True Detective

Alan Simms, Mark Duncan, Mark Hargreaves and Graham Haylock jailed for a combined total of 16 years.

Wednesday, 20 February 2008

Alan Simms, Mark Duncan, Mark Hargreaves and Graham Haylock jailed for a combined total of 16 years.Teesside Crown Court heard that the heroin dealing operation was run from the Bay View Hotel on Newcomen Terrace, Redcar.In January last year, shortly after being released from prison, Duncan got involved by allowing Haylock to use his phone to make deals. The pair later fell out and Duncan began running the operation himself, the court heard.Undercover cops used test purchasing methods to buy Class A drugs from Simms and Hargreaves.Officers then raided in September and arrested the four. A month later the hotel was the subject of a crack house closure order.Police estimated the dealers were making up to £3,000 a week, with up to 70 visitors a day, causing “misery” for people living nearby.The four pleaded guilty to the charge of conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. Haylock pleaded guilty to an additional five charges of supplying Class A drugs.Michael Bosomworth, defending Duncan, said: “He accepts being the leading light from the time Graham Haylock and he fell out.”

Richard Hermann, defending Simms, said: “He has a genuine remorse. He has a real understanding of the effect drug dealing has on the wider community.”Judge Tony Briggs jailed Duncan, 38, of Denham Green, Pallister Park, Middlesbrough, for six years. Haylock, 29, of Newcomen Terrace, Redcar, was jailed for five years.
Hargreaves, 33, and Simms, 39, both also of Newcomen Terrace, were jailed for two and a half years.The judge said: “This was a serious conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.“It does not need me to tell you what misery Class A drugs cause. All you have to do is look at your respective life histories to see proof of it.”

Andrew Sinharoy,Stephen Richardson deny robbery and attempted robbery

Mr Richardson, 23, of Edward Street, Stockton, and Mr Sinharoy, 28, of Wicklow Street, Middlesbrough, deny robbery and attempted robbery. The trial continues.Stewart Brockie is said to have arranged to meet a dealer in the hope his former girlfriend would turn up after he heard she was selling heroin on the streets.
A jury at Teesside Crown Court was told how the North Yorkshire man had lost touch with his ex-lover, from Middlesbrough, but had been given a mobile phone number for the dealer she was working for and called to arrange a deal, in Middlesbrough, on October 27 last year. But the woman never turned up and, instead, Mr Brockie was said to have been met by Andrew Sinharoy, after travelling from his home in Catterick.Richard Bennett, prosecuting, said Mr Sinharoy became aggressive after being told by Mr Brockie - who did not use drugs - that he did not want any crack cocaine. Mr Sinharoy is alleged to have told Mr Brockie that he had paid £120 for the drugs and that he was going to have to give him some money.
The court was told that Mr Sinharoy called a friend, Stephen Richardson, and the pair robbed Mr Brockie.Mr Bennett said the pair stole Mr Brockie's wallet and mobile phone, before threatening him with a knife and ordering him to drive to a cash-point to get some money.The jury was told that the men went to Sainsbury's, in Middlesbrough. Mr Bennett said the victim took an opportunity to flee inside the store and seek help from staff, while Mr Sinharoy and Mr Richardson ran away.
The pair were later arrested, but claimed they rescued Mr Brockie from an attack by drug-dealers and paid off his debt, then went to the cash-point to retrieve their money.

Search of the vehicle revealed 194 pounds of Marijuana

A DPS Officer stopped a rental car westbound on I-10, near Picacho Peak north of Tucson, February 14, for an equipment violation.
In searching the vehicle, officers found a burlap bundle of marijuana on the rear floorboard, according to the report.
Three more bundles of Marijuana were also found in the trunk for a total to 175 pounds. The driver was arrested and the vehicle seized.According to the report, the next morning, a DPS Officer stopped a vehicle northbound on Interstate 19 between Tucson and Nogales where a search of the vehicle revealed 194 pounds of Marijuana. The driver was arrested for possession of marijuana, possession of marijuana for sale and transportation of marijuana for sale.Director Vanderpool calls this “Another excellent example of the due diligence performed everyday on the highways of this state by DPS Officers.”

Schoeman Gerhardus at Islamabad International Airport recovered five kilograms of heroin hidden in secret cavities of his baggage.t

The Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) has arrested a national of South Africa after recovery of a huge quantity of heroin from his possession, a spokesman of the ANF said here on Tuesday.Brigadier Muhammad Asif Alvi, force commander at the ANF Regional Directorate, Rawalpindi, received a tip-off that an international drug mafia group would attempt to smuggle heroin from Islamabad to Johannesburg, the spokesman said.Acting on the tip-off, the regional director asked the concerned authorities to make a plan to foil the attempt, he said. Accordingly, different teams were constituted to counter the attempt.
A team of ANF, consequently, intercepted a passenger Schoeman Gerhardus, a South African national, at Islamabad International Airport, proceeding to South Africa bya flight EY-232 bound for Johannesburg, and recovered five kilograms of heroin hidden in secret cavities of his baggage.
During questioning, the suspect told the investigators that before indulging in the drug smuggling, he was working as a safari guide in a town, Senekal. He said that in 2005, following instructions of the mafia chief, he travelled to Cracus, Venezuela, to fetch cocaine. He said that he stayed there for eight months and remained involved in money-laundering but could not fetch cocaine.
On June 21, 2008, he arrived in Lahore on a trip to smuggle heroin to meet the demand of drug mafia and reached Islamabad the next day. He said that he stayed with his friends in Islamabad and arranged heroin for smuggling.
He said that after getting heroin, two Pakistani drug dealers, working for the international drug mafia, picked him up from his residence and dropped him at Islamabad International Airport where he was caught.

Court investigation into the false Bills which were issued during the GIL administration in Marbella

Ángeles Muñoz, the Partido Popular Mayor of Marbella, presented a document at a press conference on Tuesday, which comes from the Tribunal de Cuentas, the National Court of Auditors, and is their report on Town Hall accounts between 1991 and 2006. It covers the time when the town was run by first the GIL Party, and then by the tripartite government led by Marisol Yagüe, with the Partido Andalucista, and former members of GIL and PSOE.The court notes hundreds of millions transferred to municipal companies without any type of controlEFE notes that the report highlights payments made for building work which had either already been previously completeor had not been carried out, and also noted prices paid well above the market price. Property expropriations were also well below market price. The court said 653 million € was transferred to municipal companies during that time ‘without any type of control,’ and conclude that those years of government saw ‘the structuring of an administrative organisation which allowed funds to be misappropriated from Marbella Town Hall,’ with the governing team at the Town Hall abusing their majority position on municipal bodies to do so.Other irregularities noted in this damning document include contracting of personnel and staffing levels, the lack of any specific budgets, and negotiating planning agreements with property which no longer belonged to the Town Hall.There was news earlier this month of a new court investigation into the false Bills which were issued during the GIL administration in Marbella, where three ghost companies invoiced the Town Hall for work which was never carried out. The investigating judge has already charged ten people for misuse of public funds and forgery.

Serving Metropolitan Police officer was arrested in May last year on suspicion of corruption and being involved in the supply of illegal substances.

Six men have been charged with drugs offences as part of an anti-corruption investigation.A 44-year-old serving Metropolitan Police officer was arrested in May last year on suspicion of corruption and being involved in the supply of illegal substances. He was released on police bail until next month.Detectives from the Met's Directorate of Professional Standards later arrested six other men in connection with the inquiry and charged them. They have been released on bail until March 3. Two women, aged 52 and 54, who were also arrested as part of the inquiry remain on police bail.

John James Boyd appeal dismissed

John James Boyd, 32, was jailed after pleading guilty to helping import $80,000 worth of ecstasy from British Columbia in Canada, in 2005.The 2024 ecstasy tablets were mailed to an address at Mermaid Beach, on the Gold Coast, but the parcel was intercepted by authorities who found cheap toys and the ecstasy tablets, wrapped in a smaller package using birthday gift paper.Federal Police used plain tablets to replace the ecstasy before the box was repackaged and sent to Mermaid Beach on November 2, 2005.The court was told a federal officer delivered the package and police waited outside the home while a co-accused accepted the parcel.Within 15 minutes Boyd emerged from the house with the parcel and was arrested by police.
Boyd had sent a total of $16,080 to Canadian bank accounts in October 2005.
He said he was a heavy steroids user and became involved in the importing of a package because he owed his steroids supplier money.Boyd, who said he believed the package contained steroids, appealed on the grounds the sentence was manifestly excessive.He argued the crown had exaggerated his role in the importation, he had been an unwitting party to importing ecstasy and there had been threats made against him.In an unanimous written judgment, which became available today, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.The Court of Appeal's President Margaret McMurdo said Boyd was in the Australian army before spending six years in the NSW police force where he worked in indigenous communities, did charity work and received a bravery award.Justice McMurdo noted since he had left the police Boyd had continued his charity work in detention centres and was working as youth counsellor at the time of his arrest."He is a mature man. His prior community work makes his involvment in this offence all the more puzzling," she said.
Justice McMurdo said, however, there was no support for the proposition the sentence was manifestly excessive and the appeal should be dismissed.

Operation Medicine Boyz arrests Raheem Williams,Hassan Bellamy, Tuqran Clemons,Jihad Waiters,Shantaya McTerrell

The Essex/Federal Gang Suppression Partnership made the new arrests in recent days in East Orange and Newark, but it still has not tracked down the ring's alleged leader, Maurice Gaskins, 26, of East Orange, authorities said.
Picked up in a series of raids last week were Tuqran Clemons, 34, of East Orange, Shantaya McTerrell, 24, of Newark, Jihad Waiters, 28, of East Orange, Hassan Bellamy, 25, of East Orange and Raheem Williams, 24, of Newark.
In making the arrests, investigators seized some 300 Percocet pills and 25 Oxycontin pills along with $211 in cash, said Detective Dante Pasquale of the Essex County Prosecutor's Office. Operation Medicine Boyz, a 12-month undercover operation, closed down a conspiracy in which "runners" were dispatched to the area of Broad Street and Branford Place to purchase prescription drugs -- Oxycontin, Percocet and Tussionex -- from Medicaid recipients in exchange for cash or heroin, Pasquale said.
The ring would then sell the pills to recreational drug users at a high markup, as much as $45 a pill, authorities said. The tablets cost $18 to $22 in the pharmacy.
The first round of Operation Medicine Boyz yielded the arrests of George Coleman, 38, of East Orange, Jason Evans, 32 of Newark, Barry Williams, 52, of Newark, Mahajir Salaam, 23, of Newark and Lonnie Miller, 38, of Newark.
Investigators still are hunting for Gaskins and Kassan Bellamy, 25, of East Orange, who is Hassan's brother.

Leslie Adgar,Jon Patton, Andre Mays,TSA employees conspired to distribute narcotics through Hartsfield-Jackson Airport

Leslie Adgar, 42, of Decatur, Ga., Andre Mays, 24, of Atlanta, and Jon Patton, 44, of Lawrenceville, Ga., were indicted by a federal grand jury after a sting operation set up by the federal government. The indictment charges Patton and Adgar with conspiring to distribute narcotics and attempting to distribute cocaine and heroin on three dates drugs were smuggled through Hartsfield-Jackson to New York. Mays is charged with the drug conspiracy and attempting to distribute cocaine on Dec. 19, 2007. The charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison and a fine of up to $4 million. U.S. Attorney David Nahmias said Leslie Adgar, 42, of Decatur, Jon Patton, 44, of Lawrenceville and Andre Mays, 24, of Atlanta, were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges relating to a drug-smuggling operation at the airport.

“These individuals allegedly abused their positions at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport to smuggle drugs past security and onto Delta flights,” Nahmias said. “This indictment should serve as a cautionary tale for others who would betray the trust that the public places in the frontline workers at our nation’s airports: such illegal conduct will be discovered and the offenders swiftly brought to justice. We appreciate the good work of our law enforcement partners and the cooperation of Delta Air Lines in this investigation.”
According to the indictment and information presented in court, Patton and Mays are TSA employees working at Hartsfield-Jackson. Adgar is a Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL) employee, also assigned to Hartsfield-Jackson. In December 2007, a confidential source working for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) brokered a deal with TSA employee Patton to send two kilograms of cocaine through Hartsfield-Jackson to New York. Patton set transportation fees of $5,000 for the first kilogram of cocaine and $3,000 for every kilogram after. Patton allegedly provided the source with a piece of luggage that was later used to carry the two kilograms of cocaine past security and onto the Delta flight.

On Dec. 19, 2007, at the direction of the DEA, the source met with Patton and a second TSA employee, Mays, at Hartsfield-Jackson and handed them a carry-on bag packed with two kilograms of fake cocaine and $4,000. Both Patton and Mays were in TSA uniform and on duty at Hartsfield-Jackson when they took the luggage. The $4,000 was one-half of the total $8,000 transportation fee; the plan was for the source to hand the second $4,000 to Adgar in New York when the sham drugs were delivered.
After taking the source's bag, Patton and Mays went into a bathroom in Hartsfield-Jackson's North Terminal. About two minutes later, Patton was seen inside the bathroom standing outside of a closed bathroom stall talking to Mays in the stall. Patton no longer had the bag. Mays was not visible, but the bag was on the floor inside the stall outside of which Patton was standing. Patton and Mays then exited the bathroom together. Patton once again was carrying the bag. Mays, who had entered the bathroom with his coat open, now had his coat closed. Mays was next spotted on the other side of the security check point.
Patton allegedly walked around the magnetometers, sending the bag through the x-ray machine. Patton and the bag were not challenged by TSA screeners. Patton retrieved the bag and eventually met with Adgar in the T concourse, giving her the bag. Adgar immediately boarded a Delta flight to New York's LaGuardia Airport.
After arriving at LaGuardia, Adgar met with the source, who paid Adgar the remaining $4,000 of the smuggling fee. Adgar allegedly gave the source his bag with the two kilograms of fake cocaine. Adgar later boarded another Delta flight and came back to Atlanta. In late January, the source and Patton negotiated a second smuggling transaction. On Jan. 23, the source traveled to Hartsfield-Jackson and gave Patton with the same carry-on bag that was used in the December deal. This time, however, the bag was packed with one kilogram of fake heroin and $4,500. Patton was in uniform and on duty when he took the luggage. After taking the bag, Patton allegedly passed the heroin through the security checkpoint without notice. He then went near Gate T-8 and gave Adgar the bag. Adgar then boarded a Delta flight bound for LaGuardia Airport. After arriving in New York, Adgar deplaned and returned the bag with the sham heroin in it to the source. In exchange, the source handed Adgar the remaining $4,500. Adgar later boarded a Delta flight from New York to Orlando.
A third and final transaction happened Feb. 15. The source and Patton negotiated a three-kilogram cocaine deal, again from Atlanta to New York. The source arrived at Hartsfield-Jackson and gave Patton with the same carry-on bag that had been used in the previous two deals. The bag was packed with three kilograms of fake cocaine and cash. Patton was again in TSA uniform and on duty at Hartsfield-Jackson when he took the luggage. Patton allegedly passed the fake cocaine through security without incident. Inside the airport, Patton provided Adgar with the bag. Adgar was arrested by DEA agents while attempting to board a Delta flight to LaGuardia Airport. Patton and Mays were arrested shortly thereafter.
"These individuals allegedly abused their positions at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport to smuggle drugs past security and onto Delta flights," said U.S. Attorney David E. Nahmias. "This indictment should serve as a cautionary tale for others who would betray the trust that the public places in the frontline workers at our nation's airports: such illegal conduct will be discovered and the offenders swiftly brought to justice."

Simon Gold Smith answer to three charges of conspiracy to commit felony, unlawfully possession and trafficking of contraband drugs contrary to

Tuesday, 19 February 2008

Simon Gold Smith, a British citizen was on Monday 18th February 2008 arraigned before Magistrate A.M Kamanda of Court No. 2 in Freetown to answer to three count charges of conspiracy to commit felony, unlawfully possession and trafficking of contraband drugs contrary to laws of Sierra Leone. According to the particulars of offence, the accused was arrested on the 8th February 2008 with 78 parcels of cocaine at the Lungi International Airport with intention to traffic the said drugs out of the country to London onboard Brussels airline. Considering the gravity of the matter, the accused was not allowed to say anything in court. However, his Defence Counsel, Lawyer Robert Kowa applied for bail for his client with the assurance that he would always be presented in Court for subsequent hearings.
The Magistrate used his discretion. Given the nature of the offence, and for the fact that the accused is not a Sierra Leonean and not a resident of Freetown, he refused to grant him bail. He was then sent on remand to the maximum prisons at Pademba Road. The matter was adjourned to Thursday 21st February 2008.

House Jacking in Ciudad Quesada

A gang of robbers broke into the home of 80 year-old promoter Justo Quesada in Ciudad Quesada, while he and his wife were in the house. The gang of at least 3 men threatened a guard on duty at the house with a pistol, which allowed them to gain entry and once inside they stole 30,000€ in cash plus other valuables. Fortunately nobody was injured at the hands of the gang, which is believed to be the same band of foreigners which have struck recently at San Miguel and Almoradí. on 15th January an armed gang of 8 entered a house in San Miguel and threatened the occupants and their children in order to steal jewellery and cash. The same bunch are thought to have been responsible for a robbery in Almoradí on 1st February, when a woman, alone in her house with her children, was injured after resisting the robbers, who stole jewellery and other items of value

‘El Ardilla’ (The Squirrel). Major Drugs Gang Arrested In Torrellano

National Police raided a house in Torrellano used by an organised gang which distributed drugs throughout the province of Alicante and the surrounding regions. The same house was attacked 2 years ago, almost to the day, by another gang from France, which resulted in the death of one of the attackers.The police raid resulted in the detention of 9 gang members, including it’s leader Enrique C, known as ‘El Ardilla’ (The Squirrel). A search of the premises revealed a cache of firearms of various descriptions, 1.6 kilos of cocaine, a kilo of hashish and other drug related paraphernalia, plus 26,000€ in cash. Two jackets bearing the crest of the Guardia Civil were also found, which may have been used by the gang in attacks on their rivals. A stranger item found was a coffin – in a raid on the same premises some years ago, a live deer was found inside! All the drugs were hidden underneath the house and were located by a police drugs dog.The police had been tracking the gang for some time and built up a picture of it’s structure, which was well organised in pyramid form, with precise orders relating to it’s operations passing from it’s leader down through the various branches which dealt respectively with the transport, distribution, sales and packaging of drugs. Security measures it used made it the police operation very difficult but they gradually built their case before striking.
The house is one of two on a finca in Torrellano, where accommodation was provided for gang members by El Ardilla and his family. The nine people arrested are aged between 27 and 44, three of whom come from Alicante and 2 from Elche. After appearing before a court, El Ardilla and his son were remanded in custody while the other 7 were given bail.

Ethica Cordero,Jacqueline Alvarez,discovered inside the vehicle a ripped open and nearly empty bag of crack cocaine

Ethica Cordero, 31, of 26 Cambridge St., was charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, police documents state. Jacqueline Alvarez, 26, of 29 Arbutus St., was charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, violation of a drug-free school zone, failing to have possession of a driver's license and a number plate violation, police documents state.Police approached the vehicle after determining that its number plate did not match the vehicle, Lt. John K. Slepchuk said. Police, looking inside the vehicle, discovered a ripped open and nearly empty bag of crack cocaine - which they describe as 'blow-outs,' Slepchuk said.
A further search yielded the discovery of a "fair amount of crack cocaine," Slepchuk said.

Karl John Heidman,Michael Duane Williams,Robert Paul Burwell arrested by SANE

Karl John Heidman, 42, was arrested by agents from the Straits Area Narcotics Enforcement Team, also known as SANE. Heidman was charged in connection with delivery of heroin, delivery of OxyContin, possession of heroin and maintaining a drug house. He was lodged at the Otsego County Jail.Michigan State Police from the Gaylord Post and the Gaylord City Police assisted in the raid.Other recent arrests by SANE included Michael Duane Williams, 20, of St. Ignace, Mich., who was held at the Mackinac County Jail Feb. 7 after being charged with delivery of marijuana and delivery of OxyContin.Robert Paul Burwell, 20, of Alanson, was arrested Feb. 6 and charged with two counts of delivery of methadone and being a habitual offender - fourth offense.

David C. Battenberg,Diego A. Perez are charged in a federal criminal complaint with being involved in a conspiracy to distribute and posses heroin

David C. Battenberg, 27, of Metairie, and Diego A. Perez, 18, of New Orleans, are charged in a federal criminal complaint with being involved in a conspiracy to distribute and posses heroin, cocaine and other controlled substances.
The charges stem from a fast-tracked federal investigation initiated by the overdose death of 16-year-old Madeleine Prevost, a junior at Lusher High School who died in January from a toxic mixture of heroin and cocaine.
"The arrest of these two individuals on heroin distribution charges which we announce today signals something more important than the apprehension of drug dealers," Letten said. "Rather, it signals the end of a drug distribution business which caused the loss of a child."
James Bernazzani, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's New Orleans office, said the investigation was fueled by the mantra "no more children will die."
Letten, joined by Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand and other federal officials, said investigators gained key evidence - such as cell phone text messages and more - while executing a search warrant on the men's homes last week.
Bernazzani said agents will soon pay visits to parents of children who agents identified as drug buyers in the course of their investigation, letting them know their children use drugs.
"This is not a time for punishment, this is a time for hugs. . . Get them the treatment they need, he said.
Prevost's death stunned her parents, school and the community. Her mother Mary Prevost, a Lusher social worker, and her father Michael Prevost said they had no indication that their daughter was using hard drugs.
The Prevosts, who are divorced, say their daughter was deeply affected by the loss of both parents' homes during Hurricane Katrina. Besides losing her dog Chelsea during the storm, Madeleine was displaced to the Hampton Roads Academy in Virginia. When she returned home she enrolled at Lusher.
Maddy had gone out the Saturday night before her death and was home by her curfew of 11 p.m., her father said. When she sounded funny, he asked her if she'd been drinking. She assured him that she had not, and went to bed.Sometime on Sunday, she died from a mixture of heroin and cocaine that authorities believe she took Saturday evening.

x-Slave Fashions used to distributed cocaine

The investigation, which included a court authorized wire tape of a telephone utilized by the defendants centered around the transport of substantial amounts of cocaine from Atlanta, Georgia, to the Wilmington, North Carolina, area. Thereafter, members of the conspiracy distributed the cocaine in various ways including through a local clothing store known as x-Slave Fashions. Investigators estimated that more than 550 kilograms were distributed in this way. The following defendants were sentenced on February 11, 2008:
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS GAUSE, JR. , was sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment, five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $200.00 special assessment. GAUSE, a leader in the organization, was also ordered to forfeit his interest in five tracts of real property and personal property. On September 12, 2007, GAUSE pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than five ( 5 ) kilograms of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, and to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924( c )( 1 ).
HOWARD LEE DELTS, JR. , was sentenced to 176 months’ imprisonment, five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment. On September 12, 2007, DELTS pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than five ( 5 ) kilograms of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846.
JAMES ADOLPH BROWN was sentenced to 151 months’ imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment. On September 12, 2007, BROWN pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute more than five ( 5 ) grams of cocaine base, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841( a )( 1 ).
JOE NATHANIEL MCCRAY was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment, four years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100.00 special assessment. On October 22, 2007, MCCRAY pleaded guilty to Count Two of a superseding indictment that charged MCCRAY with distribution of cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841( a )( 1 ).

Kenneth Allan Burton,Katrina Anne Burton admitted a joint charge of possession of equipment for the manufacture of pure methamphetamine

Kenneth Allan Burton 35, and Katrina Anne Burton, 33, admitted a joint charge of possession of equipment for the manufacture of P -- pure methamphetamine -- at a property in Waimate last October, when they appeared in the Christchurch District Court yesterday.Ken Burton also admitted charges of manufacturing methamphetamine and unlawful possession of firearms at a property in Aorangi Road, Christchurch, on November 29. Several other charges against the couple will be withdrawn as a result of the guilty pleas.The couple's children were at both the rural Waimate property and the Christchurch house the family shifted to weeks after their Waimate home was raided.Child, Youth, and Family (CYF) staff alerted police to the Christchurch address, because of concerns about the welfare of the three children, aged from four weeks to 13 years.Police prosecutor Stewart Sluis said the three children were at home when the property in Waimate was surrounded about 8.12pm on October 25.
It took 13 minutes before the Burtons and their children came out, and in that time a lot of activity was seen inside the house, including smoke billowing from the chimney. The remains of chemicals and containers commonly used in P manufacturing were found at the property.Katrina Burton told the police she and her husband never used P in front of the children.When the Christchurch property was raided, a van at the house was found to contain chemicals. Ken Burton acknowledged they were for manufacturing methamphetamine. The van had its windows blacked out and smelled strongly of chemical.Two . 22 rifles, a .303 rifle, and an air rifle were found hidden in the walls of the house. Burton claimed the rifles were for hunting.The couple have been in custody since their arrest at their Christchurch home in late November. Initially they both faced charges as a result of that raid. Their children were taken into CYF care after both the Waimate and Christchurch incidents.Katrina Burton will appear in the Christchurch District Court todayfor a hearing to decide whether she will be allowed bail pending her sentencing on April 4. Ken Burton has been remanded in custody and will be sentenced in the High Court on March 13.
Days after the Waimate raid, Ken Burton claimed the raid on his Waimate property had been over the top.He claimed the couple had been watching Coronation Street when armed offenders and other police arrived with a search warrant.
Burton said seeing armed offenders with firearms had been harrowing for his children.
"For using P you'd expect a run-of-the-mill search. The last thing any child should see is their dad with a machine gun at his head."

DJ Grooverider has been jailed for four years in Dubai

DJ Grooverider has been jailed for four years in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for cannabis possession.A small amount of cannabis was reported to have been found in his record collection. The BBC Radio 1 DJ - real name Raymond Bingham - was arrested in November 2007 for flying in for a nightclub gig with 2.16g of cannabis in his luggage. Bingham denied smuggling drugs, claiming he had left the cannabis in a trouser pocket and forgotten about it. "Grooverider has paid a very high price for a serious mistake," a spokesman for Radio 1 said. The 40-year-old has been with the station since 1998 and hosted the weekend drum 'n' bass show with fellow DJ Fabio.
The programme, which has broadcast without him since his arrest, will continue under the title Radio 1's Drum 'n' Bass Show With Fabio.The 40-year-old DJ, who co-hosts the weekly BBC drum-and-bass programme Fabio and Grooverider, His case is causing huge controversy in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where strict laws rooted in conservative Islam sometimes clash with the liberal values of its expatriate citizens and the millions of tourists who visit every year.
Grooverider had been employed on a freelance basis and has not been paid by the station since November. Four years is the minimum sentence for drug trafficking in the UAE. In the last 12 months, 64 British nationals have been arrested in the UAE for drugs offences The DJ, who called his arrest "ridiculous" in an interview last month, has two weeks to appeal. "I must have forgotten the spliff," he said in the interview. "It was a small amount. Back home I would not even get prosecuted." Grooverider – whose real name is Raymond Bingham – was arrested at Dubai airport on November 23, hours before he was due to play a sold-out show at The Lodge, one of the Gulf state’s hottest clubs.Grooverider, who made his name DJing at illegal warehouse parties, is recognised as a pioneer of the abrasive style of dance music known as “drum and bass”. He is a recording artist and record label owner in his own right and an in-demand DJ on the international club circuit. His colleague Fabio will continue to present the Radio 1 show in his absence.

Scott Rush Bali Nine member " I didn't know it was the death penalty."

These are dark days for Scott Rush. The 22-year-old from Brisbane is far from home in a foreign prison, with little to think of but impending death at the hands of an Indonesian executioner.
He was originally sentenced to life in prison for his role in an attempt to smuggle eight kilograms of heroin from Indonesia to Australia in 2005.
He appealed, but rather than being shortened, his sentence was increased to death
Scott Rush Bali Nine member has spoken publicly for the first time about receiving the death penalty for drug smuggling.The 22-year-old from Brisbane was one of several of his colleagues sentenced to death in 2006 after being caught trying to smuggle heroin.On SBS TV's Cutting Edge program tonight, Rush describes his regret over his actions."There is a number of factors involved. I didn't have a concrete job at the time, I was waiting to go to the Air Force," he said. "I think about this and sometimes the answer changes. ... I didn't know what I was risking, I didn't know it was the death penalty, I didn't know anything about Bali, really."But Rush says he still holds hope that he will one day walk free from jail."It's always on my mind, always in the back of my head," he said."You reckon you're going to make it through and ... get out of here. I feel that I will; obviously I'm hoping that I will."[I am] continuously thinking about it every day.".Five other members of the drug syndicate are also facing execution.

The largest heroin seizures in Africa Biggest drugs busts in the country's history billion rand worth of heroin at the Beitbridge Border

Police say they've made one of the biggest drugs busts in the country's history, confiscating almost three quarters of a billion rand worth of heroin at the Beitbridge Border Post.Two men have been arrested. They were trying to bring around a ton of the deadly drug from Zimbabwe into South Africa.The police's Dennis Adriao says the find was the result of a routine search.South African police seized suspected heroin Tuesday worth nearly 100 million dollars in what the United Nations said could be the biggest-ever bust in Africa and one of the largest in the world.
The 47 sackloads of the drug, weighing a total of 1,363 kilogrammes (about 3,000 pounds), were discovered in a secret compartment in a lorry that had crossed South Africa's border from Zimbabwe, said Captain Dennis Adriao. The heroin was discovered during a routine search by police and customs officials near the Beit Bridge crossing."The truck and trailer were empty but on closer inspection, police members discovered a false compartment. Police narcotics dogs also reacted positively to the false compartment," Adriao told AFP."On opening the compartment, police found 47 bags each weighing 29 kilos of yellowish / pink powder. Sample tests were done on site which revealed that the powder was heroin."More detailed tests on the packages were being done to confirm the nature of the find beyond doubt.
Adriao said the total street value of the haul was 750 million rand (98.5 million dollars / 67 million euros).Two South Africans, including the driver of the lorry, were arrested and were expected to be charged with drugs smuggling.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said the bust was "indeed huge".
"1.3 tons would be definitely the largest heroin seizure ever made in Africa," UNODC policy analysis and research branch official Thomas Pietschmann told AFP.
"The largest heroin seizures in Africa, which we have on our database, amount to just 51 kg; the largest single seizure officially reported by the South African authorities to UNODC amounted to just 3.6 kg."
Pietschmann said only ten previous single seizures, all in Pakistan, had exceeded the find reported by South African authorities on Tuesday.

NSW government minister Milton Orkopoulos used drugs to "lure and trap" young boys

Orkopoulos, 50, is standing trial in the Newcastle District Court on 34 child sex and drug charges for offences dating back to 1995.
The former Labor member for Swansea on Tuesday pleaded guilty to one count of supplying cannabis and another of possessing child pornography but pleaded not guilty to a remaining 34 offences.Crown Prosecutor Helen Wilson told the court that Orkopoulos met his first victim through the Labor party in 1995 and won his trust by supplying him with alcohol, cannabis, and encouraging him to speak about his problems.Orkopoulos then hooked the boy on heroin, supplying him with the drug, needles and syringes and teaching him how to inject, Ms Wilson said.
Two other victims, aged 16 or younger, were also plied with alcohol and drugs and assaulted or forced into sex during the following decade, she said.
"What I expect that the evidence will show is that the accused used drugs to lure and trap these boys ... into sexual relations with him," Ms Wilson told the court.
A student who was in Year 12 and doing a leadership course at Parliament House in 2005 said Orkopoulos gave him a joint and they smoked it in a courtyard near his office.A fellow student who was with them at the time said he remembered the MP's words clearly.
"He said something like, 'this is where us politicians deal our drugs'," she said.
"He basically told me, 'just don't tell anyone'."
They then went to lunch with Newcastle MP Bryce Gaudry, the student said.The jury was told Mr Gaudry and fellow Labor party figures Jill Byrne and Jill Hall would give evidence at the four-week trial.

Col. Bayron Carvajal Colombian army colonel convicted killing members of narcotics police squad

Colombian army colonel and 14 soldiers were convicted Monday of killing members of an elite, U.S.-trained counter- narcotics police squad on the orders of drug traffickers, one of the most sordid of several recent cases of alleged corruption in the armed forces.A judge in Cali found Col. Bayron Carvajal and the soldiers guilty of aggravated homicide in the slaughter of 10 police officers and an informant in a May 2006 ambush outside a rural nursing home near Cali. Sentences will be imposed in two weeks. The massacre was just one of several scandals over the last two years that have tarnished this country's armed forces and raised questions about the U.S.-sponsored program called Plan Colombia that in 2000 began funneling millions of dollars in aid here. Since 2006, high-ranking military officers are alleged to have sold secrets to drug traffickers to help them elude capture, and to have planted fake bombs to gain career advancement. A recent report by human rights groups found that extrajudicial killings by the army have increased since the early years of Plan Colombia. Carvajal maintained his innocence throughout the trial, saying he and his troops thought the police were drug traffickers. More than 100 witnesses were called to testify, some of whom linked Carvajal to both leftist guerrillas and drug gangs.
Defense attorneys said the legal process was tainted by public statements from the attorney general and President Alvaro Uribe that the soldiers had murdered the police.The soldiers lay in wait, then fired hundreds of rounds and threw several grenades at the police unit as it was about to launch an operation to recover 220 pounds of cocaine that a tipster had said was stashed inside a psychiatric facility in the town of Jamundi.Six police officers were found to have been shot at close range. None of the soldiers were wounded.No drugs were found, and the informant -- who prosecutors said spoke by phone with Carvajal shortly before the attack -- was killed as well.The preponderance of Plan Colombia aid, which in recent years has averaged more than $650 million a year, has gone to expand, equip and train Colombia's military and national police. Congress was assured that human rights abuses and corruption in the Colombian armed forces would decline as a result of U.S. training.

Southampton Six have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to supply cocaine and money laundering offences.

More than 50 police officers were involved in the operation which saw six people arrested.raids have been carried out in Southampton today, disrupting a major cocaine network in the city.The raids follow a lengthy investigation into a major cocaine distribution syndicate in the city.
At around 7am today, detectives from the Serious and Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), assisted by officers from the Southampton OCU Priority Crime Team, executed three warrants in the Southampton area, and a further warrant in the Tooting area of London.Three men and a woman were arrested in Southampton, one man was arrested in London, and a fifth man has been produced from prison in Oxfordshire.
All six have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to supply cocaine and money laundering offences.They have been taken into custody at police stations in Hampshire where they will be interviewed throughout the day.
Following the execution of warrants, a significant amount of what is believed to be Class A drugs were recovered, along with cash and documentation.
Today's operation marks the first arrest phase of an ongoing investigation into a major criminal conspiracy by officers from the Western Serious and Organised Crime Unit, based in Southampton.Utilising powers available under the Proceeds of Crime Act, police have also obtained restraint orders on several houses and vehicles, which are believed to have been purchased through the proceeds of the criminality at the centre of this investigation.Detective Sergeant Jason Attwell said: "Effectively we are not only going after those who supply drugs by dismantling the network, but we are also intent on striking at the heart of their criminality, and stripping their assets away from them."

60 suspects have so far been called in for the final round of declarations in Marbella

Marisol Yagüe,ex Mayor of Marbella was the first suspect to appear before the Malaya judge, Óscar Pérez, on Monday, in his final round of court declarations before the corruption case is handed over to the provincial court in Málaga for trial. As with all the suspects who will appear before the judge, Yagüe was formally notified of the charges against her, but, in her case, refused to answer any questions.Also before the judge on Monday was the former Deputy Mayor, Isabel García Marcos, who told journalists as she left that she has nothing to hide, and said her former colleagues who appeared were optimistic and unworried, because ‘they can at last express themselves and because what they say is noted down, not what is invented.’ She spoke of the judge as a ‘professional with manners,’ which she referred to as an ‘important difference.’ The EFE news agency interpreted that as a comparison with his predecessor at the head of the Malaya case, Judge Miguel Ángel Torres.Four former Marbella councillors were also in court on Monday, and another six come before Óscar Pérez on Tuesday. It is the first time that defence lawyers have the chance to ask questions or to request new evidence.It’s understood that around 60 suspects have so far been called in for the final round of declarations.

1.5 million € Armed Robbery in Puerto Banus

Three armed men waved pistols as they attacked a Jewelery Store 'Boutique Tourbillón'in upmarket Puerto Banus close to Marbella. the home of the superrich. The armed robbers overpowered the security gaurd in a well planned Hiest.They stripped the fitting of jewellery and watches.1.5 million € worth of top name watches have been stolen from a jewellers in Puerto Banús, Marbella, according to police sources. Three or four people, thought to be from Eastern Europe, took part in the attack after smashing the windows of the establishment with large hammers. The National Police in Marbella are now investigating the robbery and are waiting to see the recordings from security cameras in operation in the area.It happened around noon yesterday and the thieves were armed with pistols which may have been fake. They wore hats and large sunglasses and managed to overpower the security guard at the Boutique Tourbillon in Muelle Ribera before he could react. He was unhurt in the attack.
It all took a few minutes and the men escaped in a large car on the A7 motorway direction Málaga.

Spanish society’s sick and tired of crime and corruption

Monday, 18 February 2008

In Spain, the crime rate is obviously on the rise under the Zapatero Administration. While the ones in charge mess around with conveniently fabricated numbers and statistics, one thing has become increasingly clear. In recent years, Spaniards have started to feel more and more insecure, not only out in the streets, but within their own homes. Facing the passivity of this Administration, Spaniards see a sort of quiet terror settling in which will most likely escalate.
For one thing, the downtown areas of the big cities are breaking down at a remarkable rate. In the name of multiculturalism and coexistence, entire neighborhoods are becoming black holes of crime, prostitution, drug trafficking, and consumption, as well as mafia-style contracts. It is no longer about petty theft or misdemeanors; we speak about real crime in the middle of the streets, wild assaults to jewelers, gang raids. The law of the jungle reigns; police stations are jammed with complaints pressing charges; officers cannot cope with the load. In addition to the lack of human resources and equipment, there is legal apathy; never before had it been so clear the feeling of a legal revolving door.

On the other hand, crime has gone out of control in qualitative and quantitative fashion outside downtown areas. It is characterized by violence with no limits; it is no longer about sneaking into houses, and running away with the booty, but instead entering forcibly to torture and murder in order to reap maximum benefits. Some housing developments in Madrid’s surrounding areas already live in fear, and rightly so; the citizens know intuitively that, when facing paramilitary assaults, they lack access to adequate security measures.
The Guardia Civil (Civil Guard) cannot keep up with the task of patrolling extensive rural areas. Given the circumstances, this body’s performance has been better than expected; gangs take advantage of the scarce human resources and equipment available, they rely on preparation, money and lack of scruples. Without the necessary means, the security forces always come out on the losing end. Facing the passivity of this Administration during all the legislative term, there are more crimes every day, and each time they become more violent. The autonomous communities try to lessen with great difficulty this untenable situation. Thus, the government winning in March will undoubtedly have to undertake the necessary reforms.
The next administration must equip the National Police and Guardia Civil with the necessary means and human resources to fight this type of crime. They should spare no effort. In addition, it is urgent to reform the law in order to adapt it to this new reality. We must speed up judicial proceedings, take a tougher stance on the matter of sentencing till the bitter end, or proceed to deport all foreign criminals with expediency; these are necessary measures. Between Alonso and Rubalcaba we have lost four years. Regardless of what new policy is put in place, it will have arrived late. However, if the next Administration puts its nose to the grindstone and makes a real effort, it will not be too late to reverse the situation.

Edmond Okoli denied smuggling cocaine into Scotland

Edmond Okoli, 43, turned up to collect the crates of cheap crockery from Peru - using a fake driving licence as ID.Security guard Okoli, of Tyrrell Road, London, denied smuggling cocaine into Scotland in November 2005 - along with others - and being concerned in the supply of the drug.He told an earlier trial he had been offered £500 to pick up the artefacts and knew nothing about drugs. He named those he claimed were really to blame.But a jury rejected his story and found him guilty, by a majority.The High Court in Edinburgh heard today that Okoli felt "justifiably aggrieved" that he was left to carry the can.Solicitor advocate Jim Keegan, defending, said Okoli had never been in any kind of trouble before.The earlier trial heard how police and customs officers had earlier searched through the vases and other pottery. They drew a blank - until they turned their attention to the packaging itself.Some of the slats making up six wooden crates revealed a suspicious shadow when x-rayed.A jury watched a video of what happened next.A hole was bored into one of the lengths of wood, followed by a probe which flicked out traces of white powder.The searchers then noticed three lengths of wood in each of the six crates was a slightly different colour and all had been hollowed out to take packages of cocaine.The wooden boxes were loaded onto a white Toyota van. But by them customs officers had seized the cocaine and hidden a microphone in one of the crates.As the van drove away the eavesdropping bug picked up the sound of someone singing about drugs in a foreign language.
Language expert Godson Echebima was asked to listen to the voices the bug picked up and said he heard "joyful singing" .Mr Echebima of London-based IOL Language Service told the trial that he identified the language on recordings as Igbo, spoken in eastern Nigeria.There were two Igbo voices on the recording, he said. Snatches of almost inaudible conversation could be heard against a background of a vehicle starting up and what seemed to be a telephone call.A transcript shown to the jury described part of the recording as "brief joyful singing" and translated the words as "he who's got the drug is going ..."The Toyota van was stopped as it headed south on the M74.Detective Sergeant Kenneth Simpson of Strathclyde Police drug squad told the court that the drug was of very high purity and could easily be doubled in quantity before being sold on the streets for between pounds £40 and £50 a gramme.
The detective praised the ingenuity of the smugglers. "It looked just like a plank of wood. It had been very professionally done," he said.Detective Sergeant James Wallace of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency said the search at Edinburgh Airport was part of "Operation Horus"Last year Okoli stood trial on the same charges with the two men he claimed were really responsible.
Richard Taylor, 45, of Edinburgh and Chibuike Chukwu, 28, of London were cleared by a jury then. The proceedings against Okoli were temporarily abandoned because his lawyer was taken ill.He had come back to Edinburgh to face a new trial, on his own.

Leroy Gatward supplying heroin to another dealer

Leroy Gatward (37), of Ruby Street, Newfoundpool, Leicester, turned to dealing to fund his own class A drug use and pay off a debt to his supplier.James Thomas, prosecuting, told Leicester Crown Court that on July 9 last year, police caught Gatward supplying heroin to another dealer in Rowan Street, Newfoundpool, at 1.30pm.
He said: "When Gatward was grabbed by the officers, he discarded two wraps containing a total of 6.46 grams of heroin which, fortuitously, landed on the police officer's car bonnet."The court heard Gatward also used the home of a friend, Helen Greaney (45), of Bronte Close, Braunstone, Leicester, to store the drugs, weigh them and package them ready for distribution.Officers searched Greaney's home and seized a small amount of heroin - 0.26 grams - and other paraphernalia.Gatward, a father, accepted responsibility for the items, saying he was looking after them for his dealer, whom he owed more than £1,000.The court confiscated £60 from Gatward and £95 from Greaney, seized on their arrest.Gatward admitted possessing heroin with intent to supply and possessing a small amount of crack cocaine for personal use.
Greaney, who sometimes gave Gatward a lift to deliver the heroin, was given a 12-month jail sentence, suspended for two years, with supervision and a nine-month drug rehabilitation requirement.She admitted being concerned in the supply of heroin between May and July.Judge Peter Morrell told Gatward he was reducing the sentence to reflect "the way you have responded well to the drug rehabilitation offered to you on remand in prison. You are to be rewarded directly for that".
Judge Morrell told Greaney, who had no previous convictions: "You came within a whisker of receiving custody.
"There are aspects of your character that suggest what you have done is wholly out of character."
In mitigation, the court heard that Gatward, the father of three young daughters, intended to fully rehabilitate himself.The court was told Greaney had only become involved out of desperation for pain relief for a medical problem and ended up hooked on heroin.She regretted providing her co-accused with a safe house to keep drugs, has received treatment and has been clean of heroin since Christmas.

Daniel Toussaint was sentenced to three years for his part in an operation known as “T Phone”

Daniel Toussaint was sentenced to three years for his part in an operation known as “T Phone” which enabled London dealers to push Class A drugs in Ipswich.Ipswich Crown Court heard that police surveillance spotted Toussaint with one of the main conspirators on April 29, 2004 and then with a 16-year-old concerned in the conspiracy on May 6 of that year.Stephen Requena prosecuting said when Toussaint was arrested he was in possession of 14 wraps of heroin with a street value of up to £150.He said three mobile telephones which had been used to contact other conspirators during a “relevant period” were also attributed to Toussaint.The court heard that the 25-year-old of Llanover Road, Wembley, London, had previous convictions for possessing drugs including heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis dating back to 1998 but no offences for supplying drugs.Toussaint pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.Wrag Chand, mitigating, said his client had reached a “crossroad” in his life and wanted to change his ways and become a good father to his young son.
He said: “Whatever route the court determines as appropriate Mr Toussaint is clear in his own mind that whatever happens he will change and lead a more meaningful life.

Mr Chand said his client was no more than a “street peddler” with drug problems, particularly with crack cocaine.He added: “There was no large amount of money found on him or at his home and nothing to signify an excessive lifestyle.“The previous convictions support that he has a real chronic addiction to drugs.”
Judge David Goodin told Toussaint: “I have no doubt you were a significant foot soldier in this conspiracy for the more senior and more heavily involved members.”
He said a “very significant” T Phone telephone number was found in Toussaint's possession.Toussaint was sent to prison for three years, less the time he had spent on remand.Daniel Toussaint was snared in Suffolk Police's Operation Wolf crackdown on London dealers infiltrating Ipswich to sell drugs.Members of the gang, known as the “T Business”, were caught after a lengthy and substantial police investigation. In all, nine people have been punished for various drugs-related convictions at Ipswich Crown Court.The investigation involved up to 80 officers at its peak, with surveillance teams and undercover police gathering information on the business.
Part of their work involved buying drugs from the gang's street dealers. Police became aware of T Business in the summer of 2005 and subsequent investigations revealed a connection with the London borough of Brent. It quickly emerged that the gang, which was operated from a house in Colchester, controlled much of the supply of crack cocaine and heroin in Ipswich.Detectives oversaw early-morning swoops in Ipswich and Colchester on August 4, 2005.One of the homes raided was that of Johnny Callie, 57, of Peterhouse Close, who provided the gang's Ipswich link. Callie was found guilty by a jury earlier this year of conspiracy to supply class A drugs. It is estimated the gang was making between £2,000 and £3,000 a day.

Louis Steele, was arrested with 39 decks of heroin, two hypodermic needles, a crack pipe and two baggies of marijuana,

Louis Steele, 56, was arrested with 39 decks of heroin, two hypodermic needles, a crack pipe and two baggies of marijuana, police said. The heroin had a street value of almost $800. He was charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance. Steele also faces multiple misdemeanor charges.Glen Hines, 54, was charged with felony counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance. When he was arrested he also was in possession of heroin and hypodermic needles, village police said.After a traffic stop on Jefferson Street, Rebecca Sisco, 26, was charged with felony counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance. Police said Sisco, who previously faced a drunk driving charge, was driving a car with five active suspensions and revocations. Mark Johnson, 46, was already in the Sullivan County Jail from an arrest last month in which officers found 47 decks of heroin during a traffic stop. Over the weekend officers added to Johnson’s charges two felony counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance.All four defendants were sent to the county jail without bail. The investigation is ongoing and police expect more arrests.

Sugar Shack, Daryl Shack,A neighborhood will only have as much crime as they'll tolerate.

"A neighborhood will only have as much crime as they'll tolerate," Hartley,the narcotics assistant chief said. police said that after 20 years of slinging drugs, Shack was a careful man. He tossed his cell phone every few weeks. He had dogs and a surveillance system hooked up at the house he stayed in between Shannon Ridge and the church. Investigators said he used different units at Shannon Ridge, where he was on the books as a maintenance man, to cook drugs often sold in the complex's laundry room as lookouts circled on bicycles. Police said the 41-year-old kept a handful of close operatives and a slightly larger network of addicts who sold crack on the streets. Investigators believe the addicts got a dose of free crack in the morning to get them up and out like someone else's cup of coffee. At day's end, the big sellers got another freebie, according to police. By that time, the ring had moved about $1,000 of crack within a neighborhood less than a mile wide, detectives said.
To trap Shack, police had a tailor-made plan. Two undercover detectives posed as construction crew leaders who made crack buys to pay their own laborers the way authorities said Shack did - with $25 doses of the off-white rocks of poison.
"We started off buying one piece at a time," Narcotics Assistant Chief John Hartley said of the 30 crack deals the detectives began in November. "Ultimately the goal was to get to Shack. But that took a long time." On Friday, Shack's court-appointed attorney, David Makofka, spoke from the hallway outside Courtroom 5D at the federal courthouse in Jacksonville. It was minutes after his client pleaded not guilty in his drug case. "Don't crucify him until you hear the facts," the lawyer said, becoming the first to defend Shack publicly since the man's Feb. 5 arrest in a police raid. On Feb. 6 a federal grand jury indicted Shack on 14 drug counts, including conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of cocaine base. Makofka said his client also denies any part in arson or human slavery offenses.
"When they don't have anything to talk about in the case, they talk about window dressing," Makofka said of law-enforcement agents. "The community needs to put the brakes on all these discussions and give him his day in court."
Shack has had those before. In 1999 a federal jury acquitted him on drug charges after law-enforcement agents nabbed Shack in connection with a 4-kilogram, or about $90,000 cocaine shipment in Fort Lauderdale.
Both his co-defendants went to prison. But with two prior state convictions involving felony drug charges, Shack is facing a maximum penalty of life in prison plus 390 years and a $34 million fine. Among the evidence police seized in the case was a soup mug they said he used to zap cocaine into crack cookies in the Magic Chef microwave in his Shannon Avenue house. Among the property they seized was his 2008 Ford F-250 truck, a gold ring, two diamond stud earrings and a gold Jesus pendant on a thick gold chain worth an estimated $3,000. It's not clear if authorities will seize the deed to the $380,000 home off Kernan Boulevard records show he bought in 2006 with his second wife. They are now divorced. Shack told the judge he made about $4,000 a month as a legitimate maintenance man before he went to federal lockup in Georgia. But the man's history of local arrest and booking reports dating back to 1987 alludes to a violent criminal past. In 2005, police investigated allegations Shack ordered one of his operatives to beat to death another addict who worked for him. That case never made it to court, even after officers recovered a radiator used in the attack. But police said both the victim and the accused from that case now are among Shack's five co-defendants in the federal drug indictment.
Police arrested 18 people they've linked to drug dealing in the Shannon Ridge area after three recent raids following the investigation they dubbed "Operation Sugar Cane."
The name was a nod to one of Shack's nicknames: Sugar Shack.
It also was the name of a limo service he had in the late 1980s.
Hartley, the narcotics assistant chief, said police plan to keep a presence in Biltmore even after they scoop up the four drug-dealing suspects they're still looking for.
"Our message to people that live there is we will not let this happen again. We don't want another Daryl Shack," he said.
The pastor also has vowed to make sure that doesn't happen. Detectives have promised him justice for the arson as that investigation continues.
But Biltmore's future mostly is up to its residents, according to the assistant chief.

Brooke Elizabeth Bumgardner,Jesse Leigh Olszewski possession of controlled substance

Brooke Elizabeth Bumgardner, 20, and Jesse Leigh Olszewski, 21, of possession of controlled substance, penalty group 1, between 4-200 grams. They also charged them with possession of marijuana between four ounces and five pounds after finding about a pound of marijuana in the house, and of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. They also charged Jesse Olszewski with furnishing or purchasing alcohol to/for a minor.Blake Fillmore Hurst, 19, went to jail on a charge of prohibited weapon (switchblade) in a weapons-free zone.The mother, 46, and a non-resident female, 20, were all charged with possession of marijuana less than two ounces. The second daughter, 19, went to jail on a charge of possession of marijuana less than two ounces and also possession of drug paraphernalia. All drug charges were enhanced because the house is across the street from the Howe football stadium, qualifying the area as a drug-free zone. Ford explained that the penalties of such enhanced charges are stiffer for those found guilty, just as the penalty for the weapons charge against Hurst can be stiffer, should he be found guilty.
Ford explained that OxyContin pills can bring up to $40 each on the streets. According to Wikipedia online dictionary, they are a pain medication that produce side effects similar to those from heroin use.The seized narcotics will be taken to the Texas Department of Public Safety lab in Garland

Gavin Geelan pleaded guilty to having a quantity of cocaine

Security staff at a Galway city night-club rang the Gardaí when they realised a punter had cocaine in his possession.
Gavin Geelan (25), a native of Co Longford with an address at 10 Castlegardens, Newtownforbes, Longford, pleaded guilty to having a quantity of cocaine valued at between €50 and €70 in his possession at Karma night-club, on January 13 last, when he appeared before Galway District Court last Wednesday.
Inspector Mick Coppinger said security staff rang the Gardaí when they found Geelan in possession of the drug at 1.45am.
The court was told Geelan had not touched the drug since and that this had been a one-off incident.
Imposing a €250 fine, Judge Mary Fahy said possession of cocaine was a very serious offence and the effects and after-effects of the drug had been very well documented in the media recently. “Everyone knows it’s dangerous. They read the papers and they are aware of the dangers,” the judge said.

James R. Benjamin found the cocaine in his vehicle

James R. Benjamin, 28, of 485 Indiana Ave., Mansfield , was stopped for making an improper turn and not having a rear license plate light. While conducting a search, officers found the cocaine in his vehicle, the department reported.Benajmin was charged with operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs and felony drug possession, in addition to the charges for improper turn and no license plate light. He was taken to Crawford County Jail. He will be held pending appearances in both Galion Municipal Court and Crawford County Court of Common Pleas.

Semyon Mogilevich asking to be freed on bail

Semyon Mogilevich has appeared before Moscow City Court asking to be freed on bail. The man is reported to have a number of aliass and to be a prominent figure in organised crime.Semion Mogilevich is wanted in several countries, including the U.S., on charges of fraud and money laundering.
Russian police arrested him on charges of tax evasion along with Vladimir Nekrasov, the owner of Arbat Prestige, a Russian cosmetics chain.

Barry Neil Hatwell gave Paul Daly a shot of heroin

Barry Neil Hatwell, 35, of no fixed address, gave Paul Daly a shot of heroin because Mr Daly had asked him due to a fear of needles.But a few hours later Mr Daly was found dead in a squat in Christchurch Road, Boscombe and died due to the dangerous cocktail of heroin and alcohol.Winchester Crown Court heard that on June 2 last year Hatwell, Mr Daly and two other men had taken a large commercial drinks fridge from the squat and sold it to buy heroin.All four men returned to the flat and Hatwell cooked up the heroin and drew it into four separate syringes.
The two men and Hatwell injected themselves before Hatwell injected Mr Daly.Hatwell later left the squat and the two other men fell asleep - one woke to find Mr Daly dead.Three people were arrested at the scene and Hatwell was arrested the following day.Initially Hatwell denied the offence but later admitted injecting Mr Daly with heroin by consent.He was charged with manslaughter, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years in prison.A post mortem examination found that Mr Daly died due to heroin toxicity, exacerbated by consumption of alcohol.A report from a Home Office pathologist said: "The amount of alcohol present was relatively moderate."However, alcohol is itself a respiratory depressant which would have worsened the effects of heroin in this case."Mr Daly, 34, lived in the Charminster area and worked for a supermarket in Boscombe.
DS Craig Travers of Bournemouth Police, said: "This case highlights the fact that if you are a heroin user and other people are giving you heroin you can never know the strength of what you are taking."

Big foot drug smuggling sub

"Big foot," is drug smuggling sub that moves about the ocean stealth -- mostly underwater -- keeping it off radar and sonar screens. It was filled with more than 4 tons of cocaine. The drugs are actually loaded in the front of the submarine - new subs in the cartel's fleet can hold up to 15 tons of cocaine. There's a six cylinder engine in the submarine that can move it up to 2,000 miles. The crew cabin can't really even stand up, it's kind of low. The beds are really close to each other, making it a tight space to live on."Every time we turn around, the smuggler are extraordinarily creative, extraordinary adaptive" said Nimmich. We've certainly seen that over the years.John Scmidt's a former drug smuggler who works with the courts to get people into treatment. He figured it was just a matter of time before smugglers took their trade "under the sea." Submarines are the present thing in vogue," said Schmidt. "I would tell my colleagues that we needed to buy a sub because all of our work was land oriented. It made sense to me that subs were the way to go because you don't see them." The drug subs are getting more sophisticated constantly. Every time drug agents expose one new smuggling method -- another one is already in the works. "The only thing that limits a drug smuggler is his money and or his imagination," explained Schmidt. "With those two he can go, the sky's the limit. " What makes this such a huge find for all the agencies involved, they actually have their hands on the "big foot,"

Frederick Roundtree's Newburgh-based cocaine crew

The 30-year-old Roundtree was identified last year by city police as the most prolific cocaine dealer in Newburgh, supplying customers who traveled to the city from 35 to 40 miles away.The case against Frederick Roundtree's Newburgh-based cocaine crew ended last week with a 30th guilty plea, but the biggest fish is thinking about getting off the hook.Roundtree's sentencing was postponed by Orange County Court Judge Nicholas DeRosa, because Roundtree is contemplating changing his mind about pleading guilty. Part of his plea-bargain deal last month included giving up his right to appeal. His lawyer, Paul Trachte of Newburgh, says Roundtree may want to renew his challenge to the validity of wiretaps that were a key part of the case.DeRosa disagreed with the defense contention that Newburgh police didn't properly "minimize" wiretapped conversations that weren't germane to the case, and he also ruled that police had no other means to investigate Roundtree's crew. Trachte argued that police successfully infiltrated the crew by using confidential informants.When DeRosa ruled against him, that left Roundtree facing the prospect of a trial and a maximum of 48 years in state prison if he was convicted of all the charges he faced.Instead, Roundtree accepted a deal: Plead guilty to a single felony drug-possession charge in exchange for eight years in prison, and give up a chance to renew his arguments about the validity of the wiretaps that snared him."I think the main concern now is the waiver of his right to appeal with regard to that issue," Trachte said.Roundtree's due back in court on this week.In addition to Roundtree, 31 people were indicted after an investigation of his crew's activities last year. Two of those people are still at large. The others all pleaded guilty to charges ranging from conspiracy to second-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a felony.The No. 2 man in Roundtree's organization, J.W. Hamilton, was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in state prison and five years' parole.The last open case in the Roundtree indictment ended with a guilty plea on Thursday. Charles Arline of Newburgh pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge, in exchange for a sentence of time already served in jail. He had been facing a felony conspiracy charge.His lawyer, Phil Schnabel of Chester, says that a former Orange County prosecutor, David Hoovler, helped ensure the plea bargain on Thursday by pointing out flaws in the wiretaps that were evidence against Arline. Hoovler's now a defense lawyer in Chester.Other people familiar with the case, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they didn't want to jeopardize future dealings with lawyers and judges, say that Arline was offered a deal because he was the last loose end in the Roundtree case. The prosecutor, Gary Heavner, left the Orange County District Attorney's Office last year and is now a prosecutor in Rockland County.

Frank Earl Evans Flushed, but not forgotten

Sunday, 17 February 2008

Flushed, but not forgotten. Cameron police say a toilet confiscated in a drug investigation yielded bags of cocaine. Frank Earl Evans, 32, of Cameron, was charged with tampering with physical evidence. Evans also faces escape causing bodily injury charges, after an officer suffered a knee injury during a scuffle with him.Bond was set at $55,000 for Evans, who's jailed in Milam County.Authorities believe Evans earlier this month flushed bags of cocaine down the toilet as officers arrived to search his house.Police Chief Patrick Guffey said officers wanted to get every piece of evidence they could.So the toilet was pulled from the floor. A back-hoe dug out the sewer line, which led to more bags of what police say is cocaine.Jail officials had no immediate record of an attorney for Evans.

Morgan Parkinson claimed he was dealing it socially to family and friends.

Morgan Parkinson, 24, has been jailed for nine months after officers caught up with him and found £11,000 worth of stolen scrap metal in the vehicle.
At the time Parkinson was on bail after police had recovered 24 grammes of amphetamine from his home in Shuttle Close, Accrington.The lorry had been stolen from Pendle.But it had a tracker system on board and the pursuit was launched when it did not stop for police on the M62.Parkinson, who did not have a driving licence, drove on the hard shoulder, past a queue of slow-moving traffic in a bid to get away.He smashed through a works area and narrowly missed highways officers on the hard shoulder.But then he crashed into a wall, rebounding into a police vehicle at Sowerby Bridge.Parkinson tried to flee on foot. However officers caught up with him after a short chase.Parkinson told officers: "I didn't take it. I have just been told to drive it."He claimed he owed almost £1,000 to a traveller for a drugs debt and had been told he could work it off if he did some driving.Parkinson, a convicted heroin supplier, admitted two counts of possessing amphetamine with intent to supply, last May 4 and 19, allegations of possessing cannabis and aggravated vehicle taking. Parkinson was banned from driving for a year and ordered to take an extended re-test.Burnley Crown Court was told that his home had been the subject of a police drugs search and the amphetamine was found.Parkinson claimed he was dealing it socially to family and friends.

Blake Fielder-Civil had taken a drug believed to be heroin, mixed with a toxic substance.

Blake Fielder-Civil - locked up in London’s Pentonville prison on assault and witness tampering charges - was rushed to the jail’s hospital block when he collapsed in agony after taking what he believed to be heroin.
Guards found him “writhing in agony whilst being violently sick in a cell. They set off alarms and activated emergency procedures to save his life.”After an investigation, officials found Blake Fielder-Civil had taken a drug believed to be heroin, mixed with a toxic substance.
A jail insider said: “This was a close call, but he might not be so lucky next time. If he carries on taking so many drugs, he’ll end up dead.”
Cops believe Blake Fielder-Civil and six other prisoners took the drug in the G Wing of the north London prison. Within moments they had all fallen ill.
Amy Winehouse’s husband of about a year has been warned to quit drugs. Just days before the OD, Blake Fielder-Civil was hauled in front of prison bosses for failing three random drug tests. He was locked in solitary as a punishment.
The jail source added: “He’s being very stupid. It’s only because everyone reacted so quickly that this dodgy gear didn’t do long-term harm.”
A Prison Service spokesman said only: “A small number of prisoners were treated in health care following the consumption of an unknown substance.”

smuggling almost 900 grams of heroin in internally concealed packages

Australian Federal Police (AFP) have arrested a woman for allegedly smuggling almost 900 grams of heroin in internally concealed packages.Australian Federal Police said the 39-year-old Australian woman was stopped by customs officers on a flight from Thailand to Sydney on Thursday. She produced two internally concealed packages containing white powder, believed to be heroin, police said.The woman was taken to hospital, where a medical examination recovered 165 heroin packages totalling about 880 grams.She has been charged with importing a border-controlled drug and is due to appear at Sydney Magistrates Court today.

Suspected Mexican drug lord Francisco Javier Arellano-Felix."We've taken the head off the snake,"

Francisco Javier Arellano-Felix, 37, was captured by U.S. Coast Guard and Drug Enforcement Administration officials while on board a boat about 24 kilometres off the Mexican coast, said U.S. Deputy Attorney Paul McNulty.U.S. and Mexican authorities allege he heads the Tijuana-based Arellano-Felix organization (AFO), a gang they say is one of the most dangerous and violent in the California-Mexico area. The group is believed to include seven brothers and four sisters from the Arellano family."We've taken the head off the snake," said Michael Braun, chief of operations for the DEA.American DEA officials said they received a tip concerning the boat's location and asked the coast guard to intercept it while in international waters. Eleven people on board the Dock Holiday, including Arellano-Felix, were detained and are being taken to San Diego."This case is the result of extraordinary co-operation between the governments of Mexico and the United States," said McNulty.A suspected Mexican drug lord linked to 20 murders was captured Wednesday off the coast of Mexico's Baja California peninsula, said American officials.

Charlie J. Neace charge of trafficking in a controlled substance within 1,000 yards of a school

An investigation into alleged drug dealing led to the arrest of five individuals at a Lee County motel on Wednesday, February 6. The Jackson Police Department had received a tip about possible drug dealing.
arrested 61-year-old Charlie J. Neace, of Little Leatherwood Road in Lost Creek (Breathitt County), on a charge of trafficking in a controlled substance within 1,000 yards of a school (Southside Elementary).
An investigation into alleged drug dealing led to the arrest of five individuals at a Lee County motel on Wednesday, February 6.The Jackson Police Department had received a tip about possible marijuana sales from the Tinchers Motel on KY 11-South and notified Operation UNITE, said Paul Hays, deputy law enforcement director for UNITE.About 3 p.m. on Wednesday, UNITE detectives accompanied by officers from the Jackson Police Department, Beattyville Police Department, Lee County Sheriff¹s Office and Kentucky State Police approached the room where the suspects were staying and discovered approximately 2 pounds of marijuana and
$445 in cash.Neace currently has an unrelated drug trafficking charge pending in Breathitt County.KSP troopers charged Neace¹s wife, son and two other woman on charges ranging from first-degree possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana and public intoxication (drugs).All suspects were lodged in the Three Forks Regional

local man and two men aged 34 and 45 arrested in Aberdeen

Grampian Police said it followed an intelligence-led operation in the Rosemount area of the city on Friday. 46 year-old local man and two men aged 34 and 45 from the Birmingham area have been arrested in connection with the discovery. Crack cocaine with a street value of thousands of pounds and a four figure sum of money have been recovered by police in Aberdeen.

Smuggled a hit of heroin to his jailed girlfriend

Saturday, 16 February 2008

An attempt by a 29-year-old man to smuggle a hit of heroin to his jailed girlfriend in Edessa, northern Greece, led to the arrest of a suspected drug dealer whose home was found to be full of ancient artifacts, police said.
After prison authorities caught the 29-year-old trying to pass a small quantity of heroin to his girlfriend – inside a crepe – he was questioned and subsequently led officers to a 42-year-old believed to be the supplier of the narcotics.
A search of the latter’s home revealed only a small quantity of heroin but a huge stash of artifacts.
The artifacts, believed to have been illegally obtained, include hundreds of bronze coins dating to the ancient Greek and Roman eras, a clay statuette of the goddess Aphrodite dating to the Hellenistic era, a bronze pipe and various broaches dating to the Iron Age.

3 kilos of cocaine were seized by Czech police

Czech police arrested two men, a Czech and an Albanian, who are suspected of trafficking cocaine across the Czech Republic and in Poland and seized drugs worth 24m crowns, Czech Anti-Drug Squad Director Jiri Komorous told CTK today.
According to preliminary estimates, more than 3 kilos of cocaine were seized from which 60,000 doses of drugs could be made. The arrested persons are a 27-year-old Czech citizen and a 36- year-old Albanian who legally stays and does business in the Czech Republic.
Neither of the detained was criminally prosecuted in the past.
The couple imported cocaine, diluted it and then gradually sold it in Ostrava night clubs. However, it also sold the drug in Karvina and Olomouc, both north Moravia, and in Prague.
In addition, the men were part of an international network and they also smuggled cocaine to Poland where they sold it.

Seized heroin costs more than EUR 3 M

Bulgarian customs officers at the Vidin border checkpoint with Romania seized late Friday 26 kilograms of heroin. During a check officials found 32 packages of the drug, hidden in a secret compartment in a car, driven by a 36 year-old Bulgarian national who was accompanied by a 34-year-old woman and their 2-year old child.The arrested trafficker was travelling towards Western Europe, police saidAccording to preliminary estimates, the seized heroin costs more than EUR 3 M.

Gregory and Deborah L. Benson dealing in methamphetamine

Gregory L. Benson, 45, was charged in December 2006 two Class A felonies carrying a standard 30-year prison terms. Under the terms of a January plea agreement, the counts against Benson were reduced to Class B felonies, each carrying a standard 10-year prison term
The judge imposed a 12-year sentence with four years suspended.According to court records, Benson had earlier convictions for driving while suspended (in 2006 and 2004), possession of marijuana (2002) and visiting a common nuisance (2004).Benson's wife, Deborah, 44, pleaded guilty in November to dealing in methamphetamine and received a seven-year prison term.

Hector Contreras pleaded guilty earlier to all 10 counts in two indictments

Hector Contreras pleaded guilty earlier to all 10 counts in two indictments. The charges included conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, meth and marijuana. There was no plea agreement.
Contreras apologized to the U.S. government, the state of Montana and Billings residents "for ever coming here with this stuff."Cebull found Contreras to be a supervisor or manager of the scheme that brought drugs from California to Billings and noted that some of the meth seized in the investigation was 99 percent pure. In addition, Contreras' criminal history began when he was a juvenile and includes gang activities and two deportations. He was first deported in 1993 from El Paso, Texas. Contreras returned and was convicted and sentenced for conspiring to commit a kidnapping in California in 2001. He was deported again in July 2003 after his serving his conspiracy sentence and returned illegally less than a week later, the judges said.Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Seykora said Contreras pleaded guilty to get credit for taking responsibility but did not cooperate. He also used innocent victims in the scheme to bring drugs to Billings, Seykora said.Contreras was indicted along with Baltazar Escobar, Melissa Shumsky and Sharon Moreno.Seykora said an investigation led to the interdiction of 135 pounds of marijuana and two pounds of meth during an April 2005 traffic stop of two vehicles on Interstate 90 near Billings. The drugs were found in a search of a van driven by Shumsky. Contreras was driving the second car. Shumsky admitted that she made three trips and brought 226 pounds of marijuana to Billings and denied knowing about the meth. Moreno was a passenger in Shumsky's van and admitted to having a meth pipe and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. She was sentenced to time served of 158 days.
The investigation also found that Escobar sold cocaine three times in 2005 to an undercover detective. The cocaine came from Contreras, Seykora said. Escobar was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Shumsky is awaiting sentencing for a conviction on conspiring to distribute marijuana.

Timothy M. Morneau, Christian D. Laurin, Alan James Mulder 200,000 Ecstasy tablets

Timothy M. Morneau, 31, Christian D. Laurin, 19, and Alan James Mulder, 19, all of Winnipeg, Manitoba, are accused of smuggling the drugs across the U.S.-Canada border into North Dakota on a snowmobile.On Feb. 9, a Montana Highway Patrol trooper stopped a vehicle near Glendive for having a headlight out. A search of the vehicle turned up at least 200,000 Ecstasy tablets, said Travis Pitts, a Laurel police officer and special agent with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration. The tablets sell for about $25 each on the street.A criminal complaint charges the men with conspiracy to possess Ecstasy for distribution and possession with intent to distribute. If convicted, they face up to life in prison and a $4 million fine. The case will be submitted to a grand jury for indictment.
Jim Tilley, the DEA's resident agent in charge in Billings, said it was one of the largest Ecstasy seizures in the state. A bust near Sweetgrass netted 100,000 tablets.
Ecstasy, a stimulant and hallucinogen, is typically packaged in pound quantities, Tilley said. The drug is manufactured for about $3 a pill by labs in Canada and Amsterdam

Rebekah Mundle,Washington Shearer jailed for 11 years

Rebekah Mundle, aged 23, was jailed for nine years after being stopped at Gatwick Airport as she got off a flight from the Bahamas. A court heard that officials found quantities of the drug hidden in coffee bags within her luggage and that of two other women, who were cleared of a drugs offence.The find led customs officers to Washington Shearer, aged 42, who was jailed for 11 years.Croydon Crown Court heard that Shearer, of Maxwell Road, All Saints, had not been on the women’s flight but had been on their plane for the outward trip.Investigations showed that Shearer had been in phone contact with Mundle and, when his home was searched, coffee of the same brand as discovered in the women’s cases was found.Mundle, of Wheatley Street, Parkfields and Shearer had denied being knowingly concerned in the importation of almost 3kg of the drug.Selina Freeman, aged 23, of Chester Street, Whitmore Reans, and a 17-year-old girl who cannot be named, were also stopped at Gatwick in November 2006, and were cleared of the same offence following the trial of all four defendants.In evidence, all the girls denied knowing they had drugs in their luggage, and Shearer claimed he had had nothing to do with the smuggling arrangements, although he admitted he had flown out to the Bahamas on the same flight as the girls.Recorder Miss Daphne Wickham imposed a travel restriction on Shearer, which prevents him from leaving the country for four years after he is released from prison.She told Mundle: “Shearer had a great influence on you.”

220 grams of cocaine in an attempt to smuggle the drug into Germany from Lisbon via Mallorca

courier had swallowed the packages containing 220 grams of cocaine in an attempt to smuggle the drug into Germany from Lisbon via the Spanish Mediterranean island of Mallorca.
Emergency surgery probably saved the life of a drug courier who tried to smuggle 11 packages of cocaine in his stomach to Germany, customs officials said Saturday. The drugs were discovered during an x-ray after the man was detained at Hamburg airport a week ago because his travel papers were not in order. Most of the packages were released through bowel movements, but several became stuck in his intestines and had to be removed by surgery. He is now recovering at a detention centre, the officials said.

Paul Tracy Allensworth and $1.2 million worth of cocaine inside a tractor trailer's cab

Paul Tracy Allensworth, 46, is being held on $500,000 bond after the traffic stop. Troopers say they found the 31 pounds of cocaine stuffed into a blue duffel bag hidden under a bed in Allensworth's cab Thursday.
Arkansas State Police troopers say they found $1.2 million worth of cocaine inside a tractor trailer's cab during traffic stop along Interstate 40.
Troopers say Allensworth, who was hauling a load of metal shelving, had plans to transport the cocaine to Baltimore. Allensworth allegedly told troopers he received $5,000 to make the delivery.

Special Forces of Arturo Beltran

soldiers seized 23.5 tonnes of cocaine – enough for about 200 million lines of the drug – in the world's biggest ever cocaine bust. It was destroyed in a public bonfire. Calderon is hoping his crackdown will bring his administration rewards from the US, which has frequently urged its southern neighbour to be more aggressive against drug mafias. The US Congress is debating a $1.4 billion anti-drug aid proposal for Mexico, including high-tech phone-tapping equipment and possibly Black Hawk helicopters.The proposal has been tacked onto a bill requesting more funding for US military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Calderon argues the US government has a responsibility to help out because US drug users fund the traffickers - analysts estimate that Mexican drug trade to the US is worth around $10 billion to $30 billion a year.Most of the weapons fuelling the bloodshed are also bought in US gun stores and smuggled south over the Rio Grande."How are we supposed to confront these guys if they come at us? We need the army to wipe them out"Osiel Mendoza, Mexico City police officer
"It's a bi-national problem," said a senior US drug official in Mexico who withheld his name for security reasons. "It's an extremely bloody uphill battle. Narco-organisations have a developed infrastructure. It is being threatened and we are seeing their brutal response."However, critics worry that Black Hawks or other such tools given to Mexico could fall into the wrong hands. In the last two decades, hundreds of police, soldiers and politicians have been convicted of working for the cartels. One entire unit of army special forces deserted in the late 1990s to form a paramilitary commando called the Zetas, who work as bloody enforcers for the Gulf Cartel. Their rival, the Sinaloa Cartel, imitated their paramilitary style by training hundreds of would be enforcers in special weapons and tactics. After years of beheadings and reprisal massacres, these two cartels recently reached a truce, only to turn their wrath on the federal government, according to Mexican and US drug officials.The level of firepower of the drug gangs has been shown in raids on cartel safe houses in recent weeks. Police stormed one middle-class Mexico City home to find 30 guns, 12 grenade launchers, 30 grenades and more than 40 bullet-proof jackets with the initials FEDA – a Spanish acronym for "Special Forces of Arturo Beltran", an alleged drug gang leader.A raid on a Tijuana warehouse used by a cartel for training even unearthed a shooting range and assault course.Low ranking police officers complain they are outgunned and are risking their lives for salaries which are as low as $600 per month."How are we supposed to confront these guys if they come at us?" Osiel Mendoza, a Mexico City police officer, said to Al Jazeera.
"We need the army to wipe them out."

Hashish had come from Tetuan in Morocco, shipped over from Safi or Tan Tan

While the debate over bugging continues in the UK, police in Tenerife make no bones about the advantages of tapping not one but twenty telephones, which was the case last week when it helped them bust a gang of local and Moroccan traffickers in Güímar.
The police swooped as the men were in the act of transferring 1,100 kilos of hashish in a van to a safe house.Hashish had come from Tetuan in Morocco, shipped over from Safi or Tan Tan and had been offloaded somewhere along the south Tenerife coast.

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