WORLD NEWS FLASH
UNITED STATES
A black teen in Kansas City and a Caucasian woman from New York met with unfortunate twists of fate due to overly defensive homeowners, with one losing their life.
Ralph Yarl, a 16-year-old African American, went to pick up his siblings from a house on the evening of April 13. He was looking for the 1100 block of NE 115th Terrace, but mistakenly went to NE 115th Street, the wrong house. Upon ringing the doorbell, he was shot by Andrew Daniel Lester, the 84-year-old Caucasian owner of the home, who then proceeded to shoot him again.
Initially, Lester was taken into custody briefly, and then released. However, after an onslaught of public outrage, he was finally charged with armed criminal action and first-degree assault, which in Missouri is equivalent to attempted murder.
Lester has said that he felt threatened by Yarl due to his size and that he grabbed the door. However, Yarl, who somehow survived and was discharged from the hospital on April 16, denied those claims.
Several prominent figures have come out in support of Yael, including Christina Ricci, Lil Rel Howery, Justin Timberlake, Kerry Washington, Jennifer Hudson, Halle Berry, and Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes.
The same day of Yarl’s discharge, something similar happened in upstate New York with more dire consequences. Kaylin Gillis and her friends were looking for a friend’s house, but accidentally pulled into a driveway at the wrong house. Then, 65-year-old homeowner Kevin Monahan came outside and fired two shots at the car, hitting Gillis. Sadly, the 20-year-old Gillis succumbed to her injuries. Monahan has been charged with second-degree murder.
MASS SHOOTING UPDATE
Information recent as of 4-19-2023 at 12 p.m.
2023 Mass Shooting Stats: (Source: Mass Shooting Tracker – https://www.massshootingtracker.site/data/?year=2023)
Total Shootings (unofficial): 199
Total Dead: 296
Total Wounded: 744
Shootings Per Day: 1.83
Days Reached in Year 2023 as of April 19: 109
These cases provided the most media coverage. Unfortunately, there were some more high profile mass shootings. One of them was local.
First, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II and Newark Public Safety Director Fritz Fragé announced that the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide/Major Crimes Task Force is investigating a shooting on April 15 in Newark that left one man dead and three others injured.
At 7:39 p.m., Newark police responded to a report of a shooting on the 400 block of Leslie Street in Newark, near Chancellor Avenue. Police found four victims suffering from gunshot wounds. All four were taken to University Hospital, where Corey Beasley, 43, of Newark, was pronounced dead at 8:09 p.m. The three others survived and are being treated for their injuries.
The investigation is active and ongoing. No arrests have been made. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office tips line at 1-877-TIPS-4EC or 1-877-847-7432. Calls will be kept confidential.
Additionally, there was yet another mass shooting in Louisville, about a week after the one from our last edition.
Latest High Profile Incident
Location: Mahogany Masterpiece Dance Studio – Dadeville, AL.
Time: Around 10:30 p.m. local time.
Deceased: At least 4. (Corbin Dahmontrey Holston, 23; Marsiah Emmanuel Collins, 19; Philstavious Dowdell, 18; Shaunkivia Nicole Smith.)
Injured: At least 32.
Shooter(s): Ty Reik McCullough, 17, Travis McCullough, 16.
Weapon(s): Handguns.
Motive: Beef at the party after the mother of birthday celebrant Alexis Dowdell asked those with guns to leave.
Status: Apprehended April 19. Charged with murder, with more charges expected soon. Both will be tried as adults, not juveniles.
Notes: Dowdell was not only the brother of the celebrant, but was a recruit for Jacksonville State head coach Rich Rodriguez, who offered his thoughts and prayers.
AFRICA
BRUTAL CLASHES OVERWHELMING SUDAN
Clashes intensified across Sudan on April 17, as top UN officials urged rival military factions to protect civilians and respect the country’s international obligations.
“I strongly condemn the outbreak of fighting that is taking place in Sudan and appeal to the leaders of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) to immediately cease hostilities, restore calm, and begin a dialogue to resolve the crisis,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres said.
Following the deaths of three employees of the UN World Food Program (WFP) in the restive Darfur region amid widespread fighting, he called for those responsible to be brought to justice without delay.
“The situation has already led to horrendous loss of life, including many civilians,” the UN chief said, ahead of delivering opening remarks at a UN Forum on Financing for Development.
He urged all those with influence over the deteriorating situation to press for peace, and support efforts to end the violence, restore order, and return to the path of transition.
More than 180 people have been killed and 1,800 injured, some UN facilities have been looted and destroyed, and some non-essential staff will have to be evacuated, said the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Sudan, Volker Perthes, speaking to reporters early Monday afternoon at UN Headquarters via video from Khartoum.
“Fighting is going on almost uninterrupted,” he said. “I have made efforts to convince the leaders of both sides to hold fire for a humanitarian pause for a few hours to make it possible for the Sudanese to go to safer places or get supplies for Ramadan or go to the hospital.”
In constant contact with leaders of both sides, he said he is currently trying to cement a daily three-hour humanitarian ceasefire. While the parties had agreed on Sunday and again on Monday for such a pause, fighting had resumed before the end of the ceasefire, he said.
The two sides “are not giving us the impression that they want mediation right away,” he said. “Rather, they are calling on the other side to surrender or disband.”
The trilateral mechanism, comprising the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority (IGAD) and the UN, urged parties to adhere to a humanitarian pause that would guarantee safety for civilians, the UN spokesman said.
Meanwhile, 10 UN agencies and more than 80 non-governmental organizations have been running more than 250 programs in Sudan, he said, adding that UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths declared that he was “horrified” by the deaths and looting of aid, adding that “it is crucial for the fighting to stop so we can resume our efforts to help those who need it the most.”
Csaba Kőrösi, President of the General Assembly, echoed that call.
“Any further escalations will have devastating effects on the country and the region,” he said.
The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said de-escalation of the situation is urgently needed.
“We are deeply concerned about the safety and security of civilians in the areas affected by the fighting, including refugees and internally displaced people,” the agency said, calling for all parties to protect civilians, including refugees and displaced people, and to respect the safety of humanitarian staff so that critical aid can be delivered.
WORLD
14,000 ARRESTS, 8,000 GUNS, 200 TONS OF DRUGS
In the biggest firearms operation ever coordinated by INTERPOL, authorities in Central and South America have made 14,260 arrests and seized some 8,263 illicit firearms, as well as 305,000 rounds of ammunition.
With illicit firearms used by criminals to commit armed robberies and murder, they are also closely associated with the proliferation of a wide range of other crimes using the same trafficking routes.
The links between illicit firearms and drug manufacturing and trafficking were thrown into sharp relief, with the seizure of 203 tons of cocaine and other drugs together worth some USD 5.7 billion, and 372 tons of drug precursors during Operation Trigger IX (March 12 – April 2).
Law enforcement across INTERPOL’s 195 member countries have reported record drug seizures in the past year and, in many cases, a spike in drug-related violence, fueled by the traffic of illegal firearms.
The operation, which saw an unprecedented level of cooperation across 15 countries, also identified a range of other crimes such as corruption, fraud, human trafficking, environmental crime and terrorist activities.
INTERPOL gathered firearms experts from participating countries at an operational hub in Foz do Iguaçu in the tri-border area of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay, to support frontline actions and ensure the swift exchange and cross-checking of intelligence.
On the ground, coordinated actions led to the disruption of 20 organized criminal groups, including the arrest of members of Primeiro Comando da Capital, Mara Salvatrucha and the Balkans Cartel, all involved in firearms trafficking.
In Uruguay, 100,000 pieces of ammunition trafficked internationally by two European nationals were seized by authorities, marking the country’s largest-ever such seizure.
Authorities in Brazil and Paraguay shut down several firearms dealerships following the identification of irregular transfers and unlicensed sales.
Other operational results include:
- 11 victims were rescued in Paraguay, when authorities dismantled a human trafficking ring.
- In cooperation with Venezuela, police in Colombia arrested a Venezuelan national subject to an INTERPOL Red Notice for terrorism and arms trafficking.
- A 32 year old woman was arrested at the land border between Paraguay and Brazil with eight pistols and 16 chargers taped to her body.
Looking ahead, some 30 investigations were opened as a result of actions on the ground, and authorities identified 15 new modus operandi for the illicit manufacturing, trafficking and concealment of firearms, with INTERPOL’s Purple Notice leveraged to help alert member countries.
