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7 Investigates: AI Imposters

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

It was an average afternoon when an unknown number popped up on Frank’s phone.“I typically don’t pick up an unknown number but for some reason I did and it was the voice of my daughter,” he recalled. “And she said, ‘Dad, I’m in jail.”Frank, who chose not to share his last name, said he instantly recognized the voice as his daughter.“It was so real. I mean it was unbelievably real. It was my daughter’s voice,” he said.The caller told him she had got into a car accident involving a pregnant woman and needed bail money.“We’re on a retired income and I’m like, ‘Where am I going to come up with $12,500?’ So, I’m in a panic,” Frank said.He was so panicked that he drove to the bank to pull out the cash. He said he was just about to get the money when he heard from his daughter.“Then it hit me. It was a scam,” Frank said.While it was his daughter’s voice he heard, it wasn’t actually her; it was part of a scheme by someo...

Battle-tested Milton knocks off undefeated Dartmouth, 28-7

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

MILTON — Staring down a quarterfinal matchup with an undefeated Dartmouth team, defending Division 3 runner-up Milton utilized experience and talent to cruise to a 28-7 victory and a berth in the state semifinals.“We saw that they had an undefeated record, but we took it with a grain of salt,” senior captain A.J. Cicerone said. “We knew if we took it to them in the beginning that they wouldn’t be able to hang with us.”Wildcats head coach Steve Dembowski said a hard schedule that saw his team lose three games helped the Wildcats prepare for difficult playoff games.“They’ve worked hard, they know what it takes,” Dembowski said. “We’ve had some adversity this year, we played a really difficult schedule. We knew going in that it was going to be a challenge and that’s helped us in the tournament.”Dartmouth started with the ball and earned a first down before being forced to punt. Milton would then drive into Dartmouth territory but would stall out and hand the ball back after a failed fo...

Tough offensive line fuels Needham to easy win over Methuen

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

NEEDHAM — In Thursday night’s D1 quarterfinal against Methuen, Needham did not throw a single pass in the second half.The Rockets did not have to.Behind a dominant running game that wore Methuen out, Needham rolled to a 42-24 win that sent the third-seeded Rockets to the Final Four.Needham improves to 9-1. The No. 3 Rangers fall to 7-3.Standout senior running back Tate Hoffmeister finished with 131 yards and three second-half touchdowns on 26 carries. Teammate Aidan Williams added 58 yard on six carries, and Brandt Bickford had an 80-yard touchdown on a jet sweep in the third quarter, his only carry of the night.Quarterback Griffin Carr completed 3 of 5 passes for 78 yards and a touchdown, all in the first half, as the Rockets did a little bit of everything right.But maybe the biggest stars of the night for Needham were the members of the Rockets’ offensive line: Teddy Fox, Sean Murphy, Travis O’Brien, David Curtis and Charlie Simeone.“These guys are tough,&#...

Andover, Dante Burger grind out 26-14 win over Weymouth

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

ANDOVER — Andover is potentially 48 minutes away from a state championship berth.Dante Burger rushed for 126 yards and a touchdown as Andover advanced to the Division 1 state semifinals with a 26-14 win over No. 12 Weymouth on Friday night.The No. 4 Golden Warriors will take on defending Division 1 champion St. John’s Prep or No. 8 BC High for a spot in the Division 1 Super Bowl.“It was a good effort against a good football team,” Andover coach EJ Perry said. “I am just happy for our seniors that they have a shot at a state championship.”Andover (9-1) had four different players impact the scoresheet. Along with Burger, Brian Hnat and Jason DeJesus also found the end zone while Nate Bernardin made a pair of field goals. Defensively, the Golden Warriors forced a pair of Weymouth turnovers, including an interception by Connor LeBrun in the fourth quarter that halted a Wildcats comeback attempt.After coming up empty on its initial drive, the Golden Warriors...

Verdugo, Miesfeld appear headed to runoff in Chula Vista City Attorney race

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

CHULA VISTA, Calif. -- Bart Miesfeld and Marco Verdugo appear headed to a runoff in the special election for Chula Vista city attorney.Verdugo and Miesfeld are neck-in-neck with 39% and 38% of the vote, respectively, according to early results updated Thursday from the San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Dan Smith Diaz trails with 23% of the vote. Results: Nov. 7 Special Election A candidate will need to receive more than 50% of the vote to win outright. If none of the candidates meet the threshold, the top two vote-getters will move to a runoff election on Mar. 5 next year. Whoever is elected will serve out the remainder of the term, which runs through December 2026."I’m fired up to win this campaign, serve the city I’ve always called home and protect Chula Vista’s families, finances, and future as the City’s Attorney," Verdugo said in an emailed statement to FOX 5."Early results are showing that the voters do want me to be city attorney. You know, I was city attorney before," ...

Internet collapses in war-torn Yemen after recent attacks by Houthi rebels targeting Israel, US

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Internet access across the war-torn nation of Yemen collapsed early Friday without explanation, web monitors said. The outage began early Friday around 0000 GMT and affected the YemenNet, which is now controlled by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. Both NetBlocks, a group tracking internet outages, and the internet services company CloudFlare reported the outage. The two did not offer a cause for the outage. The Houthis and Yemen telecommunication officials did not immediately acknowledge the outage. A previous outage occurred in January 2022 when the Saudi-led coalition battling the Houthis in Yemen bombed a telecommunications building in the Red City port city of Hodeida. There was no immediate word of a similar attack.The undersea FALCON cable carries internet into Yemen through the Hodeida port along the Red Sea for TeleYemen. The FALCON cable has another landing in Yemen’s far eastern port of Ghaydah as well, but the majority of Yeme...

Weekend need-to-know: Greater Toronto Area Remembrance Day services

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

With Remembrance Day being recognized across Canada on Saturday, there will be several services across the Greater Toronto Area.This weekend will also be the last one to enjoy the 101st Royal Agricultural Winter Fair at Exhibition Place.Meanwhile, there will be a number of Diwali celebrations in the GTA.Here’s what’s going on this weekend:An honour guard is seen through a wreath during the Remembrance Day ceremony in Kingston, Ont., on Nov. 11, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars HagbergRemembrance Day events on SaturdayOld City Hall (60 Queen St. W., Toronto) at 10:45 a.m.Scarborough War Memorial (2190 Kingston Rd.) at 10:45 a.m.East York Civic Centre Memorial Gardens (850 Coxwell Ave.) at 10:45 a.m.York Cemetery Cenotaph (160 Beecroft Rd.) at 10:45 a.m.York Civic Centre Cenotaph (2700 Eglinton Ave. W.) at 10:45 a.m.Etobicoke Civic Centre Cenotaph (399 The West Mall) at 10:45 a.m.Fort York National Historic Site (100 Garrison Rd.) at 10:40 a.m.Ken Whillans Square at Brampton City Hall (2...

Driver charged in 2022 crash that killed Los Angeles sheriff’s recruit, injured 24 others

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A driver who plowed into a group of Los Angeles County sheriff’s recruits on a training run last year, killing one and injuring 24 others, was charged Thursday with vehicular manslaughter, authorities said.Nicholas Gutierrez, 23, was charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and nine counts of reckless driving causing great bodily injury, according to a statement from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.If convicted, he could face up to 12 years in state prison.The Diamond Bar man was arrested after the Nov. 16, 2022 crash in Whittier but released while authorities investigated further. He was arrested again on Thursday, the DA’s office said.About 75 recruits, from the county Sheriff’s Department and several local police agencies, were running in formation on a street near the Los Angeles suburb of Whittier when an SUV veered onto the wrong side of the road and into the cadets, then crashed into a pole, autho...

Police look to identify suspects in GTA roofing scam investigation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

Police are looking to identify two men as part of an ongoing roofing scam investigation that has targeted homeowners across the GTA.Investigators say the suspects, who claim to be owners of a roofing company called Alfa Masonry, go to homes unsolicited and inform homeowners that emergency roof or chimney repairs are needed. They use pressure tactics to get the homeowner to hire them to do the repairs, negotiating a cash deal in the process.Police say once repairs are started, the men inform the homeowner that further work is required and ask for more money. After receiving the additional cash payment, the duo fail to return to complete the repairs and cease all communication.The first man is described as having a medium build with a short black beard. He was last seen wearing a black and white plaid jacket, light blue jeans and a grey hat with a black brim.The second man is also described as having a medium build with blond hair and a short blond beard. He was last seen wearing a bl...

Chicago police officer charged, relieved of police powers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:39:20 GMT

CHICAGO — A Chicago Police Department officer is charged after reportedly hitting an eighth grader while off-duty.Craig Lancaster, 55, is now facing felony aggravated battery charges. MORE INFO: Off-duty CPD officer under investigation after shoving 8th grader The police department said he has been relieved of his police powers.School surveillance video from Gresham Elementary shows the officer striking a 14-year-old boy last May.The video does not show the teen interacting with Lancaster before the incident. Lancaster will make his first court appearance next week.