ROME (AP) — Five German mountaineers died after being hit by an avalanche in South Tyrol, in northern Italy, rescuers said on Sunday.
Three victims — two men and a woman — had already been recovered dead on Saturday, while the bodies of two other missing people, a man and his 17-year-old daughter, were found on Sunday morning.
“They had been dragged to the lower part of the gully where the avalanche occurred,” said Alpine rescue spokesman Federico Catania. “Rescue teams are now returning to the valley, also considering the worsening weather conditions at high altitude.”
The mountaineers, all Germans, were hit by the avalanche at about 4 p.m. on Saturday while climbing near the Cima Vertana, in the Ortles mountains, at an altitude of more than 3,500 meters (11,500 feet). It is unknown why the climbers were still on their way up at this relatively late hour, rescuers said.
According to initial information, the climbers were in three groups and were traveling independently of each other. Two men survived the accident and were taken by helicopter to a hospital in the near city of Bolzano.
South Tyrol is a popular region for mountaineering among tourists from Germany. The region’s highest peak is Ortles, which rises to 3,905 meters.
Avalanche accidents are a persistent issue in the Italian Alps, with the country registering one of the higher 10-year average annual death tolls among major ski nations. Victims are frequently ski mountaineers or freeriders.
Some analysis suggests that the number of accidents has increased in recent years possibly due to more people heading to backcountry areas immediately after fresh snowfall.
This photo released by the Italian Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps on Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, shows the site where five mountaineers, all German, were hit by an avalanche Saturday afternoon, Nov. 1, 2025, while climbing the Cima Vertana, in the Ortler mountains in Solda, Italy. (Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico via AP)
This photo released by the Italian Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps on Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, rescuers prepare for rescue operations with a helicopter in search of five mountaineers, all German, who were hit by an avalanche Saturday afternoon, Nov. 1, 2025, while climbing the Cima Vertana, in the Ortler mountains in Solda, Italy. (Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico via AP)
BOSTON (AP) — New England Patriots star wide receiver Stefon Diggs is facing strangulation and other criminal charges in connection with a dispute with his former private chef, police said.
News of the charges emerged after a court hearing Tuesday in Dedham, Massachusetts. Diggs is charged with felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanor assault and battery.
Diggs’ lawyer, David Meier, said in an emailed statement that Diggs “categorically denies these allegations.”
Meier said the allegations never occurred, describing them as unsubstantiated and uncorroborated.
“The timing and motivation for making the allegations is crystal clear: they are the direct result of an employee-employer financial dispute that was not resolved to the employee’s satisfaction,” Meier wrote.
In a statement, the Patriots said they were also standing by Diggs: “We support Stefon,” the team said.
A police narrative in a court filing about the case said a woman came to the Dedham Police Department on Dec. 16 to say that two weeks earlier, while working as a private chef for Diggs, he came into her bedroom and became angry during a discussion about money. The woman told police Diggs “smacked her across the face,” she tried to push him away and then he “tried to choke her using the crook of his elbow around her neck.”
“She said that he was behind her with his arm wrapped around her,” wrote Officer Kenneth J. Ellis. “She said that she did feel like she had trouble breathing and that she felt like she could have blacked out.” Diggs threw her on a bed and said “lies” when she told him she had not been paid, Ellis wrote.
The chef sought payment for a week in November when Diggs was having houseguests and she had to go home, Ellis wrote. The woman “left her position” and the home in Dedham but returned on Dec. 9 to retrieve her property. At that point, she told police, Diggs referred her to his assistant, who told the woman she had to sign a non-disclosure agreement before she would be paid. She did not sign it, police said.
The woman was reluctant to file charges until last week, Ellis wrote, when “she let me know that she had changed her mind from a few days ago” and wanted criminal charges.
Diggs, 32, established himself as one of the NFL’s best wide receivers during a run with Minnesota and Buffalo from 2018 to 2023, when he had six consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons and was selected to the Pro Bowl four times.
After a lackluster stint in Houston last year, Diggs ended up in New England, signing a three-year, $69 million deal in free agency that guaranteed him $26 million.
Diggs has proven a reliable target for second-year quarterback Drake Maye and is a big reason why the team has once again clinched the AFC East title as the team heads toward the playoffs.
Off the field, though, his tenure with the Patriots got off to a rocky start when a video surfaced on social media in May showing Diggs passing what appeared to be a bag of pink crystals to women on a boat.
It wasn’t clear what the substance was, and an NFL spokesperson said the league would not comment. Patriots coach Mike Vrabel said the team would handle that matter internally.
FILE - New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs (8) leaves the field following an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sunday, Nov 23, 2025, in Cincinnati, Ohio. (AP Photo/Peter Joneleit, File)
New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs (8) runs against the Baltimore Ravens during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
