Man named in case goes into hiding

Man named in case goes into hiding

saltillo, miss.

A Mississippi man whose home was searched in the investigation of poisoned letters sent to the president and others has apparently gone into hiding. His lawyerSFlbsaid he is cooperating, and the FBI knows how to get in touch with him.

Everett Dutschke, 45, had his home and former business in Tupelo searched in connection with the letters, which reportedly contained ricin. On Thursday, investigators looked through a different home about 20 miles away, and a plane circled above for much of the day.

Inmate executed

huntsville, texas

A Texas inmate was executed Thursday evening for fatally shooting one of three people he and a partner abducted during a convenience-store robbery nearly 11 years ago.

Richard Cobb, 29, didn’t deny using a 20-gauge shotgun to kill Kenneth Vandever in an East Texas field where two women also were shot and one was raped. He was convicted of capital murder.

It was the fourth execution in Texas this year.

Hormone holds hope in diabetes treatment

new york

Scientists have identified a hormone that can sharply boost the number of cells that make insulin in mice, a discovery that may someday lead to a treatment for the most common type of diabetes.

People have their own version of this hormone, and the new work suggests that giving diabetics more might one day help them avoid insulin shots.

That would give them better control of their blood- sugar levels, said Harvard University researcher Douglas Melton, senior author of a report published Thursday by the journal Cell.

Body found is that of missing student

providence, r.i.

A body pulled from waters off a Providence park was that of a 22-year-old Brown University student missing since last month, the Rhode Island medical examiner’s office said Thursday.

Sunil Tripathi was identified through a forensic dental exam, but a cause of death has not been determined, said Dara Chadwick, a spokeswoman for the state health department. Tripathi’s body was found Tuesday.

The announcement put an end to the mystery of Tripathi’s disappearance, which became doubly painful for his family when amateur online sleuths wrongly identified him as a possible suspect in the Boston Marathon bombings.

Senate deal reached on FAA furlough bill

washington

With flight delays mounting, the Senate has passed legislation to end air-traffic controller furloughs blamed for inconveniencing large numbers of travelers.

Approval came without dissent, and long after many senators had left the Capitol for a weeklong vacation. A House vote is expected as early as today.

Ship sinks, tourists swim for 14 hours

san juan, puerto rico

A brother and sister from the U.S. are recovering in the eastern Caribbean island of St. Lucia after their ship sank during a fishing trip, forcing them to swim almost 14 hours to reach land.

Dan Suski of San Francisco and Kate Suski of Seattle told The Associated Press on Thursday that they thought they would die.

The Suskis said the ship experienced an electrical problem April 21 and began to take on water, leading them, the captain and the first mate to abandon the sinking ship 12 miles off St. Lucia’s west coast. Those two also survived.

Associated Press