Ex-Colombian official sentenced to 12 years in money laundering case tied to DEA misconduct
Omar Ambuila, 64, pleaded guilty on the second day of a trial this year that had been expected to shed new light on a misconduct scandal in which more than a dozen U.S. federal agents were quietly disciplined or ousted from their jobs.
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Toronto Sun
33 minutes ago
- Toronto Sun
Epstein ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell finishes interviews with Justice Department officials
Published Jul 25, 2025 • 2 minute read David Oscar Markus, an attorney for Ghislaine Maxwell, talks with the media outside the federal courthouse, Friday, July 25, 2025, in Tallahassee, Fla., after Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met with Maxwell, the imprisoned former girlfriend of financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Photo by Colin Hackley / AP TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Ghislaine Maxwell, the imprisoned former girlfriend of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, finished 1 1/2 days of interviews with Justice Department officials on Friday, answering questions 'about 100 different people,' her attorney said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account 'She answered those questions honestly, truthfully, to the best of her ability,' David Oscar Markus told reporters outside the federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida, where Maxwell met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. 'She never invoked a privilege. She never refused to answer a question, so we're very proud of her,' Markus said. Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence and is housed at a low-security federal prison in Tallahassee. She was sentenced three years ago after being convicted of helping Epstein, a wealthy, well-connected financier, sexually abuse underage girls. Officials have said Epstein killed himself in his New York jail cell while awaiting trial in 2019, but his case has generated endless attention and conspiracy theories because of his and Maxwell's links to famous people, such as royals, presidents and billionaires, including Donald Trump. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In a social media post this week, Blanche said Maxwell would be interviewed because of President Trump's directive to gather and release any credible evidence about others who may have committed crimes. Trump has denied prior knowledge of Epstein's crimes and claimed he cut off their relationship long ago. But he faces ongoing questions about the Epstein case, overshadowing his administration's achievements. On Friday, reporters pressed the Republican president about pardoning Maxwell, but he deflected, emphasizing his administration's successes. Markus said Maxwell 'was asked maybe about 100 different people.' This undated trial evidence image obtained December 8, 2021, from the US District Court for the Southern District of New York shows British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and US financier Jeffrey Epstein. Photo by HANDOUT / US District Court for the Southe 'The deputy attorney general is seeking the truth,' Markus said. 'He asked every possible question, and he was doing an amazing job.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Markus said he didn't ask for anything for Maxwell in return, though he acknowledged that Trump could pardon her. 'Listen, the president this morning said he had the power to do so. We hope he exercises that power in the right and just way,' Markus said. Earlier this month, the Justice Department said it would not release more files related to the Epstein investigation, despite promises that claimed otherwise from Attorney General Pam Bondi. The department also said an Epstein client list does not exist. Maxwell is appealing her conviction, based on the government's pledge years ago that any potential Epstein co-conspirators would not be charged, Markus said. Epstein struck a deal with federal prosecutors in 2008 that shifted his case to Florida state court, where he pleaded guilty to soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution. Epstein in 2019 and Maxwell in 2020 were charged in federal court in New York. Read More Toronto & GTA Hockey Sports Toronto Blue Jays Columnists
Toronto Sun
33 minutes ago
- Toronto Sun
Lori Vallow Daybell receives life in prison for 2 Arizona murder conspiracy convictions
Published Jul 25, 2025 • 6 minute read Lori Vallow Daybell stands and listens as the jury's verdict is read at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho, May 12, 2023. Photo by Kyle Green / AP PHOENIX (AP) — Lori Vallow Daybell was sentenced to life in prison Friday on two murder conspiracy convictions in Arizona, marking an end to a winding legal saga for the mother with doomsday religious beliefs who claimed people in her life had been possessed by evil spirits. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Vallow Daybell, already serving life sentences in Idaho in the killings of her two youngest children and a romantic rival, was convicted at separate trials this spring in Phoenix of conspiring to murder her estranged husband, Charles Vallow, and her niece's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux. Authorities say she carried out the plots with her brother Alex Cox, who acknowledged killing Vallow in July 2019 and was identified by prosecutors as the person who fired at Boudreaux months later but missed. Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell conspired to kill her husband so she could collect on his $1 million life insurance policy and marry her then-boyfriend Chad Daybell, an Idaho author of several religious novels about prophecies and the end of the world. They say Boudreaux suspected Vallow Daybell and Cox were responsible for Vallow's death and went into hiding with his children because he feared Cox would kill him. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Nearly two years ago, Vallow Daybell was sentenced to life in an Idaho prison for killing her children, 7-year-old Joshua 'JJ' Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan, and conspiring to murder Daybell's wife, Tammy. The children went missing for several months before their bodies were found buried in rural Idaho on Daybell's property. Daybell was sentenced to death for the gruesome murders of his wife, Tylee and JJ. At her Arizona trials, Vallow Daybell argued her brother acted in self-defence when killing Vallow. She also said no evidence showed she conspired with Cox to kill Boudreaux. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP's earlier story follows below. PHOENIX (AP) — Lori Vallow Daybell, already serving life sentences in Idaho in the killings of her two youngest children and a romantic rival, will be sentenced Friday on two murder conspiracy convictions in Arizona, signaling an end to a winding legal saga for the mother with doomsday religious beliefs who claimed people in her life had been possessed by evil spirits. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In separate trials this spring in Arizona, Vallow Daybell was convicted of conspiring to murder her estranged husband, Charles Vallow, and her niece's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux. Authorities say she carried out the plots with her brother Alex Cox, who acknowledged killing Vallow in July 2019 and was identified by prosecutors as the person who shot at Boudreaux months later but missed. Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell conspired to kill Vallow so she could collect on his $1 million life insurance policy and marry her then-boyfriend Chad Daybell, an Idaho author of religious novels about prophecies and the end of the world. They say Boudreaux suspected Vallow Daybell and Cox were responsible for Vallow's death. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Public interest in Vallow Daybell, 52, grew as the investigation into her own missing children — 7-year-old Joshua 'JJ' Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan — took several unexpected turns. Their bodies were found buried in rural Idaho on Chad Daybell's property on June 9, 2020. Chad Daybell was sentenced to death in the killings of the children and his wife, Tammy, the romantic rival. Vallow Daybell was convicted of conspiring to kill Tammy. Victims' family members shed tears during Friday's hearing Prosecutors in Arizona are seeking life sentences on each of Vallow Daybell's latest convictions. Once sentenced in Arizona, Vallow Daybell will be sent back to prison in Idaho. Vallow Daybell appeared in court Friday in an orange jail uniform as family members called her 'evil,' 'greedy' and a 'monster' while describing their grief. The victims' family members sat in the jury box, passing around tissues. Colby Ryan, Vallow Daybell's only surviving child who testified by remote link, described how he 'had to fight to stay alive after the pain' of losing his father and siblings. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Ryan zeroed in on his mother, who has claimed the Arizona cases were family tragedies that shouldn't have ended up in court. 'I believe that Lori Vallow herself is the family tragedy,' Ryan said. Charles Vallow was fatally shot in 2019 Charles Vallow filed for divorce four months before he died. He said Vallow Daybell became infatuated with near-death experiences and claimed to have lived numerous lives on other planets. He told police she threatened to kill him and he was concerned for his children. Vallow was shot when he went to pick up his son at Vallow Daybell's home outside Phoenix, police said. Vallow Daybell's daughter, Tylee, told police the sound of yelling woke her up, and she confronted Vallow with a baseball bat that he managed to take from her. Cox told police he shot Vallow after he refused to drop the bat and came after him. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Cox died five months later from a blood clot in his lungs. His self-defence claim was later called into question, with investigators saying Cox and Vallow Daybell waited more than 40 minutes before calling 911. Just before his death, Vallow and his wife's other brother, Adam Cox, planned an intervention to try to bring Vallow Daybell back into the mainstream of their shared faith in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Adam Cox, a witness for the prosecution, testified that his sister told people Vallow was no longer living and that a zombie was inside her estranged husband's body. Gerry Vallow, Charles Vallow's brother, told the judge Friday that Vallow Daybell cheated on his brother with Chad Daybell while she was plotting to kill Charles Vallow. She isn't misunderstood, Gerry Vallow said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'She wrote her own make-believe story, and she wrote it in blood,' he said. 'She tried to kill Brandon when he started looking like the next available dollar sign.' Someone shot at Brandon Boudreaux months later Almost three months after Vallow died, someone fired a shot at Boudreaux from an open window of a Jeep as he was driving up to his home in Gilbert, another Phoenix suburb. It narrowly missed Boudreaux, the ex-husband of Vallow Daybell's niece, Melani Pawlowski. Boudreaux described in court Friday how Vallow Daybell betrayed him and how the attempt on his life caused him heartache and worry about his family's safety. Boudreaux's sisters told the judge that their brother went into hiding with his children. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'No one deserves to live a life of fear and trauma,' Boudreaux said tearfully. He said he has forgiven Vallow Daybell so he can be a better person but that he wouldn't feel safe if she has freedom. Boudreaux has said Pawlowski aspired to be like her aunt. The two started attending religious meetings together in 2018. Soon after, Pawlowski said they should stockpile food for the end of the world. Prosecutors tied the Jeep to Vallow Daybell and said she loaned it to Alex Cox. The two bought a burner phone used to carry out the attack and tried to concoct an alibi for Cox to make it seem like he was in Idaho at the time, prosecutors said. Vallow Daybell is representing herself Unlike her Idaho case, Vallow Daybell chose to represent herself at both Arizona trials, even though she isn't a lawyer. At her first trial, she argued her brother Alex Cox acted in self-defence when killing Vallow. She struggled with legal duties that most lawyers consider routine, such as lining up witnesses to testify. She argued at the second Arizona trial that no evidence established that she conspired with Cox to kill Boudreaux. She clashed with Judge Justin Beresky and tried to get him removed from the case, arguing he was biased against her. She insisted on exercising her speedy trial rights yet complained she didn't have enough time to prepare. Toronto & GTA Hockey Sports Toronto Blue Jays Columnists
Winnipeg Free Press
33 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Epstein ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell finishes interviews with Justice Department officials
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Ghislaine Maxwell, the imprisoned former girlfriend of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, finished 1 1/2 days of interviews with Justice Department officials on Friday, answering questions 'about 100 different people,' her attorney said. 'She answered those questions honestly, truthfully, to the best of her ability,' David Oscar Markus told reporters outside the federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida, where Maxwell met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. 'She never invoked a privilege. She never refused to answer a question, so we're very proud of her,' Markus said. Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence and is housed at a low-security federal prison in Tallahassee. She was sentenced three years ago after being convicted of helping Epstein, a wealthy, well-connected financier, sexually abuse underage girls. Officials have said Epstein killed himself in his New York jail cell while awaiting trial in 2019, but his case has generated endless attention and conspiracy theories because of his and Maxwell's links to famous people, such as royals, presidents and billionaires, including Donald Trump. In a social media post this week, Blanche said Maxwell would be interviewed because of President Trump's directive to gather and release any credible evidence about others who may have committed crimes. Trump has denied prior knowledge of Epstein's crimes and claimed he cut off their relationship long ago. But he faces ongoing questions about the Epstein case, overshadowing his administration's achievements. On Friday, reporters pressed the Republican president about pardoning Maxwell, but he deflected, emphasizing his administration's successes. Markus said Maxwell 'was asked maybe about 100 different people.' 'The deputy attorney general is seeking the truth,' Markus said. 'He asked every possible question, and he was doing an amazing job.' Markus said he didn't ask for anything for Maxwell in return, though he acknowledged that Trump could pardon her. 'Listen, the president this morning said he had the power to do so. We hope he exercises that power in the right and just way,' Markus said. Earlier this month, the Justice Department said it would not release more files related to the Epstein investigation, despite promises that claimed otherwise from Attorney General Pam Bondi. The department also said an Epstein client list does not exist. Maxwell is appealing her conviction, based on the government's pledge years ago that any potential Epstein co-conspirators would not be charged, Markus said. Epstein struck a deal with federal prosecutors in 2008 that shifted his case to Florida state court, where he pleaded guilty to soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution. Epstein in 2019 and Maxwell in 2020 were charged in federal court in New York. ___ White reported from Detroit.
