Dismantled a crack and powder cocaine distribution ring operating in parks and neighborhoods in and around the Allapattah area of Miami

multi-agency Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation has successfully disrupted and dismantled a crack and powder cocaine distribution ring operating in parks and neighborhoods in and around the Allapattah area of Miami from August of 2007 until the present. The twenty-one individuals charged, were indicted on August 28, 2008. The indictment charged defendants Pablo Mendez-Trenches, a/k/a "Maka," Felipe Jesus Nunez, a/k/a "Chocolaté," Silvia Maria Zayas, a/k/a "China," Ricardo Terry Domech, a/k/a "Eugenio Arguin," a/k/a "Polopui," a/k/a "Puntilla," Antonio M. Cruz-Ramirez, a/k/a "Tony," Lazaro Soto-Rodriguez, a/k/a "Charlie Chaplin,"Aris Lara Jr., a/k/a "Gordo," Gerardo Pendas-Mechado, a/k/a "Rogelio," a/k/a "Rogelito," Felix Herrera-Cartaya, Belinda Bernal, a/k/a "La Gorda," Sergio Segon, Eduardo Lopez-Hernandez, a/k/a "Rashy," Maximo L. Carriera, Felicia Triana, a/k/a "Comadre," Flor Illiana Torres, a/k/a "Mima," Carlos Albert Pujol, Yajaira Rojas, a/k/a "La Loca," Vivian Guerra, Juan Xique, a/k/a "Juanito," Martina Roman, a/k/a "Amada," and Maritza Garcia-Duartes, with conspiracy to possess crack and/or powder cocaine, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 846. In addition, several of the defendants were charged with the distribution of crack and powdered cocaine. Two other defendants, Felipe Jesus Nunez, a/k/a "Chocolaté," and Silvia Maria Zayas, a/k/a "China," are charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of Title United States Code, Section 922(g)(1). If convicted, the defendants face possible sentences ranging from 20 years' to life imprisonment. The defendants will make their initial appearances in federal court on Monday, September 8, 2008.

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Posted in: Miami

Princes House purchase price includes curtains and furniture and a pink car.

Located in the hills above the New Golden Mile, only a 5 minutes drive away from San Pedro, surrounded by different golf courses and only 10 minutes away from Puerto Banus and a couple of minutes away from the beach with many beach restaurants. This most elegant high standard property, perched over the valley enjoys fantastic sea views and is situated in a magnificent private park-like garden with the most beautiful subtropical trees and flowers, with swimming pool, private tennis court and all the privacy and tranquillity that one could desire. This property designed in a particular architectural style offers 3 large bedroom suites, each with a large bathroom, 3 large reception rooms, dining room and an office, fully equipped bar, gymnasium, fully fitted kitchen with laundry and a guard house.

The property could easily accommodate another 3 bedroom suites each with bathroom.
Finished to the highest of standards, the property includes full security system, B&O central music system, A/C hot&cold throughout, sat TV and own water tank for the automatically irrigated and illuminated garden to ensure all possible comfort.
This is an exceptional exclusive property with 3 garages accessed through a large private driveway and completely walled. The purchase price includes curtains and furniture and a pink car.

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Posted in: Marbella

Acting on a tip from the DEA, police tracked Edgar Vallejo-Guarin to a luxury hotel in Madrid, police said Friday

Spanish police have arrested a suspected Colombian drug trafficker listed among the most wanted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the police force said in a statement Friday.Acting on a tip from the DEA, police tracked Edgar Vallejo-Guarin to a luxury hotel in Madrid, police said Friday, confirming a U.S. Embassy statement.Vallejo-Guarin, 47, who has a US$5 million reward posted for information leading to his capture, was arrested Thursday, the embassy statement said.Vallejo-Guarin, also known as "Beto el Gitano," has a history of violence, money laundering and corruption, the police statement said.In June 2001 the South District of Florida accused Vallejo-Guarin of being one of the principal sources of Colombian cocaine in the United States between the years 1990-1999, the statement said.Vallejo-Guarin is suspected of having transported many tons of the drug to Florida and Europe, and is also under investigation for possible involvement in several murders, the statement said.
The United States has asked for Vallejo-Guarin's extradition, the embassy statement said, adding that the suspect was using a false identity at the time of his arrest.
The police statement said Vallejo-Guarin had a house in Sant Cugat del Valles, near the northern city of Barcelona, but had been staying at many hotels in Spain and Venezuela to avoid capture.

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complex crime involving a rare and expensive Ferrari that was stolen in Marbella in 1993.

Connecticut police have helped unravel a complex crime involving a rare and expensive Ferrari that was stolen in Spain in 1993.Car smugglers falsified documents and records for the car, valued at between $4 million and $5 million, and sold it to a car enthusiast to Sharon, police said.Troopers from the State Police Motor Vehicle Fraud Task Force started their investigation in to the rare Ferrari 250 PF in June after learning that the car was registered in Connecticut. It turns out, police said, that the Ferrari was reported stolen in Spain in 1993. The original Police report identified the victim from Switzerland.
The car was then smuggled into the United States through New Jersey. It was registered and titled in New Jersey in 1994 with a false Vehicle Identification Number, police said. There were multiple paper sales and transfers over the next several years in New Jersey, police said.The vehicle was ultimately sold to an apparent unsuspecting buyer in Connecticut, who bought the car in New Jersey in 2000 for $550,000.00, police said.The buyer added the Ferrari to a collection of exotic vehicles, police said.According to exotic car enthusiasts, the 1958 Ferrari 250 PF is valued between $4 million and $5 million.Interpol and original owner assisted in the investigation.State Police investigators obtained copies of all Spanish and Swiss documents relating to the stolen Ferrari and they were all translated to English.The original owner from Switzerland never accepted the insurance claim because he believed that the Ferrari was so rare and valuable that it would eventually turn up somewhere in the world intact, police said.State Police Investigators submitted a search and seizure warrant to Superior Court for the subject’s residence in Sharon, where they located the stolen vehicle Thursday. The investigation is continuing.

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Posted in: Marbella

Nikki Beach shooting Iranians have been arrested

Two Iranians have been arrested by the UDYCO Organised Crime Unit of the Marbella police, in connection with the shooting seen at Nikki Beach in Marbella last Saturday August 23. Judicial sources told La Opinión de Málaga that neither of the two men actually carried out the shooting. One of the two has now been released after making a statement to the police, while the other is still being held. It’s understood they took part in trouble between a group of Iranians and a group of Britons which broke out in the discotec ahead of the shots being fired. One 42 year old man needed surgery in the Costa del Sol hospital after being shot in both legs

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Posted in: Costa del Sol

22 hotels in Lanzarote declared illegal by the Supreme Court of the Canary Islands still face an uncertain future.

22 hotels in Lanzarote declared illegal by the Supreme Court of the Canary Islands still face an uncertain future. As the controversy over their fate continues.
Some of Lanzarote´s best known hotels are in the firing line, such as the five star Gran Melia Volcan in Playa Blanca, the Natura Palace and the Gran Castillo.
In total eight five star hotels, ten Apart-hotels and four new developments still in the planning stage have been decreed to have flouted an edict controlling construction on the island. Which was created back in 2000 to militate against
unfettered building work.However two local councils essentially chose to ignore these new rules. And granted licenses to hotels which contravened this ruling in two of Lanzarote´s main resorts, namely Costa Teguise and Playa Blanca.
Established hotels in Puerto del Carmen, Lanzarote´s leading resort, managed to escape the controversy. As local councilors here adhered to the new planning restrictions.A police unit that specialises in fighting organised crime was then formed to investigate whether the former mayors of Teguise and Yaiza were guilty of accepting bribes from developers in return for building licenses.
A view that was supported by the Supreme Court of the Canary Islands as a result of an action instigated by the central island government in tandem with the César Manrique Foundation.A further meeting was held recently between the Director of the Environmental Department of the Canarian Government, representatives from the Ayuntamientos of Teguise and Yaiza and the hoteliers association Asolan. But the leader of the island central government failed to attend – making a final consensus impossible.Those assembled were simply left to agree that a case by case study was necessary to explore how the offending hotels might be brought into line. There is some suggestion that these hotels could even be demolished. But most island observers consider this highly unlikely. As Linarite can ill afford to do such damage to the local job market or the islands international reputation as a holiday destination.

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Posted in: Gran Melia Volcan in Playa Blanca,the Natura Palace and the Gran Castillo.

Half of the 165 passengers on an Air Europa flight from Tenerife to Salamanca Wednesday refused to travel in the Boeing 737-800 aircraft

Half of the 165 passengers on an Air Europa flight from Tenerife to Salamanca Wednesday refused to travel in the Boeing 737-800 aircraft after the pilot informed them about a fault in the antifreeze valve before takeoff. The Air Europa plane was preparing for takeoff when the captain informed the passengers of the fault. He said the plane would change its route and fly to Madrid, where passengers would board another flight to Salamanca. Eighty-seven passengers demanded to be allowed off the aircraft while the remaining passengers continued to Madrid on the original Boeing 737-800. Meanwhile, the passengers who had gotten off the plane had to be transported by coach to the island's other airport in the north where they were found room on a larger Airbus 330, also bound for the capital. Officials of the low-cost airline said that there was "no danger at any moment" to the plane due to the fault and asked for help to halt the wave of fear that has gripped many travellers after a Spanair plane crashed at Madrid's Barajas airport, killing 154 passengers in August.

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Posted in: Air Europa plane

Graeme Berry, 42, of Millerstone Rise, Kirkby Thore, Penrith, was arrested.

lorry driver has been charged with trying to smuggle drugs into the UK after about 420kg of cannabis resin was found at a British port.The drugs, with a street value of more than £880,000, was discovered by UK Border Agency (UKBA) officers in Plymouth among 20 pallets of foodstuffs.The seizure was made on Tuesday after the vehicle arrived from Santander, Spain.During a search of the vehicle, officers discovered hessian-wrapped drugs hidden among the pallets.Graeme Berry, 42, of Millerstone Rise, Kirkby Thore, Penrith, was arrested.He was later charged with attempting to smuggle the drugs into the UK and was bailed to appear before Plymouth magistrates on September 17.

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Posted in: Santander

Raymond Nevitt, thought to be lying low in Spain, doesn't pay up he'll face nearly 14 years in jail - when police finally get their hands on him.

fraudster on the run since 2006 has been ordered to pay back £1.6m he made through crime.If Raymond Nevitt, thought to be lying low in Spain, doesn't pay up he'll face nearly 14 years in jail - when police finally get their hands on him.
Nevitt, 43, from Whitefield, Bury, vanished on bail after being sentenced to three years and nine months for a complex business fraud involving more than £3.2m.
Now, following a proceeds of crime hearing in his absence in Manchester, Judge Martin Steiger ordered him to pay back £1.6m within six months or face a further decade in jail when police catch up with him.Police hope the prospect of a lengthy sentence will prompt him to return home to face the music. They say if he doesn't he will be forever looking over his shoulder because international arrest warrants have been issued against him.DC Julian King said: "This fraud didn't just affect banks. Dozens of staff lost their jobs as a result of Nevitt's crimes and several small companies also failed as a result of what he did. "The investigation is not closed and we are still keen to hear from anyone who may know where he is."
Nevitt ran a company called Ravelle and a series of associated businesses called PC2Go and Just Printers based in Trafford Park. The con involved getting banks and lending institutions to give out massive loans on the back of fictional business transactions.The court was told he corrupted junior members of staff to go along with the scam.Described as leading a `vulgar and ostentatious' existence, Nevitt spent the money living the high life, entertaining in top restaurants, buying cars and rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous.In 2000 he was featured in a television documentary about the Gumball Rally, giving an interview to presenter Ruby Wax after his white Ferrari somersaulted out of control in Latvia.
With money no object, he paid for the crumpled wreckage to be shipped back where it was paraded in Manchester city centre on a lorry, then parked outside one of his favourite nightspots on Deansgate.

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Posted in: Ravelle and a series of associated businesses called PC2Go and Just Printers based in Trafford Park

Mother of missing Irish girl Amy Fitzpatrick met Taoiseach Brian Cowen

Taoiseach Brian Cowen met the mother of missing Irish girl Amy Fitzpatrick this afternoon.The 16-year-old disappeared after leaving a friend's house at about 10pm on January 1st to walk to her home on the Costa del Sol in Spain.Her mother, Audrey Fitzpatrick, and her partner, Dave Mahon, met Mr Cowen at Government Buildings for half an hour during which they updated him on the investigation.A spokesman for the Taoiseach said Mr Cowen offered the assistance of the Irish embassy in Madrid to help the couple deal with Spanish authorities in the search for Amy.Originally from Clarehall in north Dublin, Amy had been living with her mother in the Riviera del Sol tourist resort in Mijas for the past few years.Her family last month appealed for financial help to hire a private investigator. Her father, Christopher, also called on Spanish authorities to release CCTV footage from the track along which Amy is understood to have walked home.Her aunt, Christine Kenny, said Spanish authorities were still working on the case, but the family had not received any news since June. "We've done as much as we possibly can, but we simply don't have the manpower to search the entire area," she said.

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Posted in: Amy Fitzpatrick

Tambovskaya branch of the Mafia makes it's money from a network of criminals in Russia

The Spanish Anticorruption 'Bureau' has asked its counterpart in Portugal for collaboration in investigating the presence and actions of the Russian Mafia operating on Madeira, and suspected of stripping profits and / or laundering money in the 'Zona Franca', the tax protected business community. The Tambovskaya branch of the Mafia makes it's money from a network of criminals in Russia, and last June in Spain 20 members of the gang were arrested in Spain and charged with numerous offences including money-laundering, murder, extortion, drug dealing, illicit association, falsification of documents and tax fraud.

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Posted in: Madeira

60 year old father and his 33 year old son have been arrested for drug trafficking in l’Alfàs del Pi

60 year old father and his 33 year old son have been arrested for drug trafficking in l’Alfàs del Pi, after marihuana plants were found in their garden in the El Patró area of the town.Police say they removed 22 of the plants which were between 1.5 and 2.5 metres tall. Two shotguns and a simulated pistol were also removed from the scene.The police were reportedly alerted to the case by neighbours and found a greenhouse covered by green fabric at the scene.

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Posted in: l’Alfàs del Pi

Owners of a jewellery store have been robbed three times in the past year

Owners of a jewellery store located on a busy corner opposite the Mosque in Cordoba have installed so many anti-robbery devices that it now looks like a fortress. The store has been robbed three times in the past year, twice by having a car driven into the window. On the third occasion the thieves smashed the window with a drain grill. In addition to the usual burglar alarm and "thief-proof" locks, bullet-proof unbreakable glass was installed last week, as well solid iron beams across the windows to stop the cars. The owner said the store had never been robbed during opening hours, only at night, but with all that extra protection, the thieves are going to have to change their working hours.

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Posted in: Cordoba

Thirty robberies at chemists shops in Málaga province

Thirty robberies at chemists shops in Málaga province, and the authorities are so concerned about the situation that the police have drawn up a special plan to try to give better protection to the chemists and their staff. Working in conjunction with the College of Pharmacists, which is to provide the addresses and phone numbers of every one of the 600 shops, police all over the province will now change their patrol routes to include all the streets in which pharmacies are located, and hope that this will dissuade would-be robbers as well as providing reassurance to the staff. The police will give talks about possible security measures and what to do if a robbery does occur, regular meetings will be held with the councillor for public safety, and the College is promising to provide assistance with legal aspects after a robbery, and to stand as private prosecutor in any court cases resulting from a theft. The number of robberies at pharmacies is already 20% higher than last year, and several establishments have been targeted more than once. The thieves are normally hoping to find drugs such as Viagra which can be sold for a good price on the black market.

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Posted in: Málaga province

Police discovered 200 marijuana plants when they searched a rural property just outside Almayate recently

Police discovered 200 marijuana plants when they searched a rural property just outside Almayate recently, and as one plant can be sold for 3,000 euros on the black market, the total haul was probably worth 600,000 euros. Two men have been arrested, one of whom is Spanish. This was one of the largest plantations of marijuana to be found in Málaga province, but top place goes to the discovery last year of 400 plants in the basement of a luxury villa in Marbella. Those plants were being grown in an artificial lake, with heat lamps directed at them to stimulate their growth. Investigators also discovered that the drugs which were allegedly produced there were subject to genetic modificication before being sold, to make them more addictive.

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Posted in: Almayate

British man who is allegedly a member of an international drug trafficking network involved in a shooting incident in Ibiza

Officers from Fuengirola's Local Police force have arrested two people who they think were involved in a shooting incident in Ibiza in July last year. The men were travelling on a motorbike which was stopped during a routine check at the Torreblanca roundabout, and although the driver produced documentation in a different name, the police suspected that he is a British man who is allegedly a member of an international drug trafficking network, and who took part in a shoot-out between gangs in San Antonio, Ibiza, last summer. The drug trafficker is wanted by the Guardia Civil in San Antonio and there is also an extradition warrant out on him, issued by Belgium.

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Posted in: Fuengirola

“The drums of crisis have started to roll,” says the vice-chairman of the Alliance for Tourism Excellence, Jose Luis Zoreda. “The outlook is stormy."

Holidaymakers affected by the growing credit crunch have deserted Benidorm, as Spain’s traditionally strong and resilient tourist industry sees a downturn during the peak season.Visitor numbers to beach resorts along Spain’s Costa del Sol dropped by eight per cent in July, as the government makes a pledge of €500 million to upgrade facilities.This unprecedented decrease in foreign visitor numbers in July has meant deserted bars, empty sun loungers and highly-discounted offers extending the length of the Costa del Sol, and has sent a warning signal throughout the industry.“The drums of crisis have started to roll,” says the vice-chairman of the Alliance for Tourism Excellence, Jose Luis Zoreda. “The outlook is stormy. There’s nothing to indicate that the rest of the year will compensate for the fall in business that occurred in July.”Compared with July of 2007, the area saw a drop of eight per cent in the number of foreign tourists in July of 2008. Between April and June, the numbers of holidaymakers from the UK dropped by five per cent, although Spain remains the favourite overseas destination for Brits. French, Italian and Swiss visitors also came in lesser numbers.The areas worst hit have been Andalusia, the Balearics, the Canary Islands, Catalonia and Valencia.Even domestic tourists, typically fiercely loyal to their own resorts, have decreased their holiday spending by thirty per cent, in a trend that increasingly shows “signs of instability”, according to the tourism and industry ministry.

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Posted in: Costa del Sol

Expats with a past

John `The Coach' Traynor (52)
Traynor strenuously denies allegations that he set up crime reporter Veronica Guerin for her murder.Garda and criminal sources allege that Traynor travels regularly between southern Spain, Amsterdam and Brussels to organise large-scale cannabis deals. Traynor, a former fraudster and associate of `The General', Martin Cahill, is believed to have made and spent a fortune from his involvement in the hash trade between 1994 and October 1996. In a phone interview with this reporter he denied that he had any part in Guerin's death.
Peter Mitchell (33)
Mitchell, from Dublin's north inner city, was alleged during two trials to be a member of the biggest cannabis gang that operated in Ireland in the mid-1990s.
Now based in Fuengirola, Spain, Mitchell is wanted by Gardai in connection with his alleged role in the gang. Mitchell and Traynor are believed to be in regular contact.
George `The Penguin' Mitchell (51)
Ballyfermot-born armed robber-turned-cannabis and ecstasy dealer Mitchell is unlikely ever to return home, as the Gardaí, the British police and the IRA are all keen to speak to him if he returns from Amsterdam, where he allegedly continues to run his hash business.Mitchell, a suspected member of the £30 million Beit art robbery gang led by Martin Cahill in the 1980s, served 18 months in jail since he left Ireland in 1996 after being caught during a robbery of computers in Holland. He is reportedly worth €15.3 million. Mitchell was accused in his absence in a court in London of being the organiser of a botched gangland hit on gangster Tony Brindle, a rival of the infamous Daly crime clan. Sources close to Mitchell have denied he was involved.
Tommy Savage (51)
Savage phoned Garda detectives from Amsterdam four years ago and said he had no part in the shooting dead of ex-INLA man Paddy `Teasy Weasy' McDonald in 1992.
However, because of newspaper reports about his alleged cannabis dealing, he has not returned because he says he would not get a fair trial.Savage, a former member of the Official IRA -- the old paramilitary wing of the Workers' Party -- was sentenced to nine years in Portlaoise for armed robbery in the 1970s. A number of his former colleagues have suffered violent deaths. In 1983 Danny McKeown was shot dead outside a Dublin dole office. Later that year Gerry Hourigan was killed in Ballymun. Michael Crinnion was murdered in Cork in 1995. Savage is believed to be close to George Mitchell.
Mick `The Corporal' Weldon (48)
Gardai have sought Weldon since 1993, when he fled the country as detectives prepared to bring him before the Special Criminal Court. He was found by Gardai with a gun allegedly in his possession.Weldon reportedly has his own plane and pilot's licence, and frequently flies to Colombia and Surinam. It is claimed by Garda sources that the former Irish Army corporal from Swords is one of the biggest cannabis barons in Europe.One criminal who knows Weldon insisted: "Mick is just like one of the lads who does a bit of this and that -- he's not an international gangster."Weldon's whereabouts are uncertain. He was last sighted in the Costa del Sol.
Seamus Ward
Ward was named during a trial two years ago as being a member of the same cannabis gang as Peter Mitchell. Ward, from Walkinstown, Dublin, has been missing since October 1996. Gardai believe he may be in the Costa del Sol, but criminal sources claim he is living in southern England.
Jim McCann
Jim "Just call me the Shamrock Pimpernel" McCann is wanted all over the world for a variety of crimes, and is regarded as a colourful figure in the underworld.
The reformed cannabis smuggler Howard Marks wrote in his autobiography that McCann mixed with unsuspecting IRA men and Hollywood actors like James Coburn during his heyday in the 1980s.McCann, originally from Belfast, in 1971 became the first man in decades to escape from Crumlin Road jail, where he was on remand for petrol-bombing Queen's University.
In the intervening period he linked up with international cannabis dealer Marks, while still trading on his reputation as a revolutionary. In 1977 he was arrested in France for extradition to Germany for allegedly bombing a British Army base in Moenchengladbach. A subsequent case failed, thanks largely to protests by French political radicals. Next he turned up in Naas, when Gardai caught him with nearly £100,000 worth of cannabis. When arrested, he would only say: "My name is Mr Nobody. My address is The World."McCann was later freed by the Garda on a technicality. He was last seen in Argentina.

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Posted in: Costas

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Expat Gangsters visiting or living on the Costas

John `The Coach' Traynor (52)
Traynor strenuously denies allegations that he set up crime reporter Veronica Guerin for her murder.Garda and criminal sources allege that Traynor travels regularly between southern Spain, Amsterdam and Brussels to organise large-scale cannabis deals. Traynor, a former fraudster and associate of `The General', Martin Cahill, is believed to have made and spent a fortune from his involvement in the hash trade between 1994 and October 1996. In a phone interview with this reporter he denied that he had any part in Guerin's death.

Peter Mitchell (33)
Mitchell, from Dublin's north inner city, was alleged during two trials to be a member of the biggest cannabis gang that operated in Ireland in the mid-1990s.
Now based in Fuengirola, Spain, Mitchell is wanted by Gardai in connection with his alleged role in the gang. Mitchell and Traynor are believed to be in regular contact.

George `The Penguin' Mitchell (51)
Ballyfermot-born armed robber-turned-cannabis and ecstasy dealer Mitchell is unlikely ever to return home, as the Gardaí, the British police and the IRA are all keen to speak to him if he returns from Amsterdam, where he allegedly continues to run his hash business.Mitchell, a suspected member of the £30 million Beit art robbery gang led by Martin Cahill in the 1980s, served 18 months in jail since he left Ireland in 1996 after being caught during a robbery of computers in Holland. He is reportedly worth €15.3 million. Mitchell was accused in his absence in a court in London of being the organiser of a botched gangland hit on gangster Tony Brindle, a rival of the infamous Daly crime clan. Sources close to Mitchell have denied he was involved.

Tommy Savage (51)
Savage phoned Garda detectives from Amsterdam four years ago and said he had no part in the shooting dead of ex-INLA man Paddy `Teasy Weasy' McDonald in 1992.
However, because of newspaper reports about his alleged cannabis dealing, he has not returned because he says he would not get a fair trial.Savage, a former member of the Official IRA -- the old paramilitary wing of the Workers' Party -- was sentenced to nine years in Portlaoise for armed robbery in the 1970s. A number of his former colleagues have suffered violent deaths. In 1983 Danny McKeown was shot dead outside a Dublin dole office. Later that year Gerry Hourigan was killed in Ballymun. Michael Crinnion was murdered in Cork in 1995. Savage is believed to be close to George Mitchell.

Mick `The Corporal' Weldon (48)
Gardai have sought Weldon since 1993, when he fled the country as detectives prepared to bring him before the Special Criminal Court. He was found by Gardai with a gun allegedly in his possession.Weldon reportedly has his own plane and pilot's licence, and frequently flies to Colombia and Surinam. It is claimed by Garda sources that the former Irish Army corporal from Swords is one of the biggest cannabis barons in Europe.One criminal who knows Weldon insisted: "Mick is just like one of the lads who does a bit of this and that -- he's not an international gangster."Weldon's whereabouts are uncertain. He was last sighted in the Costa del Sol.

Seamus Ward
Ward was named during a trial two years ago as being a member of the same cannabis gang as Peter Mitchell. Ward, from Walkinstown, Dublin, has been missing since October 1996. Gardai believe he may be in the Costa del Sol, but criminal sources claim he is living in southern England.

Jim McCann
Jim "Just call me the Shamrock Pimpernel" McCann is wanted all over the world for a variety of crimes, and is regarded as a colourful figure in the underworld.
The reformed cannabis smuggler Howard Marks wrote in his autobiography that McCann mixed with unsuspecting IRA men and Hollywood actors like James Coburn during his heyday in the 1980s.McCann, originally from Belfast, in 1971 became the first man in decades to escape from Crumlin Road jail, where he was on remand for petrol-bombing Queen's University.
In the intervening period he linked up with international cannabis dealer Marks, while still trading on his reputation as a revolutionary. In 1977 he was arrested in France for extradition to Germany for allegedly bombing a British Army base in Moenchengladbach. A subsequent case failed, thanks largely to protests by French political radicals. Next he turned up in Naas, when Gardai caught him with nearly £100,000 worth of cannabis. When arrested, he would only say: "My name is Mr Nobody. My address is The World."McCann was later freed by the Garda on a technicality. He was last seen in Argentina.

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Posted in: Expat Gangsters