Crime

COPS are desperately searching for a man and his two children – last seen speeding through a major seaside town.

Authorities are concerned over the welfare of the passengers and have sent out a police helicopter to help them in their search.

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Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada pledges to continue ‘relentless fight against insecurity’.

Two top aides to the mayor of Mexico City have been shot dead in the latest attack against public officials in the Latin American country.

Private secretary Ximena Guzman and adviser Jose Munoz were shot dead on Tuesday in an early morning ambush in the central neighbourhood of Moderna, city authorities said.

Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada condemned the killings and pledged to continue her administration’s “relentless fight against insecurity”.

“Investigating, clarifying and ensuring there is no impunity is our commitment,” Brugada said during a news conference.

Mexico has one of the highest murder rates on the planet, largely due to violence driven by drug cartels, but the capital is known for its relative security compared with the rest of the country.

Reporting from Mexico City, Al Jazeera’s John Holman said there had been 50 political murders in the country in the first three months of the year alone, though political killings are relatively rare in the capital.

“The reasons for this one are still unknown. But there are powerful criminal groups in the capital fighting for territory and control of lucrative rackets,” Holman said.

“Politicians can get in the way, as elsewhere in the country.”

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, a Brugada ally who previously served as the capital’s mayor, expressed condolences over the killings and said her government would ensure that “justice is served”.

“We express our solidarity and support for the families of these two individuals who have worked in our movement for a long time,” Sheinbaum said.

“We know them, we stand with their families, and we will give her [Brugada] all the support the city needs from the Mexican government.”

In 2020, Mexico City’s security chief, Omar Garcia Harfuch, survived an ambush by gunmen that killed two of his bodyguards and a bystander.

Washington, DC – United States Congresswoman LaMonica McIver has been charged with assaulting a law enforcement officer after a standoff at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in early May.

On Tuesday, Democrats denounced the charge as an attempt by the administration of Republican President Donald Trump to silence his political rivals for speaking out against his deportation campaign.

In a post on the social media platform X, Democratic Representative Gil Cisneros blasted the administration for having “gone after judges, prosecutors, and now, Members of Congress” in its attempts to stifle dissent.

“The charges against Rep McIver are a blatant political attack and an attempt to prohibit Members of Congress from conducting oversight,” Cisneros wrote.

The charge was announced on Monday evening, with federal prosecutor Alina Habba —Trump’s former personal lawyer — accusing McIver of having “assaulted, impeded, and interfered” with law enforcement.

“The conduct cannot be overlooked,” Habba wrote in a statement. “It is my constitutional obligation to ensure that our federal law enforcement is protected when executing their duties.”

The criminal charge stemmed from an incident on May 9, when McIver joined two other members of Congress for an oversight tour of Delaney Hall, a privately run immigration detention facility in Newark, New Jersey.

The visit devolved into a fracas involving elected officials, protesters and federal law enforcement agents. The mayor of Newark, Ras Baraka, was arrested at the scene for alleged trespassing.

In Monday’s statement, Habba announced the charge against Baraka has since been dropped “for the sake of moving forward”. But his arrests likewise spurred outcry over possible political motives.

‘Intimidate and interfere’

Late on Monday, McIver responded to the charges against her with a statement of her own, saying she and other members of Congress were “fulfilling our lawful oversight responsibilities” when they visited the detention centre.

McIver accused ICE agents at the scene of creating an “unnecessary and unsafe confrontation”. She added that the charges against her “mischaracterise and distort my actions”.

“The charges against me are purely political,” McIver wrote.

Top Democrats also remained defiant in the face of the Trump administration’s accusations, saying they would continue their oversight duties at immigration facilities like Delaney Hall.

“The criminal charge against Congresswoman LaMonica McIver is extreme, morally bankrupt and lacks any basis in law or fact,” Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives said in a joint statement.

They underscored that they have a right as Congress members to show up at federal facilities unannounced for inspections.

The charges against McIver, they argued, are a “blatant attempt by the Trump administration to intimidate Congress and interfere with our ability to serve as a check and balance on an out-of-control executive branch”.

In a separate statement, Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee said the criminal charge was a “dangerous precedent” that “reveals the increasingly authoritarian nature of this administration”.

“Representative McIver has our full support, and we will do everything in our power to help fight this outrageous threat to our constitutional system,” they said.

Democrats have denounced the Trump administration’s push for “mass deportation” as violating constitutional and human rights. As part of that push, the Trump White House has sought to expand the use of private detention centres to house the growing number of people arrested for deportation.

Mayor Baraka, in particular, has repeatedly protested the 1,000-bed Delaney Hall for opening without the proper permits and approvals. Its operator, The GEO Group, has denied any violations.

The facility became operational in early May, under a 15-year agreement made with ICE.

A United States citizen has been transferred to the US after being held for nearly six months in Venezuela.

The family of US Air Force veteran Joseph St Clair confirmed his release on Tuesday, following his detention in November of last year.

“This news came suddenly, and we are still processing it, but we are overwhelmed with joy and gratitude,” St Clair’s parents, Scott and Patti, said in a statement.

US President Donald Trump’s envoy for special missions, Richard Grenell, later explained on social media that he had met with Venezuelan officials on the Caribbean island of Antigua to negotiate the release.

Grenell credited St Clair’s freedom to Trump’s “America First” political platform.

“Joe St. Clair is back in America,” he wrote. “I met Venezuelan officials in a neutral country today to negotiate an America First strategy. This is only possible because [Trump] puts Americans first. ”

Citing anonymous sources familiar with the negotiations, the Reuters news agency reported that Grenell discussed St Clair’s case on Tuesday with Jorge Rodriguez, the president of Venezuela’s National Assembly and an ally of President Nicolas Maduro.

Reuters and another news agency, Bloomberg, both reported that a deal was struck to extend a licence for the US oil company Chevron to operate in Venezuela by 60 days.

The Trump administration had previously announced it was revoking the licence in February, on the basis that Venezuela had not upheld its commitment to fair elections. The licence was due to end on May 27.

Any extension will likely need the approval of the US Department of State and the US Treasury.

The South American country relies on oil as the pillar of its economy. But since the mid-2010s, Venezuela has experienced an economic crisis that has pushed even basic supplies like food and medicine beyond what some families can afford.

That, combined with alleged political repression, has prompted an exodus of nearly 7.9 million people out of Venezuela, according to the United Nations.

In 2023, Venezuela committed to electoral reforms under the Barbados Agreement, a deal that the US applauded. Then-US President Joe Biden loosened restrictions on Venezuela’s oil industry in the aftermath of the agreement.

But Venezuela’s presidential election on July 28, 2024 was widely criticised for its lack of transparency. While Maduro and his allies claimed he had won a third term, the electoral authorities did not provide any proof of his victory.

Instead, the opposition coalition published voting tallies it said proved that its candidate had won by a landslide. That prompted widespread protests and a deadly crackdown from law enforcement.

During his first term in office, from 2017 to 2021, Trump had pursued a campaign of “maximum pressure” on Maduro’s government, even offering a $15m bounty for information that led to the Venezuelan leader’s arrest.

But critics have pointed out that Trump may need Venezuela’s cooperation to carry out his goal of “mass deportation” during his second term.

Since returning to office in January, Trump has signalled a willingness to negotiate with Maduro. In late January, he even sent Grenell to meet with Maduro in person in the capital of Caracas. Part of Grenell’s directive was to ensure all detained Americans in the country were returned home.

As Grenell left the country, he revealed he was returning with six Americans who had previously been imprisoned in Venezuela.

In March, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio estimated that nine Americans remained in Venezuela’s custody.

Venezuela, for its part, has started to accept deportation flights from the US, although in the past it has refused to accept migrants removed from the US.

St Clair’s family has said that the military veteran was a language specialist who was seeking treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder in South America.

A United States judge has rebuked the administration of President Donald Trump, saying that reports of deportations to South Sudan appear to violate his previous court order.

On Tuesday in Boston, Massachusetts, US District Court Judge Brian Murphy held a virtual hearing to weigh an emergency motion on behalf of deported migrants reportedly on board a flight to South Sudan.

He asked lawyers for the Trump administration to identify where the migrants were. He also indicated that he could ask for the flight to be turned around.

“Based on what I have been told, this seems like it may be contempt,” Judge Murphy told Elianis Perez, a lawyer for the Trump Justice Department.

In a recent annual report, the US Department of State accused South Sudan of “significant human rights issues”, including torture and extrajudicial killings.

But the Trump administration has been looking abroad for destinations to send undocumented immigrants currently detained in the US, particularly those whose home countries will not accept them.

In Tuesday’s hearing, Judge Murphy said the flight to South Sudan appeared to violate a preliminary injunction he issued on April 18, which prohibited migrants from being deported to third-party countries that were not their own.

That injunction required the Trump administration to give the migrants an adequate opportunity to appeal their removal.

The migrants, Judge Murphy ruled, were simply seeking “an opportunity to explain why such a deportation will likely result in their persecution, torture, and/or death”.

He cited the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution, which guarantees the right to due process: in other words, a fair hearing in the US court system.

Earlier this month, on May 7, lawyers for the migrants had indicated that their clients were slated to be sent to Libya, another country with significant human rights concerns.

Judge Murphy, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, ruled that such a deportation would be in violation of his injunction.

In Tuesday’s emergency court filing, the lawyers for those migrants emphasised how close a call that incident was. The migrants in question were already on a bus, sitting on the tarmac of an airport, when they were ordered to be returned.

The emergency motion identifies the migrants only by their initials and countries of origin, Myanmar and Vietnam among them.

But it explains what allegedly happened to them over the last 24 hours and seeks immediate action from the court.

The lawyers allege that one migrant from Myanmar, called NM in the court filings, received a notice of removal on Monday. It identified the destination as South Africa. Within 10 minutes, the court filing said the email was recalled by its sender.

A couple of hours later, a new notice of removal was sent, this time naming South Sudan as the destination.

In both instances, NM refused to sign the document. Lawyers in the emergency petition indicate that NM has “limited English proficiency” and was not provided a translator to understand the English-language document.

While one of NM’s lawyers stated her intention to meet with him on Tuesday morning, by the time their appointment time came, she was informed he had already been removed from his detention facility, en route to South Sudan.

The emergency filing includes a copy of an email sent to the lawyers from the family members of those deported.

“I believe my husband [name redacted] and 10 other individuals that were sent to Port Isabel Detention Center in Los Fresnos, TX were deported to South Africa or Sudan,” the email begins.

“This is not right! I fear my husband and his group, which consist of people from Laos, Thailand, Pakistan, Korea, and Mexico are being sent to South Africa or Sudan against their will. Please help! They cannot be allowed to do this.”

A SERIAL thief has been barred from every Greggs in England and Wales after repeatedly targeting the same bakery in a shameless crime spree.

Patrick Verry, 33, is now forbidden from entering any of the high street baker’s hundreds of branches following a court order brought by the Met Police.

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He was caught in the act last week by officers inside a Greggs shop in Wood Green, North London, after striking the location seven times.

Verry was arrested on the spot and brought before Highbury Magistrates’ Court the following day, where he admitted to six counts of theft from the same Greggs store.

Police described him as one of the capital’s “most prolific shoplifters” — and now he’s banned from every Greggs outlet across the country in a move to protect staff and customers.

The order comes as part of a new Met Police blitz on retail crime amid soaring shoplifting rates nationwide.

Chief Inspector Rav Pathania, the Met’s retail crime lead, said: “The Met is focused on tackling the most prolific shoplifters like Verry.

“They cause fear to retail workers and their offending has a negative impact on communities.”

He continued: “We continue to work with local business owners to investigate reports of shoplifting, understand concerns and use different tactics to crackdown, including targeted operations and regular patrols.”

The ban on Verry comes as The Sun lifts the lid on the true scale of the shoplifting crisis crippling British high streets.

Our undercover investigation found Greggs shops across the country being stripped of stock in broad daylight, with some stores experiencing a theft every 20 minutes.

At one busy location in South London, a thief was seen stuffing doughnuts and drinks into his pockets before barging past staff and walking out unfazed.

In another shocking clip filmed in Tooting, a brave female Greggs manager tried to stop a thief who was carrying several bottles of Coca-Cola.

She shouted: “You’re not having all of that,” as the crook tried to leave.

He coolly replied: “Yeah I’m walking out with them, watch me.”

Customers looked on in silence, too scared to step in. A witness said: “There were two grown men just stood by the tills.

“Everyone was just silent.

“No one said a word. People are just afraid now.”

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The Met later confirmed it was not alerted to the Tooting incident, which happened in August, highlighting just how many shoplifting cases go unreported.

Our reporters saw similar scenes play out in branches from Newcastle to Brighton, with thieves helping themselves to hot food, drinks and sandwiches without even trying to hide it.

In Stockwell, South London, one man was caught on camera filling his coat with products before grabbing two boxes of jam doughnuts worth £3 each and fleeing during the lunchtime rush.

In Worthing, West Sussex, two men repeatedly walked in and out of Greggs helping themselves to hot food from the display cabinets.

On Brighton’s Queen’s Road, one crook walked off with two trays of wedges in front of a stunned staff member. “Average day,” the employee said when asked about it.

Minutes later, another thief ran out with two trays of wedges and a sandwich, while yet another masked man sprinted off carrying food as helpless staff shouted after him.

In Southampton, a man entered just after midday, grabbed four hot food items and said: “Sorry guys, I’m homeless, I need to eat,” before walking straight out the door.

In many cases, Greggs staff are told not to intervene directly with thieves for safety reasons.

One insider told us: “They’ve been told not to chase anyone, not to engage. It’s heartbreaking for the team.”

Astonishingly, just 350 people have been prosecuted for stealing from Greggs in the last six months.

Of those, only 111 received immediate or suspended jail time — and most had long criminal records.

Greggs has started introducing extra security measures in stores hit hardest by crime.

That includes removing self-serve fridges, placing chilled food behind the till, and trialling bouncers in some branches.

One staff member said: “It’s like we’re on the front line. You’re trying to sell sausage rolls but you’re looking over your shoulder constantly.”

Greggs boss Roisin Currie confirmed the company is now using facial recognition technology to catch thieves and pass images to police.

“We’ve now got a system where we can take photos of people committing theft on the shop floor and that then instantly goes to the police,” she told The Sun.

The bakery chain is also investing in body cameras for workers and running trials with a 24-hour shoplifting helpline.

A Greggs spokeswoman said: “Shoplifting is an industry-wide issue and we take it extremely seriously.

The safety of our colleagues and customers remains our absolute priority.”

Politicians have backed The Sun’s investigation.

Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick said: “This is an important and timely investigation from The Sun, exposing just how bad the shoplifting epidemic has become.

“There has to be consequences for this appalling criminality.”

Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson added: “Retail workers should never feel unsafe at work. That is why we’re taking robust action to tackle shop theft and protect workers.”

She confirmed new laws are coming under the government’s Crime and Policing Bill, which will create a specific offence for assaulting shop staff and scrap the £200 threshold that previously gave low-level shoplifters “effective immunity.”

Meanwhile, the Met has released dramatic new footage showing suspects sprinting from stores clutching bottles, sandwiches and snacks as part of a wider crackdown on repeat retail offenders.

And police chiefs say they’re not stopping with Verry, more bans could be coming for other prolific shoplifters as efforts ramp up to restore order on Britain’s battered high streets.

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AN OAP has died after drowning in a canal as a coroner issues an urgent warning to council officials.

Doreen Turner, 91, tragically lost her life after driving her car into the body of water in Chichester, West Sussex.

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The horror crash happened on November 1 last year and sparked a police investigation.

A coroner has now ruled West Sussex County Council must install more safety measures along the road.

A probe found there was no forensic evidence of any mechanical issues in Doreen’s car.

Officers also concluded the 91-year-old had suffered no impairments that would affect her driving.

However the kerb at the end of the road was found to measure shorter than the standard height requirement.

A council spokesperson said: “We are currently reviewing this site in consultation with Sussex Police and will be responding to the coroner accordingly.”

Coroner Joanne Andrews could not determine the exact reason why Doreen’s car left the road.

But she warned the council “action should be taken”.

“In my opinion, action should be taken to prevent future deaths and I believe your organisation has the power to take such action,” she said.

This incident marks the second fatal crash in the same area within the past five years.

The coroner said the inquest heard there were “no devices present to prevent a vehicle which passes over the kerbstones from entering the canal”.

Beyond the kerb there is a five-foot section of grass before the canal starts.

West Sussex County Council has until June 25 to respond officially to the coroner’s concerns.

Earlier this month we reported the body of an unidentified woman in her 50s was pulled from a canal.

Cops had rushed to the Lee Navigation in Homerton, east London, at around 11.40am, following reports of a body in the canal.

No arrests have yet been made in connection with her death.

Elsewhere, an inquest heard how a two-year-old boy tragically drowned in a canal just as his family were in the process of moving house due to fears of living so close to the water.

Jayce Olutola was found by a police officer after he went missing from his home in Ettingshall, Wolverhampton, on August 11 last year.

And, a teenage boy who tragically died after jumping into a canal was pictured for the first time this month.

Delvin Musakwa, 13, was pulled from the water after jumping into the canal in Exeter, Devon, on May 5.

Police said the death is not being treated as suspicious, and added they will prepare a file for the coroner.

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A MAN and his company have been charged after a 27 tonne mountain of rotting rubbish was dumped in a road.

The mound of industrial waste, which is longer than two double-decker buses combined, was dumped by fly-tippers back in January.

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Furious locals complained about being trapped inside their homes by the humongous 80ft mountain of waste.

Local businesses were also been left stranded due to the blockage on Watery Lane in Lichfield, Staffordshire.

Now, Lichfield District Council said a man from Uttoxeter now faces multiple charges.

These include depositing waste, endangering road users, dangerous driving, breaching HGV drivers’ hours regulations, and obstructing the highway.

A company, based near Stafford, has been charged with depositing the waste and obstructing the highway.

Resident Elaine Hutchings, who owns a livery yard, previously said that the festering pile could be smelled from a distance.

She explained that the rural road – which was already inaccessible on one end due to ongoing works – was now completely unusable.

She said: “It’s industrial rubbish, building waste, you can smell it.

“Watery Lane is used as a cut-through. The one end was already shut due to scheduled works and this being dumped this morning means residents and businesses will be left isolated.”

She added that nine or ten households had been cut off – with a small number, including Elaine’s, able to escape their properties via an alternative route set up by housing developer Redrow.

The local told how staff from Lichfield District Council had been on-site to move the build-up, adding: “I had a message from a farmer and they sent me a photograph.

“I drove up and called the council, councillors and the police were already there.

“They are trying to sort the logistics of trying to get it moved.”

Both the man and company who have been charged are due to appear at Cannock Magistrates’ Court on July 1.

Councillor Doug Pullen, the leader of Lichfield District Council, said: “This was an appalling act of environmental crime.

“Local people woke up to find their only route to and from their homes completely blocked, and the cost to the taxpayer of removing and disposing of the waste was nearly £10,000.

“Thanks to the swift action of our environmental health officers, suspects were quickly identified, leading to these charges.

“We take a zero-tolerance approach to fly-tipping, because that’s what our communities rightly expect.

“This case is about more than prosecution. It’s about protecting our environment, supporting law-abiding businesses, safeguarding local people—and sending a strong message that illegal dumping will not be tolerated.”

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A WOMAN who stabbed her boyfriend to death after she found him speaking to his wife has been jailed for 16 years.

Joanna Wronska plunged a kitchen knife into partner Marcin Koziol’s heart – only to ring the emergency services and tell them he “injured himself”.

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Wronska was jealous and “possessive” of Marcin’s ongoing contact with his estranged wife and attacked him in an “explosive loss of temper”, the court heard.

She then made a 999 call claiming her partner had “injured himself with a knife”.

When the cops arrived, they found Marcin naked and bleeding on the bed in the flat in Wrexham, North Wales.

And despite the best efforts by the paramedics, Marcin tragically died from the wounds.

Wronska is said to have gone to great lengths to cover her crime.

She maintained that her partner stabbed himself in an attempt to take his own life.

But Home Office forensic pathologist Dr Brian Rodgers said it was “highly unusual” to sever your own ribs when stabbing yourself.

Cops also found a large “freshly washed” knife in the kitchen sink, which matched the wounds inflicted on Marcin.

Prosecutor Andrew Thomas KC said: “This was a knife with an eight-inch blade that was thrust with severe force towards the chest and through the rib cage – penetrating the heart and lung.

“Her actions, in removing the knife and washing, “strongly suggest” she stabbed Mr Koziol and tried to hide the evidence of her involvement”.

In the 999 call played to the jury, Wronska is heard saying: “My partner dead…please help me now.”

She kept saying “Marcin, Marcin, Marcin” over and over again before saying the word “gone”.

It is believed that in a drunken temper, Wronska took the knife and stabbed her partner.

Judge Rhys Rowlands said: “[The attack followed] an explosive drunken loss of temper on your part, to which you stabbed the victim to the chest with a kitchen knife, you then washed the knife in the sink.”

He said the blow from the knife had been delivered “with severe force”.

Detective Chief Inspector Eleri Thomas said: “Joanna Wronska senselessly and needlessly ended Marcin Koziol’s life – her partner whom she claimed she loved deeply.

“It was a cruel and violent attack on a man who had sought support from her.”

Marcin’s wife Marta said: “Joanna has taken all of this from me, I have seen no remorse, she has not even admitted the fact she has done it and I can’t understand this senseless crime

“I can’t understand why she has done it, Marcin was harmless and wouldn’t hurt anyone. I can’t understand why someone would do this and that Marcin has been taken away and I can never bring him back.”

The court heard Marcin and Marta had separated after he suffered an injury at work and fell into depression after losing his career.

But she said he was a “gentle giant” who would not hurt anyone, and they had remained in contact.

Wronska was jailed for life and told she must serve a minimum of 16 years behind bars less the time she had spent on remand.

WASHINGTON — President Trump, alongside his wife, Melania, on Monday signed the Take It Down Act, a measure the first lady helped usher through Congress to set stricter penalties for the distribution of non-consensual intimate imagery online, or “revenge porn.”

In March, Melania Trump used her first public appearance since resuming the role of first lady to travel to Capitol Hill to lobby House members to pass the bill following its approval by the Senate.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters earlier Monday that the first lady was “instrumental in getting this important legislation passed.”

The bill makes it a federal crime to “knowingly publish” or threaten to publish intimate images without a person’s consent, including AI-created “deepfakes.” Websites and social media companies will be required to remove such material within 48 hours after a victim requests it. The platforms must also take steps to delete duplicate content.

Many states have already banned the dissemination of sexually explicit deepfakes or revenge porn, but the Take It Down Act is a rare example of federal regulators imposing on internet companies.

The bill, sponsored by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), received overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress, passing the House in April by a 409-2 vote and clearing the Senate by unanimous consent.

But the measure isn’t without critics. Free speech advocates and digital rights groups say the bill is too broad and could lead to censorship of legitimate images, including legal pornography and LGBTQ+ content. Others say it could allow the government to monitor private communications and undermine due process.

The first lady appeared at a Capitol Hill roundtable with lawmakers and young women who had explicit images of them put online, saying it was “heartbreaking” to see what teenagers and especially girls go through after this happens to them. She also included a victim among her guests for the president’s address to a joint session of Congress the day after that meeting.

After the House passed the bill, Melania Trump called the bipartisan vote a “powerful statement that we stand united in protecting the dignity, privacy and safety of our children.”

Her advocacy for the bill is a continuation of the Be Best campaign she started in the president’s first term, focusing on children’s well-being, social media use and opioid abuse.

In his speech to Congress in March, the president said the publication of such imagery online is “just terrible” and that he looked forward to signing the bill into law.

“And I’m going to use that bill for myself, too, if you don’t mind,” he said. There’s nobody who “gets treated worse than I do online. Nobody.”

Superville writes for the Associated Press.

A GANGSTER jailed for plotting to blow up a football stadium has lost his bid to stay in Britain — but is still here.

Maksim Cela, 59, claimed returning to Albania would put him at risk from rivals.

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His claims were thrown out by a judge on Friday after a two-year fight costing taxpayers tens of thousands of pounds.

But the crook, who arrived in 2023, five days after serving a sentence for murder and terrorism in Albania, has not left and launched yet another appeal.

Cela argued sending him home breached European human rights laws.

But Judge Jeremy Rintoul of the Upper Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber said: “I do not accept that the appellant has told the truth about the nature of the threats.

“I find that the appellant’s refusal to acknowledge guilt weighs heavily against him.”

Cela was jailed in Albania for masterminding the murder of a crime-busting police officer and plotting to bomb a football stadium.

In his legal battle, he claimed the elderly mum of the dead officer might seek revenge.

He was named as the mafia boss in the case only after The Sun fought for 23 months to overturn an anonymity order.

Sources last night confirmed Cela was still in the UK and had lodged another legal appeal.

The Home Office said: “Foreign nationals who commit heinous crimes should be in no doubt we will do everything to make sure they are not free on Britain’s streets.”

It remained unclear last night where Cela was living — but he can remain here while his appeal is being prepared.

THE family of a chef who was killed in the Bayesian superyacht tragedy want justice for his death, a report claims.

Recaldo Thomas, 59, was among the seven people who died after Brit billionaire Mike Lynch’s yacht sank off the coast of Sicily during a storm last year.

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Recaldo’s family are now seeking compensation for his tragic death – and they could be in line for a $40 million payout.

The chef’s sister-in-law Joycelyn Palmer told MailOnline: “We just want justice and yes, we will be looking at compensation, someone must pay for what happened.”

Last week a report detailing the “vulnerability” of the yacht revealed how the tragedy unfolded.

A thorough investigation has shown that the ship was likely knocked over by “extreme wind” and was not able to recover.

But Palmer believes the yacht’s 236ft mast may have also played a part in the tragic sinking.

Recaldo’s sister-in-law said: “I looked up the yacht and when I saw the mast I just thought that must have something to do with what happened.

“You can even see it in one of the last pictures he sent us.”

She also claimed the crew were at fault as they had taken the weather for granted and didn’t alert the captain until it was “too late”.

Palmer recalled the emotional turmoil the family experienced in the aftermath of the tragedy.

She said it took six long weeks to get Recaldo’s body, meaning they were unable to have an open-casket funeral and say their goodbyes properly.

Palmer described her brother-in-law as a lovely man who had a heart of gold and an infectious smile.

The family’s lawyer said they were looking at a US lawsuit against “various entities”.

They added that a $40million pay-out would not be out of the question for the “emotional loss”.

Recaldo was among seven passengers who died when the 184ft yacht capsized and sank on August 19.

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Anchored off the coast of Porticello Harbour in Palermo, a downburst of stormy winds hit the boat causing it to topple.

It sunk to the sea floor in minutes and prompted a huge five-day search operation with specialist divers, underwater drones and helicopters.

Recaldo was found dead near the wreck site on August 19, but it took several more days to recover six missing guests including the Brit billionaire and his daughter.

New York lawyer Chris Morvillo and wife Neda also died, as did Morgan Stanley international chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy.

Just two months before the disaster, Lynch had been cleared of carrying out a massive fraud over the sale of his software firm Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.

The boat trip was a celebration of his acquittal in the case in the US.

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An interim report by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch revealed last week that the yacht had a “vulnerability” to lighter winds which the owner and crew may not have known about.

Andrew Moll, chief inspector of marine accidents, said: “The findings indicate that the extreme wind experienced by Bayesian was sufficient to knock the yacht over.

“Further, once the yacht had heeled beyond an angle of 70° the situation was irrecoverable.

“The results will be refined as the investigation proceeds, and more information becomes available.”

The salvage operation for the superyacht is officially underway.

Floating cranes, remote-controlled robots, and specialist divers amongst other marine experts are all helping to recovery the vessel.

But the operation had to be put on pause just days after it started when a diver died.

The diver, who is thought to be a Dutch national, reportedly died when working 160ft below the ocean alongside other recovery workers to cut the boom of the yacht.

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After an unsuccessful attempt trying to cut the section, the divers are believed to have used a blow torch.

Local media speculated that the man was hit by part of the cut boom as it came off whilst he was underwater.

But police said they have launched a probe to understand what exactly caused the man’s death.

According to other local media reports, an underwater explosion was heard by at least one person before the man was found dead.

Inside the Bayesian’s final 16 minutes

By Ellie Doughty, Foreign News Reporter

Data recovered from the Bayesian’s Automatic Identification System (AIS) breaks down exactly how it sank in a painful minute-by-minute timeline.

At 3.50am on Monday August 19 the Bayesian began to shake “dangerously” during a fierce storm, Italian outlet Corriere revealed.

Just minutes later at 3.59am the boat’s anchor gave way, with a source saying the data showed there was “no anchor left to hold”.

After the ferocious weather ripped away the boat’s mooring it was dragged some 358 metres through the water.

By 4am it had began to take on water and was plunged into a blackout, indicating that the waves had reached its generator or even engine room.

At 4.05am the Bayesian fully disappeared underneath the waves.

An emergency GPS signal was finally emitted at 4.06am to the coastguard station in Bari, a city nearby, alerting them that the vessel had sunk.

Early reports suggested the disaster struck around 5am local time off the coast of Porticello Harbour in Palermo, Sicily.

The new data pulled from the boat’s AIS appears to suggest it happened an hour earlier at around 4am.

Some 15 of the 22 onboard were rescued, 11 of them scrambling onto an inflatable life raft that sprung up on the deck.

A smaller nearby boat – named Sir Robert Baden Powell – then helped take those people to shore.

THE distraught father of drugs charge teenager Bella Culley has vowed to stand by his daughter – amid new fears Far East drugs gangs are targeting British backpackers.

Bella, 18, is on remand in a grim jail following her arrest in Georgia’s Tbilisi airport with a suitcase of cannabis after going missing 4,000 miles away in Thailand.

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Bella’s flight took off from the same Bangkok airport within hours of another pretty British trafficking suspect arrested with £1.2 million of a cannabis-related drug in Sri Lanka.

Former air stewardess Charlotte May Lee, 21, was in a gruesome Sri Lankan jail cell last night awaiting a court appearance.

Their arrests have sparked fears that Thai gangs may be hoodwinking vulnerable British backpackers into ferrying their drugs after a crackdown on postal trafficking.

Bella was facing at least nine months on remand in a grim Soviet-era jail alongside hardened criminals.

She had joked online of “Bonnie and Clyde” hijinks while showing off cash wads in the Far East and was pictured smoking a spliff.

Bella’s family from Billingham, County Durham are convinced she was preyed upon after flying to the Far East to party with a mystery man feared to have hooked her up with drugs runners.

Her dad Niel – a Vietnam-based oil rig electrician – flew to Tbilisi last week desperate for answers after tearful Bella told a court that she was pregnant.

But he has yet to meet his daughter within the drab confines of No5 Women’s Penitentiary on the outskirts of the Georgian capital and remains baffled by her plight.

Asked about his plans after arriving in Tbilisi, Mr Culley, 49, told The Sun today: “I can’t say anything but I will be here for as long as it takes.

“I obviously have no experience in dealing with situations like this and it’s very difficult.”

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Appearing shaky as he puffed on a cigarette, the anxious dad at one point appeared ready to make a statement when asked how his daughter was bearing up in prison.

But he broke off to confer with Bella’s aunt Kerrie Culley – who is supporting him in Georgia – and returned shaking his head.

He added: “I’m being advised by the British Embassy and can’t comment at the moment.

“But that may change in the future depending on what happens.”

Fears are growing that a Thai drugs gang is preying on British backpackers this summer as Charlotte became the second Brit flying out of Bangkok to be arrested within days.

She was detained at Colombo airport in Sri Lanka on Monday – the day after Bella’s arrest – where police say she had a huge stash of kush – a synthetic strain of cannabis.

Charlotte from Chipstead, Surrey was last night locked in a cell with 20 other prisoners with barely room to lie down as she awaited a court hearing.

Bella took off first from Bangkok on a 20-hour flight via Sharjah in the UAE to Georgia while Charlotte left later on a three-hour direct flight to Sri Lanka.

Both girls departed from the Thai capital during the Royal Ploughing Ceremony weekend – one of the busiest festivals of the year when airports are crammed with tourists.

It is believed to have provided a prime opportunity for traffickers to operate mules – particularly attractive young Britons who arouse less suspicion.

The two arrests follow a huge crackdown on smugglers sending cannabis to the UK by post.

A joint operation by both countries has seen a 90 per cent in reduction in the drug being mailed to Britain since last year.

It suggests Thai gangs may now be reverting to using drug mules to ship their products instead – and targeting British backpackers.

Thailand decriminalised cannabis in 2022 which sparked a massive rise in the narcotic being posted to Britain.

The law change allowed traffickers to hoodwink trippers into believing transporting it was legal.

Thai checks of mail being shipped stopped 1.5 tonnes in the first quarter of this year – a 90 percent drop in the illicit cargo – in a drive which frustrated the gangs.

Some 800 people including 50 British nationals have been arrested in Thailand for attempted smuggling since July 2024 with over nine tonnes of cannabis seized.

Retired Georgian police chief General Jemal Janashia voiced concerns that backpackers were being targeted yesterday.

He said: “The fact that two young British women have taken off with large quantities of drugs from the same airport will interest investigators.

“They will be concerned about the possibility of a link and that Thai gangs may be attempting to recruit vulnerable British travellers.

“After the crackdown on postal drug deliveries, the Thai cartel are seeking new routes and Georgia does look like an attractive middle transit point.

“It’s relatively close, and easy to reach Europe and is visa free to European travellers.”

He added: “I feel sorry for this woman because she was clearly used and manipulated. She’s 18, she’s a foreigner, pregnant.

“All of this indicates that she was chosen deliberately, chosen carefully, she was studied.

“Whoever chose her, they knew what they were doing.”

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Palm Springs Police Chief Andy Mills said the blast ‘appears to be an intentional act of violence’.

At least one person has been killed after an explosion near a reproductive health facility in Palm Springs, California, the city’s mayor said.

Palm Springs Police Chief Andy Mills said the blast on Friday “appears to be an intentional act of violence” and that several buildings were damaged, some severely.

“There has been one fatality, the person’s identity is not known,” Mills’ statement said.

The city’s mayor, Ron deHarte, said a bomb was either in or near a car parked outside of the clinic when it exploded, the Reuters news agency reported.

Palm Springs Fire Chief Paul Alvarado said no suspect had been identified.

Authorities said the blast occurred on Saturday around 11am local time (18:00 GMT) near North Indian Canyon Drive and East Tachevah Drive. Police urged residents to avoid the area as fire crews and investigators secured the scene.

Federal agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were dispatched to support the local investigation, which remains in its early stages.

The blast damaged the American Reproductive Centers facility, a fertility clinic run by Dr Maher Abdallah. He told The Associated Press that, while his office space suffered damage, the in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) lab and its stored embryos were untouched.

“I really have no clue what happened,” Abdallah said. “Thank God today happened to be a day that we have no patients.”

He added that all his staff were safe and accounted for.

Nearby resident Nima Tabrizi, 37, from Santa Monica, said he was inside a cannabis dispensary when he felt the building shake.

“The building just shook, and we go outside and there’s a massive cloud smoke,” Tabrizi said. “Crazy explosion. It felt like a bomb went off … We went up to the scene, and we saw human remains.”

Palm Springs, a wealthy desert city known for its luxury resorts and celebrity history, is located about 100 miles (161km) east of Los Angeles.

Mourners gathered to celebrate the life of 23-year-old beauty influencer Valeria Marquez, who was shot dead during a TikTok livestream at her salon in Jalisco, Mexico. Her killing is being investigated as a possible femicide.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has accused a Mexican woman of furnishing a cartel with grenades and other weapons.

The United States has revealed the first federal charges against a foreign national for providing material support to one of the criminal groups that President Donald Trump has designated a “foreign terrorist organisation”.

On Friday, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a statement identifying the suspect as 39-year-old Maria Del Rosario Navarro-Sanchez of Mexico.

An unsealed indictment accused Navarro-Sanchez of furnishing the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG), a Mexican drug cartel, with grenades and helping it smuggle migrants, firearms, money and drugs.

“Cartels like CJNG are terrorist groups that wreak havoc in American communities and are responsible for countless lives lost in the United States, Mexico and elsewhere,” US Attorney General Pam Bondi said in the statement.

“This announcement demonstrates the Justice Department’s unwavering commitment to securing our borders and protecting Americans through effective prosecution.”

The charges stem from a decision early in Trump’s second term in office to apply “terrorism” designations to foreign criminal organisations, including gangs and drug cartels.

On his first day back in office, on January 20, Trump signed an executive order declaring that “international cartels constitute a national-security threat beyond that posed by traditional organized crime”. He directed his officials to begin preparations for implementing the “terrorism” designations.

By February 19, the Federal Register in the US listed eight Latin American criminal groups as “foreign terrorist organisations”, among them the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13).

Mexico’s Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion was also among that initial group of designated organisations.

Since then, the Trump administration has broadened its scope, adding more Latin American groups to the list. On May 2, for instance, two Haitian gangs – Viv Ansanm and Gran Grif – joined the US’s list of foreign terrorist organisations.

These designations are a departure from the usual use of the “foreign terrorist” label, often reserved for organisations that seek specific political aims through their violence.

Critics, however, warn that this application could have unintended consequences, particularly for civilians in vulnerable situations. The “foreign terrorist designation” makes it a crime for anyone to offer material support to a given group, but criminal gangs often extort civilians for money and services as part of their fundraising activities.

“You could accuse anyone – from a migrant who pays a smuggler to a Mexican business that is forced to pay a ‘protection fee’ – of offering material or financial support to a terrorist organisation,” Will Freeman, a fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, told Al Jazeera journalist Brian Osgood earlier this year.

In the case unsealed on Friday, it was revealed that Navarro-Sanchez was arrested on May 4. She had two co-defendants, also Mexican citizens, who likewise faced charges of firearms trafficking and other crimes.

The Mexican government had previously confirmed Navarro-Sanchez’s arrest. A statement ICE released to the media showed multiple firearms and packages of meth and fentanyl allegedly linked to the case.

It also included a photo of a golden AR-15 gun known as “El Dorado” that was reportedly “recovered from Navarro-Sanchez’s possession during her arrest in Mexico”.

“Supplying grenades to a designated terrorist organisation – while trafficking firearms, narcotics, and human beings – is not just criminal,” said ICE’s acting Director Todd Lyons. “It’s a direct assault on the security of the United States.”

A PRISON governor has been jailed over an illicit relationship with a drug gang boss who gifted her a £12,000 Mercedes.

Kerri Pegg was seen as a “rising star” in the Prison Service and quickly rose through the ranks to become governor at HMP Kirkham in Lancashire.

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But her career is now in ruins after she embarked on a relationship with inmate Anthony Saunderson, who was known as Jesse Pinkman after the series Breaking Bad.

Pegg, 42, has now been jailed after she was found guilty of two counts of misconduct in a public office.

One relates to the divorcee’s fling with Saunderson and the second by failing to disclose county court judgements about her debts.

She was also convicted of one count of possessing criminal property, the Mercedes car, from Saunderson.

Preston Crown Court heard Pegg released Saunderson on licence in 2019 despite not having the authority to approve the bid.

After he was granted his freedom, the prisoner used cash from selling 34 kilos of amphetamines to buy Pegg the Mercedes coupe.

On April 6, 2020, Saunderson was sent a message on Encrochat saying “car her for ya bird 12 quid or work” and a photo of the vehicle.

The court was told “12 quid” meant £12,000 and “work” meant drugs.

Saunderson asked “what work they want” and he was told “top or weed” – meaning cocaine or cannabis.

Two days later, he arranged for “17 packs” to be dropped off in Manchester to pay for the car.

The Mercedes was registered in Pegg’s name, with a pal messaging Saunderson: “Where u ya seedy man u and Peggy out floating orrel in the new whip?”

Law enforcement agencies cracked the criminal’s Encrochat and discovered he was involved in drug trafficking on a huge scale.

Saunderson, who was also known to his criminal pals as James Gandolfini -the actor who played Tony Soprano in the mafia TV Series – has now been locked up for 35 years.

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The court was told other messages revealed the “ongoing nature” of his relationship with Pegg.

Police searched her home on November 19, 2020, and found a toothbrush and flip flops containing Saunderson’s DNA.

Officers also discovered a haul of designer clothing and found Pegg was subject to a number of county court judgements for unpaid debts.

Prosecutor Barbara-Louise Webster said: “Her downfall was two-fold, the first, despite having a good income, she lived beyond her means.

“She spent all her income and more, incurring debts and she had county court judgements made against her.

“As a consequence, she became vulnerable and open to exploitation.

“The second was that she became emotionally and personally involved with a serving prisoner, Anthony Saunderson and later accepted an expensive car, a Mercedes C class, which was paid for by him out of his proceeds of criminal activity ie trading in drugs.”

Pegg joined the prison service in 2012 as a graduate entrant and worked at prisons in Risley, Liverpool and Styal.

By April 2018, she was a governor at HMP Kirkham, where Saunderson was serving a lengthy jail term.

He had been locked up in 2014 for his part in importing £19m of cocaine in shipments of corned beef from Argentina.

From the start, there were concerns about Pegg being inappropriately close to prisoners.

It was also noted that she spent a lot of time in her office with Saunderson.

In October 2018, he put in a request to be released on temporary licence.

Despite Pegg not having the authority to green light his release, she intervened and approved his application without notifying the official who should have dealt with the case.

Days later she was moved to another jail, later becoming duty governor at HMP Lancaster Farms.

Saunderson meanwhile was revealed as one of nine gangland figures responsible for producing amphetamines on an industrial, multi-million-pound scale.

The gang made and dealt 2.6 tonnes of amphetamines worth £1million – as well as trafficking heroin, cocaine, cannabis, ketamine, MCAT and diazepam.

Tarryn McCaffrey, from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “Kerri Pegg’s conduct fell far short of what might be expected from any professional within the Prison Service, let alone one of such a senior grade as prison governor.

“She was clearly involved in an inappropriate relationship with Saunderson after he was released and the evidence points to this going back further, to a time when he was in jail.

“This relationship, and the fact that Pegg failed to disclose her debts to her employers, amount to a gross breach of trust and are therefore extremely damaging to public confidence.”

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The magistrate ruled that apprehended migrants may not have been aware they were crossing into a military zone.

A United States judge in the southwestern state of New Mexico has dismissed trespassing charges against dozens of migrants apprehended in a military zone recently created under President Donald Trump.

The military zone is one of two so far that the Trump administration has created along the US-Mexico border, in order to deter undocumented migration into the country.

Entering a military zone can result in heightened criminal penalties. As many as 400 cases have since been filed in Las Cruces, New Mexico, alleging security violations and crimes like trespassing on restricted military property.

But starting late on Wednesday and continuing into Thursday, Chief US Magistrate Judge Gregory Wormuth began issuing dismissals at the request of the federal public defender’s office in Las Cruces.

Wormuth ruled that the government had failed to demonstrate that the migrants knew they were entering a military zone.

“The criminal complaint fails to establish probable cause to believe the defendant knew he/she was entering” the military zone, Wormuth wrote in his orders dismissing charges.

The ruling is the latest legal setback for the Trump administration, as it seeks to impose stricter restrictions and penalties for undocumented immigration. But the president’s broad use of executive power has drawn the ire of civil liberties groups, who argue that Trump is trampling constitutional safeguards.

Establishing new military zones has been part of Trump’s strategy to reduce the flow of migration into the US.

Normally, the crime of “improper entry by an alien” carries fines or a prison sentence of up to six months. But trespassing on a military zone comes with steeper penalties than a typical border crossing, and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has warned of a possible combined sentence of up to 10 years.

“You can be detained. You will be detained,” Hegseth warned migrants. “You will be interdicted by US troops and border patrol working together.”

On April 18, the first military zone was unveiled, called the  “New Mexico National Defence Area”. It covered a stretch of about 274 kilometres — or 180 miles — along the border with Mexico, extending into land formerly held by the Department of the Interior.

Hegseth has said he would like to see more military zones set up along the border, and in early May, a second one was announced near El Paso, Texas. That strip was approximately 101km or 63 miles.

“Let me be clear: if you cross into the National Defense Area, you will be charged to the FULLEST extent of the law,” Hegseth wrote in a social media post.

Hegseth has previously stated that the military will continue to expand such zones until they have achieved “100 percent operational control” of the border.

Trump and his allies have frequently compared undocumented immigration to an “invasion”, and they have used that justification to invoke wartime laws like the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.

In a court brief on behalf of the Trump administration, US Attorney Ryan Ellison argued that the new military zones were a vital bulwark for national security. He also rejected the idea that innocent people might be caught in those areas.

“The New Mexico National Defense Area is a crucial installation necessary to strengthen the authority of servicemembers to help secure our borders and safeguard the country,” Ellison said.

He noted that the government had put up “restricted area” signs along the border. But the public defender’s office in New Mexico argued that the government had not done enough to make it sufficiently clear to migrants in the area that they were entering a military zone.

In the US, the public defenders noted that trespassing requires that the migrants were aware of the restriction and acted “in defiance of that regulation for some nefarious or bad purpose”.

Despite this week’s dismissals, the migrants involved still face less severe charges of crossing the border illegally.