Taiwan Quake, Finland Shooting, and German Jersey Fiasco

Breaking news: A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the eastern coast of Taiwan Wednesday morning local time, triggering a tsunami and damaging buildings. The earthquake is believed to be the strongest to hit Taiwan in 25 years. This is a developing story. See updates here.

Finland School Shooting

Finnish police detained a 12-year-old boy yesterday after he opened fire at a school in a city northeast of Finland's capital of Helsinki, killing one student and wounding two others. The suspect and three victims were all sixth graders attending the Viertola school of roughly 800 students in Finland's fourth-largest city, Vantaa. 

Police, who are investigating the case as a murder and attempted murder, said the young suspect had a handgun in his possession when he was found in the Helsinki area less than an hour after the shooting took place. The handgun was registered and licensed to a relative. The suspect admitted to the shooting in a preliminary interview with police, but a motive is unclear. No other details were made public. Children under the age of 15 are not criminally liable in Finland, meaning the suspect cannot be formally arrested and will be handed over to social services. 

School shootings in Finland are considered rare, with four having occurred in the past 35 years. See an overview here. 

Disney Proxy Battle

The Walt Disney Co.'s monthslong battle with billionaire investor Nelson Peltz and his firm, Trian Fund Management, will come to a close today, as shareholders vote to determine the company's future board. Shareholders will decide between Disney's incumbent slate of 12 members and Trian's two candidates, Peltz and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo, who aim to replace two current members. Investor Blackwells Capital has also nominated three candidates. The board sets the strategy and oversees the management of the entertainment giant.

The proxy battle, among the most expensive ever, poses a significant challenge to CEO Bob Iger's leadership since his return in November 2022. Key points of contention include Disney's stock performance and Trian's critique of the board's handling of industry shifts like the $71B acquisition of 21st Century Fox and Disney's late entry into streaming (see Trian's white paper). Disney has said many of Trian's claims are misleading, emphasizing Iger's efforts to revitalize the company.

Trian controls 1.8% of Disney's shares. Disney's shareholder base comprises nearly 65% institutional investors and 33% executives and individual stockholders. See a breakdown here.

Tropicana Hotel Shutters

The Tropicana closed its doors yesterday, marking an end to the third-oldest hotel-casino in Las Vegas, with ties to the Mafia and celebrities.

Opened in 1957, the Tropicana was operated by an associate of mob boss Frank Costello. Costello was further tied to the resort when he was shot in New York carrying a paper with the resort's earnings. In the 1970s, the Tropicana was one of several hotels named in a mob plot to skim collectively $2M in gambling revenue from casinos. 

The Tropicana, also known as the "Tiffany of the Strip," cost $15M to build—the most expensive Las Vegas resort at the time—and was frequented by celebrities including Elizabeth Taylor and Frank Sinatra. Parts of “The Godfather” and the James Bond franchise were filmed at the resort. See photos of the Tropicana here.

The Tropicana’s closure paves the way for the construction of a $1.5B Major League Baseball stadium that will house the Oakland Athletics. It is part of a broader pivot in the city over the past decade toward sports venues.

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In partnership with SmartAsset

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