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LOS ANGELES - Two-and-a-half minutes, in and out. Just 150 seconds to smash a store's glass door or window with a hammer, fill up a suitcase with designer sneakers, jewelry, cash or cellphones, and run outside to a getaway car. Brazen thieves and looters used as cover mainly peaceful protests against police brutality in the Los Angeles region in late May and early June to systematically steal from mom-and-pop shops and big box stores alike, leaving behind thousands of dollars of damage. More than 50 people have been arrested so far through the work of the regional "Safe LA Task Force" that was established to track down the criminals. Among the most notable cases, LA detectives arrested a man in connection with the attempted killing of four officers on May 31 while another investigation resulted in federal arson charges against a man who allegedly poured flammable liquid across a pizzeria before setting it aflame, causing more than half a million dollars in damage. "

Britain’s Johanna Konta is through to the semi-finals of the Western & Southern Open in New York after defeating Maria Sakkari in straight sets. Sakkari toppled Serena Williams in the round of 16 but Konta had her measure a day later, the eighth seed beating the Greek 13th seed in a solid performance in blustery conditions, 6-4 6-3. Konta will now play former world No 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus for a place in the final of the tournament, the last lead-up to the US Open which begins on Monday. "Just overall pleased to be in the semifinal... It's just nice to be rewarded with some wins." 😊@JohannaKonta | #CInCyTENNIS pic.twitter.com/VJg4tmHeBc — wta (@WTA) August 26, 2020 "Just overall pleased to be in the semifinal... It's just nice to be rewarded with some wins." 😊@JohannaKonta | #CInCyTENNIS pic.twitter.com/VJg4tmHeBc The 31-year-old Azarenka, the Australian Open winner in 2012 and 2013 but now ranked 59th, advanced with a 7-6 (9) 6-2 defeat of Tu

WASHINGTON - U.S. officials said Wednesday there has been no intelligence to suggest that foreign countries are working to undermine mail-in voting and no signs of any coordinated effort to commit widespread fraud through the vote-by-mail process, despite numerous claims made by President Donald Trump in recent months. The officials at multiple federal agencies stopped short of directly contradicting Trump, but their comments made it clear they had not seen evidence to support the president's statements that voter fraud will be rampant in the upcoming election and that the expected surge in mail-in ballots due to the coronavirus pandemic leaves November´s presidential election especially vulnerable to foreign interference. Trump, for instance, tweeted July 30 that mail-in voting was proving to be a "catastrophic disaster" and added: "The Dems talk of foreign influence in voting, but they know that Mail-In Voting is an easy way for foreign countries to enter the race

CANBERRA, Australia - The Australian government has drafted new laws that would cancel international deals struck by lower tiers of governments with foreign states that are not in Australia´s interests, a minister said on Thursday in a move likely to increase tensions with China. Victoria state´s memorandum of understanding with Beijing under China´s belt and road initiative, signed two years ago to attract more Chinese infrastructure investment, is among the deals to be reviewed, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said. But the legislation to be introduced to Parliament next week did not target China, she said. The Australian government had already identified 135 agreements with more than 30 countries that needed to be reviewed, she said. "Most Australians would agree that it´s important that engagements are consistent with Australia´s national interests and with our foreign policy," Payne told Nine Network television. "It´s consistent with protecting Australia´s national i

Newcastle United will assess Dwight Gayle's knee injury ahead of determining their next move in the transfer market. Andy Carroll is Steve Bruce’s only available striker with the Newcastle boss braced for bad news on Gayle who is to undergo a scan.  The club are also not commenting on the absence of club-record signing Joelinton and fellow forward Yoshinori Muto from their recent training camp in York. Newcastle United are weighing up a move for Bournemouth striker Callum WIlson Steve Bruce has just one fit striker at his disposal after Dwight Gayle picked up a knee injury Bournemouth striker Callum Wilson is among the names under consideration but they face competition for the 28-year-old from the likes of Fulham, West Ham and Tottenham.  Wilson scored nine goals in 39 appearances in all competitions in 2019-20 and cound be persuaded to make a move after the Cherries were relegated to the Championship.  Newcastle have also asked about taking Arsenal defender Rob Holding on loan. T

By Katanga Johnson WASHINGTON, Aug 26 - Asian stocks will likely climb on Thursday after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq rallied to fresh records on upbeat corporate results, while the dollar eased a day before the U.S. Federal Reserve possibly sets a new course on inflation. A gauge of global equity markets, MSCI's all-country world index surged past the pre-COVID high reached in February as technology stocks jumped after Salesforce.com Inc raised its annual revenue forecast on surging demand for the company's online business software. Australian S&P/ASX 200 futures rose 0.25% in early trading. Japan's Nikkei 225 futures fell 0.04%, while the Nikkei 225 index closed the overnight session down 0.03% at 23,290.86. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index futures were up 0.12%. Shares of big companies like Apple Inc, Alphabet Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Microsoft Corp , which influence the broader market because of their sheer size, were all higher. "Your three highest sector

The Mariners and San Diego Padres will not play Wednesday after Seattle players voted to join a pro sports boycott started by the NBA earlier in the day. ESPN first reported the teams were not taking the field. The Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds postponed their game Wednesday as part of the protest of the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis. That decision came after the Milwaukee Bucks decided not to play in their scheduled playoff game against the Orlando Magic. Two other NBA games were postponed after that, as were all three scheduled WNBA games. The Mariners have more Black players on their roster than any other MLB team. Major League Baseball has not yet made a formal announcement about the status of Wednesday's games or Thursday, when the Padres and Mariners are scheduled for a matinee. --Field Level Media

Ben White will most likely remain at Brighton after Leeds United's £25million offer was rejected. The defender has sparked a bidding war among the top flight's elite with a host of clubs vying for his signature after he impressed by helping Leeds earn promotion back to the Premier League while on loan. However, Brighton have previously stated they have 'no interest in selling him whatsoever'. Ben White will most likely to remain at Brighton after rejecting Leeds' £25million offer  According to The Sun, Brighton are reluctant to sell White to Leeds as they believe Marcelo Bielsa's will be their biggest competitor next season. In addition, White is understood to have turned down a third offer of a new contract worth £25million with Leeds as he continues negotiations to extend his deal with his parent club. He previously agreed a new deal until June 2022 with the Seagulls shortly before joining Leeds on loan last summer, going on to make 49 appearances in defence a

The Duke of Sussex is setting a “beautiful example” for Archie with his advocacy for feminism, Meghan said. She added her husband showed it was possible to be “feminist and be masculine and a guy” and praised Harry for being “comfortable” in supporting women’s rights. The former Suits star spoke to US rights activist Gloria Steinem on a recorded a Q&A session for the feminist media platform Makers, in which they covered gender equality and female representation. In the black and white footage, released on Wednesday, the duchess and Steinem sat socially distanced in garden chairs, separated by a low wooden table, for what was described as a “backyard chat”. The 39-year-old spoke of how her views on feminism had changed over time – adding it was not “mutually exclusive to be a feminist and be feminine”. Steinem then pointed out it was possible to be feminist, masculine and a guy, to which Meghan replied “Like my husband!” The duchess said: “I look at our son and what a beautiful exam

Pension funds will be required by law to report the risks that climate change could have on members' investments. Climate change is expected to have a significant impact on pension assets and returns both through the risks of a warmer planet and moves towards a lower carbon economy. Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey yesterday announced plans for the 100 largest schemes with assets of more than £5billion each to be required to publish climate risk disclosures by the end of 2022. The 100 largest pension funds will be required by law to publish climate risk disclosures by the end of 2022, Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey announced on Wednesday Under the proposals, this requirement would be extended to around 250 schemes with assets of more than £1billion the following year.  Miss Coffey said it was 'one of the most significant steps to date in the UK's progress on tackling climate change'. She said funds should look at 'green and sustainable assets a

Fulham are close to striking a double deal for Southampton midfield pair Harrison Reed and Mario Lemina. The Premier League new boys have activated their £8m option to sign anchorman Reed from the south coast club following their promotion to the top flight. And Lemina is set to move to Craven Cottage on loan for an initial £2m fee, with an obligation for Fulham to buy him if they stay up. Fulham are set to sign Harrison Reed for £8million following his successful loan spell Fulham are also set to sign Mauro Lemina on loan from Southampton for an initial £2m loan fee Midfielder Reed has spent the season on loan at play-off final winners Fulham from Southampton. Fulham, who beat neighbours Brentford in extra time at Wembley to secure promotion, had an option in the deal to buy Reed for £8m if they clinched promotion and a lower fee if they failed to go up. Fulham manager Scott Parker is looking to bolster his squad after promotion to the top flight Southampton have been looking for a bu

Google's own engineers were troubled by the way the company secretly tracked the movements of people who didn't want to be followed until a 2018 Associated Press investigation uncovered the shadowy surveillance, according to unsealed documents in a consumer fraud case. The behind-the-scenes peek stems from a three-month-old lawsuit against Google filed by Arizona's attorney general. The files, unsealed late last week, reveal that Google knew it had a massive problem on its hands after an AP article published in August 2018 explained how the company continued to track users' whereabouts even after they had disabled the feature Google called "location history." The released documents include internal Google emails and a fresh version of the state's civil complaint with fewer redactions than the original. The same day the AP story was published, the company held what one unidentified email correspondent called an "Oh S--" meeting to discuss its loca

Buy now pay later group Afterpay has reported another full-year loss, but the result was tempered by a more than 100 per cent lift in income and a more than doubling in customer numbers. Afterpay on Thursday reported a bottom-line net loss of $19.8 million for 2019/20, although this was an improvement on the previous year's loss of $42.9 million. But operating business income soared by 103 per cent to $502.7 million. The number of active customer users of more than doubled to 9.9 million in its markets across Australia, New Zealand, the US and UK. Some 17,300 new customers each day were added to its lending books in the second half of 2019/20, as the coronavirus pandemic took hold and more people began shopping online from home. "It is clear that Afterpay's predominantly e-commerce and budgeting focused service has been a net beneficiary of the significant shift to online spending," Afterpay said in a statement. The average customer order was $153 per transaction. Som

Woolworths has copped a 1.2 per cent hit to its profits as the coronavirus pandemic drives a wrecking ball through the supermarket giant's hotels division. This was despite grocery hoarding ahead of expected COVID-19 lockdown and a surge in online sales. Woolworth's shares were up 0.2 per cent in early trading on Thursday at $39.35. Profits were $1.6 billion on total sales of $63.7 billion in 2019/20, an annual increase of 8.1 per cent. Group online sales soared 41.8 per cent to $3.5 billion as people flocked to online shopping. Woolworths said despite strong sales across its food businesses, the closure of its hotels and costs associated with coronavirus impacted on the group's earnings in the second half of the financial year. Chief executive Brad Banducci said the year tested the company's resilience and "will forever change the way we live and work". "We were impacted by the ongoing drought, devastating busfires, New Zealand's White Island volcani

UNITED NATIONS - The president of the International Committee of the Red Cross warned Wednesday that the frequency of sophisticated cyber attacks against hospitals, electricity and water supplies, and other critical civilian infrastructure is increasing. Peter Maurer said the ICRC is increasingly concerned about the destructive effects of cyber operations that cut off electricity supplies and water systems in war-affected countries and halted hospital services in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as "an attempted attack against a petrochemical plant and especially alarmingly, cyber-attacks against nuclear facilities." "If hospitals cannot provide life-saving treatment in the middle of a health crisis or an armed conflict, whole communities will suffer," he told an informal virtual meeting of the U.N. Security Council. "If electricity supply is interrupted, there is a real risk that water, health care, and other essential services will be disrupted,&q

As Australia's 'Instagram queen', Tammy Hembrow certainly knows how to take a good picture.  But fans have recently noticed a disturbing detail crop up in many of the 26-year-old's Instagram selfies. In recent months, Tammy has developed a habit of posing for raunchy mirror selfies inside the bathroom of her Gold Coast mansion.  Oversharing? Fans have noticed a disturbing detail lurking in the background of Tammy Hembrow's raunchy bathroom selfies Unfortunately, on many occasions Tammy has forgotten to edit out a rather unglamorous  part of the image - the toilet in the background.  The most recent example of this was a post uploaded on Wednesday, which saw a bikini-clad Tammy perched seductively on the vanity with her famous derrière in full view. It didn't take long for fans to notice Tammy's toilet in the right corner of the frame, however. Faux pas: Unfortunately, on many occasions Tammy has forgotten to edit out a rather unglamorous part of the image -

Women wait six times longer than men to be diagnosed with heart failure as it is seen as a ‘man’s disease’, experts warn. Researchers found women are twice as likely to be misdiagnosed with a condition such as asthma or depression – and wait 20 weeks on average after visiting a GP for the condition to be identified, compared to three and a half for men. The delays put tens of thousands of lives at risk, says charity Pumping Marvellous Foundation and Roche Diagnostics.  Heart failure is a condition where the muscles are too weak to properly pump blood. The delays put tens of thousands of lives at risk, says charity Pumping Marvellous Foundation and Roche Diagnostics (file photo) Professor Martin Cowie, of Imperial College London, said: ‘Too often heart problems are seen as a man’s disease.’ The report, based on NHS data and a survey of 625 heart failure patients, found that one in ten women spent more than six months waiting for their heart failure diagnosis. The ‘gender gap' is due

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The New York Giants secondary has taken a big hit with second-round draft pick Xavier McKinney scheduled for surgery after breaking his left foot. The Giants announced the injury Wednesday, just minutes before the team was to start a training camp practice at MetLife Stadium. The club also said linebacker David Mayo will need knee surgery. The team did not say when the injuries happened but the players were at practice on Tuesday. A play-making safety from Alabama, McKinney was seemingly going to get a lot of playing time opposite safety Jabrill Peppers. Julian Love, who started five games late last season, will probably take over the starting job. Sean Chandler also has some experience at safety and there several free agents who will be given a shot to play. McKinney was scheduled to have surgery Wednesday afternoon at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. FILE - In this Feb. 28, 2020, file photo, Alabama defensive back Xavier McKinney speaks during a

By Nancy Lapid Aug 26 - The following is a roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. Coronavirus discovered in heart muscle cells The new coronavirus, which has previously been detected in some heart tissues, can also invade heart muscle cells, or myocytes, researchers have found. In Brazil, doctors found the virus in cardiac myocytes of an 11-year-old with multisystem inflammatory syndrome related to COVID-19 who died of heart failure, according to a report in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health. In Italy, six adults who died of COVID-19 respiratory failure had active coronavirus in cardiac myocytes, with varying degrees of myocyte injury and cell death, doctors reported on Wednesday on medRxiv ahead of peer review. None of the Italian patients had cardiac symptoms or a history of heart disease. The Italian doctors point out that 40% of patients who reco

BRUSSELS, Aug 26 - A discussion about the negotiations over Britain and the European Union's post-Brexit relationship has been dropped from the agenda of a meeting of EU envoys next week because the talks have stalled, an EU diplomat said on Wednesday. Earlier, the Guardian reported https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/aug/26/germany-scraps-plans-for-brexit-talks-at-eu-ambassadors-summit?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=twt_gu&utm_medium&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1598463875 that the issue would not be discussed at a meeting of ambassadors from the EU's 27 member states, though diplomats said this referred to a regular meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives due on Sept. 2. EU officials now believe the British government is prepared to risk a no-deal exit when the transition period comes to an end on Dec. 31, and will try to pin the blame on Brussels if talks fail, the Guardian report said. The German government, which holds the rotating preside

BRASILIA, Aug 26 - Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro said on Wednesday he had rejected a proposal by his Economy Minister Paulo Guedes for a new cash welfare program called "Renda Brasil" because it would involve cutting other social programs. The disagreement highlights the split between Guedes, who is struggling to keep Brazil's fiscal deficit under control, and a president whose popularity and re-election chances have risen thanks to the financial assistance distributed during the coronavirus pandemic. The two are also at odds over the government's plan to extend emergency pandemic payments to low-paid and informal workers until the end of the year, currently 600 reais ($106) per month, which the minister wants to cut to under 200 reais. The rift sent the Brazilian currency down 1.5% against the dollar and saw the Bovespa index in Sao Paulo fall 2.2% by mid-afternoon. The Economy Ministry issued a statement quashing speculation that Guedes was planning to quit

By Vishwadha Chander Aug 26 - Four overnight camps in Maine successfully stemmed the spread of the novel coronavirus and conducted sessions with over 1,000 attendees from 41 states and international locations this summer, according to a new report published on Wednesday. The findings in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention´s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report contrasted with that of an overnight camp in Georgia, where the disease reportedly spread to at least 44% of staff and attendees. All Maine camp attendees for the season between June and August were asked to quarantine with families for 10-14 days before arrival, and camps advised members to arrive in a family vehicle. About a week before arrival, the attendees were tested for the coronavirus, and three of the four camps mandated submission of these results before entry. To address exposure during travel, all camps quarantined attendees by groups for 14 days after arrival. At camp, members were screened for symptoms

BUENOS AIRES, Aug 26 - The news that Lionel Messi wants to leave Barcelona may have shocked the football world but his fellow Argentines back his decision and many are hoping for a reunion with Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. "It seems to me this is the moment for him to abandon the comfort zone that he was in," Gustavo Lopez, a customs official walking in central Buenos Aires, told Reuters. "This is a challenge for him. "For me, he has to go to Manchester City with Kun Aguero and Pep Guardiola. I think he should do it, the time is right to try and see if he can play somewhere else because until now he has always done well where he was, so let´s now see if he can do it somewhere else." Manchester City are one of the favourites to sign the six-times world player of the year who has won every major title with Barcelona. Some of his career highlights at Barca came under the guidance of Guardiola, who is now City manager, and the prospect they might team up aga

Tom Woolstencroft enjoyed a dream first outing with the Saracens captaincy by scoring a hat-trick of tries in their 36-20 victory over Gloucester at Allianz Park. The hooker, standing in in the absence of Brad Barritt, delivered a standout performance by dotting down three times in 20 minutes, while a Ben Harris try on his debut and Tom Whiteley’s effort capped the win. Stephen Varney, Henry Walker and Louis Rees-Zammit did notch tries for the visitors but Saracens proved too good in the second half to secure their 11th league win of the season and leave Gloucester eighth. The hosts made 14 changes to the side that defeated Harlequins, including handing club debuts to Will Hooley and Harris. But the big news heading into the game surrounded Elliot Daly’s return from a hamstring injury to make his first ever start at outside centre for Saracens. The England international, who had featured seven times since joining from Wasps last summer before the season was postponed in March, had been

A former Minnesota college student pleaded guilty Wednesday to a federal charge that she tried to help al-Qaida. Tnuza Jamal Hassan, 22, of Minneapolis, pleaded guilty in U.S District Court to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. Charges of lying to the FBI and arson will be dismissed when Hassan is sentenced in December. When Hassan was stopped from flying to Afghanistan in September 2017, prosecutors said she told FBI agents that she wanted to join al-Qaida and marry a fighter, and that she might even wear a suicide belt. Four months later, Hassan was arrested for allegedly setting fires on her former college campus in St. Paul in what prosecutors called a self-proclaimed act of jihad. No one was hurt in the fires at St. Catherine University. One fire was set in a dormitory that has a day care where 33 children were present. Hassan was born in the U.S. According to prosecutors, Hassan tried to travel to Afghanistan on Sept. 19, 2017,

Tottenham are closing in on a £15million deal to sign Wolves full-back Matt Doherty, according to The Athletic. Jose Mourinho has been searching the market for an upgrade on French right-back Serge Aurier and Spurs are now in advanced negotiations with Wolves.  The report claims the Molineux club initially demanded a £20m fee for Doherty, but have since lowered their asking price for the 28-year-old.  Tottenham are closing in on a £15million deal for Wolves defender Matt Doherty The Irishman, who still has three years left to run on his Wolves contract, was subject of a £12m first offer from Tottenham, excluding performance-related add-ons.   Doherty was part of the Wolves side that lifted the League One title in 2013-14, as well as the team that won the Championship crown in 2017-18. The Republic of Ireland international has made 302 appearances for Woves in total, registering 28 goals and 41 assists since joining from Bohemians in 2010. Serge Aurier, who endured a torrid term at Tott

By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON, Aug 26 - The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday said it may investigate whether four states led by Democratic governors violated the civil rights of the elderly by requiring nursing homes to admit coronavirus patients, a practice which critics say led to thousands of deaths. The department said it was seeking COVID-19 data related to nursing homes from four states: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan. "Protecting the rights of some of society´s most vulnerable members, including elderly nursing home residents, is one of our country´s most important obligations," Eric Dreiband, assistant attorney general for the department's Civil Rights Division, said in a statement. The elderly and people with underlying chronic health conditions are among those at highest risk for severe illness and death from COVID-19. Since the pandemic hit the United States, nursing homes, long-term care facilities and assisted-living centers have register

Matt Le Tissier says it is “time to look forward to life’s next challenge” after being axed alongside Phil Thompson and Charlie Nicholas by Sky Sports ahead of the 2020-21 Premier League season. It has been reported the decision to part company with the popular trio of studio pundits on ‘Soccer Saturday’ is part of cost-cutting measures as the broadcaster faces up to the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic. A Sky statement said: “We are changing some parts of our football coverage – Matt, Charlie and Phil have done a great job for us over the years, and they will leave us with our sincere thanks and very best wishes.” Enjoyed my time at sky sports, time to look forward to life’s next challenge, thank you for the support down the years and special thanks to the backroom team which include @CazzaEccles @CarlyBassett @tvtrevstats amongst many others, good luck all have a lovely day 😃👍🏼 — Matt Le Tissier (@mattletiss7) August 26, 2020 Enjoyed my time at sky sports, time to look