Latest news with #Clifton
The Guardian
an hour ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Grisly suitcase find led to one of Met's ‘most harrowing' murder inquiries
On 10 July 2024, the England footballer Ollie Watkins scored a last-minute winner against the Netherlands to secure the Three Lions' place in the Euro 2024 final. It was a balmy evening and joyful fans left pubs up and down the country elated and relieved that they had made it to the final for the second successive Euros. Among them was 61-year-old Giles Malone. He was waiting for a taxi outside the Mall pub in Clifton, the leafy, affluent suburb of Bristol, when he spotted two men grappling with a suitcase. 'I said to them: 'That looks really heavy; what have you got in there, a body?' – jokingly like you do,' Malone later told reporters. He was partly right. The suitcase contained the parts of not one but two bodies. And one of the men was their killer, Yostin Andres Mosquera. It was not until the next morning that ripples of rumour started to spread through Bristol and its surrounding villages. Clifton Suspension Bridge, the city's emblematic landmark, was closed both ways. A police tent had been erected at the western end. Closure of Isambard Kingdom Brunel's masterpiece both ways is rare but not unprecedented; residents speculated that perhaps someone else had taken their own life or someone had been knocked off their bike. Later on the 11 July 2024, Avon and Somerset police released a statement, which shocked the community: a suitcase had been found on the bridge containing human remains and the suspect seen handling the baggage was at large. Before Mosquera was arrested two days later, a video obtained by the Sun taken by a cyclist appeared to show the rider confronting the suspect as he ran away from the bridge through the area of Leigh Woods in North Somerset. It was reported that the fleeing suspect could be heard saying in Spanish: 'My boss is a bad man,' prompting speculation that this might be a gang-related murder. But the circumstances of this murder were much more singular and unexpected. The two victims were Albert Alfonso, 62, and Paul Longworth, 71, who were in a civil partnership and lived more than 100 miles away in Shepherd's Bush, west London. They were easily tracked – the suitcase containing their body parts had a label with their address attached. It was not until the trial at the Old Bailey in London opened earlier this year that the nature of their relationship with Mosquera emerged. Alfonso liked extreme sex, which Longworth knew about and accepted but had nothing to do with. He met Mosquera, a Colombian national, via webcam sites around 2012 aimed at Alfonso's sexual preferences. Prosecutors described Mosquera as a 'pornographic performer'. During his defence, Mosquera told the court he had met Alfonso in person in Colombia in 2022 and 2024. Photographs shared online by the couple show Alfonso and Longworth with Mosquera on holiday in Colombia, smiling and apparently enjoying each other's company. But on 8 July 2024, while Mosquera was staying with them, he murdered the men with Alfonso's killing filmed on camera. Alfonso, a swimming instructor, was stabbed to death while the two men were having sex with both the sex and murder recorded on film. Longworth, a retired handyman, was attacked with a hammer to the back of his head, suffering repeated blows, which shattered his skull. After killing Alfonso, he used the victim's computer to look at banking information relating to the couple before compiling a PowerPoint document of that information. He then tried to send £4,000 to his own account in Colombia, before going to a cashpoint and withdrawing money. Analysis of the defendant's computer revealed that between June and 8 July he searched for the value of the couple's west London home, browsed Facebook Marketplace for a chest freezer, copied spreadsheets containing Alfonso's login details for his online bank accounts on to his laptop and searched for 'serial killers of London' and 'Jack the Ripper film'. After dismembering the men, he put their heads in the freezer before transferring the rest of them to a suitcase and taking it to Bristol. Mosquera claimed that it was in fact Alfonso who killed Longworth – and he feared for his own life and believed he was about to be killed when he stabbed Alfonso. But the jury were not convinced. The Metropolitan police's DCI Ollie Stride, who led the investigation, told the Guardian it was 'one of the most harrowing murders' his team has ever investigated and would stay with them 'for a long time'. 'The team have consumed hours of footage, much of it of the utmost disturbing and graphic nature,' he said. 'Those images will stay with all of us for a very long time.' Stride said the case had presented unique challenges with a 'vast amount of digital media' to review, many of which were in Spanish, requiring translation. They reviewed hundreds of hours of CCTV, and conducted extensive forensic analysis to build the case. It is understood Mosquera had a wife and two children in Colombia. Authorities in the South American country found only two minor matters over 10 years old on his criminal record, as well as two minor traffic matters. 'We are in no doubt he may have amassed a following online due to his sexual endeavours, but we are confident he worked alone and there are no accomplices with relations to the murders,' Stride said. The sexual activity in the case has garnered prurient attention but Stride said nothing uncovered was illegal. 'There has been a lot of focus on the sexual activity in this case,' he said. 'Whilst it may be unorthodox to many, it was legal, consensual sexual activity in their own home. There were additional challenges for the investigation, particularly in securing the trust of those who are not openly involved in this activity.' Despite Mosquera's apparent warning that his 'boss was a bad man', the Met found no evidence of any accomplices or others directing his activity through the investigation and nor was this a defence Mosquera relied upon. As for why the murderer chose one of the most famous landmarks in the south-west of England, visited by thousands of tourists, as well as a key route in and out of north Bristol, to dispose of the bodies – that remains a mystery.
San Francisco Chronicle
a day ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
How can California stop ICE overreach? The answer might lie in a 1972 case from Humboldt County
Might the answer to Los Angeles' present emergency — how to stop masked federal agents from seizing its people — lie in a half-century-old story from Humboldt County? On April 4, 1972, a young hippie couple — Dirk Dickenson and Judy Arnold — were in their remote cabin near unincorporated Garberville when federal drug agents and county sheriff's personnel, assisted by a U.S. Army helicopter, launched a raid. The sheriff promised reporters, who came along, that this would be the 'biggest bust' in California history. 'Looks like an assault on an enemy prison camp in Vietnam,' one reporter wrote in his notebook. Lloyd Clifton, an agent with the new federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (now the Drug Enforcement Agency), broke down the cabin door without knocking or announcing himself as law enforcement. He and other agents wore jeans and tie-dyed shirts instead of uniforms and kept their hair long. Dickenson and Arnold thought they were being robbed. Dickenson, unarmed, ran out the back door. Clifton gave chase and shot him in the back. Dickenson died on the way to a Eureka hospital. What happened next caused a scandal. The agents couldn't find the sought-after PCP lab or any evidence of a drug enterprise on the property or inside a cabin without electricity or running water. The U.S. Department of Justice defended the federal agent, quickly declaring Dickenson's execution a 'justifiable homicide.' But Humboldt County District Attorney William Ferroggiaro, noting that federal agents must obey state and local laws, investigated and took his case to a grand jury, which charged Clifton with second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter. Clifton's indictment spared a court fight, which ended up establishing a legal path for holding federal agents accountable for abuses. The existence of such a path may surprise today's Californians. That's because our police insist that they are powerless to challenge unlawful actions or abuses by federal agents. Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell advised officers that, when called to a scene where citizens allege federal abuses, all they can do is verify the identities of federal agents. In this position, McDonnell and police are not just wrong — they are violating their oaths to enforce state and local laws. The Clifton case makes this plain. In 1973, Clifton first asked state courts to drop the prosecution, but multiple judges refused. With the trial about to start, Clifton appealed to U.S. District Courts, arguing that as a federal agent, he was beyond the reach of state law. The federal courts did not accept Clifton's argument. But in 1977, Clifton succeeded in convincing the U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco to free him, on the theory that he 'reasonably and honestly' believed Dickenson was a dangerous drug dealer (even though Dickenson wasn't). In his Clifton v. Cox ruling, U.S. Judge Stanley Conti wrote that federal law enforcement officials could be prosecuted for state and local crimes when 'the official employs means which he cannot honestly consider reasonable in discharging his duties or otherwise acts out of malice or with some criminal intent.' Establishing malice and criminal intent is a high bar, but Californians eager to pursue Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel are revisiting the Clifton standard. In a June YouGov poll, commissioned by the Independent California Institute, 72% of respondents said police should arrest federal immigration officials who 'act maliciously or knowingly exceed their authority under federal law.' Recent federal abuses, captured on video, would seem to meet the Clifton test for prosecution. A federal agent's repeated punching of a Santa Ana landscaper. A retaliatory attack by federal agents, using explosives, on the Huntington Park home of U.S. citizens. The Clifton case, by making clear that federal agents are not above California laws, should open the door for local police to investigate every one of these lawless ICE raids. Given the scale of the federal assault, I'd suggest that police departments create a joint task force, perhaps in collaboration with a new state authority. Some may object that 2025 Los Angeles and 1970s Humboldt are too different. But I was struck, while rereading Clifton case records and a 1973 Rolling Stone story by Joe Estzerhas, by the parallels of the two eras. In the 1970s drug raids, as with today's immigration raids, federal agents seized people based on little evidence, failed to identify themselves, received military assistance (that helicopter) and dressed like criminals rather than law enforcement. The Nixon administration, like the Trump administration, justified its lawlessness by claiming that federal agents were chasing 'radicals.' After the U.S. Court of Appeals canceled his indictment, Clifton continued his federal career. He died in 2013. Dickenson was buried in Lincoln, a Sacramento suburb in Placer County, near where he grew up. But his precedent-setting case remains very much alive.
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Pub's underground toilets damaged during roadworks
Council contractors working on a pedestrian scheme have accidentally damaged a pub's underground toilets during their work. Patrons at The Quadrant pub in Clifton, Bristol, now have to cross the road to use two portable toilets, after diggers destroyed a cellar roof. Pub director Tom Rowell said the damage meant his pub was losing 30-50% of its usual takings at this time of year. Bristol City Council said: "We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused and are actively working with the business owner to rectify the situation as quickly as possible and with minimal disruption." More news stories for Bristol Watch the latest Points West Listen to the latest news for Bristol It is understood that contractors missed the cellar when a ground penetrating radar survey was conducted before work to pedestrianise Princess Victoria street began. "Luckily I was the only person in the building when I heard the crash, I went to the bathrooms to look and I could see daylight coming through and contractors looking down," Mr Rowell said. The damage and subsequent water leaks mean the building has no functioning toilets and patrons have to use two portable toilets. "My business relies on goodwill and of repeat and returning customers and giving them a premium and enjoyable experience and as soon as they come to need to use the facilities, the fact that they're not there has been a big issue," he said. Mr Rowell said there was a "lack of urgency" over the repairs, and "a level of passing the buck to the next person or the next department". He estimated internal repairs would take two days, but that could not happen until the road above was also fixed. Councillor Ed Plowden, chairman of Bristol City Council's Transport and Connectivity Committee said: "We accept that we need to put it right and have provided two portable toilets on site for The Quadrant customers to use until the remedy works have been complete." Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630. Pedestrianisation schemes rocket by £500,000 Pedestrian zone made permanent to boost trade Pedestrianisation of city suburb begins The Quadrant
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Pub's underground toilets damaged during roadworks
Council contractors working on a pedestrian scheme have accidentally damaged a pub's underground toilets during their work. Patrons at The Quadrant pub in Clifton, Bristol, now have to cross the road to use two portable toilets, after diggers destroyed a cellar roof. Pub director Tom Rowell said the damage meant his pub was losing 30-50% of its usual takings at this time of year. Bristol City Council said: "We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused and are actively working with the business owner to rectify the situation as quickly as possible and with minimal disruption." More news stories for Bristol Watch the latest Points West Listen to the latest news for Bristol It is understood that contractors missed the cellar when a ground penetrating radar survey was conducted before work to pedestrianise Princess Victoria street began. "Luckily I was the only person in the building when I heard the crash, I went to the bathrooms to look and I could see daylight coming through and contractors looking down," Mr Rowell said. The damage and subsequent water leaks mean the building has no functioning toilets and patrons have to use two portable toilets. "My business relies on goodwill and of repeat and returning customers and giving them a premium and enjoyable experience and as soon as they come to need to use the facilities, the fact that they're not there has been a big issue," he said. Mr Rowell said there was a "lack of urgency" over the repairs, and "a level of passing the buck to the next person or the next department". He estimated internal repairs would take two days, but that could not happen until the road above was also fixed. Councillor Ed Plowden, chairman of Bristol City Council's Transport and Connectivity Committee said: "We accept that we need to put it right and have provided two portable toilets on site for The Quadrant customers to use until the remedy works have been complete." Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630. Pedestrianisation schemes rocket by £500,000 Pedestrian zone made permanent to boost trade Pedestrianisation of city suburb begins The Quadrant
BBC News
12-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Bristol pub's underground toilets damaged during roadworks
Council contractors working on a pedestrian scheme have accidentally damaged a pub's underground toilets during their at The Quadrant pub in Clifton, Bristol, now have to cross the road to use two portable toilets, after diggers destroyed a cellar director Tom Rowell said the damage meant his pub was losing 30-50% of its usual takings at this time of City Council said: "We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused and are actively working with the business owner to rectify the situation as quickly as possible and with minimal disruption." It is understood that contractors missed the cellar when a ground penetrating radar survey was conducted before work to pedestrianise Princess Victoria street began."Luckily I was the only person in the building when I heard the crash, I went to the bathrooms to look and I could see daylight coming through and contractors looking down," Mr Rowell damage and subsequent water leaks mean the building has no functioning toilets and patrons have to use two portable toilets."My business relies on goodwill and of repeat and returning customers and giving them a premium and enjoyable experience and as soon as they come to need to use the facilities, the fact that they're not there has been a big issue," he said. Mr Rowell said there was a "lack of urgency" over the repairs, and "a level of passing the buck to the next person or the next department".He estimated internal repairs would take two days, but that could not happen until the road above was also Ed Plowden, chairman of Bristol City Council's Transport and Connectivity Committee said: "We accept that we need to put it right and have provided two portable toilets on site for The Quadrant customers to use until the remedy works have been complete."
