Month: March 2025

Hundreds of immigrants, alleged by US authorities to be members of Venezuela’s notorious Tren de Aragua gang, were transferred to the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) on Sunday 16 March.

An order was passed by the Trump administration to send 238 supposed criminals to the mega-prison in El Salvador, despite a federal judge ruling against the order.

A deal was recently struck between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Salvadoran President, Nayib Bukele, which will see the country in Central America provide the US with a year’s worth of detention services in exchange for $6 million (£4.6 million).

The President has already made it clear that he and his country are happy to incarcerate anyone who is deported from the United States.

On X, the President said: “Thank you to El Salvador, and in particular President Bukele, for your understanding of this horrible situation, which was allowed to happen to the United States because of Democrat leadership.

“We will not forget.”

El Salvador was once a country torn apart by gang wars and criminal activity, but crime has been significantly reduced since Bukele’s rise to power in 2019. The President declared a state of emergency, which, while controversial at the time, has seen police deployed in neighbourhoods across the country, while many former gang leaders and members now sit behind bars.

And there is little chance of escape, judging by a CNN report which shows journalist David Culver visiting the inside of the high-security prison located in Tecoluca, around two hours from the country’s capital, San Salvador.

After numerous security checks, Culver is finally allowed into the prison where he is forced to stare down a particularly scary group of heavily-tattooed men. An interview with one inmate reveals that he was a gang leader in El Salvador, with many young men across the country likely to end up either in the hospital, in prison or in the cemetery if they are part of a gang.

You can forget about having your own personal space in this prison, as inmates are stuffed into group cells with as many as 80 other men, and are only let out for 30 minutes of exercise each day. Once you arrive in CECOT, it is unlikely that you leave, with legal and medical visits all done within the facility.

Although Culver’s report suggests that around 7,000 people have been wrongly imprisoned in these horrific conditions, Bukele’s government sees this as ‘collateral damage’.

This nightmare situation could soon be a reality for anyone living in the US who is deemed to be an ‘illegal immigrant’.

But like the child who was picked last in P.E. the former NBA all-star isn’t even allowed to join in at one particular golf club, after violating one very specific rule.

Apart from his bizarre, brief stint in baseball, Jordan has spent much of his career winning on and off the basketball court, which is reflected in his status as ‘the richest basketball player of all time’.

He also broke records away from sport when making a record-breaking $10 million donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation back in 2023, which certainly doesn’t reflect well on whoever decided to ban him from the prestigious La Gorce Country Club in Miami back in 2012.

He has previous when it comes to golf courses too, once hitting a hole-in-one and then clearly violating the course’s rules by being sucked into the hole, before helping the Looney Tunes win a dramatic match against invading aliens in what is surely the baller’s greatest sporting achievement. If you know, you know.

However, his Space Jam antics surprisingly don’t have anything to do with his very real ban from one of Miami’s finest courses. It was, in fact, a far less serious offence, which wasn’t nearly as bad as the Space Jam sequel.

According to the L.A Times, MJ was asked to leave the club after wearing cargo shorts during a game. The club has enforced an extremely strict dress code over the years and despite completing over half of his 18 holes, he was asked to go and change. He refused and was promptly told not to return – a brave decision given the sportsman’s pedigree and also the fact that he’s six foot six.

Following the so-called offence, Jordan’s representative released the following statement:

“Michael Jordan did wear cargo pants. He had been there many times before and had worn cargo pants previously, and had never been made aware that he was violating any dress code.

“This time, he was made aware of the violation on the 12th hole, and at that point he did refuse to interrupt his game, and return to the clubhouse and change.

“We were not aware that he is not allowed to return to La Gorce. I guess it’s their loss – as MJ is a great golfer, and a great guest.”

So next time you’re playing on a fancy golf course, make sure you check the dress code, unless you want to end up like Jordan. To be fair to the 62-year-old, this is probably the first time where it’s ever been bad to follow in his very large footsteps.

Despite ‘semi-separating’ in 2021, Grimes and Musk have three children together, with the latest being born in 2024.

The musician, 37, shares three kids with the Tesla CEO: X Æ A-XII (four), Exa Dark Sideræl (three) and Tau Techno Mechanicus (one). For those of you who are unsure, those numbers in brackets are their ages by the way, not another strange part of their names.

Remarkably, the Space X founder has sired a minimum of 14 different children over the past 20 years. Enough to fit two seven-seater Teslas. Perhaps the most surprising thing about this is that he’s had sex at least 14 times, although this total could be lower given the engineering approach he has taken, with several of his children’s conceptions completed through IVF.

Given that the existence of Tau Techno Mechanicus was only recently revealed in a biography about Musk, it would be wrong to rule out the possibility of him having even more.

However, it seems as if Grimes is desperate for her ex-partner to keep her children in particular out of the spotlight, after the billionaire took their son X Æ A-XII along with him to the White House Oval Office in his latest role as an advisor to President Donald Trump.

In a now-deleted post on X, which is essentially the equivalent of Mark Zuckerberg’s wife saying things are ‘complicated’ on Facebook, the Oblivion singer said: “I have tried begging the public and my kids’ dad to keep them offline, and I’ve tried legal recourse.

“I’ve seen young people destroyed by the internet. The state of my children’s lives being public is of grave concern to me and I think about how to solve this every day.

“It’s insane to me that there’s no way to deal with this.

“I would hope there was some law that would allow a parent to veto small children from living public lives but I don’t even trust the law to help me now if I tried to invoke it.”

Grimes has clearly attempted to make contact with Musk regarding the publicity all three children have received, but has now taken to social media to get her point across after receiving no reply.

She added: “Please respond about our child’s medical crisis. I am sorry to do this publicly but it is no longer acceptable to ignore this situation.

“This requires immediate attention. If you don’t want to talk to me can you please designate or hire someone who can so that we can move forward on solving this. This is urgent, Elon.”

It all happened in 2012, when the sailor left Mexico with one other person on what he assume would be a bog-standard two-day fishing trip. As it turns out, the then-mid-30-year-old, who had been fishing for sharks in Mexico for many years, had his life changed forever.

Things didn’t exactly start out on the right foot for this trip, however, because his close friend wasn’t available to join him.

He instead took inexperienced dayworker Ezequiel Córdoba, who was 22.

Initially, the whole thing was going well, so when a storm began to set in, they decided to keep fishing.

But that wasn’t a good idea.

When they attempted to return to land, waves flooded the engine as they drifted out to sea.

The pair were hammered by the storm – which went on for a whole week – and ended up losing most of the equipment they had on board.

They then realised that the only way they could survive was by getting creative with their hunting skills.

With no food or water with them, they decided to take to eating birds’ blood, turtles and fish.

Sadly, by week 10, Córdoba had died after eating a bird that made him ill. He slowly wasted away, leaving Alvarenga on his own.

US ambassador for the Marshall Islands Tom Armbruster told The Sun: “His companion, unfortunately, got sick, and then could not tolerate the bird diet, the bird blood in particular.”

Alvarenga began hallucinating that he was talking to his dead friend before he had to let him off the boat.

He said: “His companion stayed on board for a while.

“In fact, Mr Alvarenga spoke to him and then felt like he was going a little bit crazy, and he was buried at sea.

“He said that he was talking to the body, and think that then he felt like he was losing his mind a bit. You know, that he was talking back to him.”

During his time alone out at sea, he did come across one instance where he could have been saved.

He saw a shipping container and waved down the boat, only for the crew on board to wave at him and continue on their way.

Armbruster said: “He saw a container ship go by and he signalled to it.

“The men on board the crew waved, and then just kept going, and you could tell that that really crushed him.”

“That was probably the moment where he lost faith and humanity and wondered if he was ever going to get out of this.

After everything Alvarenga went through to survive, he a finally found a tiny islet, which turned out to be a remote corner of the Marshall Islands.

On 30 January, 2014, he swam to shore and found a beach house owned by a local couple who were able to wave down help.

The researchers are supposed to staying at the Sanae IV base for 10 months to study the effects of climate change and the environment in the -50°C weather.

However, one of the explorers has detailed chilling claims that they were ‘physically assaulted’ by a male colleague, which has made them ‘deeply concerned about my own safety’.

“I am experiencing significant difficulty in feeling secure in his presence,” an email obtained by South Africa’s Sunday Times read.

Now, as reported by The Times, a professional explorer who conducted a 700 mile expedition in the South Pole last year has warned of what can happen from a ‘psychological perspective’.

“There’s very little interaction with humans or animals so if you’re in a camp or a research centre you’re with those people for six months, if not a year,” Alan Chambers explained.

“What I think it does, from a psychological point of view, is that everything becomes heightened.

“It’s all white — there’s no colour, no noise and nothing you would see as normal so everybody’s behaviour — including your own — gets magnified and the little things become the big things.

“The loneliness of the continent has a huge impact on the behaviour of individuals.

“You really have to be happy with yourself because in the Arctic or the Antarctic you spend a lot of time inside your mind.

“So if you have a small issue with somebody or something, it can become magnified into a large problem.”

Chambers added: “The weather is so cold in winter that nobody is allowed to go outside of the research station — even just for fresh air.

“They are imprisoned by choice and so relationships and behaviours become really really important.

“So I’m not surprised that somebody is really struggling out there.

“If it’s at all possible, that person needs to be removed as soon as possible for their safety, the team’s safety and for the sake of any ongoing research.”

Dion George, South Africa’s environment minister, has since addressed the situation involving the unnamed accuser.

“There was a verbal altercation between the team leader and this person. Then it escalated and then that person did physically assault the leader,” he said.

The minister acknowledged that ‘you can imagine’ how ‘disorientating’ it can be not communicating with the outside world for so long.

Hands down one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Cena is calling it a day on his in-ring career at the end of 2025 as Father Time catches up with his ability to give his best performances for paying customers in arenas and at home watching live on Netflix.

Focusing on his acting career and as a WWE ambassador, the 47-year-old will be using the microphone and not his Five Knuckle Shuffle before we know it.

And while he is best known for his film roles, Cena dabbles in TV – most notably as the main man in Peacemaker as well as a recent episode of The Bear.

But it was a show from almost a decade ago that saw Cena reveal his viral relationship contract that he once created for his former partner.

It was revealed on reality TV show Total Bellas, focusing on the lives of WWE superstars The Bella Twins, Brie and Nikki.

With Cena’s girlfriend-turned-fiancée being Nikki, he naturally featured a lot in the show before they broke up in 2018.

It was during the first season of the show that a reported 75-page contract between Cena and Bella was mentioned. According to People, it read: “Although I do not wish to be formal, I do not want there to be any misunderstanding regarding your presence at the home as my guest.

“In the event that I ask you to vacate the home, you agree to immediately vacate the home and remove any and all items you have brought into the home as soon as possible.”

All in all, there were 15 rules in the relationship contract between the pair, with Bella being a ‘guest in Cena’s home’ just the start of it.

Filmed when he wants it and calorie tracking

Another one of the rules in the contract was that the Total Bellas camera crew could only film him when he agreed to it – fair enough with this one, really. It’s the likely reason behind why a lot of scenes involve the Bella sisters with Brie’s husband, former WWE superstar Daniel Bryan (real name Bryan Danielson), with Cena nowhere to be seen.

Controversially, Cena would make Bella track her calorie intake. Though initially something she wanted Cena to be in charge of, she quickly got sick of his strict routine.

Evening meals and a tidy house

When it came to sitting down for an evening meal, Cena treated it like a formal event. One clip from Total Bellas shows Cena telling the Bella sisters and Danielson that dinner is a formal event where you get dressed up.

And his reason for this is pretty acceptable, with Cena explaining he had very little growing up and wants to show his appreciation for all the positive things he has in life. He’s not taking it for granted, in other words.

On keeping the house tidy, Cena was incredibly strict. He’d actively lose his cool on camera if he came across even the smallest mess, such as a spill of water on the kitchen floor.

Money and photos

Cena wanted to keep his earnings his, basically. Something strengthened by the fact he was financially supporting his wider family of his mother and siblings.

While some might have taken issue with this, it is pretty common until couples are married. And even then, prenuptial agreements exist.

Another rule was that Cena wouldn’t let Nikki take personal photos of him without his permission. Bit of a more left field one, we think.

Bella’s laundry separate to Cena’s to wash pile

Yes, really. She had to put her dirty clothes in a separate clothing hamper to Cena’s. See, for Cena, he had two hampers in the bathroom strictly for his gym wear and then his fancier clothing. Safe to say Bella wasn’t impressed.

As well as laundry, Cena had a ban on pets.

Bella once brought a puppy home with Cena making her give it back. He said: “I know I cannot handle raising a child. It’s like with the dog. My biggest thing to Nicole about the dog was: Love dogs, but I can’t contribute to taking care of one. I don’t have the time.”

WWE is not to be disrespected

We don’t speak ill of those who pay the bills is somewhat of a life rule for Cena.

And while it wasn’t in the relationship contract, it is definitely an unwritten rule to his life. Give that Bella was also employed by the WWE, it is simple business sense not to get fired by not being disrespectful to the bosses.

Power of attorney

Bella wanted Cena to be her power of attorney, which would give him the legal power to conduct her private affairs, business, or some other legal matter, should she become incapacitated.

He wouldn’t do it. And more so, he wouldn’t let her be his power of attorney should the situation be reversed.

Fire time in the evening and coffee in the morning

Cena loves nothing more than sitting around a fire in the back yard with company, enjoying a drink and appreciating what he and his guests have.

Bella actually liked this one, saying it helped everyone form strong bonds and get to know each other rather than being stuck to phone screens in the living room.

At the other end of the day, coffee had to be had together in each other’s company.

He said on the reality show: “Every morning we will have morning coffee together, we will have an evening fire outside. If you guys are gonna be up late, please text me or tell me. Do you have any questions?”

No children for Cena

Cena doesn’t want to have children. He’s spoken about this before.

Bella really wanted kids, with this being quoted as something that led to them breaking up. For Cena, time was everything and, specifically, a lack of it to be a good dad to a child that would need a lot of attention and TLC.

“It’s hard work. It’s hard work to balance the time. I need to run myself correctly,” he said.

“It’s hard work to be the best partner and husband I can be to my loving wife. It’s hard to keep connections with those in my life who I love, and it’s also hard to put in an honest day’s work.

“This is just my perspective, again, totally not qualified, but I think just because you might be good at something is not a strong enough reason to do that.”

So far, fans have been shook by the return of Greg (now Gary, apparently) with monkey symbolism used throughout as tension ramps up in Thailand.

Of course, it wouldn’t be the HBO show without a bit (well, quite a bit) of nudity and we’ve already had an eyeful of Patrick Schwarzenegger as Saxon Ratliff as well as his on-screen dad, Jason Isaacs as Timothy.

And the latest episode saw quite the development in that family as Saxon kissed his little brother Lochlan (Sam Nivola).

But some viewers think the rather out-there show took it ‘too far’ with that spot of incestual action while producer David Bernard defends it.

We’d already been getting somewhat weird vibes from the Ratliffs for various reasons, with Lochlan trying to watch Saxon masturbate in the first episode.

Now fast forward to episode five and the pair join Chloe (Charlotte Le Bon) and Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood) without their boyfriends on Gary’s (/secretly Greg) massive yacht for a full moon celebration.

With drink and drugs flying around, the two women share a kiss before Chloe suggests the brothers should do the same.

But instead of ignoring her as most would, Lochlan went in and pecked his big brother on the lips before grabbing the back of his neck and leaning in for a proper kiss.

And it was quite the smooch, proving too close to comfort for a lot of viewers.

Users on X called it ‘gross’ as many couldn’t believe their eyes, writing: “The White Lotus pushed that envelope with the kiss, too far for me.”

Others called it a ‘hard watch’ as one put: “The White Lotus really took a sharp turn into incest territory tonight.”

Yet some did appreciate the scene with its contribution to the storyline, having suspected it was going to happen.

“Can’t say I’m shocked because White Lotus always pushes boundaries but this is INSANE. This family is a hot mess,” another added.

And executive producer David Bernard spoke to the New York Post about if there was a discussion over whether the incest was going ‘too far’.

“No, in terms of that – that’s all [creator Mike White]. Mike is brilliant, and I think those big story turns are not just for shock,” he said.

Bernard explained there’s a ‘specific reason’ for it in the narrative ‘and the larger thematic idea Mike is trying to get across’.

“As the season wraps up, you’ll see the purpose of that story turn. The show goes there for a larger thematic idea. I love that family storyline, especially the brother story – and, it culminates in a very satisfying way,” he added.

You can watch The White Lotus on Sky Atlantic and NOW, with new episodes airing on Mondays.

If you weren’t aware, the Southeast Asian country is notoriously tough on crime, particularly when it comes to drug offences and disrespect towards the monarchy.

But you can also find yourself on the wrong side of the law for overstaying a visa, as this British woman has found out the hard way.

Ellis Matthews, 32, claims she is currently being held in the Mothers and Children Immigration Detention Centre in Bangkok with her four-year-old son Cairo.

She has since gone on hunger strike in protest of the ‘unbearable’ conditions, while describing the place as ‘hell on earth’ and the ‘worst prison that you can imagine’.

Why has Matthews been detained?

The mum, from Lancashire, was arrested on 3 March by Thai immigration officials at her home in Pattaya after overstaying her visa, which was cancelled on 21 February.

Now, Matthews has alleged that she is the victim of an online witch-hunt, claiming her travel issues all stem from trolls who aren’t a fan of her social media content fabricating ‘horrible’ allegations about her.

The content creator is known for stirring up controversy on TikTok with her videos explaining how UK taxpayers fund her lifestyle out in Thailand.

In one of her most recent clips before her arrest, Matthews explained she has been ‘diagnosed with around six mental disorders’ and ‘needs ongoing treatment costs to be met by the NHS and taxpayers’.

Claiming she receives around £2,300 per month in benefits, she also alleged that this money has been ‘stopped for short periods of time’ in the past when people made complaints about her.

As you can imagine, bragging about how her ‘rent and bills are paid for by British benefits system’ didn’t go down well with UK residents.

Brits can continue to claim some benefits even after moving abroad – but Matthews has now said these videos ‘were just a joke’ and she hasn’t actually received a ‘single penny’ since moving to Thailand.

Matthews told the Daily Mail: “I was just lying in my videos to get more followers and make some money from my TikTok account. It was all a big hoax, that’s all.”

What happened after her arrest?

It’s overstaying her welcome in Thailand which has led to Matthews being locked up for more than 20 hours a day inside a ‘hot and overcrowded’ cell with 16 other women and their children.

She alleged that her and son Cairo have got head lice as well as ‘terrible’ insect bites, while they are forced to survive on lumpy rice and ‘rat or pigeon meat’.

“We can’t sleep at night because there’s so much screaming and shouting,” Matthews claimed. “We haven’t even got any access to medication.

“Nobody is helping me, and I’ve just been left here to rot. I can’t stop crying and just want to get out as quickly as possible.”

Despite Thai authorities informing her that she and and her young son will be freed once she buys herself a plane ticket back to the UK, Matthews says she is unable to access any cash.

She explained that although she has ‘got the money’ for one-way tickets home, she ‘can’t get to it because they won’t allow her to access her bank account’.

The mum continued: “So what am I supposed to do? My visa was cancelled because some people in the UK have been trolling me and accused me of horrible things like human trafficking and child abuse.

“They got the Thai authorities involved and it’s led to me ending up here. I should have left when my visa was cancelled but I couldn’t because I didn’t have the money at the time.”

So, how can you avoid ending up in a situation like this? Apart from staying clear of making stuff up and sharing it on social media, that is.

Thai visa laws explained

Making sure your travel documents are all in check is the best place to start, as tourists can be fined, detained, deported and even banned from Thailand for overstaying their visa.

It is an illegal offence to remain in the country longer than what was agreed upon when you obtained your visa, even if it is an innocent mistake.

The UK government website explains that those found in breach of their visa terms may be arrested and held at a police station before being taken to court within 48 hours of being arrested.

It is likely that you will then be slapped with a fine before being taken to an Immigration Detention Centre – for anywhere between two weeks to three months – while awaiting deportation to the UK.

You also need to pay for a flight out of Thailand, although another person can arrange your travel on your behalf.

Thankfully, the British Embassy can also help facilitate getting you home once the police station notifies them of your arrest.

However, even the Thai Embassy acknowledges that visa violations can be an easy mistake to make, as the ‘stay limit is determined by your visa, but it is not the same as the visa’s duration’.

Standard tourist visas offer a 60-day limit and your final day will be stated on your visa – but you have to leave Thailand or extend this visa before the initial 60 days are up to be on the safe side.

The Thai Embassy explains: “Overstaying a visa in Thailand is a common occurrence due to the country’s rather complex immigration policies.

“Your overstay period will begin the day after the final day of your stay limit, so you can leave Thailand on that day or extend without penalty.

“You cannot claim ignorance as an excuse, as the day you must leave Thailand is stamped into your passport.

“Even if Immigration makes a mistake on your passport as you enter the country, it is your responsibility to check that the correct date was recorded on your entry permit.

“Your stay limit is determined by the Immigration system, not what the border officer stamped into your passport.”

It goes on to state that the penalty for minor overstays is ‘relatively light’, usually equating to a fine of 500 baht (£11.46) for each day – although the maximum fine is 20,000 baht (£458.59).

According to the Thai Embassy, children under 14 are not subject to a fine or travel bans for overstaying, however, this does not make them exempt from having the correct travel documents.

It warns that those who are detained and taken to an Immigration Detention Centre will be ‘processed into the system as a criminal, at which point you will need a skilled criminal defence lawyer to help you’.

“In addition to the 20,000 THB fine, you will be blacklisted from entering Thailand for a longer period than if you had surrendered voluntarily,” the Embassy added.

So, have a good look at your visa when you touch down in Thailand – or on your head be it.

Officials announced earlier this month that the two-time Oscar winner Hackman, whose career in Hollywood spanned over four decades, had passed away from cardiovascular disease, while Alzheimer’s disease also played a painful part in his passing.

It is believed that Arakawa, who was a classical pianist, had passed away a week earlier due to Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, while their dog also sadly lost its life due to starvation and dehydration, as its owners bodies were not discovered until some time after their death.

It is speculated that Hackman, who appeared in classic films such as The French Connection and Bonnie and Clyde, had become isolated towards the end of his life due to his struggles with Alzheimer’s disease.

In fact, the extent of his Alzheimer’s was such that it is believed he likely didn’t even know his wife of 34 years had passed away, while his stomach was also completely empty at the time of his death, which suggests he didn’t eat anything in the week he was left on his own.

Hackman didn’t have any children with Arakawa but did have three children with his late ex-wife Faye Maltese – Christopher, 65, Elizabeth, 62, and Leslie, 58. However, none were named in the actor’s will, which has left the future of his fortune up in the air.

According to the BBC, the 95-year-old named Arakawa as his sole beneficiary in 1995, with the last update to the will in 2005.

However, California attorney Tre Lovell also suggested to the BBC that the estate could default to Hackman’s three children under succession laws, as long as there was no other beneficiary named.

“The estate will actually be probated in accordance with intestate succession laws and the children would be lawfully next in line to inherit,” he said.

In order to inherit their father’s fortune, Christopher, Elizabeth and Leslie will also need to prove that the will is invalid because Arakawa died before Hackman, which, despite some doubts about her actual date of death, is all but confirmed.

Her own will states that her estate should be left to Hackman but in the event that they die within 90 days of each other, then her money should go to a trust and later be donated to charity after covering medical expenses.