A 19-year-old former college student in Maine who disappeared two months ago was found dead Tuesday in a pond near his apartment complex, according to authorities.

Chance Lauer was last seen on Jan. 19 at the Orchard Trail Apartments in Orono where he lived, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife said in a news release during the search.

At the time of his disappearance, Lauer’s wallet was found in his room and his phone was turned off, the Orono Police Department previously said, noting that Lauer did not have a vehicle.

Police said officers found a body in the pond after a citizen called the department on Tuesday. The body was recovered with help from the Maine Warden Service and positively identified as Lauer.

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA STUDENT JAMES GRACEY DISAPPEARS IN BARCELONA AFTER VISITING FRIENDS STUDYING ABROAD

Chance Lauer, 19, was found dead in a pond near his apartment complex in Orono, Maine, on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, police said. (Orono Police Department)

Police said that “at this point there is nothing suspicious about the death,” though did not indicate how Lauer died. An autopsy was pending.

According to FOX22 Bangor, an individual who identified themselves as a family member of Lauer wrote on social media Wednesday that “he was recovered from a pond near his Orono apartment yesterday afternoon. He went out for a walk 8 weeks ago and fell through the ice.”

Lauer disappeared near the Orchard Trail Apartments in Orono, Maine, where he lived, authorities previously said. (Google Maps)

The pond has reportedly been a focal point of the search for Lauer.

Robert Bowie, director of Downeast Emergency Medicine Institute (DEEMI), told the outlet in a statement on Wednesday that “the pond has been an area of interest since the beginning, as apartment employee interviews indicated it as an area he would frequent.”

BODY FOUND DURING SEARCH FOR MISSING VERMONT COLLEGE STUDENT LIA SMITH NEAR MIDDLEBURY CAMPUS

“DEEMI has launched multiple drone imaging missions over the search area, including the pond, both infrared and high resolution digital imaging,” Bowie said. “There have been at least 3 imaging missions of this area of interest, and more were planned.”

Police thanked the Maine Warden Service, University of Maine and search volunteers for their help in trying to locate Lauer.

A sign at the entrance to the University of Maine campus in Orono, Maine, on July 22, 2016. (iStock)

“The Orono Police Department and the Town of Orono want to extend our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Lauer,” police said.

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Lauer was enrolled at the University of Maine from September 2024 through December 2025, the school confirmed to PEOPLE.

The school told WMTW-TV that Lauer was not enrolled at the time he went missing.

Congressional Republicans are urging the Trump administration to make illegal Chinese-made e-cigarettes a bigger trade and law-enforcement priority, framing the issue as both a public health concern and a politically advantageous one for the 2026 midterms.

“As trade discussions with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) advance, it is critical that the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Department of the Treasury confront the ongoing exploitation of our trade system,” Rep. Mike Carey, R-Ohio, wrote in a joint letter from 70 House Republicans to USTR Jamieson Greer and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

“Any new trade agreement with China should require the Chinese government, through its oversight of e-cigarette exports, to take decisive action to curb the influx of illegal, youth-oriented e-cigarettes that openly flout U.S. and Chinese law.”

A crackdown on unauthorized imported vapes allows Republicans to combine anti-China messaging, child-protection rhetoric and law-and-order enforcement in one issue, a GOP operative working on the 2026 midterms told Fox News Digital on Thursday.

TOM COTTON DEMANDS FDA PROBE INTO ILLEGAL CHINESE INGREDIENTS IN US WEIGHT LOSS DRUGS

That makes it especially attractive in battleground districts, where candidates often look for broad, cross-pressured themes that can win over independents and soft partisans on an 80-20 issue in battleground districts.

“Cracking down on illegal Chinese vapes is not only smart policy – it’s what voters want, and members of Congress are right to act on it,” the operative wrote in a statement.

Rep. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, warned this week that unapproved devices from China were appearing in Iowa communities.

“Illegal Chinese vapes designed to hook kids on nicotine are showing up in Iowa communities, and the FDA never approved any of them,” Nunn wrote on X. “As a dad of six, I’m fighting back.”

Illegal Chinese e-cigarettes are a trade and health concern that Republicans need to jump on as a winner for the 2026 midterm battlegrounds, a GOP operative says. (CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

AS TRUMP TOUTS TARIFF WINDFALL, BATTLEGROUND STATES SHOULDER BILLIONS IN COSTS

Federal and state authorities under President Donald Trump have built a long list of enforcement actions to crack down.

In one of the largest operations, Health and Human Services, through the Food and Drug Association, and Customs and Border Protection said they seized 4.7 million unauthorized e-cigarette units in Chicago with an estimated retail value of $86.5 million, calling it the largest-ever seizure of its kind.

Separately, the FDA and CBP announced another Chicago operation involving nearly 2 million unauthorized e-cigarettes valued at roughly $33.8 million.

Illegal Chinese vapes in the market in the U.S. targets young users and posing health and even national security risks, House Republicans warned in a letter to Trump administration trade and economic leaders. (iStock)

TRUMP UNLEASHES ‘TOUGHEST FENTANYL CRACKDOWN IN HISTORY’ AS GOP VOWS ‘CONSEQUENCES’ FOR CHINESE PRODUCERS

The broader administration crackdown has extended beyond ports of entry. In September 2025, the DEA said its “Operation Vape Trail” seized more than 2.3 million vape devices and cartridges and more than 100 weapons during a nationwide enforcement action targeting illegal substances in vape shops.

And, in Virginia, “Operation Magic Dragon” targeted vape retail establishments tied to broader alleged criminal activity, with authorities reporting seizures that included drugs and firearms.

That enforcement record helps explain why Republican strategists see the issue as unusually strong politics.

‘Cracking down on illegal Chinese vapes is not only smart policy – it’s what voters want, and members of Congress are right to act on it,’ a GOP operative says. (Silas Stein/picture alliance via Getty Images)

“Any candidate not making this issue a priority is leaving votes on the table that could be helping President Trump secure his trifecta once again,” the GOP operative concluded.

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“When 80% of voters in swing districts are behind an issue, it’s a signal to prioritize it.”

A small group of New Yorkers lined candles beneath a portrait of Iran’s late leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, at a recent “vigil” in Manhattan’s Washington Square Park, and within minutes, a confrontation turned violent, then viral.

As Jewish rapper Rami Even-Esh approached the March 6 vigil, he noticed something was missing in the pro-regime gathering, which drew only a few dozen people from five far-left groups, including the socialist “Workers World Party.”

“I looked around for images of the regime’s victims,” Even-Esh told Fox News Digital, referring to tens of thousands of protesters the Iranian regime reportedly killed earlier this year. “I looked for Iranians who supported the regime, and I didn’t see any.”

Slowly, Even-Esh, who performs under the moniker “Kosha Dillz,” picked up the Khamenei photo, video footage shows, prompting several vigil organizers to quickly tackle him, punch him in the head and kick him as he fell to the ground. He emerged bloodied, and New York Police Department officers arrested both him and one of his assailants.

Video of the confrontation quickly spread online, generating widespread attention, with pro-regime groups framing the event far beyond the park as a symbol of widespread “resistance” to the war in Iran. The incident also offered a telling glimpse into a wider influence campaign now drawing scrutiny.

WITH DOGS, DANCE AND UNCOVERED HAIR, IRANIANS DEFY ‘UNHOLY ALLIANCE’ OF SOCIALISTS, RADICALS: ‘HYPOCRITES!’

Jewish rapper Rami Even-Esh, known as “Kosha Dillz,” ends up bloodied after an altercation with supporters of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at Washington Square Park on March 6, 2026. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

A new report by the Network Contagion Research Institute, a think tank based in Princeton, N.J., finds that the vigil — along with a follow-up “Al-Quds Day” protest a week later on March 13 — was organized, promoted and amplified by a well-connected network of far-left U.S. activist groups with documented ties to Iranian state media. 

Earlier this week, President Donald Trump warned that Iran is pursuing an aggressive disinformation campaign, accusing the regime of using artificial intelligence and coordinated narratives to shape perception beyond traditional battlefields.

Drawing on leaked internal records, dating from 2019 to 2022, from Iran’s state-owned Press TV propaganda network, researchers identified repeated direct contact between Press TV officials and organizers of recent pro-regime protests, as well as patterns of coordination and amplification that helped transform small local gatherings into widely circulated global flashpoints.

The report identifies a structured ecosystem linking U.S. activist groups, intermediary media platforms and Iranian state outlets to a campaign of malign foreign influence, which is defined by the Directorate of National Intelligence as “subversive, undeclared, coercive, or criminal activities by foreign governments, non-state actors or their proxies to affect another nation’s popular or political attitudes, perceptions or behaviors to advance their interests.”

Organizers tied to the New York vigil also coordinated follow-up protests for Al-Quds Day, the Arabic name for “Jerusalem Day,” promoted through the same network of social media accounts, organizations and leadership.

IRANIAN REGIME SPREADING ANTI-ISRAEL PROPAGANDA ACROSS DOZENS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS: REPORT

Nerdeen Kiswani, co-founder of “Within Our Lifetime,” leads a chant at a Times Square rally for Al-Quds Day on March 13, 2026, in New York City. A protester holds a bright green sign for the socialist Workers World Party. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Fox News Digital has identified at least 75 organizations that have protested in support of Iran’s regime since the conflict began, including 50 that identify as far-left, Marxist, socialist or communist groups, and 22 that are Muslim organizations aligned with forms of political Islam, or Islamism. The remaining organizations fall into overlapping ideological categories.

Many of these groups are connected through a broader activist network linked to American-born tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham, who is based in Shanghai. Lawmakers on the House Ways and Means Committee and House Oversight Committee have launched investigations, probing whether Singham and the organizations he funds should register as foreign agents, promoting the interests of the Chinese Communist Party.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Singham and the groups organizing the pro-regime protests. 

Organizations associated with Singham’s network include the People’s Forum, the ANSWER Coalition, the Party for Socialism and Liberation, CodePink Women for Peace and the Palestinian Youth Movement, and while they didn’t organize the Khamenei vigil, they participated in Al-Quds Day protests.

IRAN’S SUPREME LEADER MOJTABA KHAMENEI ‘MISFUNCTIONING,’ NOT CONTROLLING REGIME: SOURCES

Researchers say that socialist groups that set up a “vigil” on March 6, 2026, for the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have close ties to Iran’s state TV propaganda network. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

The scene at the vigil reflected the mix of political messaging and symbolism that has defined “intersectional” activism of far-left politics in recent years. Organizers draped the table with Khamenei’s image with Palestinian checkered keffiyeh scarves and stocked it with pamphlets framing global conflicts — from Gaza to Haiti and apartheid South Africa — as part of a shared “anti-imperialist” struggle. A copy of the Qur’an sat alongside revolutionary communist literature, blending the kind of ideological and theological messaging that defines the so-called “red-green” alliance of socialists, represented by red, and Muslim theocrats, represented by the color of green for Islam.

Organizers and affiliated groups include a coalition of activist organizations connected to the “United National Antiwar Coalition,” the Workers World Party, the “Bronx Anti-War Coalition” and the ANSWER Coalition, networks of socialists and communists who have organized protests across the United States on foreign policy and domestic issues.

The report’s strongest evidence centers on a history of direct contact between Iranian state media and activists from the groups.

The leaked internal records from Press TV, which is sanctioned by the U.S. government, showed hundreds of communications with the small group of organizers tied to the recent protests, including 83 calls to one senior figure. Researchers found that outreach far exceeded contact with other individuals based in the U.S., suggesting sustained engagement rather than routine media interaction.

TRUMP VOWS TO HIT IRAN ‘VERY HARD’ AFTER OBLITERATING NEARLY ’90 PERCENT’ OF REGIME MISSILES

A flag of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei flies in Washington Square Park in New York, N.Y. on Friday, March 6, 2026, as supporters amplify pro-regime messaging. (Rashid Umar Abbasi/Fox News Digital)

The analysis also identified a pattern in which that outreach appeared to happen before protests from 2019 to 2022. According to the report, spikes in contact from Press TV personnel often occurred in the weeks leading up to increased protest activity in the United States, indicating a level of synchronization that researchers say is unlikely to be coincidental.

The report also documents a broader amplification loop: activists appear on Iranian state broadcasts, sharing and reposting state media content and promoting protest activity later picked up by outlets aligned with Iran’s messaging ecosystem.

A separate media platform, “Vox Ummah,” is identified as an intermediary linking U.S.-based activists with Iran-aligned narratives in the “ummah,” an Arabic term for the global community of Muslims, promoting the vigil and Al-Quds protests while republishing content from Iranian state outlets.

The report stops short of asserting direct operational coordination, but it concludes that the overlap of communication and messaging reflects a “repeatable influence pipeline” capable of turning local protest activity into widely distributed political narratives of malign foreign influence.

“A strain of moral confusion has taken hold where a growing number of people in our communities protest America while excusing regimes that jail, torture and silence their own people,” Adam Sohn, co-founder of the Network Contagion Research Institute, told Fox News Digital. “That’s not justice. It’s a psychological contagion causing these people to lose sight of what evil actually looks like.”

The report also notes that messaging tied to the vigil, such as references to Khamenei’s “martyrdom,” opposition to U.S. and Israeli policy and alignment with the “Axis of Resistance,” a term invented to describe opposition to U.S. foreign policy, mirrors themes promoted by Iranian state media following Khamenei’s death.

IRAN WAGING EXTENSIVE AI MISINFORMATION WARFARE AGAINST US, ALLIES

Police arrest Jewish rapper Rami Even-Esh, “Kosha Dillz,” in Washington Square Park on March 6, 2026, after he protests a pro-Khamenei vigil. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

On the edge of the Khamenei vigil, Iranian American Reza Ebrahimi, founder of a group called Lion Sun NY, watched the scene unfold with Even-Esh emerging bloodied and handcuffed.

Ebrahimi told Fox News Digital he is immune to pro-regime disinformation and propaganda. He was emboldened to see that Even-Esh also didn’t succumb to the intimidation. 

He later told him, “I’m proud of you that you’re supporting us.”

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Azziana Solomon contributed to this report.

Amidst the ongoing war in West Asia, America has demanded huge funding of 200 billion dollars for the ongoing conflict with Iran. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that money is needed to eliminate bad people. This request from the Pentagon has come at a time when Iran has shot down an F-35 fighter plane of the US Air Force during the war. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has also given a big statement on the use of army in the war with Iran. Let us tell you what are the major updates during the ongoing war in the Middle East?

I am not sending troops anywhere – Trump

Amidst the increasing tension in the Middle East, US President Donald Trump, during his meeting with Japan’s PM Sanae Takaichi in the Oval Office on Thursday (March 19, 2026), clearly said that he will not send American troops anywhere. He said that even if I did this, I would not tell you, but I am not sending American troops anywhere.

Iran targeted American F-35 fighter plane

In the ongoing war with Israel and America, Iran has targeted American F-35 fighter aircraft. After Iran’s attack, American fighter jet had to make emergency landing. US Central Command spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins said that this fifth generation stealth fighter jet was on a combat mission over Iran when it had to make an emergency landing in the Middle East.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed to have targeted an American F-35 fighter plane in the skies of central Iran. Iran says the fate of the plane after the attack is unknown, but it is likely that it has gone down.

Britain-Germany-France issued a joint statement

Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands and Japan said on Thursday (March 19, 2026) that they are ready to cooperate in efforts to ensure safe sea passage through the Strait of Hormuz, amid threats to global trade and energy supplies due to tensions in the Gulf region. In a joint statement of the six Western allied countries, we said that we welcome the commitment of those countries who are preparing to work in this direction.

Pentagon asked for 200 billion dollars from US Parliament

In fact, there are no signs of ending the ongoing war between America, Israel and Iran, meanwhile the Pentagon has demanded funding of $ 200 billion from the US Congress. According to the report of the Associated Press, a senior administration official said that a request in this regard has also been sent to the White House.

However, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not confirm the amount sought by the Pentagon in his press conference on Thursday (March 19, 2026), but he did say that the Pentagon has requested for funding. He said that money is needed to eliminate bad people. We’re going to Congress so our partners can make sure we get adequate funding.

Iran’s foreign minister threatened

At the same time, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi threatened America and Israel on the social media platform X and said that we have used only a small part of our power in response to Israel’s attack on our infrastructure. If Iran’s energy bases are attacked again during the war, Tehran will not exercise any restraint.

Also read: Will America send troops to Iran? Donald Trump clears the picture amid war in the Middle East

A man has died in a collision that closed part of a major Scottish motorway for more than 15 hours.

Police Scotland said it was alerted to a report of a crash involving a pedestrian on the M80 at Denny at about 12.20am on Thursday.

Emergency crews attended, and the 44-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene.

No other injuries were reported.

The motorway was closed in both directions between J9 and J8 at Sclandersburn Road overbridge.

The northbound lane reopened shortly after 3.30pm, with the southbound lane given the all-clear at about 4pm.

Sergeant Michael Shillington said: “Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of the man who died at this difficult time.

“Our enquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances and I would ask anyone who witnessed the crash and hasn’t yet spoken to officers to get in touch.

“I would also appeal to anyone who was travelling in the area around that time and who may have dashcam footage which could assist to contact us.”

During rush hour, motorists were warned that the traffic tailbacks were running at about an hour on the northbound road and 20 minutes on the southbound lane.

Drivers in both directions were faced with diversions of approximately 17 miles.

In response to a question on X about the length of time the road had remained closed, Traffic Scotland said: “Due to the serious nature of the incident unfortunately there are no timescales with police investigations ongoing.”

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Announcing the reopening of both lanes, Traffic Scotland added: “Traffic beginning to revert back to normal levels for the time of day.”

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) told Sky News it was not called out to the crash.

Gov. JB Pritzker, D-Ill., emerged as a decisive kingmaker in Illinois’ primary elections Tuesday, but his efforts to boost his deputy, Lt. Gov. Julianna Stratton, D-Ill., could create headaches for a future presidential run.

Members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) are sharply criticizing Pritzker for spending millions of his personal wealth to shore up support for Stratton in the state’s bruising Senate primary. 

Pritzker’s deputy beat out Rep. Robyn Kelly, D-Ill., the CBC’s preferred candidate, and a $30 million war chest from Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., to advance to the general election.

“We don’t need to reach out to the governor,” Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., said of Pritzker, according to a new Politico report. “Others are going to have to reach out to us,” he said in a reference to Pritzker. Meeks helms the CBC’s PAC, which backed Kelly’s failed Senate campaign.

Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton waves during a primary election night watch party after winning the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, March 17, 2026, in Chicago. (Erin Hooley/AP Photo)

AS 2028 BUZZ BUILDS, PRITZKER DRAWS REPUBLICAN CHALLENGER IN SHOWDOWN FOR ILLINOIS GOVERNOR

Stratton’s dominant win could have immediate ramifications for Pritzker, who is running for a third gubernatorial term and is rumored to be considering a 2028 presidential bid. The Black caucus remains an influential force in the Democratic Party after allying itself with former President Joe Biden in 2020 and former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024.

For now, the group is holding Pritzker at arm’s length. 

“Keep in mind, the Democratic candidate for president that prevails has to go through [us],” Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, said referring to the Black caucus, according to the report. “The CBC is very strategic and so if there is an issue … we will lay out our framework for what it will take” to earn the group’s support, the Ohio Democrat added.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss, a longtime CBC member, did not hide his frustration with Pritzker, telling the outlet that the billionaire governor “has to justify what he did” by backing Stratton’s Senate campaign.

“As to whether or not it has merit or not, remains to be seen,” he added, according to the report.

Gov. JB Pritzker, D-Ill., is drawing criticism from some Black lawmakers over his kingmaker status following the state’s Democratic primary elections. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

ESTABLISHMENT DEMOCRATS FEND OFF FAR-LEFT INFLUENCER IN PRIMARY TO SUCCEED REP JAN SCHAKOWSKY

The billionaire governor contributed at least $5 million to a super PAC supporting Stratton’s candidacy. The donation helped Stratton overcome a torrent of attack ads from the cryptocurrency industry seeking to block her from the nomination.

Additional CBC members have also lambasted Pritzker’s influence over the Senate race, with some voicing concerns that Stratton and Kelly’s dueling campaigns split the Black vote.

“Governor Pritzker’s effort to tip the scales in Illinois’ U.S. Senate race is beyond frustrating for the Congressional Black Caucus,” Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., chair of the CBC, told Punchbowl News earlier this month. “A sitting governor shouldn’t be heavy-handing the race. Quite frankly, his behavior in this race won’t soon be forgotten by any of us.”

Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Ill., who was endorsed by the Congressional Black Caucus, placed a distant third in Illinois’ Senate Democratic primary. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune via Getty Images)

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Stratton, who has served as lieutenant governor since 2019, branded herself as a staunch anti-Trump foe on the campaign trail. She sparked controversy when her campaign released an ad full of expletives directed toward Trump, which notably featured Pritzker.

Fox News Digitial reached out to Pritzker for comment.