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Man Tried to Lure Children into Car Using Pokemon Go: Police

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Madison police are investigating reports that a man tried to lure children into his car using Pokemon Go.

Madison police said Tuesday around 8:20 p.m. a man in an older model gray/silver BMW series approached children near the West Wharf Beach parking lot and asked them to get in the car to go find Pokemon. The suspect may have been looking specifically for children on their cellphones playing the game, according to police.

None of the children got in the car and no one was harmed. Witnesses reported the suspect drove through the West Wharf parking lot several times trying to find children.

The driver is described as a male in his early to mid-20s with short blonde hair. The BMW was described as having a Connecticut early American license plate, and the first to letters may be IA.

Anyone with information on this incident should contact Madison police at (203) 245-2721. Police remind parents to report any suspicious person who approaches their children immediately.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut

Quarantine Issued at Hartford Animal Shelter Because of Parvovirus

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The dogs at the Hartford Animal Shelter are in quarantine after a case of parvovirus and one dog had to be euthanized, according to the Hartford Animal Shelter.

A Facebook post from the Hartford Animal Shelter says police notified them that Felix #30 became sick with parvovirus and was euthanized.

Because of the presence of parvovirus, the kennel will be quarantined to ensure no other dogs are showing symptoms. Julia #13 will be quarantined until Aug. 22 because she was in the kennel next to Felix and the rest of the dogs will be in quarantine until Monday, Aug. 8.

“Please keep all the dogs in your thoughts and prayers. Rest in peace Felix,” the Facebook post says.



Photo Credit: Hartford Animal Shelter
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Real and Fake Jewelry Stolen During Smash-and-Grab in Watertown

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Police are investigating a smash-and-grab burglary at a Watertown jewelry store and they are looking for several valuable pieces, as well as non-precious samples that represent the real jewelry.

Burglars smashed the front door of David Jewelers on Straits Turnpike around 3 a.m. on Wednesday, then smashed several display cases, according to police. Valuable jewelry was stolen, along with sample jewelry, which is not made of precious medal or real stones.

Police believe 80 silver colored sample rings were taken, along with 50 “Creed” silver religious medals, “Marathon” baby jewelry, “Cape Cod” bracelets, “Nikkilisson” coin jewelry displays, “Karisma” silver beads and pendants, Lestage bracelets and clasps and gold jewelry, including sapphire, ruby and emerald pendants.

The vehicle involved is a a dark four-door sedan.

Police ask anyone with information to call Watertown police at 860-945-5200 or Crimestoppers at 860-945-9940.



Photo Credit: Watertown Police

Man Reported Missing in Meriden Found Dead

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A 50-year-old man reported missing from Meriden Tuesday was found dead Wednesday, according to police.

John Ivers, of Meriden, was last seen Sunday. A Silver Alert was issued Tuesday. On Wednesday his body was found in the area of Black Rock pond.

Connecticut State police are investigating. There appears to be no criminal aspect in his death, police said.



Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

Clinton Slams Trump for 'Casual Inciting of Violence'

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Hillary Clinton accused Donald Trump of casually inciting violence after making comments suggesting gun rights advocates have options to stop her from appointing judges if elected president, NBC News reported.

"Yesterday, we witnessed the latest in a long line of casual comments from Donald Trump that crossed the line," she said Wednesday, referencing Trump's remarks.

"His casual cruelty to a Gold Star family, his casual suggestion that more countries should have nuclear weapons and now his casual inciting of violence. Every single one of these incidents shows us that Donald Trump simply does not have the temperament to be president and commander in chief of the United States," Clinton said during a rally in Des Moines, Iowa.



Photo Credit: NBC

Milford Police Seek Armed Robbery Suspect

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Milford police are looking for a man who robbed two men outside a People’s United Bank.

Police said they responded to the People’s United Bank at 190 Broad Street around 11:20 a.m. Wednesday. The victims reported a man approached them and demanded they hand over all their money. The suspect also flashed a pistol he was hiding in his pocket, police said.

The victims complied and the suspect fled on foot. Police said surveillance shows the man getting into an older model green four-door sedan in front of the bank.

Police believe the suspect saw one of the victims make a transaction.

The suspect is described as 5-foot-7, wearing a white t-shirt, grey shorts and white sneakers.

Anyone who thinks they recognize the suspect pictures above is encouraged to contact Milford police at (203) 878-6551.



Photo Credit: Milford Police Department

Brutal Pot Shop Robbery Caught On Camera

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Security footage shows armed gunmen storm Seattle marijuana dispensary, leaving employees tied up on the floor as they fled.

Photo Credit: KING

More Storms Possible Tomorrow

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More storms are possible in the coming days, on the heels of a weak tornado in North Haven today.

A storm over Long Island Sound was capable of producing a water spout earlier this afternoon.

It will be warm tonight with a few showers as temperatures fall back into the 70s.

An approaching cold front will stall at times to the north and west of Connecticut, meaning a southwesterly flow will continue to pump in humidity mid- and late-week.

That humidity, coupled with temperatures in the middle 90s, will provide fuel for scattered storms on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

It will not rain the whole time on those days.

Sunday could turn quite wet late in the day as an area of low pressure moves overhead.

The chance for storms continues next week through Thursday, so a very active pattern is ahead.

The humidity will start to drop off by Tuesday.


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Men's Diving: US Duo Takes Silver

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Sam Dorman and Michael Hixon just started diving together two months ago.

But it turns out that was plenty of time to get acquainted. 

The pair won the silver medal Wednesday in the men’s synchronized 3-meter springboard in Rio.

Jack Laugher and Chris Mears of Great Britian won the gold, while the Chinese duo of Yuan Cao and Kai Qin took bronze.

There are no preliminary or semifinal rounds in synchronized diving events, which means they went right to the finals.

Each team performed five dives. 

Dorman and Hixon finished with a total scored of 450.21 after a final round score of 98.04. But Laugher and Mears recorded a 91.20 in the sixth round to end the competition with 454.32 points.

Team USA took home the bronze medal in the event in 2012.



Photo Credit: Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images

Plainfield Police Officers Need New Bulletproof Vests

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Authorities said more than half of Plainfield Police officers are walking around with expired bulletproof vests.

Plainfield officials said expired bulletproof vests are being won by 12 of the 18 cops on the force.

"This vest itself actually expires in 2012 an officer is wearing it because wearing an expired vest is better than not wearing a vest at all," said Police Captain Mario Arriaga.

Police said after the 5-year warranty, vests lose tightness in the Velcro and shift their placement which expose vital areas.

"That shifting gives you more of a chance if you're shot that you're going to die," said Arriaga.

Police now have asked the Board of Finance for $10,000. Officers plan to use that money coupled with a federal grant of nearly $5,000 to buy 12 new vests like the ones used daily.

The cash will also go to 11 of ceramic bulletproof vests which are used to stop rifle rounds.

"There are many incidents going on around the country and officers are being killed," said Arriaga.

Police said each vest costs nearly $1,000. Officers said with the $1,200 dollar stipend cops get to buy uniforms and equipment a majority of officers choose having a uniform over a new vest.

Officers said say the Board of Selectman have approved the funds and cops are now waiting for the approval from the Board of Finance who are set to meet next week.



Photo Credit: NBC Connecticut

North Haven Storm Damage Aug. 10

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Photo Credit: North Haven Fire Department

Death Verdict for 'Grim Sleeper'

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A former Los Angeles city garage attendant and sanitation worker was sentenced to death Wednesday for the "Grim Sleeper" serial killings of nine women and a teenage girl in South Los Angeles.

More than 15 family members of victims spoke during sentencing to the court and 63-year-old Lonnie David Franklin Jr., who was seated at a table in an orange jumpsuit and glasses, about their loved ones and the pain they've endured for decades. In her remarks at Wednesday's sentencing, Judge Kathleen Kennedy talked about what family members should expect.

"Closure is not what this trial is about," said Judge Kennedy. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, I don't think you are. At the end of the day... your loved one is still gone."

Kennedy earlier rejected a defense motion to set aside the death penalty verdict

Franklin was convicted May 5 of 10 counts of first-degree murder for the killings of nine women and a 15-year-old girl between 1985 and 2007. Jurors also found him guilty of the attempted murder of Enietra Washington, who survived being shot in the chest and pushed out of a moving vehicle in November 1988.

During the penalty phase of the trial, the prosecution presented evidence that it contends links Franklin to four other killings for which he was not charged.

In a court filing this week, Franklin's attorneys contend that two sets of victims' families were created by presenting evidence about the charged killings during the trial's guilt phase, and then waiting to present evidence about the uncharged killings until the trial's penalty phase. The defense lawyers contend that jurors heard about the uncharged killings for the first time during the penalty phase, saying that any "reasonable juror would feel sympathy" for the victims' family members "with only one course of action available to the jury to acknowledge their pain."

"That was a finding that the death penalty was the proper sentence," the attorneys said in their filing.

In their court filing, Deputy District Attorneys Beth Silverman and Marguerite Rizzo countered that "a death sentence is clearly warranted based on the evidence and the law."

"The defendant is a serial killer who intentionally targeted victims who were easy to exploit," the prosecutors wrote. "The staggering number of murders in this case and the pattern displayed across these violent crimes highlight the defendant's goal-directed behavior. He routinely manipulated others to achieve his goal: doing evil."

The killings for which Franklin was convicted occurred between 1985 and 1988 and 2002 and 2007. The assailant, who was arrested in July 2010, was dubbed the "Grim Sleeper" because of what was believed to be a 13-year break in the murders. The uncharged killings occurred in 1984, 1988, 2000 and 2005.

He was not charged in the other killings because proceedings would have been delayed a case that took nearly six years to bring to trial.

The killings terrorized communities in South Los Angeles and took police years to solve. Residents complained detectives didn't give the slayings enough attention because the victims were black and many were prostitutes who used crack cocaine. 

Franklin was arrested on July 7, 2010 after a task force took over the investigation after the most recent killing. Franklin came under suspicion in the final slaying in 2007, and DNA from his son showed similarities to genetic evidence found on some of the victims.

A detective posing as a busboy at a pizza parlor collected utensils and crusts while Franklin was attending a birthday party. Lab results connected him to some of the bodies and led to his arrest.

He denied any role in the killings to investigators, but did not utter a word during the trial.

Franklin was convicted in the following killings:

  • Debra Jackson, a 29-year-old mother of two who was found dead from three gunshot wounds to the chest in an alley in South Los Angeles on Aug. 10, 1985
  • Henrietta Wright, a 34-year-old mother of five who was shot twice in the chest and found in an alley with a cloth gag stuffed in her mouth in South Los Angeles on Aug. 12, 1986
  • Barbara Ware, 23, shot once in the chest and found under a pile of debris and garbage in an alley in South Los Angeles on Jan. 10, 1987
  • Bernita Sparks, 26, shot once in the chest and found in a trash bin with her shirt and pants unbuttoned in Los Angeles on April 16, 1987
  • Mary Lowe, 26, shot once in the chest and found in an alley with her pants unzipped behind a large shrub in South Los Angeles on Nov. 1, 1987
  • Lachrica Jefferson, 22, found dead from two gunshot wounds to the chest -- with a napkin over her face with the handwritten word "AIDS" on it --
  • in an alley in South Los Angeles on Jan. 30, 1988
  • Alicia Alexander, 18, killed by a gunshot wound to the chest and found naked under a blue foam mattress in an alley in South Los Angeles on Sept. 11, 1988
  • Princess Berthomieux, 15, strangled and discovered naked and hidden in shrubbery in an alley in Inglewood on March 9, 2002
  • Valerie McCorvey, the 35-year-old mother of one, strangled and found dead with her clothes pulled down at the entrance to a locked alley in South Los Angeles on July 11, 2003
  • Janecia Peters, 25, shot in the back and found naked inside a sealed plastic trash bag in a trash bin in an alley in South Los Angeles on Jan. 1, 2007

Some of the most emotional testimony during the trial came from a victim who Franklin left for dead on the side of a road nearly 30 years ago.

Washington described getting a lift from Franklin in his orange Ford Pinto. He then shot her in the chest while she sat in the passenger seat. As she was losing consciousness, he sexually assaulted her and she remembered seeing the flash from a Polaroid camera.

"That's the person who shot me," Enietra Washington said as she pointed at Franklin in the courtroom.

A photo of a bleeding and partly nude Washington was later found hidden behind a wall in Franklin's garage. Police found photos of other victims in the home, providing key evidence leading to the arrest and conviction.



Photo Credit: AP, File

Man Caught Scaling Trump Tower

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A 20-year-old man from Virginia who wanted a private meeting with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump climbed his namesake building for nearly three hours before police officers finally grabbed him and hauled him inside Wednesday, officials said.

The man began climbing Trump Tower, where the billionaire businessman lives and works, at about 3:30 p.m. from an outside atrium attached to the building on East 56th Street, NYPD officials said at a news briefing Wednesday evening. 

Hundreds of onlookers watched from the street with bated breath as the man used climbing ropes and several construction-grade suction cups to make his way up the side of the 58-floor building, evading officers the whole way.

Police, meanwhile, cut out metal grates, lowered window-washing rigs and busted glass windows as they slowly closed in on the man from different directions. 

Police spoke to the man as he climbed and tried to coax him in, and informed him at one point that the suction cups could cause the glass to crack. The man ignored officers and continued to climb. 

Finally, police pulled out an entire window at the 21st floor, creating a single-pane bottleneck for the man. He tried to climb past authorities, but two cops grabbed the man and yanked him inside. Down below, the quiet crowd burst into thunderous cheers as the man was pulled to safety. 

One of the emergency services unit officers who made the grab told reporters they could tell he was getting tired. 

"I lowered a safety line to him and explained to him he should lock himself in, God forbid something happens. He was climbing for awhile, I could see he was getting tired," said ESU Officer Christopher William. "'If you lock this in, we will tie it, we will have you.' He refused to take the line." 

When William saw the chance to grab the climber safely, he took it. He said the climber didn't resist after he was hauled in. 

NYPD Chief of Detectives William Aubry said the man is a researcher from Virginia who arrived in New York City Tuesday intent on meeting with Trump. He had no intention of hurting anyone, he told police.

"I just want to climb. I just want to talk to Trump," he kept telling officers as he scaled the skyscraper, according to police officials. 

The man had suction cups and climbing equipment in his backpack and several IDs, along with some Gatorade, according to officials. He has been taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he's undergoing psychological evaluation. He's expected to face charges afterward. 

Police officials said the man posted a video to YouTube on Tuesday indicating why he was climbing Trump Tower. A law enforcement source said the man dropped a flier while he was climbing, and it referenced his YouTube video. 

There were several tense moments during the climb where the man appeared to stop and motion toward cops who were trying to coax him inside. At one point, he reached inside his book bag to get a white baseball cap and a swig of water. A piece of glass taken out by police also nearly fell on him. 

Officers threw a blue towel out of a window at another point in an apparent attempt to coax him in. 

A campaign spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Parts of the building, including the terraces, are open to the public during the day. 



Photo Credit: NBC 4 NY
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Shelton Police Investigate Armed Robbery

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Shelton police are investigating after a resident reported being followed home from Bridgeport and robbed outside his home Wednesday.

Police said they responded around 1 p.m. to the Avalon Condominiums at 915 Bridgeport Avenue for a reported armed robbery.

The victim said a gold Honda Odyssey followed him from a Bridgeport business back to his home. When the victim exited his car, a man with a handgun jumped out of the minivan and demanded his money.

The victim told police he turned the money over and the vehicle left the area.

Police are investigating. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at (203) 924-1544.



Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

Study Finds Cleaner Air Could Save Lives in LA, Other Cities

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If air pollution standards were tightened just a little bit, thousands of lives might be saved each year in Los Angeles and other cities across the country, a new study suggests.

Researchers, who published their findings in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society, parsed city data and found that Los Angeles could save the greatest amount of lives with stricter pollution control.

Overall, the team found that 9,320 lives might be saved annually by reducing of two types of air pollution — ozone and fine particulate matter — to levels below what the Environmental Protection Agency currently requires. In addition, 21,400 serious health conditions, such as non-fatal heart attacks, might also be avoided, according to the study.

Cities at the top of the list are the ones in which reductions in pollution would have the highest impact, explained the study's lead author, Kevin Comar, director of the air quality program at the Marron Institute of Urban Management at New York University. Comar's group collaborated with The American Thoracic Society in analyzing the data.



Photo Credit: Getty Images

Connecticut GOP Yawns at Shays' Clinton Endorsement

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The last Republican to represent Connecticut in Congress appeared to surprise very few in the political world with his endorsement of Hillary Clinton Wednesday morning.

“Chris hasn’t really been supporting Republicans,” said JR Romano, the Chairman of the Connecticut Republican Party. “He ran for Senate against Linda McMahon and was burned a little bit by it.”

Chris Shays, who represented Connecticut’s Congressional District that encompasses mainly Fairfield County from 1987 to 2009 before he was defeated by Democrat Jim Himes, made the announcement on MSNBC’s Morning Joe Wednesday Morning.

Shays said, "Donald Trump lost me a long time ago. He says everything my mom and dad taught me never to say and do. He doesn't understand the basic requirements to be President of the United States and frankly he's dangerous."

Shays has been quiet in state political circles for some time. He did endorse Ohio Governor John Kasich for president in the run-up to Connecticut’s GOP Presidential Primary back in Ohio. Shays even introduced Kasich at a pair of town hall events in Fairfield and Glastonbury.

"He was my first choice, my second choice, my third choice,” Shays quipped.

Romano said the party has moved on from the influence of Shays.

“I don’t think there are Republicans around the state waiting with baited breath for what Chris Shays thinks,” he said.



Photo Credit: AP

US Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against Twitter Over Islamic State Rhetoric

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Twitter Inc won a bid to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the widow of an American killed in Jordan which accused the social media company of giving voice to Islamic State, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday, NBC News reported.

U.S. District Judge William H. Orrick in San Francisco ruled that Twitter cannot be held liable for Islamic State's rhetoric, but gave the plaintiff a chance to refile an amended lawsuit.

Social media companies including Twitter have faced pressure to crack down on online propaganda linked to terrorism.

Tamara Fields, a Florida woman whose husband Lloyd died in an attack on the police training center in Amman last year, said Twitter knowingly let the militant Islamist group use its network to spread propaganda, raise money and attract recruits.

Versatile ESPN Sportscaster John Saunders Dies at 61

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John Saunders, the versatile sportscaster who has hosted ESPN's "The Sports Reporters" for the last 15 years, has died, the network announced Wednesday. He was 61.

Saunders joined ESPN in 1986. He did play-by-play on various sports, led NHL Stanley Cup Final and World Series coverage on ESPN and ABC, and hosted studio shows for baseball, college football and college basketball.

A cause of death was not announced.

Saunders took over as host of "The Sports Reporters," a Sunday morning staple of ESPN programming, after Dick Schaap died in 2001. Saunders played the role of calm traffic cop on the panel show that features three sports journalists volleying opinions on the top sports news of the day.

"John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades. His wide range of accomplishments across numerous sports and championship events is among the most impressive this industry has ever seen," ESPN President John Skipper said in a statement.

Saunders was also a founding member of the board of directors for The V Foundation for Cancer Research, a charity started by the network after former college basketball coach and ESPN announcer Jim Valvano died of cancer in 1993.

"He was as close to Jimmy V as anybody at ESPN," said Dick Vitale, who has worked at ESPN for decades with Saunders and considered him one of his closest friends.

Vitale said Saunders was a diabetic, but he was not ailing, and the death of one of his closest friends was unexpected. Saunders has been the master of ceremonies at Vitale's gala and V Foundation fundraiser in Sarasota, Florida, in 10 of 11 years the event has been held, said the longtime college basketball analyst.

When Vitale had to have throat surgery that threatened his career in 2008, Saunders surprised him at the hospital and was there with Vitale before and after the procedure.

"The doctor told me that there was a good chance it was going to be cancer," Vitale told the AP in a phone interview. "I said, 'John, do me a favor. When you come in that room after just give me thumbs up if it's not ... and if it is don't do anything.' And when I woke, the first guy I saw after surgery was John and I saw thumbs up and we hugged."

Vitale added: "He was like family. I'm so shocked."

The news of Saunders' death was reported on ESPN's morning edition of SportsCenter from the Olympics in Brazil by anchor Hannah Storm, who struggled to compose herself enough to get through the announcement.

"John's passion for his family, his nation, his favorite sport & the V foundation will stay with me forever," NBC's Mike Tirico, a longtime ESPN colleague of Saunders', tweeted. "As will his kindness and support."

Saunders' death comes less than two years after the network lost another popular broadcaster, Stuart Scott, at the age of 49 in January 2015 after a bout with cancer.

Saunders was born in Ontario, Canada, and played hockey at Western Michigan University from 1974-76.

He lived in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, with his wife, Wanda. They had two daughters, Aleah and Jenna.

"He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed," Skipper said. "Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time."



Photo Credit: AP

New Haven Teacher on Leave for Grabbing Student: Attorney

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A New Haven teacher for the public schools has been put on administrative leave for allegedly grabbing a 9-year-old student, the boy's family attorney said. 

The incident occurred on May 20 at the Roberto Clemente School with a teacher and at least one student, a statement put out by superintendent Garth Harries said. 

"From the first report of this incident on May 20th, District staff took all the appropriate measures to ensure the school remained a safe space for both teachers and students," Harries said. "To be clear, this District does not condone any actions of aggression or violence exhibited by students or teachers."

The teacher, who was not named, was put on administrative leave on May 23. 

An attorney representing the third-grader's family, Louis M. Rubano, told the New Haven Registry he will be filing a lawsuit against the teacher.

According to Rubano, the student was serving in-school detention when he got into a verbal altercation with the teacher. The teacher allegedly told the boy to "shut up", the attorney said. 

When the boy got up to say he wanted to go to the principal's office, Rubano said, surveillance video shows the teacher grabbing the boy by the neck before dragging him outside and slamming him into a locker. 

"You never touch a student," Rubano told the paper. "It's just unbelievable that a teacher would attack a young, minor student in this fashion."

The superintendent said the teacher's status is pending the findings in the police investigation. 



Photo Credit: Getty Images/Blend Images

Day 5: Highlights From the Rio Olympics

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Day 5, Aug. 10, of the Rio Olympics, features cycling, tennis, swimming, men's gymnastics, diving, women's basketball and boxing, among many other events. Check out the top moments here.

Photo Credit: Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images
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