International
House, BMW unsold in Maradona auction
AFP
An online auction of some 90 items owned by the late football icon Diego Maradona has closed with a house and BMW unsold, but most other keepsakes spoken for, its organizer said Tuesday.
The December 19 auction had been prolonged by several days after the most expensive pieces failed to attract buyers at first.
The initial, three-hour auction had brought in just $26,000 with more than $1.4 million worth of assets owned by the former Barcelona and Napoli star receiving no bids, according to AFP calculations.
By the end of the new deadline, the Buenos Aires house Maradona had gifted his parents, put up for a minimum $900,000, still did not find a buyer, nor did a luxury 2017 model BMW priced at $225,000.
Another BMW, a 2016 model, sold for $165,000.
“For the rest, we have received bids” in the second round, which will now be presented to a judge for approval, auctioneer Adrian Mercado of the Grupo Adrian Mercado Subastas house told AFP.
These included televisions, gym equipment and a treadmill.
The auction had attracted bidders from several Latin American countries, Italy, France, Britain, Russia and Dubai.
The largest single offer of $2,150 on the first auction day was for a painting of the former World Cup winner by artist Lu Sedova.
The second most expensive piece was a photograph of Maradona with late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, purchased for $1,600 by a buyer in Dubai.
Other items sold included a Napoli team jacket, training pants and a box of Cuban cigars.
Mercado said he was optimistic of selling an apartment Maradona had owned in the seaside resort of Mar del Plata ($65,000), for which he was awaiting a formal offer.
He also hoped the second BMW will receive a bid in the coming days.
This would leave only the 700 square-meter (7,500 square foot) Buenos Aires house, on a property with 500 square meters of park, where Maradona’s parents had lived for 30 years.
The sale had been ordered by a judge to pay the debts and expenses accrued by the estate of Maradona, who died of cardiac arrest on November 25, 2020, aged 60.
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
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