In Argentina, judiciary investigates president’s alleged cryptocurrency fraud
President Javier Milei will undergo investigations regarding his relation to the cryptocurrency $LIBRA after promoting its launch in a post on X last Friday, which he has since deleted after denying involvement in the coin’s creation.
The value of $LIBRA surged to $4 billion immediately following Milei’s post, before it collapsed to almost zero within hours. Argentina lawyers filed complaints on Sunday, accusing him of partaking in a “rug pull” scam — where creators drive up the value of cryptocurrencies before suddenly withdrawing all funds, leaving investors with worthless tokens.
“We denounce Milei as being part of an illicit association that organized a scam with the $LIBRA cryptocurrency that simultaneously affected more than 40,000 people with a loss of more than $4 billion,” the Observatorio del Derecho a la Ciudad, a local nongovernmental organization, said on its website.
Milei denied the accusations, claiming he had aimed to boost economic growth “by funding small businesses and startups.” He said his post was made “in good faith,” and that he did not have any involvement with the cryptocurrency.
Judge Maria Servini was appointed to the case on Monday. While some experts have suggested that Milei won’t face impeachment, the incident could undermine his credibility ahead of Argentina’s 2025 midterm elections in October.
In Australia, spy agency finds foreign plots to harm citizens
Three foreign governments conspired to physically harm some of the country’s residents, Mike Burgess, director general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, announced on Wednesday.
Authorities have not publicized names of the countries or targeted individuals. Burgess said that one government attempted to deceive a human rights advocate into traveling to a third country, where they planned to harm or kill the individual, but ASIO immediately prevented the travel. Another government allegedly sought to harm or kill multiple people in Australia as part of its efforts to silence critics and journalists around the world, and the third country’s actions weren’t disclosed.
“We shouldn’t be complacent, or consider ourselves insulated from any of these threats,” Burgess said. “We are not immune to hostile nation states.”
Burgess also said he expected threats from foreign agencies to continue to rise, largely due to Australia’s diplomacy with Israel. He said that “normalisation of violent protest” following the war in Gaza would — combined with growing interference in Australian elections — only provoke groups to take greater strikes on the country.
In Spain, police arrest migrant boat crew members after passenger killing
Seven crew members were arrested on Wednesday for allegedly killing eight passengers, including a child, on a migrant boat carrying 224 people from Senegal to Canary Islands in December.
A 14-month-old Gambian boy, a Guinean father and his 18-year-old son were among the group that died, with many other travelers suffering serious injuries. Several required immediate treatment upon arriving at the islands, where they told authorities the eight people had been killed by the crew.
According to a Canaries court, the crew members purposefully targeted people of different nationalities to theirs. Authorities have not disclosed any individuals’ origins.
Last year, Spain received more than 57,000 irregular migrants who landed in the Canary Islands, most of whom were from Senegal. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez met with the president of Senegal in August and signed agreements to create temporary work opportunities for Senegalese citizens in Spain and to provide vocational training in Senegal.
“The return of those who have arrived in Spain illegally is essential,” Sánchez said in August. “This return sends a clear, strong and discouraging message to the mafias and those who put themselves in their hands.”
Contact Amanda Chen at [email protected].
