http://www.getyourmascotback.com. The Newcastle mascot has been stolen! The whole thing has been captured on video. You can visit the website for tips and info!http://www.getyourmascotback.com. The Newcastle mascot has been stolen! The whole... more
http://www.getyourmascotback.com. The Chelsea mascot has been stolen! The whole thing has been captured on video. Please visit the website for tips and info!http://www.getyourmascotback.com. The Chelsea mascot has been stolen! The whole thing... more
http://www.getyourmascotback.com. The Manchester United mascot has been stolen! The whole thing has been captured on video. For tips and info please visit the website!http://www.getyourmascotback.com. The Manchester United mascot has been stolen! The... more
(CNN) -- A ransom has been demanded for a missing Russian cargo ship which vanished two weeks ago after being involved in a suspected hijacking off the coast of Sweden last month, Finnish police told CNN Saturday.
"There has been a demand for ransom and the subject is the shipping company, Solchart Management," Jan Olof Nyholm with the Finnish police told CNN.
An international criminal investigation is under way into the alleged hijacking of the vessel, the Arctic Sea. The last known communication with the vessel was July 31(CNN) -- A ransom has been demanded for a missing Russian cargo ship which vanished... more
Racine resident James Williams, 23, had apparently been kidnapped. If his mother didn't pay the unusually small ransom of $250, he would die.
But when police found Williams alone and asleep in a van in a Kenosha parking lot, they started to believe he was trying to con his own mother.
Police tracked down the location of Williams' cell phone and they found his mother's van in a parking lot. Inside, the 23-year-old was alone and asleep. Racine police say he admitted making the entire kidnapping up.
"He was afraid he was going to get in trouble with his parents for having the car over the weekend," said Lt. Jerry Baldukas of the Racine Police Department.Racine resident James Williams, 23, had apparently been kidnapped. If his mother... more
Looming U.S. warships have ratcheted up the pressure on the pirates. An American hostage held by armed Somali pirates in a tiny lifeboat may be protected by a lucrative — and possibly growing — ransom on his life, experts said Friday.
But they also warned that the uniqueness of the high-stakes standoff could quickly change things.
The possible payout for Capt. Richard Phillips would be the pirates' top priority and could trump any desire for payback after his recent escape attempt, experts said. The 53-year-old Phillips jumped out of the boat Friday before being forced back in by automatic weapons fire.
The pirates are businessmen, not suicidal jihadists, said Scott Stewart, vice president for tactical analysis for Stratfor, a global intelligence company based in Austin, Texas.
"These are people who are trying to make money," Stewart said. "They want to survive this. They don't want to die, which is a good thing in the captain's favor."
Ransom price may be driven up
Jamie Lynn DeCoster, a surface warfare Navy officer who has been on piracy patrols off the coast of Africa, said the international publicity and looming U.S. warships have ratcheted up the pressure on the pirates, but could also drive up the ransom price.
Ultimately, the four pirates know they're responsible to superiors on land, who won't be as influenced by the warship guns pointed at their subordinates and may be eyeing a bigger payout than normal for a healthy Phillips, she said.
4/11 6:17 AM ET ClipsFC - StaffLooming U.S. warships have ratcheted up the pressure on the pirates. An American... more
Ruthless drug cartels in Mexico are battling against each other and against the government for control of the drug trade. 2008 was the most violent year in Mexico, with around 6,000 drug-related murders. 2009 looks like it could be even worse. And there are fears that Mexico's narco-violence could spread north of the border into the U.S. In this one-hour Vanguard report, Laura Ling travels to the border towns of Juarez and Tijuana, Mexico where drugs gangs are fighting for control of the drug routes into the United States. Ling also goes to the city of Culiacan in Sinaloa State, a region that's known as the birthplace of narco-trafficking in Mexico. Despite the 40,000 federal troops that are patrolling cities across Mexico, violence is increasing and the methods of killings are becoming even more brazen and grotesque. Ling speaks with gun dealers in El Paso, Texas and U.S. officials about the illegal smuggling of weapons into Mexico--90% of the weapons seized in Mexico have been traced back to the U.S. She examines the culture of corruption and lack of public trust in a police force that has become known for working with the cartels.
Vanguard is Current TV's award-winning documentary series. Whether it's half a world away or in our own backyard, Vanguard goes there to bring you stories about the most important issues of our time. Led by reporters Laura Ling, Christof Putzel, Mariana van Zeller, Adam Yamaguchi and Kaj Larsen, Vanguard airs on Wednesday at 10 pm Eastern and Pacific and can be found online at current.com/vanguard.Ruthless drug cartels in Mexico are battling against each other and against the... more
FELIPE ANGELES, Mexico — Four hooded men smashed in the door to the adobe home of an 80-year-old farmer here in November, handcuffing his frail wrists and driving him to a makeshift jail. They released him after relatives and friends paid a $9,000 ransom, which included his life savings.
The kidnapping was a dismal story of cruelty and heartbreak, familiar all across Mexico, but with a new twist: the daughter of this victim lived in the United States and was able to wire money to help assemble his ransom, the farmer, who insisted that he not be identified by name, said in an interview.
A string of similar kidnappings, singling out people with children or spouses in the United States, so panicked this village in the state of Zacatecas that many people boarded up their homes and headed north, some legally and some not, seeking havens with relatives in California and other American states.FELIPE ANGELES, Mexico — Four hooded men smashed in the door to the adobe home of an... more
Negotiating with pirates is such a cutthroat business that shipowners have to make sure they don't get robbed a second time while delivering the ransom.
Firms that have negotiated the return of their ships and crews from Somali pirates have discovered that one pirate may grab another pirate's ransom, leaving the captured ship still in hostile hands and an angry pirate still demanding his booty.
Somali pirates holding a Saudi supertanker after the largest hijacking in maritime history are asking for a $15 million (10 million pound) ransom, an Islamist leader said on Monday.
The pirates had originally been quoted as wanting $25 million to release the Sirius Star, which has $100 million of oil on board as well as 25 crew members from Britain, Poland, Croatia, Saudi Arabia and the Philippines.
But Islamist spokesman Abdirahim Isse Adow, whose men are in the Haradheere area where the ship is being held offshore after its November 15 capture, told Reuters that demand had been reduced.
"Middlemen have given a $15 million ransom figure for the Saudi ship. That is the issue now," Adow told Reuters.
Pirates who hijacked a Saudi oil tanker off the Somali coast are reported to have demanded a $25m (£17m) ransom.
The AFP news agency, quoting one of the pirates, says the owners have been set a 10-day deadline to hand over the sum.
The Sirius Star is the biggest tanker ever hijacked, carrying a cargo of two million barrels of Saudi oil - worth more than $100m.
The ship's operators, Vela International, have told the BBC that they cannot comment on the reports.
On Wednesday, Saudi officials confirmed that the ship's owners were in talks with the pirates.
AFP named the pirate it had spoken to as Mohamed Said.
"We do not want long-term discussions to resolve the matter," he was quoted as saying.
The Saudis have 10 days to comply, otherwise we will take action that could be disastrous," he added, without elaborating.Pirates who hijacked a Saudi oil tanker off the Somali coast are reported to have... more
Somalia's infamous pirates are living a life of luxury - buying large homes, luxury cars, marrying beautiful women, and hiring caterers to prepare food for their hostages. The have become heroes to some Somalians in the towns near where they operate. "The pirates depend on us, and we benefit from them," said Sahra Sheik Dahir, a shop owner in Haradhere. Ransom money came in at $30 million this year.Somalia's infamous pirates are living a life of luxury - buying large homes, luxury... more
A life-size fibreglass model of a pig was taken from outside a newsagents in Scotland. Shop owner Ryan Kirk has appealed for its safe return.
He has recently received a call demanding a £250 ransom before the pig is returned.
The pig, which stood outside the shop for around two years to advertise bacon rolls, has become an attraction in the local area.A life-size fibreglass model of a pig was taken from outside a newsagents in Scotland.... more
The infamous Somali pirates are threatening to kill the 20-man crew of the Ukranian ship they hijacked if NATO ships attack. A spokesman for the pirates Sugule Ali mocked comments by Tomex Team, the firm operating the MV Faina cargo ship, which said it has accumulated only $1 million toward the $20 million ransom the pirates initially demanded. "That is worthless," he said. "It would only pay for several nights' stay in a hotel!" He reiterated " ... if we die they will die too."The infamous Somali pirates are threatening to kill the 20-man crew of the Ukranian... more
Somali pirates have accused European firms of dumping toxic waste off the Somali coast and are demanding an $8m ransom for the return of a Ukranian ship they captured, saying the money will go towards cleaning up the waste.
The ransom demand is a means of "reacting to the toxic waste that has been continually dumped on the shores of our country for nearly 20 years", Januna Ali Jama, a spokesman for the pirates, based in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland, said.
"The Somali coastline has been destroyed, and we believe this money is nothing compared to the devastation that we have seen on the seas."
The pirates are holding the MV Faina, a Ukrainian ship carrying tanks and military hardware, off Somalia's northern coast.
According to the International Maritime Bureau, 61 attacks by pirates have been reported since the start of the year.
While money is the primary objective of the hijackings, claims of the continued environmental destruction off Somalia's coast have been largely ignored by the regions's maritime authorities.
Dumping allegations
Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the UN envoy for Somalia confirmed to Al Jazeera the world body has "reliable information" that European and Asian companies are dumping toxic waste, including nuclear waste, off the Somali coastline.
"I must stress however, that no government has endorsed this act, and that private companies and individuals acting alone are responsible," he said
The pirates are holding the MV Faina off Somalia's northern coast [Reuters]
Allegations of the dumping of toxic waste, as well as illegal fishing, have circulated since the early 1990s.
But evidence of such practices literally appeared on the beaches of northern Somalia when the tsunami of 2004 hit the country.
The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) reported the tsunami had washed up rusting containers of toxic waste on the shores of Puntland.
Nick Nuttall, a UNEP spokesman, told Al Jazeera that when the barrels were smashed open by the force of the waves, the containers exposed a "frightening activity" that has been going on for more than decade.
"Somalia has been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990s, and continuing through the civil war there," he said.
"European companies found it to be very cheap to get rid of the waste, costing as little as $2.50 a tonne, where waste disposal costs in Europe are something like $1000 a tonne.
"And the waste is many different kinds. There is uranium radioactive waste. There is lead, and heavy metals like cadmium and mercury. There is also industrial waste, and there are hospital wastes, chemical wastes – you name it."
Nuttall also said that since the containers came ashore, hundreds of residents have fallen ill, suffering from mouth and abdominal bleeding, skin infections and other ailments.
"We [the UNEP] had planned to do a proper, in-depth scientific assessment on the magnitude of the problem. But because of the high levels of insecurity onshore and off the Somali coast, we are unable to carry out an accurate assessment of the extent of the problem," he said.
However, Ould-Abdallah claims the practice still continues.
"What is most alarming here is that nuclear waste is being dumped. Radioactive uranium waste that is potentially killing Somalis and completely destroying the ocean," he said.
-More at link. Somali pirates have accused European firms of dumping toxic waste off the Somali coast... more
Somali pirates demanded a $35 million ransom on Saturday for a Ukrainian ship they seized carrying 33 tanks and other military supplies to Kenya, a maritime official said.
"The gunmen are demanding $35 million to release the MV Faina and her crew," said Andrew Mwangura of the Mombasa-based East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme.
Kenya's military said they had not made contact with the Somali pirates holding the ship, local media reported.
The 21 crew members aboard the ship include 17 Ukrainians, Russians and Latvians.
Pirates have captured more than 30 vessels off Somalia this year, making its waters the most dangerous in the world and threatening a globally important shipping lane between Europe and Asia. The gangs seek, and often receive, large ransoms.
The Ukrainian ship, sailing under a Belize flag, is carrying 33 T-72 tanks as well as grenade launchers and ammunition bound for Kenya.
The haul is a significant seizure in Somalia, where Islamist insurgents have been fighting the government and its Ethiopian military ally for nearly two years.
Kenyan media reported that the pirates had warned against any rescue attempts. Kenya's government said it would not negotiate with pirates.
"We will endeavor to recover the hijacked ship and military cargo," a government statement said.
Russia's navy said it had sent a warship to Somalia's Indian Ocean coast to conduct anti-piracy patrols in the area.Somali pirates demanded a $35 million ransom on Saturday for a Ukrainian ship they... more
A display gorilla robots outside the manufacturing plant of gorillarobots.com was stolen this weekend. ElectricPig reports that "The robot’s creator posted a YouTube video begging for the gorilla’s release and offering a $500 reward and received a response from the abductor via YouTube showing the gorilla robot safe." and demanding a million-dollar ransom with a sock puppet.
However, it turns out that the thief has since apologised, saying, “I didn’t know it’d be such a big deal,” and the gorilla has since been found in a field.
See vid for gorilla bot ad - what d'you mean you've never considered owning a robot gorilla? (you can even get them in hot pink)
CORRECTION: Apparently (according to a post below) the gorilla was actually kidnapped from a flea market in Maine, rather than from the factory itself.A display gorilla robots outside the manufacturing plant of gorillarobots.com was... more
A neighborhood spat over dog droppings has resulted in a couple's prized statue of Jesus Christ being stolen from their yard, and a ransom note left in their mailbox.A neighborhood spat over dog droppings has resulted in a couple's prized statue of... more
