54 month jail time for pickpockets part of global crime ring

Jun 7 2022

Three men from Romania, aged 54, 40 and 39 respectively, have been given a 54 month jail sentence as well as a €10,000 fine each for forming part of an international pick-pocketing crime ring.

The men were found guilty of committing various pick-pocketing crimes starting from 2021, mostly on Tallinja buses around all of Malta. The men were also found guilty of money laundering due to the thievery.

The men used to take advantage of packed buses to steal money and wallets from their victims. The police corp managed to stop the criminals through the tactic of Intelligence-Led-Policing.

Through collaboration with police corps and other organisations abroad, such as Europol and Interpol, it was discovered that the pickpockets were committing the crimes in various countries across the globe which attract tourists as of 2010.

The police were tipped off to the return of the pickpockets from Budapest, with the police following them after they arrived and arresting them in a hotel in St Julian’s back in September 2021.

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Pharrell Williams’ own song ‘Happy’ annoys him reveals artist

Jun 6 2022

Released back in 2013 and forming part of the massive movie franchise of Despicable Me, the song ‘Happy’ took the world by storm as it sings about being joyful and full of glee.

However, the singer and songwriter of ‘Happy’ has revealed that his own track annoys him… The song had a massive impact outside the cinema theatre.

Same https://t.co/4d1LtyFlb3

— Pharrell Williams (@Pharrell) June 1, 2022

It had in fact reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and has garnered 998 million views on YouTube. More fame was given to it due to the infectious Minions characters which became a cultural phenomenon.

But the song is also known to infuriate some people as it is the type of track to get stuck in your head for days on end. And one Twitter user revealed that ‘no song annoyed me like Happy by Pharrell did.’ And the singer responded with ‘same.’

Other twitter users even commended Pharrell for his honesty, with the singer recalling how he had handed over the soundtrack over nine times before it ended up as the final version.

And this is quite ironic given that the movie franchise of Despicable Me features a grumpy and evil main character who is far from ‘happy’… Sometimes the world just aligns perfectly.

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WasteServ achieves new record of recyclable material sent abroad

Jun 6 2022

WasteServ Chief Executive Richard Bilocca has revealed that last year, the company managed to send abroad a record amount of recyclable material.

WasteServ is now investing in millions of euros in waste management with the aim of changing waste into an efficient energy resource. Bilocca attributed the success to all the people, the local council and the commercial community at large for their assistance in achieving this record.

Bilocca was speaking during the ninth edition of Malta Waste Reduction Awards, which saw the distribution of €17,000 in awards in 8 different categories concerning the sector. The awards recognised the work of several entities which contributed to the reduction of waste using the European Week of Waste Reduction.

The initiative encouraged several communities to come together to promote the sustainable management of waste, with a panel of expert judges choosing the winners. Winners received funds to continue their prestigious work.

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Mariah Carey gets $20 million lawsuit over ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’

Jun 6 2022

A songwriter has just filed a whopping $20 million lawsuit against Mariah Carey for her 1994 hit ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’.

Singer and songwriter Andy Stone claims he co-wrote a song with the same name five years before Carey released her hit. Filing a lawsuit against her in New Orleans, Stone is suing Carey, her co-writer Walter Afansieff and Sony Music Entertainment.

He is suing on grounds of copyright infringement and misappropriation, accusing the defendants of exploiting his popularity and unique style.

He also accused Carey of causing confusion to fans over the 1994 chart topper. However, despite sharing a name, the two songs are completely different and do not share the same melodies or lyrics.

Stone claims Carey and her team knowingly and wilfully engaged in a campaign to infringe his copyright. Why the suit has been filed now is unclear, given that the song was released 28 years ago.

The song’s popularity shows no signs of dying out as it constantly reaches the top chart lists whenever Christmas rolls around. Carey is estimated to make more than $2 million a year because of it.

#MaltaDaily