Latest news with #druglords
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Band whose visas were revoked by Trump now have ticket sales SEIZED by the government
A popular Mexican band that had its visa revoked by the administration of President Donald Trump is now under investigation for allegedly benefiting from illicit activities. Los Alegres del Barranco came under fire following its performance at a concert in March where the images Mexico 's most notorious drug lords were displayed. The Jalisco State Attorney General's Office announced that as part of its probe, it had seized 5.878 million pesos [around $306,000 USD] that the band earned from the controversial show's ticket sales. Deputy Attorney General Alfonso Gutiérrez said during a press conference Wednesday that investigators are looking into whether the money that the band made was misused. Any person who is found guilty of benefiting from an illicit activity can be punished with a prison sentence of 10 to 15 years, according to Article 310 of the Jalisco State Penal Code. 'We believe this musical group is actually profiting by engaging in an illicit activity such as condoning crime, and that they are already convicted of that crime,' Gutiérrez said. 'Therefore, the proceeds they obtained from these conducts will likely be of illicit origin, and therefore a thorough investigation will be necessary to proceed against these individuals.' Los Alegres del Barranco headlined a Mexican music concert at Telmex Auditorium in the Jalisco municipality of Zapopan on March 29. Social media video clips of the concert showed Los Alegres del Barranco getting ready to sing its hit narcocorrido, or drug ballad, 'El dueño del palenque,' when multiple pictures of Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Ruben 'El Mencho' Oseguera were displayed on the screen. They included mugshots, which were taken during El Mencho's arrests in California, followed by a sketch of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader. Images of the infamous drug lord Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán were also shown during the concert. The band's performance didn't sit well with the Trump administration. The US Department of Homeland Security revoked the work and tourist visas of its four members on April 1. The Jalisco State Attorney General's Office then launched an investigation and charged Los Alegres del Barranco, their manager and the concert promoter with glorifying crime on May 12. They were each ordered to pay $10,000 and are required to present themselves in court once a week while the legal process plays out. Los Alegres del Barranco lead singer Pavel Moreno sat down with Mexican journalist Luis Chaparro on the YouTube program 'Pie de Nota' on May 18 and recalled that the group noticed that the cartel leaders' images were flashed during a walk-through hours before the show and that they expressed their displeasure. 'During the rehearsal, we said, 'Hey, the images are a little too strong, aren't they?' Moreno said. 'We did tell him we didn't agree, but by the time we realized it, at the concert, it was all over.' The group had been slated to perform five shows in Texas, California and Oklahoma and do three promotional appearances in April before the Trump administration announced its ban.
Daily Mail
02-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Desk-bound Scots bobbies told they will need fitness training to get them back on the beat
They have enjoyed a slower-paced life, sitting behind their desks manning the backroom operations. But a major Police Scotland shake-up to put more boots on the ground means officers used to the indoor environment have to step back out once again. Scores off staff are going from long-term desk jobs to dangerous frontline roles - but it has been claimed they'll need skills and fitness retraining to deal with the transition. News of the reshuffle comes as the cash-strapped force struggles to get a grip on deadly gang wars being fought in parts of the country. Ruthless feuding between drug lords and notorious criminal families has seen over a dozen attacks including fire bombings and gun violence as the grapple for control that kicked off in Edinburgh spread to Glasgow in recent months. Drugs and people trafficking and other violent crimes are also stretching the thin blue line to breaking point amid shrinking numbers of officers, which fell to the lowest level since 2007 in the middle of last year. The Scottish Police Federation (SPF), which represents the rank and file, yesterday warned officers working desk jobs for years will need to be 'prepared for the demands of frontline policing'. David Kennedy, SPF general secretary, said they had concerns about the transition for those who had been 'non-operational' for an extended period of time. Mr Kennedy said: 'Issues such as refresher training, fitness and welfare are paramount to ensure officers are fully prepared for the demands of frontline policing. 'The Federation has emphasised that any move back to operational duties must be supported appropriately to safeguard both the officers and the public.' According to Mr Kennedy, there are also issues around 'flexible working' for officers involved. He said: 'We are aware that a lot of officers who work 9 to 5 do so because they have caring responsibilities and they will now need to apply for flexible working.' Mr Kennedy was also critical of police Scotland's use of 'on call', which means officers may be required to be available for duty outside of their regular shift. He said: 'On call is another major concern as we believe that Police Scotland relies too heavily on this in the day-to-day 24/7 of policing.' And he added: 'You can shake it up as much as you want but you can't get more from less and Police Scotland needs more police officers'. The force is recruiting extra civilian staff to free up scores of desk officers for operational duties in a bid to improve visibility in communities and boost the fight against crime. The overhaul spearheaded by Chief Constable Jo Farrell reverses moves of previous years that saw bobbies pulled from the beat for back office roles after budget cuts saw civilian staff made redundant. Now the Contact Centre, Firearms Licensing and Investigation section is among the first to see the 'release officers from these roles back to front line policing roles'. According to a force report, 32 officers in firearms licensing will switch back to local policing with civilians being recruited to replace them, with the 'rebalancing' of the force set to see hundreds more moved from desk jobs to bolster the thin blue line. The report says: 'We plan for a further uplift of 30 police staff in the future and further remodelling of the function. 'At the end stage, we should release 58 dedicated and approximately 300 non-dedicated police officer firearms enquiry officers from the function in a phased approach. 'We are also carrying out a rebalancing of the workforce mix within our contact centres. Phase one - replacing 25 constable posts and 10 sergeant posts with 25 staff posts - was completed this quarter. 'It is expected that phase two - replacing a further 50 constables and 20 sergeants with 50 staff posts - will be complete by quarter four 2025/26.' Seven months after taking up the top job in June 2023, Chief Constable Jo Farrell said she was 'shocked' by the lack of focus on frontline policing. She said the force was being 'held under water on a daily basis' by the scale of demand it faces, and highlighted officers being taken off the front line to do work that should be done by civilian police staff. Police Scotland declined to elaborate over the ultimate number of officers expected to be switched from desk jobs to the frontline as part of the force's 'rebalancing' blueprint. But it said, all officers are expected to maintain fitness levels for operational duties as they can be deployed operationally for major incidents or policing events. Assistant Chief Constable Alan Waddell added yesterday: 'The Chief Constable has been clear that bringing frontline policing to its strongest position is a priority. 'We began the additional deployments from back-office and corporate functions across the organisation in November 2024, which is already enabling frontline officers to stay in communities to prevent crime and address threat, risk and harm. 'Routine refresher training is already carried out and we are working to identify additional training requirements and will support these as required.' ACC Waddell added: 'We recognise the challenges that caring responsibilities can place on our people, which frontline officers on shift patterns are not immune to either.
Times
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Times
France to open ‘super-max' jungle prison to combat drug trafficking
France is to build a €400 million US-style 'super-max' prison for drug lords and Islamist terrorists in the heart of the Amazon jungle. Gérald Darmanin, the hardline justice minister, said on Sunday that the facility would be located in Saint Laurent du Maroni in the overseas territory of French Guiana. It is the same region where the notorious Devil's Island penal colony was situated and was the setting of the novel Papillon, which was later made into a Hollywood film starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman. Devil's Island, where convicts survived for just five years on average, closed in 1953. Darmanin's plan comes amid rising fears of the 'Mexicanisation' of France. Drug gangs have been waging increasingly murderous turf wars with Kalashnikov assault rifles
