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Georgia teen detained by ICE after mistaken traffic stop granted bond: Attorney

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(DALTON, Ga) — A Georgia teenager who was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement after being mistakenly stopped for a traffic infraction she did not commit earlier this month was granted bond Wednesday, according to her attorney.

Ximena Arias-Cristobal, 19, was arrested on May 5 in Dalton, Georgia, when her dark gray truck was mistaken for a black pickup that made an illegal turn, authorities said. The local police department and prosecuting attorney dismissed charges against her related to the mistaken traffic stop, though she was detained by ICE agents for being in the country illegally.

The Department of Homeland Security said following her detainment that it is committed to ordering Arias-Cristobal to “self-deport” to Mexico and that she “admitted to illegally entering the United States and has no pending applications with USCIS.”

During a bond hearing on Wednesday, Arias-Cristobal was granted $1,500 bond, the minimum amount possible under the law, according to her attorney.

“The government did not wish to appeal. The family will pay the bond ASAP and Ximena will be home with her family tomorrow afternoon at the latest,” her attorney, Dustin Baxter, said in a statement.

The next hearing in the case has not been scheduled, another one of her attorneys, Charles Kuck, told ABC Chattanooga, Tennessee, affiliate WTVC, adding, “It would be remarkable if it is before mid-2026.”

Arias-Cristobal, a student at Dalton State College, was being held at the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, ICE records show.

The teen came to the U.S. with her parents when she was 4 years old and is ineligible for relief from deportation through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which temporarily protects some migrants from deportation if they were brought to the country as children, an attorney for Arias-Cristobal told ABC News.

Arias-Cristobal was not eligible to register for the DACA program because it ended before she became eligible to apply at 16 years old.

Her father, Jose Francisco Arias-Tovar, was separately detained by police — and later ICE — two weeks before his daughter for speeding and driving without a license, according to DHS. Her father was released on bond from ICE custody last week, WTVC reported.

“Both father and daughter were in this country illegally and they have to face the consequences,” DHS said in a statement last week. “The United States is offering aliens like this father and daughter $1,000 apiece and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.”

ABC News’ Nadine El-Bawab and Armando Garcia contributed to this report.

Dow closes down 800 points as bond sell-off rattles markets

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Stocks closed down significantly on Wednesday as bond yields spiked amid deficit concerns centered on a tax cut measure under consideration in the U.S. House as part of a megabill supporting President Donald Trump’s second-term agenda.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 817 points, or 1.9%, while the S&P 500 declined 1.6%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 1.4%.

The sell-off on Wall Street coincided with a surge in bond yields, which in turn raised the cost of U.S. borrowing and stoked investor fears about the wider impact across the economy.

The 10-year Treasury yield jumped from 4.48% to 4.58%, reaching its highest level since February.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday found the tax policies backed by Trump would add $3.8 trillion to the national debt.

In addition to extending the 2017 Trump tax cuts, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” contains changes to Medicaid and immigration policy, among other measures. Republican members of the House are aiming to pass the bill by Memorial Day.

The bond sell-off arrives at a moment of heightened volatility in Treasury markets. Long-term bond yields soared last month in the immediate aftermath of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs.

A U.S. credit downgrade at Moody’s last week further roiled debt markets.

Bond yields rise as bond prices fall. When a sell-off hits and demand for bonds dries up, it sends bond prices lower. In turn, bond yields move higher.

The yield for long-term Treasury bonds helps set interest rates for a host of consumer loans, including mortgages and credit cards.

When interest rates rise, businesses also face higher borrowing costs, making it less likely that firms would move forward with an office expansion or round of hiring, analysts previously told ABC News. In turn, such conditions risk an economic slowdown.

Former USPS employee sentenced to 27 months in jail for stealing $1.9 million in checks

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

Former USPS employee sentenced to 27 months in jail for stealing .9 million in checks

Former USPS employee sentenced to 27 months in jail for stealing $1.9 million in checks — Kevin Carter/Getty Images

(CHARLOTTE, N.C.) — A former United States Postal Service employee in North Carolina was sentenced to 27 months in prison after he allegedly stole over $1.9 million in checks from P.O. boxes, according to federal prosecutors.

Dontavis Romario Truesdale, 28, was sentenced Tuesday to 27 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release for financial institution fraud after he “stole $1.9 million in business checks from the post office where he worked,” federal prosecutors said in a press release.

Truesdale pleaded guilty in January.

According to court records, from November 2022 to April 2023, Truesdale worked as a processing clerk at the Ballantyne Post Office in Charlotte, where he allegedly used his position to “steal hundreds of checks of businesses that maintained post office boxes at that location,” federal prosecutors said.

Truesdale then “sold the stolen checks to other co-conspirators who committed bank fraud,” federal prosecutors said.

Over the course of this scheme, Truesdale “stole more than 200 checks with a total face value of over $1.9 million,” federal prosecutors said.

Truesdale was released following the sentencing hearing, but will be ordered to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons “upon designation of a federal facility,” federal prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said the U.S. Postal Service, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and the Office of the Inspector General also assisted in the investigation.

Attorneys for Truesdale and the USPS did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

ICE lodges detainer for 24-year-old Venezuelan man arrested for posing as 16-year-old high school student: Police

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(PERRYSBURG, OHIO) — A 24-year-old Venezuelan man who was arrested for pretending to be a 16-year-old high school student in Ohio is now facing a detainer from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra was arrested on Monday after he posed as a teenager in January 2024, according to the City of Perrysburg Police.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged a detainer for Labrador on Tuesday, the DHS said.

“ICE lodged a retainer to ensure that this criminal illegal alien is removed from this community and is no longer able to prey on the students of Perrysburg High School,” Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, announced in a press release on Wednesday.

According to a police report, Labrador had contacted Perrysburg Schools in November 2023, wanting to enroll as a student, claiming that “he had been homeless and was an immigrant from Venezuela.”

He also told the school that he was a victim of human trafficking, police said.

When he met with the school to begin the enrollment process, Labrador presented a birth certificate from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela with a birthdate of Dec. 2, 2007, police said. At the time, he told the school he was staying at an address in Toledo, and he started as a student on Jan. 19, 2024.

Kathy and Brad Melfred, who had housed exchange students in the past and had adoptive children, were contacted about Labrador. The Melfreds agreed to assist Labrador and he began residing with them on March 21, 2024, police said.

The couple was granted permanent guardianship over Labrador through the Wood County Common Pleas Court Juvenile Division and they also assisted him in getting a social security number and an Ohio driver’s license, police said.

Then on May 14, the Melfreds were contacted by a woman, Evelyn Camacho, who stated that Labrador was “actually a 24-year-old and he was the father of her child,” police said. Camacho sent the Melfreds a picture of Labrador’s driver’s license with a birthdate of March 27, 2001, along with Facebook pictures of her with Labrador and a small child, police said.

Police said they reached out to the United States Border Patrol for assistance in the investigation, who advised that Labrador had an actual birthdate of March 27, 2001, an expired work visa and was considered “an overstay in this country.”

Officials said his work visa expired the same year he reached out to Perrysburg Schools to enroll.

On Monday at 4:15 p.m., Labrador was arrested after he was located riding in a vehicle on Interstate 75 and was booked on forgery charges, police said in a statement.

Labrador was also a member of the junior varsity soccer and swim teams at the high school, and the district has reported the situation to the Ohio High School Athletic Association.

The suspect remains in custody at the Wood County Jail and his next court date is scheduled for May 29, according to jail records. It is unclear if Labrador has an attorney who can speak on his behalf.

2 people arrested for assisting fugitives wanted in New Orleans mass jailbreak

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW ORLEANS) — Two people accused of assisting the inmates who bolted from a New Orleans jail in last Friday’s mass escape have been arrested as the search for fugitives still at large stetched into its sixth day, officials said.

The Louisiana State Police announced on Wednesday that 32-year-old Cortnie Harris and 38-year-old Corvanntay Baptiste were arrested and charged with felony counts of being accessories after the fact. They were both booked at the Plaquemines Parish Detention Center, officials said.

According to the state police, an investigation found that, before the escape, Harris was allegedly in contact by phone with an escapee who remains on the run.

“Furthermore, investigators determined that Harris transported two escapees, who remain at large, to multiple locations in New Orleans,” police said.

Baptiste, according to the state police, was also in contact by phone and social media with escapee Corey Boyd, who was captured by police on Tuesday night.

Authorities alleged that Baptiste “helped facilitate getting him [Boyd] food while he was hiding in a residence.”

If convicted of being an accessory after the fact, Harris and Baptiste face a fine of at least $500 and could be “imprisoned, with or without hard labor, for not more than five years, or both.”

“Those who choose to assist or conceal these individuals are violating the law and will be held accountable,” the state police said in the statement. “Harboring fugitives threatens the safety of our communities and will not be tolerated.”

Five of the 10 inmates who escaped the jail early Friday remained on the run on Wednesday, including one who is a convicted killer and two who have been charged with second-degree murder.

Meanwhile, embattled Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson said she is suspending her reelection campaign after she accepted blame for the for the mass escape of 10 from the jail she oversees.

Facing mounting pressure over the jailbreak, Hutson said she is suspending her campaign to focus her attention on “security, accountability and public safety.”

The sheriff announced her decision on Tuesday. Hutson was elected Orleans Parish Sheriff in 2021 and took office in 2022, according to the sheriff’s office website, making history as the first Black woman to serve as sheriff in Louisiana and the first woman to serve as sheriff in New Orleans.

Hutson’s announcement came as she faces growing calls from state representatives, crime victims and others to resign.

In a statement Tuesday afternoon, Hutson accepted blame for the breakout after a maintenance worker at the Orleans Justice Center, where the breakout occurred, was arrested on charges alleging he helped facilitate the escape.

Hutson also announced that four other jail staff have been suspended and are under investigation for possible involvement in the jailbreak.

“I take full responsibility for what happened. This breach happened under my leadership, and it is my responsibility to ensure it is addressed with urgency and transparency,” Hutson said in her statement on Tuesday.

“To date, we have suspended staff, made an arrest, and launched comprehensive internal and external investigations,” she added. “We are also fully cooperating with the independent investigation led by the Louisiana Attorney General, and we have provided full access to all records, surveillance footage, and facility documentation.”

The 10 inmates exited the jail through a wall behind a toilet at 1:01 a.m. on Friday, Hutson said at an earlier news conference. They then made their way off the property through a loading dock door and scaled the perimeter wall using blankets to protect themselves from the barbed wire, according to the sheriff’s office. From there, officials said they had a clear path to the railroad tracks and then the interstate.

The inmates weren’t discovered missing until 8:30 a.m. Friday, when jail officials conducted a routine headcount, sheriff’s officials said.

The U.S. Marshals, Louisiana State Police and Probation and Parole were not notified of the escape until 9:30 a.m. on Friday, the sheriff’s office said. New Orleans police officials said they were notified at 10:30 a.m.

Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams said he didn’t find out until a member of the news media called to ask him to confirm the breakout at about 10 a.m. on Friday. He said the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, which oversees the jail, failed to notify local police and the public immediately.

“The public is the sixth man on the team in a jailbreak. You want to let the public know immediately when something like this happens,” Williams said. “The public was denied the opportunity to participate in this manhunt for eight hours. Law enforcement was denied the opportunity to start looking.”

What is SALT and why does it threaten Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill?’

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The future of President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” that would fund his second-term agenda could depend on SALT.

The State and Local Tax deduction has been a wedge between Democrats and Republicans but now a division between GOP House members from high-tax districts and fiscal hardliners who look at it as subsidizing blue states.

Adding more confusion over the debate is the president himself, who has flipped since his first term in office.

What is SALT?

The SALT deduction allows taxpayers to itemize state and local taxes in their filing, including property taxes.

Residents of states like New York, New Jersey and California, along with cities like Salt Lake City, Miami and Houston, which have a larger share of wealthier taxpayers and homeowners, used the deduction the most, according to IRS data.

The Tax Foundation, a non-profit that analyses tax data, found in 2017 that about 90% of the value of the deduction went to families making more than $100,000.

Prior to 2017, taxpayers had an unlimited total SALT deduction. The average SALT deduction was around $13,000 nationwide and below $15,000 in most counties, according to the non-profit group the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.

Fissures develop after Trump puts limits on SALT

During his first term, Trump’s massive 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act made huge cuts to federal spending to pay for tax breaks for wealthier Americans. The bill capped the SALT deduction at $10,000.

Democrats and Republicans in those states that had benefitted from the higher SALT cap protested against that section of the bill, arguing that it would harm their constituents.

“It’s a geographic redistribution of wealth,” then-New York Republican congressman Lee Zeldin told CNBC in 2017. “When you are taking extra money from a state like New York or New Jersey to pay for a deeper tax cut elsewhere.”

Zeldin, who was Trump’s pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency in his second term, was among the 13 Republican House members who voted against the bill.

House Republicans, who ultimately prevailed, contended that SALT benefited the wealthiest Americans.

“This is about giving hardworking taxpayers bigger paychecks, more take-home pay,” then-Speaker Paul Ryan said after the bill passed the House.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has repeatedly slammed Trump and Republicans for capping the SALT deduction and called for it to be eliminated.

“Congress has placed a bullseye on New York State — you don’t have to be a partisan nose to smell a rat, but I tell you, this plan stinks,” he told reporters in 2017.

Trump ignored the criticism then, but his messaging changed after he was voted out of office in 2020.

Trump changes his tune, but not everyone plays along

During the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump pledged to end the cap. He didn’t mention that he championed and signed the 2017 bill that created it.

“I will turn it around, get SALT back, lower your Taxes, and so much more,” Trump posted on Truth Social in September, just before a campaign rally in Nassau County, New York, one of the counties with the most SALT deductions.

He made the same claim at the rally, but didn’t offer any details.

While New York Republicans welcomed the reversal, Democrats, including Schumer, called Trump out for his hypocrisy.

“His tax bill did it, a dagger aimed at blue states that want to spend a little more to help people with housing, and health care, and education, transportation,” Schumer said on the Senate floor the day after the rally. “All of a sudden, now that he is on Long Island, Donald Trump’s selective amnesia kicks in and he totally reverses himself on SALT.”

Trump has continued to push for SALT changes, but not everyone in his party has jumped on board.

Salt in the budget wounds

SALT has become a sticking point in Republican infighting over Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.”

Several GOP House members, including Rep. Mike Lawler of New York, vowed to vote no on the bill without a SALT cap increase.

“So, this is, as it stands, I have been very clear. This does not have my support,” he told reporters last week.

Lawler said Republican hardliners were “screwing a whole host of people who are getting hammered by property taxes.”

GOP Rep. Nick LaLota of New York declared “there is no deal without a true SALT fix.”

Exasperated House GOP fiscal hardliners pushed back against any deal to raise the SALT cap as they seek to reduce the debt.

“You need to get behind the cuts that we need to find the savings that we need to find. Stop b—-ing,” Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., said of his colleagues pushing to raise the SALT cap. “The reality is, we’re $37 trillion in debt and we have a $2 trillion deficit. This is a math problem.”

In a meeting with House Republicans on Tuesday, Trump told them “Don’t let SALT impede this bill,” claiming they could fight for raising the cap later.

An overnight tentative deal that would raise the cap to $30,000 threatened GOP leadership’s hopes to get the bill to the floor for a vote.

Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland, chairman of the conservative House Freedom Council, said the SALT deal pushes hardliners “further away from a deal.”

“This bill actually got worse overnight,” Harris told Newsmax on Wednesday. “There is no way it passes today.”

“We may need a couple of weeks to iron everything out but it’s not going anywhere today,” he said.

Hardliners were to meet with Trump on Wednesday afternoon to see if he can break the impasse.

Judge rules DHS violated court order in deporting 8 migrants to South Sudan

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — A district judge ruled on Wednesday that the government’s deportations of eight men convicted of violent crimes to South Sudan was “unquestionably violative of this Court’s order” after ruling earlier this week that the Department of Homeland Security maintain custody of the migrants.

Judge Brian Murphy, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, had issued an order on Tuesday directing the government to maintain custody of anyone covered by his preliminary injunction who is in the process of being removed to South Sudan or any other country “to ensure the practical feasibility of return if the Court finds that such removals were unlawful.”

“It was impossible for these people to have a meaningful opportunity to object to their transfer to South Sudan in that time frame,” he said, arguing that due process was not possible since the migrants received their notices of removal on the evening of May 19 and then taken out of the detention facility the next morning.

DHS confirmed the eight migrants were placed on a deportation flight from Texas headed to war-torn South Sudan on Monday, officials said ahead of the hearing, though they cautioned this would not be the migrants’ final destination.

Ahead of the hearing, DHS held a news conference in Boston on the deportations in which Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told reporters that “no country on earth wanted to accept them because their crimes are so uniquely monstrous and barbaric.”

“A local judge in Massachusetts is trying to force the United States to bring back these uniquely barbaric monsters who present a clear and present threat to the safety of the American people and American victims,” McLaughlin said. “While we are fully compliant with the law and court orders, it is absolutely absurd for a district judge to try and to dictate the foreign policy and national security of the United States of America.”

When asked where the eight men are, McLaughlin said she “can’t disclose where their current whereabouts are right now” but that they were still in DHS custody. Officials declined to identify their final destination, citing security concerns.

“I would caution you to make the assumption that their final destination is South Sudan. As far as that agreement goes, I would definitely refer you to the State Department’s more specifics,” she added.

Officials said the men’s countries of origin refused to accept them, so DHS in partnership with the State Department found a country that would accept them through a “safe third-country agreement.”

“I can say that their home countries refuse to take these individuals back,” acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons said.

“ICE detention isn’t punitive. We detain and remove after six months or 180 days. If we don’t have a country that’ll take their citizens back, we do have an option to find a safe third country,” Lyons said.

However, McLaughlin argued to reporters that the eight migrants were given due process.

“We are following due process under the U.S. Constitution. These individuals have been given and their lawyers have been given plenty of prior notice. As far as those actual agreements, we can get back to you with more information from the State Department,” she said.

Murphy said the violation will now need to be remedied.

In response, plaintiffs’ attorney Trina Realmuto argued during the court hearing that the plane should be returned to the U.S. and the men should be afforded the due process that she said “can only take place on U.S. soil.”

Drew Ensign, an attorney for the Department of Justice, asked the court to fashion as narrow a remedy as possible and suggested that an option is for the due process required by the injunction to take place without bringing the plane back to the U.S. However, Ensign could not immediately answer Murphy’s question about whether that is possible.

ICE released names and other details regarding those deported on Wednesday. Several were convicted of first-degree and second-degree murder.

Kyaw Mya, a citizen of Burma, was convicted of lascivious acts with a child-victim less than 12 years of age. Nyo Myint, a citizen of Burma, was convicted of first-degree sexual assault involving a victim mentally and physically incapable of resisting.

Another was convicted of robbery, possession of a firearm and driving under the influence.

Israel’s Netanyahu says ‘it appears’ Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar was killed

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(LONDON) — Israel has likely killed Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a press conference on Wednesday.

Sinwar is the current head of the terrorist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. He took over from his brother in October 2024.

⁠”We eliminated tens of thousands of terrorists,” Netanyahu said, adding of Hamas targets, “We eliminated the leaders of the murderers Deif, Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and it appears we also eliminated Mohammed Sinwar.”

Netanyahu spoke of the ongoing military operation in Gaza, saying the strip will be under Israel’s control at the end of the war.

“Our forces are seizing more and more territory in Gaza. At the end of the move, all areas of the Strip will be under Israeli security control,” he said.

“I am ready to end the war on clear terms that will ensure Israel’s security — all the hostages returned home, Hamas lays down its weapons, its leadership is overthrown, Gaza is completely demilitarized and the Trump plan is implemented,” Netanyahu said.

“Anyone who calls on us to stop the war before these goals are achieved is calling on us to leave Hamas in power,” he added.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Rain and flooding could dampen Memorial Day weekend in the South

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Wet weather could dampen Memorial Day for those in the South, with strong storms, flash flooding and high temperatures possible throughout the holiday weekend.

Starting on Friday, the nor’easter that reached the East Coast earlier in the week will be exiting the Northeast, with lingering showers remaining.

In the Heartland, strong storms will be possible on Friday and Saturday, specifically in Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas as well as on the Florida Peninsula.

The storm system will be on the move on Sunday and Monday, bringing widespread, heavy rain to Texas and most of the South.

Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky could see 2 to 5 inches of rain on Sunday and Monday alone, with flooding possible from Texas to Kentucky throughout the weekend.

Along with the potential for strong storms, near-record-high temperatures are possible on Friday through Sunday for Houston, the surrounding areas of South Texas, and Tampa, Florida. These areas could see highs above 90 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the holiday weekend.

Pentagon accepts luxury jet from Qatar to use as Air Force One

May 21, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The United States officially accepted a luxury jet to use as Air Force One from Qatar, the Department of Defense confirmed to ABC News on Wednesday.

“The secretary of defense has accepted a Boeing 747 from Qatar in accordance with all federal rules and regulations,” Sean Parnell, chief Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement.

“The Department of Defense will work to ensure proper security measures and functional-mission requirements are considered for an aircraft used to transport the president of the United States,” he added.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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