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Man Wanted in Slaying Pregnant Girlfriend as Her Son Slept: Police

Years of Near-Zero Interest Rates the Latest Bid to Spur Recovery in US, Canada

The Canadian and American central banks are pulling out all the stops to support the economic recovery, with the latest move being their indications that they expect to hold interest rates near zero over the next few years. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic persists, the hoped-for sustained revival in consumer borrowing and spending is anything but certain. In an unprecedented move on Sept. 16, the U.S. Federal Reserve said it doesn’t expect to raise its key interest rate until 2023, providing a very powerful signal that near-zero rates are here to stay for a long time.  A week earlier, the Bank of Canada had said, “The Governing Council will hold the policy interest rate at the effective lower bound [0.25 percent] until economic slack is absorbed so that the 2…

Man Wanted in Slaying Pregnant Girlfriend as Her Son Slept: Police

Officials in Texas are searching for a suspect wanted in the slaying of his pregnant girlfriend over the weekend, according to the Houston Police Department.

An 8-year-old boy walked into his apartment in Houston over the weekend and saw his mother, Ashley Garcia, severely beaten. Police said they suspect 23-year-old Alexis Armando Rojas-Mendez is responsible for the death of Garcia, 27. He was charged Sunday with murder but hasn’t been arrested, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Rojas-Mendez allegedly told the boy not to wake his mother and fled the apartment. The child was unable to, officials said, before he asked neighbors to help him.

Firefighters found Garcia with what appeared to be blunt force trauma.

The child identified Rojas-Mendez as his father, court records show, reported the paper. The suspect then told the child that when he returns from work, “they would be going on a trip far away,” according to the child.

Rojas-Mendez’s sister told police that he contacted her at around 4:45 a.m. on Saturday asking for money. She refused, said officials.

Authorities said that they suspect that Rojas-Mendez might attempt to flee the United States, according to the Chronicle.

Garcia’s family told ABC13 that a funeral will be held on Thursday. She leaves behind three children, they said.

Anyone with information on the incident or about Rojas-Mendez’s wherabouts is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

Focus News: Man Wanted in Slaying Pregnant Girlfriend as Her Son Slept: Police

Facebook Removes Fake Chinese Accounts That Posted on US Election, Spread Beijing Propaganda

Facebook has shut down more than 180 fake accounts, groups, pages, and Instagram accounts that it determined to be run in China, which posted content on the U.S. presidential election and spread Beijing’s talking points on a range of topics, from the South China Sea to Hong Kong protests. The U.S. social media giant announced the takedown in a blog post published on Sept. 22, saying that these accounts were a violation of its rule against “coordinated inauthentic behavior on behalf of a foreign or government entity.” In total, 155 Facebook accounts, 11 pages, nine groups, and six Instagram accounts were shut down. The Instagram app is owned by Facebook. Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of security policy and author of the blog post, explained that while people behind these accounts…