Nation/world digest 04/26/05

Feds indict 14 in reputed mob murders

CHICAGO -- Fourteen reputed Chicago mob figures were indicted Monday on charges of plotting at least 18 murders, including the 1986 hit on the crime organization's top man in Las Vegas, Tony "The Ant" Spilotro, who was buried alive in a cornfield. Those indicted included 63-year-old James Marcello, identified by FBI officials as the leader of organized crime in Chicago, and longtime mob leader Joey "The Clown" Lombardo, 75. A manhunt for Lombardo was underway. The badly beaten bodies of Spilotro, 48, and his brother Michael, 41, were found buried in an Indiana cornfield in 1986, eight days after they were last seen alive. Joe Pesci played a character based on Tony Spilotro in the 1995 movie "Casino."

Putin: Soviet collapse 'tragedy' for Russians

MOSCOW -- President Vladimir Putin lamented the demise of the Soviet Union in some of his strongest language to date, saying in a nationally televised speech before parliament Monday that it was "the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century" and a "genuine tragedy." His annual address to lawmakers comes as the country is awash in nostalgia just two weeks before the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe -- a conflict Russians call the "Great Patriotic War." Putin has resurrected some communist symbols during his presidency, bringing back the music of the old Soviet anthem and the Soviet-style red banner as the military's flag.

Two toddlers found dead in Georgia pond

WARRENTON, Ga. -- Two toddlers who were reported missing from their home over the weekend were found dead in an algae-covered sewage pond a few hundred yards away Monday after a two-day search. The cause of death was not immediately disclosed, and Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead said it was not known whether the youngsters were the victims of foul play. Autopsies were planned. Nicole Payne, 2, and her brother, Jonah, 3, were reported missing on Saturday from their house about 100 miles east of Atlanta.

Existing homes sales outstrip expectations

WASHINGTON -- Sales of existing homes and condominiums rose by 1 percent in March to the third-highest sales pace on record, a real estate trade group reported Monday. The National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.89 million units last month, up from a February sales pace of 6.82 million units. The increase was far above the tiny 0.1 percent gain that economists had been expecting, indicating that the modest increase in mortgage rates so far this year has not put a damper on home sales.

Benedict XVI says he prayed not to be pope

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict XVI said Monday he felt like a "guillotine" was coming down on him when it appeared he might be elected pontiff, saying he prayed to God to be spared but that "evidently this time he didn't listen to me." Benedict's playfulness during an audience with German pilgrims underscored that the former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger -- known as the stern German guardian of the Vatican's conservative doctrine -- has a sense of humor, knows how to work a crowd and seems to be winning over fans. He apologized to the pilgrims for being late, explaining that the meeting with religious leaders had run long. "The Germans are used to punctuality," he joked. "I'm already very Italian."