Serbia's populist leader denounces planned Belgrade bridge blockade after shootings
Serbia's populist leader has sharply denounced opposition plans to block a key bridge and motorway in Belgrade on Friday to press their demands in the wake of last week's mass shootings in the Balkan country that left 17 people dead, including many children. President Aleksandar Vucic said that the planned opposition protest later on Friday amounted to “violence in politics” and “harassment” of citizens. But, Vucic said, police would not intervene to prevent it “unless people's lives are in danger.” “What gives them the right to block other people's normal lives?” said Vucic, adding that the opposition were “abusing the tragedy” following the shootings that deeply rattled the nation and triggered calls for change. “They are harassing citizens and not allowing them to travel,” Vucic insisted. “But we don't like to beat protesters, like France and Germany do.” The rally on Friday comes a week after thousands marched in Belgrade. They were demanding the resignations of government ministers and the withdrawal of broadcast licenses for two private TV stations which are close to the state and promote violence. They often host convicted war criminals and crime figures on their programs. Protests with the same demands have been held in the past week in various cities and towns in Serbia. Opposition officials said the bridge blockade in Belgrade on Friday evening would last for two hours. The two shootings happened in just two days, leaving 17 people dead and 21 wounded. A 13-year-old boy last Wednesday used his father's gun to open fire at his school in central Belgrade, while a day later a 20-year-old randomly fired at people in a rural area south of Belgrade. Opposition parties have said that Vucic's populist government has fueled intolerance and hate speech, while taking hold of all institutions, thus stoking divisions. Vucic has denied this. He has called his own rally for May 26 in Belgrade that he said would be the “biggest ever.” “We do not organize spontaneous rallies in order to play with people's emotions,” Vucic insisted. “Ours will be a rally of unity, when we will announce important political decisions.” Vucic also told reporters that citizens had handed in more than 9,000 weapons since police announced a one-month amnesty for people to surrender unregistered guns and ammunition or face possible prison sentences after that period. Serbia is estimated to be among the top countries in Europe when it comes to the number of guns per capita, many of them left over from the wars in the 1990s. Other anti-gun measures after the shootings include a ban on new gun licenses, stricter controls on gun owners and shooting ranges, and tougher punishments for the illegal possession of weapons. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide
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Grief author suspected of murdering husband ‘argued with him about $2m home’
The author of a grief book who is now accused of murdering her husband allegedly fought with him over a deal to buy a new home, fresh documents have revealed. Kouri Richins, 33, reportedly used a fentanyl-spiked cocktail to kill her 39-year-old husband Eric Richins last year. KPCW got hold of search warrants that suggested Ms Richins wanted to flip a 20,000 sq ft mansion, something her late husband thought was too expensive. The documents revealed that the property was a source of disagreement in their marriage. “The couple was under contract at the time of Eric’s death in March 2022. Public search warrants say it was going to cost them nearly $2m and that Eric thought it was too expensive,” said the KPCW report. The documents stated the husband’s family members thought he planned to tell Ms Richins they weren’t buying the mansion. A day after her husband died, on 5 March 2022, the author closed the deal. The documents also revealed that the family planned to tell her that she was being cut out of his will, “making her financially unstable”. Two weeks after Richins’ death, the wife put the home back up online with an asking price of about $4.8m. Court documents stated that Richins believed his wife had tried to poison him before, and that she attempted to change his life insurance policy just before his death, according to FOX13. Richins came from a prominent Mormon family in Kamas, Utah, while his wife wrote a children’s grief book called Are You With Me? Her arrest warrant stated she allegedly spent $1,800 for 60 fentanyl pills which investigators said she described to a drug dealer as “the Michael Jackson stuff”. Phone records allegedly showed she claimed to be buying the painkillers for an “investor” who had a back injury, and initially asked for hydrocodone, before later demanding “something stronger”. Police claimed she first spent $900 on 30 pills. While her husband became “very ill” after a meal on Valentine’s Day, he survived. “Eric told a friend that he thought his wife was trying to poison him,” the documents read. The arrest warrant claimed she went back to the dealer and bought another 30 pills for $900 and allegedly used them to murder her husband on 4 March by putting them in a Moscow Mule drink. Officials determined the cause of death was a fentanyl overdose with five times the lethal dosage found in his body. Court records showed that, over the past few months, Ms Richins has been attempting to have her husband’s sister removed as a trustee for his estate, which is valued at $3.6m. She was arrested on Monday and booked into Summit County Jail where she has been held without bond. She has been charged with murder and drug possession and is set for a detention hearing on 19 May. Read More Author of grief book who is now accused of murder allegedly used fentanyl spiked cocktail to kill husband Author promoted grief book for children on TV before arrest for husband’s murder Kouri Richins wrote a kids book to help her sons cope with their dad’s death. Now she’s accused of his murder
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