Staff Editor

MEXICO CITY,  (Reuters) – Mexico on Friday admitted it had mistakenly claimed to have captured a son of Mexico’s most wanted drug lord, Joaquin “Shorty” Guzman, which the ruling party had hailed as a major victory in its war on cartels.

(Trinidad Guardian) Republic Bank yesterday issued a statement in which it “categorically” denied that it has had any banking relationship with Oscar Sanchez, the Cuban-American man who is due to appear in a Miami court today to answer charges of money laundering and attempting to defraud the US national health insurance programme, Medicare of US$373 million.

(Trinidad Guardian) Chief executive officer of First Citizens Group, Larry Howai, is T&T’s new Finance Minister.

BELLEFONTE, Pa., (Reuters) – A jury found former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky guilty on 45 of 48 child sex abuse charges on Friday, ending a trial that rocked U.S.

(Trinidad Express) Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar tonight announced her administration’s second reshuffle, firing two Ministers, demoting others, and creating several new ministries.

Amid calls by the two unions on campus for him to resign, the University of Guyana today said that Professor Compton Bourne has been re-elected as Chancellor of the university for the next three years.

(WICB) West Indies player Dwayne Bravo has been fined 20 per cent of his match fee after being found guilty of breaching the ICC Code of Conduct after the One-Day International between England and the West Indies at The Oval on Tuesday.

HARARE, (Reuters) – Forty-four members of Zimbabwe’s parliament were circumcised today as part of a national HIV/AIDS awareness campaign.

LONDON, (Reuters) – Former Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria has been banned for life by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after being found guilty of corruption, the ECB said today.

BEIRUT,  (Reuters) – Syria shot down a Turkish warplane over the Mediterranean today, risking a new crisis between Middle Eastern neighbours already at bitter odds over a 16-month-old revolt against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

(Trinidad Guardian) Police last night found the body of kidnapped soldier Nigel Sinaswee, 40, of Roystonia Gardens, Couva.

The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) today said it received 35,055 applications for new registration and 3,791 applications for change/correction during the recently concluded 3rd Cycle of Continuous Registration which commenced on March 17, 2012 and ended on June 18, 2012.

Canada’s Border Services Agency has seized 170 kgs of cocaine hidden in wooden pallets used to transport food from Guyana.

(Jamaica Gleaner) A battle of low prices is now being waged in the telecommunications sector with market leaders Digicel today set to unveil a plan which will cost 10 cents per minute less than the lowest rates offered by LIME.

(Barbados Nation) The man who has held more positions in West Indies cricket than any other is optimistic that the regional team will return to the top of the world game.

LOS ANGELES,  (Reuters) – A Los Angeles man who wrote a book about his alleged gay encounters with John Travolta filed a libel lawsuit on Thursday against the actor and his attorney.

(Barbados Nation) Give Trinidad & Tobago a dose of its own medicine if it continues to block Barbadian exports.

(Barbados Nation) Not in my church! Rector of the St Lucy’s Parish Church, Reverend Curtis Goodridge, is putting a ban on funerals with “mourning colours optional” requests.

(Trinidad Express) Fifty criminals are to be pardoned for the country’s 50th Independence anniversary.

(Trinidad Express) Government is to provide a free vaccine which prevents the infection “closely linked” with cervical, oral and anal cancers in men and women to young girls.