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18 arrested for attempting to engage in sexual conduct with minors in California

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

Authorities arrested 18 suspects accused of contacting a minor for sex and other related crimes in California.The crackdown was the result of “Operation Secret Admirer,” a sting operation that identified, contacted and arrested “anyone who may be trying to target children for sex,” said the Sacramento Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.The operation took place from February to March and involved authorities posing as children as young as 13 years old when communicating with suspects.During the conversations, officials said the suspects allegedly sent sexually explicit language and graphic photos to undercover authorities.“Once the suspects requested to meet with a child, law enforcement directed them to a predetermined location and arrested them,” officials said.The operation targeted individuals across Sacramento County with the majority of arrests involving those who attempted to meet with undercover personnel.“I have a simple message for all those who target children for...

Roku has one-fourth of its cash at collapsed Silicon Valley Bank

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

SAN JOSE — Roku has more than one-fourth of its cash at failed Silicon Valley Bank — mainly in uninsured deposits — a disquieting disclosure by the tech titan that hints at wider woes due to the bank’s stunning collapse.The streaming giant said it’s not sure when — or if — it will get back its deposited cash at Silicon Valley Bank, Roku revealed in a regulatory filing Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.“The company has total cash and cash equivalents of approximately $1.9 billion as of March 10, 2023,” Roku reported in the SEC filing. “Approximately $487 million is held at Silicon Valley Bank.”That represents an estimated 26% of Roku’s cash and cash equivalents balance as of March 10, the company said.“The company’s deposits with Silicon Valley Bank are largely uninsured,” Roku stated in the SEC document.San Jose-based Roku said it wasn’t immediately certain of its ability to recoup i...

Discipline recommended for San Jose firefighters involved in strip club scandal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) -- The City of San Jose released a statement on Friday regarding the fire department's Pink Poodle strip club scandal. San Jose Fire Department Chief Robert Sapien, Jr. recommended discipline for those involved.The incident took place on Oct. 5, 2022, outside of the Pink Poodle adult entertainment club located at 328 South Bascom Avenue. A video shared to social media the next day showed a woman wearing only a bikini coming out of a fire engine outside of the club. 160 remains and bodies found in Hayward warehouse linked to illegal cremations company "The actions portrayed in this video were received with disappointment and concern, as they appeared seriously misaligned with the Department's mission and values and were highly detrimental to the confidence and trust of our community and workforce," Sapien said. An investigation into the video commenced on Oct. 7 and was completed in February. The investigation found that the firefighters' actions "constitute...

State Playoff Glance

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

Game 1: Bentonville 52, Bryant 50Game 2: Cabot 60, Northside 57Wednesday, Mar. 1Game 3: Fayetteville 59, North Little Rock 50Game 4: Springdale 63, Conway 46Second RoundThursday, Mar. 2Game 5: Jonesboro 61, Bentonville 29Game 6: Cabot 44, Har-Ber 38Friday, Mar. 3Game 7: Bentonville 55, Fayetteville 51Game 8: Springdale 60, Central 55.SemifinalSaturday, Mar. 4Game 9: Jonesboro 40, Cabot 38Game 10: Springdale 58, Bentonville 46Friday, Mar. 10State ChampionshipGame 11: Jonesboro 48, Springdale 43CLASS 5AFirst RoundTuesday, Feb. 28First RoundGame 1: Maumelle 60, Sheridan 51Game 3: Pine Bluff 75, Sylvan Hills 49Game 5: Marion 45, Greenbrier 43Wednesday, Mar. 1Game 2: Greene County 57, Siloam Springs 41Game 4: Nettleton 61, Van Buren 59Game 7: Harrison 51, Valley View 38Thursday, Mar. 2Game 6: Lake Hamilton 79, Parkview Patriots 61Game 8: Hot Springs 56, Vilonia 51Second RoundGame 9: Greene County 66, Maumelle 59Friday, Mar. 3Game 10: Pine Bluff 55, Nettleton 43Game 11: Lake Hamilton 49, ...

Kent State beats rival Akron 77-73 in gritty MAC semifinal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

CLEVELAND (AP) — Miryne Thomas scored 24 points and Sincere Carry added 21 as Kent State beat rival Akron 79-73 in the semifinals of the Mid-American Conference tournament Friday night to set up a matchup against top-seeded Toledo.The second-seeded Golden Flashes (27-6) are back in the title game for the second year in row. They haven’t won the championship since 2017. On Saturday, they’ll take on the Rockets (27-6), who have won 17 straight and are trying to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1980.Toledo beat Ohio 82-75 in the first semifinal. Kent State topped Toledo 75-63 during the regular season.Enrique Freeman scored 24 with 18 rebounds and Xavier Castaneda scored 21 to lead the defending champion Zips (22-11), who gave up consecutive 3-pointers to Thomas and Jalen Sullinger as Kent State opened an 18-point lead midway through the second half.The Zips kept fighting and got within six in the final minute, but Castaneda missed a pair of 3-pointers — he...

China names Li Qiang, close confidant of Xi Jinping, as nation’s next premier nominally in charge of 2nd largest economy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — China names Li Qiang, close confidant of Xi Jinping, as nation’s next premier nominally in charge of 2nd largest economy.Source

Spurs overcome Jokic triple-double to top Nuggets, Porter ejected

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Keldon Johnson scored 23 points and the San Antonio Spurs overcame 37 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists by Nikola Jokic to stun the Denver Nuggets 128-120 on Friday night.Doug McDermott added 20 points and Jeremy Sochan had 19 points for San Antonio, which shot 54% in a balanced effort with their entire roster available for one of only a few times in an injury-riddled season. Rockies to host 1st all-female broadcast Saturday It was Jokic’s 26th triple-double in what could be his third straight MVP season.Jamal Murray added 24 points for Denver, which lost its second straight following a four-game winning streak. The Nuggets maintained the Western Conference’s best record at 46-21, but fell 2 1/2 games behind the Milwaukee Bucks for the league’s best record.Denver hoped to rebound from an uncharacteristically sloppy outing in a 117-96 loss at home to Chicago on Wednesday, but instead had one of the season’s most deflating losses.San Antonio entered having lost t...

Jimmy Butler seizes a needed moment as Heat hold off Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell 119-115

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

The face of desperation was the face of the Miami Heat on Friday night when they went down 14 in the third quarter.It turned out to be a good look, or at least a needed look, one that will be further necessary in the heated middle of the Eastern Conference playoff race.Forced to take on some of the best of Donovan Mitchell, the Heat made a needed stand in a 119-115 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers to salvage a 3-3 homestand,“We’re fighting for our competitive lives right now,” coach Erik Spoelstrs said after the season’s latest nail-biter. “Is this the position we want to be in now? No. But this is what you want, you want games with incredible pressure and context.”While work remains to get out of an Eastern Conference play-in seed and into one of the six automatic playoff seeds in the East, this was a night when the Heat stared down adversity when it was casting its ugliest face.A loss would have trimmed the Heat’s lead at No. 7 in the ...

Nets gut out overtime victory over Timberwolves, 124-121

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

These are the types of games the Nets are going to have to get used to.The gritty, ugly, grind-it-out performances have become part of the fabric of the identity the Nets must assume if they’re going to salvage the second half of what was once a season with championship expectations.That’s what it took to get back on track and secure a 124-123 overtime victory over Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.“Coming into a hostile environment against a good western conference opponent — it’s a testament to our mental toughness,” starting guard Spencer Dinwiddie said in his walk-off postgame interview.It’s the fifth time the Nets have rallied back from down double-digits to create a single-possession game down the stretch since the trade deadline.And in the end, it was defense — not shot-making — that won a game down the stretch.The Nets denied Edwards an opportunity to shoot on the final possession of overtime. At th...

Hong Kong activists behind Tiananmen vigil jailed for months

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:45:08 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Three former organizers of Hong Kong’s annual vigil in remembrance of victims of China’s 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protests were jailed Saturday for four and a half months for failing to provide authorities with information on the group in accordance with a national security law.Chow Hang-tung, Tang Ngok-kwan and Tsui Hon-kwong were arrested in 2021 during a crackdown on the city’s pro-democracy movement following massive protests more than three years ago. They were leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China and were found guilty last week. The now-defunct alliance was best known for organizing candlelight vigils in Hong Kong on the anniversary of the 1989 Chinese military’s crushing of Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests, but it was voted to disband in 2021 under the shadow of the Beijing-imposed national security law. Supporters say its closure has shown freedoms and autonomy that were promised when Hon...