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Americans warned not to mail checks if possible as cases of check fraud spike dramatically

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Check fraud is back in a big way, fueled by a rise in organized crime that is forcing small businesses and individuals to take additional safety measures or to avoid sending checks through the mail altogether.Banks issued roughly 680,000 reports of check fraud to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, also known as FinCEN, last year. That’s up from 350,000 reports in 2021. Meanwhile the U.S. Postal Inspection Service reported roughly 300,000 complaints of mail theft in 2021, more than double the prior year's total.Early in the pandemic, government relief checks became an attractive target for criminals. The problem has only gotten worse and postal authorities and bank officials are warning Americans to avoid mailing checks if possible, or at least to use a secure mail drop such as inside the post office. Meanwhile, as the cases of fraud increase, victims are waiting longer to recover their stolen money.Check usage has been in decline for decades as Americans have ...

Person dead after being hit by vehicle on SH 130 in Pflugerville

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) -- Northbound State Highway 130 was shut down early Tuesday morning after a person was hit and killed on the road. Pflugerville Police said on Twitter at 5 a.m. the highway was shut down at mile marker 428A and traffic was being diverted onto the service road. That area is just north of East Pflugerville Parkway. Police said the lanes of the highway will be closed for the next several hours. Drivers can subscribe to Pflugerville traffic alerts by texting PfTraffic to 38276.

Austin Police investigating overnight shooting involving Travis County deputy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

TRAVIS COUNTY (KXAN) -- The Austin Police Department is investigating an overnight shooting that involved a Travis County Sheriff's Office deputy. According to APD, a deputy opened fire on someone shortly after midnight in the 6200 block of the south I-35 frontage road. A public information officer with TCSO confirmed a deputy was involved, and APD is currently the lead agency investigating since the incident happened within the department's jurisdiction. APD said the person the deputy shot at drove away from the scene. It's not clear what led to the shooting or if the person was hit by gunfire or injured. APD also said the deputy could have been off-duty at the time of the incident. TCSO confirmed the deputy was not injured.

98.3 TRY Social Dilemma: Was It Rude That I Asked The Waitress To Write Down My Order?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Today's 98.3 TRY Social Dilemma is about going out to eat at a restaurant. Here's the email: Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Hey Jaime my name is Allison and I’m emailing you for the social dilemma about something my best friend and I have been arguing about. We were out to dinner the other night at a new place we were trying and the waitress took our order and didn’t write anything down which is a huge pet peeve of mine. I didn’t say anything until she came back to our table five minutes after taking our order to ask us to tell her again. That’s when I suggested she just write it down. She didn’t and told me she had it. Then my friend got annoyed at me for asking her to write it down. She doesn’t like to make any waves and told me I was being a pain for asking her to write down the order. I don’t see how I’m the bad guy here; all I did was ask her to write it down. Now we’ve been arguing about it s...

Ask Amy: Laid-off worker wants to flame former boss

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

Dear Amy: I am a 58-year-old worker who was recently laid off.My company hired someone to turn around the department and she failed miserably.The company terminated her and then threw the babies out with the bathwater, getting rid of me and another coworker at the same time.I guess it worked out well for them because the other fired coworker and I were outspoken about what was going on in our department.We knew the new business model would fail and it did.The hiring manager who created this mess in this extremely toxic environment is a nightmare.Most employees fear her because she is cruel, condescending, and a narcissist. I have seen her reduce people to tears. She is a bully.This person needs to be told off, and I want to be the one to do it.Should I express myself, copying her manager and the CEO, as people need to know what’s going on? Or should I let it go and move on?I really feel the need to express myself so that I can leave this behind.— TerminatedRelated ArticlesAsk ...

Annecy gathers in support of knife attack victims

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

Citizens of the south-eastern French town of Annecy gathered on Sunday (11 June) in support of victims of the knife attack which gravely wounded four toddlers and two pensioners on Thursday (8 June).The municipality called the rally at the lakeside Le Paquier park where the attack took place, also to honour those who tried to block the attacker before he was overpowered by police.Annecy Mayor Francois Astorg told the crowd the attack was "a tragedy touching our city, the country and the whole world"."Our only choice is to respond with unity and hope ... to choose the future rather than destruction. To gather is to build rather than hate," Astorg said.The suspect, a Syrian refugee, is under formal investigation for attempted murder and was placed in detention on Saturday (10 June).The injured are no longer in critical condition, Annecy Prosecutor Line Bonnet-Mathis told a news conference on Saturday, though the four children remained in hospital.The stabbing was the first violent att...

Sale closed in Palo Alto: $3.2 million for a six-bedroom home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

1136 Channing Avenue – Google Street ViewA 2,320-square-foot house built in 1924 has changed hands. The spacious historic property located in the 1100 block of Channing Avenue in Palo Alto was sold on May 24, 2023, for $3,200,000, or $1,379 per square foot. The property features six bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a garage. There’s also a pool in the backyard and one parking space. The unit sits on a 7,600-square-foot lot.Additional houses that have recently been purchased close by include:A 2,440-square-foot home on the first block of Regent Place in Palo Alto sold in December 2022, for $3,650,000, a price per square foot of $1,496. The home has 2 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In March 2023, a 1,652-square-foot home on Harker Avenue in Palo Alto sold for $3,700,000, a price per square foot of $2,240. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.On Melville Avenue, Palo Alto, in March 2023, a 2,561-square-foot home was sold for $5,100,000, a price per square foot of $1,991. The home has 5 bedroo...

Bridge: June 13, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

A loser-on-loser play is a “buy-one-get-one-free” deal — and everyone likes those. You lose an unnecessary trick but are trading one loser for another. In the process you develop an extra winner.Such plays gain in many situations. Today’s West leads the ace of diamonds against four hearts. Say South ruffs, draws trumps and leads a spade to dummy’s ten. East takes the queen and leads the jack of clubs, and the defense gets three clubs. Down one.FIRST TRICKSouth has the material for 10 tricks — seven winners in trumps and three in spades — but he must not let East get in for a club shift. At the first trick, declarer discards a spade, trading a diamond loser for a possible spade loser.If West shifts to a trump, South wins, takes the A-K of spades and leads the jack. If East covers, South ruffs, leads a trump to dummy and discards a club on the high ten of spades. If instead East follows low, South pitches a club. He loses at most three tricks ...

Horoscopes June 13, 2023: Chris Evans, stick to your path

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Kat Dennings, 37; Chris Evans, 42; Tim Allen, 70; Stellan Skarsgard, 72.Happy Birthday: Question everything and everyone this year. Verify information, control what’s important to you and don’t let anyone talk you into doing things that make you feel uncomfortable. Check off all the boxes on your to-do list. Take the initiative to plan your actions and stick to your path. Personal gain, self-improvement and romance are favored. Your numbers are 3, 11, 20, 22, 27, 34, 45.ARIES (March 21-April 19): Refuse to let what others do stand in your way. Stick to the most efficient path, and you’ll get to the finish line on time. Don’t let anyone persuade you to follow rather than lead. Stay in control, and you’ll reach your goal. 3 starsTAURUS (April 20-May 20): Money matters will not be straightforward. Avoid joint ventures and shared expenses to evade paying for someone else’s mistakes. Learn through observation, but follow y...

Nikola Jokic’s hometown in Serbia celebrates Denver Nuggets’ 1st NBA title

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:54:02 GMT

SOMBOR, Serbia (AP) — It was barely dawn when Nikola Jokic’s hardcore fans in his Serbian hometown of Sombor chanted “MVP! MVP!” and celebrated the Denver Nuggets’ first NBA title.Denver trailed the Miami Heat at halftime of Game 5 but rallied to win 94-89, with two-time league MVP Jokic posting 28 points and 16 rebounds and collecting the trophy for the most valuable player of the NBA Finals.Every shot, rebound or block the Serb center made sparked loud cheers and shouts in a decrepit sports hall in the small and otherwise sleepy northern Serbian city near the borders with Croatia and Hungary where fans watched the game on a large screen.The loudest ovation came when the typically humble and stone-faced Jokic said in a post-game, on-court interview: “It’s time to go home.”Soon, those fans who spent sleepless nights watching the NBA Finals will see him in person as he returns home to take care of his racehorses.For the small Balkan state of just over 6 million people, June has...