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Irish Daily Mirror
6 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Dangerous driving conviction overturned after 'passenger seat' Snapchat video
A young man has had his conviction for dangerous driving overturned after a court viewed a Snapchat video which he argued proves he was actually in the passenger seat of the car as it was pursued by Gardaí. Myles Smith, 22, had his conviction quashed at the District Court Appeals Court on Thursday despite the State submitting that other video footage presented as evidence in the case had been edited. Mr Smith, with an address at Mount Symon Lawn, Clonsilla, Dublin 15, had pleaded not guilty in the District Court to dangerous driving contrary to section 53.1 of the Road Traffic Act, 1961, and had also denied counts of driving with no insurance, driving without a licence, two counts of failure to produce documents and failure to produce information contrary to section 107 4b of the same act. Garda Andrew Burlingham told the appeals court that he was on patrol in the Blanchardstown area on April 12, 2021 at around 9pm when he observed a car drive from the left lane to the right lane without indicating and crossing over another vehicle. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week He said that he saw the car fail to indicate and turn back into Blanchardstown Shopping Centre, where his Garda colleague activated his lights and sirens to indicate for the car to stop. Garda Burlingham said that the vehicle failed to stop and that he observed it driving at high speed, forcing other road users to take evasive action. He said that in the following pursuit, he saw the car driving extremely fast over speed bumps, ignore a red light and drive the wrong way around a roundabout. He said he pursued the car as it approached Aldemere Drive in Clonsilla, where he said it mounted a green area in an estate and was abandoned by the occupants. Garda Burlingham said that he saw Mr Smith exit from the driver's side of the car, that he pursued him to where he was hiding in a wooded area and arrested him. On the count of dangerous driving, Mr Smith was disqualified from driving for two years and given a fine of €450 in the District Court. He also got a two-year driving ban and a €400 fine for his charge of driving with no insurance and a fine of €300 for his charge of driving without a licence. Defence counsel for Mr Smith, Aoife McNickle BL, submitted that her client was not driving the car during the incident. Counsel said that he was sitting in the passenger side of the vehicle at the time, and presented a Snapchat video taken by Mr Smith during the pursuit, which she said proved he was in the passenger seat. The footage, which was played to the court, showed Mr Smith sitting in the car while flashing lights from the Gardaí could be seen through the rear window and wing mirrors. She also presented a second video, taken by Mr Smith after the event, in order to prove his position in the car was in fact the passenger seat, not the driver seat. Counsel for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Clare Barry, put it to Mr Smith that she believed the second video had been edited between the moments when the camera flipped between front-facing and back-facing angles. She said that 'even the most digitally illiterate people can do that'. Mr Smith denied that the footage was edited and maintained that he was in the passenger seat and not driving the car. Mr Smith also claimed that Garda Burlingham was not the Garda member who arrested him at the scene. Ms Barry said it was the State's case that Mr Smith was driving the car during the chase and that the second video, which he said proved he was in the passenger seat, was not authentic. Mr Smith denied this claim in court. Judge Jonathan Dunphy said that after 'numerous viewings' of the video evidence, he had doubt over who was driving the car. He said that although Mr Smith's behaviour as a passenger of the car was 'a disgrace', he must give him the benefit of the doubt and found there is no satisfactory evidence that he was the owner or driver of the car. He decided to allow the appeal of Mr Smith's conviction on these grounds.
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Pinterest Rides on Solid Customer Growth: Will the Uptrend Continue?
Pinterest, Inc. PINS has been witnessing steady customer growth across all regions in the last several quarters. In the first quarter of 2025, the company reported a global monthly active user (MAUs) of 570 million, which is an all-time record. The company's unique approach of attracting users through discovery and inspiration sets it apart from other social media platforms and popular digital advertising is increasingly establishing a unique value proposition to advertisers that could provide a competitive advantage in the long run. Through various innovations, it continues to dramatically improve the advertising platform, which presently appears to be one of the best ad platforms for consumer discretionary brands looking for new ways to reach customers and stretch smaller ad budgets. The company recently introduced AI-Powered Auto-Collages, which transform product catalogs into personalized and shoppable collages. The tool, powered by advanced AI, takes into account unique outfit ideas, user saves and product similarities to create a shoppable visual content that drives user engagement. Pinterest's AI-enhanced trend tools allow advertisers to understand the emerging shopping trends. Leveraging such leading-edge AI innovations, advertisers can create, execute campaigns that target the intent-based shoppers with enhanced content personalization. A strong focus on innovation will likely drive customer engagement in the upcoming our estimate, MAUs from the United States and Canada are expected to reach 106 million, up 5% year over year in 2025. MAUs from Europe are approximated to be 158.8 million, indicating 9.5% year-over-year growth. From the rest of the world, MAUs are estimated at 343.8 million, implying a solid 12% uptick year over year in 2025. Pinterest faces fierce competition in the digital advertising space from Meta Platforms, Inc. META and Snap, Inc. SNAP. Meta is utilizing AI to boost user engagement in Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger. By improving its AI recommendation engine, the company has increased users' time spent on Facebook by 7% and on Instagram by 6%. During the first quarter of 2025, META has registered a Family Daily Active People of 3.43 billion, up 5.9% year over year. Snap has been steadily adding interactive features to make the Snapchat platform more attractive to users and advertisers. It has become the most preferred social networking medium among Millennials and Gen Z. In the first quarter of 2025, Snap's global community reached 460 million daily active users ('DAU'), up 9% year over year. North America's DAU was 99 million, which decreased 1% year over year. Europe's DAU was 99 million, up 3.1% year over year. Rest of the world's DAU was 262 million at the end of the reported quarter, which jumped 15.9% year over year. Shares of Pinterest have declined 20.3% in past year against the Internet - Software industry's growth of 38.6%. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Going by the price/sales ratio, the company's shares currently trade at 5.37 forward sales, lower than the industry. It carries a Value Score of D. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Pinterest is currently witnessing an uptrend in the estimate revisions. PINS' earnings estimates for 2025 have moved up 2.22% to $1.84 per share over the past 60 days, while the same for 2026 has increased 2.9% to $2.13. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research Pinterest currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Snap Inc. (SNAP) : Free Stock Analysis Report Pinterest, Inc. (PINS) : Free Stock Analysis Report Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
USA Today
14 hours ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Sean 'Diddy' Combs, son Justin Combs hit with gang-rape lawsuit
A woman has filed a complaint against Sean "Diddy" Combs' son Justin Combs, alleging she was "gang-raped" by Diddy and two other men during a trip to Los Angeles. Tyreke Conerly claims Justin Combs contacted her through Snapchat in March or April 2017, requesting "risque" photos, which she sent. She says Combs, 31, offered to fly the New Orleans resident to LA for a weekend, and promised he could get her a job at Revolt TV, a network his father founded. Instead, Conerly claims she was drugged, "literally held prisoner for a weekend" and "repeatedly raped" by three masked men, including the elder Combs. USA TODAY has reached out to Combs' team for comment. The lawsuit comes amid closing arguments in Combs' federal sex-crimes trial, a closely watched affair attended regularly by many of Combs' children, including Justin. Who are Sean 'Diddy' Combs' kids? These family members attended his sex-crimes trial In the complaint, filed by Tony Buzbee, who is representing a host of other alleged victims accusing Combs of assault, the lawyer claims the music mogul's "penchant for sexual violence is shared by his son." Drawing on an alleged "long history of violence," Buzbee argues that Conerly's story notches cleanly into an established pattern of sexual and physical abuse, allowed for by an unassailable power and influence across industries. Diddy trial updates: Sean Combs' attorney says case is about 'love,' 'jealousy' In the complaint, Conerly alleges she was flown out by Justin Combs to Los Angeles in April 2017, following through on a desire to break into the entertainment industry. After being picked up by a black SUV, she was allegedly taken to a "palatial" venue the younger Combs called "The Glass House." They stayed in the home for two days, and when she asked if they would leave, Justin responded: "No," according to the filing. Diddy trial closing arguments: 'Inner circle, money and influence' concealed crimes After the two consumed several unidentified drugs, according to the complaint, three men in masks entered the home – two who were unrecognizable and one who she understood to be Sean Combs after Justin called him "Pops." Then, she alleges, she was taken to a room where the men took turns raping her both orally and anally after being told: "You better let this happen. Or else." Surviving abuse: Cassie Ventura Fine and the unlikely bond with her mother-in-law The assault continued for over 24 hours, the complaint alleges, after which Conerly was driven back to the airport. Both the possibility of the job – which she never got – and of the unsanctioned release of her intimate photos were held over her head by Justin Combs, she alleges. Buzbee, on Conerly's behalf, is demanding a jury trial and damages.
LeMonde
16 hours ago
- LeMonde
Syringe attacks at France-wide music event: How panic spread on social media
The photo shows a plastic bag from a pharmacy in the southern French city of Perpignan, with the message scrawled across it: "I have everything I need to inject on Saturday." Published on Snapchat, the image was one example among several alleged calls to "inject people with syringes during the Fête de la Musique," according to the news monitoring account ActuReact, which shared this message with its 120,000 followers on Instagram. As early as June 17, this online media outlet was the first to warn that some internet users were encouraging such assaults at the French music event. Reached by Le Monde, the French high school student who runs the account said his team had "infiltrated" Snapchat groups preparing these actions in several French cities. In the following days, he also shared "advice" on what to do in case of a syringe attack, content that was reposted by the popular feminist account Abrègesœur on TikTok and Instagram. The rumor snowballed. Across social media, mainly teenagers posted warnings for young women, who were said to be the main targets of these syringe attacks with incapacitating drugs, allegedly intended to facilitate sexual assault. Meanwhile, on June 20, controversial influencer Amine Mojito posted a video in the same vein as his usual tasteless "pranks": He pretended to inject unsuspecting tourists. Shocking and viral, the clip circulated widely and was condemned by many. Outlandish rumors This was the atmosphere as the Fête de la Musique took place on Saturday, June 21. According to a report released Sunday by the Interior Ministry, nearly 145 people – most of them young women – contacted authorities with suspicions of having been attacked with a syringe.
Daily Record
17 hours ago
- Daily Record
P Diddy and son Justin accused of rape in fresh lawsuit as sex-trafficking trial ends
P-Diddy's sex trafficking trial hears defence closing argyments. However, the disgraced music mogul faces a fresh rape accusations in new lawsuit. P Diddy and his son, Justin Combs have been accused of rape in a brand new law suit. The shamed star's current trial, in which he is accused of sex-trafficking, is being presented with te defence's closing arguments today. However, Diddy - real name, Sean Combs - faces fresh allegations, this time, along with his son. As per documents obtained by the Mirror US, a woman from Louisiana claims she connected with Justin, 33, on Snapchat, before she was invited to California where she was told she could further her career in the entertainment industry, reports the Mirror. She has accused Justin of luring her to his Los Angeles mansion in 2017 to be raped by his father, 55, and two other 'masked men.' The woman alleges she was offered pills, alcohol and marijuana before the three men arrived at the property, one of whom she claims to believe was Diddy. The rape was said to have lasted several hours. Diddy's lawyer denies the allegations. Diddy's team told the Mirror US, 'No matter how many lawsuits are filed it won't change the fact that Mr. Combs has never sexually assaulted or sex trafficked anyone—man or woman, adult or minor. We live in a world where anyone can file a lawsuit for any reason. Fortunately, a fair and impartial judicial process exists to find the truth, and Mr. Combs is confident he will prevail in court." It comes as the I'll Be Missing You star's bombshell sex trafficking trial nears its end. Prosecutors finished their closing arguments on Thursday after five hours. On Thursday, the prosecution argued to the jury that Combs is the "leader of a criminal enterprise", who used violence and fear in "brutal crimes." Defence attorney, Marc Agnifilo, told the jury it's important to remember that none of the alleged victims called the police, as the defence's closing arguments began today. Instead, Cassie Ventura filed a lawsuit against Combs for $33m (£22m), of which she won $20m. The federal case was spurred by that lawsuit, so if Combs wasn't rich, there would be no federal criminal trial, he said. "He's a self-made successful black entrepreneur," he added, saying: "He's built wonderful, sophisticated businesses." Agnifilo also reminded the jury that Jane - an ex-girlfriend of Combs who testified against him under a pseudonym - is still living in a house that Combs pays for. "Jane came here and testified against him…I don't know what she's doing today, but whatever she's doing it's in a house he paid for. He takes care of people," Agnifilo added. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. The music mogul was joined in court on Friday, June 27, by Justin and his twin daughters, who have supported their father in the final days of his sex-trafficking and racketeering trial following a long, emotional day on Thursday. Jessie and D'Lila stood beside the rapper as they sent support for the Diddy during the trial's closing arguments. Early on in the trial, the twins were present to support their father, even sharing a social media post saying, 'The past month has devastated our family. Many have judged both him and us based on accusations, conspiracy theories, and false narratives that have spiralled into absurdity on social media.' Diddy denies any wrongdoing in the federal charges brought against him.
