Son leaves home at last
The 30-year-old man whose eviction from his parents’ home was ordered by a judge has finally left, with US$3000 ($4296) help from right-wing radio host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. Michael Rotondo honked and waved to reporters as he pulled out of the driveway of his parents’ home in Camillus, New York.
Fire fraudster jailed
A fraudster who masqueraded as the son of a Grenfell Tower fire victim has been sentenced to 18 months’ prison. Mohammad Gamoota, 31, claimed his father died in the London blaze so he could get £7000 ($13,376) in aid. Gamoota, who researched news about the 72 victims to bolster his claims, was told by Judge Robin Johnson “any right-minded person would look on your behaviour with utter revulsion”.
Dead dog accused
Director Martin Scorsese’s dead dog Desmond has been accused in a New York lawsuit of attacking a nurse and leaving her unable to work for two years. Natara Matias says in her lawsuit that the terrier bit her at the Scorseses’ townhouse in 2015 and she fell, hurting her neck and back. The Scorseses have denied any negligence.
Tissue wraps up serial murders
DNA from a tissue in a rubbish bin led authorities in April to arrest a former police officer suspected of being California’s notorious, elusive Golden State Killer. Documents released by a judge at the request of news outlets detail the case investigators pieced together to obtain arrest and search warrants for 72-year-old Joseph DeAngelo. He is facing murder charges in multiple counties and is suspected of committing at least a dozen killings and roughly 50 rapes in the 1970s and ’80s.
Lettuce bacteria kills
Five people have died in a major E. coli outbreak in the US involving romaine lettuce, with 197 cases reported in 35 states. It is the largest US outbreak of E. coli since 200 people fell ill in 2006.
New Italian PM
Italy will finally get a new Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, after an inconclusive election on March 4. After being sworn in this weekend, the Government will face confidence votes in both Houses of Parliament, where the coalition allies — the far-right League and the antiestablishment 5-Star Movement — have clear majorities.
Spain PM ousted
Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has been ousted after a bruising twoday debate and a no-confidence vote in Parliament, brought on by a slush-fund scandal swirling around his party. The two-term, centre-right Rajoy will be replaced by the opposition Socialist Party’s leader Pedro Sanchez, who argued that corruption involving the conservative governing party made Rajoy unfit to lead.