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- FBI seizes devices from Eric Swalwell in sexual misconduct investigation
- Woman, 38, arrested for posing as a 12-year-old to gain couple’s trust
- Risk of drones entering Finland increases due to Ukraine war, says official
- Pirates hijack cargo ship carrying Turkish weapons off Somalia’s coast
- FBI conducts raid on former Representative Eric Swalwell’s home amid misconduct probe
- Two boys assaulted while running lemonade stand, woman charged: Windsor police
- Iran executes Afghan national convicted of police officers’ deaths during protests
- First image of 42-year-old man shot dead in car in east London
A Black Lives Matters protest in London regarding Chris Kaba.
Looks like the white, middle class organisers forget to invite any black people.
In the wake of death of UK political prisoner, Peter Lynch, who was fast tracked into prison for essentially shouting in the street.
The grandfather was ultimately sentenced to death.
Pakistani family who attacked police at Manchester Airport, STILL haven't even been charged.
Tiny ‘Black Lives Matter’ crowd gathers outside the Old Bailey courtrooms to protest the not guilty verdict of the police officer who shot violent criminal Chris Kaba.
Kaba rammed his car repeatedly into armed police officers’ cars.
BLM is finished in the UK.
UK public borrowing exceeds official forecast in September
Government borrowing overshot official projections in September, which is a sign of the difficult fiscal position that the Chancellor faces as she puts the finishing touches on her first tax and spending budget.
August 20, 2026
11:00 pm
Get you up to speed: FBI seizes Swalwell’s devices, executes search warrants in sexual misconduct probe
FBI agents executed search warrants targeting former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell in San Francisco and Washington, D.C., over the weekend as part of a criminal investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct. During the searches, agents seized an iPhone and a MacBook Pro from Swalwell.
FBI agents seized an iPhone and a MacBook Pro from Eric Swalwell as part of a criminal investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct. Investigators are examining potential violations of Section 242 of Title 18, which pertains to the willful deprivation of rights while acting under the colour of law.
The FBI conducted searches at former Rep. Eric Swalwell’s residences, seizing electronic devices as part of a criminal investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct. Swalwell has acknowledged making “mistakes in judgment” but maintains that an assault allegation is “false” and intends to contest it.
What remains unclear — It is uncertain what specific charges the FBI may ultimately pursue against Swalwell following the investigation into the allegations of sexual misconduct.
FBI seizes devices from Eric Swalwell in sexual misconduct investigation
Washington — FBI agents executed search warrants targeting former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell over the weekend and seized his electronic devices, two sources familiar with the matter told WTX US News, as part of a criminal probe into allegations of sexual misconduct by the former lawmaker.
One of the warrants was executed Saturday night after Swalwell landed at San Francisco International Airport, the sources said. The second targeted his residence in Washington, D.C., and was executed on Sunday. The Daily Mail first reported the searches.
According to a court filing Tuesday in the Northern District of California, an iPhone and a MacBook Pro were seized from Swalwell during the searches.
Multiple sources familiar with the investigation told WTX US News that one potential charge federal investigators are looking into regarding Swalwell is Section 242 of Title 18, which makes it “a crime for a person acting under color of any law to willfully deprive a person of a right or privilege protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States.”
According to the law, those “include acts not only done by federal, state, or local officials within their lawful authority, but also acts done beyond the bounds of that official’s lawful authority, if the acts are done while the official is purporting to or pretending to act in the performance of his/her official duties.”
News of the warrants comes months after Swalwell ended his gubernatorial bid and resigned from Congress in April over allegations of sexual assault and other misconduct from several women.
Swalwell, who represented Bay-Area districts from 2013 until his resignation, faced accusations from multiple women, including rape and unsolicited explicit messages and nude photos, prompting the bipartisan House Ethics Committee to launch an investigation. But the probe ended with Swalwell’s resignation from Congress, since the committee only has jurisdiction over current members and staff.
Swalwell acknowledged making “mistakes in judgment,” but said an assault allegation was “false” and vowed to fight it.
On Monday, the White House also released declassified documents on the FBI’s investigation into Swalwell regarding his alleged relationship with a suspected spy more than a decade ago. The 97-page documents stem from the FBI’s investigation into Swalwell and his 2015 relationship with Christine Fang, a suspected Chinese intelligence operative. Many of the details provided by the administration were already publicly known, and Swalwell was never charged in the matter.
Sources told WTX US News that FBI Director Kash Patel had been pressing to release the files from the investigation into Swalwell, a detail that was first reported by The Washington Post.
August 20, 2026
11:00 pm
August 20, 2026
10:00 pm
Get you up to speed: Woman, 38, posed as 12-year-old using teddy and high child’s voice to get couple to adopt her | News World
Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira, 38, was arrested in Joinville, Brazil, for allegedly posing as a 12-year-old girl and living with a couple for over a year. She faces charges of fraud and false identity after creating a fictional persona to elicit care and support from the family.
Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira was arrested on June 2 and has been held in custody, with a verdict expected within five days following the judge’s consideration of her release request. The investigation revealed a pattern of deception, with Amanda previously using multiple identities and claiming to be a vulnerable teenager over several years.
Brazilian prosecutors have charged Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira with fraud and false identity after she allegedly posed as a 12-year-old girl for over a year. The trial is expected to conclude within five days, with the judge indicating that a request for her release will be considered alongside the verdict.
What remains unclear — It is uncertain whether Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira’s true intentions were to defraud the couple or simply to seek emotional support.
Woman, 38, arrested for posing as a 12-year-old to gain couple’s trust
Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira posing as a 12-year-old teenager (Picture: NX)
A woman has been arrested for posing as a child and tricking a couple into looking after her for more than a year.
Amanda Maria Souza de Oliveira allegedly scammed the couple to get her own bedroom filled with toys and even throw a ’12th birthday party’ for her despite being 38.
She was charged with fraud and false identity for allegedly moving in to to the family’s home for 14 months disguising herself as a vulnerable girl 26 year’s younger.
A hearing at Joinville, in northern Santa Catarina, Brazil heard from the couple who had taken Amanda in, their son, a police officer, experts and two professionals presented by the defence.
Prosecutors accused Amanda of creating the identity of Gabriele Ferreira dos Santos and initially presenting herself as 11 before claiming she was 12.
She had allegedly approached a religious community after claiming she had fled home after being mistreated and had no ID on her.
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The woman poses with a child’s bottle to maintain the alleged deception
(Picture: Newsflash/NX)
The family believed they were helping a traumatised child and eventually treated her as a daughter, preparing a bedroom decorated with children’s paintings and paying for her to live.
They even organised a party to celebrate what they believed was her 12th birthday.
According to investigators, Amanda used an infantilised voice, children’s toys, pacifiers and baby bottles to maintain the alleged deception.
She also claimed to have autism and said her adult appearance was the result of being forcibly given hormones during childhood.
Amanda admitted lying about who she was but denied that she had intended to defraud anyone.
According to police, she said: ‘It is clear that I deceived people, I lied. But I did not intend to scam anyone.’
A mugshot of the 37-year-old woman suspected of posing as a 12-year-old in Brazil
(Picture: Newsflash/NX)
Her defence lawyer Lucio Sousa argued during the opening of the trial that Amanda had not caused financial losses and said the identity was instead a survival strategy.
Sousa said: ‘It was the way she found to survive. But she has been a vulnerable person for more than 20 years.’
He added that there had been no allegation that Amanda had obtained financial advantage through robbery or theft, arguing that the elements of fraud had not been established.
Amanda’s lawyer Sarita de Paiva told reporters she had told investigators that she was seeking the attention, affection and protection missing from her childhood.
De Paiva also said that Amanda believed revealing she was an adult would mean she would no longer receive the same care.
But police said the Joinville case was only the latest in a pattern dating back more than a decade.
Social worker Delma Soares said Amanda had stayed with her in Belo Horizonte in 2017 while using the name Karolina and presenting herself as a vulnerable teenager.
Delma said Amanda contacted her after a presentation and asked whether she helped people affected by prostitution and child abuse.
Delma said: ‘She had the posture and behaviour of a teenager.
‘She liked to wear children’s clothes with childish designs.’
The social worker later became suspicious, saying Amanda’s physical strength and sudden changes in behaviour did not fit the age she claimed.
Delma said: ‘When I said she was an adult, people thought I was mistaken.
‘I had no proof, only the conviction I had built through living with her.’
Amanda had reportedly arrived at the project with injuries caused by needles and pieces of wire and was taken to hospital, where examinations found objects in her body.
Another alleged victim, nutritionist Renata Magalhaes, said Amanda used the name Duda when they met in Rio de Janeiro in 2023 and claimed to be an autistic teenager who had suffered abuse.
Renata said the alleged deception was carefully constructed using childish behaviour, drawings and emotional episodes.
Renata said: ‘Her phone was full of searches. She researched how an autistic person behaves and how to make drawings to move evangelical people.’
Renata also alleged that Amanda had inserted needles into herself and later vomited them in front of her.
Renata said: ‘She vomited the needle. She vomited, she did it in front of me. It is bizarre.’
She added: ‘I have seen many people laughing and making jokes on the internet, but she is a fraudster, a narcissist, a dangerous woman. She is a person who puts on a character like a coat and creates a totally fake narrative.’
A psychologist who encountered Amanda in Recife in 2023 said she also carried a teddy bear, spoke in a childlike voice and claimed to have suffered sexual abuse.
The psychologist said: ‘She demonstrated childish behaviour in her body language and an infantilised voice, but we could see the traits of an adult woman.
‘We could see there was a performance there; it was not something genuine or natural.’
Amanda also allegedly used another identity, Emily, in Parana during the Covid-19 pandemic, claiming to be a 13-year-old girl suffering from terminal leukaemia.
One woman who became emotionally attached to the supposed child reportedly even had the name Emily tattooed on her wrist.
In another case in Jundiai, Sao Paulo, in 2022, Amanda allegedly identified herself as Ana Clara dos Santos Oliveira, claimed to have been born in 2009 and told authorities she had escaped a house of prostitution where she had allegedly been sexually exploited since childhood.
Amanda was arrested at the Joinville family’s home on June 2 and has remained in custody since then.
The judge said the request for Amanda’s release would be considered alongside the verdict, which is expected within five days.
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