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    • Venezuela upholds long jail sentences for U.S. oil executives

    Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro greets supporters during an event marking the anniversary of the late President Hugo Chavez's 1992 failed coup attempt, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro greets supporters during an event marking the anniversary of the late President Hugo Chavez's 1992 failed coup attempt, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
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    A court in Venezuela has upheld long prison sentences for six American oil executives detained in the South American country on corruption charges for more than four years.

    Venezuela's supreme court announced the ruling late Friday, disappointing family members who had hoped the surprise decision last fall to hear the appeal, and a recent jailhouse visit by a top State Department official, signified President Nicolas Maduro's government was looking to release the men as part of a gesture to engage the Biden administration in talks over U.S. sanctions.

    The court didn't provide any information on its decision, and the order itself was not immediately available. Venezuela's judicial system is stacked with pro-Maduro officials who routinely issue decrees in accordance with the president's viewpoints.

    The men known as the Citgo 6 -- for the Houston oil company where they worked -- were lured to Caracas around Thanksgiving in 2017 to attend a meeting at the headquarters of Citgo's parent, state-run oil giant PDVSA. Once there, heavily armed masked security officers stormed the conference room where they were gathered and hauled them away. Later they were charged with corruption in connection to a never-executed plan to refinance billions in bonds.

    The executives appeared in November before a three-judge appeals panel in the same week as the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention took up the case of Tomeu Vadell, one of the six detainees. Five of the men are dual Venezuelan-American nationals who had lived in the U.S. for many years, while one, former Citgo president Jose Pereira, is a permanent U.S. resident.

    "We are deeply saddened with the continued violation of Tomeu's human rights," the Vadell family said in a statement.

    The men are being held at Caracas' Helicoide jail alongside some of Maduro's top opponents. The U.S. has repeatedly called for their release and harshly criticized their detention and conviction as lacking all semblance of due process.

    Seen by many as political pawns in hostilities between the U.S. and Venezuela, the men have twice before been granted house arrest.

    But they were thrown back into jail hours after then President Donald Trump welcomed opposition leader Juan Guaido to the White House in February 2020.

    They were granted house arrest again last April, but that arrangement ended Oct. 16, the same day that a close ally of Maduro was extradited by the African nation of Cape Verde to the U.S. to face money laundering charges.

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    For the last seven-and-half months, Toronto resident Heather McArthur has been living out what she describes as her 'worst nightmare.' On Feb. 7, her then three-year-old son Jacob along with his father Loc Phu 'Jay' Le departed for what was supposed to be a week-long visit to Vietnam to celebrate the Lunar New Year with family, McArthur says.

    Canada

    • Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

    • The Montreal couple from Mexico and their three children facing deportation have received a temporary residence permit.

    • In the middle of the small crowd — near the tents, the lineup of kids awaiting face painting, the snack table — stood a jubilant Chiara Padovani. 'When I say 'tenant, you say 'power,'' she commanded to several dozen tenants, who chanted back with gusto. What looked like a summer block party in front of two north-end Toronto apartment buildings last month was a celebration of what renters who withheld payments for months called a 'huge victory.'

    • For the last seven-and-half months, Toronto resident Heather McArthur has been living out what she describes as her 'worst nightmare.' On Feb. 7, her then three-year-old son Jacob along with his father Loc Phu 'Jay' Le departed for what was supposed to be a week-long visit to Vietnam to celebrate the Lunar New Year with family, McArthur says.

    • The head of a committee monitoring the government's response to the inquiry into the 2020 Nova Scotia mass killing says she's pleased with progress made so far.

    • The University of Ottawa's special advisor on antisemitism says he has resigned following posts he made on social media celebrating the pager explosions in Lebanon this week.

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    • Vancouver Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko says he's been working his way back from a rare lower-body muscle injury since being sidelined in last season's playoffs.

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    Autos

    • An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

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    Local Spotlight

    They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

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    The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

    The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

    It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

    A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

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    • The 'Namgis First Nation says a fish farm it owns near Port McNeill shows the potential of land-based aquaculture in B.C.

    • For the last seven-and-half months, Toronto resident Heather McArthur has been living out what she describes as her 'worst nightmare.' On Feb. 7, her then three-year-old son Jacob along with his father Loc Phu 'Jay' Le departed for what was supposed to be a week-long visit to Vietnam to celebrate the Lunar New Year with family, McArthur says.

    • An Ontario man says it is 'unfair' to pay a $1,500 insurance surcharge because his four-year-old SUV is at a higher risk of being stolen.

    • In the middle of the small crowd — near the tents, the lineup of kids awaiting face painting, the snack table — stood a jubilant Chiara Padovani. 'When I say 'tenant, you say 'power,'' she commanded to several dozen tenants, who chanted back with gusto. What looked like a summer block party in front of two north-end Toronto apartment buildings last month was a celebration of what renters who withheld payments for months called a 'huge victory.'

    • Defence counsel for accused murderer John-Christopher Arrizza argues he was in an “altered state of mind†due to days of drug and alcohol use, sleep deprivation and not eating, when he fatally stabbed a man at a Banff nightclub in 2022.

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    • BREAKING NEWS

      BREAKING NEWS

      A man has been taken to hospital in life-threatening condition following a stabbing incident that happened on Baseline Road in the early hours of Friday morning, according to the Ottawa Paramedic Service.

    • Police say a man who was taken to hospital in critical condition after being shot Thursday night has died.

    • Higher than average temperatures are in the forecast for Ottawa this Friday.

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    • A Lethbridge couple got a good reminder as to why you should keep your vehicle doors locked at all times.

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    • A new community health profile in the Algoma District shows the area is significantly below provincial averages in a number of health metrics.

    • North Bay Police Service says one person has died following an industrial accident at the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission Rail Yard on Tuesday.

    • Three northern Ontario residents are charged with drug trafficking after the vehicle they were in got stuck along a bush road off Highway 17 on Monday.

    N.L.

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