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LIQUID NEWS ENGINE
Sunday 29 July 2012
Saturday 28 July 2012
Tulisa's Friend, 21, Shot Dead In Gangland Hit
Reece James, 21, a close friend of Tulisa Contostavlos has been shot dead in a reported gangland attack. The 21-year-old, who appeared with Tulisa in a video for rapper Nines, was shot in the head in a "pre-planned and targeted" hit, 100 miles from his home in London, reports the UK's Sun newspaper. Police found James' body in Boscombe, Bournemouth, at around 2.30am near where Somali drug gangs are said operate. A 22-year-old man was arrested. Reece was said to have been in the area with some friends for "a couple of months", though had filmed the video earlier this month with Tulisa and rapper Nines on the Church End Estate in Harlesden, North West London. The former N Dubz star caused controversy at the time, making a "C" symbol to the camera - the same sign that is used by Harlesden's notorious Church Road Soldiers gang. Tulisa claimed it was a reference to Camden, where she was born. Twitter tributes began flooding in last night, with one user writing, "RIP Reece James. Thoughts are with him and his family and friends". Local MP Tobias Ellwood described the killing as "a spill over from the drugs turf war in the capital", adding, "This was one London gang chasing down another, carrying out a professional hit and then going back".
Thursday 19 July 2012
Police scour biker club in connection with Saint John shooting
Police have returned to the scene of a fatal Saturday night shooting in the south end of Saint John. Their investigation remains centered on the neighbourhood surrounding the Bacchus Motorcycle Club, a property well-known to the Saint John police after they conducted a raid last year that netted large quantities of alcohol and cash. They were back at the club today and continued to search inside and outside the building in connection with the weekend shooting. Police responded to a report of shots fired around 8 p.m. Saturday. When they arrived they found the victim’s body at the corner of Pitt and Leinster Streets. The victim’s name has not been released but police say he and his attacker were known to one another. Yesterday, police arrested 50-year-old Matthew Thomas Foley in connection with the shooting and charged him with second-degree murder. There are reports Foley is the biker club’s local president, though police say the shooting was not gang-related, but rather a dispute between two men. Some area residents say the bikers are not a problem in the area, but others say they have been a constant source of disruption. “It’s daily. We’ve had nothing but headaches,” says one area resident. “So I hope this is the mark where they are gone.” While there appears to be a difference in opinion about the presence of the clubhouse in the south end, at least one neighbour told CTV News that police should be taking more action to get the bikers out of the area. David Hartley Brown is a community police officer in Saint John and he says police need to partner with concerned citizens. “We do our best to provide the service that we can,” he says. “We’re certainly looking for participation from the community itself and that starts with a person making that complaint. They have to be willing to come forward, talk to us about the situation.” Hartley Brown says he’s not surprised some neighbours have expressed frustration over the presence of the bikers in their community, but he says police have limited power when it comes to removing residents from their properties. Foley is due back in court next month to have a date set for a preliminary hearing.
Viv Graham Jnr: "I'm Proud But Haunted By My Murdered Father's Name"
The son of notorious Tyneside hardman Viv Graham has told how he wanted to change his name to escape the torment of his father’s legacy. Viv Jnr was four when his dad was gunned down in a gangland execution after leaving a pub in Wallsend on New Year’s Eve, 1993. Now 22, Viv Jnr told how his father's past has made him a "magnet for trouble", and he has been involved in several violent incidents. He spoke after he was spared jail at Newcastle Magistrates’ Court for assaulting two people, a man and a woman. Prosecutors told how in October 2011 he attacked Edward McKay and Terry Cave near the Gala Field Youth Centre in Newbiggin Hall, Newcastle. Defence lawyer Andrew O’Hanlon said he was a "troubled man" because he was "living in his father’s shadow". After he was handed a suspended six-week prison sentence, Viv Jnr told Sky Tyne and Wear: “At one point I thought about changing my name.” Viv Snr was shot three times with a magnum handgun as he left the Queen’s Head pub in Wallsend High Street. Despite hundreds of people being questioned over the slaying, his killers have never been brought to justice. The 34-year-old had a fearsome reputation in Newcastle, but his son said he was also known for his softer side, and was described by many as a ‘gentlemen’. He had a criminal record for violence, which included a three-year prison sentence for a nightclub attack. Viv Jnr’s brother Dean, 24, was found dead at the wheel of a car from a heroin overdose in March 2010. Viv Jnr, who lives with his girlfriend Rebbeca Hebron, 28, and son Shay, five, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault and one of carrying a blade. His prison term was suspended for 12 months and was warned he would be sent to jail if he offended again during that period.
The son of notorious Tyneside gangster Viv Graham has been refused compensation for injuries he received when he was brutally attacked in the street by his father’s enemies.
Compensation Payout Because Of 'Ongoing Feud'
Video: Viv Graham Jnr says he's a victim of his gangster father's past
Viv Graham Jnr suffered a broken skull and was hospitalised when two men assaulted him with a metal pole.
The 22-year-old, from High Spen, Gateshead, was told he would receive around £10,000 from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) as a result.
But Viv Jnr, whose father was murdered in a gangland execution in 1993, has received a letter from the CICA explaining that he will receive no payout because the attack was due to an "ongoing feud".
Viv Jnr, who lives with his girlfriend Rebbeca Hebron, 28, and son Shay, five, said: "It’s not fair that I don’t get anything when the only reason I was attacked was because of my father’s reputation.”
In May 2012 Sky Tyne and Wear revealed how Viv Jnr wanted to change his name because he was constantly targeted by his father’s enemies.
Viv Snr was shot three times with a magnum handgun as he left the Queen’s Head pub in Wallsend High Street.
Despite hundreds of people being questioned over the slaying, his killers have never been brought to justice.
The 34-year-old had a fearsome reputation in Newcastle, but his son said he was also known for his softer side, and was described by many as a ‘gentlemen’.
He had a criminal record for violence, which included a three-year prison sentence for a nightclub attack.
Viv Jnr’s brother Dean, 24, was found dead at the wheel of a car from a heroin overdose in March 2010.
Tuesday 10 July 2012
Singapore plans changes to mandatory death penalty
Singapore is proposing changes to its mandatory death penalty for drug trafficking and murder in some cases. Under the proposed changes, the courts will have discretion in the sentencing of low-level drug couriers who co-operate with police. In murder cases, the mandatory death penalty will only apply when there is an intention to kill. Executions have been suspended since July 2011 as part of a year-long review. The legislation is expected to be introduced by the end of the year and death row convicts would be able to seek resentencing. The courts will have the discretion to either sentence the offender to death or life imprisonment with caning, instead of the mandatory death penalty, when ''two specific, tightly-defined conditions are met'', said Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean. The two conditions are that the offender is only a courier and is not involved in the supply or distribution of drugs, and if the offender co-operates with authorities, or is mentally disabled. However, the mandatory death penalty will continue to apply in most cases, particularly for those who manufacture or traffic in drugs and those who fund, organise or abet drug trafficking, said Mr Teo, who is also home affairs minister. In homicide cases, the mandatory death penalty will only apply in cases where there is an intention to kill, Law Minister K Shanmugam told parliament. Mr Shadrake says the changes are a move in the right direction 'Right direction' There are currently 35 prisoners awaiting execution - 28 for drug offences and seven for murder. Capital punishment will remain ''an integral part'' of the criminal justice system, said Mr Shanmugam. ''At the same time, the courts will be given more discretion in its application.'' Singapore maintains that its capital punishment system has kept murder rates at one of the lowest in the world and drug trafficking under control. However, critics and human rights activists say that the island nation's mandatory death penalty was too harsh. British author Alan Shadrake has criticised the law in his book Once A Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock. He was sentenced to six weeks in jail and fined by a Singapore court last year. ''It's not the end of the death penalty. But it's a move in the right direction that no one really expected," Mr Shadrake told Reuters news agency by phone from Malaysia, where he is based.
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