Narco World > Duterte on his way to The Hague; Dutch influencers arrested in Dubai; Mexican Cartel founder get Life in prison

 

Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte arrested on ICC warrant

Asia / Pacific

Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte was arrested Tuesday on an ICC warrant alleging that he oversaw crimes against humanity linked to mass killings during his crackdown on drugs. Duterte is en route to the Hague, according to local media reports. 

Issued on: 11/03/2025 - 05:14Modified: 11/03/2025 - 14:33

3 min

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03:49

Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte delivers a speech during the proclamation rally for his political party PDP, Philippines, February 13, 2025. © Eloisa Lopez, Reuters

Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte was arrested Tuesday in Manila by police acting on an International Criminal Court warrant tied to his deadly war on drugs.

The 79-year-old faces a charge of "the crime against humanity of murder", according to the ICC, for a crackdown that rights groups estimate killed tens of thousands of mostly poor men, often without proof they were linked to drugs.

"As I write this, he is being forcibly taken to The Hague tonight. This is not justice -- this is oppression and persecution," Duterte's eldest daughter said in a statement.

The former president had earlier gone on Instagram live to say he believed the Philippine Supreme Court would step in and prevent his transfer to the international tribunal.

"The Supreme Court will not agree to that. We do not have an extradition treaty," he said after his lawyers filed a petition with the court. 

02:44

Duterte was arrested at the airport after "Interpol Manila received the official copy of the warrant of the arrest from the ICC", the presidential palace said in a morning statement.

In an earlier video, Duterte had demanded to know the basis of his arrest.

"So what is the law and what is the crime that I committed? Show to me now the legal basis of my being here," he said.

Duterte's former chief legal counsel, Salvador Panelo, slammed his detention as "unlawful".

"The (police) didn't allow one of his lawyers to meet him at the airport and to question the legal basis for (the) arrest," he said.

Reactions from those who opposed Duterte's drug war, however, were jubilant.

One group working to support mothers of those killed in the crackdown called the arrest a "very welcome development".

"The mothers whose husbands and children were killed because of the drug war are very happy because they have been waiting for this for a very long time," Rubilyn Litao, coordinator for Rise Up for Life and for Rights, told AFP.

"Now that Duterte has been arrested, (President) Ferdinand Marcos Jr. should make sure that he is actually delivered to the ICC for detention and trial," said Philippine rights alliance Karapatan, calling the arrest "long overdue".

China, however, warned the ICC against "politicisation" and "double standards" in the Duterte case, saying it was "closely monitoring the development of the situation".

A winding path

Duterte's Tuesday morning arrest at Manila's international airport followed a brief trip to Hong Kong.

Speaking to thousands of overseas Filipino workers there Sunday, the former president decried the investigation, labelling ICC investigators "sons of whores" while saying he would "accept it" if an arrest were to be his fate.

The Philippines quit the ICC in 2019 on Duterte's instructions, but the tribunal maintained it had jurisdiction over killings before the pullout, as well as killings in the southern city of Davao when Duterte was mayor, years before he became president.

It launched a formal inquiry in September 2021, only to suspend it two months later after Manila said it was re-examining several hundred cases of drug operations that led to deaths at the hands of police, hitmen and vigilantes.

The case resumed in July 2023 after a five-judge panel rejected the Philippines' objection that the court lacked jurisdiction.

Since then, the Marcos government has on numerous instances said it would not cooperate with the investigation.

But Undersecretary of the Presidential Communications Office Claire Castro on Sunday said that if Interpol would "ask the necessary assistance from the government, it is obliged to follow".

Duterte is still hugely popular among many in the Philippines who supported his quick-fix solutions to crime, and he remains a potent political force. 

He is running to reclaim his job as mayor of his stronghold Davao in May's mid-term election.

Charges have been filed locally in a handful of cases related to drug operations that led to deaths -- only nine police have been convicted for slaying alleged drug suspects.

A self-professed killer, Duterte instructed police to fatally shoot narcotics suspects if their lives were at risk and insisted the crackdown saved families and prevented the Philippines from turning into a "narco-politics state".

At the opening of a Philippine Senate probe into the drug war in October, Duterte said he offered "no apologies, no excuses" for his actions.

"I did what I had to do, and whether or not you believe it or not, I did it for my country," he said.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

Dutch brother influencers arrested in Dubai

on drug charges

Dutch self-proclaimed multimillionaire brothers Samuel (25) and Ruben (23) Onuha have been arrested in Dubai, multiple sources confirmed to De Telegraaf. Their arrest is reportedly linked to drug-related charges, though authorities have not disclosed specific details.

The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has acknowledged being aware of the arrest but stated that it has not been asked to provide legal assistance. The brothers’ family declined to comment on the situation, and it remains unclear who is representing them legally. Dubai police have referred inquiries to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which has not responded, reportedly due to Ramadan.

The Onuha brothers, known for flaunting their wealth on social media, have reportedly become the talk of Dubai. Their arrest has sparked widespread discussion among influencers on YouTube and TikTok. Samuel, who founded the online fashion brand Icon Amsterdam in 2018, has previously claimed to have sold hundreds of thousands of pants and amassed a fortune of 30 million euros.

In Dubai, the brothers lived a high-profile lifestyle, frequently displaying luxury cars, expensive watches, and private jet trips. They also promoted dropshipping masterclasses, advertising the potential for massive earnings. In online videos, they claimed to generate millions per week through e-commerce. Samuel once stated, “The world rewards risk-takers.”

Despite their success claims, the actual financial performance of Icon Amsterdam is unclear. The company’s latest available financial statement from 2022 does not indicate the alleged multimillion-euro revenues. The company has not provided clarification, and its customer service reports significant delays in responding to inquiries. The investigation into the Onuha brothers’ case in Dubai remains ongoing.

Notorious Mexican cartel leader gets life in prison, $6B fine for drug trafficking, firearms offenses

By Anugrah Kumar, Christian Post Contributor Monday, March 10, 2025

The national flag of Mexico hoisted above the National Palace government offices in the Zocalo de la Mexico City, Mexico. | Getty Images

One of the founders of a powerful Mexican cartel will spend the rest of his life in federal prison after a court imposed a life sentence plus 30 years on major drug trafficking and firearms charges. He must also forfeit more than $6 billion in illicit proceeds.

U.S.-Mexican dual national and co-founder of the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, 34-year-old Ruben Oseguera-Gonzalez, received the sentence in the District of Columbia, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement Friday.

Prosecutors confirmed that he oversaw the importation of multi-ton shipments of illegal drugs into the U.S. and directed violent acts on behalf of the cartel.

According to officials, he personally killed five individuals who owed him money, and he shot both a rival cartel member and a subordinate. Investigators found that he carried firearms, including a rifle and grenade launcher bearing his nickname, which he used to threaten Mexican law enforcement during his arrest.

Court documents also noted that he ordered the murder of more than 100 people, and he participated in some of those killings himself.

“This defendant helped build Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion into a brutal terrorist organization that pumps poison onto our streets and commits horrific acts of violence,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi.

Oseguera-Gonzalez co-founded the cartel with his father, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as El Mencho, who remains a fugitive.

Oseguera-Gonzalez’s role included trafficking more than 50 metric tons of cocaine and overseeing laboratories that produced at least 1,000 metric tons of methamphetamine in Mexico. Court filings revealed that he contributed to the early stages of a fentanyl operation and once pledged to “do it big” by creating counterfeit oxycontin pills laced with fentanyl.

Oseguera-Gonzalez’s leadership in the CJNG spanned nearly seven years in Mexico. During this period, he reportedly provided weapons and orchestrated brutal activities to maintain cartel operations.

He directed a 2015 attack on a Mexican military helicopter. The helicopter was shot down while pursuing Oseguera-Gonzalez and his father, leading to the death of at least nine Mexican service members and permanently disfiguring at least one other.

The Department of Justice confirmed that Oseguera-Gonzalez’s intent was to evade capture, and the incident delayed efforts by Mexican authorities to apprehend him.

Oseguera-Gonzalez operated on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. The cartel’s geographic reach included several Mexican states, as well as shipments that infiltrated American markets.

Last month, a binational enforcement operation between Mexico and the U.S. disrupted a cartel-linked smuggling network that allegedly kidnapped migrants and extorted their families. Mexican authorities arrested two suspects, identified as Brian Alan Torres Gonzalez and Soledad Morales Nava, who will face prosecution in Mexico with evidence from U.S. officials.

Officials believe it not only moved adults but also children from Central America into El Paso, Texas, allegedly demanding payment before completing the migrants’ entry into the U.S.

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Bits and Bites from Around the World > Another Duterte astonishes the Philippines

 

Philippines VP Sara Duterte threatens to

assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Nov. 23 (UPI) -- Philippines Vice President Sara Duterte said Saturday if she is killed, she has contracted an assassin to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife Liza Araneta-Marcos and House of Representatives Speaker Martin Romualdez.

The Presidential Security Command referred the "active threat" by the 46-year-old Duterte to the Presidential Security Command.

"Acting on the Vice President's clear and unequivocal statement that she had contracted an assassin to kill the President if an alleged plot against her succeeds, the Executive Secretary has referred this active threat to the Presidential Security Command for immediate proper action," according to a statement. "Any threat to the life of the President must always be taken seriously, more so that this threat has been publicly revealed in clear and certain terms.

In a statement later Saturday, the PSC said Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin implemented tighter security measures.

"Pursuant to the directive of the Executive Secretary, the Presidential Security Command (PSC) has heightened and strengthened its security protocols. We are also closely coordinating with law enforcement agencies to detect, deter, and defend against any and all threats to the President and the First Family," the PSC said.

Duterte made the threat in an online news conference Friday, saying "I have talked to someone. I told him that if I am killed, he should kill [Marcos Jr.], Liza Araneta and Martin Romualdez. No joke. I already left instructions."

Tingog Party-List Rep. Jude Acidre said: "What happened was a meltdown, plain and simple."

Duterte has criticized Romualdez for allegedly ordering a lockdown of the House premises, which she said delayed medical response for her detained chief of staff Zuleika Lopez.

Lopez has been detained since being cited for contempt due to "undue interference" in the House probe into alleged misuse of confidential funds by Duterte. He was initially taken to the Veterans Memorial Medical Center for evaluation.

Duterte had decided to stay at the Batasang Pambansa.

Romualdez is the president's ally and cousin.

Marcos Jr, 67, is the son of Ferdinand Marcos, who was president from 1965 to 1986.

Marcos ran with Duterte as his vice presidential running mate in the May 2022 elections and they won by a landslide.

But the two have had a falling out. She has said Marcos Jr. is unfit for office.

Her father is former President Rodrigo Duterte, who ended his six-year term in 2022. He is not allowed to run for a second term.

In his war on drug, he saw 6,252 people killed by unknown gunmen and police operations.

Duterte, 79, wants to become mayor of Davao City again.

Corruption is Everywhere > Philippine Governor assassinated; Cambodian Opposition leader jailed for 27 years; Ericsson to plead guilty to corruption; Could be 100 MEPs in Qatargate

..

Governor of Philippine province, 5 others killed in gun attack

By Patrick Hilsman

   

Roel Degamo, governor of the Philippines province of Negros Oriental, was assassinated and five others

killed Saturday in an attack by gunmen. File Photo by Alan Jay Jacalan/Wikimedia Commons

March 4 (UPI) -- Roel Degamo, the governor of the Central Philippines province of Negros Oriental, was assassinated and five others also died Saturday in an attack by gunmen, officials said.

The attackers were dressed in full battle gear when they shot the governor several times in the town of Pamplona, regional police spokesperson Gerard Ace Pelare said in a briefing.

Negros Oriental is in the country's Central Visayas region, located about 500 miles south of Manila.

Degamo's wife, Pamplona Mayor Janice Degamo, confirmed in a social media post that five others died with in the attack while trying to help her husband and called for justice, the Manila Times reported.

Degamo's election as governor last year was complicated by the presence of a candidate, Grego Gaudia, who ran under the name "Ruel Degamo." Degamo initially lost the election to his main opponent, Pryde Henry Teves.

This should never have been allowed!

The Philippines Commission on Elections decided that the 49,039 votes that went to "Ruel Degamo" should instead be added to the 277,462 votes that the real Roel Degamo received, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

The resulting 326,501 votes surpassed the 296,897 votes received by Pryde Henry Teves, and the decision enabled Degamo to replace Teves after the latter had already spent four months in office.

His slaying brought expressions of shock from across the Philippines.

"I condemn the killing of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo," Philippines Vice President Sara Duterte, a political ally of Degamo, said in a Twitter post. "His death is a tragedy to the province of Negros Oriental, and I am one with the grieving people of the province, his friends, and his family."

Cambodia's opposition leader Kem Sokha jailed for 27 years for treason

By Paul Godfrey

Cambodian opposition leader politician Kem Sokha was sentenced to 27 years on house arrest Friday.

Photo by Kith Serey/EPA-EFE

March 3 (UPI) -- Cambodian opposition politician Kem Sokha was ordered to serve 27 years of detainment for treason on Friday, drawing international condemnation.

The former leader of the Cambodia National Rescue Party was found guilty of conspiring with the United States to oust Hun Sen, the prime minister and president of the ruling Cambodia People's Party. He was ordered to spend 27 years on house arrest.

Sokha, who denies the charges, was also banned from running for office and voting in elections.

"It is not right, unfair and can't be accepted," Ang Oudom, one of Sokha's lawyers said after the sentencing.

Oudom said his client would appeal but suggested the ruling was politically motivated.

"It is a political case and only politicians can decide," he said.

International observers condemned the sentencing as an outrageous attempt by Sen, to silence dissent ahead of elections in July.

U.S. ambassador to Cambodia W. Patrick Murphy said the conviction was a miscarriage of justice, the culmination of a "multi-year process to silence" Sokha based on a "fabricated conspiracy."

"Denying Kem Sokha and other political figures their freedom of expression and association undermines Cambodia's constitution, international commitments, and past progress to develop as a pluralist and inclusive society," Murphy said.

"We call on authorities to allow all Cambodians to enjoy their universal human rights of peaceful assembly and free expression and to participate in building a truly democratic system."

Human Rights Watch, which said Sokha had been subject to arbitrary detention, mistreatment in custody and a ban on participating in any political activity, called on Cambodian authorities to quash what it called Sokha's "politically motivated conviction" and immediately and unconditionally release him.

"It was obvious from the start that the charges against Kem Sokha were nothing but a politically motivated ploy by Prime Minister Hun Sen to sideline Cambodia's major opposition leader and eliminate the country's democratic system," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

"Sending Kem Sokha to prison isn't just about destroying his political party, but about squashing any hope that there can be a genuine general election in July."

Calling for the "fabricated charges" to be dropped and the immediate and unconditional release of Sokha, Amnesty International said the Cambodian justice system had once again shown its "jaw-dropping lack of independence by convicting Kem Sokha on baseless, politically motivated charges."

"This verdict is an unmistakable warning to opposition groups months before national elections. The use of the courts to hound opponents of Prime Minister Hun Sen knows no limits."

The group said Sokha was one of many opposition figures who has been put through physically and psychologically taxing ordeals, a situation that would continue after Friday's unjust verdict.

"There can be no right to a fair trial when the courts have been co-opted by the heavy hand of the government," it said.

The CNRP was dissolved by the country's Supreme Court in 2017 two months after Sokha's arrest, following accusations that the party was plotting to overthrow the government ahead of elections the following year.

Sen's CPP won all 125 seats turning Cambodia at a sweep into a one-party state.

At least 39 opposition politicians are held in Cambodian prisons, according to Amnesty International.

Many more were jailed through the course of last year in mass trials that denied them the right to a fair trial.

Cambodia is already under sanctions from the European Union and the United States for human rights violations and corruption.

In 2020, the EU partially withdrew preferential tariffs on trade granted to Cambodia due to its "serious and systematic violations of human rights principles" while Washington sanctioned two senior Cambodian officials in 2021 for their involvement in serious corruption under its Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act.

Swedish telecom giant Ericsson agrees to plead guilty to bribe scheme

By Adam Schrader

   

An Ericsson logo is seen at the 3rd China International Import Expo in Shanghai in November 2020.

File Photo by Alex Plavevski/EPA-EFE

March 2 (UPI) -- Ericsson, the Swedish telecommunications giant, has agreed to plead guilty to charges in the United States for a "long-running" scheme that included paying bribes, prosecutors said Thursday.

The U.S. Justice Department said in a news release that Ericsson had breached a deferred prosecution agreement reached in 2019 to resolve violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act after a probe from the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation division.

Ericsson used consultants to bribe government officials and manage "off-the-books slush funds" in Djibouti, China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Kuwait from 2000 until 2016.

"These agents were often engaged through sham contracts and paid pursuant to false invoices, and the payments to them were improperly accounted for in Ericsson's books and records," prosecutors said.

Ericsson entered into the agreement with the Justice Department in 2019, allowing the company to evade prosecution while committing to paying more than $520 million in criminal penalties.

The company has now agreed to plead guilty to the "underlying criminal conduct" after Ericsson was found to have violated the deferred prosecution agreement, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said that Ericsson violated the agreement by failing to truthfully disclose all factual information and evidence related to the company's schemes in Djibouti and China, which hindered the United States from prosecuting certain individuals tied to the scheme.

"Ericsson will plead guilty to engaging in a long-running scheme to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by paying bribes, falsifying books and records, and failing to implement reasonable internal accounting controls in multiple countries around the world," prosecutors said in the news release.

The company has also agreed to pay a $206 million criminal penalty, the Justice Department said.

"Ericsson repeatedly failed to fully cooperate and failed to disclose evidence and allegations of misconduct in breach of the agreement," Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite Jr. said in a statement.

"As a result of these broken promises, Ericsson must plead guilty to two criminal offenses and pay an additional fine."

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100 MEPs may be involved in Qatargate corruption scandal

engulfing EU parliament, says Polish MEP

Polish MEP Dominik Tarczyński says that 100 MEPs could be embroiled in the

Qatargate corruption scandal currently engulfing the European Parliament

February 28, 2023

editor: REMIX NEWSauthor: GRZEGORZ ADAMCZYK

Former European Parliament Vice-President Eva Kaili. (Source: EP)

   

More and more EU politicians are getting dragged into the Qatargate bribery investigation, said Dominik Tarczyński, an MEP from Poland’s ruling conservatives, while speaking with public Polish Radio 3.

“As many as a hundred MEPs could be involved,” said Tarczyński. 

The corruption scandal, which shocked Europe and made headlines across the world, has seen a number of MEPs and former EU officials land in handcuffs after Belgian police raided offices and residences, where they reportedly found €1.5 million in bribe money stuffed in papers bags and suitcases.

According to Tarczyński, Poland’s Internal Security Agency, the ABW, played a key role at the beginning of the investigation and handed over information to Belgian investigators. He also revealed that new information on the scandal has been procured as a result of revelations regarding the arrest warrant issued against MEP Eva Kaili, the former vice-president of the European Parliament.

The Polish MEP said that new names are appearing all the time and that two more MEPs have now been arrested, according to a report from Radio Szczecin. Moreover, there is now “information that Kaili received more than €10 million in total, whereas back in December, it had been reported that this figure was between half a million and 1.5 million (euros),” said Tarczyński.

The information regarding the bribes was reportedly obtained from law enforcement surveillance of Kaili’s phone calls. 

Tarczyński argued that there is now a need to review the whole legislative process in the European Parliament and that all those involved in this scandal must be named. After that, there must be an investigation into who instigated the bribery plot, as many trails lead not only to Qatar and Morocco but to Russia as well.

Hungary’s PM Orbán mocks EU corruption scandal: ‘If they continue like this in Brussels, soon enough MEPs will be behind bars to form their own football team’

The Qatargate bribery scandal continues to rock Brussels, and Hungary’s conservatives are rubbing salt in the wound

“The scandal will run and run, with more names emerging and new leads too,” said Tarczyński. Given that those who were allegedly bribed by Qatar helped influence a number of key votes related to Qatar, such as on the issue of allowing Qataris visa-free travel to Europe, the Polish MEP said he thinks there will now be moves to review and overturn some past resolutions of the European Parliament. There is concern that the Qatargate bribery case was only the tip of the iceberg and that many past votes and resolutions in Europe were influenced by foreign money and outright bribery.

The present corruption scandal emerged in December 2022, which involved accusations that countries such as Qatar and Morocco had bribed MEPs to ensure political and economic decisions taken by the European Parliament went their way. A former MEP, Pier Antonio Panzeri, a key figure emerging in the scandal, has admitted that he handed over €120,000 to Belgian MEP Marco Tarabelli. Panzeri is now cooperating with the investigators in return for a reduced sentence for his role in the crimes. 

The scandal has hit the socialist grouping the hardest. Eva Kaili a Greek socialist MEP who was a vice-president of the European Parliament, has lost her post and been charged with corruption. 

Bits and Bites From Around the World > Duterte Retires? Judge Hammers DoJ on Capitol Riots; Russia Bans Scientology; Couple Keep Man's Dead Parents for Months

..

Philippines' Duterte says he is retiring from politics,

but not everyone is convinced

By Karen Lema

MANILA, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said on Saturday he was retiring from politics, a surprise move that fuelled speculation he was clearing the way for a presidential run by his daughter.

Sara Duterte-Carpio is currently mayor of Davao, the Philippines' third-largest city, and filed on Saturday to contest the role again. She has previously said she would not run for national office next year.

"Today, I announce my retirement from politics," Duterte said as he accompanied his ally Senator Christopher "Bong" Go of the ruling PDP-Laban party to register Go's candidacy for vice president in next year's election.

But political analysts were sceptical, noting that last-minute changes were still possible, as in 2015 when Duterte entered the presidential election race at the eleventh hour and won by a huge margin.

Duterte, 76, had been expected to run for the No. 2 job, a plan most Filipinos oppose as violating the spirit of the constitution, which sets a one-term limit for the president to stop power being abused.

"In obedience to the will of the people, who after all placed me in the presidency many years ago, I now say to my countrymen, I will follow your wish," Duterte said as he urged the public to back his longtime aide.

Analysts say it is crucial for Duterte to have a loyal successor to insulate him from potential legal action - at home or by the International Criminal Court - over the thousands of state killings in his war on drugs since 2016.

"I would take his announcement with a lot of salt," Carlos Conde, Philippines researcher for New York-based Human Rights Watch, told Reuters. "But assuming that he's really going to retire, that doesn't mean he won't get the protection from the ICC that he craves."

Duterte, a maverick leader famous for his embrace of China and disdain for the United States, traditionally a close ally of the Philippines, remains popular even though his opponents accuse him of being authoritarian and intolerant of dissent.

Activist and human rights lawyer Neri Colmenares also viewed Duterte's announcement sceptically, saying "he will still dictate (to) his political machinery".

"Unfortunately for him, he will not be spared from accountability. Retirement from politics will not save him from a prison sentence," said Colmenares, who is also providing legal assistance to drug war victims.

Authorities have killed more than 6,100 suspected drug dealers and users since Duterte took office in June 2016. Rights groups say the police summarily executed suspects, which the police deny, saying they acted in self-defence during sting operations.

'ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN'

More than 60 million Filipinos will vote in May for a new president, vice president and more than 18,000 lawmakers and local government officials.

Political observers had long suspected Duterte could spring a surprise, such as a presidential bid by his daughter next year. Duterte-Carpio's re-election filing, shortly after her father announced his retirement, did little to douse speculation she has her eye on the presidency.

Mar Masanguid, who backed Duterte's 2016 run and has now founded a group to back Duterte-Carpio, said the signs still pointed to a run, which would mirror her father's last minute bid in 2016.

"In politics, anything can happen," he said.

Duterte-Carpio has topped opinion surveys on prospective candidates, but said last month she was not a candidate for higher office next year because she and her father had agreed only one of them would run for a national role in 2022.

The older Duterte's decision not to join the race next year would clear her way.

"This allows Sara Duterte to run," said Antonio La Vina, professor of law and politics at the Ateneo de Manila University. "She sees through the father's scheme or it is a drama to confuse everyone."

But La Vina said he could not rule out the possibility the firebrand leader might have a change of heart and be Go's substitute.

Candidates have until Friday to register, but withdrawals and substitutions are allowed until Nov. 15.

Judge grants probation in US Capitol case, questions prosecutors’

‘credibility’ compared to lenient treatment of BLM rioters

2 Oct, 2021 02:25

FILE PHOTO: A riot police officer stands guard during a rally in support of defendants prosecuted over the January 6 riot at the Capitol, in Washington, DC, September 18, 2021. ©  Reuters / Elizabeth Frantz

An Oklahoma woman who participated in the US Capitol riot has been granted probation – against the recommendation of prosecutors – and the judge in her case implied the government has been inordinately harsh on such defendants.

Danielle Doyle, 37, was given two months of probation on Friday in the US District Court in Washington, rather than being sentenced to home confinement as prosecutors sought. She pleaded guilty in July to illegally demonstrating inside the Capitol, which she entered through a broken window. She spent a total of 24 minutes in the building and wasn’t accused of committing any acts of violence or property damage.

Judge Trevor McFadden questioned the prosecution's “credibility,” wondering why the Department of Justice hasn’t indicted more of those who rioted in Washington during Black Lives Matter-inspired protests last year, citing figures on cases that haven’t been prosecuted. In contrast, more than 600 people have been charged in connection with the Capitol riot, including some who have been held without bail while awaiting trial.

“I think the US Attorney would have more credibility if it was even-handed in its concern about riots and mobs in this city,” the Associated Press quoted McFadden as saying. The BLM riots caused up to $2 billion in insured property damage nationwide and resulted in over two dozen deaths.

Doyle told the judge she regretted that a peaceful election-fraud protest escalated into a riot when people breached the Capitol. “So many people came here to represent things that were important to us, but in the blink of an eye, all of those things were overshadowed,” she said, per the AP. “For that, I’m sorry, because it overshadowed the things that were good.”

McFadden, who was appointed to the bench by former President Donald Trump, said Doyle’s behavior was inexcusable and that she was “acting like all those looters and rioters who attacked our city last year. That’s because looters and rioters decided the law didn’t apply to them.” He added that the January 6 riot made Americans feel “less safe,” just as the violent BLM protests did.

Doyle worked in ticket sales for the Oklahoma City Thunder NBA team until December 2020. Two former co-workers reported her to the FBI after recognizing her in video footage of the riot circulating online and in media. She also was ordered to pay a $3,000 fine and $500 in restitution. The misdemeanor charge, to which Doyle agreed to plead guilty in a deal with prosecutors, carries a maximum sentence of six months in jail.

Russia bans Scientology: Justice ministry puts key 

Scientologist groups on list of ‘undesirable’ organizations

2 Oct, 2021 01:59

FILE PHOTO. The Church of Scientology of Los Angeles building. © Reuters / Mario Anzuoni

Russia’s Justice Ministry has blacklisted two Church of Scientology entities, banning them from operating in the country. Moscow has taken numerous measures against the group, arguing that it's a business masquerading as religion.

An updated list of “undesirable” organizations was released by the country's Justice Ministry on Friday, just over a week after the Russian Prosecutor General’s office advised a ban for several Church of Scientology affiliates. 

Two California-based holdings, the World Institute of Scientology Enterprises International (WISE) and the Church of Spiritual Technology (CST), also known as the “L. Ron Hubbard Library,” were officially blacklisted.

Both were deemed a threat to Russia’s national security, according to a previous statement from the prosecutor’s office. The inclusion of Scientology on Russia’s list of “undesirable” organizations, which currently number at 49, means the outfit is now prohibited from conducting any activities in Russia, with its local chapters to be forcibly closed and assets frozen.

The decision follows a decades-long campaign to ban Scientology from illegally profiting on Russian territory, with the first major effort to restrict the group dating back to 1996, back in the Boris Yeltsin-era and some twelve years after the organization gained a foothold in what was then the Soviet Union. However, it was not until the 2010s when authorities really cracked down on Scientology groups, investigating major branches in Moscow and St. Petersburg, as well as their leaders, on charges of illegal business activities and extremism.

Some of the group’s literature has been outlawed as extremist material, while its Moscow chapter was ordered closed by the Supreme Court in 2016.

The Church of Scientology, which was founded by American science fiction novelist L. Ron Hubbard in the 1950s, describes itself as a new religious movement, while its critics believe the group to be either a dangerous cult, a business trying to dodge taxes using religious exemptions, or some combination of both.

While the group has rarely achieved full-blown recognition from state authorities around the world, it has managed to obtain a tax exemption status in a number of countries. At the same time, Russia is far from being the only nation actively obstructing the group’s activities and influence.

A drawn-out case in Belgian against the ‘church’ involved charges of bribery, extortion, fraud, and the unlicensed practice of medicine, but its leaders were acquitted of all charges. Meanwhile in France, Scientology has been classified as a dangerous cult and seven of its members were convicted on various charges, including contribution to suicide. 

Ironically, it was the Strasbourg, France-based European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) that came to the defense of Scientology in its case in Russia, accusing authorities of religious discrimination. In fact, the group appears so confident about the ECHR’s support that an American representative once said of the situation in France, “if it has to go to the court of human rights we’re confident we will win there.”

The US has consistently criticised any country attempting to take the group and its leaders to court as discriminating on religious grounds, despite a long history of lawsuits and other legal issues with the group within the United States. In the 1970s, the ‘church’ carried out what it dubbed ‘Operation Snow White,’ which reportedly saw up to 5,000 Scientologists infiltrate scores of US government agencies – namely the IRS – where they stole documents, wiretapped phones of government agents and carried out other surveillance.

Several high-ranking Scientologists, among them Hubbard’s then-wife Mary Sue, pleaded guilty to charges linked to the massive infiltration op, including obstruction of justice, burglary of government offices, and theft of documents and government property.

Russian couple detained after trying to dispose of mummified

bodies of husband’s parents they kept in apartment for months 

3 Oct, 2021 06:14

A Russian couple has been detained after they tried to dispose of the mummified remains of the husband’s parents. The bodies had apparently been kept in their apartment for months, with the foul smell blamed on a “pet goose.”

The blood-chilling story unfolded in the city of Odintsovo, located just outside Moscow. On Thursday, local police were alerted after two mummified bodies were found in a multistory building, packed into wooden longboxes.

CCTV footage circulating online showed a man and woman loading one of the boxes into a van before fleeing the scene. The box contained the body of an elderly woman, while another one, containing the remains of an elderly man, was found leaning against the wall on the staircase of the building.

The horrifying discovery prompted the launch of a murder case. The two suspects, who turned out to be a married couple, were detained on Saturday, Russia’s Investigative Committee confirmed. The dead bodies that were stuffed into the boxes turned out to be the husband’s parents.

“So far, experts have not established the cause of death of the elderly couple,” the Investigative Committee said.

The suspects have been identified by Russian media as Anatoliy and Tatiana Tkachenko, who had lived in the building for some six years. They rented their apartment from its owner, who permanently resided in another city.

At some point, Anatoliy’s parents moved in with the couple, and ultimately met their end at the apartment. The corpses had reportedly been kept in the apartment at least since March, when the couple’s neighbors noticed a foul smell coming from inside.

They notified the police over the smell, but law enforcement reportedly found nothing suspicious. Anatoliy is understood to have blamed the smell on a “decorative goose” he kept in the apartment.

He was also reportedly confronted by neighbors when he brought a haul of lumber into the flat, which was apparently used to construct the longboxes. The suspicious activity was blamed on the elusive goose again, with Anatoliy claiming his pet needed a pen. It remains unclear whether the suspect actually owned such a bird or merely sent his neighbors on a wild-goose chase.

The botched attempt to dispose of the bodies reportedly came after the apartment’s owner decided to check up on his property after the couple failed to pay rent for several months in a row. He ran into his tenants just as they were loading the grim cargo into the van, sending them on a two-day flight from the police.