John Otis
[Copyright 2024 NPR]
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Bandits on motorcycles secretly spread sharp objects on the road to puncture car tires. Then, they offer to lead marooned motorists to nearby mechanics suspected of being in on the con.
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Bogota's police crackdown on the tire puncturing scammers wreaking havoc on the Colombian capitals unsuspecting motorists
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In Colombia, drug gangs are waging a new kind of war — by air. Armed with cheap drones, they're targeting rivals in a dangerous escalation.
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The president of one of Lima's largest parent-teacher associations says at least 1,000 schools in the Peruvian capital are being extorted and that most are caving into the demands of the gangs.
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In the South American nation of Peru, going to school can mean going up against gangsters. Criminals demanding extortion payments are threatening to blow up schools and kill their teachers.
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Former Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner — one of Latin America's most recognizable political figures — is facing 6 years in prison and a lifetime ban from office after a major corruption conviction upheld.
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In Colombia, former soldiers accused of atrocities during the country's guerilla war are helping to locate and exhume remains of their civilian victims.
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Venezuela's opposition has urged voters to boycott up and coming regional elections - but this tactic has deeply divided the party - including one of Venezuela's most storied political families.
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José Mujica, the charismatic former guerrilla fighter who later went on to lead Uruguay and became known as "the world's poorest president" for his austere lifestyle, has died at 89.
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Venezuela's economic malaise and political paralysis under the country's increasingly authoritarian government is impacting its most beloved national pastime - baseball.