A person of interest is in custody after two Kentucky bank employees were fatally shot during a robbery Thursday, the Associated Press reported, citing state police.

The individual is “believed to be involved” in the robbery of a U.S. Bank in Berea, the AP said, citing state police. Berea is about 45 minutes south of Lexington.

‘We’re deeply saddened by the tragic event that took the lives of two of our employees at our Berea, Kentucky, branch earlier today.’

A man wearing a gray-white hoodie, gloves, and a mask entered the bank and shot a male employee and a female employee, the outlet said, citing state police.

State police during a news conference late Thursday night identified the victims as 35-year-old Breanna Edwards and 42-year-old Brian Switzer, WLEX-TV reported.

State police announced the apprehension of the person of interest Friday morning.

CBS News said it’s unclear if the suspect fled from the bank with anything. The robbery and shooting happened just after 2 p.m., WLEX said, adding that state police confirmed that members of the public were in the Chestnut Street bank at the time.

State police told WLEX that the search for the suspect took officials throughout central Kentucky.

Law enforcement officers searched for the suspect driving a silver BMW with Alabama plates, WLEX said. State police told the station the vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed Thursday evening before a chase ended in the area of Johnston Road in Fayette County, after which the suspect reportedly was on foot.

RELATED: Machete-wielding male takes hostage at bank he robs, threatens killings, DA says. It comes to deadly end when cops catch him.

U.S. Bank told the AP it was working closely with law enforcement and is committed to supporting the victims’ families and bank colleagues.

“We’re deeply saddened by the tragic event that took the lives of two of our employees at our Berea, Kentucky, branch earlier today,” the company said in a statement, according to the outlet. “Our hearts go out to the families of the victims, our colleagues, and the entire Berea community.”

Berea is about 36 miles south of Lexington, the AP added.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Kentucky, Kentucky state police, Us bank, Bank employees killed, Bank robbery, Fatal shootings, Person of interest captured, Police chase, Manhunt, Crime 

Katie Wilson, the 43-year-old leftist blogger elected mayor of Seattle last year, apparently finds it amusing that deep-pocketed residents and businesses are fleeing her crime-ridden city.

During a recent event at Seattle University, lecturer Joni Balter raised the matter of downtown Seattle’s apparent inability to “grow job these days,” noting that “the city has lost 25,000 jobs over four years, and the thinking is — the data folks say — that if you extend that out five years, it could be as high as 37,000 jobs.”

‘We still have the very regressive tax system.’

According to a recent report from the the Downtown Seattle Association, the Emerald City’s downtown has seen a 14% decrease in brick-and-mortar retail jobs since 2010 and lost an estimated 13,000 jobs just last year, amounting to the biggest decrease in jobs since the pandemic.

The report noted further that Seattle’s downtown office vacancy remained at a post-pandemic high of 25%; the central business district experienced an office vacancy rate of 32% last year, nearly double the previous high point during the Great Recession in 2009; and the combined taxable value of the 20 highest-valued properties in Seattle’s downtown has declined from over $10 billion in 2021 to roughly $5.1 billion this year.

When asked about her plan to “turn that around,” Wilson — who appeared on stage alongside fellow radical Girmay Zahilay, the newly elected King County executive — attributed Seattle’s exodus of jobs and businesses to a number of factors including potential workers’ apparent inability to afford living in or near the downtown; homelessness and public safety issues; and the “tax environment.”

While apparently interested in tackling the affordability, homelessness, and public safety issues, Wilson signaled that her city’s crushing taxes won’t soon be changed.

RELATED: Mamdani finally admits what people knew about his candidacy from the start

David Ryder/Bloomberg/Getty Images

Wilson, who co-founded the Transit Riders Union in 2011 and endeavored in years past to “Trump-proof Seattle,” was later asked about the “taxing climate” and whether progressive taxes were an “easy and promising solution.”

After noting that she found it “very exciting” that state Democrats passed a 9.9% tax on annual taxable income exceeding $1 million for individuals or households and recalling her efforts to push similar taxes in Seattle, Wilson said that claims that wealthy residents will flee the state are “super overblown.”

But to those beleaguered residents who have chosen to leave or might do so in the near future, the mayor waved, said, “Bye,” and laughed in concert with fellow travelers in the sparsely populated audience.

“In general, we still have the very regressive tax system, and my office is doing a lot of work to look at what our options are in terms of progressive taxation,” continued Wilson. “We do have more flexibility at the city than the county, in terms of our taxing authority.”

Despite Wilson’s casual dismissal, high taxes in Seattle appear to be chasing jobs to cities like Bellevue.

Jon Scholes, president of the Downtown Seattle Association, suggested that Amazon’s decision to relocate thousands of employees from Seattle to other King County locations was the direct result of Seattle’s overwhelming tax burden, reported the Center Square. Starbucks, which is headquartered in Seattle, also appears to be angling for greener pastures.

Among the taxes the city has implemented is the Social Housing Tax, a 5% levy on employee compensation exceeding $1 million, and the JumpStart Payroll Expense Tax, which the city slapped on companies with employees making more than $150,000 annually.

“What we need is more businesses in Seattle paying taxes,” said Scholes. “That’s how we strengthen the tax base.”

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Businesses, Democrat, Job growth, Jon scholes, Katie wilson, Leftism, Leftist, Mayor, Millionaire tax, Progressive tax, Public safety, Radical, Seattle, Seattle university, Socialism, Tax environment, Taxable value, Taxation, Taxes, Washington, Politics 

The Worcester Police Department arrested an illegal alien from the Dominican Republic charged with assault and battery on April 4.

Although the City of Worcester, like other municipalities across Massachusetts, is loath to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the detainer for Bryan Rafael Gomez was reportedly honored, enabling ICE Boston to arrest the Dominican following his release on $500 bail.

‘An activist judge appointed by Joe Biden released this wanted murderer back into American communities.’

ICE revealed at the time that Gomez — who stole into the United States in 2022, was encountered by U.S. Border Patrol near Lukeville, Arizona, and was ultimately released into the homeland by the Biden administration — was a fugitive from justice.

The Coordination of the Courts of Instruction of the National District of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, issued an arrest warrant in Gomez’s name for murder on Jan. 24, 2023, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

While immigration authorities planned to keep the alleged murderer in custody until his removal from the U.S. — which appeared imminent granted an immigration judge issued Gomez a deportation order on April 28 — a judge appointed by former President Joe Biden to the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island in 2024 had other ideas.

Judge Melissa DuBose, a black lesbian who served as a member of the Committee on Racial and Ethnic Fairness in Rhode Island Courts and once described herself as being in a “Marxist Phase,” ordered the foreign fugitive’s release on Tuesday.

DuBose — who prefers the term “court user” to “defendant” — characterized the fugitive’s detention by ICE as “unlawful,” claiming that the legal authority under which ICE held him, which is intended for migrants captured at the border, did not apply to Gomez because he had been arrested by local police, reported Fox News.

RELATED: Illegal alien with a badge impersonates Border Patrol agent to disrupt mission — even calls in ‘reinforcements’

Jim WATSON/POOL/AFP/Getty Images (left); ICE

The Biden judge, confirmed in 2024 with the support of Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and Susan Collins (Maine), determined that rather than mandatory detention, Gomez was alternatively entitled to a bond hearing.

ICE, which contended that Gomez was subject to mandatory detention because of the international arrest warrant for homicide in his name, is barred from rearresting the fugitive as a result of Judge DuBose’s order. Consequently, he is once again free to prowl American streets.

“Bryan Rafael Gomez is a criminal illegal alien from the Dominican Republic with an international warrant for homicide,” Homeland Security acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement. “An activist judge appointed by Joe Biden released this wanted murderer back into American communities. This is yet another example of an activist judge trying to thwart President Trump’s mandate from the American people to remove criminal illegal aliens from our communities.”

“Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, DHS will continue to fight for the removal of criminal illegal aliens who have no right to be in our country,” added Bis.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Activist judges, Biden administration, Crime, Customs enforcement, Department of homeland security, Deportation, Dhs, Domestic abuse, Dominican republic, Homeland security, Ice, Illegal alien, Immigration, Immigration judge, Massachusetts, Melissa dubose, Murder, Rhode island, Us immigration and customs enforcement, Worcester police department, Politics 

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump welcomed King Charles and Queen Camilla to the White House for a state visit marking the 250th anniversary of America — the same anniversary that marks America’s freedom from having a king.

And while BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales isn’t a fan of the king, it appears that many Americans are.

“One thing I really will never truly understand is America’s fascination with Britain. I don’t get it. I don’t understand it,” Gonzales comments, pointing out that many of those Americans happen to be liberals.

“If one thing is clear in all of their rioting … they say very clearly that they hate kings. Like they are not about kings. So you would think that they would be out there protesting no kings,” she continues.

And not only was the liberal media not going after the president for buddying up with a king, in a segment Gonzales plays on NBC4, they were celebrating it.

“Apparently, the libs love kings again. It’s cool to be a king,” Gonzales laughs.

“That is so interesting how you have all of these libs and all of these local stations who had wall-to-wall coverage of all these No Kings protests, and they were all chanting about how they hated kings,” she continues. “Now all of a sudden, it’s a memento.”

“Isn’t it so interesting how that actually shakes out when you have no morals, no values, no principles. You really believe in nothing except nihilism and chaos and destruction,” she adds, asking again, “Isn’t that interesting?”

Want more from Sara Gonzales?

To enjoy more of Sara’s no-holds-barred takes on news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Americas freedom, Blaze media, Blaze news, Blaze online, Blaze originals, Blaze podcast network, Blaze podcasts, Blazetv, Blazetv host, First lady melania trump, King charles, Liberal media, Liberals rioting, No kings protests, President donald trump, Queen camilla, Sara gonzales, Sara gonzales unfiltered, State visit, The blaze, White house 

Here’s a little fact that will make you feel old: Gmail first launched all the way back on April 1, 2004.

For the last 22 years, you have been stuck with the username you picked back at the start of the Iraq War during the Bush administration. For some, that means you were in grade school when you decided on the account name that would follow you for the rest of your life. Well, you don’t have to hold onto it any more, because Google will finally let you change your Gmail username to something more suitable.

A brief history of Gmail

Eagle-eyed readers may have spotted something odd about Gmail’s birthday in the paragraph above. It launched on the most unserious day of the year — April Fools’ Day. In fact, when Gmail burst onto the internet, users thought it was a joke, partially because it offered one full gigabyte of email storage. Although this seems rather paltry by today’s standards, it was far more than competitors offered at the time, making Gmail an instant hit in lieu of AOL, Yahoo, and Hotmail.

Google promises you won’t break anything by changing your Gmail username.

Gmail was a turning point for Google, marking its first consumer product beyond Google Search since the company’s inception. To put the timeline into perspective, Gmail showed up nearly an entire year before Google Maps debuted, two and a half years before Google acquired YouTube, four and a half years before the Chrome browser, and eight years before Google Drive.

Today, Gmail is still one of Google’s core services and a vital component of the company’s business.

How to change your Gmail username

A lot can change over two decades, and if you have been holding onto an outdated or downright embarrassing Gmail handle, now is the time to finally update it to something that doesn’t make you roll your eyes when you see it.

On iPhone

Open up any Google app you have downloaded on your phone — I recommend either the Google Search app or Google Maps. Tap on your profile picture in the top right corner, followed by “Manage your Google Account.” From here, tap “Personal info,” and then select “Email” from the list of options.

Screenshots by Zach Laidlaw/Google Account on iOS 26

In the next menu, tap on your email address beneath “Google Account email,” and choose to “Change Google Account email.” Then scroll to the bottom, type in your new handle, and tap “Change email.” Make sure the new address is correct before you submit!

Screenshots by Zach Laidlaw/Google Account on iOS 26

On Android

Open the Settings app, tap your name at the top, and tap your name at the top again, followed by “Manage your Google Account.” From here, choose “Personal info,” and then select “Email” from the list of options.

Screenshots by Zach Laidlaw/Google Account on Android 16

In the next menu, tap on your email address below “Google Account email,” and choose to “Change Google Account email.” Then scroll to the bottom, type in your new handle, and tap “Change email” to confirm.

Screenshots by Zach Laidlaw/Google Account on Android 16

On PC

Go to google.com. Click on your profile picture in the top right corner, followed by “Manage your Google Account.” From here, choose “Personal info” on the left, then select “Email” from the list of options. In the next menu, click on your email address beneath “Google Account email,” and choose to “Change Google Account email.” Then scroll to the bottom of the page, type in your new handle, and tap “Change email.” That’s it!

Change at your own risk

Google promises you won’t break anything by changing your Gmail username. You will still receive new emails that are sent to your old address, and any third-party accounts created with your old address will still work as intended. The change won’t affect any of the data saved to your Google account either, including photos, Google Drive files, etc.

RELATED: Smart TVs are spying on you. One state is finally fighting back.

Debajyoti Chakraborty/NurPhoto/Getty Images

That said, there are a couple of stipulations to keep in mind.

You’re allowed to change your Gmail username up to three times over the lifetime of your account, and you will have to wait 12 full months between each change. After this, you will no longer be able to update the username on your Gmail account; you will be stuck with the final version at the end of this period, so make sure it’s a good one!

​Tech 

A police officer was allegedly kidnapped after being dragged into a getaway car during an alleged armed robbery in California, and the bodycam video has been released.

The video showed a vehicle crashing into a FoodMaxx grocery store in Antioch at about 5:15 a.m. on Feb. 20. Three armed robbers enter the store before police arrive about three minutes later.

The officer threatens to shoot DeSouza unless he stops the vehicle, and after he refuses to stop, the officer shoots him.

One of the store employees later told police that one of the men was armed and threatened employees.

As police are yelling commands, the driver of the vehicle crashes into the occupied police cruiser, and police approach the car.

At one point, an officer lunges at the car just as it reverses back into the store, and he falls inside the passenger side with the door nearly shutting behind him.

That’s when the driver flees with the officer inside. The officer was identified as Travis Donaldson.

Bodycam video from inside the vehicle captures the bizarre interaction between officer and the driver.

“Stop the car!” the officer says.

“Get out the car, bro!” the driver yells.

“Stop the car!” the officer repeats.

“Get out!” the driver yells.

“Stop the car!” the officer yells.

Moments later the driver yells, “I’m going to crash this motherf**king car! I ain’t going to jail!”

Police say the driver, later identified as 23-year-old Dominick DeSouza, was driving erratically and ignoring orders from Donaldson. He tells the officer to jump out of the car but does not slow down.

The officer threatens to shoot DeSouza unless he stops the vehicle, and after he refuses to stop, the officer shoots him. DeSouza yells in pain, crashes the car, and then flees on foot.

Police said additional officers arrived at the scene and located DeSouza within 10 minutes of his fleeing from the car. He was found with the gunshot wound to his leg and hiding in bushes.

He was transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

RELATED: Teens’ story claiming they were attacked unravels after cops find their damning video posted to social media, police say

The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office charged DeSouza with kidnapping, robbery, assault with a deadly weapon upon a peace officer, two counts of burglary, grand theft, and unlawful driving or taking of a vehicle.

Officer Donaldson suffered minor injuries during the incident.

The nine minutes of footage from the incident can be viewed in its entirety at the Antioch City YouTube channel.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

​Police officer kidnapped, Antioch california police, Bodycamera video, Getaway driver kidnaps cop, Crime 

On April 25, President Trump renewed his call to end the Senate filibuster in connection with the SAVE America Act, warning in a post on Truth Social that failure to move the legislation through the upper chamber would be a disastrous political mistake for Republicans.

He is right about the stakes.

The SAVE America Act is the most important election reform bill in a generation. For those concerned about election integrity, the bill addresses a serious weakness in America’s voting system: In numerous states, noncitizens can illegally register to vote with alarming ease, while state officials often lack the tools needed to determine how widespread the problem is.

The current rules make it easy for noncitizens and citizens alike to illegally register to vote.

Federal law already prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections. The trouble is that the law contains far too few meaningful safeguards to make sure that rule is actually followed.

Across more than 40 states, voter registration standards are so weak that election officials often have no reliable way to determine whether a person seeking to register is, in fact, an American citizen.

Oregon is a useful example. On the state’s voter registration form, applicants are given three broad options for proving identity. They may provide a state-issued ID such as a driver’s license, the last four digits of a Social Security number, or one item from a lengthy list of other accepted documents.

That system is deeply flawed. In 19 states, Oregon among them, illegal immigrants may obtain a driver’s license or another form of driving authorization. As a result, possession of a driver’s license does not establish citizenship. At most, it might help officials later identify a questionable registration if the state conducts a serious review of its voter rolls.

But an applicant does not even have to rely on a state ID. A person can choose instead to submit the last four digits of a Social Security number.

At first glance, that might appear to be a strong barrier, since illegal immigrants are not lawfully issued Social Security numbers. But that assumption ignores a serious and long-running problem: Many illegal immigrants have obtained and used Social Security numbers, and millions more Social Security numbers have been stolen and made available on the dark web.

RELATED: How Republicans have failed to defund sanctuary cities for a generation

J. David Ake/Getty Images

Earlier this year, researchers released a report uncovering a large illegal online database that included “2.7 billion records with Social Security numbers.”

It’s hard to tell how many of the records involved the same Social Security number or a false number, but the total number of records is so high that it’s possible that this one report shows that the vast majority of Americans have already had their Social Security number illegally taken.

The weaknesses in the system go even further than SSNs. People can also register without submitting either a state ID or a Social Security number. They can instead rely on various substitute documents, none of which establish that the applicant is a U.S. citizen.

Oregon again shows how reckless these rules can be. Its voter registration form permits applicants to use non-government photo identification. It also allows documents such as a paycheck stub, utility bill, or bank statement.

Under these rules, a person with a mailing address and a cable or gas bill could be placed on the voter rolls without ever having to provide a reliable form of identification.

Pretending these rules ensure elections are secure is nothing short of delusional. The current rules make it easy for noncitizens and citizens alike to illegally register to vote.

For example, in many states, there are few safeguards to stop a parent from stealing the identity of his or her adult child to cast a second ballot. All the parent would need to register in the name of a child is the last four digits of his or her Social Security number, information that nearly all parents have.

Although voter registration rules are dangerously weak in much of the country, the protections that exist at the ballot box differ widely from state to state. In places with strong voter ID requirements and widespread in-person voting, it is much harder for noncitizens and citizen identity thieves to cast ballots. But many states have failed to adopt those basic safeguards.

RELATED: Red states are not waiting for Congress to pass the SAVE America Act

Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

Twenty-four states require voters to present photo identification when voting in person, while 12 additional states require some form of identification but do not require that the ID include a photo.

Fourteen states impose no voter ID requirement for most voters. That list includes large states with millions of voters, such as California, Illinois, and Pennsylvania.

The danger is compounded by the rapid expansion of mail-in voting. Many states now permit no-excuse mail-in ballots, and eight states run their elections entirely by mail.

Furthermore, there is evidence that suggests the problem could be far greater than most are willing to admit. A 2023 survey by the Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports found that more than 1 in 4 2020 mail-in voters admitted to engaging in at least one activity that likely constitutes a violation of election law.

Similarly, in 2024, Heartland and Rasmussen conducted another survey that showed 28% of likely voters said they would be willing to engage in at least one form of illegal voting activity to help their preferred candidate win that year’s presidential election.

The facts are disturbing and clear: Many Americans are willing to commit voter fraud, and not nearly enough protections are currently in place to prevent them from doing so.

The SAVE America Act would finally make America’s elections safe and secure again, but only if Republicans in Congress stop making excuses and use the power voters gave them to pass it.

​American citizen, Election integrity, Election law, Election security, Federal law, Illegal immigrants, President trump, Save act, Social security number, Voter fraud, Voter registration, Voter rolls, Opinion & analysis 

Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) and former President Barack Obama visited Learning Through Play Pre-K, an early childhood education center in the South Bronx. During this visit — their first in-person meeting — they read the children’s book “Alone & Together” to toddlers, joined a sing-along of “Wheels on the Bus,” joked about pizza, and highlighted the city’s push for universal child care.

BlazeTV host Pat Gray wasn’t buying the feel-good optics for a second. He interpreted the publicity stunt as proof that “these two Marxists” are “absolutely together now.”

“Are these free buses that the wheels are going around on?” co-host Keith Malinak joked, highlighting Mamdani’s high-profile campaign promise to make city bus fares free — a pledge that has already stalled due to budget realities and state control of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

“I could vomit,” Pat said in response to the entire PR stunt.

“You would think [Obama] would want to distance himself a bit from a guy who is essentially at least a socialist, if not a communist, because [Obama] spent his whole life denying he was one. And now here you are hanging out with [Mamdani] talking about the same things, and you got so much in common.”

This staged photo op comes as Mamdani marks his first 100 days in office, pushing an aggressive left-wing agenda on taxes, housing, and “free” services that prioritize ideology over practical governance.

Pat sees it as classic Democrat theater: using cute kids and sing-alongs to distract from failed policies and to cement a radical alliance between Obama and the new socialist mayor.

To see clips from Mamdani and Obama’s publicity stunt and hear more of the panel’s commentary, watch the video above.

Want more from Pat Gray?

To enjoy more of Pat’s biting analysis and signature wit as he restores common sense to a senseless world, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

​Blaze media, Blazetv, Early childhood education, Free buses, Marxists, Mayor zohran mamdani, New york city, Pat gray, Pat gray unleashed, President barack obama, South bronx, Publicity stunt, Socialism