KINGSTON, Jamaica (CMC):
The Pesticides Control Authority (PCA) and the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) are encouraging Jamaicans to exercise caution when using pesticides, especially near waterways that are accessed by nearby communities.
When large amounts of pesticides are used near waterways, accidents could lead to run-off, which could contaminate the water source.
Speaking at a recent think tank, PCA Registrar Tamara Morrison pointed out that if pesticides get into the waterway, “we may have some fish kill, and there can be a problem if persons further down [stream] do not know, because persons do collect water for use in houses”.
While both PCA and NEPA conduct training sessions for farmers, in collaboration with the Rural Agricultural Development Authority, they acknowledge that other persons use pesticides as well, and urge them to be mindful in their use.
PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti (CMC):
A Haitian legislator has sought to distance himself from the country’s most wanted gang leader, Arnel Joseph, who was arrested by the National Police while he was seeking medical attention in a hospital last month.
In an August 1 letter addressed to the president of the Senate, Garcia Delva denied reports linking him to several kidnappings by Joseph. He said that Joseph’s arrest is being used by his political opponents to link him “at all costs” to “criminal activities”.
Media reports here said that the police are investigating a kidnapping in which the victim, a neighbour of Delva, was abducted, along with two of his employees, in March as they drove to the capital, Port-au-Prince.
The reports said that during negotiations to secure the group’s release, the businessman’s wife reached out to Delva for help.
But police say unknown to the woman, Delva had already spoken with the gang leader, first on his cellphone and then seconds later on the kidnap victim’s telephone. The three people were eventually released after a ransom of US$110,500 was paid.
BOSTON (AP):
A Brazilian man who sent a letter to immigration authorities warning of an attack on a Massachusetts school in an attempt to frame is ex-wife’s boyfriend has been sentenced and will be deported.
Clebio De Lima, who lived in Quincy, was sentenced this week to time served of 23 weeks for making false statements to federal authorities. He pleaded guilty in June.
Officials say the 43-year-old De Lima sent an unsigned, handwritten letter in Portuguese to US Citizenship and Immigration Services in February 2018, warning that a man named Mario planned to attack a Boston school. It was determined the attack warning was false.
De Lima’s attorney says his client let his emotions get the better of him.
Authorities say De Lima has been living in the US illegally for 12 years.
WASHINGTON (AP):
Rep Elijah Cummings says he scared off an intruder at his Baltimore home last weekend, providing details after President Donald Trump tweeted yesterday about the break-in.
In a statement Friday, the Maryland Democrat said someone “attempted to gain entry into my residence at approximately 3:40 a.m. on Saturday, July 27.
“I was notified of the intrusion by my security system, and I scared the intruder away by yelling before the person gained entry into the residential portion of the house,” Cummings said. “I thank the Baltimore Police Department for their response and ask that all further inquiries be directed to them.”
The break-in happened hours before Trump launched a Twitter tirade against Cummings, calling his majority-black district a “disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess.”