Uganda: Gunmen attack villages, killing more than 30

Hundreds of gunmen attacked villages in eastern Uganda, killing more than 30 people, Ugandan legislators said Saturday.

Pokot tribesmen from neighboring Kenya raided the villages in Kapchorwa district on Friday, burning about 200 houses and stealing more than 1,000 cattle, said Getrude Chelangat Kulany, a legislator for the area.

Another district legislator, Steven Chebrot, said the victims were members of the Sabiny tribe.

Police officials in the area and Kenyan officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

Florida: Military contractor accused of selling faulty parts

A South Florida military contractor has been accused of selling the Department of Defense thousands of faulty parts.

Nestor Daniel Lopez, owner of now-defunct Damon Industries Inc. of Pompano Beach, was indicted Friday on 92 counts of submitting false documents to the military, making false claims and wire fraud.

Prosecutors say his failure to heat-treat parts could have led to plane crashes and weapon breakdowns. He is accused of producing more than $600,000 worth of faulty parts for Cobra and Blackhawk helicopters, F-15 and F-18 fighter jets, machine guns, artillery pieces and grenade launchers from 1997 to 1999.

The indictment does not say if anyone was hurt or endangered by the equipment.

Guyana: U.S. Embassy security chief kidnapped, let go unharmed

The security chief of the U.S. Embassy in Guyana was kidnapped Saturday by gunmen in Guyana but released hours later unharmed, apparently after a ransom was paid, officials said.

Stephen Lesniak, 35, of Chicago, was abducted Saturday morning at a capital-area golf course by two men, one with a handgun the other a rifle, Guyana police said.

Betty McCutchan, deputy chief of the U.S. mission, said he was freed unharmed after a friend — in a private arrangement — paid an undisclosed amount in a ransom.

“It is absolutely not the policy of the embassy to pay any ransom to anybody, but we can’t stop individuals from doing so,” she told The Associated Press.

New York: Subway system retires tokens after 50 years

The subway token slipped toward retirement Saturday, its 50-year career as the currency of city life ended by technology and fiscal problems.

Tokens were being rationed two to a customer, with sales slated to end a minute after midnight.

For 44 years, until 1948, subway fare was a nickel. Then for five years, it was a dime. With fares set to rise to 15 cents in 1953, the token came into existence because turnstiles couldn’t accept two coins at once.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is eliminating the token to save the $6 million in annual costs to manufacture and retrieve them. With swipe cards now in wide use, tokens fell to just 9 percent of all fares.