Police question Michael Jackson`s doctor

(MICHAEL, JACKSON, ANGELES, POLICE, DEATH, MURRAY)

Michael Jackson, the King of pop
Michael Jackson - pop music legend
Russia had special romance with Michael Jackson - expert
Fans sing Michael Jackson’s songs on Los Angeles streets
MOSCOW, June 28 (RIA Novosti) - Los Angeles police have held an "extensive interview" with the cardiologist who tried to resuscitate Michael Jackson before his death, amid uncertainty over the causes of the pop legend`s cardiac arrest.
Dr Conrad Murray reportedly disappeared several hours after Jackson`s death at the age of 50 on Thursday, and failed to sign a death certificate.
"Dr. Conrad Murray, the physician who was with Michael Jackson at the time of his collapse, voluntarily contacted the Los Angeles Police Department," a police statement released on Saturday night said.
Detectives "met with Dr. Murray and conducted an extensive interview. Dr. Murray was cooperative and provided information which will aid the investigation."
The death of the `King of Pop` has dominated the global media over the past three days, and social networking and video sites have been flooded with tributes. While grieving fans have been celebrating Jackson`s musical legacy, several questions have arisen over the circumstances of his death.
The Rev Jesse Jackson, a long-serving politician who has been maintaining close contact with Michael Jackson`s family, told reporters that the doctor had failed to speak to relatives after the death, and that many questions remained unanswered.
"When did the doctor come? What did he do? Did he inject him? If so, with what? Was he on the scene twice? Did he use the Demerol? It`s a very powerful drug. Was he injected once? Was he injected twice?"
However, a lawyer for Murray insisted that his client was not being treated as a suspect in Jackson`s death.
"It`s a human tragedy and he`s upset obviously over the loss of Mr. Jackson. But he is not a suspect in the death of Mr. Jackson," Matthew Alford said
 
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Lightning kills 2 after graduation ball in Russia`s Far East

(STUDENTS, GRADUATION, LIGHTNING, POLICE, PRIMORYE, OFFICER)

VLADIVOSTOK, June 27 (RIA Novosti) - Two students celebrating their high school graduation died early on Saturday morning in Russia`s Far East when they were struck by lightning, local police said.
One boy and one girl were killed in the lightning strike in the village of Zarubino in the Primorye Territory`s Khasansky region, while another girl and a policeman suffered burns and were taken to a local hospital.
"The tragedy occurred on Saturday at 5 a.m. Vladivostok time [19:00 GMT on Friday]. After a graduation ball 15 students went to the beach to watch the sun rise. They were accompanied by a police officer, who was keeping order," a Primorye police source told RIA Novosti.
"A loud rumble of thunder was heard, and lightning flashed. Two students - a boy and a girl - died at the scene. Another girl and the police officer were hospitalized with burns," he added.
The source said the lightning struck as the group passed near overhead electric power lines.
He added that several other graduation balls in area passed without incident, and all had police officers present to ensure order.
 
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Police in west Urals search for security guard who stole $8 mln

(POLICE, GUARD, MILLION, RUSSIA, LARGEST, SHURMAN)

NIZHNY NOVGORD, June 26 (RIA Novosti) - Police in the west Urals are searching for a security guard who stole 250 million rubles ($8 million), a local police spokesman said on Friday.
The theft, one of Russia`s largest, took place at about 12:00 p.m. local time (06:00 GMT) on Thursday. Alexander Shurman, 36, was one of three guards carrying cash for Russia`s largest bank Sberbank.
Threatening to shoot his colleagues, he forced them to stop the vehicle in a forest, and transferred the money to another vehicle driven by accomplices.
"A search is underway," the spokesman said.
A $10,000 reward has been announced for any information leading to Shurman`s arrest, and an investigation has been launched. Over 50 police investigators are involved in the hunt.
A police source told the Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid that Sberbank security guards had had their wages cut last month.
"Carrying huge sums daily and hardly making ends meet - anyone would go nuts," the source said.
Neighbors said Shurman, who has two children, one with a second wife, did not drink or smoke and played tennis and went running every morning.
 
Original article

Russian authorities order Stalin billboards removed

(BILLBOARDS, STALIN, PAPER, COMMUNIST, ADVERTISING, GREAT)

MOSCOW, June 25 (RIA Novosti) - Authorities in the central Russian city of Voronezh have ordered the removal of billboards bearing the image of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, a paper said on Thursday.
The authorities said the billboards, which were put up by the Communist Party and show Stalin wearing a military uniform next to the slogan "Victory will be ours!", violated advertising laws, Kommersant reported.
The city`s chief advertising official said on Wednesday billboards should be used for advertising purposes only, including "social" advertising.
And Vadim Nechui-Veter, a lawyer specializing in advertising, told the paper: "Adverts should portray objects - goods or services, i.e. something that can be sold." He added that politicians could only be shown on billboards during election campaigns.
The Communist Party countered that in this case images of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Voronezh`s mayor should also be removed from the city`s streets, the paper said.
The billboards were to commemorate the start on June 22 of the 1941-1945 Great Patriotic War, the term Russia and other ex-Soviet states use to call WWII. This year also marks the 130th anniversary of Stalin`s birth.
The leader of Voronezh`s Communists said, as quoted by Russian media, that some advertising agencies in the city had refused to take the order for the ten Stalin billboards.
"We made preparations for June 22, the start of the war, where Stalin played an important role," Sergei Rudakov said.
"We wanted to underline, with the help of the billboards, that we support reforms, but we can only move forward with the positive things we had in Stalin`s time before and after the war...when the country became a great power," Rudakov said.
While Stalin`s personality cult and his purges have been officially condemned in Russia, many Russians still view the dictator as a great statesman.
The exact number of those killed or imprisoned during Stalin`s purges is not known, although estimates are as high as 20 million.
 
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