Police Overview in the TCI
Here is an overview of activities occuring in the TCI through the Royal Turks & Caiocs Police Force.
A BLACKBERRY Curve mobile phone was stolen from underneath a sports bag at the side of the Downtown basketball court.
The theft happened early on Sunday evening.
Anyone with information is asked to call the police on 911 or Crimestoppers on 1-800-8477.
Tips can also be left in English, French or Spanish at www.crimestoppers.tc or by becoming a friend of Crimestoppers TCI on Facebook.
Crime prevention tips are also available by visiting www.tcipolice.tc
NORTH CAICOS
POLICE in North Caicos discovered a quantity of cannabis after searching a truck in Belfield Landing, investigations are on the way.
GRAND TURK
THIEVES made off with a music system after breaking into a vehicle East Suburbs some time between 9pm last Tuesday and 7.55 am on Wednesday, the Police are investigating.
Anyone with any information on the following occurences is asked to to contact the Police.
Softball Fast & Slow Pitch in Providenciales.
Softball continued at the National Stadium over the weekend in Providenciales.
In Saturday's Fast pitch games, KIA Rulay won with 14 to Sotheby's Flamingo's 4.
In the second game Windsong Braves scored 11 beating Salt Mills Rake's to only 1.
Sunday's matches were rained out and will be rescheduled at a later date.
Join us lMonday evening for Churches Softball slow pitch where St Monica,s Anglican Church will meet Prophecy Church and Bethany Baptist Church Vs New Testament Church.
Both games gets on the way at 6:30 and 8:15 respectively.
Thunder silence Lakers to take 3-1 series lead
A late three-pointer by Kevin Durant capped a dramatic fightback by the Oklahoma City Thunder as they left the Los Angeles Lakers on the verge of playoff elimination with a 103-100 win in Game Four on Saturday. The second-seeded Thunder stormed from 11 points behind early in the final quarter to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference semi-final series.
Forward Durant finished with 31 points and 13 rebounds while guard Russell Westbrook weighed in with 37 points as Oklahoma City stunned a sellout crowd at Staples Center that had sensed a home win.
"I wanted to run the shot clock down and get the last shot," Durant told reporters of his dagger blow of a three-pointer with 13.7 seconds remaining.
"It left my hand, (and) I was thinking, 'If this doesn't go in, it's going to be a terrible shot'. It was able to go down."
Kobe Bryant led the way for the third-seeded Lakers with a game-high 38 points and eight rebounds but his team were ultimately let down by poor shooting, a rash of turnovers and a leaking defence over the closing stretch.
"We're all upset and extremely frustrated, (but) I don't think anybody is worried about going into Oklahoma City and getting a win," All-Star guard Bryant said, referring to Game Five today.
"We don't think about winning three in a row. We just think about taking care of business on Monday. Just win that game and go from there."
Trailing by 11 points with just under eight minutes remaining, the Thunder steadily clawed their way back before a layup shot by center Kendrick Perkins put them ahead 98-96 with 1.16 minutes left.
BREATHING SPACE
Though Bryant made two free throws to tie the score at 98-98, Durant poured in a three-pointer to give Oklahoma City welcome breathing space with 13.7 left on the clock.
Two free throws by reserve guard James Harden gave the visitors a 103-98 cushion before a Bryant jump shot on the buzzer lifted the Lakers into three figures.
For Lakers coach Mike Brown, Saturday's tough loss boiled down to one worrying factor.
"We could talk about us offensively, yes, because we had some struggles," he said.
"But it comes down to those guys (the Thunder) scoring 32 points in the fourth quarter. I felt like they did that very easily, and that's what disappoints me more than anything else."
In fro0nt of a packed Staples Center crowd, the lead changed hands seven times in a closely contested first quarter before the Lakers ended it with a rousing 8-2 run to go 29-24 up.
Los Angeles tightened their grip in the second quarter, suffocating defence and strong rebounding helping them into a 56-46 lead by halftime.
Though the Thunder twice cut the deficit to seven as Westbrook found a hot hand, Bryant scored with a jump shot to put Los Angeles ahead 80-71 going into the final quarter.
Oklahoma City then mounted their stirring comeback.
"It was an amazing win," said Westbrook, whose 37 points came from 15-of-26 shooting. "Everybody kept fighting. We all believed in each other. It's the playoffs."
REUTERS
Sharapova lifts trophy in rainy Rome
Maria Sharapova beat Li Na in three sets to defend her Italian Open title in Rome on Sunday in a bizarre match played in sometimes heavy rain and amid the distraction of football fans gathering nearby.
Sharapova was 6-4 4-0 down but fought back to take the match into a deciding tiebreak -- after saving a match point at 6-5 in the third set.
By the time the tiebreak came around, the rain was falling heavily, making conditions unplayable, and it even started to rain again when the players returned two hours later to complete the match.
Sharapova eventually won it 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) and the two players burst out laughing when they shook hands at the net.
"It was a crazy match," Sharapova said. "Either one of us could have won it. There really is no loser."
The men's final between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal was postponed until Monday because of the weather -- prompting some fans to throw objects onto the court in disgust.
Nearby, Napoli and Juventus fans were gathering for the Italian Cup final at the nearby Stadio Olimpico, and the final was punctuated by the sound of fireworks going off and police helicopters flying overhead.
The match was a joke, it was like playing a football match in the rain," said Li, who came close to her first title since winning the French Open almost a year ago.
"Even when we were sent off court, you had to still concentrate for every second, it was tiring for both players.
"You could not relax. It was tense. When we came back out, she was the tougher player. But I take some positives away. It's getting close to Roland Garros and I think I hit the ball well. I also moved her around the court well."
Sharapova heads to Roland Garros with a second clay-court title of the year under her belt. Not traditionally a threat on the slow surface, the world No. 2 has only lost once on clay in 2012 -- to Serena Williams.
"This is a great win for me going into Roland Garros," Sharapova said. "It will be nice to have a week off now, after playing three tournaments in the last four weeks. I'll have to time to recover, mentally and physically."
Sharapova can complete a career Grand Slam if she wins in Paris.
Robin Gibb of Bee Gees dies at 62
Robin Gibb, a founding member of the Bee Gees who helped propel the group to international stardom, has died. He was 62.
Gibb's representative Doug Wright announced in a statement that Gibb passed away today "following his long battle with cancer and intestinal surgery."
Gibb was one of three brothers whose soaring falsetto harmonies helped power such hits as "Stayin' Alive" and "Night Fever."
The band was best known for the influential "Saturday Night Fever" soundtrack album that became one of the fastest selling albums of all time. The 1977 soundtrack came to epitomize the flashy disco era.
Gibb enjoyed a long career as a Bee Gee and as a solo artist and also produced and wrote songs for many other performers.
He appeared gravely ill at his recent public appearances and had to cancel a string of meetings as his condition worsened.
AP
Rihanna & ‘Battleship’ Sunk by ‘The Avengers’ at Box Office
Universal and Hasbro Entertainment’s big-budget Battleship barely left port in its North American launch, grossing a dismal $25.3 million.
That’s well below the anticipated $35 million to $40 million that Universal and director Peter Berg were hoping for. Battleship, designed to put the studio squarely in the tentpole game, cost at least $209 million to produce, excluding a pricey marketing spend.
Battleship’s international gross of $226.8 million provides some cushion, but it needed a strong domestic performance to end up in the black. A $25.3 million opening means the movie might not clear $70 million or $80 over the long haul domestically, resulting in a notable loss for Universal and sparking plenty of Monday-morning quarterbacking within the studio about what went wrong.
There’s already speculation that Battleship, starring Taylor Kitsch, Rihanna, Brooklyn Decker and Liam Neeson, will follow the same course as Disney’s John Carter, which debuted to $30.2 million in March and topped out at $71.8 million domestically. Overseas, John Carter, also starring Kitsch, earned $200.6 million. The pic resulted in a $200 million loss for Disney.
Domestic box office, May 18-20
Title/Weeks in release/Theater count, Studio/Three-day weekend total/Cume
1. The Avengers, 3/4,249, Disney/Marvel Studios, $55.1 million, $457.1
2. Battleship, 1/3,690, Universal/Hasbro, $25.3 million.
3. The Dictator, 1/3,008, Paramount, $17.4 million, $24.5 million.
4. Dark Shadows, 2/3,755, Warner Bros., $12.8 million, $50.9 million.
5. What to Expect When You’re Expecting, 1/3,021, $10.5 million.
6. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, 3/354, Fox Searchlight, $3.3 million, $8.2 million.
7. The Hunger Games, 9/2,064, Lionsgate, $3 million, $391.6 million.
8. Think Like a Man, 5/1,722, Sony, $2.7 million, $85.9 million.
9. The Lucky One, 5/2,839, Warner Bros., $1.8 million, $56.9 million.
10. The Pirates! Band of Misfits, 4/1,840, Sony/Aardman, $1.5 million, $25.4 million.
Queen Lafifah Proud to be Among ‘Her People’ at Gay Pride Event
Queen Latifah arrived with her royal court to an amped and enthusiastic crowd of subjects summoned to celebrate the 29th Annual Long Beach Lesbian & Gay Pride Festival on Saturday, May 19.
The annual event held in Long Beach, California boasts of drawing approximately 100,000 attendees each year, making it the 2nd largest Pride festival in California and 4th largest in the nation. With such star power like Queen Latifah embracing this year’s event and taking the stage, attendance was presumably higher because everybody loves to see and hear a queen. And there was only one way for Her Highness to make her grand entrance, and that was upon the wings of rap hits like “U.N.I.T.Y.” and “Ladies First.”
Similar to the title of her 2003 film Bringing Down the House, Queen Latifah came hyped, energized and ready to do just that. She “brought it” in more ways than one, bridging songs with inspiring and encouraging words by telling the crowd to “let their inner light shine in the world” and “to conquer hate with love.”
It wasn’t just her Covergirl glow that radiated from the main stage and mesmerized festival goers; it was the light of her transparency emanating from within. The moment she uttered, “I’ve been waiting to do this for a long time,” the crowd knew she was prepared to reflect all sides of herself throughout her musical performance.
She was as free as she wanted to be and as honest as she needed to be, from bumping and grinding onstage to acknowledging that she was proud to be among “her people” to the predominantly LGBT crowd.
In my opinion, for a highly respected African American celebrity to display that kind of courage was “Simply Beautiful” – the Al Green remake she rendered midway through her performance.
It was a celebration and party onstage as well as offstage as Queen Latifah performed from a smorgasbord of musical genres ranging from rap, hip hop, jazz, R&B to reggae as well as performing songs from various artists and paying homage to a plethora of female rappers.
Boldly proclaiming that today’s hip hop is “missing the female voice,” it wasn’t too many moons ago when Queen Latifah first busted onto the scene as a socially conscious East Coast female rapper to debut her album All Hail The Queen. It represented both strength and softness, and provided a positive image of beauty, class and self-confidence for young African American women.
Although originally from the East Coast and retaining a residence there, Queen Latifah took a moment to express her love and appreciation for the West Coast by performing the Roy Ayers’ hit “Everybody Loves The Sunshine.”
The multi-talented artist has always been ready and willing to share her gift with the world which enabled her to skyrocket to fame in music, film, television, and as a spokes-model where she remains at the top of her game.
Her first musical appearance at the Gay Pride Festival was a testament that Queen Latifah not only wants to be true to her loyal fans, but that she is willing to stand up and be herself, perhaps gaining even deeper respect and appreciation from her supporters.
Dana Stringer is a freelance writer
Lil Wayne Being Investigated for Another Assault Charge
Lil Wayne’s being a bad boy again.
That’s right. For the second time in a month, Weezy and his crew are under the microscope for assault.
And once again, the alleged victim was beten because he dared take a picture of the lil’ fella.
Alfredo Marino tells TMZ on May 3 he spotted Lil Wayne and his posse skateboarding. Marino says he is a HUGE fan of Wayne’s so he went up to Weezy to ask for a photo — but was shut down.
Marino retreated to his car, where he tried sneaking a pic … Marino claims Wayne walked over with his crew and began threatening him, saying, “Don’t you know all it takes is a word and these motherf**kers are going to f**k you up?”
Marino claims he was clocked from behind with a skateboard — which knocked him down and left him bleeding from the head. Marino says he suffered a concussion and vertigo.
Marino’s lawyer, Craig Chisvin, tells TMZ, “My client will enforce all of his rights under the law and all individuals responsible for this outrageous incident will be blamed for the damages that my client has suffered and continues to suffer.”
In April, a photog in Miami filed a police report claiming he was attacked by Lil Wayne’s crew for the same offense.
Cops are investigating. Calls to Lil Wayne’s rep were not returned.
Adam ‘MCA’ Yauch’s Death Causes Beastie Boys Albums Sales Surge
In the week of Adam “MCA” Yauch’s untimely death, Beatie Boys album sales surged to meet industry rankings on the Billboard Hot 200.
The group’s climactic history set standards high when “Licensed to Ill” became the first rap album to top the Billboard charts. Now it’s back in the top 20 at No. 18.
Other Boys albums on the charts this week: “Solid Gold Hits” at No. 51, “Paul’s Boutique” at No. 56, “Hot Sauce Committee Part Two” at No. 107, “Ill Communication” at No. 109, “Check Your Head” at No. 124 and “Beastie Boys Anthology: The Sounds of Science” No. 141.
As is the phenomenon, after singers’ deaths, fans flock to stores and iTunes to purchase their favorite musical memories of their fallen artists.
After the death of Whitney Houston, 101,000 copies of her records were sold, along with nearly 200,000 of “I Will Always Love You.”
The Queen's lunch for monarchs attracts controversy
The King of Bahrain and Swaziland's King Mswati III are among controversial monarchs expected at a Windsor Castle lunch being hosted by the Queen later.
Critics accuse Bahrain of human rights abuses and say King Mswati lives in luxury while his people starve.
Campaigner Peter Tatchell criticised The Queen for inviting "royal tyrants to celebrate her Diamond Jubilee".
The Foreign Office said it was having "a full and frank discussion on a range of issues" with Bahrain's government.
Buckingham Palace said it will not comment on the lunch.
It will be followed by an evening banquet, hosted by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall. Not all the monarchs will be at both events.
Mr Tatchell said the invitations were "a shocking misjudgement" that showed the Queen was "out of touch with the humanitarian values of most British people".
"Inviting blood-stained despots brings shame to our monarchy and tarnishes the Diamond Jubilee celebrations," he said.
"It is a kick in the teeth to pro-democracy campaigners and political prisoners in these totalitarian royal regimes."
Bahrain officials said King Hamad al-Khalifa - whose country is in a state of civil unrest following crackdowns on protests last year - was expected to attend.
Last month, Bahrain Grand Prix organisers were urged to cancel the race amid public unrest in the country and accusations of human rights abuses.
And in April 2011, Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa pulled out of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding amid controversy over human rights.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: "On human rights we support the reforms already under way in Bahrain and we want to help promote that reform.
"We have consistently encouraged the Bahraini government to take further urgent steps to implement in full the recommendations of the Independent Commission of Inquiry as his majesty the King has committed to doing.
"This includes bringing to account those individuals responsible for human rights abuses."
On Thursday, former Foreign Office Minister Denis MacShane criticised Bahrain for doing "such terrible things to its own people since the Arab awakening a year ago".
He said Arab nations "must let their citizens vote in free elections and let them speak without fear of arrest, torture or death".
"For too long we have turned a blind eye to the repression carried out under the rule of royals in Arabia - the Foreign Office should protect the British Queen rather than expose her to having to dine with a despot."
On Wednesday, meanwhile, a group of UK-based Swazis protested outside the Savoy hotel, in London, where King Mswati - who is widely accused of profligate spending - is thought to be staying.
The Swazliand Vigil group said it had written to the Queen to ask her to influence the king.
King Mswati is rated by Forbes magazine as the world's 15th richest monarch with a personal fortune of $100m (£62m) - while many of his 1.2 million subjects live in poverty.
Saudi and Kuwaiti royals are also attending the banquet.
Amnesty international has recently highlighted repression in Saudi Arabia, as the authorities there crack down on protesters and reformists.
And Human Rights Watch has criticised Kuwait for the suspension of a daily newspaper and the conviction of its editor for incitement.
Meanwhile, Queen Sofia of Spain will not be attending because of a dispute over fishing rights off Gibraltar, a UK territory that Spain also claims.
The Spanish government statement said it was "hardly appropriate" for the 73-year-old to attend the lunch.
Her husband, King Juan Carlos, had already declined an invitation because he is recovering from a broken hip.
BBC diplomatic correspondent, Bridget Kendall, says that two problems always hung over this Diamond Jubilee lunch list - the possibility of protests at the inclusion of the despots and non democrats among the invited crowned heads of states, and the risk of diplomatic spats intervening.
Gibraltar has been the cause of a no-show by Spain before at a royal occasion. Spanish royalty stayed away from Prince Charles' wedding to Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1981 because the honeymoon was to include a stop in Gibraltar, our correspondent added.
Other members of the British royal family, including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, the Earl and Countess of Wessex and the Duke of York and Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie will also be at the lunch.
Guest list
The full guest list for the monarchs' lunch is:
HM The King of Bahrain; HRH Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa (Bahrain); HM The King of The Belgians; HM The Queen of The Belgians; HM The Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei; HM Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Hajah Saleha (Brunei); HM King Simeon II of the Bulgarians; HM Queen Margarita of the Bulgarians; HM Queen Margrethe II of Denmark; HRH The Prince Consort (Denmark); HM King Constantine of the Hellenes; HM Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes; HM The Emperor of Japan; HM The Empress of Japan; HM The King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; HM Queen of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; HH Sheikh Nasser Mohamed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah of Kuwait.
HM King Letsie III of Lesotho; HM Queen Masenate Mohato Seeiso of Lesotho; HSH Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein; HRH The Grand Duke of Luxembourg; HRH The Grand Duchess of Luxembourg; HM Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia; HM Seri Paduka Baginda Raja Permaisuri of Malaysia; HSH The Prince of Monaco; HSH The Princess of Monaco; HRH Princess Lalla Meryem of Morocco; HM The Queen of the Netherlands; HM The King of Norway; HM The Queen of Norway; HH The Emir of The State of Qatar; HH Sheika Mozah bint Nasser Al-Missned (Qatar).
HM King Michael I of Romania; HM Queen Anne of Romania; HRH Prince Mohammed Bin Nawaf Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia; HM King Mswati III of Swaziland; Inkhosikati LaMbikiza (Swaziland); HM The King of Sweden; HM The Queen of Sweden; HRH The Crown Prince of Thailand; HRH Princess Srirasm of Thailand; HM The King of Tonga; HM The Queen of Tonga; HH The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi; HRH The Crown Prince of Yugoslavia; HRH The Crown Princess of Yugoslavia.