No amusing dumb crook story today. Instead, a horrific murder.
DARLINGTON Ā A Lafayette County circuit judge set bail at $1.4 million for an Argyle father accused of setting a fire that killed his three sons and critically injured his wife, and at $1.2 million for his brother who allegedly helped him.
The boys' father, Armin G. Wand III, 32, and uncle, Jeremy L. Wand, 18, are each charged with three counts of first-degree intentional homicide and arson. Armin Wand also is charged with three counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide, and Jeremy Wand is charged with two counts of attempted homicide.
The brothers were led into the courtroom prior to Wednesday's 25-minute initial hearing amid tight security. Armed law enforcement officers stood between the courtroom general public seating area and the defendants, who were shackled, handcuffed and wearing bullet-proof vests over their jail-issued orange jump suits.
A criminal complaint alleges the two brothers admitted to setting fire to Armin Wand's house early Friday to collect life insurance on his wife, Sharon Wand, 27, who was severely injured in the blaze, and their children, Allen, 7, Jeffrey, 5, and Joseph, 3, who died in the fire. A daughter, Jessica, 2, survived with non-life-threatening injuries. And according to yesterday's State Journal, he would have thrown her back into the blaze had his next-door neighbor not turned up.
Assistant State Public Defender Guy Taylor, who is representing Armin Wand, said that despite what appeared to be a confession in the criminal complaint, it was "unlikely" that his client would plead guilty. When asked if he believed any coercion was used to gain those confessions, Taylor said, "It's my job to investigate that."
Taylor also said he would talk with attorney Frank Medina, who is representing Jeremy Wand, about the possibility of seeking a change of venue. "We'll research it carefully, but it would seem that the publicity has been rather widespread," Taylor said.
Bail was set by Lafayette Circuit Court Judge William D. Johnston at the amount requested by Roy Korte of the state Attorney General's office. It also included an order that neither defendant could contact Sharon Wand nor Jessica Wand.
Korte said bail set at $200,000 per each count charged against the defendants was necessary because of the seriousness of the crimes.
The date for the preliminary hearing was set for Nov. 13.
The Wand brothers did not speak publicly at the hearing. The older Wand looked gaunt and his salt-and-pepper beard and thick eyeglasses made him easily distinguishable from his brother. Armin Wand spent most of the time staring at the floor prior to and during the hearing.
Jeremy Wand, a senior at Argyle High School, also kept his head down but peered up from time to time to look at the judge or his brother sitting at another table.
As of Wednesday, Taylor said the defendants and their attorneys are working together and that a motion must be filed if they wish to act separately.
"That's an issue that has yet to be determined," Taylor said.
Taylor, who was appointed Armin Wand's attorney on Tuesday, asked the judge for a lower bail because he said his client was indigent. He also told the judge he was concerned for the preservation of evidence but added later, "There's no specific indication that that wouldn't be the case here."
After the hearing Lessa Bobak, Sharon Wand's aunt, tearfully read a statement asking that the family be allowed to grieve in private. She said they are shocked and saddened by the events that led to the deaths of three children and Sharon Wand's unborn child. She was 17 weeks pregnant but lost the baby after sustaining injuries in the fire, according to members of the Wand family.
Bobak said Jessica is "being well cared for and is healthy and stable," but did not say who is caring for the child.
[Yemen Post] Yemen's Justice Minister Murshid Al-Arashani has said on Tuesday that Yemen prepares to pursue funds that were looted by the former president President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... and his aides.
In a forum held in Qatar on recovering frozen assets of fallen Arab autocrats, Al-Arashani stressed that those officials who looted funds of the Yemeni people will be hunted through mechanisms of civil laws.
Thousands of Yemenis staged demonstrations this week, demanding to prosecute Saleh's and his aides, and revoking the immunity given to him.
Yemeni politicians continuously demand the former president Ali Abdullah Saleh to leave Yemen and give up politics, asserting that he operates to provoke internal divisions and disputes.They caution that that the GCC-mediated power transfer deal could be broken down, if Saleh continued in playing political roles.They say that an immunity from prosecution under the GCC-mediated power transfer deal, emphasizing that he exploits the immunity to stir up troubles.Meanwhile, ...back at the pie fight, Bella opened her mouth at precisely the wrong moment... leaders of the General People Congress led by Saleh say that Saleh will not leave Yemen, emphasizing that his stay is a necessity for Yemen.
Meanwhile, ...back at the pie fight, Bella opened her mouth at precisely the wrong moment... the UN Envoy to Yemen Jamal Benomar said that the UN did not support the immunity given to Saleh, stressing that the international law does not allow to give immunity.
In an interview with Sky News on Tuesday, aid that success of the national dialogue conference to be held in the up-coming November will be a historical event for the power transfer in Yemen.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 00:00 ||
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Looks like Al Hilli was trying to sell something to some serious bad boys.
IT LOOKS like a contract killing. The Skorpion machine pistol gives the game away Ā it is the signature weapon of the disparate and aggressive Balkan nationalist/criminal fraternity sometimes referred to as the Serbian Mafia, but which includes nationals of all the former states of Yugoslavia.
Skorpions, originally designed and manufactured by the Czechs in the 1960s, were made later under licence in Yugoslavia. You can tell the Yugoslav version from its cheap plastic hand-grips. Issued to some Yugoslav soldiers, particularly special forces, it later became the favoured weapon of Serbian ethnic cleansers and thugs including the notorious Arkan.
Most versions can be set to fire in three different modes by clicking a switch at the side Ā single rounds, short bursts and fully automatic. The problem with weapons of this type is that although they have a very high rate of fire (850 rounds a minute) their magazine capacity is limited to 20 rounds.
The French police say that they have recovered 25 spent cases from the scene Ā all from the same weapon, suggesting that the perpetrator had to change magazines during his killing spree.
It's a very light weapon Ā about 3lb (1.36 kg) depending on the version Ā but it fires a heavy bullet (7.65 mm) with considerable stopping power Ā the same calibre as James Bond's Walther PPK.
As a result it can be difficult to control and needs to be held firmly in both hands to have any accuracy. It's a bit like holding a powerful electric hand-drill with a mind of its own. Its very short barrel length and tendency to jerk upwards during firing mean that except in expert hands it is not particularly accurate beyond 20ft.
Whoever was firing it Ā the French authorities are suggesting only one weapon was used - knew what he was doing. And he made sure that the victims were finished off with two shots to the head Ā a "double tap" in military jargon. It is usually a sign not just of ruthlessness but also of military training. According to some accounts, the same technique was used by US Navy Seals to kill Bin Laden in May 2011.
In order to mount such an ambush the murderer needed to be fairly sure that the al-Hilli family were going to be at the secluded car park in the woods outside Chevaline within a certain time window. Either he knew something about their holiday routine or lured them there for a meeting. The latter seems more likely. Witnesses at one of the caravan sites have said that Saad al-Hilli left the site on numerous occasions Ā on his own.
#4
The 7.65mm cartridge is known here as .32 ACP. It is somewhat weaker than .380 ACP, and the bullet usually fired is either 60 or 72 grains, whereas .380 is 90-102 grains. Most US of A defensive pistol instructors do not consider the .32 ACP to be an adequate defensive cartridge. It's better than no bullet at all, but definitely not a one-shot stopper.
First off this a very expensive impractical pistol for range fun only. You cant do anything with it but have fun so its the only downside also .32 ammo is insane money to spend on a range gun too. Have to order it on special no walmart for you. Walmart only carries Remington .32 for $22 for 50rds. The gun breaks down like a dream. Only 1 piece bolt carrier. The gun has practically no recoil. A 3pd gun shooting that tiny .32 is like a lightweight .22 pistol. Reduce it a lot more if you hold the mag like a grip. I was able to hit all my bottles at 25 yards and hit them as well 50 yards out. The sights are rated for 75 and 150. And they were not lying. Best pistol I own, favorite weapon period.
#8
The .32 ACP round is an excellent round for up close and personal wet work. Sub-sonic and in a properly suppressed weapon virtually silent. All you hear basically is the action working. Headshots work best. Depending on proximity to the target, over penetration can be an issue.
Posted by: Secret Asian Man ||
09/13/2012 14:40 Comments ||
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A lot of posturing on both sides. Hope this story doesn't end up on the front page. Maybe if we had a president who wasn't preoccupied with his golf game and throwing the Juice under the bus he could get the two sides to negotiate.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
09/13/2012 10:03 ||
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[Dawn] Two persons, including an assistant director of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), were tossed in the slammer You have the right to remain silent... for allegedly raping a girl, police said on Tuesday.
Sources said Interior Minister Rehman Malik Pak politician, Interior Minister under the Gilani government. Malik is a former Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) intelligence officer who rose to head the FIA during Benazir Bhutto's second tenure. Malik was tossed from his FIA job in 1998 after documenting the breath-taking corruption of the Sharif family. By unhappy coincidence Nawaz Sharif became PM at just that moment and Malik moved to London one step ahead of the button men. He had to give up the interior ministry job because he held dual Brit citizenship. ordered suspension of the accused FIA official. He also ordered an inquiry into the incident.
The Secretariat police said after allegedly raping the girl, the two men handed her Rs5,000 and threatened her with dire consequences in case she told anyone. The FIA official, B.U., is currently posted in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It may be the largest city in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... while his accomplice, M.R., is the owner of a ghee mill, the police said.
The Secretariat police said senior officers of Punjab police and FIA unsuccessfully tried to influence them to release the accused.
The 21-year-old victim -- U.A. -- a resident of Lahore, told the police that she was offered a job in Islamabad by a woman -- B.Z. -- whose niece received home tuition from her and her elder sister.
The victim said after doing her BCom, she started providing home tuition to earn livelihood. She said 10 days back she was hired to tuition B.Z.'s niece who and her sister Z.P. offered her the job in Islamabad.
After consulting her family, she came to B.Z.'s house at Johar Town in Lahore along with her uncle. Later, B.Z.'s sister Z.P. arranged a metro-cab in which she along with B.Z. reached the five-star hotel in Islamabad at 11:45pm on September 10. There, a man -- F.A. -- met them and took them to a room on the fourth floor which had an inside door opening to another room. Two more persons, M.R. and B.U., were already sitting in the second room, she added.
The victim's objection to the presence of the two persons and the door linking the two rooms was ignored. After taking meal, B.Z., M.R. and F.A. left the room while the FIA official subjected her to rape. Some time later, M.R. also returned and raped her.
The accused then gave the girl cash and asked her to leave the hotel. However, denial ain't just a river in Egypt... she narrated the incident to her family and approached the police who started the paperwork but haven't done much else against the four persons and raided the hotel and tossed in the slammer You have the right to remain silent... them.
Investigating officer ASI Sarfaraz Ahmed, when contacted, confirmed that the FIA official and the owner of a ghee mill along with two other persons had been tossed in the slammer You have the right to remain silent... . He said the accused would be produced in the court for seeking their remand on Wednesday.
He said the victim was taken to hospital where samples were collected from her body for DNA test.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] A fresh polio ...Poliomyelitis is a disease caused by infection with the poliovirus. Between 1840 and the 1950s, polio was a worldwide epidemic. Since the development of polio vaccines the disease has been largely wiped out in the civilized world. However, since the vaccine is known to make Moslem pee-pees shrink and renders females sterile, bookish, and unsubmissive it is not widely used by the turban and automatic weapons set... case has generated a controversy about the area it belongs to as the sufferer of the crippling disease basically hails from Bajaur Agency, aka Turban Central ...Smallest of the agencies in FATA. The Agency administration is located in Khar. Bajaur is inhabited almost exclusively by Tarkani Pashtuns, which are divided into multiple bickering subtribes. Its 52 km border border with Afghanistan's Kunar Province makes it of strategic importance to Pakistain's strategic depth... but lives in Rawalpindi.
According to National Institute of Health in Islamabad, Sanaullah, 3, on Tuesday tested positive for polio. He has received not a single dose of oral polio vaccine since birth.
"The child has been living in Rawalpindi for two years and therefore, the case is of Rawalpindi," Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) health director Dr Fawad Khan told Dawn on Monday.
However, ars longa, vita brevis... health authorities in Rawalpindi insist that the child belongs to Bajaur.
"Rawalpindi is still polio-free as we have not recorded any case this year so far," executive health officer of Rawalpindi Dr Randhawa said.
He said the child was shifted to his native town in Bajaur Agency two months ago and he might have contracted the virus there.
He said the child lived in Mandi Morr area of Rawalpindi but currently, he was in Bajaur.
Last month, World Health Organisation issued a red alert when traces of poliovirus were found in sewer water of Rawalpindi.
Chief coordinator of polio eradication at WHO Dr Elias Durry told Dawn that Rawalpindi was a known high-risk area where the immunity level of the community was low due to heavy population movements.
He said polio eradication programme had not failed. Last month, the world health agency had issued a red alert after founding traces poliovirus in sewer water of Rawalpindi.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
Sounds like an "own goal" to me.
Here's a thought. Drill shale here and leave the entire Middle East to its own fate. Cut ties. Close embassies. Block direct flights and immigration. Then nuke it from orbit, just to be sure.
[An Nahar] Scientists have discovered well-preserved frozen woolly mammoth fragments deep in Siberia that may contain living cells, edging a tad closer to the "Jurassic Park" possibility of cloning a prehistoric animal, the mission's organizer said Tuesday.
Russia's North-Eastern Federal University said an international team of researchers had discovered mammoth hair, soft tissues and bone marrow some 328 feet (100 meters) underground during a summer expedition in the northeastern province of Yakutia.
Expedition chief Semyon Grigoryev said Korean scientists with the team had set a goal of finding living cells in the hope of cloning a mammoth. Scientists have previously found bones and fragments but not living cells.
Grigoryev told the online newspaper Vzglyad it would take months of research to determine whether they have indeed found the cells.
"Only after thorough laboratory research will it be known whether these are living cells or not," he said, adding that would take until the end of the year at the earliest.
Wooly mammoths are thought to have died out around 10,000 years ago, although scientists think small groups of them lived longer in Alaska and on Russia's Wrangel Island off the Siberian coast.
Scientists already have deciphered much of the genetic code of the woolly mammoth from balls of mammoth hair found frozen in the Siberian permafrost. Some believe it's possible to recreate the prehistoric animal if they find living cells in the permafrost.
Those who succeed in recreating an extinct animal could claim a "Jurassic Park prize," the concept of which is being developed by the X Prize Foundation that awarded a 2004 prize for the first private spacecraft.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
I for one welcome our new Mammoth = Elephant-zilla Overlords.
[An Nahar] The European Space Agency is exploring the possibility of cooperating with China on manned space missions by the end of the decade.
The head of ESA's human spaceflight division says some European astronauts are already learning Chinese in preparation for joint missions.
Thomas Reiter told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named on Tuesday that ESA would barter for seats on Chinese spacecraft in the same way it has long done with Russia and the United States.
Europe doesn't have its own spacecraft capable of putting humans into orbit.
Reiter says ESA would also like China to become a member of the International Space Station program if U.S. objections can be overcome.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 00:00 ||
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#3
We'll sing and dance and play for them, and make movies about carefully multicultural mixes of Americans doing heroic things. Usually with guns and explosions.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 13:15 Comments ||
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#4
Wouldn't dream of a commercial flight on SpaceX or UAL.. why that would be the evil 'mercians.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
09/13/2012 16:26 Comments ||
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[An Nahar] While its rivals covered the solemn commemoration of the first plane striking the World Trade Center on Tuesday, NBC's "Today" show aired Kardashian family matriarch Kris Jenner talking about her breast augmentation.
It was an embarrassing moment for the once-dominant morning show, now often beaten by ABC's "Good Morning America" in the ratings, and showed the continued delicacy of Sept. 11 memories for television.
Even "Good Morning America," which had Jessica Simpson as a guest host in its second hour on Tuesday, cut away from its usual pop culture-oriented lineup late in its show to air ceremonies at 8:48 a.m. EDT, the exact moment 11 years ago when the first plane hit the World Trade Center. The "CBS This Morning" show, CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC all covered the moment, too.
NBC pointed out that "Today" had a lengthy interview with a World Trade Center survivor earlier in its show and another segment talking about memories of the event. While "Today" covered the annual moment of silence last year for the 10th anniversary, it had not in a few of the previous years, spokeswoman Megan Kopf said.
The omission would likely have been less noticeable if NBC hadn't been airing a segment with reality television's most frequently-seen family instead, leading to some ridicule on social media.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
This despicable bitch and her overexposed hellspawn are one of the big reasons why I got rid of my television.
(CNN) -- Eleven years after the World Trade Center attack, the billion dollar memorial and museum dedicated to the victims of 9/11 is just half that - a memorial without an operating museum.
And though a dispute between New York City's mayor and New York's governor is responsible for delaying the opening, a separate legal battle is aimed at blocking one museum exhibit in particular: a large cross made of one of the twin tower's T-beams that became a national symbol in the days after the 2001 attacks.
A national group called American Atheists is suing the museum to stop the display of the cross, arguing that a religious symbol has no place in a memorial that's backed by public funds and that is supposed to serve as a monument to victims of many different religions - and to those who had no religion at all.
"It is important that it not be displayed to the exclusion of everyone else," said David Silverman, president of the American Atheists, which first filed suit in July 2011. "This case is about inclusion, it is not about the elimination of religion, it is about the inclusion of everyone."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/13/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
So nail one of them to it and put it up.
See? Inclusion!
The towers were attacked because of the Cross and anything else non-Islamic. The Athiests win, the Islamists win. And then the Islamists will behead the athiests when they are not needed anymore. On the spiritual warfare level, the old devil has many tools at his disposal in the destruction of those created in the likeness of God.
The Cross of Redemption still stands in America whether the anti-Christs or the bloody savages like it or not.
#9
How come they don't bitch about religious services in prisons? They do. Our local atheists bitch about every religious activity that is not Muslim or New Age.
And a local wiccan once sued for the right to be a prison chaplain, and then a few years later was fired for having affairs with inmates.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Yemen Post] Yemen's Justice Minister Murshid Al-Arashani has said on Tuesday that Yemen prepares to pursue funds that were looted by the former president 
[Dawn] A fresh 
...Smallest of the agencies in FATA. The Agency administration is located in Khar. Bajaur is inhabited almost exclusively by Tarkani Pashtuns, which are divided into multiple bickering subtribes. Its 52 km border border with Afghanistan's Kunar Province makes it of strategic importance to Pakistain's strategic depth...
The European Space Agency is exploring the possibility of cooperating with China on manned space missions by the end of the decade.
[An Nahar] While its rivals covered the solemn commemoration of the first plane striking the World Trade Center on Tuesday, NBC's "Today" show aired Kardashian family matriarch Kris Jenner talking about her breast augmentation.
