'Every Rolls has a story behind it' - Times LIVE

'Every Rolls has a story behind it' - Times LIVE: "lime green Rolls was one of several sales at yesterday's auction of the liquidated assets of a business empire belonging to two controversial Cape Town figures - businessman Mark Lifman and the late Yuri 'The Russian' Ulianitski, who died in a hail of bullets three years ago on his way home from a restaurant.
Lifman did not bid on any of the items which included a city 'nightclub' - sold for R7-million - two Sea Point apartments, and the Rolls - but his presence cast an imposing shadow over yesterday's proceedings, where bidding was slow to start.
Although Ulianitski and Lifman were business partners, Ulianitski's widow, Irina, last month won a court challenge for a share of her slain husband's estate, prompting the appointment of liquidators who decided to auction their shared business interests."

Chris Kinahan '£500m cocaine king' in seized in swoops by 750 armed police

Express.co.uk - Home of the Daily and Sunday Express | UK News :: '£500m cocaine king' in seized in swoops by 750 armed police: "Chris Kinahan was held on the Costa del Sol as 750 police officers swooped on 32 suspects in Britain, Spain and Ireland.

The 53-year-old Briton is alleged to be the head of a criminal net- work responsible for trafficking huge quantities of cocaine into every major UK city.

Kinahan is also said to have masterminded, from his villa near Marbella, the large-scale smuggling of firearms and the laundering of hundreds of millions of pounds in crime profits.

In co-ordinated dawn raids, 230 officers from the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) arrested nine men and two women in the West Midlands, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Kent, Middlesex and south London. Premises were also being searched in Belgium, Cyprus, and Brazil as well as in Britain, Spain and Ireland.

Kinahan’s sons, Christopher junior and Daniel, were also held in the wave of arrests in Spain. Daniel Kinahan featured in the long-running probe into allegations of horse-race fixing featuring champion jockey Kieren Fallon. The jockey was cleared of all charges.

Soca’s Trevor Pearce said: “The scale of this joint operation is an indication of how prolific we think this network was."

Sean Connery has been ordered to appear before a Spanish magistrate investigating alleged financial irregularities on the Costa del Sol.

Sean Connery has been ordered to appear before a Spanish magistrate investigating alleged financial irregularities on the Costa del Sol.
The James Bond star, 79, and his wife Micheline Roquebrune, are being investigated by a court in the millionaires' playground of Marbella.
Five lawyers have also been ordered to appear before the court after police raided their offices on Wednesday in an operation named Goldfinger.
Connery and his wife, Michelle, a French painter, lived in Marbella from the early 1970s to the late 1990s in a beachside mansion called Malibu.
They entertained stars including Richard Burton, Michael Caine, Omar Sharif and George best in the magnificent whitewashed villa.
Connery sold the property for a reported $9million in the late 90s, and 72 luxury flats were later built on the land.
A two-bedroom apartment there is now worth around £2million.
Magistrate Ricardo Puyol is reportedly investigating the sale of the house and allegations of tax evasion and money-laundering.
The actor and his wife are expected to appear before the magistrate at Marbella's Court of Instruction number 1 on May 27, 28 or 29.
They will be questioned in detail, behind closed doors, before the magistrate decides if any further action should be taken.
Neither Connery or his wife have been arrested or charged with any offence.
On Wednesday officers from the National Police accompanied by tax officials raided the officers of law firm Diaz-Bastien & Truan in Marbella and Madrid.
Operating on the orders of the magistrate, the officers reportedly seized 30,000 documents.
The magistrate has placed a secrecy order on the case which bans any officials from speaking about the investigation.
National newspaper El Mundo said the magistrate is investigating a number of property deals made during the tenure of controversial Marbella mayor Jesus Gil y Gil, the former owner of Atletico Madrid football club.
It said the magistrate was investigating possible tax evasion, embezzlement, perversion of justice and money-laundering.

Antonio Gregorio Díaz Navas was found guilty of illegally granting a building licence for a villa on non-buildable land

Antonio Gregorio Díaz Navas was found guilty of illegally granting a building licence for a villa on non-buildable landPenal court five in Málaga, has sentenced the Partido Popular Mayor of Canillas de Albaida, Antonio Gregorio Díaz Navas, to a seven year ban from pubic office, and a fine of 4,500 €, for town planning crimes. He was found guilty of granting permission to build a villa ‘with a serious disregard for the regulatory norms’, according to the sentence.The licence for the 137 square metre dwelling in the area known as El Mosquín, has also been rescinded, according to Europa Press.In court the Mayor admitted that he gave the licence ‘ahead of time’ as documents were lacking, but insisted that he was completely sure that the building could have been made legal, and he did not think he was committing a crime.
‘If I had known that, I would not have done it’, he told the court. ‘I always acted in good faith for the good of the village’.Diaz Navas has said he will not resign from his post or from the Partido Popular until the result of his appeal.

Valencia Government, headed by Francisco Camps, awarded 85 contracts worth 7.2 million € to nine companies in the Gürtel corruption network,

Valencia Government, headed by Francisco Camps, awarded 85 contracts worth 7.2 million € to nine companies in the Gürtel corruption network, owned by Francisco Correa, between 2004 and 2008.The numbers come from a report from the Judicial Services of the Madrid High Court of Justice, where the summary of the case is being instructed.The contents of the 43 page report were revealed in the Valencia parliament on Thursday by the Socialist spokesman in Les Corts, Ángel Luna. He claimed the report shows that the law was broken on some 50 occasions as contracts were often split into smaller segments.In response Francisco Camps, the President of the Generalitat, on Thursday defended the contracts awarded by his administration and said that the Sindicatura de Comptes said that ‘everything is under legal control and in perfect conditions’. He also claimed that more contracts were split up under the Socialists.

allegations of corruption in Totana, Murcia, will place the regional deputy and ex Mayor of Totana, Juan Morales

ex Mayor of Totana, and current regional deputy is accused of accepting backhanders

The judge instructing the allegations of corruption in Totana, Murcia, will place the regional deputy and ex Mayor of Totana, Juan Morales, on the accused bench for allegedly accepting backhanders from as many as 13 crimes. He faces bribery, fraud, money laundering, document falsification and other charges.

He one of 13 accused in the case, a list which includes his girlfriend, Vanelde Freita, and the case documents say that between 2003 and 2007 he managed several real estate deals, including one from the Galician company, Inmonuar, in the area known as El Raiguero. For this deal to proceed he is thought to have used intermediaries to purchase the land needed, for which Morales received ‘a substantial commission’ of 3.6 million.

However, despite a request from the prosecutor, the current Mayor of Totana, José Martínez Andreo, has still not been indicted.

ex Mayor of Manilva, Pedro Tirado, speaking to the court in Málaga, has said that the 762,101 € found in rubbish bags in his home, in 500 € and 200€ n

ex Mayor of Manilva, Pedro Tirado, speaking to the court in Málaga, has said that the 762,101 € found in rubbish bags in his home, in 500 € and 200€ notes, was from ‘anonymous party donations’ for his PDEM, The Manilva Democratic Party, which he founded in 2002 after leaving the GIL party.

The Anti-corruption prosecutor claims that the money found in March 2005 was a backhander given to the then Mayor, from the owners of La Parrada, an enormous estate where the Mayor allowed the number of homes to be built to be increased from 1,300 to 2,400. As part of the deal, the Royal Marbella Estates sold the land it purchased for 9.7 million € for 117.9 million the following year after the Mayor had reclassified the land in between the two dates.

In questioning despite his claim, Tirado was unable to name a single party donor, or give any more information, for example say the size of the largest single donation.

When asked why the money was not in his safe, Tiraldo told the court that he had been advised by a friend, who was an expert in security, that he should put only a small amount in the safe, as a prize for a possible thief, and hide the larger amount elsewhere.

The prosecutor is demanding a two year prison sentence for bribery.

Euro Weekly News | Euro Weekly News - News/Costa del Sol

Euro Weekly News | Euro Weekly News - News/Costa del Sol: "BENALMADENA - A MISSING three million euros from land and property agreements in Benalmadena dating back six years is being probed by the Court of Auditors. Lack of control over municipal funds is believed to have led to the discrepancies between the amount earned and invested, with any irregularities discovered potentially seeing those in power at the time having to repay the money."

Celebrity Cruises says it today is dispatching its newest ship, the Celebrity Eclipse, to Spain to rescue more than 2,000 British vacationers

Celebrity Cruises says it today is dispatching its newest ship, the Celebrity Eclipse, to Spain to rescue more than 2,000 British vacationers stranded by the ash-caused shutdown of flights across Europe. The Miami-based line says it is canceling the first leg of inaugural celebrations for the 2,850-passenger vessel, scheduled to begin Thursday in Southampton, England, so the ship can take part in what is becoming a Continent-wide effort to repatriate thousands of waylaid citizens of various countries to their homes. Celebrity says it is working with U.K. tour operators to arrange the repatriation. Some of the British vacationers the ship will pick up, on package holidays in Spain, have been stuck in the country since last Thursday.

British Royal Navy ship arrived in the northern Spanish port of Santander to pick up troops and civilians stranded

British Royal Navy ship arrived in the northern Spanish port of Santander to pick up troops and civilians stranded due to the volcanic ash cloud grounding flights across Europe.The HMS Albion will transport over 450 army personnel as well as around 280 civilians to the port of Portsmouth in southern England, the British defence ministry said in a statement.Among the army personnel who boarded the ship were members of a field hospital regiment and a RAF squadron who had completed a tour of duty in Afghanistan.The soldiers were able to reach Spain by plane as it is one of the few European nations not to be significantly affected by the ash cloud.Most of the civilians who boarded the ship were holiday-makers who became trapped because of the closure of British airspace, with priority given to those "with a pressing need to return to Britain", a British embassy spokesman said.Soldiers in fatigues entered the boat alongside families with children wearing colourful backpacks, images broadcast on Spanish television showed.Britain's Sky news channel reported another 400 people had turned up at the port, hoping to get on the ship, but were turned away.The HMS Albion, an amphibious landing ship based at Devonport Naval Base in Plymouth, is expected to arrive at Portsmouth on Wednesday night (local time). It is capable of carrying more than 600 personnel as well as vehicles and combat supplies.

Fake Gastric Banding Surgery Through Hypnosis - ABC News

Fake Gastric Banding Surgery Through Hypnosis - ABC News: "Lindley, 59, weighed 315 pounds and wanted to lose weight before retiring from her position in a school in Keighley, England. So in July 2009, she traveled to a clinic in Spain. She spent days in 'pre-surgery' counseling talking about her food choices and how gastric banding surgery would leave her stomach no bigger than a golf ball and make it uncomfortable for her to eat more than she needed.
In her final session, Lindley went into the 'operating room' where she smelled antiseptics and heard sounds of the doctors and nurses talking. But rather than go under anesthesia, Lindley had actually already been put under, using hypnosis.
Hours later she walked out of the 'hospital' without a single incision having been made. Lindley didn't actually have -- or want -- gastric bypass surgery, she had hoped the hypnotists at the Elite Clinic in Marbella, Spain could just convince her she had one so her body would not let her eat as much."

The Associated Press: Spanish court shelves Israeli probe

The Associated Press: Spanish court shelves Israeli probe: "Spain's Supreme Court has upheld a lower court decision to shelve a probe of an Israeli air force bombing that killed a Hamas militant and 14 civilians in Gaza in 2002.
The National Court ruled in June that Spain lacked jurisdiction because Israel was already investigating the attack. The Supreme Court said Tuesday that ruling was correct, rejecting an appeal of it by the Arab Cause Solidarity Committee, a Spanish advocacy organization.
Israel had complained to Spain about the probe, which was begun in 2009 by a National Court investigating magistrate under Spain's practice of universal jurisdiction, based on a complaint by Palestinian relatives of victims of the attack."

The Canadian Press: Spain's footballers call off strike over unpaid player wages

The Canadian Press: Spain's footballers call off strike over unpaid player wages: "Spain's soccer players' association (AFE) says it has called off a strike over unpaid wages which could have halted matches in the country's top four leagues.
Luis Rubiales, an AFE spokesman, told journalists that enough progress had been made at talks with the Spanish League, the football federation and Spain's Sports Council to enable his organization to call off industrial action.
The pay disputes applied mainly to players in the lower tiers.
The strike could have disrupted 10 matches in the top division's 33rd round, including Real Madrid versus Valencia and Espanyol versus Barcelona."

Workaholics escaping personal problems - UPI.com

Workaholics escaping personal problems - UPI.com: "About 8 percent of employees devote more than 12 hours per day to their employer to escape from personal problems, researchers in Spain say.
Lead author Mario Del Libano of the Jaume I University in Castellon de la Plana in Spain says spending more than 50 hours per week working could indicate work addiction.
Del Libano and colleagues confirmed the usefulness of Dutch Work Addiction Scale, a new scale for measuring addiction to work.
Work addiction is characterized by extreme work activity with people working outside working hours, at weekends and holidays, inability to delegate, disproportionate involvement with work and focusing on work to the detriment of their lives."

Two arrested in Spain after fights break out at former mosque

Two arrested in Spain after fights break out at former mosque: "Two men were arrested after clashes between police and tourists who broke a ban on Muslim prayers at a cathedral in Spain which was once a major mosque, the local bishop's office said this week.
Trouble broke out Wednesday when six members of a group of 118 Muslim tourists visiting the cathedral in the southwestern city of Cordoba knelt to pray and were ordered to stop by security guards.
As they refused to stop praying, they were 'invited to continue with their visit or leave the cathedral,' the Cordoba's bishop's office said.
The security guards called in police, who were attacked by the visiting Muslim tourists, it added. Two policemen were injured and two of the Muslim tourists were detained.
'This was a one-time incident that does not represent the genuine Muslim identity as there are many who display attitudes of respect and dialogue with the Catholic Church,' the statement said.
Despite calls by Muslims for rules to loosen, Bishop Demetrio Fernandez Gonzalez recently reiterated a ban on Muslim prayers at the former mosque that turned into a Christian cathedral in the 13th century"

Seanie won't clear his name - Irish, Business - Independent.ie

Seanie won't clear his name - Irish, Business - Independent.ie: "OVER four out of five of Ireland's top 300 company bosses feel that former Anglo Irish Bank chairman Sean FitzPatrick (above) will not be able to clear his name.
More than 83.5 per cent of respondents felt that the omens were bad for the disgraced banker. Most of the remaining respondents were undecided.
Mr FitzPatrick was arrested and questioned by gardai two weeks ago. He is now believed to be staying near Marbella in the sunny south of Spain.
In last year's poll, more than 88 per cent of respondents indicated that they felt that bankers should face criminal charges over their conduct."

Spain to invest billions in rail, road projects - BusinessWeek

Spain to invest billions in rail, road projects - BusinessWeek: "Spain said Wednesday it would invest euro17 billion ($23 billion) in a rail and road project over the next two years in an effort to boost its recession-hit economy and create jobs.
Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said 70 percent of the investment would go toward new passenger and freight rail projects, as well as improvements of the existing network. The remaining 30 percent will be dedicated to highway construction and maintenance.
He said the plan would not affect Spain's coffers for the moment as it would be financed initially by the companies contracted with funds from state credit institutions and private banks.
Zapatero said Spain would begin paying the companies back after 2014 by means of a new tax on users once the projects are finalized and functioning.
'This is the most important collaboration between the public and private sector in the history of our country,' said Zapatero."

Failed EU-U.S. data deal to be revived, U.S. says | Reuters

Failed EU-U.S. data deal to be revived, U.S. says | Reuters: "'There are still issues we have to work through,' Holder told a news conference in Madrid following talks with EU officials.
'I am confident that over a relatively short time, the (data sharing) will be once again active.'
Holder met EU officials in Spain this week to discuss security cooperation with the 27-nation bloc, notably the data agreement rejected by the European Parliament in February because of concerns over citizens' privacy. The United States wants access to information about money transfers in Europe, saying it is crucial in tracking suspected terrorists.
Negotiations on a new agreement between Washington and Brussels could start as soon as this month, pending a green light from EU governments.
Washington was forced to seek an agreement on data sharing with the EU when the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), which tracks money transfers, changed its server infrastructure several months ago.
But any new deal will have to address concerns by EU parliamentarians over privacy safeguards such as the right to complain if citizens feel their data is misused. Deputies also want provisions against sending bulk packages of information instead of data on specific cases.
In a debate over the EU's proposed negotiating framework in the European Parliament this week, lawmakers again demanded more stringent protection.
'The Americans are looking for a needle and we basically send them a haystack,' Sophie in't Veld, a Dutch member of the EU assembly, said."

Spain unveils measures to boost ailing economy - BusinessWeek

Spain unveils measures to boost ailing economy - BusinessWeek: "Spain's government announced Friday a package of measures aimed at boosting its ailing economy and generating more than 350,000 jobs.
Economy Minister Elena Salgado said the initiatives were intended to help medium to small businesses, especially those operating in the hard-hit construction sector.
'These are measures oriented toward creating employment,' Salgado said at a press conference after the government's weekly cabinet meeting.
The 30 measures were designed 'to continue moving forward with our economic recovery,' Deputy Prime Minister, Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega, said.
Salgado said the fiscal impact of the measures had been included in the budgetary stability proposals the Spanish government had presented to the EU in Brussels in January."

Mayor of Marbella complains about TV progamme

Mayor of Marbella complains about TV progamme: "The Mayor of Marbella, Ángeles Muñoz, has written a letter of protest against the Telecinco gossip TV programme, ‘La Noria’.
She is angry at the contents of last Tuesday’s programme when the subject was Isabel Pantoya and the Malaya corruption case based in Marbella.
Muñoz says it showed an image of the town which does not correspond to reality, and that the treatment of Marbella was ‘unjust’ over the two hours of the programme."