Ukraine Recap: Russian Drone Attack Causes Damage at Danube Port
Russia launched drone attacks in Odesa in southern Ukraine overnight in which warehouses and grain storage facilities at
2023-08-16 15:23
Utah man arrested for posing as doctor and selling fake Covid cure after three years on the run
A man in Utah has been arrested after allegedly posing as a doctor and making at least $2m by selling a fake cure for Covid-19. He evaded arrest for almost three years. Gordon Hunter Pedersen, 63, who lives in Cedar Hills, Utah, was arrested last week on Wednesday after he was charged in 2020 with seven felonies, including mail and wire fraud, selling of misbranded drugs with intent to defraud and mislead, the US attorney’s office in the state said on Monday. He allegedly sold a "structural alkaline silver" online and claimed that the drug "resonates or vibrates at a frequency that destroys the membrane of the (COVID-19) virus, making the virus incapable" of infecting humans, court documents said. He posed to his customers as an "anti-ageing medical doctor" with PhD degrees in immunology and naturopathic medicine, it said. A warrant for Mr Padersen was issued in August 2020 when he failed to appear in a court for the indictment, leading to a three-year manhunt. The arrest in the case comes a month after he was spotted on surveillance camera footage at a gas station around 40 miles south of Salt Lake City. Mr Padersen promoted his fake cure through YouTube videos, Facebook posts, podcasts and websites, wearing a white lab coat with “Dr” monogrammed on it. “There is no drug that man has made that can do the same,” he said in his podcast interview in March 2020. “If you have the silver in you, when the virus arrives, the silver can isolate and eliminate the virus,” he added. He maintained that his silver product can destroy Covid-19 virus in an interview with federal agents but acknowledged that his credentials were exaggerated. He had been promoting a cure for diseases such as arthritis, diabetes and pneumonia, since 2014. But he substantially profited between January and April 2020 when he made approximately $2m in sales from the company he co-owned, My Doctor Suggests, according to court records. The US District Court for Utah filed a restraining order against Mr Pedersen to stop him from selling the products by labelling them cure-alls, the Justice Department said at that time. Following three years of evading authorities, Mr Pedersen was identified by a Food and Drug Administration special agent on 5 July, while he was in a vehicle registered under his wife’s name, Julia Currey, according to prosecutors. The agent tracked the vehicle to a gas station, where Mr Pedersen was captured on a surveillance camera, as stated by prosecutors. His indictment was part of a task force created by attorney general Merric Garland in 2021 to prosecute businesses and entities that tried to “profit unlawfully from the pandemic. His lawyer is yet to comment on the development. Read More Marjorie Taylor Greene addresses online conspiracy theory linking her to Jan 6 pipe bomber Trump claims mystery press conference report clears him of Georgia election charges – live updates Trump shares moody new video with poem voiceover about ‘suffering to win’
2023-08-16 14:58
Who are the 30 ‘unindicted co-conspirators’ in Georgia’s massive criminal case against Trump?
A sweeping criminal indictment targeting Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants – including members of his former legal team, White House chief of staff and government officials – also lists 30 unnamed co-conspirators who are accused of supporting the former president’s alleged criminal enterprise to overturn the 2020 presidential election in the state of Georgia. The identities of those unnamed (and, as of now, uncharged) co-conspirators were not immediately clear following a state grand jury’s indictment on 14 August. But many of the details of their alleged actions bear similarities to Trumpworld figures who were identified in previously-reported events described in the indictment. In all, the sweeping charging document outlines a vast criminal conspiracy case connecting the actions of more than 50 people accused of trying to undermine and subvert the outcome of the 2020 election, including attempts to appoint a fraudulent slate of electors loyal to the former president, a harassment campaign targeting election workers, and efforts to copy and distribute sensitive voting machine data from a state elections office. Typically, prosecutors include “unindicted co-conspirators” who are believed to have conspired with the named defendants to commit a crime or multiple crimes, as indicated in the massive RICO case against Mr Trump and his allies. But prosecutors have either provided them some immunity from prosecution in exchange for their testimony or have reached another arrangement. As with the federal indictment targeting Mr Trump’s efforts to subvert the 2020 election, many of the alleged actions outlined in the Georgia case echo those uncovered by the House select committee investigating January 6. Many of the unindicted co-conspirators in the Georgia case are known to the grand jury, the document states. Unindicted co-conspirators nine through 19 are likely the other fake electors who have not been charged in the indictment, while unindicted co-conspirators 24 through 29 are among those likely involved in a scheme to hijack voting machine software in Coffee County. Several people allegedly involved in an effort to seize voting machine software and share files with other election deniers were charged with several crimes in the indictment. One key unindicted co-conspirator – No 20 – allegedly joined a White House meeting on 18 December 2020 involving Mr Trump and attorney Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell to discuss “certain strategies and theories intended to influence the outcome” of the 2020 election, “including seizing voting equipment” and appointing Ms Powell “as special counsel with broad authority to investigate allegations of voter fraud in Georgia and elsewhere,” according to the indictment. The first unindicted co-conspirator listed in the indictment is accused of discussing a draft speech with Mr Trump on 31 October 2020, days before Election Day, to falsely declare victory and make baseless allegations of widespread voter fraud and manipulation. The House select committee previously reported that then-President Trump consulted with Tom Fitton of right-wing activist group Judicial Watch on that same day. An email sent to Mr Fitton and obtained by the National Archives includes Mr Trump’s false declarations of voter fraud and a statement claiming that “we had an election today and I won” – a message that January 6 committee member Zoe Lofgren said amounted to instructions for an “intentional” and “premeditated” effort to subvert the democratic process. A second unindicted co-conspirator allegedly received a voice message about voter fraud from Mr Giuliani on 3 November 2020 as well as messages about organizing a fraudulent slate of electors loyal to Mr Trump – including a key meeting on 14 December 2020, when the 16 so-called “alternate” electors convened at the state capitol. The third unindicted co-conspirator referenced in the indictment joined Mr Giuliani and former Trump campaign attorneys Jenna Ellis and Sidney Powell at a now-infamous 90-minute press briefing at the Republican National Committee headquarters bloated with false claims and wild accusations about election fraud and manipulation on 19 November 2020. Ms Powell and Ms Ellis – among members of the so-called “strike force” behind a spurious and failed legal campaign to challenge election results – are now among the 19 co-defendants in the Georgia indictment. The other three people who stood behind the lectern at that press conference were GOP operatives Joseph diGenova, Victoria Toensing and Boris Epshteyn. Robert Sinners – the head of Mr Trump’s Georgia campaign operations whose role in the alleged scheme to subvert the state’s election results – is likely the fourth unnamed and unindicted co-conspirator in the indictment. The indictment outlines several events in the days after Election Day previously uncovered by the House select committee, including correspondence surrounding the fake elector scheme, that match descriptions in the Georgia case. The indictment also notes a White House meeting on 25 November 2020, when Mark Meadows, Trump campaign attorneys and two unindicted co-conspirators met with Pennsylvania state lawmakers to discuss holding a special legislative session to contest election results. Georgia’s current Lt Governor Burt Jones, a former state senator, is likely the eighth unnamed and unindicted co-conspirator in the indictment. The indictment quotes a post from his Twitter account on 7 December, 2020, in which he calls on supporters to “sign the petition” for a special legislative session to review the outcome of the 2020 election, a message shared by Mr Giuliani. That same co-conspirator also was involved with correspondence about the fake elector plot with other co-defendants in the case, according to the indictment. Read More Trump claims mystery press conference report clears him of Georgia election charges: Live updates Mob boss law, 30 mystery co-conspirators and an unmasked plot: Key takeaways Trump’s Georgia indictment Four indictments, 91 criminal charges, up to 700 years in jail: Trump’s legal woes in numbers Meadows, Giuliani, Jenna Ellis and Sidney Powell: The 18 defendants charged with Trump in Georgia RICO case
2023-08-16 14:52
Apple Supplier Foxconn Begins iPhone 15 Production in India
Apple Inc.’s next-generation iPhone 15 is beginning production in Tamil Nadu, in an effort to further narrow the
2023-08-16 12:51
High-Potency Pot Market Worth Billions Draws Regulator Scrutiny
In Pueblo, Colorado, teenager Noah had smoked marijuana before. But most of his friends were using an extra-strong
2023-08-16 12:50
Ukrainian prisoners of war say they were tortured at Russian prison
Former prisoners of war tell the BBC they were abused by Russian guards inside a detention facility.
2023-08-16 12:23
Fed Minutes Set to Show Only a Minority Saw End of Tightening
A record of the Federal Reserve’s July policy meeting due Wednesday is set to show only a minority
2023-08-16 12:22
China Is Hiding More and More Data From the Rest of the World
China’s abrupt decision to pause releasing data on its soaring youth jobless rate this week was the latest
2023-08-16 11:20
China Calls Taiwan Frontrunner a ‘Troublemaker’ Risking War
China called Taiwan’s vice president a “troublemaker” whose views risk sparking a conflict, a sign that Lai Ching-te
2023-08-16 11:20
Hawaii wildfires: Why identifying the victims could take years
"It's not just ash on your clothing when you take it off," says a police chief. "It's our loved ones."
2023-08-16 10:58
VinFast: Vietnam EV maker valued at more than Ford or GM
The share sale on Nasdaq values VinFast at $85bn (£67bn) compared to Ford's $48bn or GM's $46bn.
2023-08-16 10:51
China Stocks Approach Grim Milestones as Selloff Deepens
Chinese stocks extended their recent selloff, putting a key gauge of the nation’s equities on track to erasing
2023-08-16 10:23