14 episodes

The Windup News follows up on stories dropped from the headlines so you can discover what finally happened

The Windup.news The Windup News

    • News
    • 4.5 • 2 Ratings

The Windup News follows up on stories dropped from the headlines so you can discover what finally happened

    The lost 699

    The lost 699

     
    In 2014, over the course of nine months, 699 passengers and crew members vanished on three flights from airlines based in Malaysia.
     
    On March 8, Malaysia Airlines Flight #MH370 carrying 239 passengers and crew members vanished from radars on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Many are aware of the loss of this flight. Stories still circulate as wreckage continues to be found in parts of the world.
     
    Other flights that may not have gotten as much coverage internationally, are Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 that vanished over Ukrainian airspace on a flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. 298 people were aboard this July 19th flight. Several months later, on December 28, on a trip from Indonesia to Singapore, Air Asia flight QZ8501 carrying 162 people vanished over the Java Sea.
     
    Although, there is not yet a conclusion to Flight MH370, we have rapidly approached closure on Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 and Asia Air flight QZ8501.
     
    MH17
    Flight MH17 vanished from radars while on a flight over Ukrainian airspace. At the time, those who sought Ukrainian independence from Russia and pro-Russian rebels were in steep fighting in the area. Although aware of the conflict and volatile atmosphere, the Ukrainian government, airlines, and other countries did not recognize the inherent risks of flying over the conflict zone and thereby kept the airspace open.
     
    The Dutch Safety Board investigated and discovered that flight MH17 was downed by a Russian-made BUK surface-to-air missile that was fired from eastern Ukraine. The missile detonated outside the jet’s cockpit. The plan broke up in midair. Debris was scattered over a 20-square mile area.
     
    Igor Girkin, Sergei Dubinsky and Oleg Pulatov from Russia, as well as Leonid Kharchenko from the Ukraine have been charged in the attack on the plane. Girkin, Dubinsky, and Pulatov are all intelligence officials in the Russian government. Kharchenko commanded a combat unit in Eastern Ukraine.
     
    It is not believed the four suspects actually aimed the missile to shoot down the plane, however, investigators believe they were instrumental in obtaining the missile that shot down the plane. The Dutch investigation team seeks to try the suspects under Dutch law.
     
    Russian and Ukrainian constitutions do not allow for the extradition of nationals.
    However, the trial for the four, in absentia, will be held in the Netherlands on March 9, 2020.
     
    QZ8501
    AirAsia flight QZ8501, vanished on December 28th on a trip from Indonesia to Singapore with 162 people aboard. The investigation of the Indonesia National Transportation Safety Committee found that the rudder control system on the plane failed. Maintenance records showed increasing problems with the rudder on that type of plane and the rudder failure on QZ8501 was just another in a line of almost two dozen failures in one year alone. Briefly, the rudder is positioned at the rear of the stabilizer which is at the tail wing section at the back of the plane. The rudder controls the position of the nose of the aircraft.
     
    Investigators discovered the co-pilot, Emmanuel Plesel, reacted inappropriately in the emergency situation. The miscommunication between he and the pilot added to the difficulties.
     
    Airlines are insured in the event of crashes and compensation is considered on a case-by-case basis. AirAsia boss Tony Fernandez assured the victims’ families they would be looked after.
     
    Most of the lower-income Chinese and Indonesian bereaved families received compensation after settling their claims with the airline.
     
    Two of the passengers on AirAsia flight QZ8501 were Mr. Man and his two-year old daughter. Mr. Man was a prominent executive in the power generation industry.
     
    In 2017, Mei Chi Man, widow of Mr. Man, battled with AirAsia to get the compensation for the loss of her husband and two-year old daughter. Mrs. Man believes the victims should be compensated to the tune of the economic loss suffered

    • 8 min
    Who was Dustin Inman?

    Who was Dustin Inman?

    It was June 16, 2000.  Billy, Kathy, and Dustin Inman along with their dog loaded into the car to spend Fathers Day weekend fishing in Ellijay, Gilmer County, Georgia .  Ellijay has a population of 1700 and is nestled in the North Georgia Mountains.
    As the Inmans waited at the stoplight, a vehicle driven by Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez slammed into the back of the Inman’s car at 60 miles per hour.  In a matter of seconds, the drunk driver permanently changed Dustin, Kathy, and Billy Inman forever.
    The family dog and 16-year old Dustin were killed immediately.  Kathy, Dustin’s mom, and Billy, Dustin’s dad, were knocked unconscious by the crash.  Kathy regained consciousness after five weeks in a coma. Billy began to recover from his injuries as well. During their recovery, they learned Dustin was killed in the wreck.  
    Because of the accident, Kathy sustained spinal injuries and would spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair.
    Billy and Kathy only have a few school photos, family snapshots, and a video made at Dustin’s funeral by which to remember their son. Billy was Kathy’s caretaker until June 7, 2019.  Billy then joined Dustin for their first Father’s Day in Heaven.

    Gonzalo Harrell-Gonzalez was able to obtain a North Carolina drivers license using a Mexican birth certificate and a Mexican matricula consular ID which is a photo ID card issued by a foreign government to those who are in the US illegally.  The Mexican matricula consular ID lacks security and is so easily forged that the ID cannot be used to obtain federally issued Mexican voter ID or state issued Mexican drivers licenses.
    Gonzalez was in the US illegally, obtained a North Carolina drivers license, drank to the point of drunkenness, climbed behind the wheel of a car, crashed into the rear of the Inman family vehicle and killed a teenage child instantly!
    Whereas the Inmans spent weeks in the hospital, Gonzalez walked out of the hospital and fled.
    D.A. King, a former Marine and pro-enforcement American, heard of the plight of the Inmans and took up their cause.  D.A. sold his successful insurance business and invested his personal time, energy, and money to become Georgia’s expert on the crime of illegal immigration.  He has since been an advocate for the Inmans and the enforcement of immigration laws around the state of Georgia, in the Georgia General Assembly, and the halls of Congress.
    The plight of the Inmans garnered the attention of news media outlets, legislators, and President Trump. With this tragedy, the Inmans are members of a club no one wants to join. They are members of the Angel Families club. Angel Families is a term used to describe the relatives of victims killed by illegal aliens.
    So where are we now?
    In February 2013, the FBI obtained a federal arrest warrant for Gonzalez for Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution in relation to the First Degree Vehicular Homicide charges in Gilmer County.
    On January 24, 2018, D.A. King and the Inmans reached out to Congressman David Perdue, who is the Senator from Georgia.

    As of March 2018, Robert Hughes, the Acting Deputy Assistant Director of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice, wrote back stating that the FBI had information that Gonzalez was located in Mexico.  However, in order for Gonzalez to be taken into custody by Mexican authorities, a Provisional Arrest Warrant must be issued.  The Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs has declined to support the issuance of a Provisional Arrest Warrant at the time due to the lack of reciprocal Mexican laws regarding first degree vehicular homicide.  In other words, the Department of Justice cannot issue the arrest warrant because Mexico does not recognize first degree vehicular homicide on their menu of criminal activity.
    So Gonzalez lives his life in Mexico walking around freely while the Inman family has been decimated by his crimes personally and the crime of illegal immigration.
    If

    • 6 min
    Coronavirus: We've seen this before

    Coronavirus: We've seen this before

    Wuhan, China is ground zero for the coronavirus outbreak. As of this episode, there are 30,834 cases and 634 deaths.
    The World Health Organization (WHO), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), national health agencies, doctors, researchers, and others are working feverishly to find a treatment regime and cure. Amid the outbreak and, in some cases, panic, it’s only reasonable to establish some facts and set a foundation.
    Coronaviruses (CoV) are zoonotic meaning they are transmitted between animals and people. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases.
    What we are currently encountering is a novel Coronavirus (nCoV) that officials identify as 2019-nCoV which is a new strain undetected prior to the outbreak in Wuhaun in December.
    99% of all the global cases and new cases are in China. Outside of China, the novel Coronavirus is in 27 countries with new cases in Sri Lanka, Belgium, Spain, the UK, Finland, Sweden, Cambodia, and Nepal. The countries outside of China that have the highest number of cases are Japan (at 45), Thailand (at 25), Singapore (at 28). Only one person outside of Mainland China has died from the novel Coronavirus. There are no cases on the continent of Africa.
    Now, we have established that the coronavirus is a family of viruses that is relayed from animals to humans and this is a new strain of the coronavirus that has not been seen prior to the most recent outbreak. We also know that 2019-nCoV is primarily contained in China. Many of the cases outside of China are from those who have traveled from China and/or from those in close contact with someone who has returned from China. For instance, a husband and wife.
    Take a deep breath. We’ve seen this before.
    MERS: The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) is a part of the coronavirus family. MERS-CoV is primarily found in the Middle East and was first identified in Saudi Arabia in September 2012. The traditional symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Pneumonia can also be present but not always. The transmission of MERS occurs because there is direct or indirect contact with infected dromedary camels in the Arabian Peninsula. Additionally, human-to-human transmission does not occur unless there is close contact such as providing unprotected care to an infected patient. 80% of human cases have been reported by Saudi Arabia. The risk to others outside the Middle East is due to travel and the World Health Organization is still alert to this factor.
    As of November 2019, 2,494 confirmed cases of MERS exist with a fatality rate of 34.4% and is found in many of the same countries that 2019-nCoV is located.
    As it stands, no vaccine or specific treatment is available for MERS-CoV. Regular hand washing is recommended along with not consuming raw or undercooked animal products.
    Let’s step back even further to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak.
    SARS: SARS, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) was first discovered in the Guangdong province of southern China in 2002. Patient zero was a man admitted to the hospital with a high fever, dry cough, myalgia which is muscle pain, and a mild sore throat. Over the next four days, he developed breathing difficulties and required a ventilator. He died 17 days later. Healthcare workers who cared for this initial patient developed similar symptoms.
    Like the 2019-nCoV and MERS-CoV, SARS is caused by a strain of the coronavirus although the SARS strain was not particularly dangerous to humans. SARS was also transmitted from animal to human as well. Whereas MERS was transmitted via a camel, SARS was transmitted via civet cat found in Africa, Southern Europe, and Asia.
    SARS also begins with cold and flu-like symptoms such as fever, shortness of breath, dry cough, chills, muscle aches, headaches and, specific to SARS, occasional diarrhea.  It is spread through droplets that entered the air when someone with the d

    • 11 min
    What finally happened in the Charlie Hebdo magazine terrorist attack in Paris?

    What finally happened in the Charlie Hebdo magazine terrorist attack in Paris?

    What finally happened in the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine terrorist attack in France?  Is the magazine still in print?  Are the suspects dead?  Were there accomplices?  Will there be a trial?  What's next for France?

    • 3 min
    What's up with Detroit?

    What's up with Detroit?

    Detroit, Michigan was riding high in the mid to late 20th century. The city gained its fortunes and reputation via a thriving car manufacturing industry with the likes of Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors, also known as GM. GM is headquarted in Detroit, nicknamed the Motor City. During this era, the city prospered.
    By the early to mid 2000s, declining car sales, pressures from the workers unions, and a change in market demand meant GM was under dire financial pressure. In 2009, the government devised a plan to bailout GM using taxpayer monies. Under the bailout terms, the company was ordered to restructure its operations and its debts.
    The larger US economy was weakening and one of Detroit's primary financial engines was in financial straits; coupled with a corrupt mayor and this environment creates the perfect storm for Detroit's demise.
    Could Detroit ever come back from this?  Did they?  What's up with Detroit?

    • 8 min
    Victoria Martens last hours; where was her family

    Victoria Martens last hours; where was her family

    This case captured headlines across the US for its sheer brutality of a ten-year-old girl. Prior to her death, she was repeatedly assaulted by at least three different men while her mother watched. She was also the victim of pornography.
    In a response to a 911 call expecting to resolve an incidence of aggravated battery, Albuquerque police found Victoria Martens in a bathtub, drugged with meth, stabbed, and dismembered. Mr. Gonzalez, wearing blood-stained shorts, told police he was cleaning himself before they entered the apartment. Ms. Kelley jumped from the apartment balcony as police arrived. Michelle Martens, Victoria’s mother, told police that someone killed her daughter and she was still inside the apartment.
    Inger proceeds to tell us about the charges laid against the trio, including child abuse resulting in death. Some of the suspects changed their story on multiple occasions, so we are brought through the timeline of these alterations. After the child’s death, Martens had sex with Gonzalez twenty minutes after he raped her daughter.
    The state believes that Martens and Gonzales met on an online dating site in July 2016. Inger reports that he soon moved in and began bringing dangerous guests into the house while Martens was at work. He even let Kelley move into Martens’ apartment without her being aware. We then learn about the course of events that happened when Gonzales and Kelley went to pick up Victoria Martens after school.
    The medical examiner determined the cause of death to be strangulation, and we are informed of some surprising info from this examination. Inger talks about the multiple boyfriends that Victoria’s mother had over the years, including the one that helped raise Victoria for the majority of her life. The grandparents of Victoria are, of course, immensely grief-stricken, and we hear about their interactions with her in the weeks leading up to her death. They say that if Michelle Martens is guilty, she deserves to be punished. Martens had a son with her previous boyfriend, the one who helped raise Victoria, and the man luckily had him on the night of the death.
    Inger ends the episode with her own comment on the heartbreaking story.
     
     

    • 11 min

Customer Reviews

4.5 out of 5
2 Ratings

2 Ratings

UAVTECHGIRL ,

Good information

You did an awesome job I really enjoyed it!

JC

Bill Nowicki ,

Love this angle on the news!

So many times, we lose track of stories after they fall out of the 24 news cycle. Inger does her part to not let these stories die.

Her first episode is eye opening and helps provide more prespective on osuthern politics after the Civil War.

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