Former MI6 chief says ministers approved Gaddafi links

 

Sir Richard Dearlove, who was head of MI6 when British agents helped to send Muammar Gaddafi's opponents back to Libya, where they were tortured, said on Thursday that intelligence co-operation with countries with poor human rights records had always been cleared by ministers. "It has always been pretty clear that our governments in the UK have accepted that danger and difficulty and have given political clearance for that sort of co-operation," he told a meeting of the Henry Jackson Society, a foreign policy international thinktank. Whitehall officials have already insisted that intelligence cooperation with Gaddafi's Libya was authorised by ministers. However, Labour ministers at the time, including Tony Blair and Jack Straw, have distanced themselves from MI6's co-operation with Gaddafi's security services, as has Lady Eliza Manningham-Buller, then head of MI5. Dearlove said that MI6's co-operation with Gaddafi's regime against extremism was "uncomfortable" and "pragmatic". But he denied MI6 enjoyed a "cosy" relationship with the regime. He said that MI6 had had "phenomenal" success in disarming Libya, which had succeeded in acquiring the infrastructure needed to begin a nuclear weapons programme from the rogue Pakistani scientist, AQ Khan. "I resent the suggestion the relationship with Gaddafi was cosy," he said. "It was not a cosy relationship, it was a pragmatic one." Dearlove added: "It was a political decision, having very significantly disarmed Libya, for the government to co-operate with Libya on Islamist terrorism. The whole relationship was one of serious calculation about where the overall balance of our national interests stood." Papers found abandoned in the Tripoli offices of Moussa Koussa, Gaddafi's former foreign minister and intelligence chief, showed how MI6 was involved in sending suspected extremists back to Libya. They included Abdul Hakim Belhaj, a former prominent member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, which had links with al-Qaida, and who is now military commander in the Libyan capital. Referring to the forthcoming Gibson inquiry into allegations that British security and intelligence agencies colluded in the torture and abuse of terror suspects, Dearlove said that he should not say more about co-operation with countries which did not share the UK's views about human rights. Dearlove said he was surprised by the relative failure of violent Islamism to make a more lasting political impact. North Africa and the Middle East showed al-Qaida had failed to achieve the long-term political impact many people had predicted at the time of the 9/11 attacks in 2001. He said the terrorist network appeared to be "on the back foot" and was struggling to mount operations in the developed world. "I think it faces an issue of credibility. It badly needs to demonstrate to its sympathisers and its core membership that it can pull off something really big," he said. He said he believed al-Qaida had made a "serious tactical error" in taking on the Americans in Iraq when they would have been better off trying to mount more 9/11-style attacks. "I think it was a vision of taking on the US military. Once the US military got its act together, it came out of that confrontation very badly," he said. He insisted the west had been right to respond in the way it did to the events of 9/11, even though it resulted in the radicalisation of many Muslims. "Confronting al-Qaida was a confrontation of beliefs and values. I think it was the right thing to do, despite the risks, to come out on the front foot to meet that threat militantly," he said.

Panama installs 19 radars to stem drug trafficking

 

Panama is installing a radar system along its coastline to alert it and three other countries, including the United States, of drug trafficking activity. Panama's Public Safety Ministry says the Central American country has purchased 19 radars and began installing them this month. Article Controls U.S. officials will train Panamanian police to operate the system which will generate a database that will be shared with Mexico, Colombia and the U.S, the ministry said Wednesday in an email to The Associated Press. Vice Minister of Public Safety Alejandro Garuz said the radars will detect both aircraft and ships. Panama is on a cocaine smuggling corridor between South America and Mexico. The country purchased the radars and six helicopters from Italy for $250 million.

$30m DRUG BUST

 

CUSTOMS and Excise Division officers late on Thursday discovered compressed marijuana valued at more than $30 million concealed in a refrigerated container at the Point Lisas port. Officers believe they have disrupted a major drug-smuggling operation at the port following the discovery, the biggest drug seizure in the country for the year. It's the third multi-million-dollar drug interdiction at the port for the year. In all of the cases, the containers with the narcotics passed through a port in Jamaica. On Thursday evening, it took officers several hours to carefully examine and tag each of the 38 crocus bags containing the illegal drug. A senior Custom source told the Express they were carrying out routine checks together with port security on 32 containers that arrived in the country when they made the discovery. The marijuana was found in the 31st container hidden among frozen chicken parts. The container had left the United States on board a cargo ship, but had stopped off in Jamaica. Customs sources believe the marijuana was stashed inside the container in Jamaica. Portions of the original cargo in the container were removed and replaced with the marijuana to ensure there was no change in the original weight of the cargo, sources said. The container, which had arrived two days before on the vessel Vega Saturn, belongs to a Central businessman, but Customs sources were unable to say if he had knowledge of the drug. "Based on intelligence, we search containers which we find suspicious but there are containers from different countries. We target mainly those from Jamaica and Guyana and then other countries," a Customs source said. Ian Atherly, chairman of port operator Plipdeco, who was at the scene of Thursday's bust, promised the port would do all in its power to stop the illegal flow of narcotics through its facility, admitting the fight is a very difficult one. "We can't stop anyone from sending drugs but once they arrive here the prerogative, onus, responsibility is on us to ensure it does not leave the port," Atherly said. Communications specialist at the Customs and Excise Division, Alicia Charles, in a press release yesterday, stated that Customs officers, in conjunction with Port security, discovered close to one tonne of compressed marijuana in an enclosed 40-foot container at the Port of Point Lisas. On opening the container, which was said to contain frozen chicken parts, Charles said officers found 38 crocus bags of compressed marijuana weighing over 921 kilogrammes. Charles said Customs officials have estimated the value of the drug at $7.4 million.

Accused meth smuggler, caught at LAX, is charged

 

man bound for Japan has been charged with drug trafficking after Transportation Security Administration officials at LAX discovered nearly 5 pounds of methamphetamine concealed inside TGI Fridays Potato Skins snack bags in his backpack. Lemuel Giovani Espinosa, 21, of Compton appeared in federal court Thursday after agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested him Wednesday. TSA officers discovered the drugs in his carry-on bag during the X-ray screening process as he prepared to board a flight to Narita International Airport, outside Tokyo. U.S. customs officers seized the contraband and determined that it was, in fact, a controlled substance. Espinosa planned to deliver the contraband to a person in Japan in return for a $6,000 payment, according to an affidavit in the case. Federal agents estimate the methamphetamine would have sold on the street in Japan for more than $200,000. "Drug traffickers are always trying novel ways to conceal their contraband,” said Marlon V. Miller, an ICE deputy special agent in Los Angeles. Espinosa was charged with possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. He was ordered held without bond pending his arraignment, which is set for Oct. 3. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in prison

Bali's tourism boom creates haven for global drug gangs

 

BALI has become a haven for international drug gangs lured by ever-growing throngs of tourists, island officials have warned. The holiday destination has had an increasing number of smuggling incidents, the most severe involving a 41-year-old Ugandan woman found dead in a Kuta hotel room in August with more than a kilo of plastic-wrapped crystal meth in her intestines. This month a South African woman was arrested at Ngurah Rai airport with a similar amount in her underwear.

Irishman caught with 72 cocaine capsules in Brazil

 

These are the amazing scanner images of the abdomen of a young Irishman caught smuggling cocaine at an airport in Brazil. The man, identified only as P.B.B., was stopped as he tried to board a flight from Sao Paolo to Lisbon in Portugal and then connecting to Brussels in Belgium. He was carrying 72 bags containing almost a kilo of cocaine inside his intestines. The 20-year-old man, who was caught last Monday at Congonhas Airport, was taken to the Santa Misericordia Hospital where the capsules, containing 830g of cocaine, were removed from his body. Police said it was his nervous behaviour that tipped off the authorities. The drugs would be worth approximately €150,000, police sources said. He has now been charged with international drug trafficking which carries a sentence of up to 15 years. Last week a Colombian woman, who flew from Argentina, died in a New Zealand hospital after a bag of cocaine burst in her body. Sorlinda Vega (37) arrived from Buenos Aires carrying 26 packages weighing 1oz each. More than 70,000 people a day are estimated to pass through San Paolo international airport and approximately five a day are arrested for drug smuggling. The airport, which has connections to 53 countries, is known as the main exit point for drug mules bringing cocaine from South America to the rest of the world. Drug mules are paid anything from €1,000 to €6,000 per trip. The largest contingent of those arrested are from South Africa, where poverty makes the lure of easy money even more attractive, but San Paolo’s jails contain smugglers from all over the world. Brazil’s penal system is notoriously slow and it can take up to six months after arrest for the first court hearing or 12 months for a sentence to be passed. Prisoners are allowed parole after two-thirds of their sentences have been served, but have to stay in the country which can be particularly difficult for foreigners with no jobs or family support

Suspected head of drug-smuggling ring arrested in Arizona probe

 

Jose Sarinana-Placencia, 28, and five suspected members of his organization are facing state and federal drug smuggling and weapons charges. The arrests were made after teams of law enforcement officers executed seven search warrants early Thursday at locations in three Arizona cities — Chandler, Mesa and Maricopa. In addition to the arrests, ICE agents and sheriff’s deputies seized 10 weapons, including a Mac-10 pistol and two ballistic vests. Sarinana’s smuggling organization is suspecting of moving multiple tons of marijuana every month. ICE and the sheriff's office opened an investigation into the organization in February. Before Thursday’s operation, the investigation had led to the seizure of approximately 3,000 pounds of marijuana, more than $300,000 in cash, nearly three pounds of cocaine and 22 weapons. “From every indication, this organization has been a major player in moving narcotics smuggled in from Mexico to the Phoenix area,” said ICE Special Agent in Charge Matt Allen. “By teaming up with PCSO on this complex investigation, we have been able to expose this network and shut it down.” Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said the drug cartels of Mexico are trying “harder and harder everyday to move their illegal drugs throughout the United States. “This investigation is a prime example of the cooperative efforts needed by federal, state, county, city, and tribal law enforcement agencies to combat their operations,” he said. “The Pinal County Sheriff's Office will continue to work with our fellow law enforcement partners during this ongoing war.” Maricopa, Az., located about 40 miles south of Phoenix, has become a favorite drug corridor for Mexican marijuana and cocaine, and has brought with it a rise in crime in the city of 43,000. Undercover police officers with the Arizona Department of Public Safety were assaulted in the city in March 2010 when they attempted to stop a stolen truck. One man charged in the case later was found to have weapons purchased illegally as part of the federal government’s controversial “Fast and Furious” undercover gun investigation. The Arizona officers reported that their cars were rammed and they were threatened with a Beretta pistol and an AK-47 assault rifle. Angel Hernandez-Daz, 48, a Mexican national, was arrested in the case. Last December, U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed south of Tucson and two firearms from the Fast and Furious program were discovered at that site

Manchester dad could be facing the death penalty after being arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling in Indonesia.

 

 Jack Walker, 53, is being held in jail after being stopped at the airport in the capital Jakarta. It is understood the father of two – who is well known for taking meat around pubs near his home in Wythenshawe – was arrested as he was about to board a flight back to the UK. Officials allegedly found a substantial amount of methylamphetamine – commonly known as crystal meth or ‘ice’. It is believed the drug was found in a concealed compartment of a suitcase. Mr Walker, who is a diabetic, collapsed after he was  stopped.  It is understood his family are anxious he may not be receiving the correct medication to control his condition while in custody. A friend of the family said: “He is well known in the area – he drops off meat at the pubs and clubs. “The family fear he could be facing the death penalty or 20 years in jail. They are desperately trying to get help but say no one is listening. “He has a wife and two children. Apparently someone should have gone with him when he went abroad but pulled out. “He needs medication for his diabetes. Everyone around here is shocked by this. “He is not the kind of guy that you would expect would get involved in anything like this.” Another friend and neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: “We’re really shocked - it’s unbelievable. “My husband and I are devastated - we’ve known Jack for 19 years. He's never been in any trouble. I feel so sorry for him. It’s such a shame I just wish they could bring him back here.” A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are aware of the arrest of a British national at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Indonesia. Consular assistance is being offered.” He confirmed that the death penalty was used against convicted drug smugglers in Indonesia. The country has some of the toughest anti-drug laws in the world with capital punishment for trafficking and 10-15 years for drug use. Mr Walker was arrested at the end of August.

Central control of Europe's borders proposed

 

The European Union's executive branch proposed Friday that national borders in Europe's visa-free travel zone be controlled by officials in Brussels, the EU capital, rather than by individual governments -- a plan already opposed by Germany, France and Spain. The proposal by the European Commission follows a call for stronger economic governance within the area that uses the euro currency, and reflects a push toward more centralized decision-making to protect the European Union's two proudest achievements, the free movement of both people and capital. It is unclear at this point whether either of those achievements will survive, said Paul de Grauwe, an economics professor and EU expert at the Catholic University of Leuven, in Belgium. "I would say we are at a road, and suddenly there is a bifurcation and we have to make choice," de Grauwe said. "One road is more integration to save the project, to save the Schengen zone and the monetary union. But there is a lot of opposition. It's also possible that we take the other road, no further integration, and then we risk the collapse of these two experiments." In June, EU leaders agreed to set up new rules underpinning the principle of free travel throughout much of the continent after Italy, Denmark and France all took action to roll back visa-free travel. Most of the details of the proposed centralized governance of the 25-country Schengen zone -- named for the town in Luxembourg where the visa-free treaty was negotiated in 1985 -- had already emerged. National governments would retain the right to re-institute border checks in unforeseen emergencies that threaten public order or internal security, but only for five days. Beyond that, approval of the European Commission and a committee of technical experts from the Schengen countries would be needed. And as a last resort, if a country failed persistently to adequately police the Schengen zone's external borders despite help from EU headquarters, the commission with the consent of the committee could impose checks along that country's borders with other Schengen countries. "It is a common European project," EU Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said of the visa-free zone. "We need to work jointly on joint projects to defend them." But there has long been a push and pull between officials who believe the European project can only work with greater integration and those opposed to the weakening of national sovereignty. Even before the Schengen proposal was unveiled Friday, it met with opposition from Germany, France and Spain, who said border control, public order and internal security were matters for national governments, not EU headquarters. Given that opposition, it is unclear whether the proposal in its current form will take effect. Meanwhile, plans to admit two more EU countries -- Romania and Bulgaria -- to the Schengen visa-free zone hit a snag Friday when Dutch Immigration Minister Gerd Leers said his country plans to block their entry. Approval of new Schengen countries must be unanimous. "The trust isn't there," said Leers' spokeswoman, Elaine de Boer. She said Leers "wants to see more work in the fight against corruption" in both countries. Bulgaria's President Georgi Parvanov insisted his country was being unfairly singled out despite meeting the criteria set out by the 17-member bloc for joining the visa-free zone. "I don't think it is right to use any other criteria in solving this matter," he said at a meeting with foreign ambassadors in the capital Sofia.

Brazil catches Irish man with gut full of cocaine

 

Irish man has been arrested in Brazil with almost a kilo of cocaine hidden in his gut, police there say. The 20-year-old suspect was detained as he tried to board a flight from Sao Paulo to Brussels. Officers said they became suspicious because he looked nervous. When questioned, he admitted having swallowed sealed capsules of cocaine. He was rushed to hospital, where he expelled 72 capsules containing 830g (1.8lb) of the drug. The hospital released a scan showing the man's gut filled with the oval-shaped capsules. The suspect is being held on suspicion of international drug smuggling. If found guilty, he could face five to 15 years in prison. Risk Brazil is a major transit point for smugglers moving South American drugs into Europe's lucrative drugs market. Neighbouring Bolivia, Colombia and Peru produce almost all the world's cocaine. Every year hundreds of people - known as mules - are arrested trying to smuggle the drug on international flights. As well as the danger of being caught, smugglers who hide drugs inside their bodies risk having the capsules burst, with possibly fatal consequences.