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Officials: Md. construction worker died in elevator shaft fall

COCKEYSVILLE, Md. (AP) — Fire officials in Maryland say a construction worker has died after falling down an elevator shaft.

WBAL reported that the accident occurred Friday morning in Cockeysville, which is outside of Baltimore.

Michael David Zeller was working in a building that was being renovated. A preliminary investigation indicates that Zeller may have fallen about 20 feet. It also appears that he became trapped between a wall and an elevator counter-weight.

Rescue crews were able to pull Zeller out. But the 31-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene.

The incident remains under investigation. Local police as well as Maryland Occupational Safety and Health officials are also involved in the investigation.

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Information from: WBAL-AM, http://www.wbal.com

Fentanyl seizures plummet as Trump administration shifts focus to immigration

WASHINGTON — Fentanyl seizures decreased by 39% during the first year of the second Trump administration after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shifted the Department of Homeland Security’s criminal investigations arm to conducting immigration enforcement, according to a report government investigators published Friday.  Agents with Homeland Security Investigations, a subagency of DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement, reported an “all hands-on deck” environment toward immigration enforcement began in January 2025, according to the DHS Office of Inspector General report. “With ICE dedicating more staff hours to immigration investigations, staffing hours for fentanyl investigations declined,” the report said. The report found that the hours dedicated to fentanyl investigations for fiscal 2025 declined by more than 250,000 hours, or 31%, compared to fiscal 2024.
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