Suitcase with human remains inside discovered in New York City’s East River
Spencer Grant/GHI/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Human remains have been found in a suitcase that was drifting in the East River in New York City, police said.
The discovery was made on Wednesday at approximately 5:30 p.m. when authorities from the NYPD Harbor Unit were called to the East River close to Governor’s Island and retrieved the suitcase with the human remains inside, according to ABC News’ New York City station WABC.
The suitcase was subsequently taken to Pier 16 where an initial investigation was launched and authorities confirmed the existence of human remains in the suitcase.
Police did not immediately confirm how long the body could have been there for or if they had any leads on how the individual could be but did say that the medical examiner’s office will determine the cause of death in due course.
No further details regarding the case have been provided and the investigation into the death is currently ongoing.
In this screen grab from a video released by the San Dimas Sheriff’s Station, a tortoise was sucessfully rescued after the owner’s home was destroyed by fire. Via San Dimas Sheriff’s Station/Instagram
(LOS ANGELES) — A beloved pet tortoise has been found safe in the wake of California wildfires.
The rescue occurred after the family’s Altadena home was destroyed in the Eaton Fire, according to the San Dimas Sheriff’s Station.
In a video the station shared Saturday to Instagram, a deputy was seen bringing the 100-pound tortoise, Rocky, to safety.
Rocky was found in a hole in the family’s backyard, the sheriff’s office said.
The family can be heard cheering and celebrating as a deputy carried Rocky over to them.
“Yay! Rocky’s home!” a woman can be heard saying in the video.
ABC News has reached out to Rocky’s family for comment.
Rangers await restart of border wall construction. Via ABC News.
(COLUMBUS, N.M.) — As the conflict between U.S. law enforcement and the cartels continues, some New Mexico residents are hopeful that Trump will be successful in finishing the border wall to ensure their safety.
Those who remain hopeful include ranchers Brandy and Russell Johnson, who are living just outside the village of Columbus, New Mexico, on a cattle ranch that borders Chihuahua, Mexico. They say they are eager to see the restart of the border wall construction under the new Trump administration.
The couple recalled to ABC News a time in 2019, during Trump’s first term, when funding came through for new construction on the border wall. The Johnsons fought to be included in the plans, with construction expected to seal up close to 9 miles of the border.
“It’s Oct. 20, 2019, and I received a call today from United States Border Patrol agents advising that we had yet another vehicle drive through,” Russell Johnson said. “This vehicle made its entry through the barbed wire portion of the fence that we share with Mexico. Nobody should have to deal with this kind of activity on their ranch or anywhere for that matter.”
However, the Johnsons, who both have law enforcement backgrounds, never expected to become embroiled in a political conflict over the border.
Months after construction began on their wall section, former President Joe Biden was elected. He promised a more empathetic approach to immigration. By March 2021, he halted the construction project, froze funding, and terminated the emergency declaration made by the first Trump administration along the border.
According to Russell Johnson, a former U.S. Border Patrol agent, all the contractors working on the border wall found themselves in a state of uncertainty. Their equipment had been fully operational, but now the site resembled a ghost town, with all the machinery and materials abandoned.
“It’s probably millions of dollars, considering the amount of steel and what steel costs, it’s probably millions of dollars that’s been sitting there for over four years at this point, that you know, the taxpayer paid for, and it’s just been sitting out there,” Russell Johnson said, referring to the border wall building materials that have been sitting on his property since December 2020.
During the Biden administration, the funding and staffing for the Department of Homeland Security were decreased.
In 2024, a bipartisan border security bill aimed at enhancing resources for the department failed to pass after Trump lobbied Senate Republicans to oppose the bill.
“As the leader of our party, there is zero chance I will support this horrible, open borders betrayal of America,” Trump said at his Nevada rally in 2024. “It’s not going to happen.”
It’s a move that Democrats have criticized as a political stunt.
“This bill would save lives and bring order to the border,” Biden said at State of the Union address in March 2024. “I’m told my predecessor called Republicans in Congress and demanded they block the bill. He viewed it would be a political win for me and a political loser for him.”
The Johnsons believe that limited border patrol agents in the field made them more vulnerable. Additionally, a gap in the border wall, which is less than a mile long, has increased their risk of becoming a target for trafficking.
“It’s one of those deals that if you could take the politics out of it, we could have it fixed overnight,” Russell Johnson said. “And that’s what’s been extremely frustrating to me, is I feel like we’re just a political pawn down here, used by both sides at times, to push one narrative or the other.”
The Johnsons are hopeful that Trump can fulfill his promise to resume construction on the border wall. However, they understand that this requires funding and bipartisan support.
“And I think if, and I’ve preached this to several people, if we could all just sit down at a table, there’s going to be some common ground we can find,” Russell Johnson said.
(NEW YORK) — A New York City construction company and its owner were indicted Thursday on wage theft charges for depriving ten recent immigrant workers of wages totaling $67,000.
“These cases come down to greed,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said. “They are preying on those who they don’t think will come forward.”
KEP Construction and its owner, Kendis Paul, are charged with a scheme to defraud and grand larceny.
Prosecutors recovered text messages that show the workers pleading for their money. “I’m out of food,” one message said. “I haven’t been able to pay my rent.”
According to the indictment, 10 former KEP employees were owed for drywall plaster work they performed on a 23-story building on West 96 Street between September 2023 and February 2024.
Paul allegedly gave these employees paychecks that later bounced, refused to pay them overtime, and, in some instances, failed to pay their wages altogether, despite the fact that he was paid more than $1.3 million from the general contractor.
Paul pleaded not guilty and was released on his own recognizance.
