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The Godfather of Maasmechelen — How Italy’s ‘ndrangheta mafia went global

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

Once a clique of Calabrian mountain dwellers, the criminal organization has become one of the biggest in the world by teaming up with the competition.By GREGORIO SORGIin Maasmechelen. Belgium Photo-illustration by Guillermo Flores for POLITICOSpeaking Italian can get you a long way in this sleepy postindustrial town on Belgium’s eastern edge. The empty sidewalks of Maasmechelen are studded with shabby pizzerias, delis, coffee bars and sports shops showcasing selections of Italy merch — the legacy of a wave of Italian immigration that started in the late 1940s.Recently however the Flemish town was also the site of another, more sinister Italian import. On an early spring morning earlier this year, Belgian police carrying an international arrest warrant swooped in on a gated villa. Then came a loud knock on the door, and Lucio Aquino — known as the “Godfather of Maasmechelen” — was handcuffed and led to a waiting police car.The arrest was part of a pan-European bust, as pol...

St. John’s Prep runs away from BC High with second-half avalanche

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

DANVERS – In the second half, St. John’s Prep looked every bit the part of a defending champion.After falling behind at the break, No. 1 St. John’s Prep scored 32 consecutive points to start the second half and never looked back as it defeated Catholic Conference rival BC High, 56-34, to advance to the Division 1 state semifinals on Friday night at Cronin Memorial Stadium.St. John’s Prep (10-0) will make its fifth consecutive state semifinal appearance.“Just proud of our guys who came out the way they did in the second half,” said St. John’s Prep coach Brian St. Pierre. “We were able to run the ball like we normally do once we got going.”On the heels of a pair of touchdown receptions from Marshall Rice and a 96-yard touchdown reception by Jacob Bierenbroodspot, the visitors took a 22-18 lead at the half.St. John’s Prep, however, quickly turned the tide. On the first play of the third quarter Cam LaGrassa (17 carries, 102 ya...

Max Dresens rushes for 271 yards, Wayland edges Melrose

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

WAYLAND – With Melrose coach Tim Morris looking to join the 200-win club, Wayland did just enough to spoil the victory with a strong rushing attack.Junior captain Max Dresens rushed for 203 of his 271 yards in the second half while scoring three times on the ground as Wayland edged Melrose 35-28 at home Friday night.“I have all the respect for Tim,” said Wayland coach Scott Parseghian about defeating Morris. “We coach the Shriners game together. We have a little bit of history there and nothing but the utmost respect for coach Morris.”Morris (199-109-4) will try again for win No. 200 on Thanksgiving Day at Wakefield.Melrose (7-3) started the second half with a three-and-out on defense before taking the ball 52 yards on four plays capped by a 19-yard catch-and-run score from senior Connor Brophy to senior captain Bennett Cassavoy. The two-point conversion from Brophy to Nicholas Hitchman made it 21-14 for the Raiders.Wayland (7-3) wasted no time and used a 60-yard return from Benjami...

Clutch last-minute drive lifts Walpole over Mansfield

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

WALPOLE — Staring down a four-point deficit with under a minute remaining, Walpole quarterback Noah Mackenzie was ready to do everything it took to secure a victory.He orchestrated a 40-second masterpiece, taking the Timberwolves all the way down the gridiron and capping it off with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jamal Abdal-Khallaq that secured a 39-31 victory over No. 4 Mansfield for the No. 5 Timberwolves.“I just went through the progressions,” Mackenzie said. “Everything was there that we wanted. That last play, the safety was wide, (Abdal-Khallaq) was called and I hit him. It worked like that.”This play brought the score to 33-31 and a defensive touchdown as time expired gave Walpole the victory and advanced the team to the Division 3 semifinals. Head coach Chris Sullivan said that even when circumstances looked bleak, his team’s confidence never wavered.“We never doubted ourselves,” Sullivan said. “We had 54 seconds and I thought to myself that’s too much time. We knew we could ...

Behind Jaylen Brown and strong bench play, Celtics respond with win over Nets

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

As they faced their first test of adversity, Kristaps Porzingis was curious to see how the Celtics responded. They had dropped two winnable games in a row after looking like world beaters in the first five games.After Wednesday’s loss to the 76ers, Porzingis said he even liked adversity. As these new-look Celtics look to develop chemistry with each other, their response was an important building block, even if it’s still early November.It was what they were looking for. The Nets, even without leading scorer Cam Thomas, gave the Celtics all they could handle again, just six days after they did so in Brooklyn. But the Celtics, once again, had every response. Jaylen Brown scored 28 points on five 3-pointers in a big bounce-back effort, Jayson Tatum added 23, Jrue Holiday nearly had a triple-double with 13 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists, and the bench stepped up with big contributions as the Celtics pulled away from the feisty Nets for a 121-107 victory at TD Garden.The Celtics wo...

Registered sex offender, ex-LAPD officer arrested in human smuggling case

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

CAMPO, Calif. -- A registered sex offender, who was a former officer with the Los Angeles Police Department officer, has been arrested on suspicion of human smuggling and possession of a "ghost gun" Monday near the U.S.-Mexico border, authorities said.Around 9:55 p.m., San Diego Sector Border Patrol agents received a report about human smuggling involving an older model SUV occurring in Campo near the border, Eric Lavergne with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a news release Friday.Authorities were able to pull over a vehicle that matched the report. When the agent approached the vehicle, the driver, who identified himself as a lieutenant with LAPD, handed the agent a badge that looked similar to one from the department, border officials said.An immigration inspection was conducted after the border agent noticed four people, three women and one man, in the back seat of the SUV, per CBP. Watch: Police chase ends in Carlsbad All four individuals admitted to recently c...

SDHS 'temporarily pausing' bringing in dogs due to respiratory disease

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego Humane Society (SDHS) is temporarily pausing taking in owner-surrendered dogs at all of its campuses until Dec. 1 due to a severe respiratory disease, animal officials said."Our shelter is currently over capacity and we are experiencing incidents of a severe and highly contagious respiratory disease known as Streptococcus zooepidemicus ('Strep zoo')," SDHS said on its website. "In accordance with appropriate disease management practices, we are quarantining and proactively treating all dogs who have been exposed to the virus."Streptococcus zooepidemicus is a highly contagious and often fatal disease that has caused several outbreaks of haemorrhagic pneumonia in dogs in recent years, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information. Symptoms include a moist cough, nasal discharge and raised body temperature that could lead to depression, anorexia and tachypnoea. San Diego votes to advance rolling back scooter laws after Bird pulls from city ...

Government ministers in Pacific nation of Vanuatu call for parliament’s dissolution, media says

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Government ministers in the Pacific nation of Vanuatu are asking the president to dissolve parliament, adding to political disarray after lawmakers introduced a no-confidence against the prime minister, local media said Saturday. National elections would be held if President Nikenike Vurobaravu, the largely ceremonial head of state, dissolved the parliament and the government headed by Prime Minister Charlot Salwai. Vanuatu, which gained independence in 1980, has had three prime ministers since August and Salwai would be removed if legislators adopted the no-confidence motion filed earlier in the week. The stability of the government is increasingly important as China and the United States jockey for influence in the region. Salwai met with Vurobaravu on Friday after the Council of Ministers, which is appointed by the prime minister, recommended parliament’s dissolution, the Vanuatu Daily Post reported Saturday. Officials said the president was considering the req...

Man charged in connection with shooting outside strip club in South Loop

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

CHICAGO — A Chicago man has been charged in connection with a shooting that unfolded outside of a strip club in the city’s South Loop on Thursday morning.According to Chicago police, 27-year-old Guadalupe Martinez Jr. has been charged with one felony count of aggravated battery and discharge of a firearm, one felony count of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, one felony count of aggravated assault and discharge of a firearm and one misdemeanor count of failing to surrender a FOID card. 2 dead, 1 injured after shots fired into car on South Side Police say the shooting happened around 4:12 a.m. on Thursday outside Deja Vu Showgirls in the 700 block of South Clinton.Officers say a 30-year-old man was escorting someone out of the business when a car approached and a person inside the vehicle fired shots, striking the 30-year-old man in the right knee.The victim was later transported to the hospital in good condition.Officers say Martinez was located by police just over an hour after...

Austin affordable housing shortage hits communities of color hardest, study finds

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:12:55 GMT

Austin (KXAN) — The Austin Board of Realtors further analyzed housing data it reported this summer and found that some city council districts and racial/ethnic groups were affected more heavily by the shortage of affordable housing.According to ABoR, in August of 2023 more than half of four-person households earning up to 80% of Austin's median income, around $93,450, faced a severe shortage of homes. That number estimated at 211,023.Further analysis found the impact of the shortage was not the same across all 10 Austin City Council districts or racial and ethnic groups."The magnitude of the shortage is the highest among black or African American households. And then the lowest are the white, non-Hispanic or Latino households and Asian households," Clare Losey, ABoR housing economist said. Report: Austin losing homebuyers to other cities for 1st time on record These latest findings show that District 4 in North Austin has the greatest proportional need for new housing in order to ...