https://www.scmp.com/rss/323567/feed Crime news including the latest on murder cases, the hunt for serial killers, triads, court cases and trials, shootings, burglary, armed robbery and corruption. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Embattled UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday survived a bid by opposition politicians to subject him to a parliamentary probe over his controversial appointment of Peter Mandelson as envoy to the US. Members of parliament voted against referring Starmer to a committee to consider if he misled parliament over giving Mandelson, an ex-associate of late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the plum diplomatic post. It was the latest development in an unrelenting scandal that has plagued Starmer’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351759/uk-pm-starmer-avoids-parliament-probe-over-epstein-associate-peter-mandelson?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351759/uk-pm-starmer-avoids-parliament-probe-over-epstein-associate-peter-mandelson?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 18:12:51 +0000 Danny Mok Danny Mok Hong Kong police have arrested a domestic helper on suspicion of child abuse after she allegedly put two young boys inside a dog cage in a Tsing Yi flat. Police said they received a report at 1.34pm on Tuesday from the 26-year-old mother of the boys, aged two and three, who alleged that her helper had confined them in a cage at a flat in the Grand Horizon estate on two occasions in February. A police source said the mother twice discovered through her mobile phone’s security camera feed that the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351754/helper-arrested-hong-kong-allegedly-putting-2-young-boys-dog-cage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351754/helper-arrested-hong-kong-allegedly-putting-2-young-boys-dog-cage?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 15:12:18 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press An 89-year-old man armed with a hunting rifle opened fire inside a Greek social security office in Athens on Tuesday, wounding an employee in the leg, authorities said. The suspect then carried out a second shooting at a courthouse in the city, leaving four more people lightly injured. The attack was reportedly sparked by problems with the man’s pension payments. He was arrested a few hours after the shootings in the port city of Patras, state broadcaster ERT reported. Earlier, local media... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351740/greece-man-89-opens-fire-shotgun-injures-least-4?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351740/greece-man-89-opens-fire-shotgun-injures-least-4?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 12:05:04 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones is set to plead guilty on Tuesday to charges he cashed in on rigged poker games and gave sports bettors non-public injury information about stars, including his one-time teammate LeBron James. Barring a last-minute change, Jones will become the first person to plead guilty in a gambling sweep that led to the arrests of more than 30 people, including reputed mobsters and other basketball figures. None of the other defendants have shown a... https://www.scmp.com/sport/basketball/article/3351669/ex-nba-player-damon-jones-plead-guilty-gambling-sweep-saw-more-30-arrests?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/basketball/article/3351669/ex-nba-player-damon-jones-plead-guilty-gambling-sweep-saw-more-30-arrests?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 11:00:10 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A man accused of pledging allegiance to Islamic State group and plotting to attack one of superstar singer Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna nearly two years ago pleaded guilty as his trial began on Tuesday, Austrian media reported. The plot was thwarted, but Austrian authorities still cancelled Swift’s three performances in August 2024. The singer’s fans, known as Swifties, who had flown to Austria from across the globe to attend a performance of her record-setting Eras Tour were devastated,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351728/austrian-islamic-state-man-admits-plot-taylor-swift-concert-vienna?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351728/austrian-islamic-state-man-admits-plot-taylor-swift-concert-vienna?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:50:00 +0000 Edmund Lee Edmund Lee Hailed as a triumphant reinvigoration of the Hong Kong police thriller, the star-studded 2012 film Cold War revolves around a high-stakes power struggle within the upper echelons of the city’s police force. Winner of nine prizes at the 2013 Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA), the action blockbuster notably aligned itself with an institutional slogan of pride: “Hong Kong is Asia’s safest city.” Yet just 14 years after its release, the cinematic landscape – much like the city itself – has drastically... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3351683/how-hong-kong-crime-films-have-evolved-national-security-law-era?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3351683/how-hong-kong-crime-films-have-evolved-national-security-law-era?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:25:03 +0000 Fiona Sun Fiona Sun Hong Kong’s anti-corruption watchdog has charged a police superintendent over allegedly accepting a HK$1 million (US$127,599) bribe from a businessman, disclosing internal information and arranging for his younger brother to act as a scapegoat in speeding cases. The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on Tuesday revealed the charges against Leung Ka-man, 52, as well as his girlfriend and younger brother. According to the commission, Leung faces four charges: conspiracy for a public... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351723/hong-kongs-icac-charges-police-superintendent-over-hk1-million-bribe-misconduct?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351723/hong-kongs-icac-charges-police-superintendent-over-hk1-million-bribe-misconduct?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:09:07 +0000 Raissa Robles Raissa Robles As impeachment looms, Philippine Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio and her spouse are firing back at allegations of ill-gotten wealth, with the couple’s combative responses seen as damage control over what critics say will be “smoking gun” evidence to be presented to the Senate. A handful of lawmakers are expecting the House of Representatives to submit Articles of Impeachment against Duterte-Carpio to the Senate soon. “I think she will be impeached by the first week of May. My guess is 160 to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351660/philippines-sara-duterte-hits-back-against-wealth-allegations-impeachment-looms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351660/philippines-sara-duterte-hits-back-against-wealth-allegations-impeachment-looms?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 05:54:12 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Mexico’s most powerful criminal enterprise, suffered another blow on Monday when the Mexican military captured one of its top leaders in the northwest of the country, two months after the cartel’s leader was killed. Audias Flores Silva, also known as “El Jardinero”, or The Gardener, was seen as a possible successor to the killed leader and the United States had a US$5 million reward out for information leading to his arrest. The CJNG regional commander was... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3351654/mexico-captures-top-cartel-leader-el-jardinero-hiding-roadside-ditch?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3351654/mexico-captures-top-cartel-leader-el-jardinero-hiding-roadside-ditch?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 05:13:06 +0000 Oscar Liu Oscar Liu Hong Kong police have arrested two tourists after an alleged violent fight in a serviced apartment that left both with facial injuries. A source said on Tuesday that the force was alerted to the incident at K11 Artus at 11.47pm the previous day, after an argument over “trivial matters” between a Malaysian man and a mainland Chinese woman spiralled into a physical brawl. The pair were visiting Hong Kong for sightseeing and met while shopping at K11 Musea early on Monday, according to the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351633/2-tourists-arrested-after-hotpot-night-turns-violent-hong-kong-serviced-apartment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351633/2-tourists-arrested-after-hotpot-night-turns-violent-hong-kong-serviced-apartment?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 02:48:56 +0000 Reuters Reuters A New York man on Monday pleaded guilty to ⁠taking part in ⁠the 2002 murder of ⁠pioneering hip-hop star Jam Master Jay of famed group Run-DMC as part of a dispute over a drug deal, according to federal prosecutors. Appearing in court in Brooklyn, Jay Bryant, 52, admitted to playing ‌a role in the fatal shooting of Jason Mizell, better known by his stage name Jam Master Jay, and faces up to 20 years in prison, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York said in a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351623/man-pleads-guilty-2002-killing-run-dmcs-jam-master-jay?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351623/man-pleads-guilty-2002-killing-run-dmcs-jam-master-jay?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 20:04:45 +0000 Reuters Reuters Britain’s parliament will vote on Tuesday on a possible inquiry into Prime Minister Keir Starmer, looking at whether he misled the House of Commons ‌over the appointment of former US ambassador Peter Mandelson. Any such inquiry could have serious implications for Starmer’s future. He has so far resisted pressure to quit over his decision to hire Mandelson, but if found to have knowingly misled parliament his position would likely become untenable. House of Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said he... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351611/uk-pm-starmer-faces-vote-possible-parliamentary-probe-over-mandelson?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351611/uk-pm-starmer-faces-vote-possible-parliamentary-probe-over-mandelson?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 14:41:24 +0000 Fiona Chow Fiona Chow A former Hong Kong prison officer has admitted severely wounding an inmate by repeatedly thrusting a stick into the man’s rectum after being sprinkled with baby powder during a game. Tam Lik-chung, an ex-assistant officer in the Correctional Services Department, pleaded guilty in the District Court on Monday along with an inmate, Ho Lik-wun, who had helped hold down the victim. Tam, 33, had been overseeing young inmates at Pik Uk Prison in Sai Kung at the time of the assault in December... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351586/prison-officer-admits-brutal-assault-inmate-after-baby-powder-bingo-game?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351586/prison-officer-admits-brutal-assault-inmate-after-baby-powder-bingo-game?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 10:42:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A French teenager has been charged with mischief and public nuisance in Singapore for licking a straw and putting it back in an orange juice vending machine, court documents showed on Monday. Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 18, allegedly filmed himself “licking a straw and placing it back at the vending machine”, uploaded the video on Instagram knowing that it “would or would probably cause annoyance to the public”, according to the documents. The teenager is studying in Singapore, according to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351585/french-teen-singapore-faces-jail-licking-and-returning-vending-machine-straw?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351585/french-teen-singapore-faces-jail-licking-and-returning-vending-machine-straw?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 10:37:58 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Twenty-two Sri Lankan monks returning from Thailand were arrested on Sunday at the main international airport with 110kg (242lbs) of powerful cannabis, officials said. A Sri Lanka Customs spokesman said the group, returning home after a four-day holiday in the Thai capital, had kush – a potent, plant-based strain of cannabis – hidden in their luggage. “Each carried about five kilos of the narcotic concealed within false walls in their luggage,” the spokesman said, adding that the monks had been... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3351537/sri-lanka-arrests-22-monks-us35-million-worth-cannabis-record-haul?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3351537/sri-lanka-arrests-22-monks-us35-million-worth-cannabis-record-haul?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 06:46:07 +0000 Reuters Reuters US law enforcement officials are reassessing security arrangements after ⁠a gunman opened fire near the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, raising questions about ⁠how he was able to get so close to an event attended by President Donald Trump, cabinet members and lawmakers. Two former Secret Service agents and three senior US officials told Reuters on Sunday that federal agents appeared to carry out their plan to protect the president effectively on Saturday night, stopping the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351538/washington-hotel-shooting-exposes-gaps-security-protocols-trump-and-other-vips?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351538/washington-hotel-shooting-exposes-gaps-security-protocols-trump-and-other-vips?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 06:32:30 +0000 Iman Muttaqin Yusof Iman Muttaqin Yusof Malaysian immigration authorities say they have uncovered an Indonesian migrant-smuggling syndicate that moved people from sea crossings to a more elaborate route through Singapore and southern Thailand. The raid, carried out before dawn on Saturday at two major transport terminals in Kuala Lumpur, led to the arrest of 11 Indonesians, including a suspected transporter, and the seizure of a Mazda CX-5 believed to have been used to move migrants to their next stop. Immigration director general... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351521/indonesian-migrant-smugglers-target-malaysia-entry-singapore-thailand?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3351521/indonesian-migrant-smugglers-target-malaysia-entry-singapore-thailand?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 04:30:37 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Police in Thailand have arrested an Indonesian who allegedly defrauded Americans of about US$10 million, Thai authorities say, adding that they will extradite him to the United States. The 33-year-old Indonesian man was arrested on Friday at a luxury resort in the coastal town of Phuket after a tip-off from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Suriya Poungsombat of the national immigration police said on Sunday. The FBI had informed Thai authorities that the suspect left Dubai and... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351508/thailand-extradite-indonesian-man-us10-million-scam-targeting-americans?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351508/thailand-extradite-indonesian-man-us10-million-scam-targeting-americans?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 02:07:04 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump’s Justice Department is using the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday to try to pressure preservationists to drop their lawsuit over his planned US$400 million ballroom on the site of the former East Wing of the White House. “It’s time to build the ballroom,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said plainly on Sunday on social media, posting a letter in which Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate gave the National Trust for Historic... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351503/justice-department-cites-shooting-press-preservationists-drop-trump-ballroom-suit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351503/justice-department-cites-shooting-press-preservationists-drop-trump-ballroom-suit?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Apr 2026 23:16:10 +0000 Reuters Reuters The ⁠Italian government has extradited to ⁠the United States a Chinese man wanted by authorities there on hacking charges that include stealing Covid-19 medical research, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The source ‌declined to say when Xu Zewei was flown out of Italy, saying only that he was already in the United States. The move follows a ruling by a top Italian court earlier this month allowing the extradition. Xu was arrested in Milan on July 3 at ⁠the request of US... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351502/italy-extradite-suspected-chinese-hacker-wanted-us-authorities-source?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351502/italy-extradite-suspected-chinese-hacker-wanted-us-authorities-source?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Apr 2026 20:21:26 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Two US citizens were among 19 people killed in a raid on an alleged communist stronghold in the Philippines that has sparked a probe by the country’s rights commission, a government task force said. More than 300 residents in the Toboso municipality of Negros Island fled their homes on April 19 as gunfire rang out in the remote sugar cane-farming region, the municipal disaster management office told reporters last week. The number of people killed in the firefight, in which only one soldier was... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351477/two-us-citizens-killed-raid-philippines-communist-stronghold?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351477/two-us-citizens-killed-raid-philippines-communist-stronghold?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Apr 2026 09:34:59 +0000 Mark Magnier,Yuanyue Dang Mark Magnier,Yuanyue Dang US President Donald Trump and other top administration officials were likely targets of a gunman who tried to storm a White House correspondents’ dinner, the acting US attorney general said on Sunday, after a major security breach in the heart of Washington. Chaos erupted at the Washington Hilton on Saturday night as shots were fired near a security checkpoint outside the subterranean ballroom where the glitzy, high-profile event was being held. Secret Service agents, weapons drawn, rushed to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351447/trump-evacuated-white-house-correspondents-dinner-after-security-threat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351447/trump-evacuated-white-house-correspondents-dinner-after-security-threat?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:53:20 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The death toll ⁠from an explosives ⁠attack on a highway ⁠in southwestern Colombia rose to 20 on Sunday, authorities said, as the government blamed a dissident faction of the former FARC guerrilla ‌group for the bombing. The attack happened on Saturday when an explosive device was detonated on a bus traveling along the Pan-American Highway in the municipality of Cajibio. So far, 15 women and five men are among the victims, according to Octavio Guzman, governor of the region of Cauca. He wrote on... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3351446/explosive-device-kills-13-and-injures-38-bus-colombia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3351446/explosive-device-kills-13-and-injures-38-bus-colombia?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:02:48 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A former University of South Florida student has been charged with killing his roommate and the roommate’s girlfriend – two doctoral students from Bangladesh who disappeared earlier this month, authorities said Saturday. Hisham Abugharbieh, 26, is facing two counts of premeditated murder in the first degree with a weapon in the deaths of Zamil Limon and Nahida Bristy, students at USF, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. He made an initial court appearance Saturday in Tampa,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351443/roommate-charged-murder-2-bangladeshi-phd-students-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351443/roommate-charged-murder-2-bangladeshi-phd-students-us?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Apr 2026 18:30:27 +0000 dpa dpa Pope Leo has called for the worldwide abolition of the death penalty on Saturday, a day after the US administration mulled expanding the penalty. “The dignity of the person is not lost even after very serious crimes are committed,” Leo said in a video message marking the 15th anniversary of the abolition of the death penalty in his home state of Illinois. “The Catholic Church has consistently taught that each human life, from the moment of conception until natural death, is sacred and deserves... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351441/pope-leo-urges-worldwide-abolition-death-penalty?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351441/pope-leo-urges-worldwide-abolition-death-penalty?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Apr 2026 15:51:23 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Imagine being told to fly thousands of miles to Hong Kong to buy gold pellets as part of an “official investigation”. The scenario seems like an obvious scam, but at least nine students were recently ensnared in such a complex scheme leveraging fear, cross-border logistics and physical assets. Police have rightly issued a warning about the dangerous escalation in scam tactics, underscoring the need for better awareness and prevention. The students were targeted by thieves posing as officers from... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3351266/gold-scams-are-reminder-crime-prevention-must-keep?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3351266/gold-scams-are-reminder-crime-prevention-must-keep?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 22:45:07 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman has apologised to a Canadian town devastated by a February mass shooting, saying he was “deeply sorry” the company did not tell police about the killer’s troubling ChatGPT account. OpenAI had banned an account linked to Jesse Van Rootselaar in June 2025, eight months before the 18-year-old woman killed eight people at her home and a school in the tiny British Columbia mining town of Tumbler Ridge. The account was banned over concerns about usage linked to violent... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351391/openais-sam-altman-apologises-canada-town-not-reporting-mass-shooter?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351391/openais-sam-altman-apologises-canada-town-not-reporting-mass-shooter?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 21:20:25 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The Trump Justice Department said on Friday it was seeking to expand the use of the death penalty in federal capital cases and add the firing squad, electrocution and gas to lethal injection as methods of execution. “The prior administration failed in its duty to protect the American people by refusing to pursue and carry out the ultimate punishment against the most dangerous criminals, including terrorists, child murderers, and cop killers,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said. Under US... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351388/trump-justice-department-adds-firing-squads-federal-executions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351388/trump-justice-department-adds-firing-squads-federal-executions?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 18:16:50 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The US Justice Department has ended its probe into Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, clearing a major roadblock to the confirmation of his successor, Kevin Warsh. US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeannine Pirro said on X on Friday that her office was ending its probe into the Fed’s extensive building renovations because the Fed’s inspector general would scrutinise them instead. The decision ends an investigation, one of several undertaken by the Justice Department into President... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351378/us-drops-criminal-probe-fed-chair-powell-likely-clearing-way-nominee-warsh?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351378/us-drops-criminal-probe-fed-chair-powell-likely-clearing-way-nominee-warsh?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 14:54:25 +0000 dpa dpa German prosecutors have charged a 46-year-old man on suspicion of serious sexual abuse of children via live streaming. The man, from the district of Heidenheim in southwestern Germany, is alleged to have paid female accomplices in the Philippines to carry out sexual abuse against girls aged between four and 13 in six instances, the Cybercrime Centre of the Karlsruhe Public Prosecutor’s Office said on Friday. Videos of the sexual abuse were reportedly streamed live to the man, while he directed... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351352/german-man-accused-live-streaming-child-abuse-philippines?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3351352/german-man-accused-live-streaming-child-abuse-philippines?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:24:26 +0000 Aisyah Llewellyn Aisyah Llewellyn Indonesia’s blasphemy law has once again come under scrutiny after former vice-president Jusuf Kalla was reported to police over remarks linking past Muslim-Christian conflicts to beliefs about martyrdom. The case is unusual because it involves Christian complainants against one of the most senior Muslim figures in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation and reflects what critics have long called the law’s central flaw: its susceptibility to politicised use. Kalla, a career politician... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351325/indonesias-blasphemy-law-religious-protection-or-political-purpose?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351325/indonesias-blasphemy-law-religious-protection-or-political-purpose?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:54:11 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones The US government has imposed sanctions on a Cambodian senator alleging he is at the heart of a sprawling scam network, as the Southeast Asian nation comes under intense pressure – including from China – to eliminate a cybercrime industry worth nearly US$20 billion a year. The US Treasury tagged Senator Kok An, a tycoon with close ties to former leader Hun Sen whose son is now prime minister, and 28 other associates as “specially designated nationals” suspected of controlling “scam compounds... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351314/us-slaps-sanctions-cambodian-senator-suspected-controlling-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351314/us-slaps-sanctions-cambodian-senator-suspected-controlling-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:19:28 +0000 CNA CNA Although he was already married, a man began dating a domestic helper he was introduced to and later got married to her in Batam, Indonesia. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) caught wind of the bigamy and flagged the case to the police, who arrested both the man and the woman. Low Kok Peng, a 61-year-old Singaporean man, was sentenced to two months’ jail on Friday. He pleaded guilty to one charge of bigamy under the Women’s Charter. His co-accused, 50-year-old Indonesian woman Komariah, was... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351278/married-singaporean-man-jailed-bigamy-after-secret-indonesian-wedding?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351278/married-singaporean-man-jailed-bigamy-after-secret-indonesian-wedding?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 07:45:07 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen The United States is offering a reward of up to US$4 million for information leading to the arrest of a Chinese national who fled the US after being convicted of money laundering. The bounty on fugitive Daren Li, 43, was announced by the State Department on Thursday through its Transnational Organised Crime Rewards Programme. Separately on Thursday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said it had charged two Chinese nationals accused of managing an industrial-scale fraud compound in Myanmar. Li was... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351257/america-offers-us4-million-bounty-arrest-chinese-money-launderer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351257/america-offers-us4-million-bounty-arrest-chinese-money-launderer?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 04:59:39 +0000 Ashlyn Chak Ashlyn Chak Hong Kong is considered one of the safest cities in the world today – but it has not always been so. There have been periods throughout contemporary history when its streets were ruled and terrorised by gangs. In this series, we look at the history of Hong Kong’s major triad societies and how they shaped the underworld of organised crime and inspired the city’s pop culture. Most well-established Hong Kong triads have auspicious names: Sun Yee On literally means “new, righteousness, peace”, while... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/chinese-culture/article/3350992/inside-14k-how-hong-kong-triad-grew-global-crime-syndicate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/chinese-culture/article/3350992/inside-14k-how-hong-kong-triad-grew-global-crime-syndicate?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 04:45:07 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Albert*, a 68-year-old retiree in the Philippines, was struggling to log into the country’s Social Security System app in August last year when a man rang to offer help. The caller said he worked for the government pension fund, the website was down for maintenance and a new app had just been rolled out. To prove he was genuine, he sent Albert his full name, Social Security number, and home address over the Viber messaging app, followed by a link to the “new” app. More than an hour after Albert... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3351222/fake-app-drains-filipino-retirees-life-savings-malware-service?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3351222/fake-app-drains-filipino-retirees-life-savings-malware-service?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Apr 2026 01:30:15 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A US special forces soldier involved in the military operation to capture former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro has been charged with using classified information about the mission to win more than US$400,000 in an online betting market, federal officials announced on Thursday. Gannon Ken Van Dyke was part of the operation to capture Maduro in January and used his access to classified information to make money on the prediction market site Polymarket, the federal prosecutor’s office in New... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351220/us-soldier-charged-using-inside-info-win-us400000-bet-maduros-capture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351220/us-soldier-charged-using-inside-info-win-us400000-bet-maduros-capture?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 22:29:41 +0000 Reuters Reuters The US Department of Justice is reclassifying FDA-approved and state-licensed marijuana as a less dangerous drug, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Thursday. The announcement does not legalise marijuana across the United States. In a post on X, Blanche said the Justice Department was “immediately rescheduling FDA-approved marijuana and state-licensed marijuana from Schedule I to ⁠Schedule III”. The department is also initiating an expedited hearing to consider the broader rescheduling... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351203/trump-reclassifies-state-licensed-medical-marijuana-less-dangerous-drug?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351203/trump-reclassifies-state-licensed-medical-marijuana-less-dangerous-drug?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 13:24:27 +0000 Aidan Jones Aidan Jones The jailing of two Vietnamese men who brokered a sale of 900kg (2,000lbs) of pangolin scales from Africa destined for the Chinese market has returned the spotlight to the illicit trade in an animal that has been poached to the edge of extinction. Prized for its meat and scales, the pangolin has almost disappeared from forests and their hilly habitats of Africa and Asia. Conservationists estimate around 1 million have been trafficked over the last decade, triggered by demand for traditional... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3351159/conservationists-hail-jailing-vietnamese-pangolin-scale-smugglers-900kg-haul?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3351159/conservationists-hail-jailing-vietnamese-pangolin-scale-smugglers-900kg-haul?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 09:45:00 +0000 Fiona Sun Fiona Sun A data breach at Yau Yat Chuen Garden City Club has compromised the personal information of more than 9,000 people, Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog has found, urging organisations to review security measures and update software to close loopholes. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data on Thursday also released a guide for parents and teachers to safeguard children’s online privacy amid increasing risks facing youngsters online. Revealing the data breach, Privacy Commissioner for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3351143/personal-info-9045-people-compromised-hong-kong-private-club-data-breach?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3351143/personal-info-9045-people-compromised-hong-kong-private-club-data-breach?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 08:41:48 +0000 Oscar Liu Oscar Liu Hong Kong police have arrested nine people over their alleged involvement in a travel insurance fraud syndicate that staged overseas accidents to claim more than HK$1.7 million (US$217,053). The force said on Thursday it had received a report from the Hong Kong Federation of Insurers in October concerning suspicious travel insurance claims, ranging from “a few thousand to tens of thousands of Hong Kong dollars”. “Police analysed more than 70 suspicious claim cases and discovered that these... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351121/hong-kong-police-arrest-9-over-hk17-million-fake-travel-insurance-claims?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351121/hong-kong-police-arrest-9-over-hk17-million-fake-travel-insurance-claims?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 07:36:02 +0000 Martin W H Wong Martin W H Wong The law of tort, from its Latin and Old French origin meaning “wrong”, saw a major development in Hong Kong at the beginning of this year. After years of debate in the lower courts, Hong Kong’s top court has made it clear that, with Sir Elly Kadoorie & Sons Limited v Samantha Jane Bradley [2026] HKCFA 2, harassment is now a recognised tort under common law. While it is described as a development, this was the last step of a recognition that was more than a decade in the making. The first High... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351055/being-annoying-not-just-annoyance-its-harassment-under-tort-law?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351055/being-annoying-not-just-annoyance-its-harassment-under-tort-law?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 01:30:11 +0000 Raissa Robles Raissa Robles Families of victims of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs hailed as a “vindication” on Wednesday the International Criminal Court Appeals Chamber’s refusal to throw out the crimes against humanity case against him. Duterte has been held by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague since March 2025 over killings linked to his anti-drugs campaign while he was in office. His lawyers argued that the court had no authority to try him because the Philippines... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351050/icc-chamber-rules-case-against-rodrigo-dutertes-war-drugs-killings-proceed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3351050/icc-chamber-rules-case-against-rodrigo-dutertes-war-drugs-killings-proceed?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:37:40 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The United Nations voiced alarm on Wednesday at the number of people being executed in Singapore for drug-related offences, saying it was incompatible with human dignity. UN rights chief Volker Turk said there had been a general shift away from the use of capital punishment in Asia, and Singapore was one of only a few countries imposing the death penalty for drug-related crimes not involving intentional killing. The death penalty is mandatory in Singapore for drug trafficking above certain... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351031/un-alarmed-singapore-executions-drug-related-offences?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3351031/un-alarmed-singapore-executions-drug-related-offences?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 11:21:43 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Mexico’s government said it was bolstering security at tourist sites after a man opened fire on tourists at pyramids outside Mexico City less than two months before the Fifa World Cup. The Monday shooting, carried out by a lone gunman on top of one of the Teotihuacan pyramids – a Unesco World Heritage Site and one of Mexico’s most frequented tourist attractions – killed one Canadian tourist and injured a dozen more. It also set off a flurry of questions the next morning by reporters to Mexican... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350975/world-cup-co-host-mexico-ramps-security-tourist-sites-after-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3350975/world-cup-co-host-mexico-ramps-security-tourist-sites-after-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 06:06:18 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Florida on Tuesday announced a criminal probe into whether artificial intelligence played a role in a deadly mass shooting at a university in the US state. The decision to launch an investigation came after prosecutors reviewed exchanges between OpenAI chatbot ChatGPT and the suspected gunman, who opened fire at Florida State University last year, according to state Attorney General James Uthmeier. “If ChatGPT were a person, it would be facing charges for murder,” Uthmeier said. Florida law... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350966/florida-investigating-chatgpt-role-mass-shooting-university?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350966/florida-investigating-chatgpt-role-mass-shooting-university?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 05:22:14 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A notorious North Korean hacking group is likely behind the theft of nearly US$300 million in cryptocurrency over the weekend, an affected party has said, in the biggest known crypto heist this year. It is the latest such incident linked to North Korea, whose sophisticated cybercrime programme uses stolen cryptocurrency to help fund its nuclear weapons development, according to a United Nations panel. Digital currency news site CoinDesk said the heist on the vault of online investment tool... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3350964/north-koreas-lazarus-suspected-stealing-us290-million-kelpdao-cyberattack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3350964/north-koreas-lazarus-suspected-stealing-us290-million-kelpdao-cyberattack?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 05:12:23 +0000 CNA CNA A Singaporean man who was seen in a viral video assaulting a Filipino woman at Lucky Plaza shopping centre was charged on Wednesday over the incident and a previous alleged attack on the same woman. Andrew Suresh Markandan, 47, was handed two charges of voluntarily causing hurt to Alibutdan Vilma Litgio and two charges of mischief by damaging her property. He is accused of first assaulting the victim at about 7.25pm on March 30 last year at Hotel 81 Bugis. He allegedly slapped her and punched... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350952/singaporean-man-charged-after-viral-lucky-plaza-assault-filipino-woman?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3350952/singaporean-man-charged-after-viral-lucky-plaza-assault-filipino-woman?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Apr 2026 04:12:16 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg A Canadian who was detained in China for nearly three years warned that Prime Minister Mark Carney’s electric vehicle deal risks creating a strategic dependency that the Asian superpower can exploit for political coercion. Michael Kovrig, a former diplomat who was imprisoned from 2018 to 2021, said on Tuesday that the agreement would lead to unfair competition and the erosion of Canada’s industrial base. Carney announced during a January trip to Beijing that Canada would accept an initial quota... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350931/canadian-who-was-detained-china-warns-against-carneys-electric-vehicle-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350931/canadian-who-was-detained-china-warns-against-carneys-electric-vehicle-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 20:42:21 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A Democratic lawmaker resigned on Tuesday, becoming the third member of the US House of Representatives to step down in just over a week as a wave of ethics scandals engulfs Congress. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida announced her immediate resignation ahead of a scheduled disciplinary hearing by the House Ethics Committee, which had been weighing potential sanctions over a string of campaign finance violations. Her departure follows the recent resignations of Democrat Eric Swalwell and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350930/cherfilus-mccormick-third-lawmaker-quit-wave-scandal-swamps-us-congress?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3350930/cherfilus-mccormick-third-lawmaker-quit-wave-scandal-swamps-us-congress?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 19:05:23 +0000