iNews Briefs
Cayman Islands Police Christmas Safety Campaign – Operation Dasher – 188 prosecutions
Since Wednesday 10th December 2014 and start of Royal Cayman Islands Police Service Christmas Safety campaign, Operation Dasher, 188 persons have been prosecuted.
From these figures 13 persons were arrested for traffic related offences of which 6 were DUI.
The campaign continues through New Year’s eve until Sunday 4th January 2015. The motoring public are advised to use designated drivers, or charter buses when attending Christmas functions especially if they plan on consuming alcohol. Drink driving, speeding, cellphone driving and failing to wear seatbelts are just a few of the traffic offences which will be targeted by RCIPS officers over the coming weeks in a bid to reduce deaths and injuries on Cayman’s roads.
Cayman Islands appoints two new financial court judges
Governor Helen Kilpatrick has announced this week the appointment of two new financial court judges, Nigel Clifford and Nicholas Sega.
She said: “The Financial Services Division is an integral part of the Grand Court and the judicial system as a whole. The appointment of Justice Clifford and Justice Segal…will continue to ensure the Cayman Islands have the ability to adjudicate the complex civil cases that arise out of the financial sector in the Cayman Islands.”
The two new judges are on a part time basis and will commence on January 1st 2015.
Here’s the real reason Samsung is taking a beating… and it’s not the iPhone 6
By Brad Reed From BGR
Samsung’s smartphone profits have been getting absolutely hammered all year as it’s facing an insane amount of competition from low-cost vendors in key markets such as China. Now a new report from Reuters illustrates just how brutal the competition is for mobile phones right now, as it turns out up-and-coming smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi is scraping by with tiny operating margins of under 2%.
To get an idea of just how slim that margin is, consider that while Xiaomi generated roughly $4.3 billion in revenue in 2013, it pulled in a profit of only $56 million and an operating margin of just 1.8%. Forrester analyst Bryan Wang tells Reuters that he wouldn’t have been surprised to see Xiaomi losing money and he says that he doesn’t see how its business model is at all sustainable unless it consolidates with other businesses.
To get an idea of why Xiaomi barely makes any money, consider the Xiaomi Redmi S1 released earlier this year that features a 4.7-inch display, an 8-megapixel rear camera, a 1.6 megapixel front-facing camera and a 1.6GHz quad-core processor and that costs only USD $120 with no contract. Or take a look at Xiaomi’s recently released phablet, the Xiaomi Redmi Note, that features a 5.5 inch display, a 13-megapixel camera and an octa-core processor and costs a mere USD $160, again with no contract.
Whether Xiaomi can afford to keep pumping out phones with high-end specs at rock-bottom prices is certainly up for debate but there’s no doubt that the company’s strategy is wreaking havoc on established players like Samsung.
Cayman Islands fuel price drop
From PetrolWorld.com
While PetrolWorld is aware that fuel prices at the pump are falling globally, we have chosen the Cayman Islands to highlight that even on small islands where distribution costs are higher, fuel prices are dropping.
Local media have reported that the price per gallon of regular, unleaded self-serve gasoline at Grand Cayman fuel service stations fell by another 18 cents, according to figures released by the Cayman Islands Petroleum Inspectorate.
The average price of $5.21 per gallon recorded on Dec. 10 represents a near 40 cent drop compared to late October, when a gallon of unleaded regular was $5.59 per gallon. Fuel prices at Esso/Sol service stations stations had dropped even further as of Dec. 10, coming in at $5.15 per gallon for regular unleaded. Rubis fuel service stations were averaging around $5.27 per gallon for regular, unleaded self-serve. Average prices for regular, unleaded full-serve gasoline at the Grand Cayman stations were CI$5.26 per gallon on Dec. 10.
For the first time since local fuel prices began falling in late October, the average price drop at the pump in Cayman reflected falling fuel prices in the United States.
For more: http://www.petrolworld.com/latin-america/item/22168-cayman-islands-fuel-price-drop
Korean Air Lines faces sanctions over ‘nut rage’ incident
By Jessica Plautz From Mashable
South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will penalize Korean Air Lines with up to 21 days of flight suspensions, or a $1.3 million fine, after it was reported the airline pressured crew to lie to the government about an incident on a flight earlier this month.
Cho Hyun-ah, the daughter of the airline’s chairman and a former vice president, ordered a flight attendant on a Dec. 5 flight off the plane because of what she deemed unacceptable service of macadamia nuts in first class.
A junior flight attendant served the nuts in a bag, instead of on a plate. Cho asked for the head flight attendant, and according to witnesses became enraged when he did not produce the correct service manual.
Cho reportedly forced the crew to kneel, yelled at them, and caused the flight to depart 20 minutes late.
The head flight attendant told investigators that after the incident, airline officials had told him to lie about what happened.
The proposed sanctions against the airline are for violating aviation law. The ministry said the airline will also be punished because Cho lied during the probe and because the captain was negligent in his duties.
It said Cho used abusive language to flight attendants, but could not ascertain if she used violence.
Cho publicly apologized, along with her father, on Dec. 12. She said that she would apologize in person to the flight attendants she berated.
In the wake of the “nut rage” incident, as it is becoming known, sales of macadamia nuts in South Korea are booming.
Additional reporting by the Associated Press
Cayman Islands Health Services announce flu shots still available
Director of Primary Health Care, Dr. Kiran Kumar is reminding the public that those persons who did not get the flu shot should do so before the peak of the flu season which ranges between December and January. The Public Health Department has a few hundred doses of the flu shots remaining out of the 3000 procured and no more will be obtained for this season. Vaccines will be offered on a first come first serve basis at no cost to all residents and no appointments are necessary.
Persons requiring flu shots can visit any of the following locations:
- The General Practice Clinic at the Cayman Islands Hospital, Faith Hospital in Cayman Brac and all District Health Centres, from 2:00 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
- Little Cayman Clinic. Residents of Little Cayman should contact the clinic to make arrangements
For further information contact the Public Health Department on 244-2648.
Doctors can now successfully 3D print a knee joint
By John Biggs From Techcrunch
While this footage isn’t as exciting as I’d like it to be – I’d really prefer a big old gross close-up of a splayed knee joint – what it represents is pretty wonderful. Essentially, doctors at the Columbia University Medical Center have been able to print a knee meniscus using a degradable plastic scaffold and a protein growth system. The body then subsumes the printed object and turns the protein into a knee joint.
“At present, there’s little that orthopedists can do to regenerate a torn knee meniscus,” said study leader Jeremy Mao in a release. “Some small tears can be sewn back in place, but larger tears have to be surgically removed. While removal helps reduce pain and swelling, it leaves the knee without the natural shock absorber between the femur and tibia, which greatly increases the risk of arthritis.”
The scaffold isn’t just a plastic shell, however. It contains two human proteins, connective growth factor (CTGF) and transforming growth factor β3 (TGFβ3). The scaffold releases these factors at different times and “attracts existing stem cells from the body and induces them to form meniscal tissue.”
In sheep, the first test subjects, the meniscus regenerated in four to six weeks. The body degenerates the scaffold and whisks it away.
“We envision that personalized meniscus scaffolds, from initial MRI to 3D printing, could be completed within days,” said Dr. Mao. They will begin clinical trials once the team has raised enough cash to start printing and shipping the scaffolds to patients and their doctors.
For more and video: http://techcrunch.com/2014/12/15/watch-doctors-successfully-3d-print-a-knee-joint/?ncid=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29
Travel Press announce “Live the Good Life – Win a Trip to Cayman Islands”
It’s clear the luxury lifestyle of the Cayman Islands is resonating with affluent Canadian travellers – after three years of record tourism growth, 2014 is on track to hit the highest level of visitation ever from Canada.
Highlighting luxury accommodations, amazing restaurants and a cosmopolitan feel, the Cayman Islands is a perfect destination for the client who is experiencing “all-inclusive fatigue” and wants a lifestyle experience instead of just a vacation.
Don’t miss your chance to win a spectacular trip for two to the Cayman Islands including round-trip airfare courtesy of Air Canada and a seven-night stay at the Westin Grand Cayman Seven Mile Beach Resort and Spa.
To enter, simply answer the following question at http://promo.baxter.net/contest/caymanislands.asp : Experiencing record Canadian visitation, the Cayman Islands offer: A) Over 200 restaurants and unique culinary offerings; B) A wide variety of both condo/villa and hotel options at varying price points; C) Air Canada service with four direct flights weekly during winter months; D) All of the above.
The last day for entries is Dec. 31.
Cosby won’t be charged over decades-old sex claim
From Jamaica Observer
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — US prosecutors said Tuesday they will not charge veteran comedian Bill Cosby over allegations that he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl at the Playboy Mansion in 1974.
About 20 women have accused the 77-year-old Emmy and Golden Globe winner of sexual assault or rape in alleged incidents dating mostly from decades ago, but so far only former Playboy hostess Judy Huth has taken legal action.
Prosecutors cited the statute of limitations — which limits how long legal action can be taken after an alleged crime — in declining to pursue the case brought by Huth earlier this month.
“Given that 40 years have passed since the alleged incident, prosecution (on a misdemeanor count)… is declined due to the expiration of the statute of limitations,” wrote Deputy District Attorney Victor Rodriguez.
“Even if there was an applicable…charge, the statute of limitations that existed in 1974 for felony sex crimes was three years. Therefore prosecution today for any potential felony sex crime from 1974 would also be barred.”
Celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred, representing Huth, did not immediately respond to a request for reaction to the prosecutor’s decision.
For more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Cosby-won-t-be-charged-over-decades-old-sex-claim
Cayman Islands Agriculture Ministry forges relationship with CARDI
From Loop News Services
Minister of Agriculture,Hon Kurt Tibbetts, today welcomed the opening of Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute’s (CARDI) local office.
This is a joint project with the Cayman Islands’ Department of Agriculture.
The project, which is an arrangement with CARDI, holds much promise in terms of agricultural support and research.
As an associate member, Cayman has forged closed relationships with CARDI over the years. Among the staff, the facility employs two Caymanians who will contribute to the research and sharing of technical knowledge.
For more: http://loopcayman.com/2014/12/16/agriculture-ministry-forge-relationship-cardi/
Ex-Sony pictures employees sue over exposure of hacked data
By Ross Todd, From The Recorder
SAN FRANCISCO — The hacking scandal at Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. yielded its first lawsuit on Monday, as plaintiffs lawyers at Keller Rohrback filed a proposed class action on behalf of current and former Sony employees.
The complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California claims that Sony executives were well aware of their computer system’s security vulnerabilities but made a business decision to accept the risk of a possible breach.
The cyberattack by a group calling itself Guardians of the Peace has made headlines by unearthing racist email exchanges between film producers, juicy details of actors’ compensation and copious amounts of Hollywood gossip. But aside from the tawdry details of who hates whom in the film industry, the leaks have made public “over 47,000 social security numbers, employment files including salaries, medical information, and anything else” on Sony’s networks, according to the complaint.
The complaint claims that Sony executives knew of their network’s security problems but failed to address them. “Leaked emails and internal assessments reveal that Sony’s own information technology department and, separately, its general counsel believed that its technological security and email retention policies ran the risk of making too much data vulnerable to attack,” wrote Keller Rohrback’s Khesraw Karmand. “If only Sony had heeded its own advice in time.”
Karmand represents former Sony employees Michael Corona of Virginia and Christina Mathis of California. Though it’s been years since either worked for the studio, the two named plaintiffs say their personal information was exposed by the hackers, placing them at increased risk of identity theft.
This data breach lawsuit is not the company’s first. In July, Sony settled an earlier class action brought on behalf of customers whose data was breached when its PlayStation Network was hacked in 2011. Sony agreed to offer customers free video games and services valued at $15 million as part of that settlement.
The lawsuit filed Monday brings claims of negligence against Sony, as well as California and Virginia state law claims. Sony’s press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
The Am Law Daily, a Recorder affiliate, reported Monday that Boies, Schiller & Flexner’s David Boies sent a letter on Sunday on behalf of Sony addressed to the legal departments of media outlets. Boies’s letter demanded that the news organizations hold off publishing information gleaned from the hacked files and that they destroy copies of the “stolen information.”
Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. declares First Quarter Cash Dividend
Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: CWCO), which develops and operates seawater desalination plants and water distribution systems in areas of the world where naturally occurring supplies of potable water are scarce or nonexistent, today announced that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.075 per share.
The cash dividend is payable January 31, 2015 to shareholders of record at the close of business January 1, 2015.
CWCO-D
About Consolidated Water Co. Ltd.
Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. develops and operates seawater desalination plants and water distribution systems in areas of the world where naturally occurring supplies of potable water are scarce or nonexistent. The Company operates water production and/or distribution facilities in the Cayman Islands, Belize, the British Virgin Islands, The Commonwealth of The Bahamas, and Bali, Indonesia.
Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. is headquartered in George Town, Grand Cayman, in the Cayman Islands. The Company’s ordinary (common) stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “CWCO”. Additional information on the Company is available on its website at http://www.cwco.com
Association to work with CARICOM to promote Caribbean sugar
From Fox News Latino
The Sugar Association of the Caribbean has agreed to work closely with the Caribbean Community’s Council for Trade and Economic Development to increase exports of the sweetener to the European Union and the U United States.
The SAC Board of Directors made the decision during a Dec. 12-13 conference in Guyana, CARICOM said Tuesday in a statement.
Sugar production in the Caribbean increased by 13 percent in 2013-2014 period to 511,000 tons, according to SAC.
SAC foresees a continuing increase its sugar production and is looking to work closely with CARICOM to expand its influence in the EU and U.S. markets.
The entity also wants to strengthen the Barbados-based West Indies Central Sugar Cane Breeding Station, which is owned by the SAC, as various U.S. companies are interested in financing its expansion.
CARICOM is composed of 15 members: Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago. EFE
Cayman Islands – Updated FATCA guidance notes
December 16: The tax authority of the Cayman Islands yesterday released updated guidance concerning compliance requirements under two international tax agreements, one between the Cayman Islands and the United States and the other between the Cayman Islands and the United Kingdom.
The updated guidance notes [PDF 1.98 MB] concern implementation of the intergovernmental agreements under the FATCA regime and were released by the Cayman Islands Tax Information Authority.
To download the document go to: http://tia.gov.ky/pdf/FATCA_Guidance_Notes.pdf
Trinidad pastor on sex charges released on bail
From Jamaica Observer
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) – A pastor at the Dow Village Open Bible Church, south of Pot of Spain, will return to court on January 12 next year after being charged with having sexual intercourse with a woman without her consent.
Bernard Andrews, 47, was released on TT$300,000 (US$48,000) bail after he appeared before Magistrate Armina Deonarinesingh in the Second Court in Siparia on Monday.
Andrews has been slapped with two sexual charges. He had earlier surrendered to police.
The court heard that on a date unknown between July 31 and September 1, 2010, he had sexual intercourse with a female without her consent. He was also charged for having sexual intercourse with a woman on a date unknown between August 31 and October 1, 2010.
Attorney Earl Martin Jones asked the magistrate for reasonable bail since it was the season of Christmas.
Jones said Andrews was a pastor of the Dow Village Open Bible Church and also a farm attendant at a secondary school. He said his client had no previous offending matters before the court and “voluntarily gave himself up after a warrant was issued for his arrest” over the weekend.
Police prosecutor Sheldon Ablacksingh did not object to Andrews being placed on bail, but asked that he make no contact with the alleged victim.
For more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Trinidad-pastor-on-sex-charges-released-on-bail
Dozen injured in American Airlines turbulence
From Jamaica Observer
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — An American Airlines flight from Seoul to Dallas was forced to make an emergency landing in Tokyo early Wednesday after a dozen people were injured during turbulence, a report said.
Flight AA280, carrying 240 passengers and 15 crew, was diverted to Japan’s Narita airport near Tokyo after the incident, which resulted in only minor injuries, Kyodo News agency said, citing the transportation ministry.
Flight tracker Flightradar24 earlier said on Twitter that the plane diverted to Narita with 15 passengers hurt in the turbulence.
For more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Dozen-injured-in-American-Airlines-turbulence
Judge charged with refusing to take ‘breath test’
From T&T Guardian
Vice-president of the Industrial Court Ramchand Lutchmedial pleaded not guilty when he appeared before Chaguanas Magistrate Brahmanand Dubay charged with failing to submit a specimen of breath for a breathalyser test on Friday. Lutchmedial was charged by PC Sammy of the Chaguanas Police Station contrary to Section 70B(5) of the Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic Act.
Lutchmedial, who was represented by Nicholas Rampersadsingh, Yaseen Ali, and his daughter Jayanti Lutchmedial, came into the courtroom from a side entrance used by attorneys and police officers. He had with him a court marshal who insisted that members of the media display their identification badges before the matter was called.
Yaseen told Dubay his client has been a member of the legal fraternity for the past 36 years and had no previous or pending charges before any court. He requested his client be granted bail and allowed to leave on his on cognisance. Ali added that Lutchmedial had his driver’s permit taken away when he was arrested only to be returned yesterday afternoon and asked for disclosure in the matter. Dubay then granted Lutchmedial $5,000 bail.
Court prosecutor Sgt Ken Ali requested that the matter be adjourned to a date soon where all material relevant to the case would be disclosed to the defence so that the matter would be expedited. The case was then adjourned to January 12. According to police report , Lutchmedial was stopped on Friday night on Derek Road, Chase Village, Chaguanas, during a routine police exercise by officers of the Central Division.
He was allegedly asked by the officers at the scene to present a specimen of breath. Police claimed he refused after which he was charged.
For more: http://www.guardian.co.tt/news/2014-12-16/judge-charged-refusing-take-‘breath-test’
Five Caribbean cricketers released from Indian Premier League
From Loop News Service
Five Caribbean cricketers have been let go from their various franchises in the Indian Premier League. The five players are Darren Sammy, Krishmar Santokie, Ravi Rampal, Kevon Cooper and Jason Holder.
Of note is Darren Sammy, the Twenty20 captain of the West Indies. Earlier in 2014 Sammy retired from test cricket but continued to play for various T20 sides around the world, including Glamorgan in England, Titans in South Africa and Sunrisers Hyderabad in India.
Darren Sammy was one of ten players released by the Sunrisers, in a list that also included fellow Caribbean cricketer Jason Holder.
Krishmar Santokie was released by the Mumbai Indians, Cooper let go from the Rajasthan Royals and Ravi Rampaul from Royal Challengers Bangalore.
The new IPL season is scheduled to begin in April 2015.
