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Suspect in killing of Cash App founder Bob Lee to be arraigned

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(SAN FRANCISCO) — The suspect in the killing of 43-year-old Cash App founder Bob Lee is set to be arraigned in a San Francisco courtroom on Tuesday.

The suspect, Nima Momeni, is the owner of an Emeryville, California-based company called Expand IT. He was arrested earlier this month and charged with murder.

Momeni allegedly drove Lee to a dark, secluded area and stabbed him three times, according to a motion filed by prosecutors earlier this month.

Lee, an executive at cryptocurrency firm MobileCoin, was killed in the early morning hours on April 4 in the San Francisco neighborhood of Rincon Hill, the San Francisco Police Department said.

The doctor who conducted the autopsy found that Lee had been stabbed three times, including one strike that penetrated his heart, the motion said.

Police later found a roughly 4-inch blade at the scene that appeared to have blood on it, the document said.

During the previous afternoon, Lee spent time with Momeni’s sister and a witness, who identified him or herself as a close friend of Lee, prosecutors said.

Later in the day, at Lee’s hotel room, he had a conversation with Momeni in which he asked Lee about whether his sister was “doing … anything inappropriate,” the witness told the police, according to the document.

Lee reassured Momeni that nothing inappropriate had taken place, the witness said to police.

Early the following morning, at about 2 a.m., camera footage showed Lee and Momeni leaving Lee’s hotel and getting into Momeni’s car, a BMW Z4, prosecutors said.

Video shows the BMW drive to a secluded and dark area where the two men got out of the car. Momeni “moved toward” Lee and the BMW drove away from the scene at high speed, according to the court document.

In a separate incident, Momeni was accused of assaulting a woman in August, according to an Emeryville Police Department report obtained by ABC News.

On Aug. 1, officers responded to a caller who said she was inside a unit with Momeni when he grabbed her arm, pulled it and pushed her, the report said.

Momeni was cited in that case.

“Mr. Momeni was taken into custody without incident in Emeryville and transported to San Francisco County jail and booked on a charge of murder,” San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said earlier this month.

“Our investigators have been working tirelessly to make this arrest,” Scott added.

London Breed, the mayor of San Francisco, said in a statement to ABC News earlier this month that Lee’s death marks a “horrible tragedy.”

“Bob’s dream was to make technology free and available,” Timothy Oliver Lee, Bob Lee’s brother, said in a statement after the incident.

“He positively affected millions of people throughout his life. He had an overarching need to make technology accessible, and to help out everyone.”

Russia-Ukraine live updates: Russia pushes passports on occupied Ukraine

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — More than a year after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, the countries are fighting for control of areas in eastern and southern Ukraine.

Ukrainian troops have liberated nearly 30,000 square miles of their territory from Russian forces since the invasion began on Feb. 24, 2022, but Putin appeared to be preparing for a long and bloody war.

Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:

Apr 25, 1:03 PM EDT
At least 2 dead, 10 injured in strike that hit Ukrainian museum

At least two people were killed and 10 injured after a Russian missile hit a Ukrainian museum Tuesday, officials said.

The local history museum is located in the city center of Kupiansk, in the Kharkiv region.

“The terrorist country is doing everything to destroy us completely. Our history, our culture, our people,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media while sharing a video that showed the damaged building. “Killing Ukrainians with absolutely barbaric methods.”

Apr 24, 5:48 AM EDT
Russian passports pushed on occupied Ukraine

Russian officials have warned Ukrainians in occupied Kherson that they may be “deported” if they don’t accept Russian passports, the U.K. Ministry of Defence said Monday.

“Russia is using passports as a tool in the ‘Russification’ of the occupied areas, as it did in Donetsk and Luhansk before the February 2022 invasion,” the ministry on Twitter.

Residents of Kherson have been warned of penalties for those who don’t accept Russian passports by June 1. Some may be removed from the territory or may have their property seized, according to the U.K.

Apr 23, 11:42 PM EDT
Russia says US has denied journalist visas, vows it ‘will not forgive’

Russia said Sunday that the U.S. has denied visas to Russian journalists who wanted to cover Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s trip to New York.

Lavrov promised that the decision will not be forgotten by their side.

“The country that calls itself the strongest, smartest, most free, fairest has chickened out, has done a silly thing and shown what its sworn assurances on protecting freedom of speech, access to information and so on are worth,” he told reporters at the airport before his flight to New York.

“Most importantly, you can be sure: we will not forget, we will not forgive this,” the minister told the pool of journalists who have not been granted U.S. visas.

The journalists had planned to cover Lavrov’s appearance at the United Nations to mark Russia’s chairmanship of the Security Council.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov called the U.S.’s decision “outrageous” on Sunday, Interfax, a Russian news agency, reported.

-ABC News’ Anastasia Bagaeva, Edward Szekeres, Natalia Shumskaia

Apr 21, 3:35 PM EDT
Over 16,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been trained in the EU so far

Over 16,000 Ukrainian soldiers trained in the European Union, Josep Borrell, an EU representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said Friday.

The EU has delivered over $600 million of ammunition and missiles to Ukraine, according to Borrell.

-ABC News’ Oleksiy Pshemyskiy

Apr 20, 7:08 PM EDT
Russian warplane accidentally fires weapon into Russian city of Belgorod: Defense ministry

The Russian Defense Ministry reported that ammunition from a Russian Su-34 military aircraft fell in Belgorod, a city in the southern region of Russia.

“On the evening of April 20, during the flight of the Su-34 aircraft over the city of Belgorod, an abnormal descent of an aviation munition occurred,” the agency said.

The ministry claimed buildings were damaged but there were no immediate reports of victims. An investigation is underway, according to the agency.

-ABC News’ Will Gretsky

Apr 20, 5:18 PM EDT
Ukraine’s ‘rightful place’ is in NATO: Secretary-General

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg held a press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, to highlight the more than €150 billion of support to Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion.

“Allies are now delivering more jets, tanks, and armored vehicles, and NATO’s Ukraine fund is providing urgent support,” he said in a statement. “All of this is making a real difference on the battlefield today.”

While in Ukraine, the secretary-general visited Bucha and paid his respects to the victims of Russian atrocities.

He also laid a wreath at the Wall of Remembrance of the Fallen for Ukraine, paying tribute to all those who have lost lives or suffered wounds in defense of their homeland.

“Ukraine’s rightful place is in the Euro-Atlantic family. Ukraine’s rightful place is in NATO. And over time, our support will help to make this possible,” Stoltenberg said.

-ABC News’ Will Gretsky

Apr 20, 4:13 PM EDT
Russian athletes will not be accepted in 2024 Olympics if war goes on: Paris mayor

Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, which is hosting the 2024 summer Olympics, told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that Russian athletes “cannot be accepted in Paris,” if the war with Ukraine is still ongoing when the games begin.

“Paris is the capital of human rights,” Hidalgo said in a statement. “We are trying to convince athletes, international federations and countries. We stand with you.”

Hidalgo and Vasco Cordeiro, the president of the European Committee of the Regions, met with Zelenskyy as part of the International Summit of Cities and Regions Thursday.

Zelenskyy thanked Hidalgo for her support and presented her with Ukraine’s “Rescuer City” honorary award.

-ABC News’ Max Uzol and Ellie Kaufman contributed to this report.

Motionless in White announces fall headlining tour

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Motionless in White has announced a fall U.S. headlining tour in support of the band’s latest album, Scoring the End of the World.

The outing kicks off September 16 with a hometown show in Scranton, Pennsylvania, dubbed the Scranton Apocalypse Fest, and will wrap up October 29 in Boston.

Tickets go on sale Friday, April 28, at 10 a.m. local time. For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit MotionlessinWhite.net.

Prior to the fall dates, Motionless in White will team up with In This Moment for a co-headlining tour beginning in July.

Scoring the End of the World, the sixth Motionless in White album, dropped last June. It includes the singles “Masterpiece” and “Werewolf.”

LL Cool J announces first headlining tour in 30 years

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

It’s been three decades, but LL Cool J is finally heading out on the road. Rock The Bells and Live Nation Urban announced his headlining The Frequencies of Real Creative Energy Live tour, featuring a lineup of hip-hop stars DJ Jazzy Jeff, DJ Z-Trip and The Roots, who will back a nonstop musical mash-up of various performances. Salt-N-Pepa, Rakim, Common, Queen Latifah, Method Man & Redman, Big Boi, MC Lyte, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, De La Soul, Goodie Mob, Ice-T, Juvenile, Doug E. Fresh, Slick Rick, Jadakiss, Rick Ross and more will make appearances on select dates.

The F.O.R.C.E. Live kicks off in Boston’s TD Garden on June 25, making stops in Brooklyn, Atlanta, Chicago, New Orleans and more. It comes to an end on September 3 in LA’s Kia Forum. Tickets go on sale April 28 at 10 a.m. local time, with presales taking place April 25 through April 27.

“I’m excited to be on my first Arena tour in 30 years,” LL says in a statement. “It’s proof that our culture is more viable than ever. Get ready for some non stop beats and rhymes. See you this summer!”

Nonprofit hits Coachella with lifesaving fentanyl test strips, Narcan

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(INDIO, Calif.) — At Coachella, a group of independent volunteers handed out fentanyl test strips and carried the overdose treatment Narcan in an effort to curb overdoses related to the deadly synthetic opioid that is 50 times more powerful than heroin.

The nonprofit Team Awareness Combatting Overdose, or TACO, was behind the giveaway at the festival, which included performances by Bad Bunny, Blondie, Gorillaz and blink-182, among other acts.

“I will usually just ask them like, ‘Hey, are you interested in potentially having a test strip for testing for fentanyl?’ And people usually know what fentanyl is,” said Hanna Raskin, one of dozens of TACO volunteers.

TACO was founded by several students at the University of Southern California in the wake of several overdose deaths that occurred there in 2019.

Federal data from the National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics shows that over half of people over the age of 12 have used illicit drugs at least once. TACO and similar groups advocate for harm reduction, an approach that seeks to lower the risks associated with drug use rather than advocating for total abstinence.

Ahead of the annual music festival, Raskin and TACO founder Madeline Hilliard hosted a virtual training session for their ambassadors, teaching them how to detect if common drugs are laced with fentanyl using the test strips.

“Couple grains of salt or sand-worth of fentanyl — it’s a white powder, it’s totally odorless, flavorless, so you can imagine how easily that could get mixed into something like a pill or MDMA or a bag of cocaine that’s also a white powder,” Hilliard said. MDMA is commonly known as ecstasy or molly.

And when people take contaminated drugs, the consequences are often devastating.

In 2022, synthetic opioids like fentanyl were the leading cause for the record number of drug poisonings and overdose deaths in the U.S, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Drug Enforcement Administration issued a public safety alert after lab testing found that 6 out of 10 fentanyl-laced pills contain a potential lethal dose. In 2021, the United States suffered more deaths related to fentanyl than gun- and auto-related deaths combined, according to the CDC. In the 12-month period ending in October 2021, the agency reported that more than 105,000 Americans died of drug overdoses; 66% of those deaths were related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl.

Riverside County, where Coachella took place over two weekends, saw the growing crisis kill nearly 500 residents last year, when a staggering 6.2 million fentanyl pills were seized there by the sheriff’s narcotics division, according to a press release from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.

“[Test strips are] not 100% effective, but they are highly effective from what we’ve seen. When people use fentanyl test strips immediately, they’re now aware that fentanyl is a risk,” Hilliard said at the training.

Hilliard and Raskin also taught volunteers how to spot the telltale signs of an opioid overdose, such as slow breathing, unconsciousness and pinpoint pupils that don’t respond to light.

The nonprofit’s efforts have already saved lives like that of Charlie, a college student who survived an overdose after taking a drug he didn’t know contained fentanyl at a party last year. [Charlie is a pseudonym. The student asked not to be identified with his real name because of privacy concerns.]

“Everyone thinks that, ‘Oh it’s not going to happen to me. How could it be me?’ But it’s when you start becoming careless like that, that it can be you,” Charlie said.

Charlie says he was near death when a quick-thinking friend who had been trained by TACO swiftly administered Narcan.

“He’s alive today because we were able to educate his friends around him, so that when he did overdose, they were prepared to respond,” Hilliard said.

Hilliard said that a TACO volunteer administered Narcan to an unresponsive Coachella attendee exhibiting signs of an overdose who then regained consciousness after the treatment was used.

Raskin believes that everyone who chooses to use recreational drugs should be testing them for fentanyl.

“I want people to know that using drugs does not determine whether or not someone deserves to wake up the next morning. I also think it’s important to understand that if you are using drugs and you want to prevent experiencing an overdose, it’s essential that you test your drugs and also that you carry Narcan,” Raskin said.

Metallica premieres all ‘72 Seasons’ videos in American Sign Language

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Metallica has shared American Sign Language versions of each video released for the band’s new 72 Seasons album.

The metal legends previously announced the project earlier this month with the ASL interpretation of the 72 Seasons title track. You can watch the ASL videos for the other 11 72 Seasons songs now via Metallica’s YouTube channel.

According to a press release, Metallica is “not only [the] first rock band to release an entire album in ASL, but the first band to release official videos side by side with an ASL interpreter.” To make that happen, they partnered with Amber Galloway of AG Productions, which provides signing at festivals, including Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits, as well as The Deaf Professional Arts Network, or DPAN.

“Metallica has shown the world what access and inclusiveness can look like,” Galloway says. “Often times hearing individuals think that captioning a music video is sufficient. Sadly text does not show intonations, it doesn’t show the emotional connection that ASL does. These videos also capture the voices of the instruments.”

“As a deaf musician, who has been a huge fan of Metallica my entire life, it is an absolute honor to work with the band and Amber G Productions to make an entire album of their songs accessible in American Sign Language,” adds DPAN co-founder Sean Forbes. “It is our hope that more bands, artists, performers, will follow the example set by Metallica and make their music accessible in American Sign Language. There is an entire community of deaf music fans that are ready to experience more music and Metallica doing this speaks volumes to the deaf and signing communities.”

Frankfurt court rules in favor of Roger Waters in canceled concert battle

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Looks like Roger Waters’ concert in Frankfurt will go on as planned.

As previously reported, the local city council canceled his May show in the city due to the Pink Floyd member’s political beliefs, accusing him of being “one of the world’s most well-known antisemites.” Waters threatened to sue, and he has come out victorious.

According to German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, a Frankfurt administrative court has ruled that Waters’ free speech was violated when the show was canceled and that the concert’s organizer, Messe Frankfurt, the state and the city had an obligation to stick to their contract and “make it possible for Waters to stage the concert.”

While the court acknowledged that Waters’ show features symbolism associated with National Socialism, it doesn’t believe he is promoting any Nazi propaganda. It did note that it was in “especially poor taste” for the concert to happen at Frankfurt Festhalle, a location where over 3,000 Jews were detained and abused in November 1938 before being sent to concentration camps, but they ruled the show would “not be injurious to the human dignity of those people.”

The Frankfurt stop on Waters’ This Is Not A Drill tour is scheduled to take place May 28. The tour hits Zurich, Switzerland, on April 25. A complete list of dates can be found at rogerwaters.com.

On This Day, April 25, 1987: U2’s ‘The Joshua Tree’ hits number one

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

On This Day, April 25, 1987…

Three weeks after its release, U2’s The Joshua Tree hit number one on the Billboard 200 album chart.

The album, the band’s fifth studio release, was U2’s first U.S. chart-topper, and it remained at number one for nine weeks.

The record included future U2 classics “With or Without You” and “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” which remain U2’s only number-one singles in the U.S., as well as “Where the Streets Have No Name.”

The Irish rockers went on to have seven more number one albums: 1988’s Rattle and Hum, 1991’s Achtung Baby, 1993’s Zooropa, 1997’s Pop, 2004’s How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, 2009’s No Line on the Horizon, and 2017’s Songs of Experience.

Actor, singer, activist Harry Belafonte passes away at 96

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

Harry Belafonte, a groundbreaking actor and trusted confidante to fellow civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr., died Tuesday morning at age 96.

He passed away of congestive heart failure at his New York home with his wife, Pamela, by his side.

Born in Harlem, Belafonte started out as an actor before switching to music. His breakthrough album, 1956’s Calypso, featured his iconic songs “Jamaica Farewell” and “Day-O (Banana Boat Song).” It was also the first LP record to sell over 1 million copies.

In addition to his own music career, Belafonte was instrumental in bringing African stars like Hugh Masekela and Miriam Makeba to a global audience.

Belafonte was also a prime mover behind the #1 all-star charity single “We Are the World,” which raised millions of dollars for African famine relief. In 2022, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the Early Influence Award.

Belafonte’s film career included starring roles in Carmen Jones, Uptown Saturday Night and Island in the Sun. He also produced and scored the iconic hip-hop film Beat Street.

He eventually became an EGOT winner, nabbing an Emmy, three Grammys, an Oscar and a Tony over the course of his career.

A close friend and supporter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Belafonte was deeply involved in the Civil Rights Movement, helping to organizing the 1963 March on Washington and funding the Freedom Rides. King called Belafonte’s commitment to the cause “a powerful tactical weapon” in the fight for civil rights.

Belafonte devoted much of his life to philanthropy and humanitarian causes, serving as a Peace Corps advisor and a UNICEF goodwill ambassador, advocating for the end of apartheid in South Africa and founding The Gathering for Justice to end racial inequality in the justice system.

His many honors included the National Medal of Arts, the Kennedy Center Honors, the NAACP Spingarn Medal and the Nelson Mandela Courage Award.

Belafonte leaves behind four children — son David and daughters Shari, Adrienne and Gina; two stepchildren — Sarah and Lindsey; and eight grandchildren.

Trump not in attendance as jury selection begins in E. Jean Carroll battery, defamation case

April 25, 2023 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Former Elle columnist E. Jean Carroll hugged her attorneys on her way into Manhattan federal court Tuesday at the start of her defamation and battery case against former President Donald Trump.

Carroll, who brought the lawsuit in November, alleges that Trump defamed her in a 2022 Truth Social post by calling her allegations “a Hoax and a lie” and saying “This woman is not my type!” when he denied her claim that Trump raped her in a Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in the 1990s.

She added a charge of battery under a recently adopted New York law that allows adult survivors of sexual abuse to sue their alleged attacker regardless of the statute of limitations.

Trump has repeatedly denied Carroll’s allegations.

Two women are expected to testify during the trial that Carroll told them about the alleged attack shortly after it occurred. Two other women are expected to testify that Trump sexually assaulted them, claims that he denies, as Carroll’s attorneys try to show a pattern of conduct.

The judge has also agreed to allow excerpts of the so-called Access Hollywood tape on which Trump is overheard bragging to then-host Billy Bush about groping women.

The judge told prospective jurors Tuesday that he was looking to select jurors who are “willing and able to decide this case in a manner that is fair and impartial,” no matter what they may know about those involved.

“The name of the game here is utter fairness and impartiality,” Kaplan said. “The job of the jury will be to decide what did or didn’t happen at the department store, whether Ms. Carroll was or wasn’t raped” — and whether she should be compensated and whether defamation occurred, the judge said.

The judge began questioning prospective jurors with this question: “Is there anything about the nature of this case or the parties that would make it difficult for you to be entirely fair to both parties and to come to a just or impartial verdict?”

The former president was not present Tuesday as preparations as jury selection got underway.

Trump’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, told the judge Thursday that Trump will decide whether or not to attend as the trial proceeds.

The civil trial is being heard a block from the criminal courthouse where Trump pleaded not guilty earlier this month to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with an alleged hush money payment to an adult film actress.

Kaplan last week denied Trump’s attempt to delay the start of this week’s trial for a month after Trump’s attorneys sought a four-week delay on the grounds that a “cooling off” period was necessary following intense media coverage of Trump’s criminal indictment.

“There is no justification for an adjournment,” Kaplan ruled. “This case is entirely unrelated to the state prosecution.”

The lawsuit is Carroll’s second against Trump and the trial is expected to last five days or so.

Carroll previously sued Trump in 2019 after the then-president denied her rape claim by telling The Hill that Carroll was “totally lying,” saying, “I’ll say it with great respect: No. 1, she’s not my type. No. 2, it never happened. It never happened, OK?” That defamation suit has been caught in a procedural back-and-forth over the question of whether Trump, as president, was acting in his official capacity as an employee of the federal government when he made those remarks.

If Trump is determined to have been acting as a government employee, the U.S. government would substitute as the defendant in that suit — which means that case would go away, since the government cannot be sued for defamation.

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