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Melania Trump’s Epstein remarks turn up the heat on DOJ, Acting AG Todd Blanche to do more
First lady Melania Trump’s call for public hearings for Jeffrey Epstein’s victims is piling fresh pressure on Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who only days earlier signaled the administration wanted to move past the saga even as bipartisan lawmakers and survivors continue demanding more files, testimony and prosecutions.
While the first lady called on Congress to take additional steps to let Epstein “survivors” tell their stories, Epstein victims and members of Congress themselves argued that the onus is with the Trump administration, not Congress.
“First Lady asks Congress to bring Epstein survivors in for testimony. With all due respect, that’s Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche’s job!” Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who has been at odds with the president and his administration over how it has handled the Epstein case, said after the first lady’s remarks. “Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and I already gave brave survivors a chance to tell their horrific stories on Capitol Hill. Pam Bondi wouldn’t even acknowledge them. PROSECUTE!”
“Actually, Congress did act,” added Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., in response to the First Lady’s Thursday night remarks calling on Congress to do more. “But Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche is violating the law and refusing to release the Epstein files as required by law.”
WHY MELANIA TRUMP IS DENYING ALLEGED SMEARS RELATED TO JEFFREY EPSTEIN–AND WANTS VICTIMS TO TESTIFY
Meanwhile, in a letter released by over a dozen alleged Epstein victims, survivors also put pressure on the Justice Department to do more.
“First Lady Melania Trump is now shifting the burden onto survivors under politicized conditions that protect those with power: the Department of Justice, law enforcement, prosecutors, and the Trump administration, which has still not fully complied with the Epstein Files Transparency Act,” a letter allegedly signed by 15 Epstein victims, posted to social media by Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., stated. “It also diverts attention from Pam Bondi, who must answer for withheld files and the exposure of survivors’ identities. Those failures continue to put lives at risk while shielding enablers.”
“Survivors have done their part. Now it’s time for those in power to do theirs,” the letter concluded.
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Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Justice and White House for comment on the first lady’s remarks and remarks from victims and members of Congress calling on the Trump administration to do more, but did not hear back.
However, in a statement to NPR following the first lady’s remarks, the Department of Justice said: “As we have always stated, we encourage any victims of Jeffrey Epstein — who wish to speak — to contact the FBI. Any survivor who has information on an abuser is encouraged to contact federal law enforcement.”
Not long after taking the reins from former U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Blanche insisted it was time for the Justice Department to move on from the Epstein case.
“I think that to the extent that the Epstein files was a part of the past year of this Justice Department, it … should not be a part of anything going forward,” Blanche said Thursday in an interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters. He added that the DOJ “has now released all the files with respect to the Epstein saga.”
Still, several members of Congress think there is more to be done on the matter.
Following the first lady’s remarks, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., indicated that House Oversight chairman, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., agreed to call four named co-conspirators to testify.
“And they won’t be the only ones,” the congresswoman added in a post on X.
“There are a number of doctors we also have questions for, and the list continues to grow,” the Florida congresswoman continued. “I am calling on the DOJ to prosecute individuals who took plea deals under civil rights violations, and to consider additional charges where appropriate. If you traffic a young girl(s), you don’t get to pretend to be a victim. There is a massive difference.”
Meanwhile, Khanna also demanded the first lady come testify in front of Congress, arguing her remarks show she is privy to “relevant” information, while Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., said following the first lady’s Thursday night remarks that he and his colleagues still want to see Bondi testify to Congress.
“Pam Bondi knows more about this cover-up and why the botched release of the files happened the way they did in doxxing survivors and putting their information out there, not protecting their identities. Pam Bondi must testify, that is her legal obligation.”
“I think there’s enough Republicans that also agree — she has been subpoenaed — they had a legal subpoena,” Garcia told CNN. “The DOJ and Todd Blanche continue to cover up for Donald Trump, continue to want this to go away, but we are going to continue to push every single day.”
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Who is Johnnie Robbie? Meet West Coast Pro’s women’s champion and rising star on the indie scene
Johnnie Robbie will enter WrestleMania week as a relative unknown and rising pro wrestling star, but when the dust settles in Las Vegas this week, fans will certainly know who she is.
Robbie is a California native who has trained at New Japan Pro-Wrestling and has made brief appearances at Ring of Honor and All Elite Wrestling. She will enter the week as West Coast Pro wrestling’s women’s champion. She will have about a half-dozen matches over the course of the week, headlining the company’s show and competing in several others.
She opened up to Fox News Digital about her background and how she got started.
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“I watched it a bit as a kid,” Robbie said of getting started in pro wrestling. “Kinda fell off of it. Then, my best friend got me into it and then I started rewatching it again. And then I just thought I rather do it than watch it. A little bit about Johnnie Robbie – she’s just kinda doesn’t take anything from anybody.
“I come from Chicano roots – the way I was praised pretty much. From the sneakers that I wear to the way that I’m dressed, you can see that it’s streetstyle and some people may be reminded of home it.”
Robbie said she initially started training as a referee before she was able to receive more bookings.
“My best friend, like I said, he was like, ‘Oh, figure out how to become a wrestler because you’re always saying you want to be something new every day,’ and this was something I dug for and tried to find a school because it is kinda hard to find a school, especially here in LA because there just a handful of them,” she said. “I started training and then I wasn’t picking up as much as everyone else and my trainers at the time, they suggested I become a ref until I’m ready for my main debut. I believe that’s how they did it – they school they came from, they would do that. I took the idea from there.”
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Robbie told Fox News Digital she is trying to amplify her roots when she comes to the ring.
She said the gear she wears from head-to-toe all have something to do with where she’s been and her background.
“I’m here for a good time and so I’m irked or I’m p—ed off and I tend to get p—ed off very easily. I think I tend to show that in-ring. I have a quick temper and if I’m on top, I kinda get, I don’t want to say cocky, but I get real comfortable,” she said. “I think mostly what you see is someone not as big as everyone else or just be able to take hits and just the way that I move in the ring,
“I think that comes across well in terms of … One of my best friends, Alan Breeze, I go, ‘I don’t know what my style is,’ and he’s like, ‘You’re a little pitbull, you’re a little dog, you’re just like messy.’ You’re style is, I think he said, ‘Scrappy.’ I think that comes into play when I’m wrestling. You can see that. Like I said, I pull from the way I was raised by a bunch of, ‘Cholos.’ Just like I said, the Chicano lifestyle. I think you see a lot of that when I’m in the ring.”
Robbie stressed that being able to share her background with the people that come to her shows is important to her and how much of a difference it makes.
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“I personally love it because are sometimes people are like, ‘Oh, you’re just kinda cool,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, no, you just don’t get it because you never seen it before.’ As opposed to when I’m here in LA or up north in San Francisco with West Coast, I have the little girls that look like me or I have fans that are older and they’re like, ‘Oh my God you remind me of my sister, you remind me of my tia,’” Robbie said. “Little girls see themselves in me or they see their bigger sister in me.
“So, I think it’s whether you not recognizing where I come from or it’s the little kids seeing it or it’s the people who grew up like me seeing it, that just makes a difference. I’m just happy to be that person you’re reminded of somewhere because even if you’re not familiar with the way I was raised opposed to a little girl out here in LA, you’re still now being introduced to it. So, I enjoy the fact that, ‘Oh, this is what they mean by that.’”
Robbie said she will be in six matches during the week, but it wasn’t her initial play.
She said she had hoped to do at least three matches and put on quality shows, until more people started to call her to wrestle at their shows. The hustle mentality is a driving force for Robbie.
“I think we’re all hustling … But I was look at, some fan made a list of everybody who had matches, and I remember thinking coming in, like, ‘Oh, I only want maybe three matches this year,’ because last year I think I had just as many. I want quality over quantity,” Robbie said. “I didn’t want to be over or under booked. And then, I just getting these opportunities, big names or people I’ve always been wanting to wrestle. I was like, ‘Oh, well, OK, I guess, I’m free, so. …’ It’s ‘Mania week and I’ve just, I don’t even know how to explain it. You want as many matches as you can possibly have because even if you’re not trying to, you just keep getting these opportunities because everyone from all over the world is here.
“If you’re not out there having many (matches), or if you’re just not out there at all, I would hope you would like to get out there. I know its difficult – it’s a whole week off. Hustling in general for me, that hustle mentality, are you giving it your all in terms of what you can do? If I could do was three matches and I did everything I could do is have those three matches and get to WrestleMania week that is good enough. … It’s OK to miss it as well because the hustle is still going on on the other side. What can you do if you’re not showing up for that week? To me, I use every moment and every opportunity to chase after whatever it is while also understanding that there’s limitations. As long as you’re doing it and not whining and not doing it, to me, you’re hustling.”
Robbie will be among the dozens of wrestlers who will be involved in matches over the course of the week.
She will start her week with two matches on Wednesday — one at Pandemonium Pro Wrestling and another with Unapologetic Pro.
Thursday night, Robbie will defend the West Coast Pro Women’s Championship at their event and then continue on to a Marvelous event. Then, she will be looking for another belt at PrideStyle Pro as well, going up against Chris Nastyy for the PrideStyle World Championship on Friday night. It will be her first of two matches there.
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Queen Elizabeth’s aide, nicknamed ‘AK-47,’ clashed with Prince Harry in explosive ‘Tiaragate’: experts
Queen Elizabeth II’s fiercest protector, who earned the nickname “AK-47,” would “take a bullet” for the monarch, royal experts claimed. This devotion later put her on a collision course with Meghan Markle during the infamous “Tiaragate.”
“Angela Kelly was the real deal, a friend who would take a bullet for the queen,” British broadcaster and photographer Helena Chard told Fox News Digital. “And it’s telling. Palace insiders called her ‘AK-47’ after the assault rifle because ‘people felt threatened by her.’ She was influential enough to ‘take people out’ of Buckingham Palace.”
It’s been said that the late queen’s devoted dresser was no-nonsense, especially when it came to royal protocol.
INSIDE THE ROYAL FAMILY’S SECRET ‘BALMORAL TEST’ THAT MAKES OR BREAKS POTENTIAL BRIDES
“Meghan Markle was on a collision course as she wasn’t adhering to longstanding traditions, which ruffled many feathers among many staff members,” British royals expert Hilary Fordwich claimed to Fox News Digital. “Angela was loyal to proper protocol and was the enforcer of such. Her dedication and duration of service meant she ended up shaping the presentation of the monarchy and was a gatekeeper regarding access.”
“Her influence really impacted optics,” Fordwich added.
Fordwich and Chard’s statements came after Kelly, the queen’s longtime assistant, advisor and curator, gave a rare interview to Vanity Fair correspondent and royal author Katie Nicholl.
WATCH: PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE CAUSED QUEEN STRESS IN FINAL YEARS: AUTHOR
Kelly laid bare her close friendship with Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, who would have turned 100 on April 21, and how, during their decades-long friendship, she managed the queen’s wardrobe, including her iconic, colorful outfits.
Kelly also oversaw the queen’s collection of jewelry and ceremonial items, a responsibility that reportedly placed her at the center of a heated dispute with Prince Harry dubbed “Tiaragate.”
Nicholl wrote that ahead of her wedding to Harry in 2018, Meghan was presented with a selection of tiaras for the occasion. Although the former American actress was drawn to an emerald piece, Nicholl noted it was ultimately deemed unsuitable for her big day.
“While Meghan was happy with the Queen Mary Diamond Bandeau that the queen had offered her instead, tensions arose again when Meghan was told by Kelly that she was not allowed to use the tiara for a trying-on session with her hairdresser ahead of the wedding day, reportedly causing Harry to ‘erupt’ at Kelly,” wrote Nicholl.
A palace source told Nicholl that the queen refused to let the tiara leave the palace two weeks before the wedding.
“[Angela] often took a bullet for the queen, but this time Harry really went for [her],” a source claimed to Nicholl. “Harry was giving Angela hell.”
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Royal expert Ian Pelham Turner told Fox News Digital that Kelly wasn’t afraid to face anyone who challenged her. But that also reportedly put her in direct conflict with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
“With the nickname ‘AK-47,’ she guarded the sacred values of the queen’s collection, including the precious jewels, clothes and hats,” he explained.
“She guarded these areas with a renowned intensity, making her the queen’s fashion bodyguard. There were many rumors surrounding how the royal household never tried to oppose or impose any strategies on her. She was regarded as the feminine equivalent of a Rottweiler, with a bite if she was questioned.”
However, nothing prepared Kelly to reportedly go toe-to-toe with the boss’s grandson, who was just as protective of his future wife. A palace source told Nicholl that she “was very much caught in the middle.”
“At one point, [Harry] said, ‘Let me tell you, I don’t agree with you talking to my grandmother about this,’” Nicholl wrote. “Angela was in tears and went to the queen, saying she couldn’t take it anymore. Eventually, the queen said, ‘He can’t have it; I’ll deal with him. We’re having enough trouble with this wedding.’”
“People still question how Kelly had the queen’s ear, viewing her as a mere servant,” said Chard. “Kelly’s power wasn’t ceremonial. She controlled access to the queen daily, and Queen Elizabeth backed her. Kelly put her heart and life into her work. She ran a tight, tidy ship, never leaving a stone unturned. She cared deeply for Queen Elizabeth, instilling confidence, protecting royal protocol and hierarchy, which was seen as an obstruction to some. However, it was given the queen’s approval.”
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“Queen Elizabeth declared that the tiara in question ‘was not a toy,’” Fordwich claimed. “Angela was loyal to proper protocol and was the enforcer of such.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment.
Harry, 41, shared a different account of “Tiaragate” in his 2023 memoir, “Spare.” He wrote that Meghan was initially set to wear the Spencer tiara, previously worn by his mother, the late Princess Diana. The queen then asked if Meghan wanted to wear a tiara from her collection.
“She offered us access to her collection of tiaras,” Harry wrote, as quoted by People magazine. “She even invited us to Buckingham Palace to try them on. ‘Do come over,’ I remember her saying.”
Harry said that the queen herself suggested that Meghan practice putting on the heirloom with her hairdresser. “It’s tricky, and you don’t want to be doing it for the first time on the wedding day,” said the queen, he recalled.
Harry claimed that Kelly made it difficult to arrange. Not only did she become unresponsive to the couple, but she eventually told them that the tiara needed a “police escort” to leave the palace. When Harry agreed to arrange for an orderly and a police officer to do so, Kelly “inexplicably” told him, “can’t be done,” the book claimed.
“I considered going to Granny, but that would probably mean sparking an all-out confrontation, and I wasn’t quite sure with whom Granny would side,” Harry wrote. “Also, to my mind, Angela was a troublemaker, and I didn’t need her as an enemy.”
Chard noted that with Meghan being a newcomer to the British royal family’s tight circle, there were bound to be obstacles with protocol.
“The ‘Tiaragate’ controversy arose as Hollywood and palace hierarchy clashed,” said Chard. “Sources have also shared whispers of other family tensions. However, sources have only offered glowing reports of the queen and Angela Kelly’s relationship.”
Fordwich said that Kelly earned her “clever” nickname with good reason. She was “sharply effective” and “an empowered gatekeeper and protector” of the queen.
“Angela earned her place of privilege with the immense trust shown by the queen due to her dedication and loyalty, two characteristics that are critical to serving the royals,” said Fordwich. “Angela also, rather uniquely, earned personal trust through some special talents, such as breaking in shoes for the queen, updating her look, which was successfully welcomed, and becoming a trusted confidante during the COVID lockdown.”
“Although from different backgrounds, the late queen and Angela Kelly held similar values, with duty being their priority,” said Chard. “They forged an unbreakable bond. Queen Elizabeth loved Kelly’s pragmatic bluntness and viewed her as an incredibly loyal friend.
“As Kelly ascended the hierarchy, she gained seniority and status. However, this led to many feeling somewhat jealous and threatened by her access to Queen Elizabeth.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020 and moved to California.
Kelly’s role came to an end after the queen died in 2022. She quietly stepped away from royal duties and retired from public service.
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Disgruntled worker invokes Luigi Mangione in $500M warehouse inferno he filmed in anti-capitalist rage: feds
A disgruntled Inland Empire employe accused of causing $500 million in damage invoked Luigi Mangione as he filmed himself torching a warehouse as he railed against wages, authorities said.
Chamel Abdulkarim, 29, of Highland, California, is charged with deliberately setting the April 7 inferno that destroyed a 1.2 million-square-foot Kimberly-Clark distribution center in Ontario. He pleaded not guilty Monday to federal and state charges, authorities said.
According to a Department of Justice criminal complaint, Abdulkarim, who worked at the facility through a third-party logistics provider, filmed himself setting multiple pallets of paper goods on fire in the early morning hours.
In the video, he allegedly complained about wages, saying, “If you’re not going to pay us enough to [expletive] live… at least pay us enough not to do this,” according to the DOJ affidavit.
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Federal prosecutors say the flames quickly spread, collapsing the roof and leveling the entire facility, which stored household products like Kleenex and Cottonelle.
Investigators allege Abdulkarim later bragged about the destruction in texts and phone calls, including one message that read, “I just cost these [expletive] billions,” while railing against corporate profits and shareholders.
In a separate call, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said Abdulkarim compared himself to Mangione — the suspect accused in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
“Luigi popped that muther——,” Abdulkarim said, according to the federal complaint, adding “a lot of people are going to understand.”
Fox News contributor and former FBI special agent Nicole Parker told Fox News Digital that Abdulkarim seems to have used similar tactics as Mangione, calling it the “Luigi effect.”
“Luigi garnered a substantial amount of attention and empathy from many because of his ‘cause’ as a justification for his grievance,” she said. “Several are now copying him to one degree or another in an effort to gain that same level of attention and hero status.”
Abdulkarim “believes he was speaking and acting out on behalf of the American people” as he ranted about workers being paid enough to live.
“Chamel was proud to have cost over $1 billion to the company,” Parker said. “It is a troubling time in our society when offenders will go to all lengths no matter how destructive or evil to prove a point for their cause.
“I refer to it as the ‘Luigi effect’ where offenders have learned to focus attention on their grievance through violence due to the sensationalization from online platforms and social media. Law enforcement and specifically the FBI will be digging into his behaviors and what led him down the path to violence. Turning to violence to settle a grievance is never the answer. He chose to carry out these awful crimes but he will not choose the consequence.”
Prosecutors allege Abdulkarim acted “willfully, maliciously, and with premeditation” when he set the fire, conduct they say was carried out under circumstances likely to cause injury and massive property destruction, according to a San Bernardino County felony complaint.
The complaint charges him with aggravated arson, a top-tier felony, along with multiple additional counts of arson of a structure tied to the same blaze.
Authorities say the fire caused losses far exceeding $10 million, a key threshold that elevates the severity of the charge, while federal officials estimate total damage at roughly $500 million.
MASSIVE SIX-ALARM BLAZE ENGULFS CALIFORNIA WAREHOUSE, EMPLOYEE DETAINED
“America is founded on free enterprise and capitalism… Anyone who attacks our values, our way of life, our system… we’re gonna come after aggressively,” Essayli said.
Abdulkarim was arrested about two miles from the scene shortly after the fire broke out. Roughly 175 firefighters responded to the six-alarm blaze, which is considered one of the most destructive warehouse fires in the region. No injuries were reported.
San Bernardino County District Attorney Jason Anderson blasted the alleged crime, calling arson “a real head-scratcher” and warning it puts lives, jobs and commerce at risk.
“I do not understand somebody… to displace people from their jobs, to ruin commerce, to get in the way of labor, to put people in physical harm,” Anderson said.
Abdulkarim is charged federally with arson of a building used in interstate and foreign commerce and faces multiple state felony counts that could significantly increase his prison exposure.
If convicted on the federal charge alone, he would face a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 20 years in prison. Prosecutors have also signaled the case involves aggravating factors, including the scale of destruction and potential danger to others.
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