Subject:

From To Subject: - u is airs ews rie mg on ay, c o er 26, 2020 Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2020 10:27:36 +0000 c Importan e: Normal Mobile version and searchable archives available at fbi.bulletinintelligence.com. News Briefing TO: THE DIRECTOR AND SENIOR STAFF DATE: MONDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2020 6:30 AM EDT TODAY'S TABLE OF CONTENTS LEADING THE NEWS • Police Departments Preparing For Potential Election Day Unrest. PROTESTS • Trump Supporters And Opponents Clash In New York's Times Square. • Most Black Lives Matter Demonstrations Have Been Peaceful. • Seattle Office Of Police Accountability: Seattle Officers Utilized Excessive Force Against Protestors. • Illinois Officer Fired After Shooting And Killing Black Man. • WPost Al Discusses Mother's Struggle To Get Help For Black, Mentally III Son Amid Pandemic, Racial Unrest. • Black Journalists Who Worked With Vogue Editor In Chief Wintour Feel She Created Environment That Sidelined Black Women. • DO): Boogaloo Bois Member Fired On Minneapolis Police Precinct. • FBI Arrests White Supremacist Who Allegedly Targeted BLM Founder. • WPost Al: Experts Increasingly Cite Systemic Racism As Cause Of Some Racial Disparities In US. • Alabama Voters Have Chance To Eliminate Racist Language From State Constitution. OPERATION LEGEND • Myrtle Beach, South Carolina To Receive Federal Grant To Fight Gun Crime. COUNTER-TERRORISM • Michigan Judge Slashes Bond For Man Linked To Whitmer Kidnap Plot. • CSIS: White Supremacists Responsible For Majority Of US Terrorist Attacks This Year. • Man Receives 20-Year Prison Sentence For Purchasing Firearms Used In 2015 Terror Attack In California. • Ninth Circuit Dismisses Key Terrorism Charge For California Man. • UK Special Forces Storm Vessel In Suspected Hijacking. • Afghanistan Claims Top Al-Qaida Propagandist Wanted By FBI Was Killed. • Guantanamo Bay Not Closing Despite Lack Of Population Growth Under Trump. • Bloomberg Analysis: French Interior Minister Now "Public Face Of A Crackdown Whipping Up Sentiment Against The Broader Muslim Community." EFTA00148491 • Spokesman Says Houthis Targeted Airports, Base In Saudi Arabia. • At Least Six Children Die In Cameroon During Attack On School. • Trump Marks 37th Anniversary Of Terrorist Attack In Beirut. • US Embassy In Turkey Warns Of Potential Terrorist Attacks. COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE • Sen. Johnson: FBI Interviewed Hunter Biden's Former Partner. • Russian Bankers Ask Judge To Depose Steele Dossier Source Danchenko. • Judge Orders DOJ To Verify Filings In Flynn Case. • CISA Contradicting Trump's Attempts To Question Election. • Cuccinelli Addresses Foreign Interference In US Election. • Ransomware Attack On Georgia County Government Disables Voter Signature Database. • O'Brien Says Hackers Can't Change Votes. • Voters Urged To Be Careful When Opening Election-Related Mail. • Editorial: Americans Must Brave Outside Attacks On Elections And Vote. • FBI Alerted After Online Video Implies Maryland Election Judge Improperly Marked Ballot. • Cybersecurity Experts Concerned Over Threat Of Disinformation From Within US. • Continuing Coverage: DOD, ODNI Release Intel Budget Requests For FY21. • Kremlin Laments US Election Campaigns' Focus On Dislike For Russia. • US Imposes Sanctions On Russian Government Research Center Involved In 2017 Cyberattack. • Report: Russian Scientists Were In Contact With Military Science Institute Developing Novichok Nerve Agent. CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS • Maxwell's Attorneys: US Prosecutors Not Honoring Promise To Supply Evidence. • Teenager Sentenced To Time In Juvenile Facility, Probation For Plotting Attack On Black Church. • California Prosecutors To Again Seek Death Penalty For Peterson. • NXIVM Leader Speaks Ahead Of Sentencing. • Teen Plotted To Assassinate Joe Biden, Federal Authorities Say. • Former Ohio City Councilman Arrested On Human Trafficking Charges. • FBI Investigating Border Patrol Officer-Involved Shooting. • Illinois Police Department Fires Officer Who Killed Black Teen As FBI Joins Shooting Investigation. • FBI Investigating "Ambush Style" Killing On Crow Reservation In Montana. • FBI Set To Release New Information On 1981 New York Cold Case. • Nearly $100K In Narcotics Seized In Florida Operation. • FBI Releases Photo Of Florida Bank Robbery Suspect. • Six California Gang Members Indicted On Federal Charges. • California Man Faces Federal Child Pornography Charges. • Texas Woman Gets 17 Years In Federal Prison For Bank Robberies. • Alleged California Gang Members To Stand Trial On Multiple Attempted Homicide Charges. • Man In Custody After Allegedly Abducting Daughters, Two Boys Found Dead. • Former Ohio Priest Charged With Sex Trafficking Of A Minor. • Texas Man Charged With Sexual Assault Of Child. FINANCIAL CRIME & CORPORATE SCANDALS • Judge Orders Securities Fraud Case Against Texas Attorney General To Move To Paxton's Home County. • Attorneys For LA Lawmaker To Challenge Federal Court's Grand Juror Selection Methods. • US Charges Costa Rican Man In $1M Lottery Tax Scam. CYBER DIVISION EFTA00148492 • US Sanctions Russian Government Research Institution For Cyberattacks Against Key Infrastructure Of Allies. • Louisiana National Guard Called In To Prevent Cyberattacks Weeks Prior To Election. • Bipartisan Bill Would Help National Guard Support States' Cybersecurity Modernization. • French Court Asks Microsoft To Guarantee Safeguards Against Sharing Health Data With US. • Kushner's "Close Friend" Charged With Cyberstalking. LABORATORY • Police Say Body Found In Missouri Creek Was Missing Social Worker. LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES • When Jury Trials In DC Superior Court Will Resume Still Uncertain. • Proponents Of Now-Passed Virginia Sentencing Measure Feel Bill Will Have Transformational Impact. • Springfield, Massachusetts Police Working To Repair Relationship With FBI. INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS • After Arrest Of Former Defense Minister On Drug Charges, Mexico's President Shifts Some Blame To US Officials. OTHER FBI NEWS • Trump Plans To Fire Wray, Haspel, Esper If He Is Reelected. OTHER WASHINGTON NEWS • Senate Votes 51-48 On Cloture, Setting Barrett Up For Monday Confirmation. • Pence To Continue Campaigning Even After Top Staffers Test Positive. • Fauci Says Effectiveness Of Vaccines Will Be Evident By Early December. • Trump, Administration Officials Defend Response To Coronavirus. • Whitmer: Trump's Plans For Rally In Lansing Is "Recipe For Disaster." • Administration Cancels Plan To Offer Santa Impersonators Early Access To Vaccine. • US Records "Biggest Two-Day Surge" In Coronavirus Cases. • Native Americans "Disproportionately" Impacted By COVID Ahead Of Election Day. • False Positives Having "Serious Consequences" In Some Communities. • Protesters Burn Masks In Pushback Against Restrictions. • Green Bay "Noticeably Subdued" Despite Football's Return. • Fox's Baier, MacCallum, Perino Advised To Quarantine. • Biden Tweet From 2019 Warning Of Pandemic Trends On Anniversary Of Post. • Pelosi "Optimistic" About Coronavirus Relief Bill Before Election. • DO) Lawsuit Against Google Targets Agreement With Apple. • Senators Request IG Investigation Of CBP's Warrantless Utilization Of Cellphone Location Data. • USA Today Analysis: Under Administration, Refugees Must Wait Longer To Receive Visas. • Undocumented Farmworker Died After Experiencing Brutal Treatment During Arrest. • Tropical Storm Zeta Strengthens In Caribbean. • Kushner, Ivanka Trump Threaten To Sue Over Lincoln Project Billboards. • State Department Confirms It Has Suspended Diversity Programs. • Pelosi Says She Plans To Seek Another Term As Speaker. • High Winds Increase California Wildfire Risk. • State Department Suspends Diversity Training Following Trump Executive Order. • WPost Analysis: Trump Has "Presided Over A Norm-Shattering Expansion Of Private Interests In Government." • WPost Al: Trump Has Made Sustained "Assault" On Civil Service. • NYTimes Al: Trump's Financial Records "Cast Doubt" On Philanthropic Claims. EFTA00148493 • WPost Analysis: Trump Has To Pay Off $400M In Loans By 2024. INTERNATIONAL NEWS • European Countries Impose New Restrictions Amid Second Wave Of COVID Cases. • Colombia Passes 1M Confirmed Coronavirus Cases. • Malaysia's King Rejects PM's Proposal To Declare COVID State Of Emergency. • Iraqis Protest A Year After Demonstrations That Toppled Government. • As Peace Talks Continue, Taliban Fighters Stage Attacks Across Afghanistan. • Trump Announces Sudan Will Recognize Israel. • Meadows Predicts More Middle East Peace Deals. • Pompeo, Esper To Reinforce Trump's Anti-China Message In India. • WPost Analysis: Putin has Benefitted From Trump's Time In Office. • Thousands Of Belarusians Protest, Demanding Lukashenko's Resignation. • Armenia, Azerbaijan Agree To Cease-Fire. • Polish Protesters Disrupt Church Services After Tightening Of Abortion Law. • France Withdraws Its Ambassador To Turkey. • Chileans Vote To Draft A New Constitution. • Venezuelan Opposition Leader Arrives In Madrid. • Fiftieth Country Ratifies Treaty On The Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. • WPost Urges Openness About Invisible Attacks On US Diplomats, Intel Officers. THE BIG PICTURE • Headlines From Today's Front Pages. WASHINGTON'S SCHEDULE • Today's Events In Washington. LEADING THE NEWS Police Departments Preparing For Potential Election Day Unrest. The Washington Post (10/24, Berman, 14.2M) reports that "police departments across the country are bracing for Election Day, mobilizing officers as they prepare for the possibility of voter intimidation, unrest or violence." Though law enforcement agencies typically prepare "for elections, officials say this year's preparations are unusually extensive because of the sheer levels of anxiety and toxicity across the country - with fears that a modern American election could give way to potential violence." Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Deputy Chief Andrew Walsh said, "I don't think we've seen anything like this in modern times." Meanwhile, Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown said, "We are all in conversations with our counterparts across the country about what we might expect. But everything is uncertain. And so we're trying as best we can to anticipate any hazard that might happen." The Wall Street Journal (10/24, Subscription Publication, 7.57M) reports that according to law enforcement officials and business leaders, the New York Police Department has told Midtown Manhattan businesses to take extra security measures due to the possibility of protests surrounding the presidential election. Americans Purchasing "Tactical Apparel" Ahead Of Election. Bloomberg (10/23, Robison, Adams-Heard, 4.73M) says, "Conflict is on America's streets in 2020, and 'tactical apparel' has become a lifestyle industry serving militarized law-enforcement agents and the freelance gunmen who emulate them. Less than two weeks before Election Day, orders are rolling in." Bloomberg adds that since last year, Internet orders have propelled "a 20-fold jump in sales of goods like the $220 CM-6M gas mask - resistant to bean-bag rounds - for Mira Safety of Austin, Texas." Regarding his new customers, Mira Safety founder Roman Zrazhevskiy EFTA00148494 said, "They think that no matter who wins, Biden or Trump, there are going to be people who are upset about the result." Minnesota AG Probing Firm Accused Of Recruiting Armed Guards For Election Day. NBC News (10/23, Wong, 6.14M) reports, "Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced on Tuesday that his office launched an investigation into a private security company that has been accused of recruiting armed security guards for Election Day, saying that such an effort would intimidate voters." Atlas Aegis "is accused of posting since-deleted advertisements on Facebook for U.S. military Specials Operations personnel to guard polling sites in Minnesota on Election Day, according to a lawsuit filed by the Council on American-Islamic Relations of Minnesota (CAIR) and the League of Women Voters of Minnesota." Poll: More Than Two In Five Ready To Question Legitimacy Of Election Result. Reuters (10/25, Kahn) reports that a Reuters/Ipsos poll of 2,649 likely voters (10/13-10/20) shows that 43% of supporters of Joe Biden would not accept a victory by President Trump as legitimate, "while 41% of Americans who want to re-elect Trump would not accept a win by Biden. Smaller portions would take action to make their displeasure known: 22% of Biden supporters and 16% of Trump supporters said they would engage in street protests or even violence if their preferred candidate loses." Several outlets look at the possibility of conflict and even violence in the wake of the election. The Wall Street Journal (10/25, Horwitz, Seetharaman, Subscription Publication, 7.57M) reports Facebook has prepared internal tools designed for use in what it calls "at-risk" countries for use in the US. The Philadelphia Inquirer (10/25, Orso, 347K) reports progressive organizations in Philadelphia progressive "are planning 'mass action' and preparing protests for the days after the Nov. 3 election in the event of coordinated voter intimidation, mail-in ballot invalidation, or other electoral discord." The Seattle Times (10/25, 935K) reports officials across the US "are preparing for the prospect that this year's long, hot summer of unrest won't end" with the election. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas (D), on CBS' Face The NationVi (10/25, 2.68M), said, "Particularly in communities of color, particularly communities where you see voter intimidation tactics work, I'm concerned about something in Missouri called 'poll challengers.' They can stand there when you're checking in and say this person shouldn't be voting today because of someone who was turned away recently because of a snafu, that could be a real barrier perhaps for somebody who is going out to vote for the first time." Marc Fisher of the Washington Post (10/25, 14.2M) writes, "One week before Americans choose their path forward, the quadrennial crossroads reeks of despair. In almost every generation, politicians pose certain elections as the most important of their time. But the 2020 vote takes place with the country in a historically dark mood - low on hope, running on spiritual empty, convinced that the wrong outcome will bring disaster." At Least 58.6M Have Voted So Far. The AP (10/25, Riccardi, Kastanis) reports, "With nine days before Election Day, more people already have cast ballots in this year's presidential election than voted early or absentee in the 2016 race as the start of in-person early voting in big states led to a surge in turnout in recent days." At least 58.6 million ballots have been cast so far. Democrats "have continued to dominate the initial balloting, but Republicans are narrowing the gap. GOP voters have begun to show up as early in-person voting, a sign that many heeded [Trump's] unfounded warnings about mail-voting fraud." On ABC World News TonightVi (10/25, story 2, 3:20, Llamas, 4.45M), Stephanie Ramos reported that this weekend saw "early voting breaking voter turnout records across the country. More than 93,000 voters turned out to the polls on the first day of early voting" in New York City, where "massive lines stretched for blocks, with voters determined to make their ballot count." The CBS Weekend NewsVi (10/25, story 5, 2:55, Yuccas, 9.26M) reported on absentee votes being cast by Americans outside the US. Texas Supreme Court Stays Order Blocking Abbott's Limit On Ballot Dropoff Sites. The Dallas Morning News (10/25, 946K) reports the Texas Supreme Court has stayed a EFTA00148495 lower court's order that had blocked an order by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) "limiting counties to one mail ballot drop-off site. The decision followed a ruling Friday by Texas' Austin-based Third Court of Appeals that had upheld a state judge's order blocking Abbott's order. The state had appealed the Third Court of Appeals order." The state Supreme Court "was still reviewing whether to take further action in the case and ordered both sides to file their responses by 5 p.m. Monday." Reuters (10/23, Brice) reports the Texas 3rd Court of Appeals on Friday "ruled the Republican governor cannot limit drop-off sites for mail ballots to one per county, a setback for U.S. President Donald Trump." The court concurred with a "lower court that limiting the number of drop boxes would increase the risk that voters could get infected with COVID-19, and would infringe on their right to vote." Texas Gov. Greg Abbott "has informed the voting rights groups who oppose his move to limit drop boxes that he intends to quickly appeal Friday's ruling to the Texas Supreme Court, effectively delaying the re-opening of ballot drop-off locations." Boston Ballot Dropbox Set On Fire. The Boston Globe (10/25, 972K) reports, "A ballot drop box outside the Boston Public Library was set on fire early Sunday morning, according to state and city officials, who say it appears to be a deliberate, criminal attack and called it a 'disgrace to democracy." The fire "was set around 4 a.m. in the Copley Square drop box." Pennsylvania Supreme Court: Mail-In Ballots Can't Be Rejected Over Signature Discrepancy. Reuters (10/23, Pitas) reports Pennsylvania's Supreme Court "ruled on Friday that mail-in ballots cannot be refused because a voter's signature does not appear to match the one on file, a decision that could help Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden." The court ruled, "(We) hold that county boards of elections are prohibited from rejecting absentee or mail-in ballots based on signature comparison conducted by county election officials or employees, or as the result of third-party challenges based on signature analysis and comparisons." According to Reuters, "Democrats hailed the move while Republicans were critical." Voter Advocates Drop Suit Against Ohio Rule Limiting Drop Boxes. The AP (10/23, Smyth) reports that "a coalition of voter advocacy groups dropped a lawsuit Friday against Ohio's strict rule limiting ballot drop boxes to one location per county, a coup for President Donald Trump's reelection campaign in a key battleground state." The A. Philip Randolph Institute, the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, and the League of Women Voters of Ohio "made the decision after the federal appellate court in Cincinnati set a timetable last week that pushed further activity in the case past Election Day." Ohio ACLU Legal Director Freda Levenson "said that would 'obviously be too late." PROTESTS Trump Supporters And Opponents Clash In New York's Times Square. The New York Times (10/25, Southall, 18.61M) reports, "Political tensions over the upcoming presidential election escalated on New York City's streets on Sunday, as supporters of President Trump clashed with counterprotesters during a day of demonstrations." As a "pro-Trump caravan" organized by "a group that identifies itself as Jews for Trump" passed through Times Square, it "converged with a group of anti-Trump protesters who had marched from Brooklyn. The cars in the convoy were then blocked by counterprotesters, and some drivers got out of their cars to confront the anti-Trump demonstrators." The clashes "came as the Police Department was preparing for more possible unrest." In Brooklyn, one police officer "used a police loudspeaker to voice support for the president while arguing with a man on the street." The officer "was suspended without pay on Sunday after videos of the incident went viral on social media." The New York Daily News (10/25, Annese, 2.52M) reports that during the Times Square clash, "protesters hollered curses at former mayor Rudy Giuliani," who said he "wasn't part of EFTA00148496 the 'Jews for Trump' caravan" but was on his way home from a radio appearance. The New York Post (10/25, Celona, Moore, Fitz-Gibbon, 4.57M) also reports on the Giuliani incident. Most Black Lives Matter Demonstrations Have Been Peaceful. In an approximately 4,500 word piece, USA Today (10/24, 10.31M) reports that President Trump "and his supporters continue to warn voters that big cities run by Democrats are 'going to hell' due to violence associated with Black Lives Matter protests that erupted nationwide this summer in the wake of a series of police killings of Black Americans." However, those who reside "and work in those cities say the president is either terribly misinformed or lying." Though cities throughout the nation have seen murders and shootings significantly increase, "the vast majority of demonstrations associated with the Black Lives Matter movement have been non-violent." USA Today goes on to feature comments from residents of Portland, Milwaukee, Chicago, Detroit, and Louisville regarding how their cities have been impacted by protests. Demonstrators Arrested Following Floyd's Death Were Charged Mostly With Nonviolent Offenses. In an approximately 3,000 word piece, the Washington Post (10/23, 14.2M) reported that demonstrators arrested following George Floyd's death "were a diverse, young group of people who demonstrated close to home and were charged largely with nonviolent crimes, according to a...Post review of data on more than 2,600 people detained in 15 cities." The data belies suggestions by the President as well as "other officials that those who took to the streets were mostly agitators from out-of-town." According to the Post's review, the vast "majority arrested in those 15 cities - 2,059 of the 2,652 - were accused of nonviolent misdemeanors, most on charges of violating curfew or emergency orders." LAPD Reports Indicate Most Floyd Protests Were Nonviolent. Under the headline "LAPD Reports Show That The Vast Majority Of George Floyd Protests Were Peaceful," the Los Angeles Times (10/23, 4.64M) says, "Field reports from Los Angeles police commanders at protests across the city this summer indicate that between 6% and 7% resulted in violence, destruction or serious uses of force by police, according to the LAPD." Most events that occurred in the timeframe "reviewed - May 25 to July 31 - were peaceful." Seattle Office Of Police Accountability: Seattle Officers Utilized Excessive Force Against Protestors. The Hill (10/24, 2.98M) reports the Seattle Office Of Police Accountability "found that police officers in the city used excessive force during some encounters with protesters amid multiple Black Lives Matter demonstrations over the summer." The office made public five finished probes "into the conduct of the Seattle Police Department in its handling of protests in the city that began in late May following the death of George Floyd." The Hill adds that OPA "said in a press release that it has been contacted more than 19,000 times about officers' conduct at these demonstrations since May 30 and has opened 126 investigations." Illinois Officer Fired After Shooting And Killing Black Man. The New York Times (10/24, Cramer, 18.61M) reports, "An Illinois police officer who shot and killed a 19-year-old Black man who was sitting in a car that was reversing toward the officer has been fired, according to the police." The Times adds that "the officer, who has not been publicly identified, was fired on Friday night, three days after the shooting, said Wayne Wailes, the chief of police in Waukegan, Ill." In a statement on Friday, Walles said, "The City of Waukegan terminated the officer that discharged his firearm during that incident, for multiple policy and procedure violations." Meanwhile, the Illinois State Police "said on Thursday that they were investigating the killing of the man, Marcellis Stinnette." The CBS Weekend NewsVi (10/24, story 5, 0:21, Yuccas, 2.08M) reported that Stinnette's girlfriend, who was driving the car, was wounded. EFTA00148497 WPost Al Discusses Mother's Struggle To Get Help For Black, Mentally Ill Son Amid Pandemic, Racial Unrest. In an approximately 4,500 word front-page piece, the Washington Post (10/24, Al, 14.2M) highlights a Georgia mothers struggle to get help for her 11-year-old son, who's Black and mentally ill, amid both the pandemic and increasing racial unrest. Black Journalists Who Worked With Vogue Editor In Chief Wintour Feel She Created Environment That Sidelined Black Women. A roughly 3,800 word New York Times (10/24, Lee, 18.61M) piece says that "Black journalists who have worked with" Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour, "speaking on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retribution, said they had not gotten over their experiences at a magazine whose workplace mirrored its exclusive pages." Many of the individuals the Times interviewed "said the racism they encountered was usually subtle, but sometimes blunt. Their main accusation was that Ms. Wintour created a work environment - and there is no facet of Vogue that she does not control — that sidelined and tokenized women of color, especially Black women." DO3: Boogaloo Bois Member Fired On Minneapolis Police Precinct. The Minneapolis Star Tribune (10/23, 1.04M) reports that "in the wake of protests" after George Floyd's killing, "a member of the Boogaloo Bois opened fire on the Minneapolis Police Third Precinct with an AK-47-style gun and screamed 'Justice for Floyd' as he ran away, according to a federal complaint made public Friday." Ivan Harrison Hunter, "a 26-year-old from Boerne, Texas, is charged with one count of interstate travel to incite a riot for his alleged role in ramping up violence during the protests in Minneapolis on May 27 and 28." Charges indicate that Hunter "shot 13 rounds at the south Minneapolis police headquarters while people were inside. He also looted and helped set the building ablaze, according to the complaint, which was filed Monday under seal." The Washington Post (10/23, Bailey, 14.2M) reports, "According to a federal criminal complaint filed Monday but made public Friday," Hunter, of Bourne, Texas, "traveled to Minneapolis after Floyd's death and was captured on surveillance video May 28 firing 13 rounds from an AK-47 into the precinct building as it was overtaken by protesters. According to the complaint, Hunter fired his gun and allegedly shouted, 'Justice for Floyd!" Hunter "was charged with traveling across state lines to participate in a riot and made his first court appearance Friday in San Antonio, according to Erica MacDonald, the U.S. attorney for the District of Minnesota, whose office is handling the case." CNN (10/23, Campbell, 83.16M) reports, "According to a federal criminal affidavit, Hunter was present between May 27-28 at the Minneapolis Police Department's Third Precinct when the building was set on fire during protests. The FBI said it obtained video that showed Hunter firing 13 rounds from an AK-47 style rifle into the Third Precinct while people were inside the building." Hunter "returned to Texas after the Third Precinct incident, and 'made various statements on social media describing the violence in which he engaged in Minneapolis,' according to the affidavit." CNN adds, "In the charging documents, the FBI alleged that Hunter was also associated with Steven Carrillo - another adherent of the Boogaloo Bois movement who is charged with killing two law enforcement officers in California in late May and early June." The Hill (10/23, Castronuovo, 2.98M) reports, "Federal officials wrote in the complaint that another individual charged in connection with the incident who is cooperating with authorities said that Hunter was the one who fired shots outside the precinct, which authorities later corroborated with several social media posts. Upon returning to Texas, Hunter made several posts about the event and on May 30, Hunter reportedly sent a message to another individual stating, 'I set fire to that precinct with the black community,' followed by 'Minneapolis third precinct,' according to the legal documents. On May 31, Hunter sent a message to another EFTA00148498 individual, saying, 'My mom would call the fbi if she knew what I do and at the level I'm at w[ith] it." ABC News (10/23, 2.97M) reports, "Hunter is the third 'Boogaloo Bois' member to face federal charges for his role in the Minneapolis riots, along with Michael Solomon and Benjamin Teeter - who were previously indicted on charges of conspiracy to provide material support for a foreign terrorist organization. All three were communicating and coordinating their movements regularly through the night of the riots, according to the FBI affidavit." The San Francisco Chronicle (10/24, Williams, 2.67M) reports, "Carrillo, 32, is accused of spraying bullets across a guard shack in front of the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland on May 29, killing David Patrick Underwood, a federal security officer from Pinole, and wounding another person. One week after the Oakland shooting, the Air Force sergeant allegedly ambushed deputies in Santa Cruz County who were responding to reports of a van containing guns and bomb-making materials. Sgt. Damon Gutzwiller, 38, was killed and several other deputies were wounded." Authorities "said Hunter and Carrillo had been messaging each other on Facebook before, during and after the Oakland and Minneapolis shootings. About four hours after the shooting that killed Underwood, Hunter messaged Carrillo, 'go go go,' according to the court documents." BuzzFeed News (10/24, Hernandez) and the Daily Beast (10/23, Weil, 1.39M) also report. FBI Arrests White Supremacist Who Allegedly Targeted BLM Founder. Black Entertainment Television (10/23, 893K) reports, "Alicia Garza, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, revealed on Twitter today (October 23) that she was told by the FBI of a possible white supremacist plot against her." BET adds, "Garza shared that agents from the bureau visited her to inform her that they had arrested a suspected white supremacist who was armed and has her name 'on a list."They arrested a man in Idaho on weapons charges who they believe was affiliated with white supremacist groups,' Garza tweeted. 'They found my name on a list in his home, alongside others." WPost Al: Experts Increasingly Cite Systemic Racism As Cause Of Some Racial Disparities In US. In a front-page article, the Washington Post (10/22, Al, Samuels, 14.2M) reports experts "are increasingly pointing to...systemic racism" as the cause of racial disparities in the US that relate to health and certain kinds of deaths. The article says Black men in the US "are twice as likely as White men to die of a cocaine overdose, twice as likely to be killed by police and...10 times as likely to" be murdered. Study: Black Individuals Arrested For Misdemeanors At Higher Rates Than Other Racial Groups. The Washington Post (10/23, Mettler, 14.2M) reports, "People of color are still disproportionately arrested on misdemeanors in Prince George's even though the rate of enforcement for such lower-level charges has decreased in the Maryland county and across six other large jurisdictions over the past 10 years, according to a new national study from the Data Collaborative for Justice at John Jay College." The study "draws on data collected from agencies between the early 2000s and the late 2010s in New York, Louisville, Los Angeles, Seattle, Durham, N.C., St. Louis and the D.C. suburb of Prince George's." According to the Post, "The key findings, including that Black people were arrested for misdemeanors at the highest rate of any racial group, come as government leaders and law enforcement officials nationwide face mounting pressure to reform criminal justice and policing." Alabama Voters Have Chance To Eliminate Racist Language From State Constitution. The AP (10/23, Reeves) reports Alabama voters once more have an opportunity to eliminate "the racist language of Jim Crow from the state's constitution, which was approved in 1901 to enshrine white supremacy as state law." Prior efforts to remove "the offensive phrases have failed," and though "organized opposition to the measure" hasn't materialized this time, there is EFTA00148499 concern "that conservative backlash to the Black Lives Matter movement could quash the proposal, which qualified for the ballot months before the nationwide demonstrations that" followed George Floyd's killing. The AP adds, "A measure on the Nov. 3 ballot would allow the state to recompile its 119-year-old constitution in a process supporters say would remove a lingering stain from the state's era of racial segregation and the legalized oppression of Black people." OPERATION LEGEND Myrtle Beach, South Carolina To Receive Federal Grant To Fight Gun Crime. The Myrtle Beach (SC) Online (10/24, Albert, 47K) reports, "Myrtle Beach will now have help from the federal government in putting violent criminals behind bars. The $265,258 in U.S. Department of Justice funding will be used to hire special prosecutors to try federal firearms cases originating in the Myrtle Beach area, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's office." MBO adds, "The grant comes after a violent end to the summer season in Horry County. Shootings took the lives of a Myrtle Beach police officer, two beloved members of the Racepath community and armed suspects." According to MBO, "A review of FBI and U.S. Census Bureau data shows the violent crime rate in Myrtle Beach outpaces places like Virginia Beach, Va., and Daytona Beach, Fla. It even surpasses cities such as Chicago. The federal grant is part of Operation Legend, an initiative led by the Department of Justice to lower violent crime." rOUNTFP-TFPRORISM Michigan Judge Slashes Bond For Man Linked To Whitmer Kidnap Plot. The AP (10/23) reported from Jackson, Michigan, "A judge on Friday slashed bond from $10 million to $100,000 for a man accused of assisting in a scheme to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and commit other violence against state government." The AP adds, "A defense attorney argued that Pete Musico was kicked out of the group in the early summer because he was too `soft' and wouldn't commit to violence after participating in armed but legal spring rallies at the Capitol. `He was telling them you cannot accomplish what we're trying to accomplish through violence; Kareem Johnson said." Jackson County Judge Michael Klaeren "reduced Musico's bond, clearing the way for him to be released from jail. He must wear a GPS tether." The AP (10/24, Flesher) reports from Traverse City, Michigan, "When members of a Michigan paramilitary group were accused a decade ago of scheming to overthrow the U.S. government, their defense was based largely on one claim: We were all talk, no action. It worked so well that a federal judge took the rare step of dismissing most charges against the extremist group known as Hutaree, without giving the jury a say." The AP adds, "A defense lawyer in that case now represents Ty Garbin, one of six men accused of conspiring to kidnap Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer because of anger over her stay-at-home policies to contain the coronavirus. Again, attorney Mark Satawa contends his client had no intention to carry out the alleged plan, whatever he might have said in recorded or online conversations. `Saying things like `I hate the governor, the governor is tyrannical' ... is not illegal, even if you're holding a gun and running around the woods when you do it,' Satawa told The Associated Press." MLive MI (10/24, Burns, 925K) reports, "The idea that 14 men accused of planning to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer were actually trying to enact a legal citizen's arrest is far-fetched, law experts who spoke with MLive say," but "it's a possible legal defense." Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf, "who criticized Whitmer's coronavirus restrictions during a May 18 Michigan Patriot Rally in Grand Rapids, at which he shared the stage with one of the criminally EFTA00148500 charged suspects, first raised the prospect that this may not have been a kidnapping plot at all. 'It's just a charge, and they say a "plot to kidnap" and you got to remember that; Dar told Fox 17 Grand Rapids' reporter Aaron Parseghian. 'Are they trying to kidnap? Because a lot of people are angry with the governor, and they want her arrested. So are they trying to arrest or was it a kidnap attempt? Because you can still in Michigan, if it's a felony, make a felony arrest." Whitmer Says Several Officials Have Received Death Threats. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D), on Fox News SundayVi (10/25, 1.27M), said, "We are just days since the plot to kidnap and try and kill me was revealed. Fourteen people have been arrested. First, I want to acknowledge the incredible work of the FBI and the Michigan state police. But I also want to acknowledge that rhetoric like this contributes to bringing up the heat. I have asked the White House since April to bring the heat down. That's when the death threats started. We now know that my good friend Mike DeWine, Republican governor of Ohio has been receiving threats. We know the people on both sides of the aisle who are just to do their jobs and save lives, like [NIAID Director] Fauci, have received threats. This kind of rhetoric is anti-American and it seeks to undermine the foundational principles of this country." Fox News (10/25, Blitzer, 27.59M) reports that Whitmer "blamed the Trump administration for rhetoric that she claimed led to a kidnapping plot against her, after the Trump campaign accused her of encouraging attempts on the president's life. 'First I want to acknowledge the incredible work of the FBI and the Michigan State Police,' Whitmer told 'Fox News Sunday' host Chris Wallace, 'but I also want to acknowledge that rhetoric like this contributes to bringing up the heat. I have asked the White House since April to bring the heat down. That's when the death threats started." Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R), on CBS' Face The NationVi (10/25, 2.24M), discussed the degree of harsh rhetoric in the campaign, particularly the "lock her up" chants at the President's rallies. Hutchinson said, "That's not a chant I would ever participate in. You know, we need to have a more civil discourse, even though it's a hotly contested presidential race. We need to lead by example." CSIS: White Supremacists Responsible For Majority Of US Terrorist Attacks This Year. The New York Times (10/24, Gross, 18.61M) says, "White supremacists and other like-minded groups have committed a majority of the terrorist attacks in the United States this year, according to a report by a security think tank that echoed warnings made by the Department of Homeland Security this month." The Times adds that "the report, published Thursday by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, found that white supremacist groups were responsible for 41 of 61 'terrorist plots and attacks' in the first eight months of this year." Man Receives 20-Year Prison Sentence For Purchasing Firearms Used In 2015 Terror Attack In California. The AP (10/23, Dazio, Taxin) reports that "the man who bought two rifles that husband-and- wife assailants used to kill 14 people in a Southern California terror attack" in 2015 received a 20-year prison sentence on Friday. Enrique Marquez Jr "supplied the weapons that Syed Rizwan Farook and Farook's wife, Tashfeen Malik, used on Dec. 2, 2015, to open fire on a meeting and holiday gathering of San Bernardino County employees who worked with Farook. Minutes later, a post on a Facebook page associated with Malik pledged allegiance to the leader of the Islamic State terror group." Farook and Malik "died later that day in a gunbattle with authorities." The Orange County (CA) Register (10/23, Rokos, 546K) reports, "U.S. District Court Judge Jesus G. Bernal said he couldn't hold Marquez legally responsible for the 14 slayings. Authorities have said that Marquez did not know about the plot in advance." Marquez, of Riverside, California, "had been convicted of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and making a false statement on federal firearms-purchase forms: Marquez said the firearms he was buying in 2011 and 2012 were for his use. Instead, he sold them to neighbor Syed Rizwan Farook as part of an aborted plan to wage attacks on motorists on the 91 Freeway and EFTA00148501 at Riverside City College, prosecutors said. By then, Farook had radicalized his longtime friend to Islam." The New York Times (10/23, Levenson, 18.61M) reports, "In pleading guilty, Mr. Marquez had acknowledged making false statements in connection with his role as a `straw buyer' of the rifles, federal prosecutors said." Farook and Malik "were killed in a shootout with the authorities hours after the massacre, which was the worst terrorist attack on American soil since Sept. 11, 2001, federal prosecutors said." Federal prosecutors said Marquez "had admitted in a plea agreement and in open court that he had also plotted with Mr. Farook in 2011 and 2012 to attack Riverside City College and a California freeway. Those attacks were never carried out, but Mr. Marquez had discussed with Mr. Farook using radio-controlled improvised explosive devices for the attacks and bought Christmas tree light bulbs and a container of smokeless powder to use in the devices, federal prosecutors said." The Hill (10/23, 2.98M) reports that Marqez "pleaded guilty in 2017 to conspiracy to provide material support and resources to terrorists, and one count of making false statements in connection with the acquisition of firearms. `This defendant was an active member of a conspiracy that planned to inflict death and destruction on innocent people; First Assistant United States Attorney Tracy Wilkison said in a statement. `By his own admissions, this defendant collaborated with and purchased weapons for a man he definitively knew held radical and anti-American beliefs - and who wanted to kill innocent people." The Wall Street Journal (10/23, Levy, Subscription Publication, 7.57M) also reports. Ninth Circuit Dismisses Key Terrorism Charge For California Man. The San Jose (CA) Mercury News (10/23, Gartrell, 456K) reports from San Francisco, "In a rebuke of a Bay Area federal judge's decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down a terrorism enhancement against a man who was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for opening six Twitter accounts for an undercover agent he believed was a member of ISIL." Amer Alhaggagi "was convicted of `attempting to provide material support' to terrorists simply because he agreed to open social media accounts for the purported member of the Islamic State, known as ISIL and ISIS." Prosecutors asked US District Judge Charles Breyer "to apply a so-called `terrorism enhancement' that made him eligible for up to 20 years. Breyer applied the enhancement and sentenced Alhaggagi to 15 years." The appeals court ruled that the enhancement "did not apply to Alhaggagi's case." UK Special Forces Storm Vessel In Suspected Hijacking. Reuters (10/25, Nicholls) reports, "British special forces stormed a Greek-operated oil tanker in the English channel on Sunday" in a "suspected hijacking." Special forces troops from Special Boat Service "boarded the Nave Andromeda near the Isle of Wight off southern England." UK officials "authorised the armed forces to board the ship `to safeguard life and secure a ship that was subject to suspected hijacking; the defence ministry said." It isn't "clear where the stowaways were from or what their intentions were." British police said, "They had made verbal threats towards the crew. No one has been reported injured." Afghanistan Claims Top Al-Qaida Propagandist Wanted By FBI Was Killed. The AP (10/25) reports, "Afghanistan claimed Sunday it killed a top al-Qaida propagandist," Husam Abd al-Rauf, also known as Abu Muhsin al-Masri, "on an FBI most-wanted list during an operation in the country's east." The move, as well as ongoing violence, "threaten the face-to- face peace talks and risk plunging this nation beset by decades of war into further instability." Afghanistan's National Directorate of Security "claimed on Twitter to have killed him in Ghazni province," then "released a photograph late Sunday afternoon it described as al-Rauf's corpse, which resembled FBI images of the militant leader." According to "Wahidullah Jumazada, a spokesman for the provincial governor in Ghazni...Afghan forces killed six suspected militants in the raid, without acknowledging al-Rauf had been killed." EFTA00148502 Reuters (10/24, Shalizi) reports that NCTC Director Chris Miller "confirmed al-Masri's death in a statement, saying his'removal .. from the battlefield is a major setback to a terrorist organization that is consistently experiencing strategic losses facilitated by the United States and its partners." Miller added the loss "highlights the diminishing effectiveness of the terrorist organization." Bloomberg (10/24, Najafizada, 4.73M) reports, "The U.S. issued a federal arrest warrant in 2018 after he was charged with conspiracy to kill American nationals and providing material support and resources to foreign terrorist organizations," according to the FBI website. The Hill (10/25, Coleman, 2.98M) reports that an Afghan presidential palace statement said the death "proved that the threat of terrorism and the Taliban's links to terrorist networks are still in place." The statement added, "The Taliban should prove to the people, the government of Afghanistan and the international community that they are ending their links with terrorist groups, including al-Qaida." The palace is urging those groups to "stop the war and violence and facilitate a dignified and sustainable peace in the country." Guantanamo Bay Not Closing Despite Lack Of Population Growth Under Trump. The Hill (10/25, Kheel, 2.98M) reports that Guantanamo Bay's "population has not grown" under President Trump, whose Administration "recently celebrated bringing two of the most notorious alleged ISIS fighters to the United States for trial." The detention center "has all but disappeared from either party's talk on the campaign trail as the facility nears 20 years of operations," and remains open. The Administration has, however, brought "27 Americans captured by the SDF back to the United States for prosecution," the DOJ announced this month. Amnesty International's Daphne Eviatar said her group will "definitely try to push a new administration on this." She added the US is "coming on the 20th anniversary of the prison, and I think that people might remember, `Oh my god, this prison is still open. People are still being held indefinitely without charge or trial. This is crazy.' Bloomberg Analysis: French Interior Minister Now "Public Face Of A Crackdown Whipping Up Sentiment Against The Broader Muslim Community." A Bloomberg (10/24, Nussbaum, 4.73M) analysis says that French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin "has vowed to root out extremists after a grisly murder in Paris. In saying he wants to preserve a distinctly French way of life, he risks the perception he's targeting not just Islamists, but all Muslims." Bloomberg adds that Darmanin's "vision for the country includes fewer halal butchers, ethnic clothing stores and even specialist supermarket aisles." While speaking with French television on Tuesday, he said, "It always shocked me to enter a supermarket and see a shelf devoted to the food of one community, and to another one next to it." He also said, "Some people need to understand that winning market share by appealing to basic instincts doesn't necessarily contribute to the common good." According to Bloomberg, Darmanin "has become the public face of a crackdown whipping up sentiment against the broader Muslim community." Spokesman Says Houthis Targeted Airports, Base In Saudi Arabia. Reuters (10/24, Khalek) reports, "The military spokesman for Yemen's Houthi movement said in a tweet on Saturday it had targeted the Jizan and Abha airports and the Khamis Mushait base in Saudi Arabia with drones." Previously on Saturday as well as in a pair of "statements on Friday, the Saudi-led coalition had said it had intercepted and destroyed three explosive-laden drones from the Houthis aimed towards the southern region of Saudi Arabia." Moreover, on Sunday, "the coalition said it had intercepted another drone aimed for the same region." According to Reuters, "The coalition's spokesman did not specify the targets of the drones in the statements on Saudi state news agency SPA." Houthi military spokesman Yahia Sarea tweeted, "The hit was accurate." EFTA00148503 At Least Six Children Die In Cameroon During Attack On School. The New York Times (10/24, 18.61M) reports, "Gunmen killed at least six children and badly wounded about eight others when they opened fire in a school in the city of Kumba in Cameroon's Southwest region on Saturday, officials told Reuters." Officials indicated that secessionist insurgents were behind the attack, "though Reuters was unable to immediately confirm that." Trump Marks 37th Anniversary Of Terrorist Attack In Beirut. President Trump on Friday tweeted, "On the 37th anniversary of the horrendous attack on our United States Marines, Sailors, and Soldiers in Beirut, we honor the 241 heroes who lost their lives that day. We will NEVER forget them. Semper Fi!" US Embassy In Turkey Warns Of Potential Terrorist Attacks. The AP (10/23) reports that the US Embassy in Ankara, Turkey "issued a security alert on Friday, saying it had received reports of a possible coming attack on Americans and other foreigners, and temporarily suspended consular services." According to the AP, the embassy "urged American citizens to exercise caution, including while at large office buildings, shopping malls and other places foreigners gather. It said citizen and visa services would be suspended temporarily at all U.S. consulates in Turkey." The Washington Post (10/23, Fahim, 14.2M) reports that the State Department "issued [the] unusually sharp warning Friday about new threats to U.S. citizens in Istanbul, saying that the U.S. Mission in Turkey has received 'credible reports of potential terrorist attacks and kidnappings' targeting Americans and other foreign nationals." The Post adds, "A Turkish government spokesman said the country's Interior Ministry would release a statement about the security warning later Friday." COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE Sen. Johnson: FBI Interviewed Hunter Biden's Former Partner. The Washington Times (10/23, Scarborough, 492K) reports Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Chairman Ron Johnson on Friday announced the FBI "interview[ed] former Hunter Biden business partner Tony Bobulinski, who came forward on Wednesday to assert that he met with Joseph R. Biden about his son's profitable foreign business ventures." The Wall Street Journal (10/23, Duehren, Areddy, Subscription Publication, 7.57M) reports Bobulinski has alleged that Joe Biden worked with his son to set up an investment firm in partnership with a Chinese state-controlled oil company, although the deal never came to fruition. Republicans Advocate For Investigations Into Hunter Biden Emails. White House Chief of Staff Meadows, on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures (10/25), said, "It's very important because what we see is what most Americans hate about Washington DC: a politician gets elected and they go out and enrich themselves and their family and there's no denying that that's happened here when we start to see the evidence, whether it comes out in the next nine days or the next nine months, Joe Biden will be at the very center of this. He will be a guilty player in all of this and when you start to look at the mounting evidence, whether it is with money laundering or whether it is with a number of witnesses that are now coming forward, Joe's story just doesn't holdup." Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures (10/25), said, "The Vice President is lying, again. Check out page 78 of our report where we show a company, a Chinese company, CEFC, transferred about $5 million to businesses controlled by Hunter Biden. $5 million, so no, he's lying. He's lying about the fact he said he never spoke to his son Hunter about his overseas business connections, flew over to China, had a handshake with Jonathan Li, who ended up being a business partner in BHR, which is that investment firm and we EFTA00148504 documented and talked to the Vice President and the conflict of interest in Ukraine, the Vice President then talked to Hunter to raise a meeting with Amos Hochstein, so the Vice President has been caught in repeated lies over Biden Inc about his family's businesses." RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel, on Fox News SundayVi (10/25, 1.27M), said, "I think that it's incumbent upon the press to start investigating. I think what's frightening is we should have a free and fair press that should be looking at a laptop that has not been disputed by the Biden campaign to be authentic. These emails are deeply troubling as it looks like Hunter Biden is negotiating with a Chinese energy company to profit not just for himself, but for his father, but it warrants an investigation. That's not my job. That's the press' job. That's for the FBI, those who have this laptop, to look into it." Trump 2020 Director of Press Communications Erin Perrine was asked on Fox News' MediaBuzz (10/25, 536K) about conservatives who say making Hunter Biden a top campaign issue is a mistake. Perrine said, "talking about a wide variety of things here but, again, this is the 47 months versus 47 years argument the President's been making the entire time. The reason President Trump is President of the United States is a rejection of the Obama/Biden policies and a corrupt crooked Hillary Clinton Inc. That's why he is President. ... So absolutely, this is going to be part of the conversation even if the media doesn't want to do their job and cover it." Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D), on Fox News SundayVi (10/25, 1.27M), said, "[Joe Biden] has answered these questions. The American people aren't going to be distracted from the fact that this election is about the dinner table issues. The dinnertable issue of 2020 is a Trump administration that has never been able to have a national strategy on COVID. The dinnertable issue is the tens of millions who are unemployed because of the lack of a national strategy around COVID. The dinnertable issue is the fact that so many people are in line at the food pantries across the country because of a lack of national strategy around COVID. That's what we need to be focusing on, because that is life and death for the people of this country and having a President who gets it, who has a plan, who will get us back to work and keep us safe, that's what Joe Biden offers." In her Washington Post (10/25, 14.2M) column, Monica Hesse says the Trump campaign's final strategy "has landed, convolutedly, on the narrative that Hunter Biden is an inconvenient son," but "as a starting place, we might note that Joe Biden's response to all of this has been to love his son." According to Hesse, "Hunter Biden might not be the son America dreams of having. Joe Biden might be the dad." Giuliani Allies Advance His Claims On Hunter Biden. Under the headline "Giuliani's Crew Of Misfits And Hucksters Storms Into The Hunter Biden Wars," the Daily Beast (10/25, Markay, 1.39M) reports that according to "bombastic private investigator" Bo Dietl, former NYPD Commissioner Bernie Kerik, "white shoe attorney" Bobby Costello, and "whistleblower" Bradley Birkenfeld are among "a makeshift team of investigators, cynical political operatives, and loyal Trump boosters who have latched on to the Hunter Biden saga as the miracle cure for the president's re-election woes." Putin Rejects Trump's Criticism Of Hunter Biden's Business In Ukraine, Russia. Reuters (10/25, Osborn) reports Russian President Vladimir Putin "said on Sunday that he saw nothing criminal in Hunter Biden's past business ties with Ukraine or Russia, marking out his disagreement with one of Donald Trump's attack lines in the U.S. presidential election." Reuters adds Putin, "who has praised Trump in the past for saying he wanted better ties with Moscow, has said Russia will work with any U.S. leader, while noting what he called Joe Biden's `sharp anti-Russian rhetoric." WS.7oumal Rejected Effort By White House Allies To Push Hunter Biden Email Story. In a nearly 2,300-word article, the New York Times (10/25, Smith, 18.61M) reports two sources say that in October, three allies of the President met with "straight-shooting" Wall Street Journal White House reporter Michael Bender, to pitch him on writing an article about "a cache of emails detailing Hunter Biden's business activities." According to the Times, "The EFTA00148505 Trump team left believing that The Journal would blow the thing open and their excitement was conveyed to the president." However, the Times adds that as they "waited with excited anticipation for a Journal exposé, the newspaper did its due diligence," and after the New York Post broke the story, ultimately "published a brief item, just the stub of [its) reporting. The core of it was that [Hunter Biden's former business partner Tony Bobulinski) had failed to prove the central claim." Meanwhile, a New York Times (10/25, Lipton, Vogel, Haberman, 18.61M) analysis says "there is no evidence that the former vice president was involved in or profited from a joint venture pursued by his son and brother." However, the Wall Street Journal (10/25, Subscription Publication, 7.57M) editorializes that the press has a progressive bias, as is evident from the response to its reporting on Hunter Biden. The Journal accuses other mainstream media outlets of wrongly using their influence to advance Democrats at the expense of the public. Parnas: Giuliani Was Offered Salacious Documents Belonging To Hunter Biden In Spring 2019. Politico (10/24, Bertrand, 4.29M) reports President Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani "was offered salacious photos and other documents belonging to Joe Biden's son Hunter in the spring of 2019, earlier than previously known, according to one of Giuliani's closest former associates." Moreover, the alleged offer was made by a Ukrainian oligarch seeking assistance "with a potential legal jam." According to Politico, "The claim made by Lev Parnas, a Ukrainian-born businessman who was indicted last year on campaign finance charges, raises new questions about the provenance of the materials Giuliani has said he obtained recently from a computer repair shop in Delaware - and that he is now touting to accuse the Democratic nominee of corruption." Parnas, "who collaborated with Giuliani on the former New York mayor's quest to find damaging information on the Bidens beginning in late 2018, now says that similar materials were being offered to Giuliani just weeks after Joe Biden launched his presidential run." Politico Analysis: MAGA World Attempting "To Conjure Up The Same Event That Helped Them" During 2016 "Home Stretch." A Politico (10/24, Nguyen, 4.29M) analysis says that "MAGA world is trying to conjure up the same event that helped them in the home stretch of 2016 - an out-of-left-field FBI investigation into their opponent." Though "the ingredients are all the same," an FBI probe is not, in the current instance, "supplying the ingredients. Instead, MAGA adherents are sourcing the ingredients and hoping they summon an FBI investigation. And, of course, the new target is Joe Biden, not Hillary Clinton." According to Politico, Giuliani "has obtained a laptop he claims belongs to" Hunter Biden and has given the laptop "to the FBI, claiming it contains emails that show a variety of misdeeds and corruption - even if the emails aren't all verified, don't offer conclusive evidence of the misdeeds and bear the hallmarks of a Russian disinformation effort." In his Washington Post (10/24, 14.2M) column, Max Boot says that while Trump "got himself impeached by trying to blackmail Ukrainian officials into accusing Biden and his son Hunter of wrongdoing," it has not "stopped the right-wing scandal merchants from employing the supposed Hunter Biden emails to malign his father." Boot concludes, "The scandal is not anything that Joe Biden did. It is that Trump is running what may be the sleaziest presidential campaign since the notorious election of 1800 - or possibly ever." Russian Bankers Ask Judge To Depose Steele Dossier Source Danchenko. The Daily Caller (10/25, 716K) reports lawyers for Alfa Bank "asked a federal judge on Friday to order Igor Danchenko, the primary source for the Steele dossier, to appear for a deposition regarding his work on the salacious document." The Daily Caller adds the lawyers "said in a court filing on Friday that Danchenko had rejected a subpoena to appear voluntarily for a deposition in a lawsuit against Fusion GPS, which commissioned the infamous dossier on behalf of the Clinton campaign and DNC." According to the Daily Caller, German Khan, Peter Aven, and EFTA00148506 Mikhail Fridman, the owners of Alfa Bank, "are suing Fusion GPS for defamation over one of the memos from Christopher Steele's 35-page dossier." Judge Orders DO) To Verify Filings In Flynn Case. Politico (10/23, Cheney, 4.29M) reports US District Judge Emmet Sullivan, who is "presiding over the criminal case against former national security adviser Michael Flynn," on Friday "ordered the Justice Department to conduct an unusual review of its filings in the case and certify by Monday whether any have been manipulated." Politico describes the order as "a signal of intense distrust" between Sullivan and the DO), "whose filings are typically accepted at face value." According to Politico, the DO) "acknowledged that two documents it previously filed - handwritten notes taken by former FBI counterintelligence agent Peter Strzok and former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe - were altered `inadvertently' to include inaccurate dates." CISA Contradicting Trump's Attempts To Question Election. The AP (10/24, Fox) reports that a day after President Trump this month "predict[ed] on Twitter that this election would be `the most corrupt' in American history," Christopher Krebs, the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, "an obscure government agency he created," ended an online conference by saying, "I have confidence that your vote is secure, that state and local election officials across this country are working day in and day out, 24/7, that the 2020 election is as secure as possible." According to the AP, CISA "has been offering a counternarrative as it works behind the scenes to not only help safeguard the election but also to reassure the public despite messages to the contrary from the White House." In addition, the Washington Post (10/24, Gardner, Stanley-Becker, Viebeck, 14.2M) reports state and local officials "hastened to reassure Americans this week that the nation's election systems are secure after the country's top intelligence official accused Iran of sending threatening emails to voters in several states and the United States said Russia obtained voter information from at least one county." The Post adds US officials "and cybersecurity experts said the activity did not appear to include penetration of voting systems or access to voter registration databases, or the hacking of equipment that could be tampered with to alter election results." However, Trump on Saturday tweeted, "What a terrible thing for Biden to say! Rigged Election?" He added, "Law Enforcement is watching and involved. So dishonest!" The Washington Post (10/24, Stanley-Becker, Romm, 14.2M) reports election offices nationwide have seen an uptick in questions about the integrity of the election, "including many where residents have routinely voted by mail, said" Weber County Clerk Ricky Hatch (R), "who also chairs the election committee for the National Association of Counties." The Post adds, "In many cases, the worries can be traced to baseless or alarmist statements by President Trump and posts on his Twitter feed. Others have been fed by headlines stripped of context and misleading reporting in the mainstream media, according to election administrators, voting rights advocates and experts in online communication." According to the Post, "The confusion and chaos follow a months-long campaign by Trump and his allies to sow doubt about voting by mail, a method of casting ballots that has been embraced in Democratic- and Republican- leaning states and has grown more popular this year because of the coronavirus pandemic." Meanwhile, the New York Times (10/23, Grady, 18.61M) highlighted a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that "cites lessons learned from Delaware's primary and suggests that voters could use some instruction in the right way to wear a mask." The Times reported that while "many states and cities have imposed safety measures to protect voters and poll workers from exposure to the coronavirus," the CDC on Friday warned that polling places "still have the potential to become `mass gathering events," and it announced "measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 could be improved." CNN (10/23, 83.16M) reports similarly. Bloomberg View: US Election Security Effort Robust Despite President's Public Comments. The editorial board of Bloomberg View (10/25, 4.73M) wrote that the US EFTA00148507 government "has gone to extraordinary lengths to protect this year's election from foreign interference." Last week, for instance, DNI Ratcliffe and FBI Director Christopher Wray "held a joint briefing to warn that Iran and Russia had obtained registration data and (in Iran's case) sent fraudulent emails intended to intimidate voters." On October 15, DOJ "announced the indictment of six Russian intelligence officers who had engaged in politically motivated computer attacks around the world, including one who had previously been charged for the 2016 incident." Behind the scenes, national security agencies "have frozen the assets of foreign hackers, imposed sanctions, revoked visas, knocked spies offline, prevented suspected adversaries from entering the U.S., and worked with social-media companies to take down suspect accounts, all in a preemptive effort to prevent further meddling." The moves are "in marked contrast to the president himself, who has said next to nothing about election interference publicly." Cuccinelli Addresses Foreign Interference In US Election. On the FU Harris Show (10/23), Acting DHS Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli addressed the department's recent report on foreign interference in the election. On the Mike Broomhead Show (10/23), Cuccinelli explained "what information the Russians and Iranians got from us," and sought to reassure "Americans that their votes cannot be changed or negated." Ransomware Attack On Georgia County Government Disables Voter Signature Database. The AP (10/23, Bajak) reports, "A ransomware attack that hobbled a Georgia county government in early October reportedly disabled a database used to verify voter signatures in the authentication of absentee ballots." The ransomware attack marks "the first reported case of" such an attack impacting "an election-related system in the 2020 cycle." The attack on Hall County, which took place on October 7, "hit critical systems and interrupted phone services, the county said in a statement posted on its website." The AP paraphrases a Gainesville Times report as having said that "the attack also disabled the county's voter signature database." Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Georgia Voting System Vulnerable To Cyberattacks. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (10/23, 895K) reports, "Georgia's new electronic voting system is vulnerable to cyberattacks that could undermine public confidence, create chaos at the polls or even manipulate the results on Election Day." While state officials "have dismissed" concerns over "security deficiencies in Georgia's system and in electronic voting in general," a Journal-Constitution investigation "shows...Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger's office weakened the system's defenses, disabling password protections on a key component that controls who is allowed to vote." His office has also "pushed out new software to each of the state's 30,000 voting machines through hundreds of thumb drives that experts say are prone to infection with malware." The Journal-Constitution urges officials to "tell voters to verify their selections on a paper ballot before feeding it into an optical scanner." O'Brien Says Hackers Can't Change Votes. Politico (10/25, Hooper, 4.29M) reports National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien told CBS' Face The NationVi Sunday that Russian hackers who have carried out attacks on state and local governments "can't change votes" in the Nov. 3 elections. Asked if hackers can change votes or make it more difficult to vote, O'Brien said, "No, they can't do either of those things. And we got ahold of them early on because we've got great cyber folks, and we put a stop to it, but there's nothing they can do to change your vote or to stop you from voting." Fox News (10/25, O'Reilly, 27.59M) reports that O'Brien's comments "come just days after U.S. officials said that Russian hackers have targeted the networks of dozens of state and local governments in the United States in recent days, stealing data from at least two servers." The NSA official "tried to assure Americans that the hackers can't change voters or make it harder to cast a ballot." However, he said, "the actor may be seeking access to obtain future disruption EFTA00148508 options, to influence U.S. policies and actions, or to delegitimize (state and local) government entities." Voters Urged To Be Careful When Opening Election-Related Mail. The Detroit Free Press (10/25, 1.52M) urges voters to "be extra cautious when election-related emails swoosh into their inboxes." For instance, voters in some states recently "received threatening emails claiming to be from the far-right, authoritarian group Proud Boys," though those were "part of a disinformation campaign," according to DNI Ratcliffe. Last week, Ratcliffe "Iranian hackers were behind the attack." University of Michigan's director of the Center for Social Media Responsibility, Paul Resnick, said voters should stay alert. He said, "If you're thinking, 'This might be a phishing attack'...You're already halfway to safety." The Free Press also advises voters to check the address and if they suspect something out of the ordinary, to "get an independent verification of the information." Editorial: Americans Must Brave Outside Attacks On Elections And Vote. The editorial board of the San Antonio Express-News (10/23, 762K) writes that a "cyberwar against the U.S." is being waged on the election. Threats such as the recent emails received by voters in multiple states from actors claiming to be far-right extremists "should spark bipartisan concern." The email attack, which has been attributed to Iran, was a "deliberate act to damage America, either by scaring voters or exacerbating existing tensions, and we see a government that should be more transparent with voters about these threats." The editorial board urges voters to "be mindful of these outside attacks, resist their fearmongering and divisiveness, and vote." FBI Alerted After Online Video Implies Maryland Election Judge Improperly Marked Ballot. WUSA-TV Washington (10/23, 98K) reports that the FBI has been alerted to a suspected "intentional disinformation attack this week" in Montgomery County, Maryland, "according to James Shalleck, the President of the County's Board of Elections." A video "showing an election judge marking a mail-in ballot with a pen" was circulated online, though "county elections authorities say [they] are false claims of election fraud." The FBI said its "standard practice is to neither confirm nor deny any investigation, we take all election-related threats seriously, and, we're committed to supporting our election security partners and protecting the American people during the 2020 election season." A Montgomery County investigation "determined the worker seen in the video was filling in a lightly marked mail-in ballot so that it could be accurately read by counting machines, according to elections authorities." Cybersecurity Experts Concerned Over Threat Of Disinformation From Within US. The New York Times (10/25, Niu, Bracken, Eaton, 18.61M) reports that experts "are more concerned with disinformation coming from our very own backyard" than that coming from Russia or other foreign countries. For instance, one man, "with a single tweet, disrupted a governor's race in Kentucky" in 2019. The incident "became one of the most viral pieces of disinformation in an already close election and cast doubt on the results." The Times says the "same pattern is already playing out this year, with the added layer of uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic." Currently, "there is no unified policy from the major tech companies when it comes to combating election misinformation." Continuing Coverage: DOD, ODNI Release Intel Budget Requests For FY21. Bloomberg Government (10/23) reported that DOD and ODNI "released their intelligence budget requests for fiscal 2021 totaling $85 billion earlier this year." The agencies "released enacted 2020 figures Oct. 21, allowing for comparisons and revealing a slight decrease from $85.8 billion total in the fiscal 2021 request." The intelligence budget is "comprised of two EFTA00148509 primary categories, the Military Intelligence Program (MIP) and the National Intelligence Program (NIP)." MIP includes "spending for the intelligence components of the military services as well as some of the funding for intelligence agencies that fall under DOD" such as DIA and NGA. NIP includes funding for agencies such as CIA, "portions of the FBI," INR, "as well as some portion of the DOD-controlled agencies." Kremlin Laments US Election Campaigns' Focus On Dislike For Russia. Reuters (10/23, Antonov) reports, "The Kremlin said on Friday it regretted that US election campaigns seem like competitions for candidates to show how much they dislike Russia, but that it was only up to American voters to pick a new president on Nov. 3." US Imposes Sanctions On Russian Government Research Center Involved In 2017 Cyberattack. The New York Times (10/23, Perlroth, 18.61M) reports that the US on Friday "imposed economic sanctions against a Russian government research organization that was responsible for a potentially deadly cyberattack on a Saudi petrochemical facility in 2017." Though the target was not named, "description of the attack matched with a hacking that year of Petro Rabigh, the Saudi oil giant, that shut off the safety systems that are used to prevent an explosion." The State Research Center of the Russian Institute of Chemistry and Mechanics "built the custom tools used in a spate of 2017 attacks on oil facilities in the Middle East as well as attempted hackings of at least 20 electric facilities in the United States." Officials said the tools had the "capability to cause significant physical damage and loss of life." The 2017 episode "prompted an investigation" by the NSA, FBI, DHS, and "the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, as well as investigators at Schneider, the security firm FireEye's Mandiant security team and Dragos, a security firm that specializes in industrial control security." The Washington Post (10/23, Nakashima, 14.2M) reports, "The Treasury Department's designation of an institute of the State Research Center of the Russian Federation marks the first time the United States has sanctioned hackers for targeting industrial control systems, analysts said." Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, "The Russian Government continues to engage in dangerous cyber activities aimed at the United States and our allies. ... This Administration will continue to aggressively defend the critical infrastructure of the United States from anyone attempting to disrupt it." Assets held by the institute in the US are frozen, "and Americans are barred from engaging in transactions with the lab." Treasury "said in a news release that the use of the Triton malware 'against our partners is particularly troubling given the Russian government's involvement in malicious and dangerous cyber-enabled activities." Also reporting are Reuters (10/24, Satter), Bloomberg (10/23, Mehrotra, 4.73M), and The Hill (10/23, 2.98M). Report: Russian Scientists Were In Contact With Military Science Institute Developing Novichok Nerve Agent. CNN (10/23, Lister, 83.16M) reports, "Bellingcat has uncovered new details about Russia's development of the Novichok nerve agent," which was used against Serge' Skripal in 2018 and Alexey Navalny this year. The investigative group "found frequent contacts between the director of a military science research institute in St. Petersburg and the agents accused of poisoning Skripal and his daughter Yulia with Novichok in the English city of Salisbury in March 2018." The Bellingcat report was published on Friday. It "finds that scientists previously working for the Russian Ministry of Defense 'were dispersed into several research entities which continued collaborating among one another in a clandestine, distributed R&D program." Bloomberg (10/23, Meyer, 4.73M) reports that Bellingcat "said it found close links between two research organizations that allegedly have masterminded the Novichok program since 2010 - the St. Petersburg State Institute for Experimental Military Medicine of the EFTA00148510 Ministry of Defense and the Scientific Center Signal - and a clandestine unit of Russia's GRU military intelligence." Watchdog group the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons "earlier this month confirmed that Navalny was poisoned by a military-grade Novichok nerve- agent on Aug. 20, when he was campaigning for anti-Putin candidates in elections in Russia's Siberia." Putin Purges FSB As He Reiterates Lack Of Involvement In Navalny Poisoning. The Daily Beast (10/23, 1.39M) reports, "President Vladimir Putin vowed on Thursday he would not be swayed by Western pressure over the poisoning" of Alexei Navalny. Still, a "reported mysterious shakeup in a Russian intelligence agency, and other comments by Putin, suggest the Kremlin has been forced to at least try to demonstrate distance between the president and those who might be behind" the poisoning of Putin's "prominent domestic critic." Putin has "declared he had personally allowed Navalny to leave Siberia for Berlin for medical treatment, which saved the opposition leader's life." The Russian President also "fired the deputy director" of FSB, General Sergei Smirnov, "according to a report in a respected business newspaper, RBK." CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS Maxwell's Attorneys: US Prosecutors Not Honoring Promise To Supply Evidence. Bloomberg (10/24, Hurtado, Burnson, 4.73M) reports, "Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyers say U.S. prosecutors are reneging on a promise to provide her with the evidence they've collected in her sex-trafficking case." According to Bloomberg, "The government's failure to provide the evidence makes it impossible for Maxwell to prepare her defense, the British socialite's lawyer Jeffrey Pagliuca said Friday in a letter to U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan." As an illustration, the indictment does not provide exact "dates for when Maxwell committed the alleged crimes, only saying they occurred between 1994 and 1997, Pagliuca said." He wrote, "Neither the indictment nor the discovery inform Ms. Maxwell about critical information necessary to prepare her defense." Teenager Sentenced To Time In Juvenile Facility, Probation For Plotting Attack On Black Church. The Hill (10/24, Pitofsky, 2.98M) reports, "A 17-year-old girl who was accused of plotting an attack against a predominantly Black church was sentenced to four years in a juvenile facility and probation on Thursday." According to The Hill, "The teenager, who is white, was arrested and charged last year after law enforcement officials discovered her alleged plan to attack parishioners of the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Gainesville, Ga., with knives." CNN reported that in a statement, Sixth Episcopal District of the AME Church Presiding Prelate Bishop Reginald Jackson said, "While we are angered and frustrated by this incident, we do not hold hostility against this defendant. While she apparently hates or hated us, we do not hate her, and do not wish to nullify her future, and do not give up on her." California Prosecutors To Again Seek Death Penalty For Peterson. The AP (10/23, Thompson) reports prosecutors in California "said Friday they again will seek the death penalty for Scott Peterson even as a county judge considers throwing out his conviction for murdering his pregnant wife because of juror misconduct during a 2005 trial that riveted the nation." Stanislaus County Assistant District Attorney Dave Harris "announced that it is prosecutors' intention to retry the penalty phase of the case, spokesman John Goold said after a court hearing." NXIVM Leader Speaks Ahead Of Sentencing. EFTA00148511 NBC Nightly NewsVi (10/23, story 10, 2:54, Holt, 1.82M) reported on an interview with NXIVM leader Keith Raniere to "Dateline" from jail "for the first time since his arrest." Correspondent Stephanie Gosk referred to NXIVM as "a shadowy self help organization described by federal prosecutors as cult-like." Raniere "has not spoken publicly since his arrest for than two years ago," and Gosk indicated that his interview occurred days before his sentencing on federal charges. Raniere "spoke with, of all people, the man that helped bring him down, web journalist Frank Parlato, a former NXIVM spokesman." Parlato asked, "Do you intend to make a statement at your sentencing that you are innocent?" As part of his response, Raniere said, "Yes, I am innocent." He also said during the interview, "There is a horrible injustice here and whether you think I'm the devil or not, the justice process has to be examined." Teen Plotted To Assassinate Joe Biden, Federal Authorities Say. The Washington Post (10/23, Bella, 14.2M) reports 19-year-old Alexander Hillel Treisman appears to have planned and threatened to assassinate Joe Biden, federal authorities say. The teen "searched online for Biden's home address and for night-vision goggles, and purchased an AR-15 in New Hampshire, according to federal court documents first reported Thursday by WBTV." In the spring, "Treisman ended up at a Wendy's within four miles of Biden's home in Delaware." After "he was arrested later that month in North Carolina, police searching his van found four rifles, a 9mm handgun, explosive materials, books on bomb making, and $509,000 in cash that's believed to be his inheritance." These "revelations all come in an order that a federal magistrate judge filed earlier this month outlining why Treisman, who was indicted by a federal grand jury in September on child pornography charges, should remain in custody." It remains "unclear whether Treisman will face additional charges related to the alleged plot." ABC World News TonightVi (10/23, story 8, 1:09, Muir, 5.75M) reported, "In April, he allegedly posted a meme with the caption, 'Should I kill Joe Biden?" Authorities "also discovered he had an interest in terror attacks and mass shootings, and had traveled around the country purchasing weapons in various states." CBS Evening NewsVi (10/23, story 8, 1:59, O'Donnell, 1.93M) reported, "Prosecutors have only charged Treisman with child pornography. He has pleaded not guilty. His attorney says that he has Asperger's syndrome. Citing all the evidence in this case, a judge ordered that he remain behind bars." NBC Nightly NewsVi (10/23, story 7, 1:22, Holt, 1.82M) reported, "Police near Charlotte, North Carolina say when they checked out an abandoned van in this bank parking lot they found guns and cash inside." The AP (10/23) reports from Kannapolis, North Carolina that Treisman "had searched earlier this year for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden's home online, traveled near the home and wrote a checklist that ended with the word 'execute,' according to federal court documents." The AP adds, "The information was contained in documents related to a detention hearing for Alexander Hillel Treisman, held in U.S. District Court in Durham. A magistrate, in an order signed Oct. 8, ordered Treisman to remain in custody." According to the AP, "An officer with the U.S. Marshal's Service and the Joint Terrorism Task Force testified that a search of Treisman's electronic devices and account showed a timeline of internet searches between March and May of this year seeking information about Biden's home address, state gun laws, rifle parts and night vision goggles." CNN (10/24, Campbell, 83.16M) reports, "Between March and May 2020," Treisman "conducted internet searches on Biden's home address and traveled within 4 miles of the Biden residence, according to a detention order signed by a federal magistrate judge." CNN adds, "After describing Treisman's alleged interest in Biden, the judge wrote that authorities also discovered a checklist believed to have been written by the defendant, which included the word 'execute.' Also included in a list of evidence noted by the judge was an online meme posted by Treisman in April 2020 with the caption: 'should I kill joe biden?' The information about the former Vice President was included among a lengthy list of evidence that prosecutors included in his case. Although a grand jury indicted Treisman for possession of child pornography, he has EFTA00148512 not been charged in relation to the weapons in his possession, or his research or writings on Biden. Prosecutors declined to talk about any potential future charges." CBS News (10/23, O'Kane, 3.68M) reports, "While Treisman faces pornography charges and has not been charged with any crimes related to his possession of guns or other evidence, a judge ruled that due to the evidence, he should remain in custody." Treisman, "who used the alias Alexander S. Theiss, is from Washington and was arrested in May after police in Kannapolis, North Carolina, received calls about a van left in a parking lot. Through the window of Treisman's green Honda, which was left outside of a bank, Kannapolis police officers saw 'an AR-15 style rifle,' explosive material, a box for a handgun and ammunition, FBI Special Agent Aaron Seres testified, according to the court documents." Former Ohio City Councilman Arrested On Human Trafficking Charges. The Cincinnati Enquirer (10/24, Hunt, Grasha, Dufour, Mitchell, 223K) reported former Portsmouth, Ohio city councilman and still-practicing attorney Michael "Mearan was arrested on human trafficking, racketeering and related charges." Victims allege that "Mearan, as a prominent attorney, would represent women facing drug charges," promise "them lenient sentences from judges he knew and parole officers willing to ignore probation requirements," so long as the women agreed "to have sex for money." Women said they "were paid anywhere between $200 and $2,000 per encounter, and in some of the instances, Mearan himself handled the payment." FBI Investigating Border Patrol Officer-Involved Shooting. USA Today (10/25, Falcon, 10.31M) reports the FBI and local police in Texas are investigating after a "U.S. Border Patrol officer-involved shooting that killed one man and injured two in Laredo, Texas, on Friday night." US Border Patrol Laredo Sector's Chief Patrol Agent Matthew Hudak "said U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Homeland Security, and Webb County Sheriff's Office intercepted a tractor trailer truck in Laredo that was used to smuggle a large number of undocumented immigrants." A vehicle arrived on the scene, "and as it got close enough to realize the smuggling load had already been intercepted, the driver aggressively put his vehicle in reverse and tried to flee the scene," Hudak said in a video. The New York Times (10/25, Levenson, 18.61M) reports Border Patrol agents shot and killed the driver of the vehicle after it "reversed into an agent and pinned him against another vehicle, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection." The driver "died at the scene. The Border Patrol agent, who sustained leg injuries, was taken to a hospital and later released." Hudak said two other occupants of the car were also injured. An FBI San Antonio spokesperson "confirmed on Sunday that the bureau was participating in the investigation." The AP (10/24) reports the vehicle was "another semi," and after "officers identified themselves and were approaching the tractor-trailer when the driver began moving in reverse, pinning a Border Patrol agent against another vehicle. Other agents then opened fire, shooting the driver, who was pronounced dead at the scene." Illinois Police Department Fires Officer Who Killed Black Teen As FBI Joins Shooting Investigation. The Lake County (IL) News-Sun (10/24, Ward, 1.75M) reports Waukegan, Illinois, Police Chief Wayne Wailes announced Friday that an "officer who shot and killed a 19-year-old Black man and wounded his girlfriend has been terminated from the department...hours after Lake County's chief prosecutor said the FBI would be joining the investigation into the incident." Wailes "said the officer had been fired for 'multiple policy and procedure violations' related to the death of Marcellis Stinnette and the wounding of Tafara Williams." The AP (10/23) reports Lake County State's Attorney Michael Nerheim said the bureau "will join Illinois State Police in investigating a police shooting in suburban Chicago that killed a EFTA00148513 Black man who was a passenger in a vehicle and wounded the Black female driver," saying "he asked the U.S. Justice Department to review the circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting." Reuters (10/23, Staff) reports the Waukegan Police Department "said a Hispanic male officer shot into the couple's car because it went into reverse when he approached it and he feared for his safety. No firearm was found in the vehicle, the police said." The Hill (10/23, Polus, 2.98M) reports state officials "had previously opened an investigation into wrongdoing by the cop in question, a five-year veteran of the suburban Chicago police force, who opened fire at the couple after they fled a traffic stop. Now, the FBI is joining the efforts after County State Attorney Michael Nerheim requested that the bureau review the circumstances surrounding the incident." FBI Investigating "Ambush Style" Killing On Crow Reservation In Montana. The Billings (MT) Gazette (10/25, Kordenbrock, 180K) reports the FBI is leading the investigation into "an 'ambush style homicide' Saturday on the Crow Reservation Saturday left one person dead." A press release from the Crow Tribe Executive Branch "says that two members of a federally recognized tribe were involved. ... The Crow Tribe Executive Branch, citing the Crow Tribal Police, identifies the suspect in the killing as 27-year-old Taylor Leigh Plainbull." FBI Set To Release New Information On 1981 New York Cold Case. WSYR-TV Syracuse, NY (10/23, 58K) reports next week the FBI is set to release new information on "one of Central New York's coldest cases. Tammy Mahoney was last seen in Oneida in 1981. The 20-year-old Morrisville State College student was hitchhiking south on Route 46" when she was "picked up and taken to a party on the Oneida Nation." Nearly $100K In Narcotics Seized In Florida Operation. The Fort Myers (FL) News-Press (10/23, Greenockle, 173K) reports, "The Lee County Sheriff's Office said it arrested a Cape Coral man Wednesday after finding about $100,000 worth of narcotics while serving him a warrant on an unrelated case." According to the News- Press, "The U.S. Marshalls Regional Fugitive Task Force served a warrant on Leonard Pitters, 26, in the 1100 block of NE 11th Street, Cape Coral, for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for an active case from June 17, according to an LCSO news release. In that case, Pitters allegedly battered and threatened his victim at gunpoint." The News-Press adds, "The narcotics unit took over the investigation and got a search warrant for Pitters' home where they found cocaine, fentanyl, heroin, crack cocaine, oxycodone, hydrocodone pills, two firearms and $87,452 in U.S. currency, the release states." FBI Releases Photo Of Florida Bank Robbery Suspect. WFOR-TV Miami (10/23) reports, "The FBI is releasing a picture of a robber who robbed a Pompano Beach bank on Friday afternoon." The suspect "is wearing a light blue button-down shirt with collar, a black Under Armor baseball hat with a red, white and blue logo, sunglasses and a black neck gaiter mask." Six California Gang Members Indicted On Federal Charges. The San Jose (CA) Mercury News (10/23, 456K) reports US Attorney for the Northern District of California David L. Anderson and other law enforcement officials on Thursday "named members of a Salinas gang 'murder squad' in an unsealed federal indictment on Thursday describing how six Morten() gang members allegedly conducted seven shootings, killing eight people and injuring several others." The piece quotes FBI SAC John Bennet saying, "Over the past three years, the FBI San Francisco Division has worked to link this murder squad with the Nuestra Familia and Morten° street gangs." EFTA00148514 California Man Faces Federal Child Pornography Charges. The Sacramento M) Bee (10/23, 567K) reports a federal grand jury has indicted Jayson Fernandez Butay of Sacramento, California, for "producing and possessing child pornography in connection with an FBI investigation of alleged exchanges he had on Snapchat, according to filed court documents." Butay "is accused of producing child pornography with a minor on Sept. 28, 2019, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento." Texas Woman Gets 17 Years In Federal Prison For Bank Robberies. The Killeen (TX) Daily Herald (10/23, 47K) reports Eboni Siamone McMurray was sentenced to "more 17 years in federal prison in connection with two armed bank robberies, announced U.S. Attorney Gregg N. Soler, FBI San Antonio Division Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs and Killeen Police Chief Charles F. Kimble." KWKT-TV Waco, TX (10/23) reports in June, McMurray "pleaded guilty to two counts of bank robbery and two counts of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. ... FBI agents and Killeen Police officers, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, arrested McMurray at her residence without incident the following day. She has since remained in federal custody." Alleged California Gang Members To Stand Trial On Multiple Attempted Homicide Charges. The East Bay_(CA) Times (10/25, 63K) reports court records show "four of seven people who are alleged to be part of a North Richmond gang that police have linked to at least eight nonfatal shootings and multiple targeted robberies have been ordered to stand trial." The four "are to stand trial on 23 felony counts that include eight attempted murder charges, a count of conspiracy to commit murder, and a half-dozen robberies or attempted robberies." All seven "were arrested and charged last May, following a Richmond police and FBI-led operation that targeted members of a North Richmond gang known as Jet Life." Man In Custody After Allegedly Abducting Daughters, Two Boys Found Dead. The AP (10/24) reports, "Authorities found two girls who were abducted from a Kansas home where two boys were discovered dead Saturday, and a suspect is in custody." An Amber Alert "said the suspect in the abduction is the girls' father, 40-year-old Donny Jackson. Leavenworth County Emergency Management said in a Facebook post that Jackson also is a person of interest in the homicides. ... The FBI referred questions to the patrol, which said the sheriff's office was answering questions in the case." Former Ohio Priest Charged With Sex Trafficking Of A Minor. WTOL-TV Toledo, OH (10/23, Strock, 76K) reports from Findlay, Ohio, "A former Findlay priest is the subject of a 10-count indictment, facing charges that include sex trafficking of minor, sex trafficking of an adult and minor by force, fraud and coercion." According to WTOL-TV, "The indictment was handed down by a federal grand jury in Cleveland on Friday against Michael J. Zacharias, 53. He was arrested on Aug. 18 and has since remained in federal custody. 'This defendant is accused of using his status and position as a religious and community leader to seek out troubled minors and exploit their personal challenges for his own satisfaction,' U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman said." WTOL-TV adds, "According to court documents, from approximately 1999 to July 2020, Zacharias is accused of sex trafficking of a minor victim and using force, fraud or coercion to sexually traffic other minors and adults." Texas Man Charged With Sexual Assault Of Child. KXXV-TV Waco, TX (10/24, 44K) reports that a Montgomery County, Texas man "is accused of sexual assault of a child and authorities are concerned there could be more victims." KXXV-TV adds, "On October 22, 2020, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office conducted a search and EFTA00148515 arrest warrant operation in the Magnolia, Texas area for Felipe de Jesus Ledezma-Arellano. The operation was conducted with the assistance of the US Marshals Service, the FBI, and the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office. During the execution of this operation, Felipe was located and taken into custody on a sexual assault warrant." According to KXXV-TV, "The initial report indicated that a two-year-old female child was possibly a victim of sexual abuse at a Magnolia residence, according to MCSO. As Detectives investigated further, they identified three additional female victims in this case that were subjected to prolonged periods of domestic violence and sexual abuse at the hands of the suspect." FINANCIAL CRIME & CORPORATE SCANDALS Judge Orders Securities Fraud Case Against Texas Attorney General To Move To Paxton's Home County. The AP (10/23, Bleiberg) reports Harris County District Court Judge Jason Luong on Friday "ordered the long-running criminal case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton returned to his home county in a legal victory for the Republican." Luong "ruled that the securities fraud case should continue in Collin County, north of Dallas, siding with Paxton's defense attorneys." Paxton "pleaded not guilty in 2015 and the case has been stalled for years over legal chal