Latest news with #Section19
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Business Standard
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Business Standard
ED arrests ex-CM Bhupesh Baghel's son in Chhattisgarh liquor scam
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday arrested Chaitanya Baghel, son of former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged liquor scam, according to a report by news agency PTI. Chaitanya was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) following fresh raids at his residence in Bhilai town, located in the Durg district. Both father and son reside at the same address. Officials told PTI that he was arrested under Section 19 of the PMLA for allegedly not cooperating with the investigation during the search operations. The arrest came just hours after ED teams searched the Baghel residence again, acting on new evidence in the case. A large number of police personnel were deployed outside the premises, and some supporters of the Congress party also gathered at the site. Earlier in March, similar raids were conducted at Chaitanya Baghel's residence. Bhupesh Baghel links ED action to assembly session Reacting to the raids, Bhupesh Baghel took to X and linked the ED's actions to the ongoing state assembly session. He suggested that the timing of the raids was politically motivated. 'Today is the last day of the state legislative (monsoon) session. The issue of trees being felled for Adani in Tamnar was scheduled to be raised (in the House). Saheb has sent ED to Bhilai Niwas,' read a message posted by his office on X. Earlier this month, the former chief minister had visited Tamnar tehsil in Raigarh district and expressed support for villagers protesting against tree cutting for a coal mining project. ED alleges ₹2,100 crore liquor scam during Congress rule According to the ED, the alleged liquor scam took place between 2019 and 2022, during the Congress-led government in Chhattisgarh. The agency claims the scam led to a loss of over ₹2,100 crore to the state exchequer and benefited a liquor syndicate. Chaitanya Baghel is suspected to be one of the recipients of the proceeds from this scam, the ED has stated. In this case, several high-profile arrests have already been made, including former minister and Congress leader Kawasi Lakhma, Anwar Dhebar (brother of Raipur Mayor Aijaz Dhebar), former IAS officer Anil Tuteja, and Indian Telecom Service officer Arunpati Tripathi. New FIR filed after Supreme Court quashed ED's original case The ED had initially registered a case based on a complaint from the Income Tax Department, but in 2024, the Supreme Court quashed the agency's first ECIR (equivalent to an FIR). Subsequently, the ED asked the Chhattisgarh Economic Offences Wing/Anti-Corruption Bureau (EOW/ACB) to register a fresh FIR based on new material. This was done on January 17 last year — shortly after the BJP defeated the Congress in the 2023 state elections. The new FIR named 70 individuals and entities, including former excise minister Kawasi Lakhma and former chief secretary Vivek Dhand. ED claims proceeds were shared on instructions from top politicians The ED has alleged that the illegal profits made through liquor sales were distributed 'as per the directions from the highest political executives of the state'. So far, assets worth around ₹205 crore belonging to various accused have been attached as part of the ongoing investigation.
Sunday World
16-07-2025
- Sunday World
Stag party-goer caught with cocaine after resisting arrest and shouting abuse at gardaí
Alistair Wright (37), a self-employed joiner from Crieff in Scotland, appeared before Judge Anne Watkin at Dún Laoghaire District Court A Scottish stag party-goer who was caught with cocaine after resisting arrest and shouting abuse at gardaí has been told by a judge not to expect "to skip off home" without consequences. Alistair Wright (37), a self-employed joiner from Crieff in Scotland, appeared before Judge Anne Watkin at Dún Laoghaire District Court, where she said she had 'no tolerance' for people bringing cocaine into public places and then "taking on" the guards. The court heard that Wright had been in Dublin for a friend's stag and had been drinking all day with a group who had booked rooms at the Clayton Hotel in Donnybrook. By 8.30pm, tensions among the group escalated and staff were forced to call gardaí due to the group's behaviour. 'It must have been bad,' Judge Watkin remarked. 'It takes a lot for a hotel to ask a group of people to leave at half eight in the evening - that says it all.' When gardaí arrived, Wright became aggressive and abusive. He was asked to leave but told staff and gardaí to 'f**k off,' Sergeant Caoimmhe Conway told the court. The court heard that Wright refused to comply with directions, resisted arrest and was ultimately found to have one gram of cocaine in his possession. While he did not strike the gardaí, the court heard he resisted putting his hands behind his back and had to be restrained. 'I've no patience for cocaine,' Judge Watkin said. 'Unlike cannabis or ecstasy, it's one drug that makes people aggressive - and he's lucky things didn't end even worse.' 'He refused to cooperate. This is how gardaí get injured,' she added. 'Most people sober up when a guard appears,' Judge Watkin said. 'They don't take them on. But he refused to cooperate. This could have resulted in someone getting injured.' The court heard that Wright made no reply when charged and has no previous convictions. He pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine and to multiple public order offences, including engaging in threatening and abusive behaviour, failing to comply with garda directions and resisting a peace officer. His defence counsel, Sylvia Maria Crowley BL, said Wright was deeply embarrassed by the incident. She said he is a father of two and had 'never taken cocaine before - it was a one-off, completely out of character.' Ms Crowley asked if her client could be spared a conviction, but Judge Watkin said the matter was too serious - and that a Section 19 public order offence could warrant a jail sentence. 'He knew he had cocaine on him. If he had any cop-on at all, he wouldn't have gotten himself arrested while carrying it. You don't get to be that out of control in a public place and expect no consequences,' she said. The judge ordered a probation report and urine analysis, noting she was open to considering a community service order, but emphasised that Wright would not simply be allowed to walk away. Ms Crowley said engaging with probation services might be difficult as Wright lives and works in Scotland, but Judge Watkin made clear that custody remained on the table. 'Just because he's not living here doesn't mean he gets to skip off home to Scotland,' she said. She adjourned the matter to 10 November next for finalisation. Funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme Dún Laoghaire District Court Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 16th
Irish Independent
12-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Stag party-goer caught with cocaine after resisting arrest and shouting abuse at gardaí told by judge not to expect ‘to skip off home'
Alistair Wright (37), a self-employed joiner from Crieff in Scotland, appeared before Judge Anne Watkin at Dún Laoghaire District Court, where she said she had 'no tolerance' for people bringing cocaine into public places and then "taking on" the guards. The court heard that Wright had been in Dublin for a friend's stag and had been drinking all day with a group who had booked rooms at the Clayton Hotel in Donnybrook. By 8.30pm, tensions among the group escalated and staff were forced to call gardaí due to the group's behaviour. 'It must have been bad,' Judge Watkin remarked. 'It takes a lot for a hotel to ask a group of people to leave at half eight in the evening - that says it all.' When gardaí arrived, Wright became aggressive and abusive. He was asked to leave but told staff and gardaí to 'f**k off,' Sergeant Caoimmhe Conway told the court. The court heard that Wright refused to comply with directions, resisted arrest and was ultimately found to have one gram of cocaine in his possession. While he did not strike the gardaí, the court heard he resisted putting his hands behind his back and had to be restrained. 'I've no patience for cocaine,' Judge Watkin said. 'Unlike cannabis or ecstasy, it's one drug that makes people aggressive - and he's lucky things didn't end even worse.' 'He refused to cooperate. This is how gardaí get injured,' she added. 'Most people sober up when a guard appears,' Judge Watkin said. 'They don't take them on. But he refused to cooperate. This could have resulted in someone getting injured.' The court heard that Wright made no reply when charged and has no previous convictions. He pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine and to multiple public order offences, including engaging in threatening and abusive behaviour, failing to comply with garda directions and resisting a peace officer. His defence counsel, Sylvia Maria Crowley BL, said Wright was deeply embarrassed by the incident. She said he is a father of two and had 'never taken cocaine before - it was a one-off, completely out of character.' Ms Crowley asked if her client could be spared a conviction, but Judge Watkin said the matter was too serious - and that a Section 19 public order offence could warrant a jail sentence. 'He knew he had cocaine on him. If he had any cop-on at all, he wouldn't have gotten himself arrested while carrying it. You don't get to be that out of control in a public place and expect no consequences,' she said. The judge ordered a probation report and urine analysis, noting she was open to considering a community service order, but emphasised that Wright would not simply be allowed to walk away. Ms Crowley said engaging with probation services might be difficult as Wright lives and works in Scotland, but Judge Watkin made clear that custody remained on the table. 'Just because he's not living here doesn't mean he gets to skip off home to Scotland,' she said. She adjourned the matter to 10 November next for finalisation.
Business Wire
29-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Source Capital Declares June, July, and August 2025 Distribution on Common Stock
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Board of Trustees of Source Capital (NYSE: SOR) (the 'Fund'), approved maintaining the Fund's regular monthly distribution rate for June, July, and August 2025 as follows: Regular Monthly Distributions: About Source Capital Source Capital is a closed-end investment company managed by First Pacific Advisors, LP. Its shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol 'SOR.' The investment objective of the Fund is to seek maximum total return for shareholders from both capital appreciation and investment income to the extent consistent with protection of invested capital. The Fund may invest in longer duration assets like dividend paying equities and illiquid assets like private loans in pursuit of its investment objective and is thus intended only for those investors with a long-term investment horizon (greater than or equal to ~5 years). You can obtain additional information by visiting the website at by email at crm@ toll free by calling 1-800-982-4372, or by contacting the Fund in writing. Important Disclosures You should consider the Fund's investment objectives, risks, and charges and expenses carefully before you invest. Distributions may include ordinary income, net capital gains and/or returns of capital. Generally, a return of capital would occur when the amount distributed by the Fund includes a portion of (or is comprised entirely of) your investment in the Fund in addition to (or rather than) your pro-rata portion of the Fund's net income or capital gains. The Fund's distributions in any period may be more or less than the net return earned by the Fund on its investments, and therefore should not be used as a measure of performance or confused with 'yield' or 'income.' A return of capital is not taxable; rather it reduces a shareholder's tax basis in his or her shares of the Fund. If the Fund estimates that a portion of its distribution may be comprised of amounts from sources other than net investment income, the Fund will notify shareholders of the estimated composition of such distribution through a separate written Section 19 notice. Such notices are provided for informational purposes only, and should not be used for tax reporting purposes. Final tax characteristics of all Fund distributions will be provided on Form 1099-DIV, which is mailed after the close of the calendar year. It is important to note that differences exist between the Fund's daily internal accounting records and practices, the Fund's financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and recordkeeping practices under income tax regulations. Please see the Fund's most recent shareholder reports for more detailed tax information. The Fund's distribution rate may be affected by numerous factors, including changes in realized and projected market returns, Fund performance, and other factors. There can be no assurance that a change in market conditions or other factors will not result in a change in the Fund's distribution rate at a future time. As with any stock, the price of the Fund's common shares will fluctuate with market conditions and other factors. Shares of closed-end management investment companies frequently trade at a price that is less than (a 'discount') or more than (a 'premium') their net asset value. If the Fund's shares trade at a premium to net asset value, there is no assurance that any such premium will be sustained for any period of time and will not decrease, or that the shares will not trade at a discount to net asset value thereafter. The Fund's portfolio statistics and performance are available by visiting the website at by email at crm@ toll free by calling 1-800-279-1241 (option 1), or by contacting the Fund in writing. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful under the securities laws of any such state. In the event of a tender offer, there may be tax consequences for a stockholder. For example, a stockholder may owe capital gains taxes on any increase in the value of the shares over your original cost. Investments, including investments in closed-end funds, carry risks and investors may lose principal value. Capital markets are volatile and can decline significantly in response to adverse issuer, political, regulatory, market, or economic developments. It is important to remember that there are risks inherent in any investment and there is no assurance that any investment or asset class will provide positive performance over time. Value style investing presents the risk that the holdings or securities may never reach our estimate of intrinsic value because the market fails to recognize what the portfolio management team considers the true business value or because the portfolio management team has misjudged those values. In addition, value style investing may fall out of favor and underperform growth or other style investing during given periods. Non-U.S. investing presents additional risks, such as the potential for adverse political, currency, economic, social or regulatory developments in a country, including lack of liquidity, excessive taxation, and differing legal and accounting standards. Non-U.S. securities, including American Depository Receipts (ADRs) and other depository receipts, are also subject to interest rate and currency exchange rate risks. Fixed income instruments are subject to interest rate, inflation and credit risks. Such investments may be secured, partially secured or unsecured and may be unrated, and whether or not rated, may have speculative characteristics. The market price of the Fund's fixed income investments will change in response to changes in interest rates and other factors. Generally, when interest rates rise, the values of fixed income instruments fall, and vice versa. Certain fixed income instruments are subject to prepayment risk and/or default risk. Private placement securities are securities that are not registered under the federal securities laws, and are generally eligible for sale only to certain eligible investors. Private placements may be illiquid, and thus more difficult to sell, because there may be relatively few potential purchasers for such investments, and the sale of such investments may also be restricted under securities laws. The Fund may use leverage. While the use of leverage may help increase the distribution and return potential of the Fund, it also increases the volatility of the Fund's net asset value (NAV), and potentially increases volatility of its distributions and market price. There are costs associated with the use of leverage, including ongoing dividend and/or interest expenses. There also may be expenses for issuing or administering leverage. Leverage changes the Fund's capital structure through the issuance of preferred shares and/or debt, both of which are senior to the common shares in priority of claims. If short-term interest rates rise, the cost of leverage will increase and likely will reduce returns earned by the Fund's common stockholders. This material has been distributed for informational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or investment product. No part of this material may be reproduced in any form, or referred to in any other publication, without express written permission.
RTÉ News
25-05-2025
- RTÉ News
Garda figures show significant decrease in reported crime this year
Gardaí say there has been a significant decrease in robbery, burglary, violent disorder, crimes against the person and theft offences this year. Provisional Garda figures for the first three months show a decrease across all property crimes but an increase in organised crime and fraud offences, compared to the same period last year. Gardaí say these increases are linked to increased reporting and detections. The official CSO crime figures, which are based on Garda statistics, are due to be published in the next few weeks. Gardaí publish provisional crime figures in the Commissioner's report every month. Robbery down 25% across the country The figures for reported crime in the first quarter of this year show significant reductions in most categories. There were decreases in all categories of property crime with residential burglaries down 17% - to 15 a day across the country - when compared to the same period last year, and aggravated burglary with violence down 29%. Robbery was down 25% across the country, while robbery from the person was down 27%. Theft offences were also down; from people by 30%, from cars or vans by 32% and from shops by 6%. There were more than 300 fewer incidents of theft from people in Dublin. Bicycle theft was also down 14%, with a reduction of 19% in Dublin while assaults causing harm were down 8%. 8,300 people arrested for shoplifting There were increases in some offences. Public order was up 2%, fraud up 61% due to the high number of Section 19 referrals, and shoplifting in Dublin also up 2%. However, gardaí say under Operation Táirge, over 8,300 people were arrested for shoplifting in the twelve months up to last month, an increase of 8%. Over 20,200 charges were preferred, an increase of over 30%.Organised crime offences increased, with shootings up 8%, drug dealing up 16% and murder and human trafficking also up, but based on low numbers of 10 incidents each. The Garda Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau seized almost €22 million worth of drugs in the first three months of this year. Overall sex offences and domestic violence offences remained static, with gardaí attending over 15,300 domestic abuse incidents in the first three months of this year. And in a weekend when three people died on the roads in 24 hours, gardaí say fatal and serious road traffic collisions decreased in the first three months by 40%. However, they also say there are 130 road traffic collisions every day, 23 drivers are arrested every day for drink or drug driving and over 70,000 Fixed Charge Notices (FCN's) have been issued. More than 31,000 of those FCN's are for speeding, over six thousand are for mobile phone use and 4,400 were issued to provisional or learner drivers.
