Month: November 2023

The FBI said in a statement that the deadly explosion near the New York-Canadian border has been referred to Niagara Falls police as a traffic investigation. Officials said that no explosives or any connections to terrorism were found regarding the fiery incident in which two people in the car were killed on the Rainbow Bridge (which leads into and out of Canada at Niagara Falls). The explosion occurred on one of the busiest travel days in the U.S. as people across the country hit the road for Thanksgiving.

The White House and the Department of Homeland Security closely monitored the situation, saying they were in touch with Canadian counterparts. The FBI in Buffalo NY said in a statement: “A search of the scene revealed no explosive materials, and no terrorism nexus was identified. The matter has been turned over to the Niagara Falls Police Department as a traffic investigation.”

At a news conference, New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul said that one of the people killed was from western NY, and in a statement on Thursday morning, the Niagara Falls Police Department said the identity of those involved is pending notification of relatives. A Customs and Border Protection employee suffered minor injuries and was treated at and released from a hospital, a law enforcement official said.

Niagara Falls police also thanked local business partners, including the Seneca Niagara Resort and Casino, for their assistance in the investigation. According to a statement from the casino, the car stopped there for “a matter of minutes shortly before the crash occurred.”

Officials have said that the vehicle involved in the incident was traveling at a high rate of speed on the U.S. side of the border when it crashed, caught fire and exploded – contrary to some early reports that it had come from Canada. Governor Hochul said she has seen video of the car, which was going at an “extraordinarily high rate of speed” before it went airborne, crashing into a median and striking a border crossing booth. She stressed at the Wednesday evening news conference that there were no indications of terrorism.

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On Thursday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams denied allegations that he sexually assaulted a female coworker 30 years ago. According to court documents, the complaint against Adams, which was filed on Wednesday, alleges “sexual assault, battery and employment discrimination on the basis of Plaintiff’s gender and sex, retaliation, hostile work environment and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”

The suit was submitted under the New York Adult Survivors Act, a law passed last year that opened a one-year window for sexual assault claims to be filed that otherwise happened too far in the past to litigate.

The civil suit alleges the plaintiff “was sexually assaulted by Defendant Eric Adams in New York, New York in 1993 while they both worked for the City of New York.” The plaintiff is seeking a trial and at least $5 million in relief.

Mayor Adams, however, “vigorously” denies the claim, his office said, arguing he does not know the plaintiff and would never cause anyone physical harm. A City hall spokesperson said in a statement that ‘the mayor does not know who this person is. If they ever met, he doesn’t recall it. But he would never do anything to physically harm another person and vigorously denies any such claim.”

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