CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI ■ ■ BHUBANESWAR l monday l july 15, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l JEYPORE EDITION Trump survives assassination bid Major security lapse as ex-US president shot in the ear at campaign rally; gunman killed a GEN C IE S FORMER US president Donald Trump survived an attempt on his life when a gunman fired multiple shots at him during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday evening (US time), gracing past his right ear. While the 78-year-old presumptive Republican presidential nominee was left bleeding, the shooting killed one attendee and critically injured two spectators. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said Trump was the target of the attack, which is being investigated as an attempted assassination. Trump was standing on a stage and addressing his supporters at the packed outdoor election rally in Butler town when bullets started flying. Video footage showed the former president grabbing his ear as he ducked to escape bullets. Trump was seen with blood on his ear and cheek as he was rushed off the stage by Secret Service agents. Secret Service snipers who were guarding Trump returned fire and killed the suspected shooter, who attacked from the rooftop of a building about 100 metres away from rally venue. While the motive of the attack is not clear yet, the FBI has identified the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. The attack raised questions about the robustness of the security for the ex-president. That the shooter was able to reach an elevated platform with a gun, bypassing all security has baffled officials. , “It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country It was God alone who pre... vented the unthinkable from happening,” Trump said in a social media post. US President Joe Biden termed the attack “sick” and spoke to Trump afterwards. He also cut short a weekend at his vacation home and flew back to Washington to deal with the crisis. Former US president Donald Trump is rushed offstage by Secret Service agents moments after shots were fired at him in Butler, Pennsylvania | AFP AR-15: gun behind mass shootings The AR-15, the gun used by the attacker, is one of the most popular guns in the US and has been used in some of the country’s worst mass shootings. It is a semi-automatic weapon, meaning a user can fire multiple shots in quick succession. The gun fires high-velocity bullets that can travel at three times the speed of a handgun round, are accurate over long distances, reports said. It is affordable and easy-to-use Who fired the shots and why  20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks lived in Pennsylvania’s Bethel Park, an hour’s drive from the rally site  He was registered to vote as a Republican, but had donated $15 to a Democratic-aligned political action committee  Public Pennsylvania court records show no past criminal cases against Crooks  Motive remains unknown In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand united, and show our true character.... remaining strong and determined, and not allowing evil to win Donald Trump, ex-US president There is no place in America for this kind of violence. It’s sick. It’s one of the reasons why we have to unite this country. We cannot allow this to be happening. I’m grateful to hear that he’s (Trump) safe and doing well Joe Biden, US president Deeply concerned by the attack on my friend, former President Donald Trump. Strongly condemn the incident. Violence has no place in politics and democracies Narendra Modi, Prime Minister Bhitara Bhandar of Srimandir treasury Lured with job offer in Malaysia, Lucknow opens after 4 decades, locks cut for entry youth held captive, tortured in Myanmar D i a n a S a h u @ Bhubaneswar/Puri FOUR decades after it was opened for the last time, the Bhitara Bhandar or inner chamber of Shree Jagannath temple’s Ratna Bhandar was finally reopened by the 11-member expert committee on Sunday. The committee members, however, had to break the locks to enter the chamber. Justice Biswanath Rath, who heads the panel to supervise inventorisation and conservation of the valuables in the Ratna Bhandar, said there were three locks in the inner chamber of which only one was sealed. Temple chief administrator Arabinda Padhee said as the three locks could not be opened with the available two keys, they had to be broken. Chests being readied for storing the valuables shifted from Ratna Bhandar | ranjan ganguly “We went inside the Bhitara Bhandar and saw that the jewels, ornaments and other valuables have been stored in almirahs and chests,” Padhee said, without commenting on the structural condition of the chamber. Before entering the temple for Ratna Bhandar opening, the committee members visited the Gundicha temple and offered prayers to the Trinity, who are on their annual sojourn to their aunt’s house. Their entry into the treasury at the auspicious time of 1.28 pm was marked by all attached rituals. The team was accompanied by a unit of ODRAF personnel equipped with flashlights, cutting tools and other gadgets, three snake helpline members and other support staff. A four-layer security cordon was laid and devotees were prohibited from entering the temple at the time. Earlier in the morning, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi took to X and said, “Today, after 46 years, as per your (Lord Jagannath’s) will, the Ratna Bhandar has been opened with a greater purpose.” Continued on P5 Y e s h i s e l i @ New Delhi There have been numerous reports about Indians being lured with fake job offers abroad and forced to work for a cybercrime racket based in Myanmar and Cambodia, but survivor accounts detailing the scale of horror have been few. This newspaper spoke to a youngster who ended up in Myanmar after being lured by an IT job opportunity in Malaysia. He managed to escape from the racket’s clutches after arranging a ransom for his freedom. “We got to know of IT sector jobs in Malaysia through a friend. We gave an online interview and within a few days, three of us got visas and tickets and were headed to Malaysia,” 25-year-old Sagar Chauhan from Lucknow told this newspaper. Sagar, Ajay and Rahul left India on over to men in uniform who claimed to be from the Myanmar Army . They eventually ended up at a Megalahpo well-appointed facility (which Sagar says was named Chuangishan), which had over 5,000 workers of difMyanmar ferent nationalities including Sri (Burma) Lanka, Pakistan and China. Sagar Sagar Chauhan said their boss was Chinese and spoke through an interpreter. Their March 27. They were to land in Thai- job was to convince rich people land’s Bangkok, which was a transit around the world to invest in various point. However, on reaching Bang- fraudulent schemes. “Those refusing kok, they were booked into a hotel, to work would be brutally beaten up and later that day, taken and kept in a dark room. for sightseeing. The folWhile Ajay and Rahul press lowing day, they were Saclusive relented, I didn’t,”was ordered to get into a vegar added. Sagar hicle and were driven tortured. But a few days towards Myanmar. After about eight later he was told he could go home if hours of driving, they reached the he transferred `8 lakh. He reached Myanmar border. In Megalahpo on India on April 14. Ajay and Rahul are the Myanmar side, they were handed still there. Moei River