Latest news with #Godfrey
Business Insider
21-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Ord Minnett Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Monash IVF Group Ltd (MVF)
In a report released today, Tom Godfrey from Ord Minnett maintained a Buy rating on Monash IVF Group Ltd (MVF – Research Report), with a price target of A$1.05. The company's shares opened today at A$0.75. Confident Investing Starts Here: Easily unpack a company's performance with TipRanks' new KPI Data for smart investment decisions Receive undervalued, market resilient stocks straight to you inbox with TipRanks' Smart Value Newsletter According to TipRanks, Godfrey is ranked #1853 out of 9519 analysts. In addition to Ord Minnett, Monash IVF Group Ltd also received a Buy from Macquarie's Rachael Harwood in a report issued today. However, yesterday, RBC Capital maintained a Hold rating on Monash IVF Group Ltd (ASX: MVF). The company has a one-year high of A$1.47 and a one-year low of A$0.68. Currently, Monash IVF Group Ltd has an average volume of 2.19M.
National Post
19-05-2025
- Politics
- National Post
'It's needed now more than ever': Jewish community optimistic ahead of Walk with Israel fundraiser
Article content Last year's walk was buoyed by the return of four Israeli hostages abducted by Hamas and held in Gaza, and this year's event is equally timely, Lefton said. 'It's a scary time to be a Jew in Toronto and in Canada, in general. We have never seen this kind of hate targeted against our community before,' she said. 'Our children are waking up and going to school knowing that there are very real threats that they're facing. For the last year, our community has really been banding together to make sure that we stand up against this hate and use our voices, because we need to call attention to the fact that we're facing this kind of hatred and antisemitism and that it's not acceptable.' Article content The adversity Canadian Jews have faced throughout the days and months since the October 7 atrocities — swastikas graffitied on schools, bomb threats against synagogues, shootings at Jewish day schools — underscored for Godfrey the unending struggle of the Jewish people to never give up or be complacent. Article content 'We can never take freedom for granted…. I think that is even more palpable today, post-October 7, than it has been in my entire lifetime,' he said. Article content 'It's even more important now to show our friends in Israel and around the world that they are not alone and that the Jewish diaspora is here and strong and supportive of what we're fighting for.' Article content Article content
Sunday World
14-05-2025
- Sunday World
Ex-Ryanair pilot charged over €10m drugs is not suitable for legal aid, court told
Mr O'Meara was today appearing in court via video-link A former Ryanair pilot, charged in connection with the possession of more than €10m worth of drugs, is not a suitable case for legal aid, a court was told today. At Ennis District Court, Brendan O'Meara (62) of An Tulach, Summerhill, Meelick, Co Clare, was making his second court appearance concerning the Garda seizure of an estimated €10m in cannabis at Mr Meara's south east Clare home last week. Mr O'Meara was today appearing in court via video-link from a booth at Limerick prison after a judge refused Mr O'Meara bail at a special sitting of Ennis District Court on Saturday afternoon following Garda objections. From his prison booth today, Mr O'Meara spoke only once when he said 'Brendan O'Meara' when asked to state his name for the court. Solicitor, Țara Godfrey told the court that she is acting as agent for solicitor, Sarah Ryan who should be on record for Mr O'Meara. Judge Alec Gabbett said that he would assign legal aid to Ms Ryan to represent Mr O'Meara but Ms Godfrey said: 'No, it would not be a suitable case for that.' Judge Gabbett said: 'This is a very recent remand from Saturday. Are there directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP)?' In reply, Sgt John Burke said that there are no directions yet available from the DPP but a cert from Forensic Science Ireland (FSI) would first be required in relation to the alleged drugs. Ms Godfrey said that she was instructed to consent to a two week adjournment in the case and Judge Gabbett further remanded Mr O'Meara in custody to re-appear in court via video link on May 28th. Mr O'Meara faces two charges - possessing cannabis for sale or supply, and possessing cannabis, on May 7th. At the contested bail hearing on Saturday, Gardaí told the court Mr O'Meara made no reply to the charges after caution, and that 'further, and more serious charges' may be brought against him in respect of the case where Gardai seized an estimated 502 kg in cannabis. Sergeant Rob Sheehy of the Limerick Divisional Drugs Unit, said he was objecting to bail because of the 'strength and nature of the evidence' as well as the high value of the drugs. He told the court that the Garda investigation was in its 'infancy', but he said gardai believed that 'it stretches to a number of countries and there are a number of persons that need to be established'. He claimed Mr O'Meara was also a flight risk, due to his 'aeronautical knowledge', that he has a number of pilots licenses, and has links to the USA. Applying for bail on Saturday, Ms Godfrey, said the accused has 'three pilots licences including a helicopter licence, a UK pilot licence and a EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency) licence', and he would 'hand over' his licences to the State and not leave the country. 'His Ryanair crew card is being returned to his former employers,' Ms Godfrey said. The solicitor said Mr O'Meara had obtained a Green Card to live and work in the US, and that he was planning on 'going to America to his brother who has Parkinson's'. Ms Godfrey said a sister of Mr O'Meara was in the court and had pledged to act as an independent bail surety for the accused for up to €177,000. Appealing for the court not to hold the accused in custody Ms Godfrey said Mr O'Meara 'has offered up all the means he could to leave this country'. 'He has significant ties here, his wife is in court, his wife's sister is in court, his sister is in court, and his (other) sister passed away six weeks ago'. She said: 'He enjoys the presumption of innocence.'
Sunday World
09-05-2025
- Sunday World
Four drug smugglers caught with a ton of high purity cocaine on board fishing boat
NCA investigators established that a tracker found in the drugs haul was linked to a user in South America Packages are seized and examined on board the Lily Lola Four drug smugglers who were caught with more than a ton of high purity cocaine on board their fishing boat off the coast of Cornwall have been jailed in the UK. Michael Kelly (45), Jake Marchant (27), Jon Williams (46) and Patrick Godfrey (31) were convicted after a trial in March for their roles in attempting to smuggle the £100m haul on board the Lily Lola, in September of last year. The men were caught after the Border Force cutter HMC Valiant was on patrol off the north coast of Cornwall shortly after 2pm on September 13 and deployed a RHIB (rigid hulled inflatable boat) to intercept the Lily Lola. Williams, the captain who was at the helm, had bought the boat for around £140,000 two months earlier. Michael Kelly, Patrick Godfrey, Jon Williams and Jake Marchant. Photo: NCA Marchant, of no fixed abode, was next to him while Kelly, of Portway, Manchester, was in the accommodation area. Godfrey, of Danygraig Road, Port Tennant, Swansea, was asleep in a deck chair. After the Lily Lola was taken into a secure port, the seized substances on board were divided into bales and removed from the vessel. Testing proved that it was high purity cocaine. An electronic device that had been on board was downloaded and some messages were recovered showed the boat had been receiving instructions and co-ordinates from a third party. Godfrey's phone also revealed a message he had sent reading: 'Delete everything u see and not show anybody'. His phone also showed there was an internet search of, 'how long does it take a ship to leave Peru to UK'. NCA investigators established that a tracker found in the drugs haul was linked to a user in South America Williams, Godfrey and Marchant made no comment when interviewed and Kelly claimed he was on a fishing trip. However, Kelly and Marchant pleaded guilty before trial at Truro Crown Court on October 15 and were sentences to 21 years and 18 respectively this week. Packages are seized and examined on board the Lily Lola News in 90 Seconds - May 9th Williams was sentenced to 26 years while Godfrey was handed down a 25 year sentence NCA branch commander Derek Evans said the agency works around the clock to fight the threat of Class A drugs which wreck people's lives and devastate our communities. He said: 'Working with Border Force and the Joint Maritime Security Centre, we prevented a huge haul of cocaine from hitting the streets of the UK and wider Europe and ensured organised criminals are deprived of the significant profits they would have gained had these drugs made it into the country.'
Wales Online
08-05-2025
- Wales Online
The Swansea fishing boat skipper 'at the heart' of £100m cocaine smuggling operation
The Swansea fishing boat skipper 'at the heart' of £100m cocaine smuggling operation A judge described it as a 'carefully planned and sophisticated attempt' to smuggle an 'extraordinary' amount of cocaine into the UK. Swansea fisherman Jon Williams was skippering the Lily Lola which had a tonne of high-purity cocaine onboard (Image: PA ) A Swansea trawler skipper was "at the heart" of a £100million cocaine smuggling operation, a court has heard. Jon Williams was at the helm of the Lily Lola fishing boat when it was intercepted off the coast of Cornwall carrying more than a tonne of high-purity coke from south America. Asleep in a chair next to him was fellow Swansea man Patrick Godfrey. Williams and Godfrey along with two other men - Michael Kelly and Jake Marchant - had just fished more than 1,000 one-kilo blocks of cocaine out of the sea which had been dumped at an agreed rendezvous point by members of an international organised crime group. But unbeknown to the four men on the craft, the National Crime Agency had had them in their sights for several months. At Truro Crown Court on Thursday, Williams was jailed for 26 years and Godfrey for 25 years for what the judge called a "carefully planned and sophisticated attempt" to smuggle an "extraordinary" amount of cocaine into the UK, a quantity of drugs which he said would have caused "immeasurable harm on the streets of this country". For the latest court reports sign up to our crime newsletter Frederick Hookway, prosecuting, told the court that in the summer of 2024 Williams negotiated the purchase of the Lily Lola for some £140,000 from a man in Kent. On August 12 the craft was transferred to Swansea Marina where it was kept under surveillance by undercover officers who monitored comings and goings. On August 18 Williams and Godfrey were observed on the boat in the marina and then on September 1 the craft - with Williams at the helm - sailed out into the Celtic Sea. Article continues below The court heard the Lily Lola was intercepted by a Border Force vessel but nothing was found and it subsequently returned to Swansea. The prosecutor said the defendant Kelly then arrived in Swansea and inadvertently spoke to one of the undercover officers who was keeping watch on the Lily Lola in the marina. Jon Williams (Image: NCA ) On September 7 the vessel left Swansea and sailed to Newquay in Cornwall where it moored in the harbour. The crew said the vessel had engine troubles and needed some work doing. Williams told people in the harbour that they were going shark fishing. Fishing gear was observed on the boat. The prosecutor said that on the morning of September 12 Williams, Godfrey, and Kelly boarded the vessel and the Lily Lola was fuelled. At 8.51am Marchant arrived at Newquay harbour and board the vessel, and some 10 minutes later it set sail. The men had a satellite phone, a Garmin communication device, and a Starlink unit. Unknown to the men, the boat also carried a hidden listening device which law enforcement agencies had secretly installed. Patrick Godfrey (Image: NCA ) The prosecutor said Williams' skills in skippering a boat meant he was "at the heart" of the unfolding operation and that he was "fundamental to the viability" of the smuggling attempt. The court heard the fishing boat sailed for the Isles of Scilly where it rode out a period of bad weather before heading for the middle of the channel and its rendezvous with its floating consignment of drugs. The prosecutor said it was clear from the transcripts of conversations recorded by the covert listening device that there was a "convivial atmosphere" on the boat during the trip, and that the crew were in contact with a third party who was providing them with co-ordinates and directions. Read about the Swansea boss of an organised crime group who was arrested as he sat in a barber's chair trying to alter his appearance At around 4am on September 13 the crew located the drugs - the kilo blocks were bundled into large hessian sacks, some of which had Apple AirTag trackers attached - and hauled them aboard using a winch. They then set off to return to Newquay. At 2..26pm that afternoon the Lily Lola was intercepted by a Border Force cutter off the coast of Cornwall. On the vessel officers found a total of 1,078 one-kilo blocks of cocaine with a purity in excess of 80%. Large hessian packages onboard the Lily Lola boat which contained more than one thousands 1kg packages of cocaine (Image: NCA ) The prosecutor said the wholesale value of the cocaine was put at £35m with a street value "far, far, far higher". The National Crime Agency has estimated the haul of coke could be worth as much as £100m. The court heard one of the AirTags recovered from the packages was registered in Ecuador, while Godfrey was found to have made an internet search on his phone about the length of time it would take for a ship to sail form Peru to the UK. Jon Williams, 46, of Windmill Terrace, St Thomas, Swansea, and 31-year-old Patrick Godfrey, of Danygraig Road, Port Tennant, Swansea, had both previously been found guilty of conspiracy to smuggle cocaine when they returned to the dock for sentencing. Williams has one previous conviction for four offences including taking a vehicle without consent and drink-driving. Godfrey has 12 previous convictions for 22 offences including battery, harassment, and driving matters. Michael John Paul Kelly, 45, of Portway, Manchester, and Jake Marchant, 27, of no fixed address, had both previously pleaded guilty to the same offence. Kelly has 17 previous convictions for 46 offences including possession of cannabis, ecstasy, cocaine and heroin with intent to supply. Marchant has one previous conviction for the possession of cannabis with intent to supply. Police found more than one thousands 1kg packages of cocaine on the Lily Lola (Image: NCA ) David Leathley, for Williams, said his client was unable to read or write, and he described him as a man of "bovine simplicity". He said the defendant had found solace in cocaine following the death of his father and had run up £30,000 in debts to "some perfidious drug dealer", and he described some of the evidence the defendant had given at his trial about fishing to pay off his debt as "farcical". The barrister said Williams just wanted to get back to "a simple life on the ocean waves which is the beginning, middle and end of his life". Steve Burnell, for Godfrey, said his client was a father of four. Peter Corrigan, for Kelly, said his client had been a roofer but after losing his job found himself in financial difficulties and was offered £50,000 to do a "one off job" of "heavy lifting". Sophia Dower, for Marchant, said her client was homeless and living in his car in London when he was contacted the day before the Lily Lola sailed and given the opportunity to make money, something he had "jumped at". She said the defendant's involvement in the smuggling operation "is something he will regret for the rest of his life". Judge James Adkins said the four men were part of a "carefully planned, sophisticated attempt" to smuggle more than a tonne on cocaine into the UK. He described the quantity of the drug involved as "extraordinary" and said it would have caused "immeasurable harm on the streets of this country". The judge said Godfrey had been in charge on the boat with Williams skippering the craft and Godfrey assisting and providing mechanical help. He said Marchant's role had been to help haul the bails on board. Without the benefit of any credit for guilty pleas Williams was sentenced to 26 years in prison, and Godfrey to 25 years. With one-quarter discounts for their pleas Kelly was sentenced to 21 years and Marchant to 18 years. Speaking after the sentencing National Crime Agency branch commander Derek Evans said: "The NCA works around the clock to fight the threat of Class A drugs which wreck people's lives and devastate our communities. Article continues below "Working with Border Force and the Joint Maritime Security Centre, we prevented a huge haul of cocaine from hitting the streets of the UK and wider Europe and ensured organised criminals are deprived of the significant profits they would have gained had these drugs made it into the country."
