Latest news with #economiccrime
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Philippines slams Malaysia's AirAsia for ‘criminal' ticket prices, shuts down website
The Philippines has ordered AirAsia's digital platform to stop selling airline tickets in the country following complaints it charged illegally high fares. Advertisement The authorities have asked the police to take down AirAsia MOVE's website as part of a cease-and-desist order by the Civil Aeronautics Board, Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon said at a press conference on Monday. The aviation agency, which sets price ceilings for airfares in the country, says the company raised its prices following transportation troubles in Tacloban City due to the closure of a key bridge to trucks. What AirAsia MOVE is doing is criminal Philippine Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon 'We will really put the full force of the law on these unscrupulous online platforms who are taking advantage of our people,' Dizon said. Authorities will move to immediately file a case for 'criminal economic sabotage' against the digital platform, which is owned by Capital A Berhad, Dizon added. Malaysia -based AirAsia MOVE, which is an affiliate of budget carrier Philippines AirAsia, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Philippine Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon speaks to the media last month. Photo: Reuters At the weekend, AirAsia MOVE was charging 77,000 pesos (US$1,380) for a one-way ticket from Manila to Tacloban City via Philippine Airlines, three times the price quoted when directly booking in the flag carrier's website, transportation ministry data showed.
The Sun
26-05-2025
- The Sun
I infiltrate world's deadliest gangs – I was held at gunpoint & forced to take drug but mob boss confession left me cold
MOST professors stick to books rather than hanging out with gun-wielding gangsters - but Bertrand Monnet has got close to the deadly Sinaloa Cartel in a way few ever have. For the past 13 years, his fieldwork has taken him deep into Latin America's criminal underworld - interviewing crime bosses, visiting drug labs and even more chillingly, having guns pointed at him and being held hostage. 13 13 13 Speaking to The Sun, Monnet, who is a professor of economic crime at EDHEC Business School in Lille, says: "I think you are not a trustworthy professor if you don't try and meet these people, before teaching the dangers of this economy to your students." He travels numerous times a year to Culiacán, the capital city of Sinaloa, and Mexico City - a place where the bloodthirsty cartel is well established. 'I meet about ten people regularly - these people are, let's say, top managers of major clans of the cartel," he says. But he is careful to be on guard at all times, as he says: 'They are business extremists. They are ready to kill anybody for one dollar. "If there are innocent victims, this is not an issue at all for them. "You know, five days ago, I was in Mexico interviewing one of the middle managers of a cartel clan. "I asked him the question, 'How many people did you kill?' And he told me, 'Oh, I don't really remember, but I think about 20, something like that'." World's deadliest gangs Known for its brutal tactics and corruption of government officials, the Sinaloa Cartel is considered the largest and most powerful gang for drug trafficking, money laundering and organised crime across Latin America. And if a rival should cross them, its fighters are ready to carry out brutal revenge attacks like shootings, kidnappings and dismemberments. Inside Mexico's 'Schools of Terror' where Cartel recruits eat human flesh The gang, headed up by caged kingpin El Chapo and his sons, has grown so strong that last year they took on the country's army after a series of arrests, setting fire to buses to ambush soldiers and start deadly firefights with patrols. Its leader El Chapo, who is serving a life sentence in a maximum-security prison in the US, is said to be so sadistic that he once ordered a man to be killed for "not shaking his hand". He has also ordered hits on his own family and uses gold AK47s to terrify his rivals. With such a bloody reputation, many would steer clear of areas where the Sinaloa Cartel operates. But not Bertrand. He likes to take a more practical approach to learning. To gain access to cartel members and film the balaclava-clad men, along with their criminal activities, Monnet says it took him years to "build trust", stressing that he's "very cautious". He explains: 'When you have contacts inside one cartel, you have to stay with them and try not to diversify your contacts because they are enemies. 'So they would consider you a betrayer or an informer.' It may seem hard to grasp how he manages to film drug cartels without crossing the line into complicity, morally or legally. But the Frenchman insists that he is not friends with these members, claiming: "It's impossible to be friends with these people, because we don't have the same mindset." Legally, he says he's neither involved in any criminal activity nor finding out information that would be useful to authorities, explaining: "I'm not discovering anything the police or intelligence do not already know." While his fieldwork has led to the production of numerous investigative documentaries ranging from Mexico to Nigeria, he sees himself first and foremost as an academic - or in his own words, a 'prof'. 13 13 13 13 Despite desperately trying to stay out of trouble, he says one visit to the depths of the cartel's dark underworld almost turned deadly. Bertrand and his driver once had a gun pointed at them in Sinaloa, after having been threatened by a rival clan within the cartel. They had taken a wrong turn after cartel instructions forced them to disable their phones and GPS to avoid government tracking. Unknowingly, they had entered another clan's village. He says: "There are several clans inside the cartel. You have to stay on the territory of a clan of the cartel. "And maybe just two kilometres away, you could end up on the territory of another clan." In another harrowing experience, Monnet was kidnapped in Sao Paulo, Brazil, by the PCC, the Primeiro Comando da Capital, back in 2016. The PCC is Brazil's biggest and largest criminal network, carrying out bank heists, brutal killings and prison riots. His fixer had entered their territory without proper clearance, raising suspicion that he might be an undercover cop. He was kept in jail for 12 hours, where he was beaten up, had a gun held to his head and even forced to snort cocaine. The nightmare came to an end when a more senior member, who held the position of judge, checked him out with corrupt officials and police, and realised he was not a cop. He then received a WhatsApp message from the "judge" two weeks later when he was back in France and on his way to a class. He booked a flight back to interview that man and now regularly sees him on trips in Brazil. When asked if he feels afraid, the Frenchman replies with a shrug: 'Not really.' If one has time and complies with their agenda, he says, there is little risk involved. But he acknowledges the uncertainty of gaining access to high-level cartel members and drug labs, describing it as a process of constant "failure". "Some of the people I met years ago have been killed - some of them can be arrested or they can change their mind, or disappear." Monnet's fieldwork extends further than Latin America, as he has also spent many months with pirates in Somalia and Nigeria. Caught in the crossfire It comes as violent drug gangs move into tourist resorts to capitalise on "drug tourism" - particularly in places now popular with Brits such as Mexico. The Sun recently revealed how murderous gangsters have been creeping out of the Mexican barrios, or neighbourhoods, and closer to the tourist enclaves. Tourists have borne witness to assassins executing their rivals and even gunning down holidaymakers. The state where many popular holiday destinations are located, Quintana Roo, has seen an unbelievable 633 murders last year. Bretrand points to two key regions where the Sinaloa Cartel has expanded its presence for logistical reasons. The first is along the US border, in cities like Ciudad Juárez and Mexicali - key hubs for moving drugs into the US. The second is tourist destinations like Cancún, where cartels launder drug money, masking the illicit cash from sales with profits from businesses in the tourism sector. What is the Sinaloa Cartel? Image credit: Reuters The Sinaloa Cartel is named after the Mexican state in the northwest of the country where it was formed in the late 1980s That state is home to marijuana and poppy crops The cartel is known for trafficking fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana, according to the DEA The cartel was formerly led by El Chapo Guzman, who famously escaped from Mexican prisons twice - first in 2001, by reportedly hiding in a laundry basket, and second, in 2015 through a tunnel He was detained again in 2016 and extradited to the US the following year, where he is serving a life sentence Two leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel were arrested by US authorities in July 2024: Joaquin Guzman Lopez, El Chapo's son, and Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada, the cartel's co-founder along with El Chapo Guzman Lopez organised their arrest, by tricking El Mayo into taking a flight with him Los Chapitos' alleged treason has led to an open conflict with the El Mayo faction He explains: "What they do is they mix the criminal cash into the cash flow of these legitimate companies. "Touristic complexes are typically the vehicle they need. "Because hotels, private beaches, clubs and other businesses are legitimate to have a massive use of cash, and especially in big 'washing machines' like the ones in Cancun." With a serious expression, he adds: 'And where do they invest this money? In so many companies across the world." This fuels fierce competition in Mexico, as cartels battle for control of tourist hotspots - not only to launder money, but also to sell to tourists their drugs and sex through criminal prostitution. Cartels, he says, are 'criminal multinational companies with huge revenues". Given their control, he's "not surprised" that tourists have been caught in the crossfire in shootings between rival cartels over the years. He says: "When they use violence, it's always very intense. "They have to first kill their enemies and then they have to terrify others.' While tourists are not typically targeted by cartels, in a country with a homicide rate of around 25,000 per year - the majority of which are linked to organised crime - it's not unheard of for holidaymakers to witness or even fall victim to cartel-related violence. The UK government currently advises tourists to "be very cautious after dark in downtown areas of Cancún, Tulum and Playa del Carmen". He says: "Tourists have to understand the reality of the country." He urges Brits to check trusted sources like the British consulate or Foreign Office before and during their trip. He also advises asking hotel staff about which spots are safe to visit. While kidnappings mostly target locals, "cartels are very opportunistic' and on the lookout to "diversify their businesses", so tourists should stay alert. He warns against using private, unregistered taxis or 'fake Ubers'. He also stresses: 'Don't consume drugs," both for the health risk and because "it's important not to fuel this economy as a consumer". 13 13 Drug wars US government figures claim Mexico's big cartels are raking in an estimated $20-30billion (£16-24billion) a year in profits. The main drug trafficked into the US from Mexico is fentanyl, a synthetic opioid drug, which scientists say is 30 to 50 times more powerful than heroin. And trafficked fentanyl is also mixed in with other drugs like heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine to increase its potency. Dubbed "the silent killer drug", fentanyl kills around 100,000 people in the US each year. Trump 's return to the US presidency in January ramped up the pressure on cartels. He even threatened a 25 per cent tariff on Mexican goods unless drugs - especially fentanyl - and migrants stopped entering. Monnet produced three documentaries last year with the French newspaper Le Monde, which analysed the economy of fentanyl. He says it took him two and a half years to gain access to drug labs in Mexico to film the full chain - from the production of the blue M30 pills in Culiacán and their transport to the US to their retail in New York. He always asks for permission before filming and has a good track record of not causing problems. "No identity has been shared in my documentaries and nobody has been arrested after the broadcast - so I'm trustworthy, they know that," he says. In the documentary, a cartel member reveals the pills cost 70 cents each to produce but are sold for $5-$10 (£4-8) in New York. There is also mention of the cartel expanding into Europe, where the pills can reportedly snag up to $15 (£11) each. Speaking to The Sun about these backstreet labs, Monnet says: "The reality is not sexy. These laboratories are not big manufacturers. "There are small places hidden somewhere in the mountains, in the jungle or downtown." In response to Trump's tariff threats, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum launched a crackdown on cartels, sending 10,000 National Guard troops to the border and hundreds more soldiers to Sinaloa state. 13 13 By February 27, nearly 30 suspected cartel figures were handed over to the US. In early May, Sheinbaum said that Trump had proposed sending US troops to Mexico to combat drug trafficking - but she rejected the offer, as "sovereignty is not for sale". Monnet says: "I think President Sheinbaum is absolutely legitimate to refuse an external intervention by the US on Mexican territory." He also argues such military strategies are ineffective. "The only way to challenge these criminal organisations is by economic strategies," he says, "because they have to understand that they are, unfortunately, not criminal armies, but criminal companies. "If they understand the nature of their enemy, maybe it will be easier for them to try and tackle it." He acknowledges the Mexican president's efforts, saying: "The government of Mrs Sheinbaum has adopted a very good strategy: they have upgraded the resources of the state's forces, the police, the intelligence and so on, to try and fight against the cartels. "But it's not sufficient, of course, because they [cartels] have billions of dollars." Monnet explains that cartels invest in anything under the sun, from businesses across the US (with authorities in the know) to cryptocurrency. The Sinaloa Cartel has been found to have laundered more than $869,000 using cryptocurrency in just over six months between 2022 and 2023, according to a US indictment unsealed last year. The professor says: "One guy told me, 'If there was a profitable business on the moon, I would invest in the moon'." He adds: "They are opportunistic, dynamic and unfortunately intelligent." This broad economic footprint, he says, complicates efforts to dismantle their networks. Monnet says: "The only way [to combat them] is to maximise the presence of the state, and somehow try and replace these criminal investments by legal investments - not done by the state, but by legal companies. "But of course, these companies, most of the time, are reluctant to invest in territories controlled by the cartels, so they have to be supported by the state." What is the Mexican Drug War? Mexico is grappling with an ongoing conflict between drug cartels, the Mexican and US governments, along with their law enforcement agencies The drug war began in the 1980s, when Mexico became a key transit point for cocaine and other drugs being smuggled to the US In the 1980s, drug cartels like the Gulf Cartel and Sinaloa Cartel started gaining power In the 1990s, competition grew between cartels, leading to greater violence In the early 2000s, powerful criminal organisations, like the Sinaloa, Gulf and Zetas cartels, fought for control of drug trafficking routes and markets In 2006, President Felipe Calderón launched an all-out war on drug cartels, deploying the military to fight them - this is seen as a major turning point, sparking a surge in cartel violence In 2010, the Sinaloa Cartel and Los Zetas Cartel became the dominant forces, leading to brutal turf wars By the 2010s, the murder rate in Mexico soared, with tens of thousands of deaths related to the drug war In 2014, 43 college students were kidnapped and likely killed in Guerrero, reportedly due to collusion between police and drug gangs In 2016, El Chapo Guzmán, leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, was captured after escaping prison twice In 2024, top leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, including the son of El Chapo, were arrested by US authorities Today, Mexico's drug war continues with reported violence, more cartels and civilian casualties
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Think tank calls for redesign of fraud policing amid 'stark lack of resources' to tackle scammers
There is a 'fundamental mismatch' between the extent of fraud taking place and the effectiveness of the police response, the boss of the UK's policing think tank has said. Some 43 per cent of crime committed is fraud, costing England and Wales £6.8billion per year, with one in ten adults being a victim of fraud last year. With the rise of AI, fraud is increasing in scale and scams are becoming more difficult for those targeted to detect. Speaking at the launch of the think tank's new report in conjunction with Virgin Media O2, Andy Higgins, interim director of the Police Foundation, said: 'Fraud has become part of the background noise of modern life. 'There are few people who do not receive emails, messages and calls attempting to defraud them of their money. 'There is a stark lack of resources allocated to fraud within policing.' In fact, there were just 866 economic crime officers, some 0.064 per cent of the police force, dedicated to tackling fraud as of 2021. Higgins said around 300 officers have been recruited since then, but the same pattern is expected to continue. The lack of police resources, as well as a low rate of reporting, the Police Foundation's figures show that despite some 4.1million fraud offences taking place in 2021, just 1.3million were reported to the police. Of these only 3.5 per cent were deemed suitable for any form of police investigation. As a result, just 4,400 offenders were sentenced for fraud-related crimes in 2021, and just over 1,000 received prison sentences. And yet fraud offences are having an untold effect on victims, often in ways that are less visible on the surface. Higgins said: 'Action Fraud takes calls from 300 people each year who they deem at risk of suicide.' More than 90 per cent of fraud victims said they had experienced some form of mental health problems as a result. In an effort to address the shortfall in the police response to fraud, the Police Foundation said it wants the police and wider response to fraud to be 'fundamentally redesigned'. Under the Police Foundation's recommendations, the Government would establish a national crime prevention agency, with local authorities also developing localised fraud prevention strategies to build up collective defences against fraud. Higgins said: 'We have a criminal justice system, we don't have a prevention system.' The Foundation is also calling for the City of London Police to be given tasking powers to direct local teams, which themselves would be focused on tackling localised fraud. Funding for fraud policing should be distributed by a national body, it said, adding that spending on fraud investigation should be increased over the next two spending reviews. It also argues that private companies should be legally required to share data for fraud investigation. Murray Mackenzie, director of fraud prevention at Virgin Media O2, said: 'With overall fraud prosecutions falling despite a 33 per cent jump in cases last year, the UK is failing to effectively tackle fraud, and criminals are stealing with no real prospect of ever facing justice. 'The police recognise the deeply-rooted systemic barriers to tackling fraud - nine in 10 agree that despite their best efforts, officers lack the tools and resources needed to fight back.'
BBC News
21-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Manchester crackdown on fake goods funds community projects
Nearly £18m has been seized from criminals by Greater Manchester Police's economic crime unit in the past investigations have included Operation Vulcan, which targeted the fake goods trade in the Cheetham Hill and Strangeways areas of of the money has already been reinvested into community projects, with the aim of improving areas once blighted by local initiative to benefit is JD Dance, based in one of the venues raided by police on Lockett Street as part of the crackdown on counterfeit goods. The dance school's founder Jennie Doolan said she was able to open the doors to more pupils after being awarded £8,000 under the police's asset recovery incentivisation scheme."I needed a new venue as we're growing, so the fact the police were able to help out and give us that money, it just helped us."The funding also enabled the dance school to purchase new equipment as well as uniform and competition outfits for the children. "This [property] was one of the first warrants when we set up [Operation Vulcan] in 2022," said Insp Daniel Cullum. "When we came in here it was four floors of counterfeit goods."On the top floor there was actually a rope. Criminals would effectively try and climb out when the police entered on to the roof next door."It is a totally different space now. It's great to see it's been given back to the community." When the building was raided, officers found £1m worth of goods and £500,000 in than 200 counterfeit shops have since been closed down in the Supt Andy Buckthorpe, head of economic and cyber crime, said Greater Manchester Police was "leading the way in terms of our economic crime response"."It's fantastic for me personally to see the other side of it, where that money is then used to benefit the local community." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Couple trace fake firms to single block of flats
A couple found they were the victims of identity fraud after their address was changed without their consent and fake companies and accounts set up in their name. An investigation by the couple then led them to discover a number of companies listed as being based at the same address, a block of flats in Solihull, in the West Midlands. Sophie, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, said they faced months of stress and felt they had a lack of support from Companies House. A spokesperson from the government agency, said: 'Prior to the introduction of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act there were limited powers to validate the information that was delivered to her. "New powers under the Act allow us to act more quickly if people inform us personal information has been used without their consent.' Sophie told the BBC she first discovered something was wrong when her husband's postal vote did not come through for their local elections in 2023. They contacted the council, who told them their address had been changed without the pair knowing about it. Sophie then received a letter from a trade company asking her husband to confirm a business account for a company that was not theirs. Acting quickly, the pair contacted Action Fraud and the UK fraud prevention group Cifas to flag the issue. This then led to them receiving several letters from bank and credit companies telling the couple attempts were being made to set up accounts in their name. Sophie's husband was also listed as the director of another company. As the couple have a legitimate business themselves, she said they wanted to act quickly and contacted Companies House about the fraudulent companies. To knowingly register false information with the agency is a crime under the Companies Act. But the process of getting a person's name removed from a business was "not straightforward", according to Sophie. "They first write to the registered address and ask the named director to provide further proof of their ID," she added. "They are given several weeks to respond, during which time the business can still trade. "If they get no response, they will then move to dissolve the business, which again takes time. "I had to send a lot of details to them, which is ironic since they clearly didn't ask for details at the beginning when the companies were being set up." Sophie sought legal advice to see if the efforts could be speeded up but was told it would cost £2,000-4,000 in advice fees with another £10,000-15,000 if the matter went to court. "It took around four to five months to get his name removed, a lot of time. This chasing down has taken hours and hours of our time," she said. Sophie contacted her local police force about what had happened but said she did not receive a response. A spokesperson for West Midlands Police said they investigated allegations of identity fraud in Solihull in 2023 but "no suspects were identified". Sophie said her efforts to look into their situation led to her finding that the registered address of all the fake companies was a block of flats in Solihull. The block consists of about 30 apartments but Sophie said there were 24 different businesses registered there. They ranged from ones dealing in sweets and confectionary to others which said they were removal services and construction. "This highlights how easy it is to do, since the registration of adjacent addresses is lazy and obvious," she said. In most of the cases, Sophie found the names used to set up the companies belonged to a pensioner. "A lot of these people, particularly those in their seventies, they won't have a clue what is happening and wouldn't necessarily have the resources to chase it down," she said. "This could be hugely stressful for people and could actually end up costing them a lot of money. "We had to register for CFA's (Counter Fraud Authority) which aren't free, we pay for that now because we feel we need to check our credit score but that option wouldn't be open to everybody." Sophie said she believed their case was not unique. "This seems to be such an easy thing to do and there's really no comeback," she said. "It almost feels like, well, you might as well give it a go." The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act became law in 2023 and was aimed at giving Companies House greater powers to remove invalid registered office addresses. But Sophie said she wanted to see more thorough checks of who was setting up new firms. "I think there must be thousands of people in the country who are directors of companies and don't even know," she said. "They need better identification for when you're setting up a company. Far better checks and balances when you're setting up a company. "It shouldn't be this easy." Contact the organisation concerned - whether it be a bank, credit card company or something else and let them know what's happened Report it to Action Fraud - individuals or businesses who have fallen victim to identity fraud should report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or on their website. Get victim support - if you have been a victim of fraud, you can contact Victim Support for free, confidential advice and support Report fraudsters If you have information about those committing identity crime please tell independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or at their website Query suspicious mail - be suspicious of any unsolicited emails, even if it appears to be from a company you know of BBC Action Line also has links to organisations that may be able to help if you have been affected by a scam or fraud. You can find out more about how to stay Scam Safe here. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. Bogus firms registered at 16 addresses in one street The leafy street where 80 fake firms have swiped addresses 'We never knew our home was on the scammer's list' Woman 'left panicked' as bogus firm uses her address Companies House Action Fraud
