Aldi, the German discount grocery chain, has officially confirmed long-standing rumors it will open its fifth St. Paul store in the former Lunds & Byerlys space downtown. The store, to be located at 115 E. 10th St., is expected to open by the end of the summer, according to a spokesperson for the market.

The grocery released a written statement on behalf of regional vice president Matt Lilla on Wednesday evening, calling St. Paul “a vibrant and growing town, so we have selected a location that is the most convenient for the majority of residents. Our goal is to provide a shopping destination that supports high traffic volume daily while meeting the needs of our shoppers in every community.”

Lunds opened in 2014 adjoining the luxury Penfield apartments at 10th and Robert streets but closed the grocery last March, after struggling when downtown employers, including the state of Minnesota, shifted to remote work during the pandemic. The closure left downtown St. Paul, which has experienced a gradual conversion of office space to housing, without a grocery.

Interviewed before the store closing, chief executive officer Tres Lund said last year that an increase in store security expenses and decrease in customer visits had left operating costs outpacing sales. Meanwhile, staffers were difficult to retain following incidents of shoplifting, harassment, vandalism and an arson that caused upward of $500,000 in damage in 2022.

Some critics had called the Lunds grocery prices out of step with the surrounding neighborhood, which includes retirees on fixed income, residents living in luxury or affordable housing and a mix of private-sector and municipal workers. Company officials promised at the time that they would leave shelving, coolers and refrigeration in place and do what they could to accommodate another grocer moving into the space.

Aldi, which entered the U.S. market 50 years ago, plans to open more than 180 stores across 31 states this year, which would bring its total U.S. holdings to 2,800 locations. Its “westward expansion” strategy will include 50 new stores planned for the Denver and Colorado Springs markets within the next five years, as well as 10 new stores in and around Phoenix, Ariz., in 2026 alone, for a total of 40 new stores in the Phoenix market by the end of 2030.

In the southeastern United States, Aldi plans to convert 80 grocers to the Aldi format this year, for a total of more than 200 conversions in that market from 2024 through the end of 2027. Its plans also include new distribution centers in Florida, Arizona and Colorado, as well as a revamped website.

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TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — The no-parking zone around the home of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s mother where journalists and social media streamers have stationed themselves over the past three weeks since her disappearance is being widened in response to bitter complaints from neighbors about congested roads, trespassing and trash left alongside roadways.

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Pima County officials say an effort over the weekend to have one-way traffic flow on the road in front of Nancy Guthrie’s house hasn’t worked as they hoped, leading to expanded parking restrictions.

The new restrictions take effect Thursday. Authorities say journalists and streamers can still have access to the area, but they will have to park elsewhere and get dropped off in the neighborhood. Violators would face a $250 fine. The constant presence of news crews, bloggers and curious onlookers has drawn mixed reaction from neighbors. Some appreciated the attention the case has been getting. Others have placed traffic cones and signs on their properties to keep people off.

Authorities say the tents, generators and satellite trucks set up along the road have created congestion and safety concerns.

Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home just outside Tucson on Jan. 31 and was reported missing the following day. Authorities believe she was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken against her will. Drops of her blood were found on the front porch, but authorities haven’t publicly revealed much evidence.

Despite the sheriff’s request for people not to search on their own, volunteers have continued to look. A small group reported finding a black backpack on Sunday, but it wasn’t the same brand as one identified in video surveillance that the FBI released of a masked person at Guthrie’s home the night she disappeared.

Journalists and streamers aren’t the only people to go into the neighborhood. Supporters of the Guthrie family have showed up outside of the home to drop off flowers, yellow ribbons, crosses and prayers.

By PHILIP MARCELO

NEW YORK (AP) — New York’s attorney general has sued video game developer Valve, claiming the “loot boxes” found in Counter-Strike and other popular video game franchises illegally promote gambling.

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State Attorney General Letitia James said in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in New York state court that games such as Counter-Strike 2, Team Fortress 2 and Dota 2 illegally charge users for the chance to win rare items held in the virtual containers.

In Counter-Strike, the process even resembles a slot machine, with an animated spinning wheel that eventually rests on a selected item, James’ office said.

“Valve has made billions of dollars by letting children and adults alike illegally gamble for the chance to win valuable virtual prizes,” James said in a statement. “These features are addictive, harmful, and illegal.”

Messages seeking comment were left Wednesday for the Bellevue, Washington-based company.

“Loot box” items are generally cosmetic, such as a hat for a player’s character or an artistic skin for weapons. They usually don’t serve any vital function in the games, but James’ office said the items can still be sold online for significant sums.

Some of the rarest items can go for thousands of dollars online, according to James’ office. One item, an AK-47 Counter-Strike skin, recently sold for more than $1 million.

James’ suit says Valve is violating New York’s constitution by promoting gambling in its games. It wants the company to stop the practice and pay restitution and damages to users, as well as a fine worth three times the amount of its profits from the features.

The attorney general argues that research has found children introduced to gambling are four times more likely to develop a gambling problem later in life than those who are not.

“Loot boxes, like other forms of gambling, can lead to addiction and result in real harm,” the suit reads. “But Valve’s loot boxes are particularly pernicious because they are popular among children and adolescents, who are lured into opening loot boxes by the prospect of winning expensive virtual items that convey status in the gaming world.”

James’ office said demand for “loot box” prizes has drawn interest not just from online speculators and investors that have helped values soar, but also thieves targeting third-party, online marketplaces where the virtual items can be sold for cash.

Valve facilitates those third-party marketplaces, as well as operating its own, the Steam Community Market, where players can sell their items and use the proceeds to buy other video games, gaming hardware or other virtual items.

By JOSHUA GOODMAN

The Trump administration is blocking Venezuela’s government from paying for the cost of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro’s defense against drug trafficking charges in New York, a move that potentially interferes with his constitutional right to counsel, his lawyer says.

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Attorney Barry Pollack told a Manhattan federal judge in an email last week that the U.S. Treasury Department had blocked the authorization of legal fees that the government of Venezuela is required to pay for Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores under its law and custom. The email was entered into the public court record on Wednesday.

Maduro and his wife have been jailed in New York without bail since they were seized from their Venezuelan home Jan. 3 in a stealth nighttime raid by U.S. military forces. They have both pleaded not guilty.

The stunning capture following a monthslong military buildup in the Caribbean has paved the way for the Trump administration to assert enormous influence over Maduro’s replacement, his vice president and now acting President Delcy Rodriguez. Under pressure from the U.S., Rodriguez has moved swiftly to open up Venezuela’s oil industry to American investment, free political prisoners and reestablish direct communications with Washington — something unseen since the first Trump administration shuttered the U.S. embassy in Caracas in 2019.

In the email, Pollack said that the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which administers sanctions against Venezuela, had granted permission on Jan. 9 approving the payment of legal fees by the Venezuelan government.

Less than three hours later, though, the Trump administration snatched back the authorization “without explanation,” though it left in place a license granting permission for Maduro’s wife’s lawyers to be paid, Pollack said.

The dispute over Maduro’s legal fees is intimately linked to U.S. foreign policy. The first Trump administration cut ties with Maduro in 2019, recognizing the then opposition head of the National Assembly as Venezuela’s legitimate leader. The Biden administration hewed closely to the same policy.

However, allowing Rodriguez’s government to pay for the cost of Maduro’s defense could complicate prosecutors’ efforts in court to counter the deposed leader’s argument that his capture was illegal and that as the foreign head of a state he is immune from prosecution under U.S. and international law.

A 25-page indictment against Maduro accused him and others of working with drug cartels and members of the military to facilitate the shipment of thousands of tons of cocaine into the U.S. Both he and his wife face life in prison if convicted.

As part of the purported conspiracy, Maduro and his wife allegedly ordering kidnappings, beatings and murders of those who owed them drug money, according to the indictment. It said that included the killing of a local drug boss in Caracas.

Messages seeking comment from the Treasury Department, White House and the Justice Department were not immediately returned.

Pollack said he asked the Office of Foreign Assets Control on Feb. 11 to reinstate the original license and clear the way for Venezuela to meet its obligation to pay Maduro’s defense costs.

The lawyer added that Maduro “cannot otherwise afford counsel” and will request help from the judge to pay for his defense.

Pollack said the United States was “interfering with Mr. Maduro’s ability to retain counsel and, therefore, his right under the Sixth Amendment to counsel of his choice.”

Goodman reported from Miami. Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani and Fatima Hussein in Washington and Larry Neumeister in New York contributed to this report.