In the news

■ Pope Francis, during his weekly blessing from the Vatican, warned against gossip within Catholic church communities and the Vatican bureaucracy, calling it a “plague worse than covid” and saying the devil is the “biggest gossiper” who is seeking to divide the church with his lies.

■ Derek Miller, a special agent with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, will partner with the agency’s newest K-9 agent, Zeus, a 2-year-old yellow Labrador retriever who can sniff out hard drives, flash drives and other electronic storage devices that could hold evidence.

■ Robert Claybrook of St. Charles, Mo., pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and armed criminal action and was sentenced to 25 years in prison for the killing of James Watson, a friend of Claybrook’s, over a $25 marijuana debt, according to court documents.

■ Nick Moutos, an assistant attorney general in Texas who ran for Congress this year, has lost his job after reports surfaced of him describing Black Lives Matter protesters as terrorists and promoting the QAnon conspiracy theory on Twitter.

■ David Burkette, 63, a former Alabama state senator who resigned last week, was arrested on charges of violating the state’s Fair Campaign Practices Act during his run for the Montgomery City Council five years ago, according to the Alabama attorney general.

■ Lisa Campbell, the senior executive of Veterans Affairs Canada, has been announced as the first female president in the 31year history of the Canadian Space Agency, which is responsible for managing all of Canada’s civil space-related activities.

■ Irene Donoshaytis, 65, a white woman from Northfield, Ill., is facing a felony hate crime charge after a confrontation with three Black people who were riding bicycles near a pier along Lake Michigan in Winnetka, according to authorities.

■ Matt Thompson, the chief zoological officer at the Memphis Zoo, said he will miss the “calm, steady presence” of Tyranza, the oldest African elephant in North America, who died at the age of 56 in hospice after a dramatic decline in health.

■ Benjamin Harter, 81, a pastor at a Baptist church in Sandy Springs, Ga., was sentenced to five years in prison and another 15 years of probation after pleading guilty to three counts of child molestation, according to the Forsyth County district attorney’s office.