While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, May 16
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The report marks the end of a four-year probe into potential missteps by the FBI.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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US special counsel faults FBI’s handling of 2016 Trump-Russia probe
The FBI lacked “actual evidence” to investigate Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and relied too heavily on tips provided by Trump’s political opponents to fuel the probe, US Special Counsel John Durham concluded in a report released on Monday.
The report marks the end of a four-year probe launched in May 2019 when then-Attorney General William Barr appointed Durham, a veteran prosecutor, to probe potential missteps by the FBI when it launched its early stage “Crossfire Hurricane” inquiry into potential contacts between Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia.
That Crossfire Hurricane investigation would later be handed over to Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who in March 2019 concluded there was no evidence of a criminal conspiracy between Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia.
In his new 306-page report, Durham concluded that US intelligence and law enforcement did not possess any “actual evidence” of collusion between Trump’s campaign and Russia prior to launching Crossfire Hurricane.
US arrests Massachusetts man for acting as Chinese agent
REUTERS
A Massachusetts man has been arrested for providing information about Chinese dissidents in the United States to China’s government, the Justice Department said Monday.
Litang Liang, 63, of Brighton, was arrested on May 9 on charges of acting as an agent of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) without notifying US authorities, according to the department.
The announcement of Liang’s arrest came on the same day as a court in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou revealed that a 78-year-old US citizen, John Shing-wan Leung, had been sentenced to life in prison for espionage.
New Zealand hostel fire leaves multiple people dead
A fire at a multi-storey hostel in Wellington, New Zealand, has left multiple people dead, Fire and Emergency Services New Zealand (FENZ) said in a statement on Tuesday.
“There are still a number of people unaccounted for, but this number, along with the number of deaths, cannot be confirmed at this time,” the statement added, without specifying an exact number.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins told breakfast television show AM that six were dead and police have said that they expect the death toll will be less than 10.
Amazon, Embracer strike deal to make Lord of the Rings video game
Amazon.com and Swedish game developer Embracer Group have agreed to develop and publish a massively multiplayer online (MMO) game based on fantasy series The Lord of the Rings, the companies said on Monday.
The game, which is in the early stages of development, will be set in Middle-earth, featuring stories of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings literary trilogy written by J.R.R. Tolkien, according to the companies.
The popularity for MMO titles that support a large number of players simultaneously surged during the Covid-19 pandemic, and has stayed strong.
Liverpool maintain top-four charge to push Leicester closer to relegation
Action Images via Reuters
Liverpool maintained their pursuit of Champions League football next season and pushed Leicester ever closer to the Championship as Curtis Jones scored twice in a 3-0 win at the King Power stadium on Monday.
Trent Alexander-Arnold rounded off another fine performance in his new hybrid role between right-back and midfield with a stunning strike as Liverpool closed to within one point of the top four.
Jurgen Klopp’s men still need a late-season collapse from Newcastle or Manchester United but a seven-game winning streak from the Reds has upped the pressure on their rivals, who both have three games remaining to Liverpool’s two.
