US AND CANADA

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U.S. importers, customs brokers and trade lawyers are bracing for a potentially protracted battle over tariff refunds as the Supreme Court weighs the legality of former President Donald Trump's sweeping global duties. If the court strikes down the tariffs, companies could seek as much as $150 billion in refunds for duties already paid, a process many fear will be slow and contentious.

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Following the military operation that captured Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump announced that Venezuela will "turn over" up to 50 million barrels of oil, valued at approximately $2.8 billion. In a social media post, Trump stated the oil will be sold at market rates, with the resulting funds under his control to benefit both the American and Venezuelan people. This move aligns with his broader vision to have the U.S. oil industry operational within Venezuela within 18 months, an initiative he expects will attract significant global investment.

China, which has been the biggest buyer of Venezuelan oil in recent years, has condemned Trump's announcement as well as the US's reported demands that Venezuela gives its oil exclusively to them.

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US President Donald Trump has defended the U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agent who fatally sh0t a 37-year-old woman in Minneapolis, arguing the officer acted in self-defense.

In a statement on the sho0ting, Trump said he viewed a clip of the Jan. 7 incident, which shows an ICE agent confronting a woman in a vehicle blocking a street. As the woman drives off, another ICE agent approaching the vehicle from its front fires three sh0ts into the driver's side window. Read prevous report here.

"It is a horrible thing to watch," Trump said in a post on Truth Social. "The woman screaming was, obviously, a professional agitator, and the woman driving the car was very disorderly, obstructing and resisting, who then violently, willfully, and viciously ran over the ICE Officer, who seems to have shot her in self-defense."

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Decades after his 1994 conviction for espionage, former CIA officer Aldrich Ames has died at age 84 while serving a life sentence in Maryland. Ames, who admitted to selling secrets to both the Soviet Union and Russia, passed away Monday at the Federal Correctional Institution in Cumberland. His case remains a landmark in U.S. intelligence history, representing a massive failure of counterintelligence that resulted in his permanent removal from society more than 30 years ago.

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Federal officials and local leaders clashed Wednesday over their differing characterizations of a fatal shooting by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis.

While President Donald Trump’s administration described the killing of a 37-year-old mother as an act of self-defense amid his latest immigration crackdown, Minneapolis officials have disputed that narrative.

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A 28-year-old woman from Louisiana, Kristin Bass, is facing a first-degree murder charge. Police say she fatally shot her 1-year-old daughter, Acelynn Moss, inside their home on January 1, 2026. The child’s father, Bradley Moss, said Bass told him she killed the victim because she wanted to “send” their daughter to God. Police responded to a report of a shooting at a residence on Quelqueshue Street in Sulphur on Thursday, Jan. 1, at about 8:21 p.m. local time, according to a Sulphur Police Department news release. Upon arriving, authorities discovered that a child had been sh0t and k!lled. Kristin Bass is being held on a bond of $10 million.

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The founder of a notorious Minnesota-based nonprofit, convicted of orchestrating a $250 million welfare fraud scheme, has been ordered by a judge to surrender her Porsche, luxury handbags, and millions of dollars obtained through the illicit operation.

Aimee Bock, the 44-year-old mastermind behind the Feeding Our Future scandal, was found guilty in March on federal charges of wire fraud, bribery, and conspiracy in connection with the nation’s largest COVID-19 fraud scheme.

Bock, who, along with dozens of predominantly Somali co-conspirators, pilfered pandemic relief funds from a federal program meant to feed hungry children in need, is awaiting sentencing for her lead role in the scandal.

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A gambler made nearly half a million dollars on the capture of Venezuela's president just before it was officially announced, raising questions about whether someone profited from inside knowledge of the US operation.

Wagers on Polymarket, a crypto-powered platform, that Nicolás Maduro would be out of power by the end of January rose in the hours before President Donald Trump announced on Saturday the Venezuelan leader had been seized.

One account, which joined the platform last month and took four positions, all on Venezuela, made more than $436,000 (£322,000) from a $32,537 bet.

It remains unclear who placed the bet. The anonymous account had a blockchain identifier of letters and numbers.