Tuesday, September 2, 2008
A 3-year-old girl that authorities have been searching for since July is likely dead, the Orange County, Fla., sheriff's department told a Florida TV station over the weekend.
"We clearly have evidence that indicates there was a dead body in the trunk of Casey [Anthony's] car, and that body was Caylee [Anthony]," Orange County Sheriff's Sgt. John Allen told ABC News affiliate WFTV.
Authorities have been seaching for Caylee Anthony since she was reported missing in July, nearly a month after her disappearance in June.
A law enforcement source confirmed to ABC News last week that air sample tests taken from the car trunk of her mother, Casey Anthony, allegedly revealed evidence of human decomposition. Casey has given the police changing and inaccurate information about the case, according to investigators.
Police last month said hairs the same length and color as Caylee's were found in the trunk of the car, and Casey Anthony's mother, Cindy Anthony, said in a 911 call that the car smelled like there had been a dead body in it.
Cindy Anthony has since retracted those comments, saying the smell could easily have been from garbage in the car.
Over the weekend, Casey Anthony was sent back to jail on new charges, including petty theft and use of a forged check. The $500,000 bail posted by a California bondsman that released Anthony from jail was also rescinded.
At a court hearing that reportedly lasted a little over a minute over the weekend, Judge Mike Miller set Anthony's bail at $3,000 for the new charges.
She is now being held on a total of six charges, including the original charges of child neglect and lying to investigators. Her total bail is $503,200, according to a report by The Orlando Sentinel.
Last week, bounty hunter Leonard Padilla, who helped Anthony secure her bond, also said that, in light of preliminary air sample tests that reportedly indicate a decomposing body was in Anthony's trunk, he now believes that Anthony accidentally killed her daughter.
"I think it was an accident," he said. "Her friends called and said she wouldn't have harmed her, but if she did, she would have freaked."
Padilla, a self-styled celebrity bounty hunter, a few weeks ago offered to bail 22-year-old Anthony out of jail, saying that he thought he could convince her to cooperate in the search for Caylee. Padilla has said Anthony has not cooperated since her release.
Casey Anthony has said her daughter has been missing since mid-June, but she didn't report it until more than a month later. She has not been charged with her daughter's disappearance, though police have said she is a "person of interest" in the case.
She faces charges of child neglect, making false statements and obstructing an investigation for allegedly lying to the police.
Last week, prosecutors released more than 400 pages of documents, including police reports and transcripts of interviews, that portray Anthony as troubled and a habitual liar. The documents also allege that Anthony wanted to give Caylee up for adoption before she was born, but that her mother dissuaded her.
According to the documents, Anthony told police that she left the child with her baby sitter, then couldn't find them when she returned from work. But, no one had lived for months at the address Anthony gave for the babysitter.
Anthony also claimed to work for an Orlando theme park, but investigators say she had not worked there in months. The documents include a poem Anthony wrote on July 7, eight days before she reported her daughter missing: "What is given, Can be taken away. Everyone lies. Everyone dies."
BANGKOK (AFP) — Thai police called in army reinforcements early Tuesday as violent clashes between protesters in Bangkok left one person dead and dozens injured, officials and local media said.
There were reports of gunshots being fired as thousands of baton-wielding pro- and anti-government protesters clashed in the capital Bangkok.
Thai television showed protesters wearing helmets and carrying batons running though the streets, fighting with each other and throwing rocks, as people lay bleeding on the street.
The violence took place not far from the site where about 15,000 demonstrators have been besieging the main government compound for a week, demanding that Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej step down.
"Thousands of protesters from Sanam Luang went to the scene and clashed," the police officer in charge of the area told AFP, referring to a plaza where protesters often gather.
"There were reports of gunfire, but police cannot confirm who fired or how many were injured," said the officer, who did not wish to be named as he was not authorised to speak to the media.
Thailand's national police chief Patcharavat Wongsuwan said the army had been called in to help calm the situation, but that invoking a state of emergency was still not necessary.
"The number of police is still enough to take care of the situation but we have asked the assistance from the army," he told a local news channel.
Government-owned television station NBT said four units of unarmed soldiers -- about 320 troops -- had been deployed to maintain order.
Peeratong Saichoew, a doctor with the Bangkok administration's media reporting bureau, said early reports were that at least one person had died.
"Initial reports which need to be confirmed later are that one died and 38 were injured. There is a report that one person was injured from gun shots while the rest injured from fighting. Now they are being treated at six hospitals nearby," he said.
Supporters of the so-called People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) have been squatting at Government House since last Tuesday. Tensions flared when they briefly scuffled with police on Friday.
They are demanding that Samak step down, accusing him of running the country on behalf of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
But Samak has refused to bow to their demands and has said he is determined to end the crisis facing his seven-month-old government without bloodshed.
The increasing tension over the past week has prompted the powerful army chief to twice deny that the military was planning to stage a coup to end the turmoil.
Thaksin was overthrown in a coup in September 2006 following a massive PAD campaign against him, and his ally Samak has accused the anti-government coalition of trying to spark another putsch.
Monday, September 1, 2008
PATNA, India, Sept 1 (Reuters) - The Indian army and navy stepped up efforts on Monday to rescue hundreds of thousands of people marooned by floods, while rising river levels also rang alarm bells in neighbouring Bangladesh.
In India's impoverished eastern state of Bihar, villagers have been living on rooftops for days, while others are eating plants and leaves after exhausting food stocks.
Aid agencies said the Bihar government should have done more to anticipate the disaster and plan relief operations in a region hit by monsoon flooding every year.
"Lessons from the past disasters should be kept in mind while planning response," ActionAid said in a statement. "A long-term comprehensive response is necessary to deal with relief, recovery and disaster preparedness."
Three million people have been displaced from their homes and at least 90 killed by floods in Bihar, officials say, after the Kosi river burst a dam in Nepal, swamping hundreds of villages in Bihar and destroying 100,000 ha (250,000 acres) of farmlands.
Since the monsoon began in South Asia in June, more than 1,000 people have died in floods, with most of the casualties recorded in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh in July.
In Bihar, hundreds of boats are being used to evacuate people but more are needed, while heavy rains over the past few days have hampered rescue and relief operations, officials said.
"Such is the extent of devastation that the forces deployed are proving too small," Pratyay Amrit, a senior state disaster management official, said on Monday.
The army, which had already deployed five columns of around 120 men, sent in another 14, officials said on Monday, while three naval companies were also asked to help.
The situation on the ground is getting desperate.
"We don't have any more food grain stocks left, and me and my family are all chewing plants and leaves to stay alive," Mohan Sharma said by telephone from Supaul district.
Television pictures showed people fighting to get places in boats, as soldiers in life jackets tried to restore order.
Over 467,000 people have been evacuated so far, but there are thousands still marooned. Activists and local media say the death toll could be many times higher than official estimates.
Some experts have blamed the floods on heavier monsoon rains caused by global warming, while others say authorities have failed to take preventive measures and improve infrastructure.
RISING RIVERS
In India's northeastern state of Assam, rising rivers broke mud embankments and swamped more than 100 villages, forcing 50,000 people from their homes.
Two people drowned overnight, raising the death toll in the northeast region to 34.
Authorities said at least 400,000 people were living in knee-deep water in villages along the border with Bangladesh.
In Bangladesh, about half a million people were marooned after several rivers in the north and central districts broke their banks and swamped villages and farmlands.
The Flood Forecasting Centre warned the flood situation could worsen in the next couple of days as the country's three major rivers were rising alarmingly.
|Reuters|
The bodies of Jill Foster, 49, and an unidentified man were found in the ruins of Osbaston House in Maesbrook, Shropshire, days after Tuesday's blaze.
Kirstie Foster, 15, and her father Christopher, 50, remain unaccounted for.
Police specialist search teams found the remains of a third person on Sunday evening, a spokesperson said.
Detectives have said they are treating the case as a murder inquiry.
Post-mortem tests revealed Mrs Foster had been shot in the head prior to the blaze, which police said was started deliberately at about 0500 BST last Tuesday.
Tests were being carried out to establish whether a rifle, which was legitimately owned by Mr Foster, was the murder weapon.
Officers said the cause of death for the second body, believed to be a man, still had to be established, along with the dead person's identity.
Three horses and four dogs were also found dead in different parts of the house. All had been shot.
Det Supt Jon Groves, of West Mercia Police, said it would take "some time" to remove the third body from the scene "due to its position".
However, he said police were hoping to remove it from the house by the end of the day, with a post-mortem examination taking place later.
He said a forensic archaeologist would be visiting the site later in the morning to offer specialist advice on removing the body.
He thanked the local community for its support over the last week.
The Fosters were last seen the night before the blaze at a friend's barbecue and Kirstie had been online until about 0100 BST on the morning of the fire.
Mr Foster made his fortune developing insulation technology for oil rigs.
Court documents show that his company, Ulva Ltd, which had gone into liquidation, faced legal action from one of its suppliers for thousands of pounds and also owed about £800,000 in tax.
Kirstie wrote on her page on the social networking site Bebo that her horses were her "life" and posted dozens of pictures of her with the animals.
Friends of hers have been leaving messages on her page.
One friend, Chloe, wrote: "I can't belive that one of the bodys was your mam. RIP Jill Foster. I hope that the other body isnt your dad.
"An I hope they dont find any mor an your just havin a week somewer with your dad or sumink."
Another friend, Danielle, referred to Kirstie's horses - Scrumpy Jack, Breezy and Bramble - which were found dead in the outbuildings of the mansion.
She wrote: "I miss you soo much. My thorts are with you 24/7 and there are some points in the day i just wanna break down and cry.
"Life feels weird without you. Please be okay, otherwise I dunno wat ill doo. RIP Jill and Jack and Breezy and Bramble."
Her friend George wrote: "Plz b ok kirstie. We r all thinkin bowt u."
Another friend called Lucy added: "Forever in our hearts, once there forever in our lives."
Special prayers for the family were held on Sunday at Maesbrook Parish Church.
The Reverend Prebendary David Austerberry said the local community had been "bewildered and stunned" by what had happened.
Mr Groves said: "We have had a lot of support and understanding from members of the community and I would like to thank residents for that.
"The search and examination of the property is continuing and is still expected to take several days, possibly even weeks, and I am grateful for the continued support of those living in the area.
"Our thoughts remain with the families of Chris, Jill and Kirstie Foster and we will follow up every possible line of enquiry to establish what happened at Osbaston House in the early hours of Tuesday."
|Sources bbc.co.uk|
