warrant, told AFP on Tuesday. - 'Cruel rapist' - Brueckner, 48, is serving a seven-year sentence for the 2005 rape of a 72-year-old American woman in Praia da Luz. He is due to complete his sentence in September. He was acquitted in October 2024 in Germany at a trial for two other sexual assaults and three rapes committed in Portugal between 2000 and 2017. German authorities in 2020 said they were convinced Brueckner was involved in Madeleine's disappearance, which gained worldwide publicity and has seen several false leads. He has not been charged in connection with the McCann case. Brueckner, who according to German media had a string of previous convictions, including for sexual offences, assault and theft before he was convicted of rape, worked as an odd-job man during his 10 years in the Algarve. He also burgled hotel rooms and holiday apartments. On Tuesday, a journalist from Germany's RTL television recounted his correspondence with Brueckner, and how he had met him in prison. Brueckner, the journalist said, complained that "half the world" considered him a "cruel rapist". He said he wanted to eat steak and drink beer when he is released from prison. A former neighbour in Portugal had told Sky News television in 2020 that Brueckner was "always a bit angry, driving fast up and down the lane, and then one day, around 2006, he just disappeared without a word". He returned to Germany in 2007 -- the year Madeleine disappeared -- settling in Hanover, but still spent time in Portugal. On the 18th anniversary of their daughter's disappearance this year, Madeleine's parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, said they were still determined to find out what happened. "The absence still aches," they wrote on their website last year.
Fox News
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Anthony Weiner discusses sexting scandal while attempting political comeback, says 'women are crazy about me'
Anthony Weiner, the disgraced ex-congressman seeking to return to politics as a member of New York's City Council, quipped during an interview that "women are crazy about me" despite going to prison and being required to register as a sex offender. "Oh for sure, for sure, my god, they're crazy about me. Women are crazy about me," Weiner said when comedian and podcaster Adam Friedland asked if the power politicians wield makes them more attractive to the opposite sex. Weiner's sexting saga began more than a decade ago after a lewd photo of the married congressman in his underwear was posted to one of Weiner's public social media accounts. That initial photo set off a series of events, including his widely publicized departure from Congress in 2011, additional sexting scandals and an FBI investigation that resulted in Weiner serving 21 months in prison and registering as a sex offender for sending sexually explicit images to a minor. Weiner appeared Wednesday on a YouTube-based show hosted by Friedland, during which the podcaster suggested Weiner's sexting scandal wouldn't even break the "top 100" news stories of the year in 2025. Weiner agreed, adding "it was a relatively slow news period" at the time. He also said his name was part of the reason it gained so much publicity. "I'm a guy named Weiner who tweeted out a picture of his d---," he said. Friedland pointed to what he suggested was a lack of coverage about accusations against former GOP Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz, who was accused last year of engaging in sex with a minor. Gaetz has denied the accusations. "Right, and if his name was Matt Kidf---er then the story would have," Weiner said, before Friedland interjected. "No, that's not true," Friedland said. "Think about it this way. If it was today, it would be a 48-hour news cycle, and it would be forgotten." Weiner challenged Friedland's theory, telling him it was not a novel idea to think technology played a role in making his sexting scandal so widely publicized. "Let's move off of this one, not terribly novel idea that technology played a part," Weiner said. Weiner and Friedland continued discussing the sexting scandal, including the potential domino effect it played in relation to James Comey's investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server. During the FBI's investigation of Weiner's alleged sexual crimes against a minor, officials reportedly came across emails that prompted FBI Director Comey to reopen an investigation into Clinton's use of the email server. Other topics included how Weiner frequently gets mistaken for another sex scandal-plagued New York politician, Eliot Spitzer, how he stayed safe in prison, what it was like having to register as a sex offender and his relationships with other New York Democrats. Weiner is running in the Democratic primary to represent Manhattan's East Side District 2.
RNZ News
29-05-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Police sergeant reprimanded after sending character reference for sex offender from work email
Th4e police sergeant has been reprimanded. Photo: RNZ A police sergeant has been reprimanded for sending a character reference for a convicted sex offender from his police email address. The Independent Police Conduct Authority said the officer was supporting the sex offender's bail application to travel overseas for a sports tournament, though the reference was ultimately unnecessary and never reached the Court. An internal investigation found the sergeant was providing the reference in his capacity as a private citizen, but sent it from his work email. The authority said that had incorrectly and inappropriately implied his views represented the wider New Zealand Police. Police found he had breached the code of conduct and undertook "an employment process," which the IPCA said they were satisfied with.
Daily Mail
27-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Disgraced politician spotted soft-launching his comeback after underage sexting
A disgraced New York politician who was jailed for sexting a minor is trying to break back into politics and was caught canvassing residents in the streets of the Big Apple. Anthony Weiner, 60, a registered sex offender, is running for NYC City Council just six years after he was released from his 21-month stay behind bars for sexting a 15-year-old. The lanky Democrat was seen canvassing the streets with a handful of flyers with a woman holding a campaign sign. Social media photos show the sex offender talking to a mother with a small child, hugging an older woman, and taking photos with constituents in Manhattan's Lower East Side neighborhood. However, his return to the political sphere has not been without backlash as people have not forgotten his conviction, especially his running mate Sarah Batchu. Batchu proposed a bill nicknamed the Weiner Act in February that would ban registered sex offenders from holding public office in the city, according to City & State New York. 'We have 4.5million people in New York City who are women and when we see men like this running for office, it really sends the message that our safety is expendable, our pursuit of justice is futile, and our pain is invisible,' Batchu said. However, her proposal would not affect Andrew Cuomo, the former governor who is running for mayor against incumbent Eric Adams, the outlet reported. Social media photos show the sex offender talking to a mother with a small child, hugging an older woman, and taking photos with constituents in Manhattan's Lower East Side neighborhood Weiner registered his campaign in December and has wracked up $197,437 in contributions, public records showed. His ex-wife, Huma Abedin, has donated $175 toward his campaign on March 13, while her sister, Heba Abedin, donated $150 in December, the NYC Campaign Finance Board records showed. Weiner shares a preteen son named Jordan with Huma, who was taken to visit his father in prison, Jordan revealed to the Wall Street Journal in 2022. The father-of-one is also highly aware of his public image, he told The Atlantic. 'Everyone that I talk to about the race, they fundamentally know perfectly what approach I should take. Some people are like: "You should say: 'F**k it. Donald Trump got elected as a 34-time felon.'" Or lean into it, you know. Make a joke about it,' he told the outlet. 'And about an equal number of people say: "You got to spend the first four or five pieces of mail apologizing, explaining that you served your whatever it is, you've learned your lesson".' Despite his nonchalant demeanor, he has been upfront about acknowledging his crime and his sex addiction. 'I'm not a victim of some larger conspiracy,' he told The Atlantic. 'It's just a thing that I did that I've accepted responsibility for.' saw evidence of extremely lewd messages he sent the victim He also admitted to the outlet that he was 'a little' bit chasing redemption with this campaign. 'I mean, look, to some degree, this is what I'm really good at. It's as basic as that,' the former representative, who served in Congress from 1999 to 2011, told the outlet. Weiner pleaded guilty in 2017 to carrying on a months-long online sexual relationship with a 15-year-old. She claims the politician asked her to dress up in 'school-girl' outfits for him on a video messaging application, and pressed her to engage in 'rape fantasies,' exclusively revealed in 2016. The online relationship began in January 2015 while the girl was a high school sophomore and before Weiner's wife, a former Hillary Clinton aide, announced she was ending their marriage. Huma and Weiner officially began divorced in early 2025, but have been separated for nine years. Weiner had been aware the girl was underaged at the time of the relationship. In the online messages, Weiner had sent bare-chested photos of himself to the girl, repeatedly called her 'baby,' complimented her body, and told her that he woke up 'hard' after thinking about her, according to copies of the conversations. The revelation comes just weeks after Weiner's wife Huma Abedin announced that they had separated in the wake of another sexting controversy. In August, the New York Post reported on sexual chats between Weiner and a 40-year-old woman, during which the former congressman sent her provocative shirtless photos of him while his four-year-old son was curled up next to him in bed. Weiner has faced a number of sexting scandals since 2011, when he was forced to resign from Congress after his online sexual messages with a female college student were revealed. Another sexting scandal in 2013, involving 22-year-old Sydney Leathers, derailed his bid for New York City mayor. In the course of that scandal, his alias Carlos Danger was disclosed. The former congressman has faced scrutiny over online chats with minors in the past. In 2011, he admitted to sending five private Twitter messages to a 17-year-old girl, but said the messages 'were neither explicit nor indecent.' The girl's family told the New York Times that the conversation appeared to be harmless. After serving his prison sentence, Weiner worked as a CEO of a countertop company in Brooklyn Naval Yard and attempted to run for NYC Mayor. Weiner's political fate will be decided on June 24 when the NYC primary election takes place.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Moment Met police's facial recognition camera catches 73-year-old paedophile with six-year-old girl as he is jailed for two years
This is the chilling moment cops snared an armed paedophile walking a six-year-old girl home after identifying him with hi-tech facial recognition cameras. Convicted sex offender David Cheneler, 73, 'could have gone on to abuse' the child after befriending her mother, who was unaware of his horrific crimes spanning six decades. The bearded predator was caught after triggering a live facial recognition camera deployed on Denmark Hill, in south-east London. The technology films people walking past and generates an alert for police if there is a match with a watchlist of offenders. After being matched on the system of wanted criminals, Cheneler was stopped by officers in the street on January 10. He was later found to have had a flip knife hidden in his belt buckle. In body-worn footage released by the Metropolitan Police, the pensioner immediately confesses: 'I shouldn't be with that child. 'But I've only taken her from school to her mum's. We've made a mistake, we got the wrong bus.' Cheneler had picked the girl up from school as a 'favour' for her mother. He had done this twice before after building a relationship with them both over the course of a year, the Met Police said. Unbeknownst to her, Cheneler has a slew of convictions for sexual offences against children. In 2010 he was convicted for 15 counts of indecent assault on a female under 16 and five of gross indecency with a child between 1968 and 1993. He was jailed for nine years. Further checks confirmed he was in breach of a 2019 sexual offences prevention order - issued following his prison term - which barred him from being alone with any child under 14. Detective Constable Adam Pearce of the Met's local policing team in south-east London, who led the investigation, said: 'This is a prime example of how the Met is using technology to remove dangerous offenders from our streets, and Live Facial Recognition remains an important tool in protecting Londoners. 'Although there were no allegations made towards David Cheneler on this occasion, it is possible if he hadn't been identified using this technology, he could have gone on to abuse this child. 'Her mother was completely unaware of his offending history, and along with her young daughter, were both taken advantage of by Cheneler who abused their trust.' Lindsey Chiswick, the Met's lead for live facial recognition (LFR), said: 'The Met is committed to making London safer, using data and technology to identify offenders that pose a risk to our communities. 'This is a prime example of the variety of uses for LFR. The tool is not only used to find those wanted, but also to stop people on a watch list who have conditions they must adhere to. 'These interventions are crucial. Without this technology, Cheneler may have had the opportunity to cause further harm.' Cheneler of Lewisham, admitted breaching the conditions of his sexual offences prevention order, as well as possessing an offensive weapon at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court on January 13. He was jailed for two years at Kingston Crown Court.
