Three things for January 29
1. Pakistan court releases man accused in Daniel Pearl’s death
On Thursday, Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered the release of Ahmad Omar Sheikh, a Pakistani-British man convicted and later acquitted in the beheading of the American journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002.
“By a majority of two to one, they have acquitted all the accused persons and ordered their release,” provincial advocate general Salman Talibuddin told Reuters.
It was not immediately clear whether “acquittal” meant a finding of not guilty or that they had merely finished their jail terms, reports Reuters. Sheikh served 18 years in jail.
Before his death, Pearl was investigating Islamist militants in Karachi after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. He was attempting to find the link between these militants and Richard C. Reid, an attempted bomber.
Weeks after Pearl was kidnapped, his case grabbed global headlines after a video of his beheading emerged online.
“The Pearl family is in complete shock by the majority decision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan to acquit and release Ahmed Omer Sheikh and the other accused persons who kidnapped and killed Daniel Pearl,” the Pearl family said in a statement released by their lawyer, Faisal Siddiqi.
2. Amanda Gorman to perform at Super Bowl, signs with modeling agency
Amanda Gorman, the 22-year-old poet who performed at the inauguration of President Joe Biden, is set to perform at the Super Bowl in February. She will recite an original poem about the NFL’s message, “It Takes All of Us,” which will be televised and shown inside Raymond James Stadium.
In the week since the recitation of her poem “The Hill We Climb” on Inauguration Day, the young poet has also signed on with agency IMG Models. The agency announced it would represent Gorman for fashion and beauty endorsements.
Gorman, who is working on three books with Penguin Random House, will continue to be represented by Writers House and WME for her writing and other bookings. Each of the three books will have a first printings of 1 million copies, Penguin Random House announced on Thursday.
3. Doctor fatally shoots pediatrician during hostage situation
On Wednesday, Jan. 27, Austin police confirmed Dr. Lindley Dodson was killed after she and other employees were held captive by another doctor, Bharat Narumanchi. Narumanchi killed Dodson before turning the gun on himself.
Police said they responded to reports on Tuesday afternoon that a man had entered Children’s Medical Group offices with a shotgun, pistol and two duffel bags and was holding hostages inside.
Initially, several hostages were being held, police said, but some escaped, and others were allowed to leave, except Dodson. The man was later identified as Narumanchi, a 43-year-old man recently diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Narumanchi visited the CMG office a week before the shooting and applied for a volunteer position, according to CNN. Other than the recent visit, police have been unable to find a connection between Dodson and Narumanchi.
Negotiators arrived on the scene and tried to make contact with Narumanchi but were unsuccessful. SWAT officers then entered the building, where they found Dodson and Narumanchi dead from apparent gunshot wounds.
