Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Pair jailed for shopkeeper murder

TWO men have been jailed for life for battering a shopkeeper to death with wine bottles from his shelves during a botched robbery.

Gurmail Singh, 63, was attacked for just a few pounds, some sweets, alcohol and cigarettes during a bungled raid at his shop in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, in February.

Muawaz Khalid, 20, was told he must spend at least 21 years in prison, while Nabeel Shafi, 18, was given a 20-year minimum term by Mr Justice Henriques at Bradford Crown Court.

Gang member Rehman Afzal, 18, was sentenced to five years and four months for his part in the robbery and Umare Aslam, 20, received a six-and-a-half-year sentence for robbery.

Shoaib Khan, 18, meanwhile, received an eight-month sentence for assisting an

Serbia eyes swift response to EU questionnaire

Stefan Fuele delivered a set of around 2,500 questions while in Belgrade on Wednesday. Serbian officials hope to have them answered by January.

By Igor Jovanovic for Southeast European Times in Belgrade – 25/11/10

EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fuele presents Serbia with an EU questionnaire evaluating the country's readines for EU membership candidate status. [Reuters]

In another milestone for its EU bid, Serbia on Wednesday (November 24th) received the official questionnaire assessing the country's readiness to become a candidate for EU membership.

Stefan Fuele, the EU's enlargement commissioner, presented it during a visit to Belgrade on Wednesday (November 24th). It contains about 2,500 basic questions covering all areas of

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Yugoslav savings deposits: where did the money go?

Thousands who lost funds during the country's break-up are trying to get them back.

By Jusuf Ramadanovic for Southeast European Times in Sarajevo -- 23/11/10

Monika Milic heads the BiH Representative Office at the European Court for Human Rights. [Jusuf Ramadanovic/SETimes]

Banja Luka resident Svetozar Nisic, 77, went to work in Germany in 1963. Like many thousands from the former Yugoslavia who worked abroad, he deposited his savings in Yugoslav banks only to lose them when the country broke up.

"Thousands of honest, hard-working people labouring at difficult jobs tried to save, hoping they will enjoy their savings at an old age. Many of those people are now penniless, some are even homeless," Nisic told SETimes.

Prior to the break-up, the Yugoslav government issued

Romania's most-wanted closer to extradition

A Syrian-Romanian serving a prison sentence in Syria may also get jail time in Romania.

By Paul Ciocoiu for Southeast European Times in Bucharest – 22/11/10

Omar Hayssam, a Romanian-Syrian businessman, is escorted by special police forces at the main Bucharest court in 2005. [Reuters]

Omar Hayssam, jailed in Syria for terrorism, could face added time in Romania as a result of an extradition treaty signed earlier this month.

The agreement -- signed by Romanian Justice Minister Catalin Predoiu and Syrian top diplomat Walid al-Moalem -- was a highlight of Syrian President Bashir al-Assad's two-day visit to Bucharest.

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Venezuelan economy recovering but“15% devaluation” expected in 2011

President Chavez: “there’s no crisis here” Zoom Image

The government would then sell dollars at official rates of 3 and 5 Bolivar per dollar, instead of the current rates of 2.6 and 4.3 Bolivar that it established in January, Barclays analyst Alejandro Grisanti wrote.

The forecast follows this week’s announced that the Venezuelan economy contracted less than expected in the third quarter as a decline in oil exports was partially offset by increased public spending and a rise in manufacturing.

GDP

US cancel exchange of sensitive information with Argentina because of “leaks”

Jose Sbatella, head of Argentina’s anti laundering money special unit Zoom Image

“We have a problem with the exchange of information” admitted Argentina’s chief of Financial Information Unit, UIF José Sbatella, who tried to decouple the Executive from the suspicions blaming the “information leaks” most probably on the Judiciary or the prosecutors.

Sbattella said that nevertheless the Argentine government is working to re-establish the exchange of data on suspicious operations of money and assets laundering by private

US cancel exchange of sensitive information with Argentina because of “leaks”

Jose Sbatella, head of Argentina’s anti laundering money special unit Zoom Image

“We have a problem with the exchange of information” admitted Argentina’s chief of Financial Information Unit, UIF José Sbatella, who tried to decouple the Executive from the suspicions blaming the “information leaks” most probably on the Judiciary or the prosecutors.

Sbattella said that nevertheless the Argentine government is working to re-establish the exchange of data on suspicious operations of money and assets laundering by private

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Corrupt cop who helped ‘drug lord’ brother jailed

A CORRUPT Lancashire police sergeant helped his drug gang "enforcer" brother by hiding a cache of weapons and intimidating witnesses has been jailed for eleven and a half years.

Salim Razaq, 33, pleaded guilty to misconduct, perverting the course of justice, possession of ammunition and firearms, and money laundering before the start of his trial at Liverpool Crown Court last month.

A raid on the former Lancashire Police sergeant’s home found three machine guns hidden under the stairs, bundles of ammunition stored under the garden shed and more than £70,000 of laundered cash in his bedroom.

Details of the case were made public after a judge at Liverpool Crown Court lifted reporting restrictions on a separate charge of deception relating to a mortgage application and today Razaq was jailed

Sanjeev Bhaskar is The Indian Doctor

SANJEEV Bhaskar talks to BBC Prorgramme Information's Tony Matthews about his role in BBC One Daytime's new drama The Indian Doctor.

 

AS Dr Prem Sharma and his wife Kamini walk into their South Wales mining village pushing their suitcases on a hand cart, the children playing in the main street stop and stare.

The adult villagers are in the village hall watching Peter Sellers's comic interpretation of an Indian doctor in the movie The Millionairess, after being told that they are about to get an Indian Doctor of their very own as part of then health minister Enoch Powell's plans to address a staffing crisis in the National Health Service by recruiting 18,000 doctors from the Indian sub-continent – it's the precursor to a life-changing moment for all.

 

"The irony was not lost on me that Enoch Powell, of all people, had sent out requests to the Commonwealth for doctors to come over and bolster the NHS, and then, within six or seven years, was telling them to clear off home," says Sanjeev Bhaskar, who plays the lead role in BBC One Daytime's new drama The Indian Doctor.

Set in Wales in the early Sixties, Bill Armstrong's five-part story tells the remarkable and somewhat forgotten story of the "first wave" of often highly qualified doctors, many of whom found themselves not with prestigious posts in London but pushed by the medical establishment into socially deprived areas or remote communities.

 

"The story sounded an excellent idea," says Sanjeev, "I'm always interested in drama which has an element of social history to it and the fact that it was set in the Sixties was appealing. It was an incredible decade in terms of social history for Britain."

Was it a story he knew much about? "My dad's uncle was a doctor in London in the Sixties and we had friends of the family who were doctors, but it wasn't until I saw a Time Shift documentary on BBC Four a few years ago that I realised that

99 problems…but shopping ain’t one!

A YOUNG Leicester entrepreneur is becoming a household name – thanks to his budget online shopping website!

Discount shopping website 99pShopper.com caused a sensation when it launched on the web in August, offering popular brand-name items at just 99p or less.

The site was launched by 21 year old Suleman Sacranie who is already hoping to franchise the concept and expand into shops across the UK and Europe.

The site is proving to be a hit with ex-pats eager to snap-up their favourite British food brands online and is also already popular with UK based bargain hunters with an amazing 12,000 orders taken in the first two weeks of trading.

Suleman said the idea for 99pShopper.com was inspired by his father Aziz, a

99 problems…but shopping ain’t one!

A YOUNG Leicester entrepreneur is becoming a household name – thanks to his budget online shopping website!

Discount shopping website 99pShopper.com caused a sensation when it launched on the web in August, offering popular brand-name items at just 99p or less.

The site was launched by 21 year old Suleman Sacranie who is already hoping to franchise the concept and expand into shops across the UK and Europe.

The site is proving to be a hit with ex-pats eager to snap-up their favourite British food brands online and is also already popular with UK based bargain hunters with an amazing 12,000 orders taken in the first two weeks of trading.

Suleman said the idea for 99pShopper.com was inspired by his father Aziz, a

99 problems…but shopping ain’t one!

A YOUNG Leicester entrepreneur is becoming a household name – thanks to his budget online shopping website!

Discount shopping website 99pShopper.com caused a sensation when it launched on the web in August, offering popular brand-name items at just 99p or less.

The site was launched by 21 year old Suleman Sacranie who is already hoping to franchise the concept and expand into shops across the UK and Europe.

The site is proving to be a hit with ex-pats eager to snap-up their favourite British food brands online and is also already popular with UK based bargain hunters with an amazing 12,000 orders taken in the first two weeks of trading.

Suleman said the idea for 99pShopper.com was inspired by his father Aziz, a

Lord Ashdown: Pakistan floods have “challenged everyone”

LORD Ashdown has been in Pakistan this week on a fact-finding mission as part of the UK’s Humanitarian Emergency Response Review (HERR).

He visited flood affected areas near Sukkur in Sindh meeting victims and representatives from aid agencies who have been in Pakistan since floods ravaged the country in July.

Speaking from Pakistan, Lord Ashdown said the scale of flooding had “challenged everyone”.

"This week I’ve seen some of the flooded areas of Pakistan. It’s absolutely immense,” he said.

“I expected there to be challenges, but the scale of this has challenged everyone – from the international community to the Government of Pakistan.

"This is a huge humanitarian crisis. At the same time people in Haiti continue to need a huge amount

Birmingham man guilty of Banaz ‘honour killing’

A BIRMINGHAM man has been jailed for his part in the horrific murder of honour killing victim Banaz Mahmod.

Omar Hussain, 30, from Smethwick was jailed for life and told he would serve a minimum of 21 years for murder.

Another man, Mohammed Saleh Ali, 28, was also convicted of murder and jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years.

Both were also found guilty of threatening to kill their victim’s boyfriend Rahmat Suleimani and perverting the course of justice.

The men’s victim was their 20-year-old cousin Banaz, whose body was found in a suitcase buried beneath the garden of a house in Handsworth, Birmingham in January 2006.

She was murdered for refusing to return to her

Ofcom rap for Islam Channel

AN Islamic channel that allowed presenters to condone marital rape and call women who wear perfume in mosques 'prostitutes' had been censured by the TV watchdog.

In one programme the host told viewers that it was 'not strange' and 'not such a big problem' for a man to force his wife to have sex.

Ofcom ruled the Islam Channel, which broadcasts on Sky, breached the broadcasting code in five programmes between May 2008 and October 2009.

A phone-in show in May 2008, in which a female caller asked if she had the right to hit a violent husband back, was deemed in breach of the code.

The presenter at one point stated: 'In Islam we have no right to hit the woman in a way that

Russia's Putin to pay working visit to Bulgaria

The prime ministers of Bulgaria and Russia will meet later this week to discuss joint energy projects and other issues.

(ITAR-TASS, Blic - 08/11/10; BNT, Sofia news Agency, Trud - 07/11/10; Sofia Echo, Mediapool - 05/11/10; Dnevnik.bg, Mediapool, Darik, Sofia News Agency, Sofia Echo - 02/11/10; Bloomberg - 01/11/10)

Vladimir Putin heads for Sofia this weekend. [Reuters]

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will arrive in Sofia on Saturday (November 13th) for talks with his Bulgarian counterpart, Boyko Borisov, on the two countries' joint energy projects and ways for boosting bilateral trade relations. Borisov announced the visit November 2nd, following a telephone conversation with Putin the previous night. He said the two had agreed to meet on a non-work day so they could discuss all important bilateral

Montenegro's Djukanovic called to appear at war crimes trial

PODGORICA, Montenegro -- Attorneys for nine people charged with deporting Bosniak civilians from Montenegro in 1992 asked on Friday (November 5th) to call Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic and Deputy Prime Minister Svetozar Marovic as witnesses. At the time, Marovic was a secretary general of the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists. Prosecutors did not object to the request, leaving the court to decide on the matter. Earlier in the week, the government relieved former President Momir Bulatovic of his obligation to keep a state secret while testifying at the trial. Nine former police officers are charged with crimes against civilians for

Muslim group welcome Woolas election judgement

A MUSLIM group who were accused in campaign leaflets of sending death threats to a former Labour Minister have welcomed a High Courts decision to re-run the constituency General Election campaign he won.

Former Immigration Minister Phil Woolas accused the Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) of sending him death threats in a campaign leaflet leading up to this years’ General Election campaign in the Greater Manchester constituency.

Mr Woolas, who won the Oldham East and Saddleworth seat by 103 votes, also accused his Liberal Democrat rival Elwyn Watkins of refusing to condemn the death threats and pandering to Muslim militants.

But he was found guilty of knowingly making false statements about Mr Watkins and barred from the Commons for three years. Mr Woolas said he would apply for a judicial review of

Muslim group welcome Woolas election judgement

A MUSLIM group who were accused in campaign leaflets of sending death threats to a former Labour Minister have welcomed a High Courts decision to re-run the constituency General Election campaign he won.

Former Immigration Minister Phil Woolas accused the Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK) of sending him death threats in a campaign leaflet leading up to this years’ General Election campaign in the Greater Manchester constituency.

Mr Woolas, who won the Oldham East and Saddleworth seat by 103 votes, also accused his Liberal Democrat rival Elwyn Watkins of refusing to condemn the death threats and pandering to Muslim militants.

But he was found guilty of knowingly making false statements about Mr Watkins and barred from the Commons for three years. Mr Woolas said he would apply for a judicial review of

British Sikhs warned of EDL and BNP support

BRITISH Sikhs supporting the British National Party and the English Defence League have been warned they could be in line as the groups’ next target.

The warning came as Unite Against Fascism and the Indian Workers Association launched a joint statement condemning the groups.

Balwindar Singh Rana, spokesperson for UAF said the EDL were using Sikh youths to promote disharmony amongst the Asian communities.

“The EDL are trying to use the well known tactics of ‘Divide and Rule’ by recruiting mis-guided Sikh youth to their cause,” he said. “They pretend to be only against the Muslims but they are a racist organisation with very sinister aims.

He added: “The Sikh youth have to realise that today it’s the Muslims and tomorrow it will be all

Life for MP stab woman

A WOMAN who stabbed an MP as his punishment for voting in favour of the Iraq war has been jailed for life at the Old Bailey.

Roshonara Choudhry, 21, stabbed East Ham MP Stephen Timms twice in the stomach at his constituency surgery at The Globe community centre in Kingsford Way, Beckton, on 14 May 2010.

Choudhry, who refused to attend her trial, was ordered to serve a minimum of 15 years in jail.

The Old Bailey jury heard that Choudhry arrived at the community centre where Mr Timms was having his constituency surgery armed with a kitchen knife.

She was made to wait by a security guard after asking to meet with Mr Timms.

When the MP became available Choudhry moved around a desk towards

Chip shop death man named

POLICE in Leicester have named a man who died after being assaulted outside a Leicester chip shop.

Officers were called to a chip shop on Saffron Lane at around 9.15pm yesterday evening (Monday November 1), following reports that a man was being assaulted outside.

Police attended and found 43-year-old Jagjit Singh, from Harrington Street, injured.

He was taken by the ambulance service to the Leicester Royal Infirmary, where he died a short time later.

A 27-year-old Leicester man and a 35-year-old Leicester woman have been arrested on suspicion of murder. They both currently remain in police custody.

The scene was cordoned off to allow for forensic examinations to be carried out. Clifton Road between Saffron Lane and

Cattle prices in Punta Arenas soar pushed by world demand for beef

Zoom Image

Manuel Bitsch, Chile’s Agriculture Ministry regional representative said that prices for finished cattle could keep increasing recovering values of the first half of the nineties, particularly during the calves’ sales season March/June.

“There’s strong world demand for beef as some of the main Asian markets recover from the recession, including Russia, which has seen imports soar”, said Bitsch who added world supply remains stalled because of the falling prices of the last four years plus the