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WORLD NEWS Saturday 30 april 2022
Relatives: Former U.S. Marine killed while fighting in Ukraine

By JONATHAN DREW life-changing reentry pro-
Associated Press grams. We are grateful for
A 22-year-old former U.S. his service and saddened
Marine was killed along- by his loss," Davio said in a
side Ukrainian forces in the statement.
war with Russia, his relatives While in the Marines, Can-
told news outlets in what's cel served as a rifleman
the first known death of an and was stationed at
American citizen fighting in Camp Lejeune, North Car-
Ukraine. olina. He was given a bad
Willy Joseph Cancel was conduct discharge after
killed Monday while work- he was convicted of violat-
ing for a military contract- ing a lawful general order,
ing company that sent Marine Corps spokesperson
him to Ukraine, his mother, Maj. Jim Stenger said.
Rebecca Cabrera, told He had no war zone de-
CNN. Cancel had recently ployments, Stenger said.
worked as a corrections of- No other details on the bad
ficer in Tennessee and had conduct conviction were
previously served in the provided.
Marines from 2017-21, join- The U.S. has not confirmed
ing the service the same the reports of Cancel's
year he graduated from Clean-up crews prepare to work at the site of an explosion in Kyiv, Ukraine on Friday, April 29, death. On Friday, the State
high school. 2022. Department said it was
Cabrera said her son had Associated Press aware of the reports and is
signed up to work with the "closely monitoring the situ-
private military contractor body," she said. "They are fundraising page set up by Corps while in high school. ation" but could not com-
shortly before fighting be- trying, the men that were a man identifying himself as Cancel worked at a pri- ment further "due to priva-
gan in Ukraine on Feb. 24. with him, but it was either his father. His wife received vate prison in Tennessee cy considerations."
She told CNN he agreed to grab his body or get killed, the call informing her of from May 2021 until Janu- "We once again reiterate
go to Ukraine. but we would love for him his death on Tuesday, the ary, said Matthew Davio, a U.S. citizens should not trav-
"He wanted to go over be- to come back to us." page said. The father wrote spokesman for the private el to Ukraine due to the ac-
cause he believed in what She said her son flew to Po- that Cancel made the de- prison company CoreCivic. tive armed conflict and the
Ukraine was fighting for, land on March 12 and en- cision in early March to The Trousdale Turner Cor- singling out of U.S. citizens in
and he wanted to be a tered Ukraine shortly after. go to Ukraine because he rectional Center, a medi- Ukraine by Russian govern-
part of it to contain it there She said he was fighting wanted to defend inno- um security facility, is about ment security officials, and
so it didn't come here, and alongside men from a num- cent people. an hour northeast of Nash- that U.S. citizens in Ukraine
that maybe our American ber of countries. Cancel graduated from ville. "As a correctional of- should depart immediately
soldiers wouldn't have to Cancel had also served Newburgh Free Acad- ficer, Mr. Cancel served his if it is safe to do so using
be involved in it," she said. as a volunteer firefighter in emy in New York in 2017, state and his community any commercial or other
Cabrera said her son's New York and leaves be- the school district said. He by helping maintain a safe, privately available ground
body has not been found. hind a 7-month-old son, participated in the Junior secure environment where transportation options," the
"They haven't found his according to an online Reserve Officers' Training inmates can participate in State Department said.q

EU's border chief resigns after reports of migrant pushbacks

By FRANK JORDANS and due to their race, religion, parture" incidents. Leg-
SAMUEL PETREQUIN nationality or being mem- geri had previously denied
Associated Press bers of a social or political wrongdoing.
BRUSSELS (AP) — The head group. Last year, the EU's anti-fraud
of the European Union's The EU Commission said it watchdog, OLAF, opened
border agency resigned im- "takes note of the resigna- an investigation into Fron-
mediately Friday, the bloc's tion" of Frontex Executive tex over allegations of ha-
executive said. The move Director Fabrice Leggeri rassment, misconduct and
followed media allegations following a day of specula- migrant pushbacks.
that his agency was in- tion about his fate. The an- German Interior Ministry
volved in illegal pushbacks nouncement came after spokesperson Maximilian
of migrants who were trying the board of the European Kall said replacing Leggeri
to reach Europe. Border and Coast Guard offers the border agency
Pushbacks — forcing Agency, known as Frontex, an opportunity for a "fresh
would-be refugees away met on whether to accept start."
from a border before they his offer to resign. "It offers the possibility of Fabrice Leggeri, Executive Director of Frontex, attends a meet-
can reach a country and Leggeri, who had been un- fully resolving the allega- ing of EU Interior ministers at the EU Council building in Brussels
claim asylum — are con- der mounting pressure to tions, creating complete on Dec. 2, 2019.
sidered violations of inter- resign for months, offered transparency and ensuring Associated Press
national refugee protec- to resign a day after a me- that all missions by Frontex
tion agreements, which dia investigation this week occur in full conformity with ber states, manage com- since the 2015, when well
say people shouldn't be suggested that Frontex's European law," he said. mon European Union exter- over 1 million people, many
expelled or returned to a database recorded illegal The Commission said "Fron- nal borders, and to uphold of them refugees fleeing
country where their life and pushbacks in the Aegean tex fulfils a critically impor- fundamental rights in doing war in Syria, entered the
safety might be in danger Sea as "prevention of de- tant task to support mem- so." Leggeri had led Frontex bloc.q