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Miami pastor sentenced to 48 months for $1 Million PPP fraud scheme

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

A self-described head pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church in Miami has been sentenced to 48 months in federal prison for his involvement in defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program for over $1 million. According to a press release by the United States Attorney’s Office Southern District of Florida, Elie Floradin, 59, orchestrated the scheme by repeatedly submitting false and fraudulent PPP applications through a mediator. These applications sought federal COVID-19 assistance funds for fictitious companies that did not exist. Notably, Floradin claimed to operate a fabricated employment agency and declared payments of approximately $960,000 in annual wages to dozens of employees who did not actually work for the non-existent business.Officials said the scheme began with the successful receipt of an initial PPP loan worth around $200,000. He proceeded to submit three additional fraudulent PPP applications on behalf of his fictional hiring agency, seeking approximately $600,000 ...

DeSantis plans to announce 2024 bid Wednesday on Twitter Spaces with Elon Musk, sources tell AP

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis plans to announce his 2024 presidential campaign in a Twitter Spaces event with Elon Musk on Wednesday, according to two people with knowledge of the decision.DeSantis, who has long been seen as Donald Trump’s leading rival for the Republican nomination, will reveal his plans in an audio conversation with the owner of Twitter, according to the two people, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the announcement publicly.The timing of DeSantis’ long-expected announcement has been shrouded in secrecy, with various iterations of plans being leaked over the past few days. Some close to him suspected that the Republican governor was providing conflicting information about the timing and location to root out leakers. Others believe he changed his initial preparations after news reports came out about them.Musk, speaking at The Wall Street Journal’s CEO Summit event in London on Tuesd...

Donald Trump trial is set for March 2024; judge informs Trump what he can’t say about the criminal case against him

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

New York (CNN) — Judge Juan Merchan has set a trial date of March 25, 2024, for the New York criminal case against former President Donald Trump.The announcement of the trial date was set during a brief hearing Tuesday in which the judge read Trump an order on what he can and cannot say publicly about the case and evidence his legal team will get from prosecutors to prepare for trial.Trump appeared remotely via video feed so the judge could communicate with him in open court.Trump spoke only once to say that he did have a copy of the protective order – which limits what the former president can post on social media sites. He did not speak the rest of the time, and his screen was muted through most of the hearing. He did appear animated at several points however, including when the trial date was announced.Trump pleaded not guilty last month to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records with the intent to conceal illegal conduct connected to his 2016 presidential ...

Man arrested in connection with Falmouth bank robbery

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

An Edgartown man has been arrested in connection with a bank robbery in Falmouth last month, the Cape and Islands District Attorney announced Tuesday. Police previously said a suspect entered the Rockland Trust Bank on Davis Straits in Falmouth around 9 a.m. on April 8. The person, police said, demanded money from a teller while holding a handgun and claiming to have a bomb. Police said the man then fled the area in a stolen SUV.Weeks later, the DA said Petar Petyoshin, 40 has been arrested in connection with the robbery on charges including armed and masked robbery with a firearm, a bomb threat, carjacking and seven counts of kidnapping. He was scheduled to be arraigned on Tuesday in Falmouth. 

Ron DeSantis to announce 2024 presidential campaign Wednesday in conversation with Elon Musk

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

(CNN) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will announce his bid for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination Wednesday night in a conversation with Twitter owner Elon Musk, a spokesperson for his political team tells CNN.The announcement, which was first reported by NBC News, will take place at 6 p.m. ET on Twitter Spaces, where the platform’s users can participate in audio conversations, and will be moderated by tech entrepreneur David Sacks.CNN has reached out to Musk for comment. The tech titan publicly confirmed the conversation at a Wall Street Journal event Tuesday.“I will be interviewing Ron DeSantis, and he has quite an announcement to make. And it will be the first time that something like this is happening on social media and with real-time questions and answers, unscripted,” Musk said, adding that he was not planning to endorse a candidate “at this time.”Sacks is a major political donor and DeSantis booster. In 2021, he contributed just over $70,000 to the ...

NFL owners pass kickoff rule change despite strong opposition from coaches and players

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

A majority of NFL owners, including Giants co-owner John Mara, ignored the opposition of the league’s coaches and players on Tuesday and passed a controversial measure to limit kick returns.The new rule will allow teams to automatically receive a first down at their own 25-line if they fair-catch a kickoff or free kick behind their 25.Commissioner Roger Goodell and the owners had the audacity to cite “player safety” as the reason for the new rule after increasing the regular season recently to 17 games, voting in March to schedule teams up to twice on Thursdays, and voting on Monday to allow Thursday Night Football flexing between Weeks 13 and 17.The hypocrisy is too much for the league’s many critics on this issue.“Extremely disappointed,” one coach told the Daily News on Tuesday. “‘Player safety’ is what they want, and then you flex Thursday night games late in the year?!?! It doesn’t make sense to me. Player safety?!?!&#...

As Lamar Jackson arrives for Ravens OTAs, here are 5 questions that linger

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

Lamar Jackson has arrived.A source with direct knowledge of the situation confirmed to The Baltimore Sun that the Ravens quarterback is at the team’s facility in Owings Mills on Tuesday, a day after the first of what are 10 voluntary organized team activities over the next three weeks. Jackson, who signed a five-year extension worth a reported $260 million earlier this month, was absent the first five weeks of the Ravens’ voluntary workouts and had not been on the field with the team since suffering a PCL injury against the Denver Broncos on Dec. 4.The Ravens are one of 20 teams that began organized team activities Monday; another 10 did so Tuesday.Though “live” contact is not allowed, seven-on-seven and 11-on-11 work is permitted. One Ravens session per week will also be open to the media, beginning Wednesday, with the other organized team activities scheduled for Thursday, next Tuesday, and June 1-2, 5-6, 8-9.The only mandatory portion of the offseason work...

DeSantis set to announce for president on Twitter with Musk

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

Gov. Ron DeSantis will announce his presidential bid Wednesday night alongside Elon Musk.DeSantis will launch his campaign on Twitter Spaces, an audio platform, according to NBC News and Fox News, which first reported the event. The conversation with Musk will be moderated by businessman David Sacks. Various reports have it happening at either 6 p.m. or 7 p.m.Nick Iarossi, a Tallahassee lobbyist who’s been an adviser and fundraiser for DeSantis since he first ran for governor, confirmed in a text message that DeSantis will announce his candidacy with the billionaire owner of Twitter, SpaceX and Tesla.Musk retweeted the NBC story posted on Twitter.The campaign will reportedly also unveil a launch video at the same time.The South African-born Musk first said in 2022 he was leaning toward supporting DeSantis for the Republican nomination. DeSantis joked at the time, “I welcome support from African Americans.”Nikki Fried, chair of the Florida Democratic Party, had a sarcastic resp...

Appeals court ruling deals legal setback to Biden administration in gun stabilizing brace case

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court dealt a legal setback to the Biden administration on guns Tuesday in a lawsuit challenging tighter regulations on stabilizing braces, an accessory that has been used in several mass shootings in the U.S. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked the Biden administration’s rule from going into effect for the gun owners and groups who filed the lawsuit. The order came shortly before a deadline that would have required people to register stabilizing braces and pay a fee, or remove the braces from their weapons.The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives finalized the rule earlier this year after finding the accessories make pistols as dangerously powerful and easy to conceal as short-barreled rifles or sawed-off shotguns, weapons that have been highly regulated since the days of Al Capone. The rule was quickly challenged by gun-rights groups that argued it violated Sec...

Trump, appearing by video, warned that violating protective order in hush money case could lead to sanctions

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:49:21 GMT

By Josephine Stratman and Larry McShane, New York Daily NewsJudge Juan Merchan warned former president Donald Trump Tuesday that he needed to stick to the terms of a protective order limiting what he can say about the Stormy Daniels hush money case or risk sanctions — including the possibility of a contempt citation.Responding to concerns from the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Merchan imposed a protective order on Trump and his team to block them from talking about evidence or witnesses in the case on social media. Tuesday’s hearing was held to review that order.“Violating the court order may result in sanctions,” Merchan told Trump, who appeared in the NYC courtroom via video.Trump was visibly perturbed at times during the short appearance. Appearing on a massive screen wearing a red tie with blue and white stripe, Trump was seated next to his lawyer, Todd Blanche, who told Merchan that Trump was concerned his first amendment rights were being violated as...