The city has filed a federal lawsuit against Nigeria over allegations that the nation's government owes the city millions in back real estate taxes. According to the suit, the African country failed to pay taxes for commercial office space and other non-tax exempt spaces in its 22-story Second Avenue building, known as the "Nigeria House," the Post reports. more ›

Last year, Queens resident Augusto Noguera was appointed to an administrative role in Paraguay's consulate in NY, apparently "as payback for supporting [its President Fernando] Lugo and other candidates in last year’s elections," according to the NY Times. Only, it turned out that Noguera was an illegal immigrant—he's currently "locked in an immigration detention center in Arizona," caught last month at the border carrying someone else's passport. The publisher of newspaper El Mirador Paraguayo laments, "We want qualified people with sensitivity to the needs of Paraguayans abroad, not political appointments. It’s more than embarrassing. We’re sad. Coming from one of the most corrupt countries in the world, we’ve lost the capacity to be embarrassed." more ›

Hazmat teams descended on two United Nations missions and a consulate in midtown Manhattan last evening, after they received envelopes containing an unknown white powder. Decontamination tents were set up outside the French Mission at 245 East 47th, the Austrian Mission at 600 Third Avenue, and Uzbekistan Consulate at 801 Second AVenue. more ›

The International Olympic Committee filed a copyright infringement claim yesterday against YouTube for hosting video of a Free Tibet protest at the Chinese Consulate in Manhattan Thursday night. The video depicts demonstrators conducting a candlelight vigil and projecting a protest video onto the consulate building; the projection features recent footage of Tibetan monks being arrested and riffs on the Olympic logo of the five interlocking rings, turning them into handcuffs. YouTube dutifully yanked the video, but it can still be seen on Vimeo. (Be advised; there is some brief footage of bloody, injured monks.) more ›

A lawyer for Miladin Kovacevic says that the 6'9" 260 lb. basketball player doesn't trust the U.S. legal system and was taunted and tortured by inmates and guards after he was arrested for allegedly beating a 135 lb. college senior into a coma in Binghamton last month. Veselin Cerovic explained that's why Kovacevic jumped bail and fled the country with an emergency passport issued by the Serbian consulate in New York, "My client told me that he did not flee to hide from justice, but because he doesn't believe in the American justice system." more ›