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Daily Record
a day ago
- Daily Record
Firefighter apprentice sacked after boasting he was once hitman for Mexican drug cartel
Zac Gonzalez Rostro was sacked after bosses were told of his claims he was a cartel hitman. A trainee firefighter has been given the boot after boasting he was once a contract killer for a drugs gang. Zac Gonzalez Rostro was just six weeks into his training programme with Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service when his wild claims sparked an investigation. He had been telling fellow trainees at the Bury centre about his podcast appearances where he alleged to have murdered more than 70 people as part of an LA gang. When quizzed by fire service investigators, he admitted his shocking stories were fabricated purely to earn cash from podcasts, reports the Manchester Evening News. During one podcast, he boasted of killing "more than 70" people and claimed that after one murder, gang members used a victim's severed head as a basketball. In another episode, he declared: "I was introduced to the killing game. You give me a pistol, you give me a rifle and I will do my job." He detailed how he was running with a gang in Los Angeles and moved up from "home invasions" - break-ins in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica, to drive-by shootings. He alleged he used a revolver in his first shooting "as it does not leave a casing". He also spoke of "spraying" homes with bullets and claimed to have witnessed children as young as eight carrying firearms. He stated: "I like the adrenalin. I wanted to join the Marines but I joined something else." Speaking about his alleged "gang-related" youth, he added: "You basically stick with your own race. You are always looking behind your back. I have seen kids pull out guns at the age of eight. You start getting a full sense of the danger you are in from around the age of 12. I have seen young kids, they have nothing else but the gang you know. Their parents are dead, or dad's in prison, mom in rehab. They have nothing. "We would do a lot of home invasion, like rob. I've never been a fan of selling drugs, but I have been a fan of getting money." Rostro, who revealed in a podcast that his mother is Mexican, appeared before a disciplinary panel on Friday. Deputy Chief Officer Carlos Meakin explained: "We were recently made aware of serious allegations against an apprentice firefighter. "We moved quickly to suspend the apprentice while we investigated the allegations. Our investigation is now complete, and following a hearing this afternoon the apprentice has been dismissed. "Public safety is our top priority alongside the safety and welfare of our staff. Before recruiting the apprentice in question, we carried out enhanced national DBS checks, as we do for all potential recruits, as well as an international criminal records check. These did not flag any areas of concern. "We also checked the applicant's social media as part of our screening process, but as he used a pseudonym online, we were not aware of the content which came to light this week. "We hold our staff to the highest standards and will not tolerate attitudes or behaviours that goes against our values. Within 20 minutes of the allegations being reported to us we had launched an investigation, the apprentice firefighter was suspended the same day, and we concluded our investigation within 72 hours. "We're supporting staff who have been affected by this issue." The M.E.N. understands that GMFRS carried out an enhanced DBS check and international criminal records checks before employing the apprentice in question. These did not raise any red flags. Fire bosses said the apprentice "had the right to work in the UK and provided all relevant visas and documentation." The service maintains it "will always take swift action to investigate any reports of attitudes or behaviours that go against our values." An inquiry was launched within 20 minutes of the trainee's allegations. Rostro was amongst around 30 recruits participating in the programme.
Al-Ahram Weekly
02-07-2025
- Business
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Stocks diverge as tariffs deadline looms - Markets & Companies
Stock markets diverged and the dollar rose Wednesday as US President Donald Trump ruled out a fresh delay to reciprocal tariffs. Tokyo-listed equities took a hit from Trump's threats to ramp up Japanese levies, Hong Kong closed higher and Europe's main indices were up around midday. Stocks trading was "taking a relatively positive tone despite the tech-led weakness seen in the US" on Tuesday, noted Rostro chief market analyst Joshua Mahony. Oil prices jumped more than one percent as crude-producer Iran suspended cooperation with the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, days after a ceasefire in a war that saw Israeli and US strikes on nuclear sites in the Islamic republic. Market watchers reacted also to Trump's signature budget bill that scraped through the Senate. Optimism over an extension to deep tax cuts helped to offset warnings it could add around $3 trillion to the national debt. A week before Trump's 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs ends, few governments have struck deals to avert the taxes, though White House officials say several are in the pipeline. And while the administration had set July 9 as the deadline to finalise pacts, investors largely expect that to be pushed back or countries given extra time. However, the president said Tuesday he was "not thinking about the pause" and again warned he would end negotiations or hike some duties. Among those in his sights was Japan, which he slammed this week over US rice and auto exports to the country. Asia Society Policy Institute vice president, Wendy Cutler, told AFP that "Japan's refusal to open its rice market, coupled with the US resistance to lowering automotive tariffs, may lead to the reimposition of Japan's 24 percent reciprocal tariff". In Washington senators passed Trump's "Big, Beautiful Bill" he says will boost the economy by extending tax cuts and slashing spending on programmes such as Medicare. The legislation now faces a tough passage through the House of Representatives, where some Republicans have raised concerns about its cost amid already heightened fears over the country's finances. On the corporate front Wednesday, shares in Qantas dropped more than two percent after the Australian airline said it was probing a "significant" cyberattack where hackers infiltrated a system containing sensitive data on six million customers. Hong Kong-listed Chinese tech titan Alibaba dipped after saying it would issue US$7 billion in subsidies for certain purchases. Hong Kong is expected to lead the world in IPO financing this year despite uncertainty from geopolitical tensions and trade tariffs, accountancy giant PwC said. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
