Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

The Australian Federal Police has accepted a $9 million settlement from engineering company SMEC, bringing a 13-year foreign bribery investigation to an end without prosecution. SMEC, formerly known as the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation, agreed to pay the money under proceeds of crime legislation but made no admission of wrongdoing. The AFP did not refer the matter to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions. The company continues to hold major government contracts and has worked on a number of public projects, including Snowy Hydro 2.0. Andrea Quinn, head of the AFP’s anti-corruption division, said the outcome demonstrated that companies could…

Brazil’s attorney general has called for an investigation into alleged US interference in the country’s domestic politics through funding directed towards far-right causes. Jorge Messias made the request after a report said the administration of US President Donald Trump had planned to award $1 million to right-wing civil society groups opposing Brazil’s Supreme Court. Mr Messias said foreign meddling “cannot be tolerated”, describing the report as “an important alert for Brazilian sovereignty”. “The information is especially serious in light of Brazil’s electoral process and the recent episodes of external pressure on our institutions,” he added in a social media post.…

Christa Pike’s death row appeal included allegations of severe childhood abuse and neglect, according to court documents from earlier proceedings in her murder case. Her challenge to the sentence has so far failed, and she is currently in hospital in Tennessee after surviving two lethal injections. Pike was seeking to have her death sentence overturned on the grounds that she had received ineffective assistance from her lawyers. Her legal team argued that the court had not properly considered the abuse she said she experienced during childhood. Christa Pike’s death row appeal She alleged that she had been sexually abused by…

Arsenal winger Christos Tzolis suffered an apparent hamstring injury while representing Greece against the Netherlands, adding to Mikel Arteta’s growing list of fitness concerns during the international break. Tzolis started the Nations League fixture but was forced off inside the opening 18 minutes after pulling up during an attacking sprint. The 24-year-old immediately signalled to the bench that he could not continue. Medical staff treated the Greece international on the pitch before helping him to the dressing room. The full extent of the injury remains unclear, with Tzolis due to undergo scans in London. The winger joined Arsenal in a…

A former school bus monitor in Whitfield County, Georgia, has been arrested on suspicion of trying to connect a child with a man and failing to report an allegation of abuse, according to the county sheriff’s office. Maria Susanne Roberts was arrested at her home on Thursday and booked into the Whitfield County Jail. She faces charges of enticing a child for indecent purposes and failure to report suspected child abuse. Investigators allege that Roberts gave a minor the contact details of a man in an attempt to bring the two into contact. Deputies also said the child told Roberts…

Data centre operator Firmus is seeking a valuation of $43.7 billion through an initial public offering scheduled for this month. The proposed flotation would place the company’s target valuation at the centre of the offering, although no further details of the IPO were provided.

A judge has denied a defence request for a not guilty verdict in the case of Lindsay Clancy, the woman accused of killing her children. Clancy remains charged in connection with the deaths of her children. The ruling represents the latest development in the case, with the formal proceedings continuing to move forward.

Energy subsidies for data centres are facing growing scrutiny in Ireland as households and businesses confront rising fuel costs and the prospect of a difficult winter. The technology sector is expected to receive taxpayer-funded support for its electricity bills, despite the pressures facing farmers, manufacturers, hauliers, retailers and families. The issue comes as Simon Harris and Jack Chambers prepare next week’s budget, with the cost of energy expected to affect wages, prices and household finances regardless of any measures announced. Data centres have become a major part of Ireland’s economy and public finances, but their electricity and water consumption has…

AI adoption will require companies to rethink how work is organised, rather than simply adding new tools to existing processes, senior executives have said at Fortune’s AIQ Summit. Stacy Dillow, executive vice-president and chief people officer at HPE, said the central challenge for businesses was changing the way work was done as artificial intelligence became part of everyday operations. “We’ve got to force ourselves to think differently because if we’re not trying to change how we work, we’re just trying to retrofit and put AI in a process that isn’t going to give us a different answer,” she said. While…

A passenger on FlyDubai Flight 1073 helped stabilise the aircraft after the co-pilot allegedly stabbed the captain, saying he knew what to do from watching the aviation disaster series “Mayday”. Yaniv Hayun told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he ran towards the cockpit as the aircraft plunged sharply during its flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv. Flight-tracking data indicated that the plane fell more than 17,000ft in two minutes. The captain, an Indian national, reportedly fought off the co-pilot and opened the cockpit door, allowing passengers and crew to restrain the alleged attacker. Hayun said he then began pulling…