LA hardware stores were front for $4.5 million cargo theft ring: police

 Two seemingly normal Los Angeles hardware stores were actually elaborate fronts for a massive cargo theft operation that netted $4.5 million worth of stolen goods ripped off from trains, trucks and cargo ships, police said.

DJ General Tool & Wire’s Montebello and Huntington Park locations served as distribution centers for an organized crime ring that targeted valuable merchandise from across Southern California’s transportation network, according to the LAPD.

The stolen inventory included power tools, e-bikes and appliances from major brands including Dyson, Milwaukee, DeWalt and Makita, investigators told the Los Angeles Times.

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Police say two Los Angeles hardware stores served as elaborate fronts for a $4.5 million cargo theft ring.protectiveleague/Instagram

Store owner Dojoon Park, 41, of Montebello, was arrested on suspicion of receiving stolen property as authorities prepare to file charges that could land him behind bars for years.

“We are in the process of fully evaluating the crimes that he has committed, and we anticipate charges being brought against him … that will involve maximum sentences of years of state prison time,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said at a news conference on Wednesday.

The bust represents the latest strike in an ongoing battle against sophisticated cargo theft operations that have plagued Los Angeles transportation hubs in recent years.

Union Pacific Police and Los Angeles Port Police collaborated with LAPD investigators to connect specific cargo theft incidents to merchandise being sold at Park’s stores and through his online business platforms.

McDonnell emphasized the broader impact of cargo theft beyond the immediate financial losses.

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Investigators linked the stolen goods to trains, trucks, and cargo ships across Southern California’s supply chain.ladaoffice/Instagram

“It’s also important to remember that cargo theft is not a victimless crime,” the police chief said.

“It affects retailers, distributors and ultimately all of us consumers. Protecting the integrity of our supply chain is vital to public safety as well as the economic stability of Los Angeles.”

Hochman warned others involved in similar crimes, promising aggressive prosecution for anyone participating in cargo theft or fencing operations — which are illegal businesses that sell stolen merchandise at a discount to a fence, who then resells it to unsuspecting buyers.

The term “fence” is used for someone who buys and sells stolen goods because the person acts as a barrier or middleman between the thief and the final buyer — helping hide the true origin of the goods.

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Detectives said the inventory included high-end power tools, e-bikes, and appliances from brands like Dyson, DeWalt and Makita.ladaoffice/Instagram

The investigation into DJ General Tool & Wire remains active, with police promising additional arrests as they work to dismantle the entire criminal network.

LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton made clear that authorities plan to target every level of the theft operation from start to finish.

“All of the individuals that are involved, from the inception of the theft, the provisioning of the theft … the eventual transport to the fencing operation, they are all susceptible to being arrested and charged — and charged vigorously,” Hamilton said.

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Authorities displayed stacks of recovered stolen merchandise seized during the investigation.ladaoffice/Instagram

The hardware store bust adds to LAPD’s growing list of cargo theft recoveries this year. Investigators have already seized nearly $4 million in stolen cargo from organized crime rings, including $2.7 million worth of bitcoin-mining computers.

Detectives report observing increasing sophistication in how criminals target and intercept valuable goods moving through Southern California’s vast transportation infrastructure.

The dual-location operation allowed the theft ring to process and distribute massive quantities of stolen merchandise while maintaining the appearance of a normal hardware retail business.

https://nypost.com/2025/08/22/us-news/la-hardware-stores-were-front-for-4-5-million-cargo-theft-ring-police/

Un-deported migrant Abrego released, may be detained again

 Kilmar Abrego, the migrant whose deportation to El Salvador made him a symbol of U.S. President Donald Trump's immigration policies, was released from criminal custody in Tennessee on Friday, reporters witnessed.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia walks, as he has been released from the Putnam County Jail in Cookville, Tennessee, U.S., August 22, 2025. REUTERS/Seth Herald© Thomson Reuters

Video posted hours later on X by WJLA television showed him arriving at a family home in Maryland where relatives greeted him with hugs and chants of "Yes we could!" in Spanish.

Abrego, 30, was deported to his native El Salvador in March despite a 2019 immigration court ruling that he not be sent there due to a risk of persecution by gangs. He was flown back to the U.S. in June to face criminal charges of transporting migrants living illegally in the country.

His case drew attention as the Trump administration for months took no apparent steps to bring him back despite a judgment that his deportation had been an "administrative error" and a federal judge's order to facilitate his return.

Abrego may not be free for long. Once in Maryland, immigration officials could take him into custody and initiate deportation proceedings.

He has pleaded not guilty. His lawyers have urged Nashville-based U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw to dismiss the charges, arguing prosecutors improperly targeted him in retaliation for filing a lawsuit challenging his deportation.

UGANDA NEXT?

Crenshaw last month affirmed U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes' order for Abrego to be released from pre-trial custody, finding he was neither a danger to the community nor a risk of flight. 

But Holmes delayed Abrego's release for a month at Abrego's lawyers' requests. The defense lawyers were concerned that Abrego, once released from criminal custody, could be detained by immigration officials and swiftly deported to a country other than El Salvador.

U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Greenbelt, Maryland, who is overseeing Abrego's civil lawsuit challenging the legality of his deportation, has since ordered that officials give his lawyers three days' notice before sending him to a third country, to give them the chance to challenge his removal. 

Abrego had been living in Maryland with his wife, their child and two of her children before his deportation. His lawyers have said they hired private security to take him to Maryland, where he is due to report to a pre-trial supervision officer and be subject to home detention with electronic monitoring.

The U.S. government notified Abrego's lawyers that he would be deported to Uganda within days and he was asked to appear at a federal building in Baltimore on Monday, Fox News reported, citing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement documents. Neither ICE nor Abrego's attorneys responded to Reuters requests to authenticate the documents. 

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said he was still considered a criminal and an immigration violator, calling him a "monster" who was released by "activist liberal judges."

"We will not stop fighting till this Salvadoran man faces justice and is OUT of our country," Noem said on X.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/wrongly-deported-migrant-abrego-released-may-be-detained-again/ar-AA1L3nYU

Washington D.C. Has The Highest Unemployment Rate In The Nation

 The U.S. labor market remains resilient in 2025, but unemployment figures vary widely by state.

While the national unemployment rate stood at 4.1% in June, some regions are experiencing far higher (or far lower) joblessness.

This visualization, via Visual Capitalist's Niccolo Conte, highlights the unemployment rate by state using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for June 2025.

Washington D.C. Tops Unemployment by State

Washington D.C. tops the list with the highest unemployment rate at 5.9%, as seen in the data table below with the unemployment rate of every U.S. state (and D.C.).

The capital’s high rate marks a significant jump from 5.0% in early 2024, suggesting rising challenges in the capital’s job market amidst Trump’s layoffs across federal agencies.

Nevada (5.4%) and California (5.4%) follow closely behind, reflecting persistent difficulties in sectors like tourism, entertainment, and technology.

Michigan (5.3%) also ranks among the hardest hit, driven by weakness in manufacturing.

The States with the Lowest Unemployment Rates

At the other end of the spectrum, South Dakota recorded the lowest unemployment rate at just 1.8%.

North Dakota (2.5%) and Vermont (2.6%) also reported very low levels of unemployment, underscoring the relative strength of smaller state economies.

Montana and Hawaii, both at 2.8%, round out the bottom five, showing stability even in some tourism-driven markets.

While the U.S. national unemployment rate of 4.1% is slightly above the lows seen during the post-pandemic recovery, the range between the highest and lowest states—more than four percentage points—illustrates the uneven nature of the labor market in America.

https://www.zerohedge.com/personal-finance/washington-dc-has-highest-unemployment-rate-nation

How Managers Are Using AI To Hire And Fire People

 by Autumn Spredemann via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace is evolving rapidly, and some are warning that using AI to make executive decisions without careful consideration could backfire.

Illustration by The Epoch Times, Getty Images

AI is being used more and more in recruitment, hiring, and performance evaluations that could lead to a promotion or termination.

Researchers, legal experts, legislators, and groups such as Human Rights Watch have expressed concern over the potential that AI algorithms are a gateway to ethical quagmires, including marginalization and discrimination in the workplace.

This warning bell isn’t new, but with more managers using AI to assist with important staff decisions, the risk of reducing employees to numbers and graphs also grows.

A Resume Builder survey released in June found that among a group of 1,342 managers in the United States, 78 percent use AI tools to determine raises, 77 percent use it for promotions, 66 percent use it for layoffs, and 64 percent use it for terminations.

The use of AI as a human resource tool is already a cautionary tale. In an unprecedented 2023 workplace discrimination case, digital labor platform iTutorGroup paid $365,000 to settle a federal lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

The English language tutoring service was forced to pay damages to job applicants who were filtered out by its AI algorithm. The company used an AI algorithm that automatically rejected more than 200 applicants based on their age. The candidates were automatically disqualified if, in the case of women, they were older than 55 years old. Male applicants 60 years and older were also rejected.

“Hundreds of applicants lost out on employment during a difficult time for job seekers,” Timothy Riera, acting director of the EEOC’s New York District, said in a statement.

Avoiding Dehumanization

Civil regulations and government legislation are being put forward as a guardrail against the use of AI to evaluate and monitor employee performance.

In March, the California Civil Rights Council finalized its regulations surrounding AI decision-making systems in the workplace, which go into effect on Oct. 1. The regulations include protections for employees against the use of AI systems to increase company efficiency. This encompasses actions such as hiring assistance, firing, and promotions.

At the federal level, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced the AI Whistle Blower Protection Act in May. If passed, the bill will offer employment compensation and protection from retaliation to those working directly with AI who choose to disclose issues with these systems.

“Today, too many people working in AI feel they’re unable to speak up when they see something wrong. Whistleblowers are one of the best ways to ensure Congress keeps pace as the AI industry rapidly develops,” Grassley said.

Additionally, the states of Illinois, California, and New York have proposed, introduced, or passed legislation aimed at protecting workers from AI algorithmic discrimination in areas including recruitment, hiring, promotion, employment renewal, discipline, and training.

Business owners, AI experts, and managers using these digital tools to make decisions affecting employees have stressed the need for human oversight.

“I’ve used AI in recruitment. Tools like ChatGPT-powered screening systems and resume parsers have been game-changers,” AI expert and consultant Peter Swain told The Epoch Times.

Swain is the CEO of a namesake company that focuses on helping entrepreneurs strike a balance between AI systems and their human workforce. He illustrated the pros and cons of using AI systems to handle executive tasks.

“Advantages? Speed and scalability—AI can process 1,000 resumes in the time it takes a human to read 10. It also reduces bias if trained properly,” Swain said.

“Disadvantages? Garbage in, garbage out. If the AI is trained on biased data, it perpetuates those biases. Plus, it lacks the human touch—cultural fit and soft skills can’t be fully assessed by an algorithm.”

Data-driven tasks are where AI tools tend to shine, Swain said, but using them for actions such as raises, promotions, and layoffs is “tricky territory.”

“I’ve dabbled with AI-driven performance analytics—tracking [key performance indicators], productivity ... but I’d never let it make the final call,” he said. “It’s a tool, not a decision-maker. The risk is dehumanization, reducing people to data points.”

Swain also called AI’s use in managerial decisions an ethical “minefield.”

“AI can amplify biases if not carefully monitored—think gender, race, or age discrimination baked into training data,” he said. “Transparency is key. Employees need to know how decisions are made and have recourse to challenge them. Accountability matters—if AI screws up, who’s responsible? You can’t just blame the machine.”

A software company’s booth during the AI+Expo Special Competitive Studies Project in Washington on June 2, 2025. As AI technology advances, its use in company administrative work has become more common. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Volumes of Data

Stephen Engel, CEO of Sanative Recovery and Wellness, told The Epoch Times that he recently used the AI chatbot ChatGPT to assist with deciding whether to fire an employee.

He said that although AI didn’t make the final decision, its ability to handle volumes of data quickly allows managers to think more clearly and “step back from the emotion of the situation” and analyze situations more objectively.

“To me, that’s the real value of AI in this context. ... It allowed me to think through the situation, weigh options more rationally, and ultimately decide on the best course of action,” Engel said.

“I also used ChatGPT afterward to help guide my thinking about what qualities and strengths to prioritize for my next hire. Again, not as a replacement for human judgment, but as a tool to focus my thinking.”

Some business owners use AI tools to identify employees who need help.

“Our AI voice simulations let new employees engage in realistic mock calls from day one. These interactions are scored automatically and paired with coaching opportunities. It’s a way to see quickly who’s progressing and who might need more support,” Lonnie Johnston, CEO of the training platform WizeCamel, told The Epoch Times.

“Our platform helps surface employees who are struggling early and tracks whether they are improving on an acceptable schedule.”

He gave a recent example of how AI evaluations provided data to help supervisors make decisions.

https://www.zerohedge.com/ai/how-managers-are-using-ai-hire-and-fire-people

HHS Rolls Out 'MAHA In Action' To Spotlight Health Reforms

 Early in his tenure as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. vowed to make transparency a key element of the department under his leadership.

This week, HHS announced the debut of MAHA in Action, an online platform highlighting federal initiatives and state-led reforms implementing the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda.

MAHA in Action offers visibility into how health care reforms are working in communities across the country, according to a HHS press release.

“Make America Healthy Again isn’t just a slogan—it’s a mission statement, and we’re delivering results, fast,” Kennedy said.

“The MAHA in Action tracker puts the wins on the map. It gives the public, the press, and policymakers real-time visibility into how we’re restoring health, integrity, and accountability to every corner of our public health agency.”

As Jeff Louderbeck reports for The Epoch Times, MAHA in Action features updates on federal reforms underway across multiple HHS agencies. Among them are removing petroleum-based dyes and harmful additives from the U.S. food supply, restoring public trust in vaccine safety and scientific transparency, closing the GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) loophole that allows chemicals into food with unknown safety data, and finding the root causes of the chronic disease epidemic, including autism.

One transparency-centered tool on MAHA in Action involves the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) Conflicts of Interest.

In recent months, HHS has dismissed all 17 members of the ACIP panel, ended the CDC’s COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for pregnant women and healthy children, and ordered the removal of mercury from influenza vaccines.

After it voted to advise officials to stop recommending influenza shots that have mercury, the remade ACIP said it plans to look at multiple other vaccines.

The ACIP conflicts of interest section on MAHA in Action includes declarations disclosed by voting members during ACIP public meetings since 2000.

“ACIP members are required to declare any potential or perceived conflicts of interest that arise in the course of ACIP tenure and any relevant business interests, positions of authority or other connections with organizations relevant to the work of the ACIP,” according to MAHA in Action.

MAHA in Action also includes an interactive map that follows Kennedy’s MAHA tours and a list of state policies that align with the MAHA agenda.

Among the key “victories” since President Donald Trump’s return to the White House include 12 states with USDA-approved SNAP waivers restricting candy and sugary drinks, eight states banning synthetic dyes or select additives from school meals, two states requiring warning labels on products with unsafe ingredients, 22 states limiting cell phone use in schools, and states restricting lab-grown meat, expanding access to Ivermectin, and removing fluoride from municipal water supplies among other initiatives, MAHA in Action reported.

“Americans are tired of toxic food, failed science, and chronic disease becoming the norm,” Kennedy said.

“We’re turning the tide through bold federal action at HHS and state-driven reforms. The momentum is real, and we’re just getting started,” he added.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in Washington on May 22, 2025. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

The MAHA Commission, chaired by Kennedy and established by Trump, “was on track to submit its Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy report to the president on August 12th,” Kush Desai, a spokesman for the White House, told The Epoch Times in an email on Aug. 11.

“The report will be unveiled to the public shortly thereafter as we coordinate the schedules of the President and the various cabinet members who are a part of the commission,” he added.

The commission’s first report was released in May. It largely details problems with the health of Americans and attributes the rise of chronic diseases among children to a poor diet full of ultraprocessed foods, exposure to chemicals, a lack of physical activity, and the overprescription of medications.

Trump established the commission in February and said that the commission should “study the scope of the childhood chronic disease crisis and any potential contributing causes, including the American diet, absorption of toxic material, medical treatments, lifestyle, environmental factors, Government policies, food production techniques, electromagnetic radiation, and corporate influence or cronyism.”

Per the order, the commission was required to submit its first report to the president within 100 days. It was also required to present a strategy to Trump on how to address chronic diseases, including obesity, within 180 days. That deadline was Aug. 12.

https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/hhs-rolls-out-maha-action-spotlight-health-reforms

As UK Health Sec threatens no deal, talks on drug levy collapse

 After UK Health Secretary Wes Streeting sent a letter to the pharma industry, warning that he would withdraw from negotiations on rebates paid by industry on NHS medicines if an agreement was not reached today, the talks have collapsed.

The Financial Times reported this morning that Streeting had accused the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) of "repeatedly" delaying a decision on the negotiations and what he described as a "generous" offer, threatening to pull out of talks by 12pm. Now, the trade organisation has confirmed that they have been abandoned.

The ABPI and its member companies have been incensed by steep increases in the rate that drugmakers must repay on the sales of newer products to the NHS under the voluntary and statutory schemes, which set a yearly cap on the total allowed sales value of branded medicines to the NHS each year.

Sales above the threshold are paid back to the government via rebates, but the rate has risen sharply this year.

In June, the ABPI said the rebate via the statutory scheme will rise to 31.3% in the latter half of this year from 15.5% in the first half, bringing the average increase to 23.8%, with the expectation that the rate next year will reach 24.3% next year and 26% in 2027.

The voluntary rate, meanwhile, was 22.9% this year, and the rate for 2026 and 2027 was the subject of the negotiations.  In a statement, the ABPI said that "despite good faith and best efforts on both sides, industry and government have not been able to reach an agreed way forward."

It said the voluntary scheme will now require pharmaceutical companies to make record payments of up to a quarter to a third of revenues in sales of branded medicines to the NHS, and efforts to return the rate to historic, single-digit levels have failed.

It also said the two sides were unable to "address the way in which [reimbursement authority] NICE fundamentally values innovation, for which the standard decision-making parameters have not changed for almost a quarter of a century."

Most drugmakers opt for the voluntary rebate scheme, although massive increases in the rebate in the last few years have prompted some to opt out and switch to the statutory scheme in protest.

It has already been speculated that AstraZeneca's termination of a plan to invest £450 million in a new vaccine manufacturing plant in the UK came about in part because of the big increase in the voluntary rate. Since then, the ABPI has said the medicines levy had made the UK "un-investable," undermining government efforts to maintain life sciences as a key growth sector for the national economy.

The organisation has previously called for the allowed growth in the schemes to be adjusted to reflect recent increases in NHS funding, and linked to future adjustments each year based on the latest planned NHS budget.

"While this review has concluded without reaching agreement, the issues it was set up to resolve remain unaddressed and continue to demand urgent action," said ABPI chief executive Richard Torbett. 

"We need to reach a solution that improves patient access to future innovation, allows the sector to fulfil its growth potential, and does not require industry to pay back nearly three times as much of its revenues as is required in other European countries."

Research (PDF) commissioned by the trade organisation has claimed that, if rates stay above 20%, the UK could lose out on £11 billion ($14.8 billion) of R&D investment by 2033. However, should they be maintained below 10%, that could increase GDP by £61 billion over the next 30 years.

https://pharmaphorum.com/news/streeting-threatens-no-deal-talks-drug-levy-collapse

'Ro taps Serena Williams as celebrity GLP-1 ambassador'

 Telehealth company Ro has a new spokesperson for its booming GLP-1 business: Serena Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam champion and four-time Olympic gold medalist, widely regarded as one of the best tennis players of all time. 

The company announced the partnership, and the beginning of "a multi-year campaign to normalise the use of GLP-1 medications for weight loss" on Thursday. William's husband, reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian, is an investor and board member at Ro.

As part of the campaign, Williams is sharing for the first time that she began using GLP-1s after the birth of her second child in late 2023. According to the campaign, Williams lost 31 pounds in eight months taking an undisclosed GLP-1 drug.

"I trained at the highest level, ate a clean diet, pushed myself, and still, after having kids, my body just wouldn’t respond. I realised it wasn’t about willpower; it was biological. My body needed the GLP-1 and clinical support," Williams said in a statement. "I’m partnering with Ro because if I needed help as a top athlete doing everything at level 10, I know others are struggling too, and everyone deserves access to the treatment they need. This isn’t a shortcut. It’s healthcare."

"It's not a shortcut, it's healthcare" is the tagline of the campaign, which will include digital, broadcast, and billboard ads featuring Williams.

"By opening up about her own health, Serena is opening doors for millions of people who have felt shamed for needing support to lose weight," said Zach Reitano, co-founder and CEO of Ro. "She’s redefining what it means to be strong, once again, by setting the example that strength can also mean seeking and using medication to take control of your health. We’re proud to be Serena’s care partner, and even prouder to stand with her as she inspires people nationwide to reach their health goals."

With their large addressable market and access challenges, GLP-1s have been big business for direct-to-consumer telehealth providers like Ro and rival Hims and Hers, which controversially advertised semaglutide medicines in a Super Bowl ad this year.

While both companies were offering compounded GLP-1s during the FDA-declared shortages, Ro stopped when the shortage ended and has instead inked partnerships with both Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to offer their GLP-1 drugs on the platform. Whether Hims and Hers has stopped offering compounds is a matter of contention, but Novo Nordisk very publicly broke up with the company in June over allegations that it has not.

This isn't the first time Ro has turned to a major sports star to help sell its GLP-1 business. The company launched a similar campaign with NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley in April.

https://pharmaphorum.com/news/ro-taps-serena-williams-celebrity-glp-1-ambassador