BBC meets Venezuela earthquake survivors

Summary

BBC Global News Podcast: “BBC Meets Venezuela Earthquake Survivors”

Host: Nick Miles, BBC World Service
Date: June 29, 2026

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Overview

In this episode, the Global News Podcast brings on-the-ground reporting from Venezuela, where devastating earthquakes have left tens of thousands homeless and survivors are increasingly critical of the government’s response. The episode also discusses Israel’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide, the ongoing crisis in Gaza, a deadly skydiving accident in France, the transformative impact of the World Cup on Canadian football, Uganda’s media clampdown, the psychology of romance fraudsters in Nigeria, and the emergence of a duct tape vigilante in Mexico.

The episode is driven by urgent stories of disaster, resilience, and social transformation worldwide, maintaining a tone of journalistic seriousness and human empathy.

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Key Topics and Insights

1. Venezuela Earthquake: Survivors, Rescuers, and Mounting Frustration

[01:10–05:42]

• Critical Response Window: As rescue teams race against time to find survivors, frustration grows among Venezuelans about governmental inefficiency and lack of presence.
• Grassroots Aid: Many survivors are relying on community volunteers rather than official channels, with some reporting logistical delays exacerbated by government street closures.
• Extreme Destruction: Will Grant reports from Catia la Mar, describing families sheltering in stadiums and makeshift tents, while entire neighborhoods have been flattened.
• Military Presence vs. Action: While the region is militarized, locals complain that troops are focused on directing traffic instead of meaningful rescue work.
• Quote [02:46]:
  “On top of everything, the government decided to close the streets, making it harder to bring help. Yesterday we waited from 6am to 4pm to get a permission to come here.” – Unnamed sports fan
• Quote [03:08]:
  “I survived and I am still here, all by the will of God. But I am surprised that our governor hasn’t shown his face around here.” – Anonymous survivor
• Quote [05:22]:
  “The complaint of some people is that the military who are here aren’t pitching in sufficiently with the search and rescue teams…They’re more directing traffic than anything else.” – Will Grant

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2. Israel Recognizes Armenian Genocide; Diplomatic Fallout

[05:42–09:19]

• Historic Recognition: Israel officially declares the mass killings of Armenians during WWI as genocide, joining over 30 nations.
• Tense Backdrop: Move comes amid Israel-Turkey tensions, especially over accusations regarding Gaza.
• Emotional Impact: For Armenians, this recognition is “still extremely raw,” marking a symbolic, not legal or reparative, milestone.
• Quote [07:50]:
  “They have been campaigning, they have been trying to bring the attention of the world to these killings…” – Amhrasan Etarajan

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3. Gaza: Displacement, Survival, and an Uncertain “Peace”

[09:19–12:50]

• Enduring Hardship: Displaced Gazans adapt to makeshift tent life, describing cycles of building and loss.
• Economic Dislocation: Former professionals navigate new realities as opportunities disappear.
• Stalled Reconstruction: Eight months post-ceasefire, no meaningful rebuilding has taken place; massive need and a $70B UN estimate contrast with ongoing restrictions.
• Quote [10:12]:
  “I spent 58 years working building it brick by brick…I find out that the house was gone, reduced to rubble.” – Akram, Gaza survivor
• Quote [11:18]:
  “Why do I have to live under those conditions? Like, why can’t I just live normally like the other 8 billion around the world?” – Ahmad, former esports commentator

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4. Science: Large Hadron Collider Shuts for Major Upgrade

[12:50–14:28]

• Big Investment, Big Questions: The LHC goes offline for a $1.5 billion upgrade aiming to unlock new discoveries about dark matter and the Higgs boson.
• Quote [13:16]:
  “The lab’s main hope is to produce two Higgs bosons simultaneously and see them interact. Scientists hope this may provide clues about how our universe evolved shortly after the Big Bang.” – Sascha Schlichter

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5. Football World Cup: Canadian Joy and the Sport’s Transformation

[14:28–17:17]

• Historic Win: Canada advances to the Round of 16 for the first time, generating nationwide excitement.
• Last-Minute Drama: Stephan Oystockier scores the winning goal in the 92nd minute, unleashing wild celebrations.
• Quote [15:04]:
  “To score the winning goal and make the first round of 16 ever for a country, we’re super excited for.” – Carlos Barragan, fan
• Quote [16:01]:
  “It’ll really change the face of football in Canada.” – Gary Rose, sports reporter

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6. Uganda: Media Clampdown Raises Alarm on Press Freedom

[19:46–23:04]

• Media Shut Down: Uganda’s largest independent media group is forcibly closed by armed soldiers.
• Press Freedom at Risk: Broadcasters’ association and former editors call it an unprecedented violation of constitutional rights.
• Ongoing Disruptions: Two TV stations go off-air, newspapers sealed, staff barred from offices.
• Quote [20:10]:
  “This is a direct attack on the freedom of expression and freedom of the media as guaranteed under the Ugandan Constitution… This is unprecedented.” – Alex Adahair, Uganda Editors Guild

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7. France: Deadliest Private Skydiving Accident

[23:04–25:10]

• Tragedy in Tremblain: 11 killed in a crash, including five skydiving instructors and five first-time jumpers, witnessed by families on the ground.
• Psychological Aftermath: Medical and counseling teams mobilized to help the bereaved.
• Quote [23:28]:
  “Some of the families of the victims were present at the airport…and they witnessed the falling of the aircraft which was a shock and psychological trauma for them.” – Laurent Nunet, French Interior Minister

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8. The World of Romance Fraud: Inside the Scam

[25:10–28:59]

• Personal Motivation: NYT reporter Carlos Barragan investigates after his own mother is targeted by a romance scam.
• Inside the Network: Barragan describes gaining the trust of Lagos scammers, navigating tough ethical decisions, and exposing both the systemic root causes and the human dimensions of cybercrime.
• Fact-Checking Challenges: Many vivid accounts didn’t make it to his book due to unverifiable claims.
• Quote [27:10]:
  “I had to walk a very fine line… I wanted to humanize both sides, not just one side.” – Carlos Barragan
• Quote [28:11]:
  “Of course [they tried to scam me], but we always told them… I would never pay for access or testimony…” – Carlos Barragan

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9. Mexico: The “Batman” of Lagos de Moreno

[29:16–31:24]

• Vigilante Justice: A masked figure dubbed “El Batman de Lagos” ties alleged motorcycle thieves to lampposts with duct tape, labels them “thief” in public, even drawing whiskers—sparking a viral sensation.
• Highlighting Social Frustration: The rise of vigilantes reflects ongoing mistrust in police and the persistent power of organized crime in some Mexican states.
• Quote [29:16]:
  “Armed with heavy duty duct tape and a marker pen, a faceless vigilante has been roaming the streets… hunting down motorbike thieves in the dead of night.” – Carla Conti

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Memorable Moments & Quotes with Timestamps

• “Yesterday we waited from 6am to 4pm to get a permission to come here.”
  – Unnamed resident, on government delays in Venezuela [02:46]
• “I survived and I am still here, all by the will of God… But I am surprised that our governor hasn’t shown his face around here.”
  – Venezuelan survivor [03:08]
• “They have been campaigning…to bring the attention of the world to these killings.”
  – Amhrasan Etarajan, on Armenians’ genocide recognition efforts [07:50]
• “Why do I have to live under those conditions? Like, why can’t I just live normally like the other 8 billion around the world?”
  – Ahmad, Gaza resident [11:18]
• “This is a direct attack on the freedom of expression and freedom of the media…This is unprecedented.”
  – Alex Adahair, Uganda Editors Guild [20:10]
• “I had to walk a very fine line… I wanted to humanize both sides, not just one side.”
  – Carlos Barragan, on reporting cybercrime [27:10]
• “Armed with heavy duty duct tape and a marker pen, a faceless vigilante has been roaming the streets… hunting down motorbike thieves in the dead of night.”
  – Carla Conti [29:16]

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Timestamps: Where to Listen for Key Segments

• Venezuela Earthquake Coverage: [01:10–05:42]
• Israel’s Armenian Genocide Recognition: [05:42–09:19]
• Gaza Displacement & Reconstruction: [09:19–12:50]
• Large Hadron Collider Upgrade: [12:50–14:28]
• Canada’s World Cup Win: [14:28–17:17]
• Uganda Media Clampdown: [19:46–23:04]
• France Skydiving Tragedy: [23:04–25:10]
• Romance Scammer Investigation: [25:10–28:59]
• Mexico’s Duct Tape Vigilante: [29:16–31:24]

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Final Thoughts

This episode provides a vivid, frontline look at humanitarian crises, deep political symbolism, resilient communities, and surprising turns in world news. Through eyewitness accounts, expert analysis, and first-person investigation, the BBC Global News Podcast delivers an engaging, timely, and empathetic tour of pressing global events for June 29, 2026.

Transcript

[Nick Miles]

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[Nick Miles]

This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Nick Miles and in the early hours of Monday 29th June, these are our main stories. The survivors who have lost everything in Venezuela's earthquakes criticize the government's response. Turkey lashes out at Israel's government for recognizing the massacre of Armenians more than a century ago as genocide. Eleven skydivers are killed in a crash, the deadliest private plane accident in France's history. Also in this podcast.

[Sports Fan]

Oh, amazing. That was awesome.

[Advertisement Voice]

What a shot.

[Sports Fan]

We're going to take down whoever's in front of us. Let's go Canada.

[Nick Miles]

Incredible.

[Sports Fan]

Going to win the next one too.

[Nick Miles]

It's going to be great. A World cup host is first into the last 16 and we find out what Mexico's motorbike vigilante is doing with lots of adhesive tape. Rescue workers in Venezuela are still in the critical stage where people can be found alive after last week's earthquakes. But as more international teams arrive in the worst hit areas to help, they they know time is running out for the tens of thousands of people who are still unaccounted for. There have been rare moments of hope

[Advertisement Voice]

though

[Nick Miles]

what you're hearing there are rescuers pulling a man and his teenage son alive from the rubble on Sunday. But there's also growing frustration amongst some Venezuelans about the way the authorities are handling the rescue operation.

[Sports Fan]

On top of everything, the government decided to close the streets, making it harder to bring help. Yesterday we waited from 6am to 4pm to get a permission to come here.

[Nick Miles]

We wasted hours.

Listen to me.

[Laurent Nunet]

I don't like to make comments that

[Rob Young]

I know might have consequences later.

[Nick Miles]

I survived and I am still here, all by the will of God. But I am surprised that I. Our governor hasn't shown his face around here. Meanwhile, thousands of Venezuelans suddenly left homeless are sleeping in tents, parks and other makeshift shelters. Entire neighbourhoods have been flattened. Our correspondent Will Grant has been speaking to some residents who say they're too afraid to return to damaged buildings that could be unsafe.

The destruction along Venezuela's northern coastline has been so severe that tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of famil who've been left homeless. Here in this small town of Catia la Mar, a lot of the families have come to the local baseball stadium. It is at least outdoors, so they're protected from any aftershocks, but they're not protected from the elements. They've had to make shelters out of cheap nylon, tents out of structures made from blankets and sheets and pieces of wood and tarpaulin. They're dependent on donated food. Food, donated clothing. It is a very, very bleak picture. I've been speaking to residents, some of whom were living in social housing up on the hillside that has completely collapsed. Not only did it collapse, there were fires after gas explosions following the earthquake. The families here simply don't know how long they're going to be in these sorts of conditions. One man said to me he thinks it could be as many as three or four years. He's hopeful, of course, that the authorities will find some kind of temporary accommodation during that time before they can rebuild not just this city, but the entire state. La Guaira, this state is now completely militarized. There are some 14,000 troops here and you can see that the need is extreme. Some streets, there are more buildings collapsed than there are still standing. The complaint of some people is that the military who are here aren't pitching in sufficiently with the search and rescue teams that they're more directing traffic than anything else. We've been past one business where the neighbors, the residents, are doing all of the work, trying to reach the bodies that are still inside the building, to pull them out and give them dignified funerals. It is an extremely tough and dire situation, not just here in Katia Lamar, but all along this coastline.

Will grant, the term genocide has a very specific and chilling definition in international criminal law. It implies a crime committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group. Now, Israel has joined more than 30 other nations that describe the deaths of more than a million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Tur during the First World War as genocide. Turkish officials admit atrocities did take place but deny it was genocide. Israel's decision has been roundly condemned by Turkey. As I heard from our global affairs

[Amhrasan Etarajan]

reporter, Amhrasan Etarajan, Turkey has reacted angrily, as expected. Now they termed it as a political decision to cover up what they call as Israel's crimes. This is regarding what happened in Gaza in the past few years. But these allegations are strongly denied by Israel. Now the Israeli decision also came as a surprise because even though the tensions have been building up between the two countries, especially with regard to what's happening in the Palestinian territories, the Israeli cabinet approved this proposal to recognize the killings of armenians in the First World War between 1915 and 1917 in Turkey in the dying days of the Ottoman Empire as genocide. For a long time Israel was hesitating to recognize even though more than 30 countries around the including US, France and Germany have recognized it. You know, not to upset Ankara, given the state of relations in the particular region. But of late in the past few years, the Turkish government was calling what's happening in Gaza as a genocide, an allegation denied by Israel. So that was angering. So the tension was building up. And then you see that Israel today recognizing the killings as a genocide. And then Turkish angry reaction came.

[Nick Miles]

Regardless of the reason for this, this will be a significant day for Armenians because more than 100 years after those killings, it is still extremely raw, isn't it?

[Amhrasan Etarajan]

So they have been campaigning, they have been trying to bring the attention of the world to these killings. What happened during the First World War in Eastern Anatolia where many Christian Armenians lived and after the war with Russia ended in a disaster, the Ottoman Empire led by the Young Turk. So they blamed it on the Armenians and they were targeted because of they thought they sided with the Russians around that time. And that is when the killing spree started. And then many of them were deported, made to walk in a desert and sent to Syria at that time. So several estimates talk about more than a million Armenians were killed. However, Turkish officials at that time were saying the number was 300,000. But many scholars, they broadly agree that more than a million Armenians were killed because they were forced to leave their territory. So it is a big emotional issue because they wanted it to be recognized as a genocide by the world community. Even for a long time the US was hesitating because Turkey is one of the biggest member states of NATO military alliance. And Turkey's role is seen as very vital when you want to counter Russia.

[Nick Miles]

Just to clarify, recognition of a Genocide doesn't necessarily imply any practical steps that will now be taken.

[Amhrasan Etarajan]

Does is more of symbolic in nature and it is also recognition of what the Armenians have been campaigning talking about. This happened.

[Nick Miles]

Ambrasan Etirajan Amrasan mentioned Israel's war against Hamas. The US brokered ceasefire between the two sides talked of reconstructing Gaza. But eight months on, most of the territory is still just rubble. Despite facing extreme difficulties, Palestinians are trying to return to some kind of normality and make a living. Our reporter Rob Young sent this report.

[Rob Young]

Akram crouches over a makeshift stove brewing tea in the tent he now calls home. He's one of nearly one and a half million people still displaced by the war between Israel and Hamas. As Akram sips his tea, he and his grandchildren stare at a photo of the house they lost, now just rubble.

[Nick Miles]

This was approximately my 21st displacement during the war. I spent 58 years working building it brick by brick and getting the house ready so I could feel settled when I got old owning a whole property only to find out that the house was gone, reduced to rubble.

[Rob Young]

Others have been trying to reinvent their livelihoods. Ahmad used to travel the region as an esports commentator, but once the borders shut and Internet access became very unreliable, he had to adapt fast. Imagine I need to go to Saudi Arabia, but there is no crossing. I obtained the visa but I couldn't go out. So I tried to go back to content writing and I thankfully I was able to work even from tents. I bring my laptop to charge it with solar powered systems. I needed to walk like 7km a day. Then I come back and do the daily chores from making fire to making food to getting to the markets, blah blah blah. Why do I have to live under those conditions? Like why can't I just live normally like the other 8 billion around the world? Well, for many Gazans, that hardest of questions is whether to stay or go. Om Aya, a graphic designer, has been weighing that choice. In Gaza, everything is destroyed. They need 10 years or 15 years to rebuild Gaza.

[Carla Conti]

So maybe I will return after that.

[Rob Young]

Across Gaza City, earth movers grind through piles of waste, loading it onto trucks bound for a new landfill in the south. In neighbourhood after neighborhood, rubble stretches into the district. Rebuilding will take years and cost billions. Into this devastation, amid a fragile ceasefire come competing visions for Gaza's future, including one floated in January by Donald Trump's son in law, Jared Kushner. Imagining skyscrapers in a new Gaza let's

[Carlos Barragan]

just plan for catastrophic success. We Hamas signed a deal demilitarized that is what we're going to enforce. People ask us what our plan B is. We do not have a plan B. We have a plan. We signed an agreement. We are all committed to making that agreement work.

[Rob Young]

No rebuilding work under President Trump's Board of Peace plan has been started since the ceasefire began eight months ago. Aid agencies say they're doing what they can. The United nations estimates reconstruction will cost over $70 billion. Israel says no reconstruction can take place until armed groups, including Hamas, disarm and for now doesn't allow construction materials into the less than half of Gaza that it doesn't control.

[Nick Miles]

Rob Young the world's most powerful particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider, is shutting down for a four year upgrade, with scientists hoping that this will help the hunt for dark matter, one of the greatest mysteries of space and time. It's invisible, does not emit, absorb or reflect light, but is believed to make up about a quarter of the universe. Sasha Schlichter reports.

[Sascha Schlichter]

Inside the Large Hadron Collider, a nearly 30 kilometer circular tunnel deep below the French Suez border, superconducting magnets and accelerating structures propel particles to extreme energies and then smash them together at phenomenal speeds. The LHC was most famously used to prove the existence of the Higgs boson, dubbed the God particle. But from today, activity will stop as the extraordinary device undergoes upgrades to further increase the precision and intensity of particle collisions. This will provide a hundred times more data. It's thought the CERN lab upgrade will cost one and a half billion dollars. Once the upgrade is completed, CERN hopes to dramatically expand its understanding of how the God particle works. With the new accelerator expected to produce around 380 million Higgs Bosons over its lifetime, the lab's main hope is to produce two Higgs bosons simultaneously and see them interact. Scientists hope this may provide clues about how our universe evolved shortly after the Big Bang.

[Nick Miles]

Sascha Schlichter there's been a big sigh of relief across Canada. As one of the three hosts of the Football World Cup. Canadians were holding their breath for much of their match with South Africa. At stake was a place in the last 16 of the competition. And then two minutes into stoppage time, a winner.

[Sports Fan]

Oh, amazing. That was awesome.

[Advertisement Voice]

What a shot.

[Sports Fan]

We're going to take down whoever's in front of us. Let's go, Canada.

[Advertisement Voice]

Incredible.

[Sports Fan]

We're going to win the next one, too.

[Nick Miles]

It's going to be great. I'm just so proud of Canada.

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I can't believe the result. Just incredibly joy filled. I Can't wait to see them in Houston. I just can't wait to see what

[Carlos Barragan]

happens for it to come to stoppage

[Nick Miles]

time and to score the winning goal

[Carlos Barragan]

and make the first round of 16 ever for a country we're super excited for.

[Grainger Advertiser]

Go Canada.

[Nick Miles]

Go Canada. Our sports reporter Gary Rose was watching the match in Los Angeles.

[Gary Rose]

92nd minute winner from Stefan Oystockier sort of delivered the moments of quality which prompted lots of wild scenes of celebration at the end. It came after a match that I wouldn't say was the highest quality. South Africa sort of came with the intention quite clearly early on to slow things down. The goalkeeper held onto the ball quite a lot in possession and that prompted quite a few loud boos from all the Canadian fans that traveled in numbers to the game. It looked like it was going to be destined for extra time and probably penalties to be honest, with the way it would go. And there weren't many clear cut chances really. But yeah, that last minute goal and the celebrations it sparked were certainly a memorable way to start the knockout stages.

[Nick Miles]

Indeed. And Gary, we heard from one fan there saying that we are going to take down anyone in front of us. Do you think they're right to feel that confident?

[Gary Rose]

Yeah, I mean it's great confidence. And then I think Jesse Marsh, the Canada manager has been careful to sort of play, not play up expectations too much because next up is it's going to be either the Netherlands or Morocco, which is incredibly tough. They're two top 10 teams so it is going to be tough. He's kind of called it a free hit. But what I think it does and what that fan's opinion shows is that they have a real belief now and whatever sort of happens with the result wise, I think this whole tournament's been a bit transformative for Canadian football. They're even referring to it, to be honest, as rather than soccer. When I was speaking to fans before the match, they're saying, yeah, this is, you know, we're football fans now. I don't think it's too, too sort of much of an exaggeration to say that it'll really change the face of football in Canada. You know, there's been a lot more fans that have been getting behind it. There's pictures of fan parks in Vancouver with thousands there that have been really getting swept up in it. And yeah, what Marsh does is really just brings this sense of belief among the players and it clearly goes into the fans that, yeah, why not us? We can go toe to toe with anyone. And I think belief and that level of support goes a long way. So yeah, it will be tough in the next game. I think this will be seen as a success, whatever happens next. But you just never know. You know, no one probably expects them to go outside of their own country here and win, and they've done just that. So who knows what could happen next.

[Nick Miles]

Gary Rose still to come in this

[Carlos Barragan]

podcast, sometimes they were scamming people in real time. Chibuke for example, he's a young scammer in Lagos is coming an Irish woman. He gets €80,000 from her. She is losing everything.

[Nick Miles]

The multi billion dollar world of romance Fraudsters.

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[Nick Miles]

There's been an outcry in Uganda after its biggest independent media group was ordered to close Armed soldiers are stationed outside some media offices and Uganda's Broadcasters association says it's a violation of the constitution. Alex Adahair, a former editor of the Daily Monitor and an executive member of the Uganda Editors Guild, gave us his reaction to what's happening.

[Sports Fan]

This is a direct attack on the freedom of expression and freedom of the media as guaranteed under the first of all, the ugandan Constitution, Article 29. Also the African Charter on Human Rights guarantees freedom of the media. So this is unprecedented. The military has before not directly attacked any media house.

[Nick Miles]

So does this mean independent radio, TV and newspapers and not producing anything? My colleague Valerie Sanderson spoke to Richard Kagoi, who's following developments from Nairobi.

[Sports Fan]

It's caused widespread disruptions because the TV stations, actually two TV stations owned by the group went off air. The offices of the Daily Monitor, the newspaper division, have been sort of like sealed off by armed soldiers around the premises. So staff are not able to enter or leave the compound. Yeah, so that's basically the situation there.

[Nick Miles]

So if you try and get a program on the radio or on television or to buy a paper, you won't be able to.

[Sports Fan]

Not at all. They are of air. So basically what happens for newspaper, lots of people are now accessing information online. So they're basically posting them on the website and their social media pages.

[Nick Miles]

Why has this happened?

[Sports Fan]

Well, it's difficult because there's no specific reason that the army chief, General Kanerogaba, gave specifically for this shutdown. We've just sat from the Uganda Communications Commission, that's regulator, saying they're investigating the circumstances that surrounding this shutdown. And basically what they're doing is consulting relevant government agencies before they give us further updates.

[Nick Miles]

And broadcasters presumably want clarification. Are they meeting the government?

[Sports Fan]

Well, the association of Broadcasters saying that they're consulting the Ministry of Information, the regulator, and also they're reaching out to the army chief just to get a clarification about the reasons that really led to the shutdown. So basically what they're saying is they want answers from the government about this because they're really concerned. They're saying the disruptions are really going to significantly impact the media industry in Uganda.

[Nick Miles]

You said that it wasn't clear why there was this action, anything beforehand in the history of the government or the tradition of the country. You know, is there a clue as to why this has happened now?

[Sports Fan]

Well, based on previous incidents, it's what the government has said has been, you know, criticizing the coverage of Nation Media Group, saying that it's been covering the country negatively and we have seen instances in the past where the Daily Monitor has been shut down twice and also NTV Uganda has also been shut down in 2007 for the reason that the coverage has largely been seen to be critical and also negative about the country.

[Nick Miles]

Richard kegoy, A small plane carrying skydivers crashed in the town of Tremblain in eastern France on Sunday, killing all 11 people on board. They were the pilot, five instructors and five first time jumpers. Officials say it's the deadliest private plane accident in France's history. Here's the interior minister Laurent Nunet speaking through a translator.

[Sports Fan]

I would like to say that in addition to this drama, another drama took place which is that some of the families of the victims were present at the airport because it was a first sky track dive and they witnessed the falling of the aircraft which was created a shock and a psychological trauma for them.

[Nick Miles]

Our reporter Nick Johnson has more.

[Laurent Nunet]

Absolutely horrific, isn't it, that we've had the people who were families of those on board who wanted to watch their first skydive and they were at the airport doing so. The mayor of the nearby city of Nancy said the victims died in full view of their loved ones who were preparing to film those tandem skydives. So just horrific for everyone who was there. And the mayor went on to say that not only medical teams but psychological support teams were looking after the relatives of the victims as well as other witnesses who saw what unfolded right in front of them. We've heard from a local nursing council in the nearby area and they say that the five students on board who lost their lives were all nurses, they were all colleagues and that they'd organized this skydiving trip as it appears to be a team building event. One of the officials said to no doubt to unwind as the country had been going through that heat wave over the last couple of days. Now, according to a number of witnesses in the area, the plane came straight down just after takeoff. It's a German registered plane which had been used previously for skydiving and this sort of event. Now the plane came down near a main road between the airfield and a housing estate itself. So a number of people have said that it is actually a miracle that there weren't more casualties on the ground in those houses. But an investigation is underway and we understand that those investigators are in the area at the moment.

[Nick Miles]

Nick Johnson, now, what would you do if your parent fell victim to a romance scam? That is what happened to Carlos Barragan when his divorce mother entered a relationship with A man who claimed to be a US soldier on mission in Syria. Well, Carlos, who's a New York Times reporter, traced the man's IP address to Lagos in Nigeria and then ended up moving there to expose the cybercrime network that is part of a multi billion dollar industry that defrauds people around the world. What he found was a much more complicated story about the social and economic forces that drive people to commit these crimes. Ros Atkins spoke to Carlos about his investigation.

[Carlos Barragan]

At the beginning, they were very suspicious of me. They thought I might be an FBI agent. But they kept seeing me show up in Lagos. There was no reason for me to ask them about their lives. If I was a police officer, if I was an FIA agent. But I was very keen on understanding the lives behind the scams as well, the socioeconomic conditions that drove them. I was very struck by what I found, the kind of people who were behind the scams. I was imagining something more sophisticated than what I saw.

[Ros Atkins]

What were the ethical considerations you were having to go through as you went about your journalism? Because you must have been tempted to tell the police about them. You must have been tempted to tell their victims about them. Did you do either?

[Carlos Barragan]

Well, for sure, not the police. As a reporter, my ethical guidelines are that I protect my sources. It was harder with the victims because sometimes they were scamming people in real time. And I thought if I just told them, in the case of Chibuke, for example, he's a young scammer in Lagos scamming an Irish woman. And for four years he gets €80,000 from her. She is losing everything. It's a hard choice, but if I told the victims, why would the scammers share their stories with me?

[Ros Atkins]

Did you have any concerns as you wrote the book, though, that in your efforts to humanize those carrying out these crimes, that you were in some way giving the impression there was justification for it?

[Carlos Barragan]

Totally. I had to walk a very fine line at the beginning. I was scared that I was going to fall into the stereotype of the so called Nigerian scammer. As if there is something particularly Nigerian about this scam, when actually it's not. And this scam also happens in other parts of the world. But after spending so much time with them, you create a really familiar bond with them. I started laughing with them, at their jokes. And when those things started happening, I felt I had to connect with the victims. I need to step out because I wanted to humanize both sides, not just one side.

[Ros Atkins]

When you were laughing with them, were there sometimes you thought, no, I shouldn't be doing this.

[Carlos Barragan]

Well, these guys lie for a living and some of them were pretty manipulative. And I realized how easy it was to get into their world of lies and fabrications. And I guess that it was also a reflection on how these boys are able to convince people of what they are doing.

[Ros Atkins]

Did they try and get money out of you?

[Carlos Barragan]

Of course, but we always told them the same thing, that I would never pay for access or testimony because sometimes scammers had amazing stories, but they would only share them with us if we paid.

[Ros Atkins]

And they might have amazing stories which actually are completely false given who they are. Was that that must have been a cause for concern for you?

[Carlos Barragan]

Many of the things that I heard didn't make it to the book because I couldn't fact check it. And the way I did it was not only by interviewing them for hours and for days and for years, but also talking to their friends, their family, people in the community. And of course it was very important for me that they would give me access to the conversations with the victims because obviously I knew that sometimes they were lying to me and they were also lying to themselves as well.

[Nick Miles]

Carlos Barragan speaking to Ros Atkins and we end the podcast in Mexico, where a rise in motorcycle thefts in the state of Jalisco has led an unidentified individual to take matters into their own hands in a rather unusual way. Carla Conti reports.

[Carla Conti]

There is a new superhero in Lagos de Moreno. Armed with heavy duty duct tape and a marker pen, a faceless vigilante has been roaming the streets of Mexico's Jalisco State, hunting down motorbike thieves in the dead of night. The mysterious figure has been dubbed the Mexican Batman or El Batman de Lagos de Moreno on social media. After five alleged thieves were found tied to public lampposts with copious amounts of industrial tape around their bodies and the words ratero and rata meaning thief in Spanish scribbled across their foreheads. Photos circulating online show some of the restrained men with bruises on their faces and right next to them, the motorcycles they were reportedly accused of stealing. According to the Mexican newspaper Vanguardia, so called Mexican Batman also drew whiskers on a couple of the alleged robbers, likely in a nod to the word rata which literally translates to rat. The authorities in Jalisco say they are currently treating the duct taped men as victims and that an investigation has been launched to find the mystery sausage aspect. But for Mexico, a Batman like figure patrolling the streets and fighting crime is nothing new. Vigilante groups often called auto defensas, have proliferated in the past decade due to what many describe as the failure of local police to protect citizens from powerful drug cartels. In the nearby Michoacan state, also known as the birthplace of Mexico's Self Defense Movement, an all female group of vigilantes carry assault rifles and set up roadblocks to fend off members of the notorious Khalil called New Generation Cartel. And in the state of Morelos, an anonymous individual known as El Impeador or the Cleaner gained notoriety for carrying out targeted executions against suspected sex offenders and those who harm women and children. Many are now debating whether El Batman de Lagos is a lone individual or a group of angry vigilantes responding to a surge in motorcycle thefts in the area. But the question remains, will Mexico's Batman strike again?

[Nick Miles]

Carla Conti and that's all from us for now. But if you want to get in touch, you can email [e-mail] you can also find us on X@BBC World Service. Use the hashtag globalnewspod. And don't forget our sister podcast, the Global Story, which goes in depth and beyond the headlines on one big story. This edition of the Global News Podcast was mixed by by Zabihullah Korus and the producer was Stephanie Zakrisson. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Nick Miles and until next time, goodbye.

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