True Detective

Larry Negron, 32, of Colonial Drive was charged with possession of cocaine and possession of more than 5 ounces of cocaine with intent to distribute.

Thursday, 20 November 2008

Larry Negron, 32, of Colonial Drive was charged with possession of cocaine and possession of more than 5 ounces of cocaine with intent to distribute, according to authorities. He was lodged in the Ocean County Jail in Toms River in lieu of $100,000 bail, set by Superior Court Judge Barbara Ann Villano.Paris Acguirre, 27, also of Colonial Drive, also was charged with possession of less than a half-ounce of cocaine. His bail was set at $20,000 by Municipal Court Judge Scott Basen.Authorities said they executed a search warrant at a Chestnut Street property in Lakewood, a commercial automobile accessory shop known as 2 NT Stage and operated by Negron. A second search warrant executed at Negron's home resulted in the seizure of approximately 300 grams of cocaine with a street value of $30,000. In addition to the drugs, police reported they seized approximately $31,000 in cash.Police said they also searched a Chevrolet S10 pickup truck occupied by Maximinio Madrigada and Julio Magana-Estrada, both of Lakewood, and seized a kilogram of cocaine with a street value of approximately $100,000 as well as $2,000 in cash.Madrigada, 34, of Elm Street, was charged with possession of cocaine and possession of more than 5 ounces of cocaine with intent to distribute. His bail has been set at $150,000, police said.Magana-Estrada, 18, also of Elm Street, was charged with possession of cocaine and possession of more than 5 ounces of cocaine with intent to distribute. His bail has been set at $150,000, police said.A search warrant also was executed at the home of Enrique Miguel-Ascencio, 42, of Mountain View Drive. The search resulted in the seizure of $74,000 in cash, less than a half-ounce of cocaine, three semiautomatic handguns and a revolver. A digital scale also was seized, authorities said.Miguel-Ascencio was charged with possession of cocaine and possession of drug paraphernalia. His bail was set at $50,000, police said.The investigation took about two months, county authorities reported. It is continuing, and more arrests are expected, they said.

Joanne Pellew faces losing about $1.4 million in assets after being convicted of a serious drug offence.

Kooey fashion designer Joanne Pellew faces losing about $1.4 million in assets after being convicted of a serious drug offence.Pellew and her husband Ramli Hajinoor were found guilty of conspiring to sell or supply cannabis after their District Court trial last month.The couple's defence counsel David Moen's will now have to prove to the court their assets were not acquired with funds gained from the sale of cannabis.
The pair's sentencing hearing was adjourned this afternoon until mid December, to allow Mr Moen time to produce evidence to the court that legally-obtained funds were used in the purchase or repayment of loans for the property.Mr Moen said the court should consider the value of the property which will be confiscated from the couple in its sentencing.The court was told the couple owns two properties worth more than $1.3 million and other assets totalling $20,000.Mr Moen said Pellew would also lose her 49 per cent stake in Kooey, her glamourous swimwear label, because of her conviction."She will inevitably have to resign as director of the company - she will lose that interest," he said."It's always been a life ambition of her [to advance that]... it's a positive dream and it's a shame it will come to an end in a short space of time."The couple were remanded in custody to appear for sentencing on December 12.

UN gang leader Clay Roueche has been held in segregation near Seattle since his arrest last May on international drug-trafficking charges

UN gang leader Clay Roueche has been held in segregation near Seattle since his arrest last May on international drug-trafficking charges. His lawyer wants a judge to allow the Fraser Valley native into the general prison population pending his trial in January.
Roueche starting buying his cocaine directly from South America after more than 200 kilos and $750,000 cash were seized in the U.S., according to court documents filed Wednesday.In one bugged telephone call, Roueche agreed to "test the water" of a new cocaine route by smuggling more than 50 kilos and said he had a "bunch in Venezuela I've already paid for," the documents say.But the U.S. Attorney says Roueche is far too dangerous and could retaliate against other inmates who are cooperating with the government in the criminal case."Because of Roueche's leadership position in the UN gang, his previous use of another inmate's phone, his gang's violent tendencies toward those who might testify against other gang members and the necessity to separate him from a number of cooperators and co-defendants in the general population, administrators at the Federal Detention Centre made the decision to house the defendant at the Special Housing Unit," says the U.S. Attorney's response to Roueche's motion for free-range status.A major issue is how Roueche behaved in jail when he was briefly held in Oklahoma last May before being sent to the SeaTac Federal Detention Centre, making several illegal calls or getting other inmates to do it for him, the U.S. Attorney said."Oklahoma prison officials realized that he was speaking in code on the phone so denied him phone privileges," the documents say. "At the SeaTac FDC, the defendant convinced another inmate to let him use that inmate's telephone call number."Canadian and U.S. law enforcement agencies have been following Roueche and his UN underlings since 2005 as part of a massive cross-border investigation, the documents say."Working together, the agencies have found evidence of nearly two dozen cocaine exporting trips from the U.S. into Canada and the seizure of three separate cocaine loads," the U.S. Attorney said, adding that 2,000 pounds of B.C. bud was also seized."Clay Roueche is the operational leader as well as the public face of the UN gang. ... Its operations, mostly importing and distributing marijuana, have spread east across Canada to Toronto, Hamilton and Montreal. Working in cells, the organization has become powerful and violent in Canada."The U.S. Attorney also cited information from the B.C. agency investigating the UN, the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit."In 2007, after a series of shootings in Chilliwack, Roueche's vehicle was stopped and found to contain a sophisticated hidden compartment in the centre console of the passenger area. That centre console was full of handguns, including an illegal and loaded pistol, several clips from a Sig firearm and a photograph of rival gang members," the documents say.
"CFSEU has surveilled Roueche consistently for the past few years and found that he routinely has armed body guards. One associate ... was found to have a hidden compartment in his car with a loaded handgun and oversized magazines. This gun was registered to a law enforcement agency in the United States."
Roueche's application to get out of segregation has not yet been heard by a judge.The Canadian's lawyer argues that Roueche's ongoing segregation amounts to "cruel and unusual punishment.""He is housed in his cell 23 hours a day. The only time he is allowed out is for one hour each morning at 6 a.m. Other than that, my client is completely isolated, except for visitation by legal counsel or family, who reside in British Columbia, Ca

Mafia leader Mahmut Yıldırım was killed years ago, though there are many people who think he is still alive

Tuesday, 18 November 2008

Sacit Kayasu, a former prosecutor who was permanently disbarred, has claimed that a mafia leader known as Yeşil (Green) was killed years ago, contrary to popular belief that he is still alive.Kayasu, who was fired and disbarred after seeking the indictment of former Gen. Kenan Evren -- the leader of the Sept. 12, 1980, military coup -- asserted that Yeşil, which is the nom de guerre of famous mafia leader Mahmut Yıldırım, was killed years ago, though there are many people who think he is still alive. "I received a notice in September of 1998 that a corpse was found in western İzmir's Ödemiş district," Kayasu said. "There were nine bullet holes in the body. The eyes were gouged out. When we carried out an analysis on the dental prosthesis of the victim, we saw that it was Mahmut Yıldırım."Kayasu said Yıldırım was killed five or six days before his body was found. "His fingers and toes were skinned so as to preclude identification. On his corpse was mud from Ödemiş. I believe he was killed somewhere else but left on a roadside in Ödemiş. His murder was a professional one," he said. "There were no bullets in the corpse. They were professionally removed." He also claimed that some people don't want Yeşil's murder to be known so that they can blame him for crimes. "There are people in İzmir and Adana who are engaged in illegal acts under Yeşil's name. But Yeşil was Yıldırım, and he was killed several years ago," Kayasu said.
The former prosecutor also said Yıldırım's murder was verified by the mafia leader's close friend, whom Kayasu identified as a man from the southeastern city of Mardin. "I received several phone calls from this man. He said Yıldırım was killed after being interrogated somewhere outside of Ödemiş. He had the video cassette of his interrogation. He was to send the cassette to me, but I haven't heard from him for a long time. He may have been killed, too," Kayasu said.
He said he was not allowed to conclude the investigation into Yıldırım's death and was appointed to the public prosecutor's office in Adana. "I asked the forensics department in İzmir to carry out a DNA analysis on Yıldırım's body, but the corpse mysteriously went missing," he said. "We don't know where it is now." Kayasu stated that a recent verdict by the European Court of Human Rights has paved the path for prosecutors to file cases against generals. The court unanimously held last week that that there had been a violation of freedom of expression and of the right to appropriate punishment for Kayasu, who was removed from his job because he filed a court case against Evren, the coup leader. According to verdict, the Turkish government has to pay Kayasu 40,000 euros. "The Supreme Board of Prosecutors and Judges [HSYK] or the Ministry of Justice will not prevent prosecutors from seeking the indictment of generals. The European Court of Human Rights has prevented it," he said. "This is a plus for Turkey. Prosecutors will not be disbarred for filing cases against generals." Kayasu also said individuals, be they civilians or members of the military, should be tried if they stage coups. "Coup planners and stagers are tried around the world," he said. "Coups are crimes committed against democracy and human rights."

Yaakov Alperon, known as “Don Alperon”, said to run Tel Aviv’s third largest crime family.One of the leading figures in Israel’s mafia

Israeli ‘Mafia’ Boss Assassinated.Don Alperon was said to run Tel Aviv’s third largest crime family.One of the leading figures in Israel’s mafia-style organised crime gangs has been assassinated in a car bomb attack.
Yaakov Alperon, known as “Don Alperon”, was driving his saloon car through a northern suburb of Tel Aviv when the vehicle was torn apart by a huge blast.Two bystanders were also slightly injured in the explosion, one a 13-year-old boy waiting at a bus stop.The attack has raised concerns that an Israeli mob war could be about to spin out of control.Little was left of the car after the explosion, which was apparently set off by remote control just before midday.Don Alperon’s body was seen slumped over the steering wheel.A police spokesman said, with understatement, that the security forces were now assessing the situation to see what would develop in Tel Aviv.This is the latest and most serious attack in an Israeli mob war which some fear may once again be coming to the boil.That is worrying because of the lack of concern shown by the mobsters for civilian casualties.Anti-tank missiles, grenades and bombs have all been used in Israeli mob hits.In one failed attempt to kill a rival gang leader in 2003, three people died when a bomb explosion hit a passing bus.In another attack, a whole building was destroyed while the intended target, another mafia leader, walked away.
Don Alperon was a flamboyant figure known for dating famous and beautiful women from Israeli show-business.He was said to run Tel Aviv’s third-largest crime family.If Tel Aviv is in for another period of bloody rivalry between the city’s mafia gangs, residents will want to know if the police are capable of stopping it.The Israeli underworld is built around gangs run by the once poor sons of Middle Eastern Jewish, or Mizrahi, immigrant families: the Alperons, Abutbuls, Abergils, and others who have become household names in this country because of unflagging media attention. When Alperon was blown up, a TV crew a few blocks away was filming an episode of "The Arbitrator," a fictional series based on the nation's mafia.The largely Mizrahi crime families do most of their business in drugs, gambling, and extortion, with prostitution having been taken over by wayward immigrants from the former Soviet Union. Israeli Arabs have their own violent gangs known mainly for selling drugs and stolen weapons. Although ethnic separatism is the rule in Israeli organized crime, the lure of large, illicit profits can at times bring people of different backgrounds together.The mafia capital is Tel Aviv, but the gangs also operate in Jerusalem, Netanya, Bat Yam, Lod, and other cities, as well as in the prisons. They've gotten too big for police to control.The greatest obstacle for law enforcement is getting witnesses to testify; no wonder, since witnesses against Israeli mafia figures put their lives at risk. A couple of years ago, a prisoner due to testify against a crime boss was poisoned in his cell. A U.S.-style witness protection program is supposedly in the works to relocate such brave souls and give them new identities, but nothing has come of it.
Yaakov Alperon now joins Felix Abutbul, Yaakov Abergil, Yehezkel Aslan, Gad Plum, and other reputed Israeli mob legends who were murdered, presumably by rivals. Yet, their killers are rarely brought to justice for want of witnesses and evidence.
While the public doesn't grieve over the slain gangsters, the "collateral damage" is causing a growing outcry. The bombing of Alperon's car put a driver and schoolboy nearby in the hospital with minor injuries; in past mafia hits, innocent bystanders have been killed.After Alperon's murder, his wife, Ahuva, was on the TV news sobbing while his ex-convict brother Zalman, wearing a black yarmulke, swore that the family "was leaving revenge in God's hands." In times of crisis, Israeli mafia families typically turn to public displays of piety; a familiar scene on the evening news is of an accused gangster appearing in court in handcuffs and a yarmulke.
Yaakov Alperon came from modest beginnings. He was one of 12 children who lived with their Egyptian immigrant parents in a two-room apartment in a dusty little town near Tel Aviv. He took up boxing, then put his fists to use on the streets and, soon, in prison. He was suspected of murdering rivals in and out of jail, but police could never prove it.Alperon, his brothers, and his henchmen brawled repeatedly with rival families; he made legions of enemies. One of them most likely activated the bomb that left him sprawled dead in a blasted, burning sedan in the middle of northern Tel Aviv. Now another score waits to be settled.

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Eight years and six months for House Jacking Gang in Alicante

Two members of the violent gang this week began jail sentences of eight years and six months each after admitting armed robbery and kidnap in a plea bargain deal.A third was sentenced to a year and a half in prison by a court in Alicante after being convicted as an accomplice.Two men involved in the April 22 2004 kidnap are still on the run.Mr and Mrs Yarwood were playing cards as they relaxed after dinner at their home in Moraira on Spain's southeastern coast when the gang burst in.The couple were threatened with pistols and a knife and told they would be killed unless they paid 600,000 euros - the equivalent of £400,000 at the time of crime. The pair, from Frodsham, Cheshire, were terrorised overnight and the following morning, Mr Yarwood, 72, a retired electrician was driven to the local bank and told to withdraw all the money in his account.But he wrote a note on the back of a cheque begging for help and the bank manager alerted police who called in a specially-trained kidnap response unit.Speaking of their ordeal at the hands of their Romanian and Spanish kidnappers, Mrs Yarwood who ran a guest house in Cheshire for 27 years, said afterwards: "They terrorised us all night, constantly pointing the guns at us and cocking them."When my husband tried to escape out of the back door they punched him in the face and kicked him repeatedly."I was convinced we were going to die.Her husband added: "I was praying the bank would try and help and I wrote a note on the back of a cheque saying, 'Please give me the money because someone has kidnapped my wife."The gang leader kept saying that if he didn't see the money by the following day I would never see Pat again."

Manjit Dhanoa, 31, Harvishal Kler, 23 and Bakshish Ghai, were part of an international gang involved in bringing heroin into Canada.

Monday, 17 November 2008

Manjit Dhanoa, 31, Harvishal Kler, 23 and Bakshish Ghai, were part of an international gang involved in bringing heroin into Canada. Dhanoa, who is alleged to be the ring leader of the drug gang, is absconding and a Canada-wide warrant for his arrest.After an extensive probe, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) investigation unit at Toronto's Pearson International Airport cracked the gang network last week.Intensive investigations got underway after Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers at Toronto airport arrested couriers with 12.8 kg of heroin.Revealing the modus operandi of the drug gang, police on Friday said that the Indo-Canadian men are allegedly part of a criminal organisation that uses human couriers to smuggle heroin through Toronto's airport.The drug was then distributed throughout North America.According to police, the three men used to recruit couriers and arrange their travel to a number of South Asian countries to pick up heroin from their contacts there. "This group stood to make a significant profit at great expense to the health and well being of our citizens," the RCMP said in a statement.
"It takes the kind of partnerships seen in this investigation to effectively combat criminal enterprise and protect our communities," it added.

Samantha Ann Morgan pleaded guilty in September to possession of cocaine.

Samantha Ann Morgan pleaded guilty in September to possession of cocaine. She must do 120 hours of community service and will be under house arrest for the next 90 days with a curfew of 11 p.m, according to a plea bargain accepted Wednesday by state District Judge Ken Anderson.
District Attorney John Bradley said the plea deal offered was standard for someone with a first felony offense, the Austin American-Statesman reported Thursday in its online edition.According to an affidavit, the cocaine was discovered during a strip search at the Williamson County Jail after she was arrested on June 18 following a traffic stop involving a vehicle in which she was riding. When an officer tried to arrest her, Morgan kicked the officer and ran, the affidavit says.

Cesar Lares-Torres pleaded guilty to one count of dealing cocaine

Cesar Lares-Torres pleaded guilty to one count of dealing cocaine, and he will not face a count of conspiracy drug dealing, said Lares-Torres' lawyer, James D. Tunick. Lares-Torres will also forfeit $66,700 and a 2003 Honda Accord listed in the indictment.Lares-Torres faces as many as 20 years in prison.Lares-Torres, a Mexican national, was arrested by Lake County drug interdiction police on Interstate 65 near Lowell. Officers said they found about $65,000 in cash during that stop.Lares-Torres has been jailed since April, when Magistrate Judge Andrew Rodovich ruled he was a flight riskThe affidavit against Lares-Torres says information on the amount of cocaine he sold came from two confidential informants who witnessed drug sales.
A judge still must accept the plea agreement, but Tunick predicted no problems with the agreement's acceptance. No sentencing date was set Wednesday, Tunick said.

Timothy S. Saunders, 44, of 22nd Street, was arrested Jan. 9 by Niagara Falls police, who reported finding more than 3 ounces of cocaine

Timothy S. Saunders, 44, of 22nd Street, was arrested Jan. 9 by Niagara Falls police, who reported finding more than 3 ounces of cocaine in his car on South Avenue. His sentencing date is Feb. 20.

Qadree M. Fields, 25, of Eighth Street, was arrested March 18 in Niagara Falls with 1.58 grams of cocaine in his vehicle. He is to be sentenced Jan. 1

Qadree M. Fields, 25, of Eighth Street, was arrested March 18 in Niagara Falls with 1.58 grams of cocaine in his vehicle. He is to be sentenced Jan. 13.

Kalu Oleka Ude, 43, of Rue de Begeqk, Lome, Togo, was arrested by UK Border Agency (UKBA) officers

Kalu Oleka Ude, 43, of Rue de Begeqk, Lome, Togo, was arrested by UK Border Agency (UKBA) officers when he arrived on a flight from Gambia last Tuesday, an HMRC spokesman said.A search found the drugs, which could have fetched up to £150,000 on the streets once "cut" by dealers, the agency said.Oleka Ude has been remanded in custody at Manchester City Magistrates' Court.Peter Hollier, of the HMRC, said: "Working with our colleagues in the UKBA we will take every action to detect, seize and bring those smuggling drugs into the country before the courts."

Gary Eugene Yates Jr., 22, of the 100 block of North Franklin Street, and Conway J. Evans, 27, Philadelphia, each were convicted of intent to deliver

Gary Eugene Yates Jr., 22, of the 100 block of North Franklin Street, and Conway J. Evans, 27, of Lindburg Boulevard, Philadelphia, each were convicted Wednesday of charges of possession with intent to deliver cocaine and conspiracy to possess cocaine with the intent to deliver it after a three-day jury trial in Montgomery County Court.The charges stemmed from a cocaine cooking and packaging operation that Pottstown police dismantled at the North Franklin Street apartment on May 26, 2006. Prosecutors alleged Evans supplied the cocaine and assisted with cooking it while Yates helped cook it and prepare it for street sale."Conway Evans was very high on the food chain of drug dealers. He was a supplier to drug dealers," said Assistant District Attorney Nathan Schadler. "This verdict today cut off several drug houses from their supplier."

Marcus D. Nelson was sentenced Wednesday to 16 years in prison for conspiracy and attempted possession with intent to distribute cocaine.

Marcus D. Nelson was sentenced Wednesday to 16 years in prison for conspiracy and attempted possession with intent to distribute cocaine.Forty-two-year-old Renee Garcia was sentenced to seven years on the same charges.Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Cooper says Nelson, Garcia and others cooperated in receiving cocaine shipped from California to be resold in the Fairbanks area.U.S. District Court Judge Ralph Beistline says Nelson's previous criminal record was considered in his lengthy sentence.

Merilyn Bouler died in a two-car crash , she had cocaine in her coat pocket

Merilyn Bouler died in a two-car crash here Friday night, she had cocaine in her coat pocket, police said Wednesday.Bouler, 39, an English teacher at Pierce Middle School in Merrillville, was being treated at The Methodist Hospitals emergency room in Gary when the cocaine was discovered.She died from blunt force trauma shortly after her car was hit broadside then slammed into a house at 19th Avenue and Taft Street about 11:30 p.m.Police described the amount of cocaine as small, "for personal use," and declined to elaborate further. The drug was confiscated by police, but the total weight was not released Wednesday.Results of her toxicology report won't be available for several more days, Lake County Coroner David Pastrick said.Bouler's son, Jonte Barber, 9, died in the crash, while her older son, Markel Evans, 11, was critically injured. The other driver, Felix Ross, was arrested for drunken driving after police obtained a .14 percent blood alcohol level. The standard for drunken driving in Indiana is .08 percent.Traffic investigators said they learned Ross was driving east and ran a red light as he crossed Taft Street at 19th Avenue. But Ross has told some people he had the right of way when he entered the intersection.The cars hit a traffic signal before Bouler's car crashed into the house. Firefighters had to cut occupants from the car before they could be treated for injuries.Co-workers, friends and students described Bouler as dedicated and faithful during memorials at her church and school this week.Funeral services for Bouler and her son are set for 11 a.m. Saturday at St. John Baptist Church, 2457 Massachusetts St.

William Parrot, 26, was being held on $55,000 bond today after a routine check by probation officials turned up cocaine and a loaded handgun

William Parrot, 26, was being held on $55,000 bond today after a routine check by probation officials turned up cocaine and a loaded handgun at his home, authorities said.Parrott, who was convicted in Marion County earlier this year, was taken into custody after police and probation officials conducted a routine check at his new Carmel-area residence in the 9600 block of Copley Drive."The sad part is it's this kind of case that undermines the rehabilitation opportunities that community corrections can provide," said Hamilton County Administrative Chief Deputy Prosecutor Jeff Wehmueller."It can really help some people . . . but not this defendant."Parrott, a former Indianapolis resident who had been charged with dealing cocaine as a class A felony, received a nine-year sentence in March, with all but one year suspended, after pleading guilty to the charge as a class B felony.
Wehmueller said Parrott was serving his year of community corrections punishment and was on home detention when Marion County police and probation officials accompanied by a Hamilton County sheriff's deputy made an unannounced visit to his home.
"They searched his 4-year-old son's room and found a handgun tucked in the pillow case on top of his son's bunk bed," said the prosecutor. "It was loaded with a magazine and had a live round in the chamber."Wehmueller said the search also turned up a fake driver's license bearing Parrott's photo and another man's name, and more than three grams of cocaine in a trash bag."We're prosecuting him," said Wehmueller, who acknowledged that Marion County authorities could also send Parrott to prison for failing to comply with terms of his sentence. "What Marion County chooses to do or not do with him is not our place to say."Parrott was scheduled for an initial court hearing in Hamilton County today on charges of possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, possession of cocaine, identity deception and possession of false government identification.Wehmueller said he would also ask for a 15-day hold to allow Marion County probation authorities to initiate action that would keep him in jail pending prosecution.

Jonathan Craig Burgoyne consented to be tried in Supreme Court

Jonathan Craig Burgoyne, 29, consented to be tried in Supreme Court during a short preliminary hearing in Truro provincial court Friday.He is charged with trafficking in ecstasy in North River on Aug. 16, 2007.Mr. Burgoyne is also facing trials and a sentencing on a number of other drug-related charges, and according to police, stands to lose $310,000 in properties, vehicles and other assets seized during a proceeds-of-crime investigation that wrapped up recently.RCMP say that investigation began in the fall of 2007 after Mr. Burgoyne and brothers Curtis and Christopher Lynds were arrested and charged with numerous drug trafficking offences following a lengthy undercover police investigation.Police say Mr. Burgoyne faces 20 counts of possession of proceeds of crime and one of money laundering and will make his first court appearance on those charges in Truro Jan. 7. Six other people face similar charges, including the Lynds brothers, who are currently serving federal prison terms for drug trafficking convictions.Mr. Burgoyne was already convicted on one charge of trafficking cocaine in Supreme Court on Oct. 15 and will be sentenced Dec. 15. That offence occurred July 12, 2007, in East Mountain.Other charges, including possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking and charges involving illegal tobacco, are also before the courts.

Lillo Brancato Jr. 32, Brancato faces charges of second-degree murder and other crimes in the 2005 killing of police Officer Daniel Enchautegui.

Lillo Brancato Jr. 32, Brancato faces charges of second-degree murder and other crimes in the 2005 killing of police Officer Daniel Enchautegui. Jury selection for his trial begins Monday.Brancato's real-life troubles began not long after he befriended Steven Armento, a reputed low-level Genovese crime family associate banished for drug addiction, prosecutors say. Then his life went into a tailspin with a pair of drug-related arrests and the death of Enchautegui.
Brancato drove himself and Armento to the home of Enchautegui's next-door neighbor and the pair broke in to steal prescription drugs, prosecutors said. When they were confronted by Enchautegui, who was off duty, Armento shot the officer. Brancato and Armento were both wounded.Armento, 48, was convicted of first-degree murder Oct. 30 and was sentenced last week to life in prison without parole.Brancato's attorney, Joseph Tacopina, said his client's case is very different."Lillo didn't have a gun. Nor did he know anyone had a gun. Lillo was shot. Lillo wasn't burglarizing anyone's home," he said.Family and friends of Brancato have said he was a good guy with a drug problem who was in the wrong place at the wrong time."He obviously had problems he kept well hidden, but that doesn't mean he should be held accountable for the actions of the man he was with, especially if that man was under the influence," former "Sopranos" castmate Chris Tardio wrote in an e-mail.Brancato was discovered at age 15 at Jones Beach on a summer day by the casting director of "A Bronx Tale," directed by co-star De Niro.He worked consistently through his teenage years with small roles in "Crimson Tide," and "Enemy of the State," but he never became a huge star. He appeared in half a dozen episodes of "The Sopranos" as soldier Matt Bevilaqua in 2000; his character was killed off in the mob hit's second season.
Along the way, Brancato had befriended Armento while dating one of his twin daughters.In December 2005, prosecutors said, the actor and the older man decided while drinking at a strip club to break into the basement apartment in a hunt for Valium.Armento, who had a lengthy rap sheet dating to 1979 that included convictions for possession of stolen property and attempted burglary, was armed with a .357-caliber handgun.Enchautegui, who had just finished a late-night shift, heard glass breaking next door. He alerted his landlord, dialed 911 to report a possible burglary in progress, then grabbed his badge and a gun and went outside to investigate.Enchautegui shouted "Police! Don't move!" Shots were fired. Enchautegui was struck once in the chest. Armento was hit six times. Brancato, who was unarmed, was shot twice.Jurors in Armento's trial rejected prosecution arguments that he knew Enchautegui was a police officer, declining to convict him of first-degree murder of an officer. He was instead found guilty of first-degree murder while committing a felony.Brancato's attorney says he's not criminally responsible for the shooting.
"We're looking forward, after three long years, for Lillo to get his day in court," Tacopina said. "It's a tragic case, it's tragic in a lot of ways. But that doesn't mean he's behind the crime."Tardio wrote of the slain officer: "One life was already ruined. The jury will have the power to prevent that of another."

Laredo North station cocaine with a total weight of 259.2 pounds and an estimated street value of $8.3 million siezed

Sunday, 16 November 2008

Border Patrol agents from the Laredo North station disrupted an attempt to smuggle cocaine this morning. Agents patrolling in Laredo became suspicious of a small white Chevrolet cargo van and attempted to stop the vehicle by activating the emergency lights on their marked patrol vehicle. The driver of the van did not stop. The agents followed the van at a safe distance but stopped following it when the van entered a school zone. A few minutes later the agents saw the van parked near an empty lot at the intersection of Garza and San Bernardo streets. Agents checked the van and saw no one inside or in the area immediately around the vehicle. Inside the van they found five cellophane-wrapped bundles. The bundles contained cocaine with a total weight of 259.2 pounds and an estimated street value of $8.3 million. The cocaine and the van were turned over to the Drug Enforcement Administration

Carmine Carini is back in jail, awaiting trial in a string of robberies

Carmine Carini is back in jail, awaiting trial in a string of robberies.
Federal prosecutors say the 49-year-old Brooklyn man was free for less than a year before running into trouble.A judge ordered him held without bail Friday. He faces charges that he posed as a police officer and then barged into two homes on Staten Island demanding money and drugs, pistol whipping one startled homeowner. He is also charged with robbing an illegal gambling parlor in Brooklyn.
Carini was initially arrested in connection with one of the robberies last month. An accomplice is still at large.Carini served 23 years in prison for a mob-related killing in the 1980s. His conviction was overturned after two Mafia turncoats told investigators they had the wrong man.He was freed in May of 2007 after taking a plea bargain in which he agreed to plead guilty to manslaughter in exchange for a sentence of time served."Approximately one year after this defendant gets out of prison, where he had been for over 20 years, he turns right back to a life of crime and begins committing these robberies," Assistant U.S. Attorney Berit Berger said Friday in court.Carini's attorney, Sanford Talkin, said his client maintains that he is innocent.

Nghia Trong Nguyen-Tran, known as Jackie Tran, did not violate the terms and conditions of his release from immigration detention.

Saturday, 15 November 2008

Nghia Trong Nguyen-Tran, known as Jackie Tran, did not violate the terms and conditions of his release from immigration detention. Tran has been fighting a deportation order but was released Oct. 21 on several conditions, including a curfew between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m. and a $20,000 bond. Police re-arrested Tran Oct. 28., following a probe of an early morning altercation at a party in Kensington more than two weeks ago. Cops alleged Tran violated his curfew when he was seen at the scene of the fight. Tran's friend Shaun Roberts testified police mistook him for his pal.
"There's a direct conflict in the evidence between the testimony of Const. Bertrand identifying (Jackie Tran) as the third occupant of the SUV that morning and the evidence of Shaun Roberts, who testified that he was the third occupant of the vehicle," wrote immigration officer Marc Tessler in an eight-page decision. Const. Scott Bertrand testified he was certain Tran was the man he spoke to while investigating the fight. "Despite of the confidence of the police I prefer the evidence of Mr. Roberts," wrote Tessler in his decision. Tessler indicated there's a semblance between Tran, and Roberts. He noted Bertrand identified Tran as the third man in the SUV from a very small photograph, 40 minutes after he saw Roberts. Tran's girlfriend Dawn Ngo testified she spoke with her boyfriend, who was at his mother's house, on the phone several times that night. She phoned him on a land-line starting at 8:15 p.m. to find him watching TV. Ngo testified Tran had too much to lose, including the $20,000 bonds paid by her family and friends, should he breach.
Tessler found Ngo's testimony to be credible. Tran's recent release is under the same conditions when he was freed last month. Police linked Tran, who came to Canada in 1993 and in 2004 was ordered deported to Vietnam, to a gang involved in at least eight murders after he was convicted of assault with a weapon and trafficking heroin the year before.

Kanye West was reportedly arrested, released early Friday morning (November 14) after an alleged incident involving a photographer outside a nightclub

Kanye West was reportedly arrested and released early Friday morning (November 14) after an alleged incident involving a photographer outside a nightclub in England. According to TMZ.com, West was arrested shortly after getting into a scuffle with a paparazzo outside the Tup Tup club in Newcastle.West, 31, was reportedly arrested at a hotel in nearby Gateshead and then released. While a police spokesperson declined to name the person involved (as is the custom in England) when reached for comment by MTV News on Friday morning, he did confirm that a 31-year-old man was “release with no further action after an alleged incident at the Tup Tup nightclub.”A rep for West had no comment on the incident when reached by MTV News Friday morning.
The London Paper blog reported that the photographer claimed he suffered a cut face and bruising after West pushed his camera into his face and shouted, “Get the f—ing camera off him.” According to TMZ, the photographer had previously made similar claims against a British soccer player, but those charges were also dropped.West, along with his road manager and bodyguard, Don Crowley, was arrested in September for getting into another altercation with a photographer at Los Angeles International Airport.West and Crowley were waiting for a flight to Honolulu, Hawaii, when they were met by a photographer and videographer, who were taking their photos. An altercation ensued, and the cameras of both paparazzi were damaged. The felony vandalism charges stemming from the incident were dropped because the property he damaged wasn’t valuable enough to warrant felony charges.

Gangland kingpin Ashton is currently serving a 22-year sentence.

Friday, 14 November 2008

Gangland kingpin Ashton was one of three men jailed for a total of more than 100 years for their part in gangland terror on Tyneside in 1998.They were caught after a two-year investigation by police who examined incidents going back to 1971.A grim picture emerged of gangland violence on Tyneside, including firearms offences, brutal assaults, drug-dealing, witness intimidation, large-scale benefit fraud and robbery.Ashton was jailed along with Robert Webber, of Stonecrop, Beacon Lough Estate, Gateshead, and Paul Steven Lyons, of Teesside.A gun battle and a bayonet attack were among Ashton and Webber’s attempts to kill former friend, Terence William Mitchell.The violence came to a head in January 1996 when Webber and Ashton, in a car, ambushed their victim as he arrived at a friend’s house.Shots were fired by Ashton and a gunfight broke out. Five loaded firearms were seized from the scene.
In 2004, he was ordered to hand over £209,000 assets made from his drug-dealing business.He was forced to sell six properties to cough up £350,000 of profits from crime, which was finally demanded by the High Court after his assets were frozen.
He is currently serving a 22-year sentence.Paul Ashton’s pensioner mother has joined him behind bars for smuggling heroin to him in jail.And now his mother Margaret Rose Ashton is also serving a sentence.It seemed like a show of motherly love when she made the trip from Tyneside to visit Ashton in York’s Full Sutton prison.But the visit by the granny was the ideal front for a heroin-smuggling racket, using her mouth to stash the class-A drug.And the 65-year-old, of Greenwood Gardens, Felling, Gateshead, has joined her son behind bars after being sentenced to 18 months in jail after admitting her crime.The pensioner was found guilty of attempting to smuggle more than six grammes of heroin into him.Ashton, of Gateshead, whose gangland empire was compared to the Kray twins, was jailed in 1998 for conspiracy to murder, conspiracy to supply class-B drugs, violent disorder and perverting the course of justice.His mother was paying a visit with her 15-year-old grandson and son-in-law when guards caught her with the drugs in May. Hull Crown Court heard two packages containing 6.22 grammes of diamorphine, with a street value of about £340, were discovered on her.She admitted bringing the package in to jail, but said she thought it contained cannabis.

Phillip Quinn was yesterday convicted of supplying pal Michael Neave with crack cocaine during a swoop on drug dealers.

Phillip Quinn was yesterday convicted of supplying pal Michael Neave with crack cocaine during a swoop on drug dealers.Neave called Quinn, 41, and arranged to buy some of the highly addictive drug for a supposed user, who unbeknown to either of them was a undercover policeman.The conversation was recorded on a secret wire and the officer drove to Quinn's home in Sheriff Street, Hartlepool.The policeman watched as Neave and Quinn climbed into a car before Neave returned with a £20 wrap of crack cocaine.Quinn denied selling him the drug and claimed Neave must have had it already or got it from somewhere else.But a jury of eight women and four men at Teesside Crown Court took just over 30 minutes to unanimously find him guilty of the offence.The court earlier heard Neave complained after buying the drug how he had difficulty opening the wrap because of the way it had been tightly tied.
He referred to Quinn as "Philly 50 Knots".The deal took place in Sheriff Street on November 9 last year during Cleveland Police's Operation Beckford and Quinn was arrested when officers searched his house on May 1.Neave, 42, of Waverley Terrace, Hartlepool, who Quinn had known since their schooldays, was sentenced to three years in prison in September.He had admitted 27 counts of supplying Class A drugs, including the crack cocaine sold to Quinn, between September 26 and November 14 last year.Quinn was remanded in custody until he is sentenced on a date still to be fixed.

Liaquet Ali was not the “architect or planner” of the drugs plot which could have brought more than £500,000 worth of skunk cannabis onto the streets.

Liaquet Ali was not the “architect or planner” of the drugs plot which could have brought more than £500,000 worth of skunk cannabis onto the streets.Defence barrister Balbir Singh said 50-year-old Ali was used by others as a “front” in order to secure the lease of the premises they had chosen for the large-scale operation - the former Probation Service office building in Longlands Road, Middlesbrough.
Mr Singh said his client was initially unaware of what the building would be used for until the papers were signed.“He became aware, of course,” said Mr Singh. “But he never, ever visited the Longlands after the cannabis farm was set up.”
His three co-conspirators were sentenced two weeks ago.Organiser Shafiq Aziz, 39, of Fountains Drive, Acklam, was jailed for three years.Damion Clenaghan, 23, of Cobham Street, was given an eight-month prison sentence suspended for two years with 200 hours’ unpaid work for his role as “errand boy”.Kaleem Khan aka Kevin Felton, 26, of Lothian Road, was given a 12-month prison sentence suspended for two years with 300 hours’ unpaid work for being the group’s “patsy”.Ali, of Clifton Street, Middlesbrough, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to produce the Class C drug of cannabis - the same charge faced by his three co-conspirators.Judge Peter Armstrong gave Ali a 12-month jail sentence suspended for two years, with 12 months supervision and 300 hours’ unpaid work.He said: “In 2007 or thereabouts, having led a hard-working life in the steel industry and as a taxi driver, I think you attempted and got a little greedy by the possible rewards from this scheme.“But this scheme was not of your making. You were not the organiser of it, you were not the architect. This was a foolish episode in your life.”The court heard Ali made no financial benefit from the conspiracy.The former Probation Service was raided in a major police operation on May 21 last year.The four-storey property had been converted into a cannabis factory. Rooms were filled with plants as well as ducting, cabling, fans, hoses, a ventilation system, heat lights suspended by wires, transformers and timers.
Officers seized 2,136 cannabis plants at various stages of growth and about 2,000 root sections from plants.A “conservative estimate” put the crops’ potential yield at 50kg, worth more than £500,000.

Thai police arrested Kuo Te-tsai, 42, in the southern beach town of Phuket

Thai police arrested Kuo Te-tsai, 42, in the southern beach town of Phuket on Sunday, said Lt. Gen. Priewphan Damaphong, Thailand's deputy national police chief. Police also arrested a Thai accomplice, Phongthat Pongsathirsakul, he said.
Police moved in to make the arrests after receiving information that the heroin would be shipped out of Thailand to Western countries in the coming days, he said.
Police found 229 pounds of heroin pressed into 261 bars and stuffed into cylinders hidden beneath the cement floors of a house Kuo was renting, Priewphan told a news conference. The confiscated heroin has a local value of more than US$2.9 million, a Thai police statement said, adding that its street value abroad would be about 10 times that amount, or US$29 million. "This heroin had come from the Golden Triangle and was going to be shipped to Taiwan before going to markets in Western countries," Priewphan said. The Golden Triangle is a heroin-producing area where the borders of Burma, Laos and Thailand converge. The US Drug Enforcement Administration had been tracking Kuo and alerted Thai authorities in August that he had entered the country, Priewphan said. DEA official Andre W. Kellum said he could not elaborate on the heroin's destination since the investigation was ongoing. The case is "very significant because a kilo of heroin on the streets of America goes for a great deal of money," he told the news conference.
Drug trafficking in Thailand is punishable by death.

Charles Bernhardt and Tyronne Greir, are charged with felony drug charges

Charles Bernhardt, 43, of McKean Street in Philadelphia and Tyronne Greir, 38, with no fixed address, are charged with felony drug charges, the degree of which a judge must decide in court, according to court records. District Judge John Kelly sent both men to Bucks County prison in lieu of $75,000 bail. Their preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 19 in the district court of Joseph Falcone in Bensalem. Monday's bust follows a car stop last month in Bensalem during which police said they recovered $350,000 worth of black tar heroin normally produced in Mexico and $82,000 in cash.That case, against Philadelphia residents Jose Francisco Zacarias Pena, 28, and Giselle Lozada, 25, is pending. Their preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 26.

David Charles McCormick,admitted to Furness magistrates yesterday that on September 29 he was in possession of heroin.

David Charles McCormick, 33, of no fixed abode, admitted to Furness magistrates yesterday that on September 29 he was in possession of heroin.Mr Lee Dacre, prosecuting, said police received a report of a man behaving suspiciously in Ladbrokes at around 6.50pm.Officers attended and spoke to the man, before taking him outside. They searched him and found a wrap of brown powder and he ran away.
Mr Dacre said officers pursued McCormick and he threw away silver foil, which was recovered and found to have stain marks on it.Mr Dacre added: “He made a full and frank admission and said he was a long-term heroin user and had bought separate one-gram deals for £25 each and smoked some of the heroin that day.”Mr Michael Graham, defending, told the court that McCormick had some personal difficulties and reverted to old habits.He was under the impression that the only assistance available to him was a methadone programme, and he refused to take that because he felt it was too addictive.McCormick also pleaded guilty to two breaches of bail and Mr Graham explained that he suffered a form of arthritis that affected every joint in his body, which made it very difficult to attend morning appointments.Sentencing McCormick to 120 days in prison, presiding magistrate John Jones said: “You have had many opportunities to work with the court and other agencies, but you have failed to do so and failed to co-operate with court orders.”He was also sentenced to seven days in prison for each of the bail breaches.

Justin P. Morin, sold UMass student Darby Fassett five bags of "American Gangster" heroin

Justin P. Morin, 21, of 20 Jackson St., sold UMass student Darby Fassett five bags of "American Gangster" heroin on the day before Fassett was found overdosed in his Hadley home, according to police. Fassett was rushed to Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton where he was declared dead on arrival. Although Morin was charged with distribution of heroin in Northampton District Court, a Hampshire County grand jury found that there is sufficient evidence to indict him for involuntary manslaughter.

Harvishal Kler, 23, and Bakshish Ghai, 22, are charged with conspiracy to import heroin into Canada.

Harvishal Kler, 23, and Bakshish Ghai, 22, are charged with conspiracy to import heroin into Canada. A Canada-wide warrant has been issued for Manjit Dhanoa, 31.Two Brampton men are facing charges and police are looking for another in connection with a heroin importation and distribution gang that was smuggling the drug in through Pearson International Airport.The RCMP's Toronto Airport General Investigation Impact Team say they've dealt the ring a blow this week with the arrests.Three men are alleged to be part of a criminal organization that used human couriers to smuggle heroin through the airport and then distribute the drugs to North American markets. Police say the group recruited couriers and arranged for their travel to a number of South Asian countries to pick up heroin for delivery to Canada.Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers at Pearson were instrumental in the interception of couriers and a total of 12.8 kilograms of heroin was seized."This group stood to make a significant profit at great expense to the health and well being of our citizens" said RCMP Inspector Dean Dickson, officer in charge of the Toronto airport detachment. "It takes the kind of partnerships seen in this investigation to effectively combat criminal enterprise and protect our communities".

Waltiko Q. Fludd,reported Monday to begin serving a five- to seven-year state prison sentence

Waltiko Q. Fludd, 32, of 6 Inglewood St., reported Monday to begin serving a five- to seven-year state prison sentence. He pleaded guilty Oct. 22 to three counts of trafficking in cocaine. A co-defendant, Gary A. Gaulin Jr., of 67 Cochran St., Chicopee, was sentenced on Oct. 1 to an eight-year prison term after pleading guilty to trafficking cocaine. The state dropped prosecution of Irving A. Ramsey, of 50 Hartley St., who had been arrested with Gaulin and Fludd. The three were arrested by undercover narcotics detectives on Oct. 2, 2007, at 1177 Boston Road. Fludd was charged with trafficking cocaine on different dates in September and October of 2007.

Annette Penfield Agents found 46 packages of cocaine weighing 81 pounds.

Annette Penfield of Petersburg, Va., was stopped about 9:30 p.m. Sunday after crossing the Gateway International Bridge from Mexico. Customs officers noticed discrepancies in the trunk of the 1996 BMW she was driving and a drug-sniffing dog alerted them to the scent of cocaine. Agents found 46 packages of cocaine weighing 81 pounds.

Robert Young, 60, the South Florida drug smuggler, best known for his role as triggerman in the 1987 slaying of speedboat king Don Aronow,

Robert Young, 60, the South Florida drug smuggler, best known for his role as triggerman in the 1987 slaying of speedboat king Don Aronow, will likely spend the rest of his life in a federal prison.Young's previous three murder convictions, including Aronow's, were more than 20 years ago, court records show. None of the convictions landed him in prison for more than a few years.This conviction carries a mandatory minimum prison term of 15 years and prosecutors could seek life.
Last week's trial was unusual because federal prosecutor Donald Chase accused Young of possessing a Norinco Sporter 7.62 semi-automatic rifle in 2002, when he was serving a 10-year federal sentence on a previous firearms conviction.
Chase told jurors Young maintained control and ownership of the weapon, though he left it with an associate prior to his October 2001 arrest."That's a new one," Young's attorney Paul Donnelly said in closing arguments. "He didn't have control. He didn't have possession. He didn't have access to it."But Chase countered Young discussed the gun in several phone calls he placed from prison, and wanted it used to execute his brother-in-law, who he thought was cooperating with law enforcement.Young's motive was simple, Chase stated in closing arguments: "He had a credo. 'You talk, you die.'"According to testimony at trial, Young ran a drug-trafficking organization, importing cocaine from Central and South America in a hidden compartment on his sailboat. Young obtained the Norinco rifle to protect a shipment of $1.2 million of drug proceeds headed to Guatemala, witnesses said.
In a 2004 interview with federal agents, Young admitted owning the gun but denied wanting his ex-wife's brother dead. He said he wanted the gun planted on Roderick "Rickie" Mudrie, a convicted felon, so he would be arrested.To convict, the jury had to agree Young kept possession of the gun in a legal sense through June 2002."I believe the jury blew it," Donnelly said of the verdict.

Gregorio A. Messina was arrested along with eight others during an investigation of a major drug trafficking ring

Gregorio A. Messina, 43, pleaded guilty more than a year ago to cocaine possession with intent to distribute and criminal conspiracy. He was sentenced to five years probation on each of the crimes and fined $5,000, according to court papers.
Messina was arrested along with eight others during an investigation of a major drug trafficking ring, the Cirilo “Primo” Lumbrano Corrupt Organization.After wiretapping cell phones, and aided by Spanish-language interpreters, authorities learned the organizational structure of the drug ring and the roles of its various members, and cracked the group.Police also conducted physical surveillance. Most of the suspects were Mexican nationals in the country illegally.Law enforcement authorities followed Lumbrano, who is now 31, to Atlanta, Ga., where he allegedly met with a cocaine supplier, then followed him as he drove back to the local area. He was stopped in Plymouth Township on March 4, 2007.While searching Lumbrano’s car, authorities found a one-kilogram block of cocaine, having a retail value in excess of $100,000, inside the vehicle’s spare tire.Authorities surmised the hiding place after discovering several slashed tires in the closets of residences occupied by some of the drug ring members.Among the items seized as a result of the execution of search warrants for nine locations and five vehicles were: another half-kilogram of cocaine; scales; cocaine packaging materials; a .22-caliber rifle; two shotguns; three handguns; ammunition; a riot helmet; and some $5,000 in cash.Also confiscated were two Nissan Maximas, a Chevrolet Suburban and a Nissan Titan.The breakup of the ring began after police received information in January 2007 from confidential informants about a local cocaine supplier nicknamed “Primo,” according to the criminal complaint.
Though authorities were targeting Lumbrano, Messina was caught with cocaine bought from the gang to give to someone else, according to Montgomery County Assistant District Attorney Tonya Lupinacci, who prosecuted the case.“He bought an ounce of cocaine,” she said. “It’s a significant amount of (the drug).”
Messina, who is a United States citizen, owns a landscaping business in North Wales. He was the last of nine defendants to be sentenced, according to Lupinacci.Lumbrano, a former resident of the 1300 block of Markley Street, pleaded guilty in March to six felony charges of possessing cocaine with the intent to deliver and a seventh felony charge of conspiracy. The admitted ringleader of the drug operation, he was sentenced in June to eight to 20 years in state prison.In August, Lumbrano complained his sentence was too harsh and asked to have the sentence reduced and wanted to withdraw his guilty plea.Also last summer, Luis Omar Bauza, 22, a West Airy Street resident in Norristown, was sentenced to 11 1/2 to 23 months behind bars.
Another Norristown man, Israel Valente-Trujillo, 28, who lives on Cherry Street, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to time served to 23 months in the county prison.
Other drug ring defendants received probationary sentences

Rickey Thompson convicted of crimes related to smuggling immigrants and drugs from the Bahamas to Jupiter Island was sentenced to six life terms.

Boat captain Rickey Thompson, 42, was also ordered to serve another 32 years in prison for his role in the 2006 alien smuggling and narcotics trafficking conspiracies that resulted in the deaths of three immigrants, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.The drug smuggling involved 14 kilograms of cocaine, 2 kilograms of heroin and 83 pounds of marijuana.Thompson in July was convicted of three counts of second-degree murder; three counts of alien smuggling resulting in death; 15 counts of alien smuggling placing the lives of aliens in jeopardy; six counts of narcotics trafficking; two counts of possession of firearms and one count of illegal re-entry after deportation.Federal authorities say Thompson and his co-defendant Leon Brice Johnson, who in August was sentenced to 22-years in prison, conducted in two smuggling trips in 2006 between August and December.
During each trip, the two transported a group of illegal aliens and narcotics from Freeport, Bahamas, to Jupiter Island, aboard Thompson’s 33-foot speed boat. The aliens paid fees of up to $4,000 and were assured that Thompson would drop them off on the beach or in water no higher than their knees.However, that did not happen, and Johnson and Thompson forced the immigrants off the boat at gunpoint in deep, rough waters about 100 yards from the shore of Jupiter Island, the release states.Roselyne Lubin and Alnert Charles, both of Haiti, and Nigel Warren of Jamaica drowned off Jupiter Island during those smuggling trips.
The boat had grounded at Blowing Rocks Preserve and officials found a silver-colored handgun onboard, court records stated. Near the boat, officials found a large black duffel bag with marijuana and cocaine, court records state.

Gustavo Lopez organized one of the most lucrative drug smuggling rings in the Rio Grande Valley

Gustavo Lopez organized one of the most lucrative drug smuggling rings in the Rio Grande Valley.Working under the nickname "El Licendiado," he allegedly moved hundreds of pounds of cocaine and marijuana from Mexico to Atlanta.He reportedly laundered millions of dollars in proceeds through a chain of Valley auto parts businesses.And he managed a staff of more than 40 drug mules and cash runners whose ranks reportedly included moles in at least two law enforcement agencies, according to a 10-count federal indictment issued last month in Atlanta.But even if all of that turns out to be true, his attorney maintains, Lopez was nothing more than middle management."One man's manager is another man's flunky," lawyer Ralph Martinez said. "He may have done nothing more than echo what (his Mexican backers) were ordering."Lopez, 35, of Palmview, was arrested Oct. 29 as part of a two-year U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-led investigation targeting smuggling routes between the Valley and Atlanta.Agents have issued arrest warrants for 41 people believed to be working for him or his Mexican counterpart and childhood friend - Dimas "El Guerro" Gonzalez.Their reported accomplices include a former Hidalgo County sheriff's deputy caught with nearly $1 million in alleged drug proceeds in the outskirts of Atlanta and a yet unidentified "contact within a law enforcement agency with access to sensitive databases."In all, agents seized more than $22 million, 6,000 pounds of marijuana and 490 pounds of cocaine reportedly linked to their organization.And upon Lopez's arrest, he directed federal agents to a Pharr stash house containing more than a ton of marijuana."This is about as serious as it gets in drug trafficking cases," said U.S. Magistrate Peter Ormsby at a detention hearing last week, where Lopez pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of conspiracy, drug smuggling and money laundering.ICE agents testified they had surveilled Lopez and Gonzalez for months and recorded hours of phone conversations in which the two men took great lengths to separate themselves from the men and women allegedly moving their drugs.The two conducted almost all of their business during face-to-face meetings in Reynosa, ICE Special Agent Lupe Sanchez said. When they did talk on the phone, they spoke in coded language.But Lopez's attorney insists that his client's sole occupation was working as an auto parts salesman."He was never found with any of those drugs or any of that money," Martinez said in court.
Federal prosecutors allege Lopez's business - GLG Collision Auto Parts - also served his purported smuggling empire. They have initiated criminal forfeiture proceedings against the storefronts in Hidalgo, Donna and Brownsville and several bank accounts linked to the organization that they say were used to launder drug proceeds.
Lopez remains in federal custody pending a trial in Atlanta. A date has not yet been set.And many of the men who could shed more light on the allegations against him - including Gonzalez and former sheriff's deputy Emmanuel Sanchez - are believed to be hiding in Mexico to avoid arrest, federal authorities said.But just by what their investigation has uncovered thus far, federal authorities believe they have disrupted a major narcotics pipeline."Just a seizure of $23 million alone suggests a huge amount of drugs," said Agent Sanchez, who is not related to the former deputy. "And that's just what we found."

Perry Wharrie (48), from Loughton, Essex, is wanted by the British authorities for disappearing after being released on licence from a life sentence

Perry Wharrie (48), from Loughton, Essex, is wanted by the British authorities for disappearing after being released on licence from a life sentence for murder in 2005. The case was listed for hearing today, but lawyers for Wharrie applied for an adjournment to reply to affidavits about the British prison system. Two members of Hertfordshire Constabulary flew to the Dublin to observe Wharrie oppose the warrant.
Security was tight at the Four Courts today as Wharrie arrived under armed escort.
Mr Justice Michael Peart said it was unsatisfactory and inconvenient to the court that a party could seek an adjournment on the day of a hearing. “Two officers from the UK who have travelled over for the case have not been told this application was going to be made,” he said. Wharrie was jailed for life in 1989 for the murder of an off-duty policeman in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, who tried to disarm a robber during a raid on a bank van. He was one of a three-man gang who had held up a security van outside a bank. Off-duty police officer Francis Mason attempted to tackle one of the armed men but was fatally shot in the back by a second. Wharrie was released in April 2005 and a year later disappeared, breaching the terms of his parole by leaving a specific address in Essex and leaving the jurisdiction.
Wharrie vanished until July 4th last year, when he and three other English men were arrested in west Cork over the €440 million euro drug smuggling operation.
Their boat, laden with drugs, capsized in rough seas after one of the gang had filled the two high-powered petrol outboard motors with diesel. After a 10-week trial Wharrie and two other men were given a total of 85 years in prison over the drugs operation. Wharrie and Martin Wanden (45) of no fixed address, were both jailed for 30 years while Joe Daly (41), of Bexley, Kent, was given a 25-year prison sentence. A fourth man, Gerard Hagan (24), of Liverpool, pleaded guilty and will be sentenced in November.

Gerard Dundon, a senior member of the McCarthy-Dundon gang behind bars.

Thursday, 13 November 2008

Gardai have arrested one of the main figures in one of Limerick's feuding criminal gangs on foot or a committal warrant.Gerard Dundon, a senior member of the McCarthy-Dundon gang, was being sought to serve a 10-month prison sentence for more than 30 road traffic offences.Reports this morning say he turned himself in to Gardai last night and is expected to be questioned about the murder of Shane Geoghegan last weekend.Detectives believe the McCarthy-Dundon gang was responsible for the fatal shooting of the Garryowen rugby player, who was apparently mistaken for a top drug dealer aligned to the rival Keane gang.

Juan Morales is charged with trafficking cocaine and motor vehicle offenses

Monday, 10 November 2008

Juan Morales, 24, is charged with trafficking cocaine and motor vehicle offenses, according to Lt. Ken Cotta, public information officer for the Police Department.Lt. Cotta said Officer Keith DaCosta stopped Mr. Morales' car Tuesday around 9 p.m. after observing the vehicle had an expired inspection sticker.After learning of a warrant for his arrest, police took Mr. Morales into custody.Police searched the car after the officer smelled burnt marijuana and found about 50 grams of crack cocaine, the cash and a small amount of marijuana.Mr. Morales claimed the cash belonged to a friend, according to Lt. Cotta. The friend was contacted and denied any knowledge of the money, police said.

Jorge A. Leija, 43, allowed smugglers to drive cars loaded with cocaine through his entry lane at the Eagle Pass border crossing

Jorge A. Leija, 43, allowed smugglers to drive cars loaded with cocaine through his entry lane at the Eagle Pass border crossing, about 140 miles southwest of San Antonio, without inspection, according to testimony by an unnamed Drug Enforcement Administration agent.Mr. Leija was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars from January 2001 to October 2006, the agent said at a bail hearing on Thursday in Federal District Court in Del Rio, Tex.Court documents said Mr. Leija was also paid $30,000 to make false statements on an application he submitted in September 2003 to obtain an American passport for another person.Mr. Leija worked as an inspector for 11 years, said Rick Pauza, a Customs and Border Protection spokesman in Laredo, Tex.
Late last month, a federal grand jury indicted Mr. Leija on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and making a false statement. He was arrested on Oct. 30.Mr. Leija had been placed on administrative duty more than two years before his arrest and assigned to a desk job, said his lawyer, Richard F. Gutierrez.Mr. Leija’s arrest is the latest in scores of corruption cases the past few years involving agents along the nearly 2,000-mile border with Mexico

Jaime "The Hummer" Gonzalez captured

Mexican federal police on Friday captured Jaime "The Hummer" Gonzalez, a leader of the armed wing of the Gulf drug cartel, and flew him to the capital after a shootout near the U.S.-Mexican border, police said.Gonzalez, a deserter from the Mexican army and a founding member of the drug gang's feared execution squad known as the Zetas, was caught in the city of Reynosa near McAllen, Texas in a carefully planned police operation.Security forces burst in on Gonzalez in a house and nabbed him without firing a shot, police said.But a group of armed men brazenly tried to free him from police custody near the Reynosa airport.After a lengthy gun battle, police fought off the attackers and transferred Gonzalez to the capital under heavily armed guard.
Officials distributed images of a gold-plated gun and bundles of cash they said belonged to Gonzalez, who is also wanted in the United States for drug trafficking.It is the latest in a string of high-profile drug arrests since President Felipe Calderon took office in 2006 and deployed thousands of troops and federal police to drug hot spots around the country.On Thursday, the army captured a massive arsenal of weapons believed to belong to the Gulf cartel that included over 400 pistols, machine guns and sniper rifles, half a million bullets, nearly 300 grenades, a rocket launcher and explosives.

John Patrick Patton , Michael Anthony Guevara possible death sentence for foreigners convicted of smuggling cocaine

Prosecutors at the Tangerang District Court sought the death sentence for three foreigners convicted of smuggling cocaine into the country through Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in February.Prosecutors Teuku Rahman and Haryadi said in a hearing Thursday evening the defendants, a Thai woman, Thitirat Charoensuk, 24, and two British men, Michael Anthony Guevara, 34, and John Patrick Patton, 52, were proven guilty of smuggling the drugs. The prosecutors said the defendants violated Article 82 of the 1997 Drug Law. The article carries a maximum penalty of execution.
"The defendants intentionally smuggled 515 grams of cocaine into the country," Teuku Rahman told the panel of judges presided over by Haryono, with two other members Barmen Sinurat and Arthur Hangewa. He said Guevara and Patton were the owners of the cocaine, and had asked the Thai woman to take the drugs to Indonesia. The defendants were shocked to hear the penalty demand. Charoensuk fainted. The defendants were arrested soon after their arrival at the airport on Feb. 20. Customs and excise officers became suspicious after Charoensuk appeared to be nervous at the customs check point. After being examined, officers found drugs estimated to be worth Rp 2 billion (US$181,000) hidden in a bag she was carrying. An interrogation led officers to arrest Michael Anthony and his Thai girlfriend Naksri, who flew from Thailand to Jakarta on the same flight. "Naksri was released later because she was not involved in the smuggling attempt," Eko Darmanto, chief of intelligence at the Customs office, said Friday. The police subsequently learned of the alleged receiver's address and arrested John Patrick Patton in Cilandak, South Jakarta, seizing eight grams of cocaine from him. The presiding judge postponed the hearing until Monday to hear the defendants' lawyer Husin Tuhuteru read out the defense.

Rachael S. Padilla pleaded not guilty to third-and fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Friday, 7 November 2008

Rachael S. Padilla, 39, formerly of Lincoln Avenue, Lockport, pleaded not guilty to third-and fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Cocaine was allegedly found during a May 9 police raid on her apartment. She was convicted of third-degree possession Jan. 17 for throwing two bags of cocaine out the window as police searched her apartment for two men on Jan. 1, 2007. But she didn’t receive her one-year prison term from State Supreme Court Justice Richard C. Kloch Sr. until Sept. 5.

"It was like a scene from a gangster movie."Darren Coupland, 41, has been arrested over claims that he killed German Oliver Johaht and shot the other

Civil engineer Darren Coupland, 41, has been arrested over claims that he killed German Oliver Johaht and shot the other man in a row over a drug debt.
Johaht, 33, was found bleeding to death in the street outside the Briton's luxury home on the Costa Dorada. Italian Carmelo Mazara had been beaten with an iron bar and shot in the neck but managed to escape to a nearby health clinic, where he was found by police.Coupland was found bleeding heavily at the nearby property business he ran with his wife and sister-in-law in the seaside town near Barcelona.
The married father-of-two from Southend-on-Sea, Essex, had been stabbed in the throat. A police source said: "It was like a scene from a gangster movie."Coupland was taken to hospital where the stab wound was treated and he was arrested. Police are hunting a second Briton who they believe may also be involved.

Spain, has been deemed unsafe by international watchdogs

Spain, has been deemed unsafe by international watchdogs. a car bomb, thought to be the work of terror group ETA, injured 17 people in a university car park in northern Pamplona, a town which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors to its annual bull-run every year. According to the British Foreign Office, the threat to foreign travellers from terrorism in Spain is high. Since July, there have been at least 11 explosions in well-known tourist towns around the country including Torremolinos, Malaga and Benalmadena. Last week, the quiet medieval streets of Lucerne in Switzerland, one of the safest tourist destinations in the world, witnessed a savage assault on a British man who died of severe head injuries. Meanwhile, the once-peaceful island of Bali is back on high alert exactly six years after terror blasts on a nightclub killed 202 people. Although tourist numbers have recovered reaching an all-time high this year, there are acute fears that the Indonesian island could be targeted by terrorists again when the bombers responsible for the attacks are executed by firing squad in the coming weeks. As peak season in the Caribbean approaches, tourist numbers to the palm-fringed island of Antigua have plummeted since the brutal murder of British honeymoon couple, Catherine and Ben Mullany, in July. The ferocity of the crime, the tenth murder on the island this year, left many questioning the West Indies' reputation as a safe haven for holidays. Two vicious attacks on tourists in the last month have further damaged the region's tranquil image. In an ordeal that lasted more than an hour, a masked man sexually assaulted and robbed two British women a fortnight ago on the tropical island of Tobago. Earlier in the month, a Swedish couple were killed on the island in an apparent robbery. Travellers are being urged to be cautious when renting villas on the island and stay in hotels with tight security measures such as a 24-hour guard. A recent report by the Economist Intelligence Unit revealed that the English-speaking Caribbean, stretching from the Bahamas in the north to Trinidad and Tobago in the south, has one of the highest murder rates in the world, with an average of 30 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants per year. By comparison, the murder rate in Ireland is 1.5 per 100,000. Another part of the world whose image as a dream destination has been shattered in recent weeks is India's most famous tourist hotspot, Goa. The recent rape of a 14-year-old German girl in the beach resort has rocked a country already marred by the rape and murder of British teenager, Scarlet Keeling, at Anjuna beach earlier this year. Police in Goa are also investigating the death of a 65-year-old Australian tourist who was violently killed after complaining of poor service in a restaurant at Calangute.

WANTED Adam Hart, 29, who is suspected of conspiracy to supply cocaine and who escaped arrest in August 2007 as police officers searched his workplace

Adam Hart, 29, who is suspected of conspiracy to supply cocaine and who escaped arrest in August 2007 as police officers searched his workplace

POLISH national has been charged with drug smuggling offences after police seized cocaine with a street value of about £500,000 at Birmingham Airport.

Thursday, 6 November 2008

POLISH national has been charged with drug smuggling offences after police seized cocaine with a street value of about £500,000 at Birmingham Airport.

Ricardo Larios-Trujillo, 20-year-old Ramon Cortez and 34-year-old Homer charged with possession with intent to distribute

Ricardo Larios-Trujillo, 20-year-old Ramon Cortez and 34-year-old Homer
Larios, all of Lawrenceville; 30-year-old Rigoberto Delgado-Orozco
of Buford and 29-year-old Alexander I. Acher of Southborough,
Mass., were also charged with possession with intent to distribute
more than 5 kilograms of cocaine.The U.S. Attorney's Office says Larios-Trujillo, Delgado-Orozco,Cortez and Larios belong to a Hispanic street gang called South
Side Myfas, and along with Acher used Larios-Trujillo's Monster Car
Audio in Lawrenceville to store and distribute cocaine.

Angela Lavonne Chiles was found in possession of prescription pills

Angela Lavonne Chiles was found in possession of prescription pills when she started her Wednesday morning shift. Investigators then discovered that she had been taking other contraband into the facility.Authorities say Chiles was fired and booked into jail on charges of introduction of contraband into a detention facility and unlawful compensation for official behavior.

Thomas McKendrick was jailed for eight years for attempting to import over £20,000 worth of heroin into the Isle of Man

Thomas McKendrick was jailed for eight years for attempting to import over £20,000 worth of heroin into the Isle of Man, inside his body. Detective Sergeant Allan Thompson told Howard Caine it was a substantial amount of the drug and he was constantly amazed by the methods employed by couriers, and the risks taken by end us

Costa Blanca hideaway for British criminals

Crimestoppers, the UK crimefighting charity, together with the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), issued a new list of ten most wanted British suspects, including their photographs, details of their crimes and their aliases.British and Spanish authorities are targeting the Costa Blanca in southeastern Spain in a bid to round up those notorious villains thought to have fled to the tourist haven which has become a favoured hideaway for British criminals.Law-abiding citizens who recognise those on the list are being urged to ring the dedicated hotline and provide anonymous tip-offs on their whereabouts. Any information deemed useful will be passed on to Spanish police, who will execute the arrest warrants and send the suspects back to Britain to face trail.Bill Hughes, Director General of SOCA, said the campaign, part of Operation Captura, was "delivering a simple message to criminals; you won't escape to the sun, we will find you and bring you back."
The latest appeals include individuals wanted for murder, sex offences, drug trafficking, fraud and kidnap. The initiative follows the success of an earlier operation on the Costa del Sol which led to the arrest of 13 criminals on a list of thirty most wanted. Denise Holt, the British Ambassador to Spain, said: "Both British and Spanish residents on the Costas did a fantastic job in 2006 in helping Crimestoppers track down some notorious criminals. We're appealing for your help again. There are ten new names and faces of dangerous people that you can help put behind bars."

Indicted Woodrow Ormiston on five counts related to drug dealing.

Wednesday, 5 November 2008

Indicted Woodrow Ormiston on five counts related to drug dealing.On Monday, Ormiston entered a plea to one count of the indictment – distributing 500 grams or more of cocaine – as well as a new charge recently filed by federal prosecutors.Late last week, Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Trgovich filed a single charge of wire fraud, accusing Ormiston of providing false information to mortgage lender Countrywide Home Loans in order to obtain a mortgage. Ormiston claimed to make $6,000 a month as owner of Furious Cycles, according to court documents.Ormiston also consented to giving up a pair of Harley-Davidson motorcycles and $66,000 in cash to the federal government, according to court documentsAlong with Ormiston, the grand jury indicted Michael A. Bower, 32, on counts of conspiracy to distribute at least 500 grams of cocaine, maintaining a building for the purpose of dealing drugs, possessing firearms to further a drug crime, money laundering and two counts of dealing cocaine.
The two men were accused of trafficking drugs out of Waynedale homes from January to April. Also indicted were Kevin Bender, 45, and Dan Phillips, 46, both of Fort Wayne. They are accused of dealing cocaine and witness tampering. Last spring, federal prosecutors obtained indictments for Alan Lichty and Shane Silvers, both of Fort Wayne.Each is charged with conspiring to deal 500 grams or more of cocaine, dealing cocaine and possessing a firearm to further a drug crime. Lichty was indicted on five additional charges of dealing cocaine, as well as an additional charge of possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute, court documents said.
According to court documents, agents with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as well as officers with the Fort Wayne Police Department gathered information about Bower and Ormiston since 2005. Silvers lived in a home owned by Bower and would pick up cocaine from Ormiston’s home.Investigators found drugs in a garage of a house owned by Ormiston, where he would leave drugs for dealers to pick up and then leave money in their place, court documents said.
When Fort Wayne police arrested Ormiston in May, he had $21,600 in cash in his truck, as well as four cell phones and about a gram of cocaine, according to court documents. According to the indictments against Bower, in August Bower obtained a loan from GMAC to buy a 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche, saying he was employed by SS Computer & Tech for four years, with an income of $40,000 a year. Investigators learned Bower started SS Computer & Tech to hide money earned by dealing drugs, according to court documents.

Gerard Hagan sentence of ten years is to be backdated to July 2007.

Gerard Hagan, with an address in Liverpool, was to be paid GBP£5,000 to ensure the safe arrival of the cocaine from the Caribbean to Ireland.He was one of four men involved in the operation, which ended in disaster after the boat sank off the coast of west Cork on the 2nd of July last year.Two of the other men involved were sentenced to 30 and 25 years, while Mr Hagan's sentence of ten years is to be backdated to July 2007.

National Police have arrested four people in connection with a local cocaine trafficking gang

The National Police have arrested four people in connection with a local cocaine trafficking gang. They also dismantled a laboratory and recovered half a kilo of the drug, some cash and two cars, one of which had allegedly been used to bring the drug to Elche from Madrid.

Vall de Gallinera, Alicante growing 130 marihuana plants

27 year old man has been arrested for allegedly growing 130 marihuana plants in Vall de Gallinera, Alicante. He was discovered as he was pruning the plants. The Civil Guard said the weight of the uprooted plants was more than 25 kilos.

Paxi C captain was killed in a fight with one of the crew.

Crew of a Guardia Civil coastal patrol boat has boarded an Italian merchant vessel - the 'Paxi C', sailing from Alexandria (Egypt) to Gijón - anchored off Fisterra since its captain was killed in a fight with one of the crew. They were sent to take charge of the investigation after an SOS message sent at 6.20am by the ship's first officer, who was ordered to drop anchor and prepare to be boarded after explaining what had happened.

France's most wanted criminal was arrested in Salou

One of France's most wanted criminals was arrested in Salou last Saturday. Emile F (56) had been on the run since his conviction in 2004 for a kidnapping and murder committed in August 1995 in Jouy en Josas, near Paris, in a feud between rival drug trafficking gangs. In a joint operation involving French police, the man was arrested along with his son, who has since been released on provisional bail after questioning. Both were using false IDs, but were identified using forensic records supplied by the French investigation team.

Antonio Galarza was arrested in the northern city of Monterrey on suspicion of weapons violations and money laundering on Saturday.

Monday, 3 November 2008

Antonio Galarza was arrested in the northern city of Monterrey on suspicion of weapons violations and money laundering on Saturday.Galarza is suspected to be the leader of the Gulf Cartel in the border city of Reynosa, a major point for smuggling cocaine into the US.Suspected members of the Zetas, the paramilitary arm of the Gulf Cartel, hung a series of banners along the roads in the Pacific coast resorts of Acapulco and Zihuatanejo on Saturday, accusing federal officials of protecting a rival cartel.Near Mexico City, 11 policemen were shot to death in about half a dozen drug-related attacks over three days, prosecutors said on Sunday.Alberto Bazbaz, the Mexico state prosecutor, said police had arrested 10 people suspected of links to the killings, which occurred on highways and police checkpoints on the outskirts of the capita

Ragip and Kemal Shabani channeled 1.5 tons of heroin through Europe

Ragip and Kemal Shabani channeled 1.5 tons of heroin through Europe from the mid-1990s until 2003, when they were shut down, prosecutors said. They used a small town in Kosovo as their base with branches in Macedonia, Albania, Spain and the Czech Republic, according to the Federal Criminal Court.The trial — considered one of Switzerland's largest-ever drug cases — was held under high security in the southern town of Bellinzona, with only some relatives and journalists allowed into the courtroom.Judge Jean-Luc Bacher sentenced Ragip Shabani to 15 years in prison for breaking Swiss narcotics law, and ordered the 42-year-old to pay 300,000 francs ($261,400) in court costs.Kemal Shabani, 28, was given only a two-year suspended sentence for participating in a criminal organization, and was charged 90,000 francs ($78,400) in court costs.Defense lawyers said they would appeal the verdict, which also ordered that the Shabanis' assets be confiscated. The assets include five luxury cars and Kosovo properties such as houses, restaurants and shopping centers.
The court dropped a charge of money laundering for lack of evidence.The brothers' father, 69-year-old Tariq Shabani, was acquitted in the case and was granted compensation of 47,000 Swiss francs ($41,000) for his time in custody during the investigation.Bacher said the verdict took into account the fact that Switzerland had only partial jurisdiction in the case because much of the drug smuggling allegedly happened in other countries.The Shabani clan had already come under suspicion in some countries before the 1998-99 Kosovo war, but it continued to operate after the territory was placed under U.N. administration, the indictment said.A six-year investigation led to the arrest of Ragip Shabani in 2003 in Macedonia's capital of Skopje. His brother and father were arrested in Germany in 2005, according to the indictment.Police across Europe confiscated 970 kilograms (2,140 pounds) of heroin during raids carried out from 1997 to 2003 in Austria, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland and Kosovo, which is now an independent country.

Dave Sterling, alias 'Machine Man', was shot dead when he allegedly pointed a firearm at the police

Saturday, 1 November 2008

Gang leader, identified as Dave Sterling, alias 'Machine Man', was shot dead when he allegedly pointed a firearm at the police along Collie Smith Drive in Trench Town.
Among the 53 detained in the early morning raids by the police on Thursday was a man who the police said was earlier this week 'installed' as head of the Rat Bat gang, less than a week after the death of Machine Man.Police did not release the name of the reputed gang leader but said he was behind a series of criminal activities in Kingston, including murder, rape and extortion.The detainees, which include two women, were still being processed late yesterday afternoon.
Yesterday, the placard-bearing demonstrators accused the police of targeting their communities, even as a group of officers kept watch from the opposite side of the road."Them a terrorise we and we not warring with anybody," a lanky youngster said. "Machine Man take care of we; is him send whole heap of people pickney go school and them kill him, for what?" a bleached-out face woman asked.
"Them come lock up the people them from yesterday (Thursday) and is them same people keeping the peace in the place," said another woman, clad in a skimpy outfit as she stood at the entrance to Delacree Park.Sections of Spanish Town Road, Crescent and St Joseph Roads and Coral Lane, where the raids were carried out on
Thursday morning, have been tense since Machine Man's death last Friday.According to the police, the Rat Bat gang and men from other sections of the community located between Spanish Town and Waltham Park roads have been involved in an ongoing fight for turf.More than a dozen people have been murdered in the bloody rivalry since the start of the year, the police said.

Michael Pavlou, 21, jumped from his bedroom window when police arrived at his home, but he was arrested nearby.

Michael Pavlou, 21, jumped from his bedroom window when police arrived at his home, but he was arrested nearby.When he was taken to the police station he handed over about £3,500 of amphetamine in his sock, said prosecutor David Lamb.Pavlou said that he had been handed the powder by a friend, and he admitted that he had handled it before in return for free amphetamine and cash.He had a 2005 conviction for possession of heroin, Teesside Crown Court was told.Peter Wishlade, defending, said that Pavlou, from the Ragworth estate, lived in an area where the police were not respected, and when they called at his door his first reaction was to run away.
Pavlou had turned to using amphetamine to rid himself of addictions to heroin and crack cocaine.Mr Wishlade added: “He fully anticipates what is going to happen to him today, that he is going to be made subject to a custodial sentence.“When he got to the police station following his arrest he volunteered that the amphetamine was in his sock.“He took it out and he handed it to the police.”Judge Tony Briggs told Pavlou: “Those who are involved in the supply of drugs to others always run the risk of custodial sentences.“In this case you have passed the custody level, and custody is inevitable.“There is nothing in evidence that you are anything other than a harbourer of these drugs, which enables the sentence to be somewhat reduced.”
Pavlou, of Doncaster Crescent, Ragworth, was jailed for 15 months after he pleaded guilty to possession of a Class B drug with intent to supply it on February 14.

Steven Allen Longbrake of Central Point was convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine

Steven Allen Longbrake of Central Point was convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine for his role in packing and repacking drugs for distribution, Polk County prosecutor Harold Cuffe said.On Sept. 5, Longbrake was in Polk County Circuit Court on an unrelated drug case and was to be taken into custody when he attempted to run from a sheriff's deputy, Cuffe said. He soon was caught before leaving the building.While in jail, Longbrake reportedly wrote to another inmate and bragged that he was hiding methamphetamine that he had brought to court with him. Deputies searched him and found small bags of methamphetamine and packaging materials, Cuffe said.Longbrake was sentenced to eight months in jail on the manufacturing methamphetamine conviction Friday.

Larry Norris Canada, 25, pleaded guilty Friday to using and carrying a firearm during a drug-trafficking crime

Larry Norris Canada, 25, pleaded guilty Friday to using and carrying a firearm during a drug-trafficking crime. He faces at least five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.Marchello Dornell Miller, 27, pleaded guilty Friday to possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine. He faces up to 40 years in prison and a fine of up to $2 million.Clifton Earl Robinson, 33, pleaded guilty Friday to possession of a firearm by an unlawful user of a controlled substance. He faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.Quincy Head, 27, pleaded guilty Thursday to being a felon in possession of a firearm. He faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
James Darrell Lister Jr., 27, pleaded guilty Thursday to possession with intent to distribute and distribution of cocaine and crack cocaine. He faces up to 40 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $2 million.Larry Donell George, 26, pleaded guilty Thursday to possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine. He faces up to 40 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $2 million.
According to information in court, since January 2006, the defendants had been distributing crack cocaine in the Longview area.
An 87-count federal indictment was returned on May 13, charging 29 people, including these six, with federal crimes.

Octavio Mendoza-Morales, 36; Heriberto Montenegro-Mendez, 33; and Hector Villarruel-Lopez, 38. They were charged with conspiracy to distribute meth

Three men arrested in the largest methamphetamine seizure in Oregon have been convicted on drug and conspiracy charges. A federal jury returned guilty verdicts on all counts of a 10-count indictment against Octavio Mendoza-Morales, 36; Heriberto Montenegro-Mendez, 33; and Hector Villarruel-Lopez, 38. They were charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine, and various counts of possession. They were arrested after a 20-month investigation by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and an Oregon interagency police team. The ringleader, Ricardo Mendoza-Morales, was recently sentenced to 25 years in prison following his guilty plea last summer. Prosecutors said more than 40 pounds of methamphetamine was seized. In addition, almost three kilograms of heroin, some cocaine, five vehicles with hidden compartments and $197,000 in cash were seized.

Tasmania Todd Arthur Smith was sentenced to two-and-a-half years, and 40 year old Anthony Wayne Coleman 9 months trafficked ecstasy tablets

Two men who trafficked ecstasy tablets smuggled into Tasmania on the Spirit of Tasmania ferry have been given jail terms.37 year old Todd Arthur Smith was sentenced to two-and-a-half years, and 40 year old Anthony Wayne Coleman 9 months.
23 year old Matthew Christopher Pepper was given a three-month suspended sentence for his lesser role.The court heard Smith had received nearly 4,000 ecstasy tablets in the deal, with a street value of nearly $200,000.He gave Coleman one thousand tablets to distribute, and Pepper was enlisted to be a middle man.
In the Hobart Criminal Court, Justice Peter Evans said their willingness to distribute the drugs was startling and deplorable.

Minoru Nozaki, who is currently being held on suspicion of robbery

Minoru Nozaki, who is currently being held on suspicion of robbery, has reportedly submitted a written confession to the Metropolitan Police Department admitting to the murder of Masaharu Tochino. The MPD suspects Nozaki, 50, a former high-ranking member of a group associated with the Yamaguchi-gumi crime syndicate, and two of his associates committed the murder. Tochino went missing after visiting a Tokyo legal office for work reasons on Sept. 7, 2006. His body was found near a mountain path in a Japanese cypress forest in Fuji, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Oct. 1 that year. The MPD had been investigating the matter as a case of abandonment of a body.

Police officer, Jorge H. Arbaje-Diaz, 30, and two other men, Felix Rodriguez and Alfredo Antonio Acosta, were added as defendants

Jorge H. Arbaje-Diaz, 30, and two other men, Felix Rodriguez and Alfredo Antonio Acosta, were added as defendants to an indictment that charged that a “violent robbery crew” carried out more than 100 armed robberies of drug traffickers over a five-year period and took more than 750 kilograms of cocaine and $4 million.
The indictment adds the names of Officer Arbaje-Diaz and the two others to an indictment originally unsealed on May 6. With the indictment unsealed on Friday, 13 people have now been charged in the case. Eleven of those, including Officer Arbaje-Diaz, have been arraigned and have pleaded not guilty. Two will be arraigned next week.The group operated between May 2003 and August 2008 in at least six states, including New York, North Carolina and Pennsylvania, prosecutors charged. They said the group used torture and death threats to get information from the drug dealers.
Officer Arbaje-Diaz used his position to gain access to the victims’ homes, where he and other defendants handcuffed them at gunpoint and threatened to arrest them if they did not say where their drugs and money were stored, according to a statement from the United States attorney’s office. Officer Arbaje-Diaz, 30, took part in robberies that netted thousands of dollars and multiple kilograms of cocaine, heroin and marijuana valued at $200,000, the statement said. On at least one occasion, the officer, a three-year veteran assigned to transit duties in the Bronx, wore his uniform and carried his badge, weapon and handcuffs, the statement said. The new indictment charges Officer Arbaje-Diaz, Mr. Rodriguez and Mr. Acosta with conspiracy to violate the Hobbs Act, which outlaws the obstruction of commerce “by robbery or extortion”; possession of and conspiracy to distribute cocaine; and firearms charges. If convicted on all counts, they would face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.At his arraignment on Friday, Officer Arbaje-Diaz was ordered held without bail, and his next court appearance was set for Dec. 15, said Robert Nardoza, a spokesman for the United States attorney’s office. The officer’s lawyer, Gregory Cooper, was not immediately available for comment. The police commissioner, Raymond W. Kelly, called Officer Arbaje-Diaz’s alleged actions “despicable” and “the highest form of betrayal.”“It is a huge disappointment, to say the least, to the department,” Mr. Kelly said in a news conference. He said the department would examine the background checks that were done before Officer Arbaje-Diaz joined the force. He has been suspended without pay.

Mark Lewis has been left in charge of the town hall in San Fulgencio after the mayor, deputy mayor and four senior councillors were arrested

A British expatriate who speaks only a smattering of Spanish has become the "accidental mayor" of a town on Spains Costa Blanca after a wave of corruption arrests. Mark Lewis, 58, has been left in charge of the town hall in San Fulgencio after the mayor, deputy mayor and four senior councillors were all taken into police custody following allegations of real estate corruption. Mr Lewis, who lives in Spain with his wife and daughter, was given the title by default on Wednesday on the grounds that he is one of only two councillors from the ruling coalition not to be arrested.
"Mr Lewis has taken charge of the council on the grounds that he is the fourth deputy mayor. Everyone above him in the pecking order has been arrested," the source added. "Everything is in a state of chaos since these arrests and we are left with someone who speaks only a few words of Spanish," said a source at the town hall.
Mr Lewis refused to comment on his new position except to say: "It's only temporary I hope. I'm sure this will all be sorted out very quickly and everything will return to normal." The town hall was thrown into disarray when deputy mayor Manuel Barrera Garcia, 61, was detained by the National Police on October 20 after a video showed him allegedly accepting a 5000 Euro bribe from a property developer. Socialist mayor Trinidad Martinez, and councillors Juan Antonio Gamuz, Juan Antonio Gonzalez Palenca, Mariano Marti and Fina Reme were arrested on Wednesday lunchtime as the corruption probe widened. Police raided the town hall and seized documents, in a move that mirrors the investigation into the Marbella scandal of March 2006 when the entire planning committee were arrested.
Mr Barrera was allegedly caught on camera saying: "It's better if you give me big bills, they take up less space". He denies any wrongdoing and claims he was set up by political rivals. "I am completely innocent. The video was manipulated to make it look like I accepted a bribe," he said after being released on bail.
The Spanish government have vowed to clamp down on corruption by town officials and rid the nation of its reputation for underhand dealings.

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