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Showing posts from November 25, 2012

Mafia mob boss Vito Rizzuto to testify at Quebec crime inquiry

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Montreal - A reputed Mafia don , Vito Rizzuto, has been summoned to appear before the Charbonneau Commission that is investigating corruption in Quebec. Quebec police were able to serve Rizzuto a subpoena on November 19th in Montreal. Rizzuto seems to have been in hiding since he returned to Canada in October after being released from prison in the U.S. Many believe that Rizzuto is head of the Sicilian Mafia in Canada. Sgt. Claude Dennis of the Quebec provincial police only confirmed that Rizzuto was met and the subpoena served. Rizzuto was known once as Montreal's Teflon Don because of his ability to avoid prosecution. His name has come up several times during discussion of corruption in Quebec's construction industry. Earlier testimony described how construction officials would collude to decide who would win which public contracts and at what price. The Rizzuto family would receive a 2.5 per cent cut of the contracts. Lino Zambito, a former vice-pres

Tout mafia in courts adding to litigants’ woes

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RAWALPINDI  - Tout mafia in the district courts Rawalpindi has added to the miseries of the already troubled visitors in the courts. According to sources, the touts keep wandering the district courts premises and mint money from the visitors by offering all kind of help and assistance needed in the courts. They charge Rs500 to 700 to appear before a court as an eye-witness for anyone. Sources revealed that the touts allegedly having links in all the major law related departments and offices of the city including readers, registrars and commissioner offices. A tout , in the district court on condition of anonymity told INP, he offers his services to the litigants in getting bails on personal guarantee and earning livelihood for his family.  He said that he was numberdar in his village but was facing financial hardships, thus was forced to do this job. He received 10 percent of the bail assurance bond. A visitor of the court said that the touts were tak

Mafiosi steal €2m in farm subsidies

ITALIAN mafiosi have been pocketing hundreds of thousands of euros from European farm funds for years thanks to a legal loophole, according to rulings from Italy's Court of Auditors. Convicted gangsters and suspects under police surveillance were able to receive Common Agricultural Policy payments of up to €153000 without triggering more in-depth controls on their criminal history. "Until two months ago we didn't even have a list of mafiosi to check against when making payments," said Giancarlo Nanni, director of Agea, the Italian government agency that handles European agriculture funding. Court rulings demanding that the funds be returned to the state showed that payments of more than €2-million had been made over nearly two decades, including to mafiosi who were in prison at the time. Around €1.8-million was distributed in Sicily alone, where there were dozens of rulings against "farmers" for illegally obtaining public funds. Under

Wrongful jailing complaint in China's Bo scandal

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Beijing: An ex-lawyer who said he was wrongfully persecuted as part of a massive crime crackdown by China's purged politician Bo Xilai this week filed a complaint with China's highest prosecuting office. The former defence lawyer, Li Zhuang, is demanding a thorough investigation of his case, which has raised questions about how Bo ruled Chongqing a metropolis in China's southwest as its party chief until his downfall in March.  China's top government prosecuting office said on its website today that it had received Li's petition and will handle his complaint according to procedure. Li was detained in 2009 after his client Gong Gangmo, a Chongqing businessman swept into Bo's anti-mafia campaign because he was suspected of gang crimes, alleged that the defence lawyer had instigated him to lie about being tortured for confession. Li, who spent 18 months in jail, has said Gong framed him under duress of Chongqing police. Li has been appealing his c