Ohio allows testing self-driving vehicles on state roads

(Reuters) - Ohio on Wednesday became the latest U.S. state to open its roads for testing self-driving vehicles, in a boost to a nascent industry that is facing heightened scrutiny over safety concerns.

The self-driving vehicles should meet safety requirements and comply with Ohio’s traffic laws, Republican Governor John Kasich said in an executive order.

Autonomous vehicle testing is also under way in Michigan, Pittsburgh, Arizona and California.

Calls for more regulation for companies developing self-driving cars followed the death of a woman in March after being hit by an Uber SUV in Arizona.

The Ohio order mandates that the self-driving vehicles register with Drive Ohio, created by Kasich in January, and have designated operators to monitor the vehicles and report accidents.

Reporting by Arunima Banerjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila

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Italian state lender CDP set to buy stake of up to 5 percent in Telecom Italia: sources

MILAN (Reuters) - Italian state lender CDP intends to buy shares in Telecom Italia (TIM) on the market or in block orders, a source told Reuters on Thursday.

Telecom Italia new logo is seen at the headquarter in Rozzano neighbourhood of Milan, Italy, May 25, 2016. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini/File Photo

CDP, which is controlled by Italy’s Treasury, does not currently hold any shares in TIM, the source, who is close to the matter, added.

The decision on the share acquisition, including its size, will be taken at CDP’s board meeting on Thursday.

Reporting by Stefano Bernabei, writing by Giulia Segreti; Editing by Kim Coghill

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China busts smugglers using drones to transport smartphones: state media

BEIJING (Reuters) - Customs officers in southern China’s technology hub Shenzhen busted a group of criminals using drones to smuggle 500 million yuan ($ 79.8 million) worth of smartphones from Hong Kong to Shenzhen, the official Legal Daily reported on Friday.

Authorities arrested 26 suspects who used drones to fly two 200-meter (660-feet) cables between Hong Kong and the mainland to transport refurbished iPhones with a total value of 500 million yuan, the paper said in a report on the crackdown by Shenzhen and Hong Kong customs.

“It’s the first case found in China that drones were being used in cross-border smuggling crimes,” the Legal Daily reported, citing a news conference held by Shenzhen customs on Thursday.

The smugglers usually operated after midnight and only needed seconds to transport small bags holding more than 10 iPhones using the drones, the report quoted customs as saying. The gang could smuggle as many as 15,000 phones across the border in one night, it said.

Regulating the use of drones has become an important task for China, the world’s largest manufacturer of consumer drones.

China published strict rules last year to tackle incidents of drones straying into aircraft flight paths, including requiring owners of civilian drones to register craft up to a certain weight under their real names.

Shenzhen customs was quoted by the Legal Daily as saying it would closely monitor new types of smuggling with high-tech devices and enhance their capability with technical equipment, including drones and high-resolution monitors, to detect smuggling activity.

Reporting by Lusha Zhang and Se Young Lee; Editing by Paul Tait

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Prosecutors say Long Island woman tried to use bitcoin to aid Islamic State

(Reuters) - A suburban New York hospital technician accused of using bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to launder money meant for the militant group Islamic State was arrested on charges of money laundering in support of a foreign terrorist organization and bank fraud, prosecutors said Thursday.

Federal prosecutors in New York’s Suffolk County claimed in court papers that Zoobia Shahnaz, 27, used fraudulent credit cards and loans to accumulate $ 85,000, which she attempted to transfer to the radical group Islamic State before attempting to go to Syria to join it.

Prosecutors said that after traveling to Jordan to work with the Syrian American Medical Society, Shahnaz returned to the United States and applied for six credit cards, which she used to buy bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

The resident of the hamlet of Brentwood in Islip on Long Island appeared before a federal judge late on Thursday and was ordered detained, prosecutors said.

Shahnaz’ lawyer, Steve Zissou, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the case.

After borrowing about $ 85,000 with fraudulently obtained credit cards and loans and withdrawing another $ 22,000 from bank accounts in her own name, Shahnaz sent funds to recipients in Pakistan, China and Turkey, prosecutors said.

Some of that money came in the form of $ 63,000 in bitcoin and other crypto-currencies purchased with the credit cards, prosecutors said.

Arraignment and detention documents released on Thursday showed that Shahnaz, a U.S. citizen born in Pakistan, was arrested on Wednesday.

Prosecutors said that in July Shahnaz obtained a Pakistani passport and booked a flight to Pakistan with a layover in Istanbul with the intention of going to Syria. She was stopped by law enforcement investigators at John F. Kennedy airport and questioned about her trip and the financial transactions, prosecutors said.

She had $ 9,500 in cash with her, just under the limit of $ 10,000 that a person can take out of the country without declaring it to immigration and customs officials, they said.

Subsequent searches of Shahnaz’ electronic devices showed numerous searches for Islamic State-related material, including travel checklists.

She faces three charges of money laundering, including money laundering in support of a foreign terrorist organization, and is also charged with bank fraud. She faces up to 20 years in prison on each of the money laundering charges and up to 30 years for the bank fraud charge.

Reporting by Sharon Bernstein; Editing by Cynthia Osterman

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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