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Sunday World
17-05-2025
- Sunday World
Men who jumped overboard from boat packed with €46.5m of cocaine are jailed
Both men attempted to swim to shore after 350 kilos of the drug was discovered Brce Knowles and Ferhat Gumrukguoglu were jailed at Ipswich Crown Court having previously pleaded guilty to attempting to import a controlled drug The boat is intercepted by Border Force officers Two men who jumped from a boat and attempted to swim to shore after 350 kilos of cocaine was discovered on board are facing long prison sentence in the UK. Bruce Knowles (56) from Dereham, and Ferhat Gumrukguoglu (32) from the Netherlands, spotted on the vessel off the Suffolk coast in June 2024. Their rigid hulled inflatable boat (RHIB) was intercepted near East Benacre Broads after it failed to stop for a Border Force cutter. As Knowles restarted the engines in an attempt to flee, Gumrukguoglu jumped into the water and swam towards the beach. The boat is intercepted by Border Force officers News in 90 Seconds - May 17th The Border Force cutter chased after the boat that grounded on a beach after a short pursuit. However, as officers moved in to arrest Knowles, he also jumped overboard to try to escape. Gumrukguoglu managed to flee from the beach, but officers from Norfolk and Suffolk Police arrested him later that day in Wrentham, Norfolk. After the boat as towed to a harbour in Lowestoft NCA officers found the cocaine, worth an estimated £39 million (€46.5) hidden under tarpaulin in the hull. Investigators believe Knowles and Gumrukguoglu had sailed towards French waters wher they picked up the drugs from a larger ship, with the intention of bringing them back to the UK. Both men were later charged with importing a controlled drug. They both pleaded guilty to the offence at Ipswich Crown Court in August 2024 where they were sentenced this week. Knowles was handed down a 17 year and three month prison sentence and Gumrukguoglu was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Brce Knowles and Ferhat Gumrukguoglu were jailed at Ipswich Crown Court having previously pleaded guilty to attempting to import a controlled drug Paul Orchard, NCA operations manager described the operation as a 'fast-moving and dynamic interception of two men attempting to smuggle in a huge quantity of Class A drugs'. "Knowles and Gumrukguoglu continued to try and evade arrest to avoid a significant loss for their crime group. They now face long prison sentences,' Orchard said. "With thanks to our partners in Border Force and the Joint Maritime Security Centre, a significant amount of class A drugs have been removed from the criminal marketplace where further criminality and exploitation would have followed. "The NCA is committed to protecting the public from serious and organised crime and stopping criminals from fuelling the UK drugs trade." Charlie Eastaugh, Border Force Maritime Director added: Border Force officers are committed to disrupting organised crime and keeping Britain safe by preventing deadly drugs from reaching our streets. "During this pursuit, maritime officers bravely intercepted these criminals and seized 350kg of cocaine, ensuring those who threatened our border security are now facing the full force of the law."
Voice of America
24-02-2025
- Business
- Voice of America
Philippine, Japan ministers agree to further enhance defense partnership
Japan and the Philippines agreed on Monday to further deepen defense ties in the face of an "increasingly severe" security environment in the Indo-Pacific region, Japanese defense minister Gen Nakatani said on Monday. Nakatani met his Philippine counterpart Gilberto Teodoro in Manila for a meeting in which the two ministers tackled regional security issues, including the maritime situation in the East and South China Seas. "The security environment surrounding us is becoming increasingly severe and that it is necessary for the two countries as strategic partners to further enhance defense cooperation and collaboration to maintain peace and stability in Indo-Pacific," Nakatani said through a translator. Nakatani said the Philippines and Japan have agreed to deepen cooperation on military exchanges, establish a high-level strategic dialogue among its military and deepen information sharing. Security ties between the two U.S. allies have strengthened over the past two years as Japan and the Philippines share common concerns over China's increasingly assertive actions in the region. Last year, Manila and Tokyo signed a landmark military pact allowing the deployment of their forces on each other's soil. Japan and China have repeatedly faced off around uninhabited Japanese-administered islands that Tokyo calls the Senkaku and Beijing calls the Diaoyu. The Philippines and China have also clashed frequently in the South China Sea around disputed shoals and atolls that fall inside Manila's exclusive economic zone. Nakatani visited military bases in the northern Philippines on Sunday, including a naval station that houses a coastal radar that Japan donated as part of its $4 million security assistance in 2023. Manila was one of the first recipients of Tokyo's official security assistance, a program aimed at helping boost deterrence capabilities of partner countries. In December, the two countries signed a second security deal in which Japan agreed to provide the Philippine navy rigid-hull inflatable boats (RHIB) and additional coastal radar systems.
Khaleej Times
24-02-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Philippine, Japan ministers agree to further enhance defence partnership
Japan and the Philippines agreed on Monday to further deepen defence ties in the face of an "increasingly severe" security environment in the Indo-Pacific region, Japanese defence minister Gen Nakatani said on Monday. Nakatani met his Philippine counterpart Gilberto Teodoro in Manila for a meeting in which the two ministers tackled regional security issues, including the maritime situation in the East and South China Seas. "The security environment surrounding us is becoming increasingly severe and that it is necessary for the two countries as strategic partners to further enhance defence cooperation and collaboration to maintain peace and stability in Indo-Pacific," Nakatani said through a translator. Nakatani said the Philippines and Japan have agreed to deepen cooperation on military exchanges, establish a high-level strategic dialogue among its military and deepen information sharing. Security ties between the two U.S. allies have strengthened over the past two years as Japan and the Philippines share common concerns over China's increasingly assertive actions in the region. Last year, Manila and Tokyo signed a landmark military pact allowing the deployment of their forces on each other's soil. Japan and China have repeatedly faced off around uninhabited Japanese-administered islands that Tokyo calls the Senkaku and Beijing calls the Diaoyu. The Philippines and China have also clashed frequently in the South China Sea around disputed shoals and atolls that fall inside Manila's exclusive economic zone. Nakatani visited military bases in the northern Philippines on Sunday, including a naval station that houses a coastal radar that Japan donated as part of its 600 million yen ($4 million) security assistance in 2023. Manila was one of the first recipients of Tokyo's official security assistance, a programme aimed at helping boost deterrence capabilities of partner countries. In December, the two countries signed a second security deal in which Japan agreed to provide the Philippine navy rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIB) and additional coastal radar systems.
