'joker' held in Maryland over alleged gun threats

 

 This police photo shows the guns found in possession of the suspect

A heavily armed man who called himself a "joker" has been arrested after threatening his employer in the US state of Maryland, police say.

Neil Prescott, 28, allegedly said he was going to "load my guns and blow everybody up" at his workplace.
Wearing a t-shirt that read "guns don't kill people. I do" when arrested, he was in the process of being fired.
The suspect in last week's massacre at a Colorado Batman screening reportedly told police he was The Joker.
Mark Magaw, police chief of Prince George's County in Maryland, told reporters they were taking "all threats seriously" in light of last Friday's shootings.
"If you're going to make a threat, we will take action," he said.
'Very quiet' Mr Prescott had several thousand rounds of ammunition and about two dozen firearms in his apartment when it was searched by the authorities on Friday morning.
Police said he was "very quiet" and co-operative when arrested at his home in Crofton, near Annapolis.
He allegedly made multiple threats this week, including telling a supervisor at the mailroom supplier where he worked that he wanted to see his "brain splatter on the floor".
Mr Prescott was receiving a mental health evaluation with charges pending.
Meanwhile, a defence motion filed on Friday says that James Holmes, the suspect in the Colorado shooting, was being treated by a psychiatrist at the university where he studied.
On Friday in Colorado more than 1,000 people attended the funeral of Micayla Medek, one of the 12 victims of last week's shooting.
The 23-year-old was a student who had gone to the movie with a group of friends.
A full military funeral is scheduled next Friday for Jonathan Blunk, a navy veteran.

Aurora shootings: Suspect 'saw psychiatrist'

 

James Holmes recently dropped out of a PhD programme in neuroscience

The suspect in the Colorado cinema shooting was being treated by a psychiatrist at the university where he studied, according to court records.

Earlier reports said James Holmes, 24, had sent a notebook describing a massacre to the university.
Defence lawyers are seeking the source of the media leak, saying it violated a court order and put a fair trial in "serious jeopardy".
The neuroscience drop-out will be formally charged on Monday.
The court said it would consider the defence team's request then.
Threat assessment The suspect's lawyers argued that the notebook was a communication between a patient and his doctor, and was therefore confidential.
It is unclear if the package reportedly containing the notebook arrived at the university before the 20 July shootings.
University officials say it was delivered and investigated on Monday 23 July, but US media reports had suggested otherwise.
The legal motion described Mr Holmes as a "psychiatric patient" of Dr Lynne Fenton at University of Colorado Denver, where he was in the process of dropping out as a neuroscience PhD student.
Dr Fenton is a member of the campus-based behavioural and threat-assessment team that helps staff deal with "problematic" individuals, reports Reuters news agency.
James Holmes is accused of killing 12 and wounding 58 during a midnight showing of the new Batman film in Aurora near Denver a week ago.
Of the wounded, 11 remain in hospital, with five in critical condition.

Kristen Stewart cheating scandal:Director Rupert Sanders’ father says it's ‘all a lot of fuss about nothing'

Despite being married for 10 years, the director threw caution aside on July 17 when he met up with Stewart for a steamy rendezvous in Los Angeles

By Cristina Everett / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Friday, July 27, 2012, 1:43 PM

Marianna Massey/Getty Images

Director Rupert Sanders and Kristen Stewart have both publicly apologized for their fling.

Kristen Stewart’s fling with her “Snow White and the Huntsman” director, Rupert Sanders, is the latest cheating scandal that has rocked Hollywood and shocked fans around the world.
But despite the careless dalliance hurting the people close to those involved, Sanders’ father doesn’t see the big deal.
"From what I gather nothing really happened and it is all a lot of fuss about nothing. I should imagine it was something very brief," Michael Sanders told People. "She is a very pretty girl and when you work that closely with someone for so long, sometimes things happen."

Liberty Ross and husband Rupert Sanders attend the Los Angeles premiere of 'Snow White and The Huntsman' in May. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Despite being married to model-actress Liberty Ross for 10 years, Sanders threw caution aside on July 17 when he met up with Stewart for a steamy rendezvous in Los Angeles.
Photos in the new issue of Us Weekly show the two kissing in Stewart’s car and embracing near a park-like area overlooking the Hollywood sign. In one shot, Sanders is pressed against the back of his much-younger lover, his arms wrapped around her waist and his mouth nuzzling her ear.
Both Stewart, 22, and Sanders, 41, have issued groveling public apologies for their wrongdoings, specifically begging their significant others for forgiveness. For the past three years, Stewart has been dating her “Twilight” co-star Robert Pattinson, who reportedly packed his bags and left the Los Feliz, Calif. home the couple shares after news of the affair broke. Sanders, on the other hand, is father to two young children with Ross.

Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart first met on the set of 'Twilight' and have been dating for three years. (Ian Gavan/Getty Images)

"He is very honorable, hardworking and (a) dedicated father and filmmaker," Michael Sanders continued to defend his son, adding that the director is far from the philanderer the media has made him out to be.
Though the future for Stewart and Pattinson remains unknown, Michael Sanders seems to believe there’s hope that his son’s marriage won’t end.
"Of course their relationship will survive this,” he said. “This is nothing – they will definitely survive all of this. It is all a lot of fuss about nothing."

Usain Bolt mobbed in Olympic Village

Reuters

LONDON – Usain Bolt has arranged a personal entourage comprising Jamaican track colleagues to shield him from the attention of other athletes in the Olympic Village. On Thursday, Bolt was mobbed by excited Olympians when he strolled into the vast dining hall as hundreds stood to cheer and applaud the defending triple gold medalist.
Since even the biggest stars are not allowed to bring their own security into the sanctuary of the Village, Bolt has had to call upon a group of Jamaican teammates to ensure he does not face too much intrusion away from the track.

"Mr. Bolt descended on the food hall for lunch," British field hockey player Chloe Rogers said. "We were loving the whole entourage around him, including his training buddy and rival Yohan Blake."
Discus thrower Jason Morgan, shot putter Dorian Scott (who has worked part-time as a bouncer in Jamaica) and 4x100 meter relay reserve Kemar Bailey-Cole have been tasked with shadowing Bolt whenever he ventures outside the Vesta House, the apartment block in the Village where the entire Jamaican contingent is staying.
"They are with him wherever he goes," an Olympic athlete told Yahoo! Sports. "The whole [dining room] went crazy when he first came in. For a couple of minutes everyone just turned into a fan. No one actually went up and asked for an autograph but it wouldn't have been a surprise.
"I got a photo with Bolt at the Village in Beijing but that won't be happening this time around. Those guys, especially the big shot putter, won’t let anyone get close."

Bolt was able to enjoy a relatively peaceful existence in the Village at Beijing, but his profile is now far greater after winning Olympic gold in the 100 and 200 meters and the 400 relay in spectacular fashion. He is guaranteed to generate significant attention at every turn.
"The boys have got my back," Bolt said. "We are a close team and everyone looks out for each other. I want the others to win for Jamaica just as much as I want to win for myself. They help me out and I will be cheering for them."

Even his choice of food on Thursday was scrutinized. With hundreds of pairs of eyes watching him, Bolt walked past the counter for McDonald's, whose chicken nuggets he famously ate before his finals four years ago, and instead opted for grilled chicken from a Caribbean food kiosk.
Bolt begins his Olympic campaign on August 4 in the preliminary heats of the 100 meters.

Injured President return home

Mali's President Diouncounda Traore returns from Paris

Mr Traore is expected to form a new government of unity within days of his arrival

Continue reading the main storyMali's interim President Diouncounda Traore has arrived back home after a two-month absence.

He has been recovering in Paris from injuries sustained when he was beaten by supporters of March's coup.
Journalist Idrissa Fane told the BBC Mr Traore was greeted by a large crowds at the airport and looked to be healthy.
Analysts say he has a tough task ahead in trying to resolve the political stalemate caused by the coup and an Islamist rebellion in the north.
Tuareg rebels and Islamist militants capitalised on the chaos following an army coup in March and took control of the north of the country, but their uneasy alliance has collapsed.
The al-Qaeda Islamists now control all three of the region's main cities - Timbuktu, Gao and Kidal. Thousands have fled the north.
Smiling Idrissa Fane told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme there was a huge security presence at the airport.

The smiling president was greeted by politicians, diplomats, religious and security leaders, he said.
Crowds of Mr Traore's party supporters also lined the road from the airport to his residence.
Correspondents says there is high hope in Mali that this is not just a symbolic return.
Mr Traore is expected to form a new government of unity within days of his arrival and deliver a strategy to reclaim the northern region of Mali back from rebel control.
The BBC's West Africa correspondent Thomas Fessy says Mr Traore will also have to handle with care the group of soldiers that overthrew the previous administration and agreed to an interim government after the intervention of the regional bloc, Ecowas.
Coup leader Capt Amadou Sanogo remains very influential in the management of the state's affairs, he says.
Mr Traore also faces a growing humanitarian crisis mainly with more than 4.5m people at risk of food insecurity.
According to the UN, nearly 200,000 children are suffering from acute malnutrition.
Our correspondent says it is also not clear whether Mr Traore will back Ecowas's plan to send 3,000 troops to intervene in northern Mali.
There has been international condemnation of the Islamist fighters in the ancient city of Timbuktu where they have been destroying centuries-old shrines to Islamic saints revered by Sufi Muslims.
Their Salafist beliefs condemn the veneration of saints and they regard the mausoleums as idolatrous.

Facebook shares drop to new low

Shares in Facebook have fallen to a new low, as investors react to the social network's first set of results since its flotation. Late Thursday, in its first report as a public company, Facebook said it lost $157m (£100m) from April to June.

Facebook Inc.

Last Updated at 27 Jul 2012, 15:59 ET

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Its shares plunged more than 16% to $22.37 when trading began in New York on Friday, worse than the declines seen in after-hours trade on Thursday.
Facebook shares were priced at $38 when it listed on the Nasdaq in May.
Monetising mobile Facebook's results on Thursday showed that revenue in the second quarter of the year had grown 32% to $1.18bn, just beating forecasts. But analysts at Piper Jaffray said it appeared investors wanted "more than a slight beat".
The number of monthly active users (MAUs) rose 29% from the same period last year to 955 million, but some analysts question the reliability of this data given the number of fake profiles on the social network.
The number of people who logged in daily to Facebook's site from their mobile devices surged 67% year-on-year to 543 million.
But the company has yet to resolve how it generates profits as users move from the computer desktop version to accessing the site via mobile phone.
"We don't view these results as dramatically good or bad," said Citi analyst Mark Mahaney.
"Key questions remain: the future of Facebook mobile monetisation and the future of Facebook user engagement."

Gerrard: We will finish top four

By ESPN staff
Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard is confident the club will finish in the top four this season and earn a place in the Champions League.

GettyImagesSteven Gerrard also skippered the England team at Euro 2012 this summer

Gerrard, who was also full of praise for new manager Brendan Rodgers, believes Liverpool cannot find themselves languishing down in eighth place again this term and must make sure they return to Europe's elite for the first time since the 2009-10 campaign.
Rodgers is expected to bring a more attacking style to Liverpool this season which excites Gerrard, and he hopes the club will no longer find themselves frustrated by the opposition - an issue which led to the Reds drawing more home games than any other side in the Premier League last season.
"We'll see a bolder Liverpool team - and more exciting too," Gerrard is quoted as saying by the Sun. "It's not just been these last few days that I've had a chance to learn about the new manager, he's been in touch with me since he came in.
"He has made me aware of where he's at and what he's trying to do - I've been really impressed with him. His man-management is fantastic and if he can do that with all the players in the squad, then it can be really good for the club.
"I don't think a team has ever gone from eighth to first. But there's still other big targets for us to achieve short-term and that's getting in that top four again - that's the priority. And if you perform hard enough and well enough, it will come. That is the only way you get it and I am confident we will.
"But the other players have got to think how I think and use the hurt of what happened to make up for it. That is the only way you can do it. I honestly think we will get in the top four because if we play like we did in a lot of games last season and take our chances, we will be high up the table.
"The idea is to improve and have some fun along the way in the cup competitions, like we did last year. We were brilliant at times in the league too, it's just we never got out of them what we deserved. But there were times you would come off thinking 'no wonder we are sixth, seventh and eighth'.
"It was frustrating but if you look at the season, you can't use it as an excuse for finishing eighth. It wasn't good enough. Over the years sometimes Liverpool have come up against a certain type of opposition and shown them too much respect. But maybe we have had to, because of the style we've been asked to play.
"There were times under previous managers when we showed too much respect, but Brendan wants us to play like a big team. He's been coaching for 20 years and dealing with big players. I've been impressed with his knowledge and how he's dealt with me. The players who have worked with him over the past few weeks have said the same."
"There is a lot of hard work to be done sharpish. But already in training, in only my second session, we are doing team shape and he is telling players what he expects movement wise.
"We are Liverpool, we can't finish eighth. We have to put that right."