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TACOMA, Wash. (AP) -- A Washington state corrections officer has been charged with bigamy after Facebook discovered two women were connected to him and suggested they might want to "friend."
Prosecutors in Pierce County say Alan L. O'Neill married a woman in 2001, moved out in 2009, changed his name and remarried without divorcing wife No. 1.
Wife No. 1 found out about Wife No. 2 when Facebook detected their connection to O'Neill and suggested the friendship connection.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Bank of America to reduce loans for homeowners
Posted by
Jamshaid Yousaf
at
3/09/2012 07:48:00 AM
NEW YORK (AP) -- Bank of America is providing mortgage relief to about 200,000 homeowners.
Homeowners that qualify are those whose home values have fallen below what they owe on their mortgages. Bank of America will reduce the amount owed by the homeowners by as much as $100,000 in some cases.
The move will help the bank reduce the amount of penalties it owes to the government's Housing & Urban Development agency by $850 million.
The penalties were part of a broader $25 billion settlement announced Feb. 9 by federal and state attorneys general and the largest mortgage lenders in the country to resolve investigations into abusive home lending and fraudulent foreclosure practices.
Homeowners that qualify are those whose home values have fallen below what they owe on their mortgages. Bank of America will reduce the amount owed by the homeowners by as much as $100,000 in some cases.
The move will help the bank reduce the amount of penalties it owes to the government's Housing & Urban Development agency by $850 million.
The penalties were part of a broader $25 billion settlement announced Feb. 9 by federal and state attorneys general and the largest mortgage lenders in the country to resolve investigations into abusive home lending and fraudulent foreclosure practices.
Israeli airstrike kills militant commander in Gaza
Posted by
Jamshaid Yousaf
at
3/09/2012 07:48:00 AM
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) -- An Israeli airstrike killed a top Palestinian militant commander and a second militant in Gaza on Friday in the highest profile attack against the coastal strip in months.
The Israeli military confirmed the strike, saying the slain commander Zuhair al-Qaissi was plotting an infiltration attack into Israel similar to one his group carried out in August that killed eight people. In a statement, the military warned Gaza's Hamas rulers against any retaliation for the strike.
Palestinian witnesses said Israeli drones were seen hovering above just moments before a vehicle exploded into flames, just outside of Gaza City.
Al-Qaissi was the top commander of the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committee, a large militant group aligned with Hamas. The group's spokesman confirmed his death. He identified the second casualty as Mahmoud Hanini, who hails from the West Bank and was released from an Israeli prison five years and deported to Gaza.
"The coward Zionists have committed an ugly crime and they know the price that they are going to pay," said the spokesman, who goes by the pseudonym Abu Mujahid.
Israel often targets Gaza militants it says are preparing attacks, but tensions have been relatively calm in recent months with Israel mostly targeting smuggling tunnels from Egypt and refraining from targeting individuals. Al-Qaissi, 55, who is also known as Abu Ibrahim, is the highest profile casualty in Gaza in months.
Another Gazan was seriously wounded in the attack. His identity remains unclear.
The Israeli military said that al-Qaida was also in charge of transfering funds from the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to other militant groups in Gaza.
The Israeli military confirmed the strike, saying the slain commander Zuhair al-Qaissi was plotting an infiltration attack into Israel similar to one his group carried out in August that killed eight people. In a statement, the military warned Gaza's Hamas rulers against any retaliation for the strike.
Palestinian witnesses said Israeli drones were seen hovering above just moments before a vehicle exploded into flames, just outside of Gaza City.
Al-Qaissi was the top commander of the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committee, a large militant group aligned with Hamas. The group's spokesman confirmed his death. He identified the second casualty as Mahmoud Hanini, who hails from the West Bank and was released from an Israeli prison five years and deported to Gaza.
"The coward Zionists have committed an ugly crime and they know the price that they are going to pay," said the spokesman, who goes by the pseudonym Abu Mujahid.
Israel often targets Gaza militants it says are preparing attacks, but tensions have been relatively calm in recent months with Israel mostly targeting smuggling tunnels from Egypt and refraining from targeting individuals. Al-Qaissi, 55, who is also known as Abu Ibrahim, is the highest profile casualty in Gaza in months.
Another Gazan was seriously wounded in the attack. His identity remains unclear.
The Israeli military said that al-Qaida was also in charge of transfering funds from the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah to other militant groups in Gaza.
Pakistan appoints new spy chief
Posted by
Jamshaid Yousaf
at
3/09/2012 07:34:00 AM
ISLAMABAD (AP) -- Pakistan named a new head of intelligence on Friday, propelling a former deputy spy chief to the head of an agency crucial to American hopes of negotiating a peace deal with the Afghan Taliban and keeping the pressure on al-Qaida.
Lt. Gen. Zaheerul Islam replaces Lt. Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha, who had been in the post since 2008 and was due to retire on March 18th. The scion of a military family who is currently army commander in the city of Karachi, Islam was considered a likely man for the job.
As head of the Inter-Services Intelligence, he will be a major player in any Pakistani efforts to get the Afghan Taliban to enter peace negotiations to the end the war. ISI agents helped build up the Afghan Taliban in the 1990s, and its leaders are based in Pakistan. The ISI is believed to have some influence over them.
The ISI also works closely with the CIA in tracking and capturing members of al-Qaida, which retain a global command and training center close to the Afghan border. Many of the terrorist plots targeting the West over the last 10 years have originated from the region.
Islam is not expected to immediately, or significantly, change Pakistani policy in those areas.
The ISI falls under the control of the army, which sets policy in consultation with the elected government.
Lt. Gen. Zaheerul Islam replaces Lt. Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha, who had been in the post since 2008 and was due to retire on March 18th. The scion of a military family who is currently army commander in the city of Karachi, Islam was considered a likely man for the job.
As head of the Inter-Services Intelligence, he will be a major player in any Pakistani efforts to get the Afghan Taliban to enter peace negotiations to the end the war. ISI agents helped build up the Afghan Taliban in the 1990s, and its leaders are based in Pakistan. The ISI is believed to have some influence over them.
The ISI also works closely with the CIA in tracking and capturing members of al-Qaida, which retain a global command and training center close to the Afghan border. Many of the terrorist plots targeting the West over the last 10 years have originated from the region.
Islam is not expected to immediately, or significantly, change Pakistani policy in those areas.
The ISI falls under the control of the army, which sets policy in consultation with the elected government.
Wholesale inventories rose 0.4 percent in January
Posted by
Jamshaid Yousaf
at
3/09/2012 07:33:00 AM
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Wholesale businesses increased their stockpiles in January although sales fell for the first time in eight months.
Inventories at the wholesale level increased 0.4 percent in January following an even larger 1.1 percent gain in December, the Commerce Department said Friday. Sales dipped a slight 0.1 percent, the first drop since a 0.3 percent fall last May. Sales had risen a solid 1.4 percent in December.
The inventory gain pushed stockpiles to $475.5 billion in January, up 24 percent from a low hit in September 2009.
Business rebuilding of inventories has been a major driver in economic growth so far in the recovery. But economists believe inventory rebuilding will slow in the January-March quarter, a development expected to temporarily dampen growth.
Because of that anticipated slowdown, these economists expect the economy will see slower growth of around 2 percent in the first quarter. For the entire year, economists at JPMorgan are forecasting growth of 2.3 percent, which would be a modest improvement from the 1.7 percent growth turned in during 2011.
Inventories at the wholesale level increased 0.4 percent in January following an even larger 1.1 percent gain in December, the Commerce Department said Friday. Sales dipped a slight 0.1 percent, the first drop since a 0.3 percent fall last May. Sales had risen a solid 1.4 percent in December.
The inventory gain pushed stockpiles to $475.5 billion in January, up 24 percent from a low hit in September 2009.
Business rebuilding of inventories has been a major driver in economic growth so far in the recovery. But economists believe inventory rebuilding will slow in the January-March quarter, a development expected to temporarily dampen growth.
Because of that anticipated slowdown, these economists expect the economy will see slower growth of around 2 percent in the first quarter. For the entire year, economists at JPMorgan are forecasting growth of 2.3 percent, which would be a modest improvement from the 1.7 percent growth turned in during 2011.
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