The FBI on Tuesday said it was joining a criminal investigation of lead-contaminated drinking water in Flint, Michigan, exploring whether laws were broken in a crisis that has captured international attention.
Federal prosecutors in Michigan were working with an investigative team that included the FBI, the Postal Inspection Service, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Inspector General and its Criminal Investigation Division, a spokeswoman for the US Attorney’s Office in Detroit said.
An FBI spokeswoman said the agency was determining whether federal laws were broken, but declined further comment.
EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy met with officials and community leaders in Flint and told reporters she could not give a timeline for fixing the problem. She said the agency was examining where it might have fallen short, but declined to address the criminal probes.
The city, about 100km northwest of Detroit, Michigan, was under the control of a state-
appointed emergency manager when it switched the source of its tap water from Detroit’s system to the Flint River in April 2014.
Flint switched back in October last year after tests found high levels of lead in blood samples taken from children. The more corrosive water from the river leached more lead from the city pipes than Detroit water did.
Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, who extended a state of emergency in Flint until April 14, has repeatedly apologized for the poor handling of the matter.
The ability to seek criminal charges under US environmental laws is limited, said Peter Henning, a law professor at Wayne State University in Detroit and a former federal prosecutor. Prosecutors would need to find something egregious like a knowingly false statement.
“You need something that is false to build a case,” he said.
Simply failing to recognize the seriousness of the situation would not rise to that level, he added.
In Washington, US senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, Democrats from Michigan, pushed for US$600 million in aid, mostly in federal funds, to help Flint replace pipes and provide healthcare.
US Senator James Inhofe, a Republican who chairs an environmental committee, said an agreement to help Flint was close and would be a combination of revolving funds and other aid.
Money from a revolving fund is like a loan, with the money going to the recipient and then being repaid so there is no net cost to US taxpayers.
US Senator John Cornyn, the second-ranking Republican in the Senate, said aid to Flint must not add to US budget deficits for “what is a local and state problem.”
US Representative Candice Miller, a Republican from Michigan, proposed an emergency bill to provide US$1 billion in funds to be used to replace Flint’s water pipes.
The House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform was yesterday to hold a hearing on the crisis. Interim Michigan Department of Environmental Quality Director Keith Creagh was to apologize for its handling of the case, and an EPA water official was to tell the committee that reforms must be enacted to prevent a repeat, according to advance testimony.
Australians were downloading virtual private networks (VPNs) in droves, while one of the world’s largest porn distributors said it was blocking users from its platforms as the country yesterday rolled out sweeping online age restriction. Australia in December became the first country to impose a nationwide ban on teenagers using social media. A separate law now requires artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbot services to keep certain content — including pornography, extreme violence and self-harm and eating disorder material — from minors or face fines of up to A$49.5 million (US$34.6 million). The country also joined Britain, France and dozens of US states requiring
Hungarian authorities temporarily detained seven Ukrainian citizens and seized two armored cars carrying tens of millions of euros in cash across Hungary on suspicion of money laundering, officials said on Friday. The Ukrainians were released on Friday, following their detention on Thursday, but Hungarian officials held onto the cash, prompting Ukraine to accuse Hungary’s Russia-friendly government of illegally seizing the money. “We will not tolerate this state banditism,” Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha said. The seven detained Ukrainians were employees of the Ukrainian state-owned Oschadbank, who were traveling in the two armored cars that were carrying the money between Austria and
Kosovar President Vjosa Osmani on Friday after dissolving the Kosovar parliament said a snap election should be held as soon as possible to avoid another prolonged political crisis in the Balkan country at a time of global turmoil. Osmani said it is important for Kosovo to wrap up the upcoming election process and form functional institutions for political stability as the war rages in the Middle East. “Precisely because the geopolitical situation is that complex, it is important to finish this electoral process which is coming up,” she said. “It is very hard now to imagine what will happen next.” Kosovo, which declared
MORE BANS: Australia last year required sites to remove accounts held by under-16s, with a few countries pushing for similar action at an EU level and India considering its own ban Indonesia on Friday said it would ban social media access for children under 16, citing threats from online pornography, cyberbullying, online fraud and Internet addiction. “Accounts belonging to children under 16 on high-risk platforms will start to be deactivated, beginning with YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live and Roblox,” Indonesian Minister of Communications and Digital Meutya Hafid said. “The government is stepping in so that parents no longer have to fight alone against the giants of the algorithm. Implementation will begin on March 28, 2026,” she said. The social media ban would be introduced in stages “until all platforms fulfill their
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