Model to testify about ex-Italian leader Berlusconi
dies of suspected poisoning
By Allen Conedies of suspected poisoning
Moroccan-born model Imane Fadil arrives at court on April 16, 2012, in Milan, Italy, as a witness against former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. She died on March 1 of suspected poisoning. Photo by Daniele Mascolo/EPA
(UPI) -- A model who was to testify in former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's upcoming bribery trial has died of suspected poisoning, authorities said.
Imane Fadil, 34, a native of Morocco, had attended Berlusconi's "bunga bunga" sex parties. She was to be a key witness against the former media tycooon, who at 82 years old is accused of bribing actresses, models and escorts to lie in court about the alleged sex parties.
Fadil was admitted to a Milan hospital last month with severe stomach pains, the Independent reported.
Fadil, who told friends and her lawyer she believed she had been poisoned, died on March 1 but her death was not announced until Friday. Prosecutors didn't know she had died until one week ago, the Telegraph reported.
The Italian news agency Ansa reported toxicology tests found the model had been killed by a "mix of radioactive substances."
Milan's chief prosecutor, Francesco Greco, said there were "several anomalies" in Fadil's medical records.
In 2012, Fadil described the parties during the trial of Berlusconi, who was accused of paying for sex with an underage prostitute. Berlusconi was convicted of paying for sex with a 17-year-old girl but it was thrown out after judge ruled he couldn't known the prostitute was underage.
"From seven years to zero -- how is that possible?" Fadil told La Repubblica newspaper. "In Milan, in certain circles, it was often discussed that by going to bed with the prime minister one could earn money."
Fadil had said she feared for her safety after telling prosecutors she was offered money in exchange for her silence about what went on at the parties.
Berlusconi was accused of paying $10 million to bribe women who attended those parties.
Around 25 other other women claimed the parties were "elegant dinners."
Berlusconi described the parties as "burlesque contests" and "theatrical spectaculars."
Berlusconi, who was prime minister from 2008 to 2011, has announced he plans to run in the European Parliament elections in May.
K-pop star, 4 others arrested as South Korea sex video scandal widens
Jung Joon-young arrested Thursday, another K-pop, Big Bang star, Seungri, being investigated
The Associated Press 
K-pop singer Jung Joon-young arrives for a hearing at the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul on Thursday, accused of illegally sharing sexually explicit videos of women taken without their knowledge or consent in online group chats. (Lee Jin-man/Associated Press)
South Korean police on Thursday arrested K-pop singer Jung Joon-young over allegations he illegally shared sexually explicit videos of women taken without their knowledge or consent.
The Seoul Central District Court issued an arrest warrant for Jung hours after he appeared at a hearing, and apologized to the victims and to "everyone who has showed affection for me." The 30-year-old was later escorted to a police station in downtown Seoul in handcuffs.
People involved in scandals in South Korea often issue public apologies even as they maintain their innocence.
Jung was first questioned by police last week about allegations he secretly filmed his sexual encounters and shared them in private group chats with his friends.
Police are also investigating another Seungri (Lee Seung-hyun), who soared to international stardom as a member of the group Big Bang, over suspicions he attempted to arrange unlawful sexual services for his business investors.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency requested an arrest warrant for Jung on Monday through state prosecutors. The scandal has caused an uproar in South Korea, where women are increasingly speaking out against what they describe as a culture of misogyny with the rampant spread of intimate photos and videos taken by hidden cameras, which they say have women living in anxiety and distress.
Streisand's Defence of Michael Jackson is Astonishing - Astonishingly Stupid!
Barbra Streisand cops backlash for comments about Michael Jackson and his alleged sexual abuse victims
News Corp Australia Network
Music legend Barbra Streisand has fired back at critics amid a huge backlash over her controversial comments about the two men accusing Michael Jackson of child sexual abuse in the Leaving Neverland documentary.
The backlash began when Streisand told The Times in the UK she believed the abuse claims of Jackson’s accusers Wade Robson and James Safechuck but that they “were thrilled to be there” at Jackson’s Neverland ranch.
So, like, that makes it alright in Barbra's mind?
The award-winning singer and actress said that what allegedly happened to the Australian choreographer Robson and Safechuck “didn’t kill them” either.
Barbra Streisand has copped backlash for her comments from fans online. Picture: Getty Images
Streisand, 76, who said she only met the “very sweet, very childlike” Jackson a few times when he was alive, also went on to say that Jackson had “sexual needs”.
“His sexual needs were his sexual needs, coming from whatever childhood he has or whatever DNA he has,” she said.
“You can say ‘molested,’ but those children, as you heard them say, they were thrilled to be there,” she said. “They both married and they both have children, so it didn’t kill them.”
So that makes it alright! So many sexually abused children commit suicide later in life, so in Barbra's bizarre mind, it's only then that their abusers should be criticized or held responsible! How insane! In that context, the thousands of young British girls groomed, raped, gang-raped, drugged, and beaten by Pakistani men have only to blame themselves. It was that kind of attitude that allowed it to happen in the first place.
Michael Jackson is accused of grooming and sexually abusing accusers Wade Robson and James Safechuck. .Source: AP
In a statement to CBS News, Streisand defended her comments, turning the blame on the parents of the two accusers for allegedly failing to protect their sons.
“To be crystal clear, there is no situation or circumstance where it is OK for the innocence of children to be taken advantage of by anyone,” Streisand told CBS News.
“The stories these two young men shared were painful to hear, and I feel nothing but sympathy for them.”
“The single most important role of being a parent is to protect their children,” she continued. “It’s clear that the parents of the two young men were also victimised and seduced by fame and fantasy.”
No! the were victimized and seduced by Michael Jackson!
Wade Robson meets Michael Jackson for the first time in 1987. Source: AP
Celebrities and fans online immediately expressed their confusion and disappointment with Streisand’s comments. “Is paedophilia tolerated in parts of the entertainment industry?” Leaving Neverland director Dan Reed tweeted.
Others are relinquishing their long-standing support of the singer, calling her comments “sickening.”
In her original interview, Streisand said she “felt bad” for the alleged victims and Jackson.
“I feel bad for the children,” she said.
“I feel bad for him. I blame, I guess, the parents, who would allow their children to sleep with him. Why would Michael need these little children dressed like him and in the shoes and the dancing and the hats?”
Wade Robson, from left, director Dan Reed and James Safechuck pose for a portrait to promote the film Leaving Neverland during the Sundance Film Festival. Picture: AP
Reed also hit out at Jackson fans this week for the “vile and absurd” attacks on the two men who say the singer abused them for years.
He said a vocal minority of fans were leading a campaign against the two-part HBO film, which has broken streaming records and which the Jackson estate is suing for $US100 million (88 million euros).
Robson and Safechuck have been assailed on social media for telling Reed in the film how Jackson groomed them and their families before the boys were sexually abused at his Neverland Ranch in California.
Last week, fan groups said they were bringing a case against the men in the French courts for “sullying” Jackson’s memory.
Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch is shown November 18, 2003 outside of Santa Barbara, California. Getty
“To prosecute men you have the courage to say they were raped as children by this powerful godlike individual, to make them into the scapegoats is beyond absurd and quite vile,” the director told AFP.
He said child sex abuse victims were often treated like heretics.
“It is a kind of blasphemy when you accuse somebody who is a pillar of the community of such a grotesquely horrific act, so bad in fact that people do not want to hold that image in their heads.
“That’s what generates this rage against the victims. It’s heretical. Not only is your godhead human but he does this appalling thing to children,” Reed said in Paris, where the film will be aired on French television this week.
Apparently, Barbra has recently apologized for her comments. It's a pity, and still astonishing, that she made them in the first place.
Alan Dershowitz rips #MeToo claims against him:
'A gang of arsonists are torching my reputation'
by Caitlin Yilek, Washington ExaminerHarvard Law Professor Emeritus Alan Dershowitz says he can disprove claims that he had sex with two women who are accusing him of misconduct, but said his opponents are bent on destroying his reputation.
Dershowitz went as far as calling for the FBI to investigate the claims of his two accusers.
“It’s no fun to be investigated for a felony by the FBI, but the current state of the law and public opinion gives me no alternative if I want to be vindicated,” he added.
Virginia Roberts claimed four years ago that accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, a New York hedge fund manager, forced her to have sex with his lawyer, Dershowitz, when she was 16. Roberts is now in her mid-30s.
Dershowitz insists he has never met the woman and said he produced travel and phone records that showed he was not in any of the four places Roberts claimed the sexual encounters happened. He said there are emails and a book manuscript under court seal in which the woman admits they never had sex, as well as a recording of the woman telling a friend her lawyers pressured her to make the accusation to get a big payday.
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| Virginia Roberts |
Dershowitz said his second accuser, who has not been named, was “was even less credible than the first.” The woman, also in her 30s, claimed he had sex with her when she was a 22-year-old trafficking victim.
“It is hard to imagine #MeToo accusations with more-compelling evidence of innocence than mine,” Dershowitz wrote. “If my evidence is ‘inconclusive,’ then no falsely accused person can ever clear his name.”
Dershowitz, being the lawyer for Jeffrey Epstein, a known pederast and child sex trafficker, was alleged to have been a frequent flyer on Epstein's private jet, Lolita. Lolita often flew very high profile people to Epstein's private island in the Caribbean.
Ranbir Kapoor angers #MeToo supporters in India
Bollywood heartthrob Ranbir Kapoor is attracting ample fury on social media after fans appeared to be not too pleased with the speech he gave while accepting the Best Actor award for Sanju.
Reports revealed that Ranbir was all praises in his victory speech for the alleged harasser and completely disregarded all the conflicts he is surrounded by.
Many social media users went on to compare the actor with Rami Malek who after winning his Academy Award for Best Actor in Bohemian Rhapsody (9th story on link) entirely ignored the director Bryan Singer who is also facing charges of sexual misconduct by multiple women.
Actually, Bryan Singer's known sexual assault victims were mostly boys who are now men.
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