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LOS ANGELES - Two men were convicted Wednesday of orchestrating a ruthless kidnapping-for-ransom scheme targeting Russian immigrants that resulted in the killings of five people whose bodies were found at the bottom of a Northern California reservoir. A federal jury found Iouri Mikhel, 41, and Jurijus Kadamovas, 40, guilty of three counts of hostage-taking and three counts of conspiracy. Both could face the death penalty. Neither defendant showed reaction. Relatives of some victims sobbed and held each other as the jury's decision was announced. During the 4 1/2-month trial, federal prosecutors portrayed the two defendants as the leaders of a...

GREVE, Denmark, Oct. 6 (UPI) -- Inspectors discovered strychnine in the water supply of a Danish town during a routine check. Investigators believe that someone dumped rat poison in one of the wells that provides water for Greve Municipality outside Copenhagen, the Copenhagen Post reported. The well's Plexiglass cover was smashed open. A vial labeled rat poison found in the bottom of the well has been traced to the pharmacy where it originated, investigators told the Post. "The episode worries me, because you think, what'll it be next," Erik Jurlander, a manager at Greve Waterworks told the newspaper Politiken. "We...

Two Russian immigrants looking to amass $50 million concocted a kidnapping-for-ransom scheme that ended with the bodies of five people dumped in a Northern California reservoir, a federal prosecutor said Wednesday. The trial of Iouri Mikhel and Jurijus Kadamovas opened with Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan DeWitt telling jurors the two men oversaw a crew who kidnapped and later killed the victims regardless of whether ransoms were paid. "No matter how much they (victims) cooperated or how much money was paid for their release, they were killed," DeWitt said. "The defendants did not want to leave witnesses alive." Mikhel, 41, and...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders struggled Tuesday to agree on a record-setting public works bond package that could reach the June ballot, with what one lawmaker called "the diabolical politics of water" standing in the way. But negotiators were working on borrowed time. Last Friday was the secretary of state's official deadline for the Legislature to add proposals to the June 6 ballot, but lawmakers and administration officials said they could still make the ballot if they acted by Tuesday. Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, sent a letter Tuesday to Secretary of State Bruce McPherson asking him to...

No matter where Marines are serving, from the Pentagon and Marine Barracks in Washington, to the loneliest outposts in Iraq and Afghanistan, Marines will stop, shake hands, say happy birthday, sing the Marines' Hymn and, if it is available, have a piece of cake. It doesn't matter to us if its an elaborate cake from some big hotel, a smaller cake from the great cooks aboard ship, or a cookie from an MRE, we're going to celebrate!

A series of diplomatic contacts are scheduled this week to help relieve the North Korean nuclear issue. Sources say South Korea plans to send its top nuclear negotiator, Deputy Foreign Minister Song Min-soon, to Beijing this week to ask China to use more of its influence over North Korea in getting Pyongyang back to the negotiating table. China, in turn, is expected to dispatch a high-level communist party official, Wang Jiarui, to North Korea as early as this weekend. In the meantime, South Korea, the U.S. and Japan are reportedly pushing to open a 6-way consultative meeting also comprising North...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) -- Nine people have died and 1,600 have been sickened after drinking contaminated water from a state-operated reservoir in southern Pakistan, officials and witnesses said Tuesday. Dr. Hadi Bakhsh from the main hospital in the city of Hyderabad, 60 miles northeast of the port city Karachi, said people suffering from diarrhea began streaming in more than two weeks ago. The contaminated water is supplied by a state-run water agency from Manchar Lake, outside Hyderabad in Pakistan's southern Sindh province. The source of contamination is unknown, and authorities have ordered an investigation. Angry crowds gathered outside government offices...

  Al-Bazoni BY MICHAEL VIGH and STEPHEN HUNT(c) 2002, THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE     Forty-eight hours before tonight's ceremony opening the 2002 Winter Olympics, federal agents arrested a former Iraqi soldier who last July was cited for trespassing at Mountain Dell Reservoir, an important source of drinking water for Salt Lake City residents.     U.S. Magistrate Judge Samuel Alba will hear testimony today from prosecutors contending that Hani Salem al-Bazoni made threats against the United States when he was arrested, that he poses a possible terrorist threat and that he should remain jailed until trial on a new charge ...

Gene study narrows source of SARS 19:00 04 September 03 NewScientist.com news serviceThe SARS-like virus found in a food market in Guangdong, China jumped from animals to people - and not the other way around - suggests new research. The study represents an important step in tracing the original source of the virus. However, the work still leaves many important questions about the route of transmission of the SARS virus to people unanswered. In May, the researchers, led by Yi Guan at the University of Hong Kong, revealed initial results of tests on a SARS-like coronavirus isolated from market animals...

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. -- Aquarion Water Co. closed public access to the Putnam Dam in Greenwich Thursday, citing concerns about terrorism and the war in Iraq. No trespassing signs were posted around the dam, and a gate was installed near the spillway to block access by walkers. "In light of Aquarion's heightened alert status and our commitment to do everything we can to protect our public drinking water supplies, Putnam area residents, visitors and all pets are restricted from the Putnam Dam area," said David Medd, operations manager. "Visitors will be subject to arrest." ... Aquarion is one of the 10...

Storks delay filling of Portuguese reservoir PORTUGAL: August 26, 2002 LISBON - A nest of endangered black storks has delayed the filling of a Portuguese reservoir that will be the biggest in Europe, local media reported on the weekend. Authorities at the Alqueva dam on the Guadiana River have slowed the filling because of a nest holding three young black storks, Lusa news agency and Expresso weekly newspaper said. The species is in danger of extinction. Because of the young birds, the reservoir's filling is expected to be delayed for about five weeks until the storks are old enough...

Tourism, Not Terrorism, Behind Reservoir Visit Associated Press EASTON, Conn. -- It was tourism, not terrorism, behind suspicious activity at the Easton Reservoir that led to the arrests of three men for trespassing.Police got a call about 7:30 p.m. Thursday that three men who appeared to be of Middle Eastern ancestry were on top of a water supply tank with a video camera.Local police arrested the three men as they left the area in a car. Easton police then notified the FBI and state emergency response officials.As it turned out, the three men are cousins from the Bridgeport area who...

(Easton-AP May 17, 2002 7:25 AM)_ Three men who are described as being of middle-eastern descent have been arrested after suspicious activity at a reservoir in Easton. Easton police got a call about seven-thirty last night that three men were spotted on top of a supply tank of the Easton Reservoir Filtration Plant. One of the men was reportedly using a video camera to film the area around the plant and the reservoir dam. The three were taken into custody and charged with trespassing. Easton police chief John Solomon says because of the heightened state of security for reservoirs, the...

(East Windsor-AP Apr. 18, 2002 12:12PM) _ A man and a woman have been found dead in a reservoir in East Windsor. The partially clothed bodies of the couple were pulled from the reservoir at East Windsor Park on Reservoir Avenue this morning. Police say the man and woman were from Afghanistan, but were living in the area. Police say there are suspicious circumstances surrounding the deaths. Police say the man was an airport taxi service driver and the husband of a woman who reported him missing yesterday. The female victim was not his wife. According to police, neither the...

<p>LOS ANGELES (AP) - Four reputed members of the Russian mafia are under arrest for alleged kidnapping schemes that may be linked to the discovery of five bodies in a Sierra Nevada reservoir.</p> <p>The men, who were arrested last month, are accused of hostage-taking and other federal crimes in a March 5 indictment issued in Los Angeles.</p>