A SUSPECT HAS been arrested in connection with bombings in New York and New Jersey.

A suspect in the bombings in New Jersey and New York is in custody after a shootout with police. Ahman Khan Rahami was shot in Linden, N.J. and has been hospitalized. Two police officers were shot in the melee, neither of them injured seriously. Twenty-nine people were injured in an incident in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City on Saturday. A garbage can exploded on Saturday in Seaside Park in New Jersey and a backpack in Elizabeth, N.J, blew up while a robot bomb-defuser was attempting to disarm the bombs within.

PROSECUTOR: CHRISTE KNEW ABOUT “BRIDGEGATE”

A witness will testify that Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey knew of a plan to close traffic lanes near the George Washington Bridge, a federal prosecutor said Monday. According to the Associated Press, U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna told a jury that David Wildstein, an official with the Port Authority, told Christie about the plan. Democrats say the closures were payback to some mayors for refusing to support Christie politically; Republicans reply that Wildstein is an “habitual liar.” Christie is not on trial, but three other officials are.

BEER PRICES SKYROCKET IN VENEZUELA

On the verge of collapse due to political paralysis and plunging oil prices, citizens of the South American nation of Venezuela have one more reason to be sad. According to United Press International, the price of beer has tripled in that nation. Production costs have increased by 6,500 percent, and sales are down by 70 to 80 percent, announced the National Federation of Distillers. A lack of resources and a 50 percent increase in the minimum wage are blamed.

ONE-FIFTH OF CALIFORNIANS ARE POOR

U.S. Census Bureau data released this month show that over 20 percent of Californians are living below the poverty level. The New York Times is reporting that almost eight million people are poor, most of them in the agricultural areas in the central and eastern parts of the state. The high cost of living in the Golden State is considered a key factor. By contrast, California has more billionaires than any nation in the world, except for the U.S. and China.

The Midday Update is posted weekdays as staff time permits.