Donald Trump has launched an extraordinary attack on film director Rob Reiner, who was found stabbed to death with his wife on Sunday, as it is revealed his son has been arrested on homicide charges.

The US president said in a post on Truth Social that Reiner was “a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star”.

Mr Trump said Reiner and his wife died “reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME, sometimes referred to as TDS”.

“He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness, and with the Golden Age of America upon us, perhaps like never before. May Rob and Michele rest in peace,” Mr Trump wrote.

Meanwhile, Reiner’s son, Nick, 32, has been “booked for murder” and is being held on $4m bail in connection with the deaths of his parents, Los Angeles Police chief Jim McDonnell said.

Mr McDonnell said the department’s robbery and homicide division is handling the investigation.

“They worked throughout the night on this case and were able to take into custody Nick Reiner, a suspect in this case,” he said, calling the deaths “a very tragic incident”.

Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner apparently died of stab wounds, US media reported.

The Los Angeles Fire Department said a 78-year-old man and a 68-year-old woman were found dead inside a property in the Brentwood neighbourhood, without identifying the victims. Other officials confirmed the victims were Reiner and his wife.

Nick Reiner has spoken publicly of his struggles with addiction after he had cycled in and out of treatment facilities by the age of 18, with periods of homelessness and relapses in between.

Reiner and his son explored their difficult relationship and Nick Reiner’s struggles with heroin addiction and homelessness in a 2016 film called Being Charlie, which they co-wrote.

Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene referred to Nick Reiner’s “drug addiction and other issues” in a statement on X.

“This is a family tragedy, not about politics or political enemies,” Ms Taylor Greene said.

“Many families deal with a family member with drug addiction and mental health issues. It’s incredibly difficult and should be met with empathy especially when it ends in murder.”

Reiner was a celebrated director whose work included some of the most memorable movies of the 1980s and ’90s.

He directed such classics as This Is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men and Stand By Me.

He also acted, starring in Sleepless In Seattle and The Wolf Of Wall Street among others. His most recent high-profile work was a recurring guest role in the hit show The Bear.

He met Michele Singer in 1989, while directing When Harry Met Sally. They have three children together.

Michele used to work as a photographer and took the photo of Donald Trump that appears on the cover of his book Trump: The Art Of The Deal.

Former US president Barack Obama has led the tributes. He wrote on X that “Michelle and I are heartbroken by the tragic passing of Rob Reiner and his beloved wife, Michele. Rob’s achievements in film and television gave us some of our most cherished stories on screen.”

Harry Shearer, who collaborated with Reiner on This Is Spinal Tap, said in a statement: “Rob was a friend and collaborator through much of my life. He was funny, he was smart, he was a mensch.”

He said Reiner’s wife Michele was a “very good friend” to his own wife, Judith, adding: “This is unspeakable, the stuff of Greek tragedy.”

Christopher Guest, who starred in Reiner’s films This Is Spinal Tap and The Princess Bride, and his wife Jamie Lee Curtis said in a joint statement that they were “numb and sad and shocked about the violent, tragic deaths of our dear friends Rob and Michelle Singer Reiner”.

The couple said: “There will be plenty of time later to discuss the creative lives we shared and the great political and social impact they both had on the entertainment industry, early childhood development, the fight for gay marriage and their global care for a world in crisis. We have lost great friends. Please give us time to grieve.”

Read more: Reiner spoke to Eric Idle about future before death

Reiner was a champion of liberal causes and a political activist.

In the 2004 presidential election, he backed Democratic candidate John Kerry and featured in advertisements taking aim at incumbent President George W Bush.

Reiner also supported Democratic presidential hopefuls Al Gore and Hillary Clinton.

“This is a devastating loss for our city and our country. Rob Reiner’s contributions reverberate throughout American culture and society, and he has improved countless lives through his creative work and advocacy fighting for social and economic justice,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said.

California governor Gavin Newsom paid tribute to Reiner’s activism as he said he was “heartbroken” over the director’s death.

“Rob was a passionate advocate for children and for civil rights – from taking on Big Tobacco, fighting for marriage equality, to serving as a powerful voice in early education,” Mr Newsom said in a statement.

“He made California a better place through his good works. Rob will be remembered for his remarkable filmography and for his extraordinary contribution to humanity.”

Read more from Sky News:
Four charged with California bomb plot
Australian PM reveals details about Bondi killers

Former House speaker, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, said: “Personally, Rob cared deeply about people and demonstrated that in his civic activities – whether by supporting the First 5 initiative or fighting against Prop 8 in California.

“Civically, he was a champion for the First Amendment and the creative rights of artists. And professionally, he was an iconic figure in film who made us laugh, cry and think with the movies he created.”

Four people have been charged with plotting New Year’s Eve bomb attacks in California.

Federal authorities in the US said the four are allegedly part of an extremist group which is suspected of planning the attacks in southern California.

The plot consisted of planting explosive devices at five locations targeting two US companies at midnight on New Year’s Eve in the Los Angeles area.

The suspects were arrested last week in Lucerne Valley, a desert city east of Los Angeles.

They are said to be members of an offshoot of a pro-Palestinian, anti-government and anti-capitalist group dubbed the Turtle Island Liberation Front, the complaint said.

As well as the alleged plan against the two companies, the group also planned to target Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and vehicles, attorney general Pam Bondi said.

The four defendants named in the complaint are Audrey Illeene Carroll, Zachary Aaron Page, Dante Gaffield, and Tina Lai.

All four are from the Los Angeles area, according to first assistant US attorney Bill Essayli.

The alleged plot

According to a sworn statement by the complaint, Carroll showed an eight-page handwritten document to a paid confidential source in November, which described a bomb plot.

The document was titled “Operation Midnight”.

Essayli said one of the suspects created a detailed plan that “included step-by-step instructions to build IEDs (improvised explosive device)… and listed multiple targets across Orange County and Los Angeles.”

Carroll and Page are then alleged to have recruited the other two defendants to help them carry out the plan which included acquiring bomb-making materials before constructing and performing test detonations.

Under the plan, the defendants would supposedly have travelled to a remote location in the Mojave Desert on the 12 December to construct and detonate their test explosive devices, the sworn statement alleges.

Evidence photos included in the court documents show a desert campsite with what investigators said were bomb-making materials strewn across plastic folding tables.

The FBI said agents intervened before the defendants could complete their work to assemble a functional explosive device.

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Fortescue has taken the wraps off a prototype of its proposed “Infinity Train” electric locomotive, making the 1,100 km (about 685 miles) trip from Perth to the Pilbara and marking a major milestone in the decarbonization of the company’s heavy haul operations.

UPDATE 15DEC2025: now there are two!

This week, two of Fortescue battery-electric locomotives began operating at the company’s Pilbara mines in Australia, where the so-called Infinity Trains (co-developed with Caterpillar’s Progress Rail division) began regular duty.

“It’s not every day you welcome not just one, but two of the world’s largest battery-electric locomotives into your operations,” said Fortescue Metals CEO, Dino Otranto, on LinkedIn. “[I] can’t wait to see these in motion soon!”

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The two new trains are now fully operational assets, packing almost unimaginably massive 14.5 MWh battery packs that were charged once with grid power upon deployment, and which will (in theory) remain at a usable state of charge indefinitely thanks to a cleverly applied combination of gravity, regenerative braking, and human intelligence.

You can read the original article about the Infinity Train prototype completing its first 1,100 km (~685 miles) trip across the Pilbara, below, then let us know what you think of Fortescue’s latest fuel-saving efforts in the comments section at the bottom of the page.

Co-developed with the locomotive experts at Downer Group, Fortescue revealed its concept for a battery electric “Infinity Train” back in March of 2022. At the time, the company promised a “world’s first” iron ore train capable of fully charging its batteries through regenerative braking. The two companies claimed the clever technology would create a self-sustaining, zero-emission rail system powered entirely by the force of gravity during the train’s loaded downhill travels.

This week, the concept went from the drawing board to the real world, completing an 1,100 km trip across Australia and proving itself to be up to the task of handling the grueling demands of Fortescue’s massive mining operations.

“We’re thrilled to see our battery electric locomotive prototype arrive in the Pilbara,” said Ellie Coates, CEO of Fortescue Zero. She added that the achievement, using zero fossil fuels, “represent(s) a major step in Fortescue’s journey to Real Zero.”

That change alone would eliminate about 11% of Scope 1 emissions annually for Fortescue all on its own, putting it well on its way to its stated goal of achieving “Real Zero” emissions-free operations.

Electrek’s Take

Using gravity to charge up heavily-laden mining vehicles on downhill runs is an idea that’s been put into practice for years, with great success wherever the topography allows (since 2017, at least). Combining that clever use of gravity, traction braking, and battery storage for use on a rail system like this just seems smart, and it makes me think we’re just scratching the surface of all the clever ways electrification and battery storage will eventually get put to use.

I wonder what would happen if you threw some battery electric rail cars into the mix, as well!? You guys are smart, head down to the comments and let me know (and, while you’re there, help me check ChatGPT’s math on those carbon emissions).

SOURCE | IMAGES: Fortescue, via LinkedIn.

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