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The New York State Prosecutor’s Office warned that as online dating apps become active, romance scams, which involve approaching the opposite sex to win their favor and then extorting money, are serious. On the 6th, the State Prosecutor’s Office said, “Romance fraud is when fraudsters steal someone else’s identity to gain the love and trust of the victims and then demand money to defraud them.

If a person they met online asks for their bank account, there is a high possibility that they are a romance fraudster.” “He said. Romance fraud, or romance scam, is a combination of the words ’romance’, which means love, and ‘scam’, which means credit fraud. It is a scam that is used for various reasons after building trust through social media (SNS) or dating apps. A new type of fraud crime in which people extort money by paying for it has been on the rise across the United States for several years.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, over 19,000 complaints related to romance scams were received in 2022, and the amount of damage to victims was calculated to be approximately $740 million. However, as many victims are reluctant to disclose the financial damage caused by romance fraud, the actual amount of damage is estimated to be much higher than the estimated amount.

State Attorney General Letitia James said, “Scammers who engage in romance scams are characterized by detailed, intimate conversations that seek to gain the trust of the person they are swindling, while explaining the emergency situation in which they need financial help.”

He urged caution, saying, “Victims of this type of method are reported to come from a variety of age groups, from college students to people in their 80s who lost up to $2.8 million.”

The state prosecutor’s office warned that if someone you met online asks for your bank account or asks you to send money through an online money transfer app, it is likely to be a romance scam.

The state prosecutor’s office said that to prevent romance fraud, ▲ only use dating sites that are widely known and trustworthy ▲ be cautious in the process of sharing and exposing personal information online ▲ if the person you are talking to is consistently reluctant to meet in person, it is a red flag. ▲If you suspect fraud, you are advised to report it to the State Prosecutor’s Office’s financial crime reporting site (ko.ag.ny.gov/financial-fraud-complaint-form) or the hotline (800-771-7755).

Another lawsuit has been filed to stop Manhattan’s congestion tax, which is scheduled to go into effect on June 30. On the 30th, the Trucking Association of New York (TANY) filed an unconstitutional lawsuit against the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and the New York State Attorney’s Office, claiming that Manhattan’s traffic congestion tax is unconstitutional and unfair.

In a complaint filed in federal court, the New York Trucking Association argued, “The Manhattan traffic congestion tax led by the MTA and others violates the Constitution, which grants Congress the authority to regulate commerce between various states.”

In addition, it is unfair and discriminatory to charge higher toll fees for trucks than for passenger cars. According to the congestion tax plan finalized by the MTA, the toll for passenger cars is $15, but for trucks, the toll is $24 to $36 depending on the size. The New York Trucking Association said, “The burden of traffic congestion tax costs will be passed on to drivers,” adding, “It will inevitably be a huge burden on the industry.”

Moreover, since many of the products coming into New York City are transported by truck, there will be a series of product price increases.” The MTA has not yet made a special statement regarding this lawsuit. The MTA plans to implement the Manhattan congestion tax as of midnight on June 30th.

However, the New Jersey state government, New Jersey Fort Lee town government, Staten Island borough, New York City teachers’ union, New York citizens, and trucking union are filing lawsuits one after another to block implementation.

The Associated Press and CNN reported on the 26th that famous American female rapper Nicki Minaj (41) was arrested at a Dutch airport on suspicion of drug possession and released. Minaj tried to board a plane at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, Netherlands the day before to perform a concert in Manchester, England, but police found marijuana in her bag.

Dutch gendarmerie, without naming Minaj, said the 41-year-old American woman was arrested on suspicion of smuggling “soft drugs” and later fined her and released her.

A video posted to Minaj’s Instagram showed her retorting, “I don’t have any drugs,” when police at the airport informed her that she was to be arrested for drug possession. He was released that evening, but a concert scheduled for Manchester was canceled due to travel delays.

“Nikki has done her best to explore every possible way to perform tonight, but today’s events have made that impossible,” the show’s promoters said in a statement.

The Netherlands is tolerant of cannabis, but it is officially prohibited by law.

Columbia University, considered the epicenter of the pro-Palestinian anti-war protests sweeping American universities, passed a no-confidence motion against President Nemat Minouche Shafik. Axios and others reported on the 16th that a resolution of no confidence in President Shafik was passed in a faculty vote at Columbia University’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

Of the 709 people, including Columbia University humanities professors, who participated in the vote, 65% were in favor of the no-confidence motion, with only 29% voting against. 6% abstained. Previously, the Columbia University branch of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) proposed a resolution of no confidence in President Shafik, claiming that he had violated the basic requirements of academic freedom and violated students’ rights in an unprecedented manner.

The Times reported that although this no-confidence resolution itself is not binding, the fact that he received a no-confidence vote less than a year after taking office shows how level the criticism surrounding his response to the campus protests is. At a U.S. House of Representatives Education Committee hearing on the 17th of last month, President Shafik pledged, “We will not allow anti-Semitism to take root,” and then attempted to disperse the protesters by mobilizing the police.

In response to Shafiq’s request to suppress the protesters, the New York Police (NYPD) entered the campus twice, and more than 200 students were arrested. Afterwards, Columbia University suffered hardships, including canceling its graduation ceremony.

A bill is being advanced in New Jersey that would impose fines of up to $10,000 on employers who exploit or threaten employees because of their immigration status.

On the 6th, the State Senate Labor Relations Committee approved and sent to the plenary session a bill establishing punishment provisions for employers who exploit employees or force them not to report labor law violations due to their immigration status. “Workers should not be forced to remain silent about workplace injustices for fear of their immigration status becoming known to authorities,” said State Senator Teresa Ruiz, who sponsored the bill. “For example, undocumented workers should not be paid minimum wage.” “The purpose of the bill is to prevent unfair situations in which workers have no choice but to remain silent due to their employer’s threat to inform the authorities of their illegal stay even if they receive a smaller amount,” he said. Under the bill, employers found to have exploited or intimidated employees because of their immigration status would be fined up to $1,000 for a first offense, $5,000 for a second offense, and $10,000 for three or more offenses.

Immigrant advocacy groups welcome this bill, but argue that stronger measures, such as revoking business licenses, should be taken. The New Jersey Immigrant Justice Coalition said, “This bill is the first step toward solving a larger problem,” adding, “A fine of up to $10,000 alone is not enough. He pointed out, “Stronger sanctions are needed to create an environment where immigrants can work and be treated fairly without fear.” According to the Immigration Policy Institute, it is estimated that 440,000 undocumented immigrants live in New Jersey.

Despite the high vacancy rate in municipal apartments managed by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), it was pointed out that the relocation of homeless people was very low due to delays in renovation and repair work. According to data recently released by the City Audit Office (Comptroller Brad Lander), as of last March, the number of vacant units in NYCHA city apartments reached a whopping 5,000. This is a 10-fold increase compared to 2021.

However, it is predicted that the number of homeless people leaving shelters such as shelters to move to NYCHA municipal apartments in this fiscal year (July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024) will plummet by 80% compared to 2015. It is analyzed that the renovation and repair work on NYCHA city apartments has been delayed to the lowest level in 10 years, leading to a situation where people cannot move in right away even if empty houses become available.

The City Audit Office pointed out, “As NYCHA’s chronic disinvestment and poor management have accumulated, the movement of homeless people into NYCHA city apartments is being delayed,” and “Intensive renovation and repair work on empty units is urgently needed.”

As of March, there were 223,000 people on the waiting list for NYCHA municipal apartments, according to NYCHA data. According to New York City open data statistics, between 2015 and 2021, an average of 1,800 homeless people left shelters and moved into NYCHA municipal apartments each fiscal year. However, this number has plummeted to 736 in 2022, and it is expected to fall to less than 500 this fiscal year.

Accordingly, the number of homeless people moving into public housing by receiving vouchers provided by New York City is increasing. A Bronx resident said that in March, after six years of living in public housing, she received a notice that she was on the waiting list for a municipal apartment for the elderly in NYCHA Harlem.

Attention is being paid to the Republican Party in the New Jersey state legislature, as it seeks to abolish administrative guidelines for state prosecutors that prohibit immigration enforcement by state and local government police and prevent cooperation with the federal government.

According to a Center Square report on the 25th, Republican members of the New Jersey State Legislature called for the abolition of an administrative directive that prohibited state and local police from cooperating with immigration enforcement, implemented by the New Jersey State Attorney General in 2018.

In 2018, then-State Attorney General Gerber Grewal issued administrative guidelines prohibiting New Jersey local police from inquiring about immigration status and prohibiting crackdowns, arrests, and investigations based on immigration status. In addition, this guideline prohibits local New Jersey police from participating or cooperating with immigration enforcement operations conducted by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

However, a Republican member of the state legislature said, “The state attorney general’s administrative guidance has the potential to endanger citizens and undermine public safety by limiting law enforcement,” and added, “This is a policy that will make New Jersey a haven for those who entered the country illegally.” am. The move to scrap administrative guidelines prohibiting immigration enforcement and cooperation with the federal government came as some of the buses carrying asylum seekers sent by Texas and other states arrived in New Jersey.

The state government refuted Republican claims that New Jersey is becoming a haven for immigrants entering the country illegally, saying it is not true. Immigrant advocates and Democrats say that communities could become more dangerous if local police cooperate with the federal government’s crackdown on immigrants. This is because it can be detrimental to community safety because it makes people reluctant to report crimes for fear of deportation.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), more than 200 local and state governments across the country have adopted policies that limit cooperation with federal requests to detain immigrants.

Congressman Josh GodHeimer (Democrat, New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District), who has consistently criticized the Manhattan traffic congestion tax, said on the 17th that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) would provide a portion of the congestion tax revenue to New Jersey, saying, “Please don’t throw crumbs.” He dismissed it, saying, “It is.” On the 18th, Rep.

GodHeimer responded to MTA Chairman Geno Lieber’s position to provide a portion of toll revenue to New Jersey, saying, “Throwing a few crumbs will not solve the problem of the congestion tax, which imposes a burden of over $4,000 per year on New Jersey working families.” “The MTA has ignored countless people who have begged them not to pollute their communities,” he said.

Representative Godheimer, who has long criticized the Manhattan traffic congestion tax, said, “The federal government is conducting a comprehensive environmental impact assessment to thoroughly check the problems of environmental pollution and increased traffic congestion that will be experienced in areas outside New York City, such as New Jersey, due to the implementation of the Manhattan traffic congestion tax.” We maintained our previous position that “we must do it.”

On the 17th, MTA Chairman River announced his intention to provide congestion tax revenue to New Jersey but did not mention details such as the size. The MTA’s goal is to implement a congestion tax in Manhattan by mid-June, but a lawsuit filed by the New Jersey state government remains the biggest obstacle. The New Jersey state government is raising the issue in the lawsuit that New Jersey residents only pay tolls and do not receive any benefits regarding the Manhattan traffic congestion tax.

The MTA’s position is that the implementation of a congestion tax is necessary to secure the $1 billion annual cost to be spent on improving New York City’s public transportation facilities, but the New Jersey state government says that damage such as environmental pollution and traffic congestion caused by vehicles detouring to avoid the congestion tax should be borne by neighbors. The position is that it will be passed on to New Jersey.

Meanwhile, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, who has sharply criticized Manhattan’s traffic congestion tax, has not yet expressed a special position.

In a media interview on the 14th, the day after Iran’s attack on Israel, House Speaker Mike Johnson announced that he would push for a budget bill for military support against Israel. In an interview with Fox News’ ‘Sunday Morning Futures’ on this day, Chairman Johnson said, “House Republicans and the Republican Party understand that it is essential for (the United States) to stand with Israel,” and said, “We will attempt to advance the Israeli aid plan this week.”

Chairman Johnson went on to say, “The specifics of that package are being put together right now,” adding, “We’re looking at options and all these supplementary budget issues.” It gave rise to the observation that there was a possibility of doing so.

Even before Iran’s attack on Israel, the opposition party (Republican Party)’s separate support plan for Israel and the government and ruling party (Democratic Party) package support plan (USD 95 billion) for Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan were pending in the Federal Congress. However, it seemed difficult for both bills to pass both the Senate and the House of Representatives amid differences of opinion between the Democratic and Republican parties.

The Democratic Party has so far supported the package support plan prepared by the White House but has opposed the passage of the budget plan to support Israel alone.

On the other hand, in the case of the Republican Party, which has internal differences of opinion on support for Ukraine, internal consensus is formed only on the support plan for Israel, with many members of the House of Representatives resisting the support package. In this situation, attention is being paid to whether the new variable of Iran’s attack on Israel will lead to a ‘breakthrough in negotiations’.

Attention is being drawn to whether Chairman Johnson, the number one Republican in the House of Representatives, will pursue a bipartisan agreement and push for a budget package that supports both Israel and Ukraine, or whether he will stick to supporting Israel alone.

Chairman Johnson has recently shown that he may consider aid to Ukraine on the condition of receiving concessions from the Democratic Party on other issues, but ultra-hardliners within the Republican Party who strongly oppose aid to Ukraine are opposing it.

The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 7th that former President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Ukraine, who had boasted that he would immediately end the war in Ukraine if he returned to power, was to pressure Ukraine into giving up territory to Russia.

Former President Trump is reportedly considering Ukraine ceding Crimea and the eastern Donbass region to Russia, according to sources who discussed the matter with Trump or his advisers. Russia had already forcibly annexed the Crimea Peninsula in 2014, and in September 2022, it annexed four oblasts, including Zaporizh and Kherson oblasts, along with Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in the Donbass controlled by pro-Russian separatists, into Russian territory. announced that it would do so.

The international community, including the United States, has criticized Russia’s annexation of the four states’ territories as illegal and stated that it will not recognize it. Meanwhile, former President Trump confidently said several times that if re-elected, he could negotiate a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine within 24 hours, but he did not specify how he would end the war. He privately said that both Russia and Ukraine “want to save face and want a way out,” the source said, adding, “Residents in some parts of Ukraine would be fine if their places became part of Russian territory.”

WP reported that if Russia controls part of Ukraine’s territory, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s dictatorship will expand, and some Trump supporters have been trying to persuade former President Trump to oppose this outcome. “I’ve spent 100 percent of my time talking about Trump and Ukraine,” said Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. Experts are concerned that Ukraine will become more vulnerable if a ceasefire with Russia is agreed upon, with Ukraine giving up territory without guarantees that Russia will not attack again after rearming as it has done in the past. “This is a situation where you put out your hand and the other person will very quickly try to take the other arm,” said Michael Kaufman, an analyst at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Fiona Hill, a senior member of the Brookings Institution who served as a senior adviser for Europe and Russia at the National Security Council (NSC) during the Trump administration, predicted that not only Ukraine but also European allies who view Russia as a threat will oppose it. “Trump’s team sees this as an individual issue for Ukraine and Russia alone,” Hill said. “They see this as a territorial dispute, not an issue connected to the security of Europe and the overall future of the world order.” Former President Trump’s plan is completely opposite to President Joe Biden’s policy, which has provided weapons to Ukraine to help it fend off Russian invasion. Former President Trump previously pressured Republican lawmakers in Congress to block additional aid to Ukraine.

Caroline Levitt, a Trump campaign spokeswoman, responded to the WP report in a statement, saying, “Anonymous and ignorant sources who have no idea what is happening or will happen are speculating on President Trump’s plans,” adding, “Only President Trump is talking about ending the war. “There is,” he said.