Southeast
Tennessee authorities dispose large box with dynamite that prompted evacuations
Tennessee authorities on Friday were investigating a box containing large amounts of dynamite at a metal recycling business that prompted evacuations of people living near the site.
An explosive ordnance robot was deployed to get a sample of the explosives found inside a box Thursday at CMC Recycling, the Knoxville Police Department said. The department later tweeted that “Bomb Squad technicians have completely cleared the contents of the box and the explosives have been rendered safe.”
The sample tested positive for ammonium nitrate, which is consistent with dynamite. Bomb squad technicians were working to remove the explosives from the box for disposal.
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A map of the evacuation zone and authorities near a metal recycling plant where a box of dynamite was discovered Thursday. (Knoxville Police Department)
It was initially reported that the box contained around 200 sticks of dynamite, but technicians haven’t verified how many pieces were in the box, authorities said.
They will “methodically” remove the explosives from the box, douse the dynamite in diesel fuel, and burn it, police said. There was no evidence the box was placed at the site with malicious or criminal intent, police said.
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The Knoxville Police Department says an explosive ordnance robot was deployed after explosives were found at a metal recycling center. (Knoxville Police Department)
It was left at the site for several days. The dynamite inside was discovered when employees at the metal recycling plant were using a torch to salvage the box and unintentionally set it on fire, authorities said.
Knoxville’s police department has consulted with the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which recommended the immediate area be evacuated.
Technicians haven’t verified how many pieces of dynamite were in the box, authorities said. (Wodicka/ullstein bild via Getty Images)
Evacuations remained in place for those living within 3,000 feet of the box, police said.
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Southeast
Middle school basketball fight results in adult getting tased as announcer nonchalantly calls the action
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A chaotic scene unfolded in Kentucky during a middle school basketball game on Thursday night, as a fight led to someone getting tased.
Emmalena and Carr Creek elementary schools were competing in the A-Team Championships at Knott County Central High School, and things got ugly when two players tackled each other onto the court.
That prompted coaches and players to try to break up the fight, but chaos grew when parents came down from the stands to try to end the fracas.
Emmalena and Carr Creek elementary schools were competing in the A-Team Championships at Knott County Central High School. (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
That only made matters worse, resulting in one adult on the floor getting tased.
The announcers on the call gave A-plus commentary.
“Look here, this ball game’s gotta get over,” one announcer said.
Then, when the moment happened, the announcer called it as if it were a normal occurrence.
“They just tased Ryan,” the announcer said.
Perhaps middle school basketball just means more in Kentucky.
A brawl ensued at a middle school game in Kentucky, but it was the announcer’s call that stole the show.
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The announcer’s call got some love. A Barstool Sports personality likened it to Al Michaels call of the “Miracle on Ice.”
“He said ‘they just tased Ryan’ like Ryan has been tased before,” another X user wrote.
Somehow, no arrests were reported. The game was called due to the brawl, with Carr Creek leading 48-30, but no winner was declared.
The game was called due to the brawl. (Fox News)
That wasn’t the only basketball brawl in Kentucky this week, as a high school game had fisticuffs and benches clearing.
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Southeast
Rep Maxwell Frost allegedly assaulted at Sundance Film Festival in racially charged incident
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A member of Congress was allegedly assaulted Friday evening while attending the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., wrote on X on Saturday: “Last night, I was assaulted by a man at Sundance Festival who told me that Trump was going to deport me before he punched me in the face.”
Frost added that the suspect “was heard screaming racist remarks as he drunkenly ran off.”
Frost said the man had been arrested and that he wasn’t hurt in the incident.
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Rep. Maxwell Frost, D, Fla., said he was assaulted Friday evening while attending the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. ( Jemal Countess/Getty Images for MoveOn Civic Action)
“Thank you to the venue security and Park City PD for assistance on this incident,” he added.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries responded to the news on X: writing, “I am horrified by the attack on Congressman Maxwell Frost. Grateful that he is okay, but appalled that this terrifying assault took place. The perpetrator must be aggressively prosecuted.”
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Jeffries continued: “Hate and political violence has no place in our country, and the entire House Democratic Caucus family stands with Maxwell.”
Rep. Maxwell Frost attending a Sundance Film Festival event on Friday. (Robin Marchant/Getty Images for The Creative Coalition)
The alleged assault took place at a party hosted by the CAA talent party at the High West Saloon, which the suspect crashed, according to Variety.
The suspect was allegedly bragging in the bathroom about being “White” before punching Frost in the face, the outlet reported.
He has yet to be identified.
The Sundance Film Festival is held in Park City, Utah, every January. (David Becker/Getty Images)
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the Park City Police Department for comment.
The 29-year-old congressman was first elected to serve in Florida’s 10th district in 2022.
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Southeast
College soccer star, girlfriend dead as illegal immigrant’s record ignites lawmaker fury statewide
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Lawmakers are voicing outrage as family and friends mourn a college soccer player and his girlfriend who were killed in a DUI crash allegedly caused by an illegal immigrant.
The case is reigniting debate over immigration enforcement and whether failures in the system contributed to the deaths of Fletcher Harris, 20, and Skylar Provenza, 19.
Prosecutors say Juan Alvarado Aguilar, 37, was driving under the influence when his vehicle slammed into the couple’s car on Friday, Jan. 16, killing them both and devastating their families and community. As mourners gather to say goodbye to Provenza and Harris, whose funeral was held Thursday, lawmakers are pointing to Aguilar’s immigration status and alleged criminal history as evidence of broader public safety failures they say demand immediate action.
North Carolina Republican Rep. Mark Harris said the case highlights what he described as the deadly consequences of sanctuary policies and failures to enforce immigration laws. Harris argued the couple’s deaths were preventable and blamed state and local leadership for allowing the suspect to remain in the country and on the road.
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A funeral service for Fletcher Mark Daniel Harris was held at Williamson Chapel in Mooresville, North Carolina, on Thursday, January 22, 2026. Harris, 20, was killed in a car crash on Jan. 16, 2026. (Tim Jackson for Fox News Digital)
“Fletcher Harris and Skylar Provenza—two bright young lives full of promise—were brutally taken in a head-on crash allegedly caused by an illegal alien with a prior DUI who never should have been on our roads,” Harris said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “This is the deadly cost of North Carolina’s sanctuary policies and radical Democrat refusal to enforce the law.”
Harris also questioned the lack of public response, suggesting the reaction would be far different in other cases.
“Where’s the outrage? Where are the protests? If this were any other tragedy, the streets would be filled—but when criminal aliens kill Americans, the silence from the Left is deafening.”
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A funeral service for Fletcher Mark Daniel Harris was held at Williamson Chapel in Mooresville, North Carolina, on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (Tim Jackson for Fox News Digital)
Authorities say the deadly crash occurred just after 11 p.m. on Jan. 16 in Rowan County, North Carolina, when a Chevrolet Silverado driven by Aguilar crossed the center line and slammed head-on into the car carrying Harris and Provenza. They were both pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators said officers noted a strong odor of alcohol and that Aguilar appeared unsteady on his feet when he was arrested.
Court records reviewed by Fox News Digital show Aguilar had a prior driving-while-impaired charge from 2020 that was dismissed by a district attorney, a procedural move that has drawn renewed scrutiny following the deadly crash. Prosecutors also told the court that Aguilar had two prior failures to appear, and an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer has been placed on him.
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Juan Alvarado Aguilar is shown in a booking photo released by authorities. Police said Aguilar, 37, was identified as the driver of a Chevrolet Silverado involved in a DUI crash that killed two people. (Rowan County Sheriff’s Office)
Aguilar now faces two counts of felony death by vehicle, driving while impaired and other charges, and is being held on a bond of more than $5 million.
North Carolina House Speaker Destin Hall said the deaths hit close to home and blamed what he described as failures in federal immigration enforcement.
“I think it’s a failure of policy, and it’s a failure under the Biden administration, where essentially he allowed open borders,” Hall said. He argued that Democrats have taken the position that “no one should be deported, even those who are committing serious crimes,” adding that the suspect had previously been charged with DWI before the fatal crash.
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Hall pushed back against claims that North Carolina is a sanctuary state, pointing to legislative action taken in recent years to require cooperation with federal immigration authorities. He said that prior to 2018, all sheriffs in the state worked with ICE, but that changed after several Democratic sheriffs stopped honoring ICE detainers.
Republican lawmakers responded by passing legislation mandating cooperation with ICE, bills that were initially vetoed by then-Gov. Roy Cooper before lawmakers overrode the vetoes.
“So in this state right now, when somebody is charged with a crime, and they’re here illegally and ICE wants to take custody of that person, the local county sheriff has to do that,” Hall said.
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Fletcher Harris and Skylar Provenza are shown in a photo taken before their deaths. The two were killed in a DUI crash, according to authorities. (Instagram/ skylar_provenza)
Hall argued that enforcement later broke down at the federal level, despite state laws remaining in place, saying ICE under the Biden administration often failed to take custody of illegal immigrants charged with crimes.
He said stronger coordination between state and federal authorities is critical to preventing similar tragedies, crediting renewed enforcement efforts under the Trump administration and emphasizing the need for continued cooperation.
Reflecting on the victims, Hall said lawmakers are focused on preventing future losses.
“Know that we’re fighting very hard to make sure this never happens to anyone again,” he said.
Harris was a standout student-athlete at Catawba College, where he played soccer and made the dean’s list. Provenza had just graduated in Esthetics from Dermacademy and was set to start her career at Datre Hair Co., according to her obituary.
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In a Facebook post, Provenza’s mother urged the public to reject hatred and honor the couple’s lives with love.
“Remember them. Remember love. Remember justice, and the Lord’s plan will prevail,” she wrote. “Hate will never bring them back. While my heart is broken, I pray for this world that we live in. Evil never wins, but love always will.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the North Carolina Democratic Party for comment.
Stepheny Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and migrant crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.
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