SF – Das Bundesamt für Polizei (Fedpol) hat 2011 seinen Kampf gegen extremistische Internetseiten verstärkt. Resultate zeigen: Auch die Schweiz ist Tummelplatz von sogenannten Cyber-Dschihadisten. Aber nicht nur religiöse Fanatiker bedienen sich des Internets – auch der Menschenhandel ist vermehrt vertreten.

Das Fedpol hat zur Bekämpfung extremistischer Internetseiten gar eine eigene Abteilung geschaffen. Wie das Fedpol in seinem Jahresbericht schreibt, kümmern sich seit Anfang 2011 sechs Experten um dieses spezielle Internet-Monitoring, darunter Islamwissenschafter, Orientalisten, Informatik-Spezialisten und Polizisten.

Ziel ist es, auf den Webseiten allfällige in der Schweiz verübte oder geplante strafbare Handlungen zu entdecken, etwa Gewaltdarstellungen, Drohungen, das Herstellen, Verbergen oder Weitergeben von Sprengstoffen und giftigen Gasen oder auch die öffentliche Aufforderung zur Gewalt.

Fedpol hält sich bedeckt
Die Internet-Überwachung habe auch schon zu Ergebnissen geführt, heisst es in dem Bericht. Das Fedpol habe mehrere Vorermittlungen gegen einschlägige Internetseiten respektive deren Betreiber eingeleitet. Die Ermittlungserfolge zeigten, dass auch in der Schweiz so genannte Cyber-Dschihadisten aktiv seien.
Die Überwachung der Internetaktivitäten von radikalen, meist dschihadistischen Webseiten wurde mit einer neu geschaffenen Abteilung verstärkt.

Detailliertere Angaben zu Anzahl und Art der Fahndungserfolge enthält der Bericht keine. Erwähnt wird lediglich der Fall eines zum Islam konvertierten Schweizers, der im Internet mit einem Gesinnungsgenossen einen Anschlag auf eine US-Einrichtung in einem Nachbarstaat erörtert haben soll. Eine Hausdurchsuchung und die Einvernahme konnten den Verdacht auf Vorbereitungshandlungen für Sprengstoffdelikte jedoch nicht erhärten.

Mafia als Herausforderung
Bei ihren Ermittlungen arbeitet die neue Abteilung auch eng mit dem Nachrichtendienst des Bundes (NDB) zusammen, der sein Monitoring ebenfalls ausgebaut hat. Die Überwachung im Internet bezeichnet das Fedpol als «zentrale Herausforderung» für die Polizeiarbeit. Die technische Entwicklung verlaufe rasant und biete immer ausgefeiltere Möglichkeiten zur Verschleierung und Beweisvereitelung.

Dieses Problem stellt sich auch in anderen Gebieten der Kriminalitätsbekämpfung, etwa der Pädokriminalität oder der herkömmlichen Internetkriminalität. Hier sei eine Professionalisierung mit zunehmender Arbeitsteilung festzustellen, schreibt das Fedpol.

Als grosse Herausforderung bezeichnet das Bundesamt auch den Kampf gegen die organisierte Kriminalität, mit einer verstärkten Präsenz italienischer Mafiaorganisationen wie der ‚Ndrangheta, oder den Menschenschmuggel und Menschenhandel.

Menschenschmuggel vermehrt über Balkan
Nach einem starken Anstieg im Jahr 2010 hat sich die Lage beim Menschenhandel und -schmuggel stabilisiert. Insgesamt gingen letztes Jahr 3860 Meldungen ein (Vorjahr 4281), die in 626 Falldossiers zusammengeführt wurden. 274 Fallgruppen betrafen Menschenschmuggel und 222 Menschenhandel.

Im Vordergrund stehen beim Menschenhandel vor allem Frauen, die zum Zweck der sexuellen Ausbeutung in die Schweiz gebracht werden. Beim Gros dieser Opfer handelt es sich um Roma-Frauen, die aus Bulgarien und Rumänien kommen.

Beim Menschenschmuggel ist laut Fedpol-Angaben im letzten Jahr eine Verlagerung der Schleuseraktivitäten auf die Balkanroute festgestellt worden. Auch habe die Schleusung über den Luftweg zugenommen, insbesondere über Flüge aus den griechischen Städten Athen und Thessaloniki.

Allein die Swiss habe aufgrund ihrer Kontrollen an griechischen Flughäfen im Berichtsjahr 1300 Personen den Abflug verweigert, weil gefälschte Reisedokumente präsentiert wurden. Solche Dokumente werden von kriminellen Organisationen angeboten.

SF – Frauen aus Staaten ausserhalb der EU und der EFTA sollen in der Schweiz nicht mehr als Cabaret-Tänzerinnen arbeiten dürfen. Dies schlägt der Bundesrat vor. Er hat die Vernehmlassung zu einer Verordnungsänderung eröffnet.

Die Zulassung ausländischer Cabaret-Tänzerinnen wird seit über 40 Jahren mit Arbeitsbewilligungen geregelt. In den 1990er-Jahren wurde ein spezielles Statut.

Dieses erlaubt es Personen aus Drittstaaten, in die Schweiz einzureisen, um als Cabaret-Tänzerinnen zu arbeiten. Zu ihrem Schutz ist es ihnen aber ausdrücklich untersagt, Gäste zu Alkoholkonsum zu animieren oder der Prostitution nachzugehen.

Nun will der Bundesrat das Cabaret-Tänzerinnen-Statut für Personen aus Drittstaaten aufheben, wie das Bundesamt für Migration (BFM) mitteilte. Bei der periodischen Überprüfung sei er zum Schluss gelangt, dass «die Schutzwirkung nicht mehr gewährleistet» sei. Dies heisst wohl, dass die Cabaret-Tänzerinnen trotz des Verbots als Prostituierte oder Animierdamen arbeiten.

Prostitutionsverbot nicht überprüfbar
Etwa die Hälfte der Kantone wende das Statut nicht mehr an – unter anderem deshalb, weil das Verbot der Prostitution oder der Mindestanforderungen beim Lohn nicht überprüfbar sei, schreibt das BFM. Auch werde das Risiko für Menschenhandel als gross angesehen. Deshalb wolle der Bundesrat das Statut aufheben.

Die Zulassung von Cabaret-Tänzerinnen entspricht auch nicht dem dualen Zulassungssystem, das die Schweiz beschlossen hat. Gemäss diesem System erhalten Erwerbstätige aus den EU- und EFTA-Staaten einen einfachen Zugang zum Schweizer Arbeitsmarkt, während jene aus Drittstaaten grundsätzlich nur in Kontingenten und bei guter Qualifikation zugelassen werden.

Runder Tisch gegen Menschenhandel
Die Abschaffung des Statuts soll durch flankierende Massnahmen begleitet werden. Der Bundesrat möchte laut BFM insbesondere den Opferschutz stärken. Die Kantone werden dazu aufgefordert, die Runden Tische zur Bekämpfung des Menschenhandels weiter zu entwickeln. Die betroffenen Akteure sollen vermehrt für die Thematik sensibilisiert werden.

Parteien, Verbände und andere interessierte Kreise können zum Vorschlag des Bundesrates bis zum 2. November Stellung nehmen. Geändert werden soll die Verordnung über Zulassung, Aufenthalt und Erwerbstätigkeit.hrend jene aus Drittstaaten grunds

George Mapp – I was the first to publicly break the story of Viktor Bout’s imminent transfer to Florence Colorado’s Super Maximum security prison (dubbed Supermax) to be canceled. A reliable source whom wished to remain anonymous informed me of the news last week. Approximately an hour after I tweeted the breaking news [Timeline], The Voice of Russia was the first to publish an article after my announcement.

Smulian Gets a Slap on the Wrist

Judge Shira A. Scheindlin — whom also presided over the Viktor Bout trial and sentenced him to 25 years — sentenced Andrew Smulian to 5 years. Since he served approximately 50 months already, Smulian will be able to deduct that time from his 60 month sentence and will be a free man in about 10 months. This decision was by no means surprising to me, in fact I expected Smulian to get time served thus allowing him to walk out of prison a free man yesterday. Smulian’s lawyers and the prosecution were also hoping for this outcome. As stated by a New York Times article, titled, Conduit to Arms Sting, a Star Witness Apologizes for His Crimes:

On Wednesday, Mr. Smulian’s lawyer, Mary E. Mulligan, who had asked for time served for her client, called Mr. Smulian “deeply remorseful and humble,” and cited what she called his “viable personal transformation” while assisting the government during his four years in custody.

Smulian’s lawyer also cited his ill health and the fact that he admitted his alleged crimes to the judge.

Smulian’s lawyer, Mary E. Mulligan, has asked that her client be sentenced to “time served,” citing his cooperation, his health and his acceptance of responsibility.

By law the Judge was to impose on Andrew Smulian the minimum sentence of 25 years. At age 71 and currently suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure, this would have most certainly meant a life sentence for him. However, his cooperation with the DEA and prosecutors and most notably his role in helping nab Viktor Bout was his saving grace to a drastically reduced sentence.

Viktor Bout Escapes A Life Sentence

This excerpt from the NY Times piece states why the Judge sentenced Smulian to only five years as opposed to the legal minimum sentence of 25 years.

There was no evidence, she [Judge Scheindlin] added, that had Mr. Smulian not been approached in the sting, he would ever “have been involved with terrorism.”

Here is a excerpt from my article titled, Viktor Bout Stung By DEA Operation ‘Relentless’: Sentenced to 25 Years:

The DEA sting operation dubbed ‘Relentless’ ironically may have been both Viktor Bout’s demise as well as sparing him a life behind bars in a U.S. Federal penitentiary. U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin said 25 years was sufficient and appropriate because there was no evidence the 45-year-old Bout would have been charged with seeking to harm Americans if not approached by informants posing as Colombian rebels.

“But for the approach made through this determined sting operation, there is no reason to believe Bout would ever have committed the charged crimes,” Scheindlin said.

It was blatantly obvious to most if not all whom actually sat through the entire trial, that if not for DEA operation ‘Relentless’, there would be no conspiracy charges against Viktor Bout. One can even insinuate from the judges behavior, demeanor, attitude and most notably by her rulings and decisions, that she felt the same.

The DEA first had to create the jurisdiction to try and convict Bout of conspiracy. To do this, they had to get Bout into The United States and into New York’s Southern District dubbed the DEA’s playground before the deadline of 20 November 2010. There has never been a terrorism case that has been lost by the prosecutor’s in New York’s Southern District. 20 November 2010 was the date that Bout’s extradition in the Royal Thai court would have legally expired. Since Viktor Bout had and still has an appeal pending in the Royal Thai court, he was removed from prison without any paperwork or legal transfers being filed. Neither his lawyer at the time nor his wife Alla had been notified when the DEA extracted him from the Thai prison to a chartered jet on 16 November 2010. Alla Bout only found out when she arrived at the Thai prison (her daily routine) to bring Viktor his vegetarian home-cooked lunch.

I wrote about it in January 2011 in Imaginary Crimes but here is an article from 26 March 2012, titled, There is nobody to represent Viktor Bout in Thailand. Here are a few excerpts:

[Lak Nitivat] Vichan (Bout’s Thai lawyer whom has died this past January) contributed to the Thai Appeals Court’s decision in 2011 to reconsider Bout’s extradition case. The same court held for Bout’s extradition after lower courts twice declined U.S. requests.

The court decided to review the case on the grounds that, first, new facts have been uncovered, according to the defense, and, second, Bout’s extradition was illegal as he was still under the Thai court’s jurisdiction. Under Thai law, the extradition order was not sufficient to extradite Bout as the court also needed to issue a permit for Bout’s transfer from prison.

In my article titled, Imaginary Crimes: The Never Ending Viktor Bout Story, I talk explicitly and extensively about the manufactured evidence and jurisdiction in this case.

Conduit to Viktor Bout

Andrew Smulian was born in Britain in 1941, he was raised in South Africa and served in its air force. Smulian a former South African pilot who also holds British citizenship eventually entered the world of intrigue and espionage. According to the New York Times in 1966, Smulian became a paid South African intelligence asset, using his air cargo company to spy on the military operations of nearby countries that opposed the apartheid regime.

Like in his testimony, Smulian often contradicted himself. Although by his own admission he was working for and supported South Africa’s apartheid regime, he latter denounced the ideology.

In a letter to the judge, Ms. Mulligan also said that although Mr. Smulian had worked for the South African government during apartheid, he “disavows the ideology of apartheid.”

It also came out in court during the testimony that Smulian was contacted by DEA informant Mike Snow whom was also a South African. Prior to contacting Smulian, Mike Snow was approached by the DEA and was asked to help them nab Viktor Bout. Snow agreed to cooperate and contacted Smulian.

Smulian first met Bout in the 1990′s and had assisted him in setting up air transportation hubs in various parts of Africa. The two had not met face-face for approximately ten years prior to their reunion in Moscow in early 2008. For the voluminous amount of evidence presented by the prosecutor’s during the trial especially all the taped phones conversations, during Smulian’s Moscow meetings, there were none. Just the word of Andrew Smulian of what was said in private between Viktor Bout and himself. There is a lot of controversy surrounding Smulian’s testimony, his motives and especially exactly when he was turned by the DEA and flipped on Viktor Bout.

Another excerpt from the previously mentioned NY Times article, the judge said:

“He was simply a financially vulnerable, out-of-work” air transporter who had known Mr. Bout, the judge said in court, and he had been used as a conduit for the government to catch the man it really wanted.

The Alleged Co-conspirator

Andrew Smulian was by far the key witness in the Viktor Bout trial and it is justifiable to say that he was the only witness that really mattered. According to a Wall Street Journal article titled, Prosecutors: Smulian Testimony ‘Crucial’ In Viktor Bout Conviction:

The testimony and assistance of a dual British-South African citizen was “crucial” in securing the conviction of notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout, prosecutors said in a court filing late Monday. Smulian’s lawyer, Mary E. Mulligan stated in the same article, “It was Mr. Smulian’s cooperation in the Bout prosecution that brought this to bear.”

The NY Times piece said this:

A prosecutor, Anjan Sahni, said Mr. Smulian’s cooperation “was indeed critical” in helping to refute Mr. Bout’s defense.

The question of motive was apparent. Smulian was broke and needed money. Dayan had shaken up Smulian quite a few times during his cross-examination. According to Dayan he was a liar. The following excerpts are from the NY Times article:

Mr. Bout’s defense lawyer, Albert Y. Dayan, in his summation at his client’s trial, called Mr. Smulian a liar who had become “intoxicated” with an arms deal that he saw as “his retirement plan.”

But in more recent years, Mr. Smulian’s business failed, and he became essentially a nomad, moving from one African country to another, living on the edge of society.

The judge also stated about Smulian:

“He was simply a financially vulnerable, out-of-work” air transporter who had known Mr. Bout, the judge said in court …”

The most shocking and telling testimony in my opinion is that Andrew Smulian admitted during testimony, on-record, to purchasing a one-way ticket to New York before he arrived or before Viktor Bout arrived in Bangkok, Thailand. The judge explained during the verdict that a conspiracy with a DEA agent and / or a DEA informant is by law not a conspiracy. Therefore, without the testimony of Andrew Smulian — there basically ain’t no case! Also, if the jury could have been convinced or if it was proven beyond a reasonable that Smulian turned on Viktor Bout before the Thailand meeting then case closed. That would deem Smulian a DEA informant and thus no conspiracy charge against Viktor Bout.

However, the real conspiracy was inside the court room and it was against Viktor Bout. You had highly paid DEA agents, DEA informants paid millions plus awaiting potential bonus’, all testifying against Bout. Mike Snow was paid, DEA informants Carlos and Ricardo were paid handsomely and Smulian was given his early freedom.

If you ignore that fact that Smulian had a one-way ticket purchased to New York prior to the arrest of Bout in Thailand, what about his intelligence background? Could he live in the same hotel room as a DEA informant, be constantly wire-tapped, given a tapped phone to use when he phone Bout and have no idea? To me it is unfathomable to imagine.

It is important to note as well, that Smulian met with the prosecutors approximately  fifty times in preparation for his testimony. As well as the fact that no part of his crucial testimony during his Moscow meetings with Viktor Bout can be verified. It is solely his word which if you read the entire transcripts of his testimony — simply does not hold water.

Lastly, it was proven in court testimony that the DEA informants were paid well, the DEA operation dubbed ‘Relentless’ spanned 3 continents and cost tax payers an estimated $500 million to pursue and catch Viktor Bout. It is also on court record that Smulian was old, broke and in ill-health when approached by DEA informant Mike Snow. For me, it is much more realistic and believable after sitting through the entire three week trial that Smulian flipped on Bout for money than to believe the nonsensical statements that don’t add up.

During the trial not once during Smulian’s appearances in the court room did he look at Viktor Bout directly over even in his vicinity. Smulian was also offered protection by the U.S. prosecutors. Smulian was apparently afraid of repercussions of his testimony, he will more than likely be offered entry into the witness protection program.

Mr. Smulian’s plea agreement states that if deemed necessary, prosecutors would takes steps to protect him and his family after his release from prison, including possibly applying for his entry into the witness protection program.

What is more intriguing than the anti-climatic sentencing of Andrew Smulian is that of the continuing curious case of Viktor Bout. There are apparently high level discussions between Washington D.C. and the Kremlin that resembles a champion chess tournament. Viktor Bout said in an exclusive interview by The Voice of Russia’s, Vasili V Sushko, via phone from prison in Brooklyn, that he will be back in Russia soon. That was approximately one month before President Putin was sworn in as President.

This article came out a few hours ago Bout Defense Prepares Extradition Request and Appeals. Apparently the only obstacle that may prevent Viktor Bout from possibly returning to his home in Russia to complete his prison sentence is a formal request to the Russian Ministry of Justice. According to Bout’s defense attorney Albert Y. Dayan, those legal procedures are currently taken place. This case has been anything but straight-forward or dull — stayed tuned for the unpredictable and intriguing case of Viktor Bout.

Here is an excerpt from the above mentioned article:

Viktor Bout, has started work on an appeal to Russian Ministry of Justice requesting his extradition from the U.S. as well as appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court and the International Court of Justice in the Hague, Bout’s lawyer Albert Dayan said.

This article was first published at Dobroyeutro’s Blog

Dobroyeutro Blog ~ News with intelligence ~ Dobroyeutro wants to share news with intelligence with our readers from around the world…to share our original articles and to encourage our readers to feel free to share their articles and ideas…to have a forum with interesting and intelligent topics in a polite and civil manner…

GIOIA TAURO – Europe is fast overtaking the U.S. as the leading destination for the world’s cocaine, and a single Italian mafia is largely responsible.

The ‚Ndrangheta crime syndicate, a ruthless and mysterious network of 155 families born in the rough hills here in southern Italy’s Calabria region, now dominates the European drug trade. By establishing direct ties with Colombian producers and building a multibillion-dollar empire that spans five continents, the syndicate has metamorphosed into one of the craftiest criminal gangs in the world, authorities say.

“ ‚Ndrangheta is king,“ said Sabas Pretelt de la Vega, a former Colombian interior minister who is his country’s ambassador to Rome.

The ‚Ndrangheta (pronounced en-DRAHN-geh-tah) peculiarly combines the modern skills of multinational-corporation high finance with a stubborn grip on archaic rural traditions. Some members live in garishly opulent villas outside Madrid and invest in bustling restaurants and hotels in Germany, whereas others, including key bosses, remain in the dreary, closed Calabrian mountain villages of their birth. It is a mafia of businessmen in Dolce & Gabbana, of sheepherders in scruffy woolens.

Its success stems from moving early and unwaveringly into cocaine trafficking while avoiding the kind of public limelight (and police crackdown) focused on its better-known Sicilian counterpart, the Mafia, or „Cosa Nostra.“

Working from „the toe of Italy’s boot,“ a region historically neglected and ignored, the ‚Ndrangheta maintains a hard-as-stone code of silence that repels most penetration efforts by police and other authorities. And because each family is a cell cooperating only loosely with other families and without a central hierarchy, the capture of a leader here or there does not even dent the organization.

Over the last two decades, the syndicate has deployed its members to strategic locations along trafficking and distribution routes, in Colombia and Venezuela, Canada, Africa, Spain and as far as Australia. It takes orders from buyers in Europe (including other mafiosi) and brokers deals with the suppliers in Colombia.

The ‚Ndrangheta gained the confidence of the Colombians, eliminated the middlemen and dealt as readily with the leftist guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, as with the right-wing paramilitaries of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, or AUC, two groups that exercise major control over cocaine production in Colombia.

The personal contact, the guarantee of secrecy and the reliability of the business transactions all have made the ‚Ndrangheta mobster an appealing partner for the Colombians.

„He is seen as a man of his word. He pays in cash. He pays immediately,“ said Renato Cortese, a regional commander of the state anti-mafia police. „And he never talks.“

Expanding market
For income, the ‚Ndrangheta has chosen a lucrative and expanding market.

By some estimates, including that of Pretelt de la Vega, the Colombian diplomat, the amount of cocaine being shipped to Europe exceeds that going to the United States, a reversal of the historical pattern. Italian authorities give lower figures, saying cocaine shipments are divided half-and-half between Europe and the United States, and U.S. officials cite older statistics that show more cocaine flowing to American shores.

Whatever the amounts, no one disputes that the cocaine market in the United States has stabilized, whereas that of Europe is growing. Seizures of cocaine in Europe have doubled in the last five years, although they remain a small portion of global interceptions, according to the latest report from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

Usage of cocaine in Europe, meanwhile, has skyrocketed, up by a million users last year, to 4.5 million continent-wide, according to the European Union’s drug-monitoring center in Lisbon. Leading the pack are Britain, Spain, Denmark and Italy.

„The decline in the United States is offset by alarming increases in some European countries,“ the U.N. said.

Although Cosa Nostra has dominated international headlines and popular culture for a generation, it has been eclipsed by its Calabrian counterpart in terms of power and wealth, said Nicola Gratteri, the region’s top anti-mafia prosecutor.

The ‚Ndrangheta, which is thought to have business assets worth at least $50 billion, grew as a protection racket in impoverished southern Italy after World War II and then began to make big money with kidnappings (including the abduction and grisly mutilation of the grandson of oil billionaire J. Paul Getty in 1973). The name comes from a Greek word meaning „virtue“ or „heroism.“

Eventually the group shifted to drugs and weapons trafficking, and by the ’90s was awash in cash, which it began laundering through real estate and other businesses.

A turning point
The fall of the Berlin Wall was a turning point, recalled Piero Grasso, Italy’s senior anti-mafia prosecutor. In conversations recorded by police, members of the Calabrian mob plotted a mad buying spree in the newly available former Soviet bloc. „Buy everything!“ was the watchword.

„And today they know no borders,“ Grasso said.

Here in Calabria, they also enjoy access to the Gioia Tauro port, one of the largest and busiest of the Mediterranean. Authorities say it is a transshipment point for unmeasured pounds of cocaine. Of the estimated 3,500 40-foot cargo containers that arrive daily, only about 25 are opened for inspection, so finding drugs is as much luck as skill, police say.

Suspicions were raised recently about a Uruguayan shipment to Greece marked „lemons.“ Why would a Mediterranean country like Greece need to import lemons from Uruguay? Inside a batch of rotting lemons, inspectors found 220 pounds of cocaine.

„Drugs are burying us,“ said Col. Francesco Gazzani, regional head of the Italian finance police.

In their investigations, Italian police and prosecutors working with Colombian, Spanish and U.S. authorities have recorded thousands of telephone calls and documented meetings and other communication between the ‚Ndrangheta and Colombian traffickers.

In one photographed surveillance stakeout, four people from Latin America and Calabria can be seen sitting in broad daylight at one of Milan’s most fashionable outdoor cafes, against a backdrop of rose-colored marble columns and the Duomo cathedral. They discuss a cocaine deal, then one of them casually walks to a nearby pay phone and places the order.

In another surveillance, a suspected ‚Ndrangheta gangster telephones a number in Colombia, a person with a Calabrian accent answers and then simply whistles, and the caller says, „I understand.“ Authorities say it was a signal that a shipment had departed.

One of the strongest links between the ‚Ndrangheta and the Colombians, investigators say, was Roberto Pannunzi, an alleged mafia chieftain who was one of the top cocaine brokers in the syndicate when he was arrested in 2004 as part of Operation Zappa, a five-year investigation named after a gangster code word for „gun.“

„Every important criminal figure went to him,“ said Diego Trotta, a member of an elite police squad that captured Pannunzi.

Pannunzi, 59, married his son Alessandro into a notorious family from Colombia’s Medellin cartel as a way to cement the bonds. At the height of his activities, authorities say, he was buying 3,300 to 4,400 pounds of cocaine a month. He boasted of the ease and confidence with which he handled his Colombian suppliers.

„The fact is, Barba [a Colombian trafficker] will give us everything without even a lira,“ Pannunzi told alleged ‚Ndrangheta operative Paolo Sergi, the target of another long-running probe, according to a confidential wiretap made available to The Times.

„What do you think — is the same amount available like the last time, or maybe less?“ Pannunzi’s interlocutor wonders.

„Barba, at least, told me that he has 3 million [3,000 kilograms, or 6,600 pounds, of cocaine] and I’m thinking 500 or 700,“ Pannunzi responds, using a numeric code for the price.

A beefy man with dark wavy hair, Pannunzi amassed such an enormous fortune, investigators say, that he at one point simply threw away millions of dollars worth of liras because the bills had been stacked so high and for so long that they became moldy.

Back to ancestral home
Perhaps one of the most surprising features of the ‚Ndrangheta is that despite its fortunes, its members always come back to their ancestral home in Calabria, almost as a spiritual touchstone. Though they form clones of their home villages the world over, an internal code obliges them to report back to the mother ship, said Gratteri, the top regional ant-mafia prosecutor.

„You have to look at what this place gives them. Each top ‚Ndranghista is an emperor,“ said Gratteri, whose work has earned him round-the-clock bodyguards and transport in an armored car.

„He has the perverse pleasure to be able to decide the life or death of 3,000, 5,000, maybe 10,000 people. He decides who lives. He decides who is going to be mayor. He decides who is going to win the state contracts. For the perverse mind, this is very gratifying.“

Each family assigns a member to a certain criminal enterprise; if a son is good in math, he might get the loan-shark business, whereas an engineer would handle the acquisition of lucrative state building contracts, a major area of corruption.

The tightness of the family network also has thwarted efforts by authorities to infiltrate the crime gang. Several years ago, when the government offered reduced jail time to mafiosi who would inform on their cohorts, hundreds of Cosa Nostra operatives ‚fessed up. But only a few people associated with the ‚Ndrangheta agreed to become turncoats, and most of these were such minor figures that they had little to offer.

„Every clan is a little Sparta,“ militarized and willing to fight to the end, often egged on by the women of the family, said anti-mafia prosecutor Alberto Cisterna.

Through the years, most killings by the ‚Ndrangheta have been the result of internal feuds or have targeted relatively low-level officials, inspiring little public outrage. That changed last summer with a bloody ambush outside a pizzeria in Duisburg, Germany. At least two gunmen from one ‚Ndrangheta family killed six members of a rival clan, shocking Italians and Germans because of the brutality of the attack and the extent to which the mafia had settled in Germany.

The slayings were the latest explosion of a long-running internal feud that had at its root a power struggle over territory and business, investigators say.

In the more than four months since the Duisburg massacre, Italian and German police have arrested about 40 suspected mobsters, men and women. But no one has any illusions that this represents a setback for the Calabrian mafia.

“ ‚Ndrangheta are the leader in Europe when it comes to trafficking cocaine,“ Gratteri said, „and their trafficking is getting stronger all the time.“

Daniele Mariani – Swissinfo – Die kriminellen italienischen Organisationen, namentlich die ‚Ndrangheta, sind zuoberst auf der Sorgenliste der Schweizer Regierung. Einige Experten sind jedoch der Ansicht, die Schweiz sei schlecht gerüstet für den Kampf gegen die Mafia.

„Die grösste Gefahr stellt die ‚Ndrangheta dar.“ Das ist das klare Fazit der Schweizer Strategie zur Bekämpfung des organisierten Verbrechens 2012-2015, welche der Bundesrat Ende März 2012 bekanntgab.

Auch wenn keine schweren Bluttaten wie jene im deutschen Duisburg 2007 (Ermordung von sechs Kalabresen) registriert wurden, sind die ‚Ndrine – die Zellen – in der Schweiz bereits gut installiert.

Für die Fachleute ertönt die Alarmglocke der Schweizer Regierung nicht überraschend. Denn seit Jahren betonen Justizbehörden, Polizei und einige Politiker, dass die italienischen Mafia-Organisationen ihre Präsenz in der Schweiz verstärken.

Eine echte physische Präsenz, die sich akzentuiert hat infolge des Drucks auf die Mafia in Italien und durch die „Eroberung“ des Nordens, bestätigt durch die kürzlich erfolgte Verhaftungswelle in der Lombardei.

Zahlreiche Beweise und Indizien
Beweise und Indizien für diese Präsenz in der Schweiz sind vorhanden: Im Mai 2011 wurde zum Beispiel ein gefährliches ‚Ndrangheta-Mitglied, das ungestört in Frauenfeld, Kanton Thurgau, lebte, in Genua festgenommen.

Wenige Monate zuvor hatte die Antimafia-Behörde von Reggio Calabria am Ende ihrer Operation ‚Crimine 2‘ die internationale Vernetzung der kalabresischen Zellen aufgezeigt, mit wichtigen Ablegern in Deutschland und auch in der Schweiz, besonders in Frauenfeld und in Zürich. „An diesen Orten wurde das Strukturmodell der kalabresischen ‚Ndrangheta nachgebildet“, schrieb der italienische Ermittlungsrichter.

Die aufgezeichneten Abhöraktionen in den Ermittlungsakten lassen keine Zweifel offen. Zum Beispiel in einem Telefongespräch, das auf einen so genannten „‚Ntono dalla Svizzera“ anspielt, der den im Juli 2010 in Italien verhafteten Clanchef Giuseppe Antonio Primerano ersucht hat, seine eigene Herrschaft auch in Deutschland und später in der Schweiz ausüben zu können.

Oder als Domenico Oppedisano – der Boss der Bosse, der ebenfalls im Juli 2010 festgenommen wurde – von einer „Bürgschaft von 20 Millionen auf einer Bank in der Schweiz“ spricht.

Aus naheliegenden geografischen Gründen erregt die Situation vor allem in den Kantonen Tessin und Wallis Besorgnis, wie Jean-Luc Vez in einem Interview mit der Waadtländer Zeitung 24 heures erklärte. Der Chef der Bundespolizei, verantwortlich für die Untersuchungen gegen kriminelle italienische Organisationen, wollte sich jedoch nicht zu den laufenden Ermittlungen äussern.

Die Schweiz werde von den Mafiosi besonders geschätzt „wegen ihrer Wirtschaft und ihrem Finanzplatz, ebenso wegen ihrer Infrastruktur“, sagt die Bundesanwaltschaft.

Die Schweiz sei eine Art logistische Plattform, wo man Geld waschen könne, und zwar nicht nur via Banken und Treuhänder, sondern auch mit Investitionen in Immobilien.

Oder ein Ort, wo man illegalen Handel aufziehen oder Unterschlupf suchen könne: „2010 wurden viele Angehörige von kriminellen italienischen Organisationen, darunter der ‚Ndrangheta, in ihr Heimatland ausgeliefert, wo sie bereits zu langen Haftstrafen verurteilt worden sind“, heisst es im Jahresbericht der Bundespolizei.

„Einige von ihnen hatten auch in der Schweiz Straftaten begangen, vor allem Drogenhandel. Andere dagegen haben während langer Zeit eine normale Arbeit in der Schweiz ausgeführt, ohne aufzufallen.“

Besser spät als nie
Schon vor 25 Jahren hatte der Antimafia-Richter Giovanni Falcone seine Schweizer Amtskollegen davor gewarnt, dass nach den Mafia-Geldern auch die Mafiosi selber ins Land kämen.

Ist man in der Schweiz nicht etwas spät erwacht? Die Bundesanwaltschaft weist darauf hin, dass seit 1994 – mit der Aufnahme ins Strafrecht des Deliktes „Beteiligung oder Unterstützung einer kriminellen Organisation“ – die Strafmassnahmen auf Bundesebene koordiniert würden. Und seit 10 Jahren läge die Verfahrenskompetenz bei der Bundesanwaltschaft.

„Besser spät als nie“, sagt dazu Nicolas Giannakopoulos, Gründer des Observatoriums für organisierte Kriminalität in Genf. „Endlich hat man sich entschieden, den Stier bei den Hörnern zu packen. Jetzt muss man schauen, wie das Problem angegangen werden kann. Je mehr man zaudert, desto schwieriger wird es, eine Spur zu verfolgen. Das einzige Mittel wäre, viel enger mit den italienischen Behörden zusammenzuarbeiten, denn alles beginnt in Italien und kommt wieder nach Italien zurück.“

Ausreichende Mittel?
Ein erster Schritt in diese Richtung war die Ernennung von Bundesanwalt Pierluigi Pasi, der in Lugano residiert, zum Koordinator für Antimafia-Aktionen.

„Wir verfügen über ausreichende Mittel“, sagt die Bundesanwaltschaft. Sie betont, dass die Schaffung dieser neuen Funktion „ein konkretes Beispiel“ sei, das den Willen zur Optimierung der Ressourcen und zur Koordinierung der Ermittlungen mit den italienischen Untersuchungsbehörden beweise. Eine Zusammenarbeit, die der italienische Antimafia-Generalstaatsanwalt Pietro Grasso in einem Interview mit der Tribune de Genève als „exzellent“ bezeichnete.

Oft wird das föderalistische System der Schweiz als wenig geeignet zur Bekämpfung solcher Delikte angesehen. Die präzise Aufgabenteilung zwischen Bund und Kantonen, die zum Beispiel die Bekämpfung des Drogenhandels den kantonalen Polizeibehörden und die Untersuchungen gegen das organisierte Verbrechen und die Geldwäscherei der Bundespolizei zuweist, sei zweifelsohne ein Hindernis, sagen Experten, die anonym bleiben wollen. Im allgemeinen funktioniere aber die Kooperation, auch wenn alles natürlich von den betroffenen Personen abhänge.

Die Schwierigkeit sei eine andere, so die Fachleute. Die Untersuchungen – an und für sich schon sehr komplex, wenn es um extrem undurchlässige Organisationen wie die ‚Ndrangheta gehe – würden noch schwieriger wegen der Einschränkungen bei gewissen Ermittlungsmethoden, wie Abhöraktionen, Beschattungen oder Eindringen in Informatiksysteme. Es nützte nicht viel, wenn diese Methoden erst dann verwendet werden könnten, wenn Beweise vorlägen.

Nach Italien ausrichten
Nicolas Giannakopoulos teilt die Analyse: „Alles ist sehr kompliziert, mit extremen Verfahrensaspekten, wie die jüngsten Fälle zeigen. Wir müssen uns von Italien inspirieren lassen, zum Beispiel was Massnahmen betrifft wie Vermögens- und Güterbeschlagnahmung, die sehr gut funktionieren, oder die Schaffung von dichten Antimafia-Spezialpools. Die Rechtsstruktur der Schweiz ist dazu ungeeignet. Um die Mafia zu bekämpfen, funktionieren Methoden nicht, die gegen Hühnerdiebe angewendet werden.“

Eine Beurteilung, die manche sicher zu karikaturartig finden. Die Bundesanwaltschaft ist der Meinung, dass die derzeitigen gesetzlichen Bestimmungen ausreichende Möglichkeiten garantieren, um das organisierte Verbrechen zu bekämpfen.

Eine Aufgabe, die der im September 2011 nominierte neue Leiter der Bundesanwaltschaft, Michael Lauber, bestens kennt. Er leitete von 1995 bis 2000 die Zentralstelle Organisierte Kriminalität im Bundesamt für Polizei. Ein weiteres Signal dafür, dass die Schweizer Regierung wirklich gewillt ist, das Problem bei den Hörnern zu packen.

onlineredaktion – In April 2009, Carabinieri officers presented the results of „Operation Viola“ conducted in cooperation with the Dutch police and Nigerian, Turkish, Bulgarian, and Colombian authorities.

It resulted in 49 arrests and continuing investigations of 13 other individuals on charges of trafficking in drugs and human beings. The investigation, launched in 2007, revealed the existence of a well-structured organization based in Castel Volturno, a town in the Campania region, which smuggled hundreds of Nigerian women through Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Togo to Holland.

Victims were obliged to request asylum and then to move to Italy, France, and Spain, where they were put under control of „mamans“ and forced into prostitution. The criminals also traded in Cocaine and Heroin produced in Turkey and Colombia, and
obliged the girls to act as drug traffickers and dealers.

Dr. Alexander von Paleske — 7.4. 2012 —
Der russische Waffenhändler Viktor Bout wurde vorgestern von einem US-Gericht zu einer Freiheitsstrafe von 25 Jahren verurteilt.

Viktor Bout – Screenshot: Dr. v. Paleske

Angeklagt war Bout wegen des Verkaufs eines umfangreichen Waffenarsenals an die linksgerichteten FARC- Guerillas in Kolumbien.

Bout erhielt zudem in drei weiteren Anklagepunkten jeweils 15 Jahre Haft. Bouts Anwalt kündigte an, das Urteil anfechten zu wollen.

Kein Verfahren wegen Verbrechens gegen die Menschlichkeit
Die schweren Verbrechen Bouts waren aber nicht in Kolumbien, im „Hinterhof“ der USA, begangen worden, sondern im Wesentlichen in Afrika, und die ohnehin vor den internationalen Gerichtshof gehört hätten, aber das wollten die USA unter allen Umständen verhindern. Denn vor dem internationalen Gerichtshof wäre noch wesentlich mehr zur Sprache gekommen: z.B. dass die USA eng mit Viktor Bout bei den Nachschublieferungen in den Irak und Afghanistan zusammengearbeitet hatten, während Bout gleichzeitig die Bürgerkriege, vor allem in Zentral- und Westafrika, am Laufen hielt.

Ein Blick zurück
Nach dem Zerfall der Sowjetunion begann Viktor Bout seine Transportgeschäfte von Ostende aus. Er versorgte die belgischen UN-Truppen in Somalia. Nachdem dieses Geschäft mit dem Ende des UN-Einsatzes vorbei war, versorgte er die Regierung Burhanuddin Rabbani in Afghanistan mit Waffen.

Nachdem dieser von den Taliban verjagt worden war, wurde Bout deren Waffenlieferant und natürlich auch für Al Qaida.
Er lieferte nicht nur Waffen, sondern organisierte von seiner neuen Basis Sharjah in den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten regelmäßige Charterflüge für Terror-Touristen nach Afghanistan.

Mit dem Einmarsch der USA und ihrer Verbündeten in den Irak und Afghanistan eröffneten sich für Bout sogleich neue Geschäftsfelder: Die Kunden wechselten, aber er blieb im Geschäft..
Seine Flotte von 50 klapprigen russischen Flugzeugen, die dort landen und starten konnten, wo es mit anderen Maschinen zu Bruchlandungen gekommen wäre, operierte unter Liniennamen wie Air Bas, Air Moldavia, Air Pass, Centafrican, Ducor World Airlines, Regional International Air Services, Transmoldavia, Air Moldavia,Cargo Airlifts, Air Cess, British Gulf, San Air, Aerocom und andere.

Bis zum Ende 2004 wickelte er mit seinem Transportunternehmen etwa 1000 Flüge ab – gegen Bares aus dem US Staatssäckel versteht sich.
Verständlich, dass dies alles in dem Prozess in den USA nicht zur Sprache kam.

Bout und die Globalisierung
Aber Bout war, wie es sich für einen modernen Geschäftsmann gehört, global tätig und sein Hauptgeschäftsgebiet war Afrika mit seinen vielen Konflikten. Seine Hauptkunden in den 90er Jahren waren Charles Taylor in Liberia und Jonas Savimbi (Unita) in Angola.
Die an Charles Taylor gelieferten Waffen wurden an die Kindersoldaten in Sierra Leone weitergereicht, die unfassbare Verbrechen begingen: Neben dem Morden und Vergewaltigungen von Zivilisten auch das Abhacken von Armen oder Beinen. Aber die Liste seiner Kunden ist länger. Details siehe hier.

Waffen- Lieferungen wie beim Versandhandel
Bouts Geschäftsgeheimnis war es, alles nur Vorstellbare zu liefern. Vom Helikopter bis zum Maschinengewehr vor die Haustür, kein Wunsch blieb offen, ähnlich wie beim Versandhandel. Wofür andere Waffenhändler Monate brauchten, erledigte der ehemalige KGB-Offizier dank seiner KGB- Kontakte und Luftflotte in maximal zwei Wochen. Er war sozusagen der „all inclusive man“. Dafür nahm er nicht nur Bares, sondern auch Diamanten, die er dann wieder über sein Netzwerk losschlagen konnte.

Neben den alten KGB-Kontakten waren es auch die Waffenarsenale des ehemaligen Warschauer Paktes, die ihm hilfreich zur Seite standen

Sanjivan Ruprah, Bouts rechte Hand
Viktor Bouts rechte Hand war ein Kenianer namens Sanjivan Ruprah. Der organisierte nicht nur helfend den Waffenhandel, sondern schlug auch Diamanten los, die Bout als Bezahlung für seine Waffen bekommen hatte.

Sanjivan Ruprah

Aber Ruprah war vielseitiger: Er leitete auch die Firma Branch Energy in Kenia, die dem einstigen Obersöldner Tony Buckingham gehörte, jetzt Chef der britisch- kanadischen Ölfirma Heritage Oil, über den wir bereits mehrfach berichtet hatten.

1999 wurde er ausserdem noch von Liberias Diktator Charles Taylor autorisiert, als globaler Repräsentant für die liberianische Civil Aviation Regulatory Authority und für das liberianische Schiffsregister tätig zu werden, und reiste in der Welt umher mit einem liberianischen Diplomatenpass auf den Namen Samir M. Nasr.

Selbstverständlich war er weiter im Waffenhandel tätig, zusammen mit dem ehemaligen Executive Outcomes– Söldner Roelf van Heerden.

Söldner und Waffenhändler Roelf van Heerden (im Vordergrund) mit Executive Outcomes in Angola

Im Februar 2002 wurde Ruprah in Belgien wegen Unterstützung einer kriminellen Vereinigung, Passfälschung pp. verhaftet. Er bot sich sofort dem US-Geheimdienst CIA als Informant an, wurde daraufhin gegen Kaution auf freien Fuss gesetzt, und tauchte unter.
Im August 2002 wurde er in Italien erneut verhaftet, und wiederum unter Auflagen auf freien Fuss gesetzt. Seitdem ist er verschwunden.

Er dürfte weiter seinen Geschäften, insbesondere dem illegalen Diamantenhandel nachgehen.

Grössere internationale Bemühungen, dieses Verbrechers habhaft zu werden, sind nicht zu erkennen.
Solange er sich nicht – anders als Bout – per Waffenlieferungen in den US-„Hinterhöfen“ zu schaffen macht, oder Al Qaida unterstützt, hat er offenbar nichts zu befürchten.

Das hätte letztlich auch für Bout gegolten, wenn……

Viktor Bout in den USA vor Gericht oder: Wenn ein Waffenhändler über einen anderen Waffenhändler zu Gericht sitzt” <br
Viktor Bout – Auslieferung in die USA?
Viktor Bout, Afrikas “Merchant of Death”
Scheinheilig? USA verlangen Auslieferung von Viktor Bout
Conflicts in Africa – Millions suffered, a few became millionaires, one of them: Viktor Bout (Butt)
Söldner, Gauner, Waffen und Rohstoffe
Ugandas Ölfunde: Söldner fördern es, die Amerikaner kaufen es.

Kokain, Kindersoldaten und Killerkommandos – auf den Spuren des Waffenhändlers Yair Klein.
Was macht eigentlich……….der internationale Waffenhändler Yair Klein
.
Angolagate in Frankreich – Geldgier, Geschütze und Granaten

Zum Ölbaron Tony Buckingham
Tony Buckingham: Afrika-Söldner, Ölsucher und nun ugandischer Steuerbetrüger?
Tony Buckingham – Ein britischer Afrika-Söldner wird Milliardär
Ugandas Ölfunde: Söldner fördern es, die Amerikaner kaufen es.

Zum Söldnerunwesen und Executive Outcomes mit weiteren Quellen:
Kampf gegen somalische Piraten – nun mit Söldnern

Dr. Alexander von Paleske — 27.3. 2012 —
Gestern kam über den Ticker die Meldung, die Mailänder Filiale der US-Grossbank JP Morgan werde die Konten der Vatikanbank , die sich den etwas irreführenden Namen Institut für christliche Werke (IOR)</i> zugelegt hat, ab Ende März sperren.
.
.Auf der hohen Kante dieser in ihren Geschäften sehr weltlichen Bank befinden sich umgerechnet schlappe 5 Milliarden US-Dollar- für wohltätige Zwecke versteht sich.

Hintergrund einer unchristlichen Massnahme
Der Hintergrund für diese unchristliche Massname der US Bank:

– Verdacht auf Geldwäsche

– Verdacht auf Finanzierung dubioser Unternehmungen .

Auffällig war: Das auf das Vatikanbank-Konto eingezahlte Geld wurde oft genug – zu oft – binnen 24 Stunden wieder von dort weitergeleitet, wie bei einem Durchlauferhitzer. Also die übliche Chose der Geldwäsche. Der Zweck solcher Transaktionen: Den Einzahler zu verschleiern, und Spuren zu verwischen.

Alles schon mal dagewesen
Das alles hat es bei der Vatikanbank schon in den 70er und 80er Jahren gegeben, und endete in einem Riesenskandal, in dem vom Mord über Herbeiführen einer Bombenexplosion, Betrug, betrügerischer Bankrott, Verschwörung grössten Stils, Börsenmanupulation und Drogenhandel bzw. Finanzierung der und Geldwäsche für die Mafia alles vorhanden war. Die Vatikanbank mittendrin.

Ein Blick zurück oder: Die Katze lässt das Mausen nicht?
Die Hauptakteure in diesem Skandal waren

Michele Sindona, Rechtsanwalt sizilianischer Herkunft, eng mit der sizilianischen Mafia, der Cosa Nostra verbunden, aber ebenso in den Anfangsjahren mit dem US-Geheimdienst CIA. Später wegen betrügerischen Bankrotts verhaftet. Zog die Fäden im Hintergrund, machte Calvi mit dem Vatikanbankchef Marcinkus bekannt und dirigierte aus dem Hintergrund die betrügerischen Transaktionen.

Michele Sindona …..Mafia-Rechtsanwalt, Geldwäscher, Banken-Bankrotteur und Strippenzieher.

Roberto Calvi, Banker der später in Konkurs gegangenen Banco Ambrosiano, die eng mit der Vatikanbank zusammenarbeitete und wo der Betrug und die Geldwäsche sozusagen zum Tagesgeschäft gehörten.

Roberto Calvi……..täglich Betrug und Geldwäsche

Licio Gelli, ehemaliges Mitglied der Jugendorganisation der italienischen Faschisten, und der dieser braunen Gesinnung im Prinzip treu geblieben ist.

Gelli war der führende Kopf der grössten Verschwörergruppe Italiens in den 70er und 80er Jahre, auch er in der Anfangszeit vom CIA finanziert.

Licio Gelli …machte aus der Loge P2 eine rechtsradikale terroristische Vereinigung

Diese Verschwörergruppe firmierte als Freimaurerloge mit dem Namen P2 (Propaganda Due). Mitglieder waren: sämtliche Führungsoffiziere der Geheimdienste Italiens, 44 Parlamentsabgeordnete des Mitte-Rechts Spektrums, hochrangige Militärs (über 50 Generäle und Admiräle), hochrangige Angehörige der Justiz, katholische Kardinäle und Bischöfe und leitende Geschäftsleute, darunter auch der spätere Regierungschef Silvio (Bunga Bunga) Berlusconi – und natürlich Roberto Calvi und Michele Sindona

Zusammengehalten wurde dieser Verschwörerhaufen, auf dessen Konto unter anderem auch ein Bombenanschlag auf den Hauptbahnhof Bolognas mit 85 Toten und 200 Verletzten geht, , durch den fanatischen Antikommunismus.
Gelli teilte mit, wann und gegen wen ermittelt wurde, und war vermutlich indirekt auch an der Ermordung des Ermittlungsrichters Emilio Alessandrini beteiligt, der das Verfahren gegen die Banco Ambrosiano führte.

Emilio Alessandrini ….ermittelte gegen die Finanzgangster und wurde ermordet.

Grabstein

– Ebenso an der Ermordung des Rechtsanwalts Giorgio Ambrosoli

Giorgio Ambrosoli

– an der Ermordung des Journalisten Carmine (Mino) Pecorelli.

Carmine Pecorelli

– und an der Ermordung des Polizeidirektors Boris Giuliano

Boris Giuliano

Ein Banker namens Erzbischof Marcinkus
Auf der Seite des Vatikans führte der Erzbischof Paul Casimir Marcinkus die (kriminellen) Geschäfte, in enger Zusammenarbeit mit dem Banker der Banco Ambrosiano, Roberto Calvi, der nach dem Zusammenbruch der Bank von der Mafia ermordet,und an einer Brücke über der Themse aufgehängt gefunden wurde.

Paul Casimir Marcinkus …..Papst Johannes Paul I wollte ihn rauswerfen, sein Nachfolger, Johannes Paul II (hier ebenfalls im Bild) hielt ihn im Amt.

Die Vatikanbank musste schliesslich an die Gläubiger der zusammengebrochenen Banco Ambrosiano zahlen.

Es würde zu weit führen, hier noch einmal die ganzen Details auszubreiten.

Aber die Geschichte scheint sich offenbar jetzt zu wiederholen.

Wie gehabt
Erst vor wenigen Tagen hatten die US-Behörden den Heiligen Stuhl auf eine Liste von Staaten gesetzt, die wegen des Verdachts auf Geldwäsche beobachtet werden.

Erstmals taucht der Heilige Stuhl im jährlichen Strategiebericht des US-Außenministeriums zum Kampf gegen Drogenkriminalität auf. Der aktuelle Report bemängelt, dass sich der Heilige Stuhl an bestimmten internationalen Abkommen nicht, oder nur unter Vorbehalt beteiligt.

Herausgekommen ist das Ganze durch eine offenbar undichte Stelle im Vatikan selbst, die immer neue peinliche Details mitzuteilen weiss, und unter dem Namen „Vatileaks“ läuft.

Schon einmal wollte ein Papst einen Saustall von Vatikanbank ausmisten, und den seinerzeitigen Vatikanbankchef Erzbischof Marcinkus rauswerfen.
Sein Name: Papst Johannes Paul I. Er war nur 33 Tage im Amt, und starb am 28.9.1978.. Hartnäckig hielten sich Gerüchte, er sei ermordet worden. Feinde hatte er jedenfalls genug, einer davon war der Erzbischof Marcinkus.

Zur Verbindung Banco Ambrosiano und Deutsche Börse-Tochter Clearstream

David gegen Goliath: Französischer Journalist Denis Robert obsiegt im Verfahren wegen übler Nachrede gegen die Deutsche Börse-Tochter Clearstream.

Berlusconi und die Mafia
Berlusconi, die Mafia und ein Gerichtsurteil

Zur Mafia in Deutschland
Die Mafia, die ZEIT und ein ehemaliger Generalstaatsanwalt
Justiz in der Krise oder Krisenjustiz?

Dr. Alexander von Paleske — 20.3. 2012 —
Es sind Berichte, die aus den finstersten Zeiten Hitler-Deutschlands mit Menschenversuchen, Zwangssterilisationen und Zwangsadoptionen stammen könnten, aber sie kommen aus der sogenannten „zivilisierten Welt“, und die Vorkommnisse liegen noch gar nicht so lange zurück: Aus der Zeit nach dem zweiten Weltkrieg bis in die 70er Jahre reichend.

Wir hatten hier bereits über die Kinderdeportationen von Grossbritannien nach Australien berichtet,, ebenso über die Schicksale der sogenannten Verdingkinder in der Schweiz.

Gemeinsam war allen Betroffenen, dass ihre Jugend durch Sklavenarbeit und / oder Missbrauch nach mehr oder weniger gewaltsamer Trennung von ihren Müttern bzw. Eltern zerstört worden war. Eine Zerstörung, die nicht selten den gesamten weiteren Lebensweg nachteilig beeinflusste: mit Identitätskrisen, Depressionen, bis hin zum Selbstmord.
.

In den letzten Tagen und Wochen gab es neue Skandalberichte.

Menschenversuche mit Parasiten, „Behandlung“ mit Tierarzneien in Österreich
An österreichischen Heimkindern wurden kriminelle medizinische Experimente durchgeführt, die an die Menschenversuche des KZ-Arztes „Dr“. Josef Mengele erinnern:

– In der Wiener Universitätsklinik wurden offenbar Dutzende von Heimkindern absichtlich mit Krankheitserregern infiziert, um sie dann als menschliches Erregerreservoir zu benutzen. Vorwiegend handelte es sich bei den Erregern um Malaria-Parasiten, die eine lebensgefährliche Infektionskrankheit verursachen..

– Onanierenden Kindern wurde das in der Tiermedizin zur Brunftunterdrückung eingesetzte Epiphysan gespritzt.

– Zur Ruhigstellung wurde die Bestrahlung mit Röntgenstrahlen eingesetzt.

Niederlande: Kastration als „Heilmittel“ gegen Homosexualität
In den Niederlanden wurden in den 50er Jahren Jugendliche in katholischen Krankenhäusern zwangskastriert, um sie von ihrer „abartigen krankhaften homosexuellen Neigung zu heilen“.

Parallel dazu wurden in katholischen Einrichtungen seit 1946 Zehntausende Kinder sexuell missbraucht, wie ein niederländischer Untersuchungsbericht feststellte. Einige der Missbrauchsopfer seien dann angeblich von Priestern getötet worden.

Zwangsadoptionen in Australien
In Australien, das sich ebenfalls der zivilisierten Welt zugehörig glaubt, wurden, wie ein Senatsbericht feststellt, Tausende Neugeborene den nicht verheirateten Müttern gegen deren Willen – oder zumindest ohne deren Zustimmung – weggenommen und zur Adoption freigegeben.

Die Praxis hielt sich bis in die 70er Jahre.

Die australische Zentralregierung, und die einzelnen Landesregierungen, die für diesen menschenverachtenden Skandal verantwortlich zeichneten, ebenfalls die katholische Kirche, haben nun die Opfer um Verzeihung gebeten.

Deutschland: Vollpumpen mit Psychopharmaka
In Deutschland wiederum sollen angeblich verhaltensauffällige Heimkinder mit Psychopharmaka vollgestopft worden sein, ohne dass dies in den Akten vermerkt worden war.
Man muss sich fragen, was zukünftig noch an derartigen menschenverachtenden Scheusslichkeiten ans Tageslicht gebracht wird.

Es ist zu hoffen, dass die Opfer derartiger krimineller Machenschaften -soweit sie noch leben – wenigstens eine materielle Wiedergutmachung erhalten.

Verdingkinder – Oder: Wie die Schweiz Kinder ihren Eltern wegnahm und versklavte
Oranges and Sunshine – oder: verlorene Kindheit. Schockierende Kinderemigration aus England

Bitterer Kakao oder: Wieviel Kinderarbeit steckt in der süssen Schokolade?

Zu den Missbrauchsfällen in Deutschland
Die Presse und die Missbrauchsfälle in Schulen und Internaten

Zur Medizin im 3.Reich
Medizin unter dem Hakenkreuz – späte Aufarbeitung – oder: Die Mörder waren lange unter uns

George Mapp In an article that I just wrote yesterday titled, The Half-Truths and Missing Facts of Disarming Viktor Bout: The Chichakli – Schmidle Files, I mentioned that I haphazardly came across a ‘Pandora’s Box’.

I initially merely intended to write an article about a few inaccuracies in Nick Schmidle’s latest piece in The New Yorker, titled Disarming Viktor Bout. After I was contacted by Richard Chichakli about the many inaccuracies and half-truths based on their extensive email discourse as well as a query from another international journalist, I began to delved deeper into the truth. As I dug deeper I learned many more interesting pieces of the puzzle but at the same time it seemed that the puzzle also grew larger and became much harder to solve. Here is what I discovered.

Bad Journalist or Propagandist?

Last Sunday Richard Chichakli mentioned in one of his emails (quoted below), that he had nothing against Schmidle personally, he understood that he had editors and / or an agenda. I agreed with Richard Chichakli that Schmidle skewed the article as per his instructions but finding out whom instructed him was my ultimate objective. I initially had just a few minor queries in regards to Schmidle’s article. After I forwarded the [PDF] of his article to several associates, colleagues, journalists and other interested parties, my in box became quite active. Before I delved deeper into Schmidle’s background, I didn’t think that much about the questions and inaccuracies that I had found in his article. In fact, having met and spoken to Nick Schmidle on several occasions during the trial, I contacted him about my concerns regarding his article directly.

Here is my email to him:

Do you care to comment on my article that I am writing?

Dear Mr. Schmidle, I am writing a new article on Viktor Bout.

I would greatly appreciate any comments or clarification in your article that appeared in The New Yorker.

For isntance you quoted, “The U.S. allows federal agents to entice foreigners overseas into breaking American laws, and then capture them. It is one of only a few countries to do so.”

Can you please tell me other countries that you are aware of besides the United States as you mentioned there are a few, or at least one other country?

Also would you care to comment or name your source on the following quote: “After more than two years of legal wrangling, the Thai court approved Bout’s extradition.”

I do have sourced contradictory info regarding this topic that will appear in my article.

And finally, would you care to comment on why you would choose to interview or quote Stephen Braun and / or his relevancy? Unlike you or me, and Daniel Estulin as well as several others, Stephen Braun has never met nor interviewed Viktor Bout.

Thank you for your time and cooperation regarding this matter.

Have a wonderful day! Best regards, George Mapp

To his credit, Mr. Schmidle replied extremely promptly and politely. He pointed out that he had in fact not spoken to Stephen Braun and simply did not answer any other questions. I do admit it was extremely late when I read the article but the fact that he had quoted and / or referenced Stephen Braun [see correction below] shot out at me like a flare on a moonless night.

Correction:

As I mentioned above it was extremely late when I read Schmidles’s piece. I accidentally confused the Brauns’ in the article. I apologize for any misunderstanding or confusion that this might have caused. I retract any reference to Stephen Braun being mentioned in Nick Schmidle’s piece that appeared in The New Yorker. It was in fact Michael Braun, the DEA’s former director of operations that was mentioned in his article. I am extremely proud that this is the first time that I have ever made a correction or retraction in any article that I have written! And I will gladly do so again immediately if I unknowingly print or write something that proves to be false.

As I my originally intention was to re-read Schmidle’s article and pick it apart, the truth of the matter was that I didn’t feel that it was worthy of my time. As Richard Chichakli, several other journalist’s as well as the dozen or so other articles saying that Schmidle was dishonest in his Navy SEALs take down of Osama bin Laden, including former CIA agent Larry Johnson, the direction of my article shifted. As I retracted the paragraph about Stephen Braun, it was only a small fraction of the article and doesn’t take away from all of the other stated facts nor shift or change any of my conclusions and opinions.

Now, getting back to my email with Schmidle. I will not go to great lengths in proving this quote by Schmidle was inaccurate, “After more than two years of legal wrangling, the Thai court approved Bout’s extradition.” After I clarify that this quote by Schmidle is false, I will not say too much more about him but mostly let others do the talking for me.

In regards to the extradition, the truth of the matter is that because Viktor Bout had a pending legal appeal within the Royal Thai court which the court proceedings would take some time to be completed, and by Thai law, Viktor’s extradition request would expire on 20 November 2011, thus making him a free man. Therefore, to avoid ‘by any means necessary’ Viktor Bout walking out of Thai prison a free man on 20 November 2011, the DEA kidnapped him on 16 November 2011.

It is important to note that those who are not familiar with the Thai proceedings, the U.S. had a lot of difficulties, setbacks and losses. It was not a cake walk by any means, Bout was in Thailand for over 2 1/2 years and the U.S. almost lost him. At which time the DEA kidnapped him. As Schmidle pointed out it is not illegal to do this according to U.S. law as stated by a 1992 Supreme Court Ruling titled, The United States v. Alvarez-Machain.

I was curious and asked Schmidle in my email to him to please name a few other countries where this is legal as he stated. I am not saying there are not any other countries but none that I could find. The 1992 Supreme Court ruling is as follows:

United States v. Alvarez-Machain, 504 U.S. 655 (1992), was a decision by the United States Supreme Court, which held that the fact of respondent’s forcible abduction does not prohibit his trial in a United States court for violations of this country’s criminal laws.

So the extradition, unlike reported by Schmidle, happened secretly, suddenly and without notice. Vikor’s wife Alla nor his attorney Lak were notified. According to Bout’s lawyer Lak [now deceased], there was never any paper work filed. There was no official transfer documents from Thai prison to U.S. custody. Here is a few excerpts from my article: Imaginary Crimes: The Never Ending Viktor Bout Story:

Viktor Bout Whisked Away

On Tuesday morning, 16 November 2010, Viktor Bout’s wife, Alla, received a most disturbing and completely unexpected phone call. She was informed that her husband Viktor was being extradited to the U.S. imminently. This phone call came to her before she was able to prepare and bring Viktor’s vegetarian lunch and visit him in prison, both of which she did routinely on a daily basis. After receiving the horrifying news, according to an article in the Guardian published that same day, “Alla rushed to the prison with his [Bout’s] lawyer when she heard her husband was about to be deported but did not get to see him.” Alla did not make it in time to say goodbye, her husband Viktor was already whisked away by the Thai commandos to Don Muang airport. Alla Bout would not see her husband Viktor again until five weeks later when they spoke briefly in yet another courtroom during his scheduled court date last Friday 21 January 2011. However, this time it was in a different court in a different country, a New York city Federal court room.

The Schmidle Effect

In my attempt to achieve my objective of trying to find out whom Schmidle was ‘really’ working for, I came across a vast number of articles that questioned his sourcing and integrity as a journalist. Some called him a liar, others a bullshitter and someone said that he was “talking out of his ass”. Since the Viktor Bout piece had not officially hit news stands until this past Monday, over the weekend most of the articles I found focused on his Navy Seals and Osama Bin Laden piece in The New Yorker.

One was a Salon.com piece written by Russ Baker, an award-winning investigative journalist, founder and editor-in-chief of WhoWhatWhy.com, the article was titled, Who’s behind the New Yorker’s bin Laden exclusive? Here are a few excerpts:

The establishment media just keep getting worse. They’re further and further from good, tough investigative journalism, and more prone to be pawns in complicated games that affect the public interest in untold ways. A significant recent example is the New Yorker’s vaunted August 8 exclusive on the vanquishing of Osama bin Laden.

We might begin by asking the question: Who provided the New Yorker with its exclusive, and what was their agenda in doing so?

To try and sort out Schmidle’s sources, I read through the piece carefully several times. One person who spoke to the reporter, and who is identified by name is John O. Brennan, Obama’s counterterrorism adviser.

Brennan is quoted directly, briefly, near the top, describing to Schmidle pre-raid debate over whether such an operation would be a success or failure.

The mere fact of Schmidle’s reliance on Brennan at all should send up a flare for the cautious reader. After all, that’s the very same Brennan who was the principal source of incorrect details in the hours and days after the raid.

On August 7, 2011 this Terminal X report was both quite revealing as to Nick Schmidle’s real reasons for being in Pakistan as well as who actually funded his fellowship. The article titled, TX Report: How the CIA funded Nicholas Schmidle in Pakistan for propaganda, speaks for itself and also includes documented evidence. Here are a few excerpts:

In early 2006, Nicholas moved to Pakistan, backed by a writing fellowship from the Institute of Current World Affairs. He lived and reported in Pakistan for two years, before being deported from Pakistan in January 2008. He has also worked in Iran, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Central Asia, West Africa, Russia and the Balkans.

Interestingly, Nicholas Schmidle is also an NAF [New America Foundation] event director and is highlighted there for his celebrated New Yorker article on the alleged killing of Osama bin Laden.

For the article he had extraordinary access to national security officials and special operations members either involved or closely linked.Taking advantage of the bountiful NGO, DC-based array, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) covertly arranges support for such organizations in return for information and propaganda, just how many is mostly unknown despite periodic revelations, but the CIA has over a half-century experience in the practice initiated as early as 1948:

Disinformation and propaganda are basic tools of special operations and CIA-paid writers. Significantly, his Marine father, Robert E. “Rooster” Schmidle, Jr., is a former general in special operations and is now a Lt. General serving as deputy commander of Cyber Command.

Pakistan’s intelligence agencies had found leads linking Schmidle to suspicious activities during his stay in the country after which he was booted out in 2008 on charges of espionage. Another article about Schmidle that caught my eye was written by Larry C. Johnson, who worked previously with the Central Intelligence Agency and U.S. State Department’s Office of Counter Terrorism, and whom is a recognized expert in the fields of terrorism, aviation security, crisis and risk management.

Mr. Johnson’s article which was titled, Boy, I Was Wrong About Nick Schmidle, was published in August 2011 and is referring to Nick Schmidle’s piece on the Navy SEALs mission to take down Osama Bin Laden which also appeared in The New Yorker a few days earlier.

Here are a few excerpts from Mr. Johnson’s article:

I gave Nick the benefit of the doubt that he was given access to the Navy SEALs who carried out the Bin Laden hit. Nope, I was wrong.

Great piece by C. Christine Fair, a Georgetown Professor, sheds more light on the fact that Schmidle was writing out of his ass:

Jesus Christ! The boy was writing fiction. Every thing he wrote about what the SEALs did was based on info from someone who was not there.

Mr. Johnson also embedded a correction form NPR concerning Schmidle’s inaccurate reporting. However, The New Yorker shamelessly stuck to their story that had more holes than the post-raid Osama Bin Laden.

The following are also taken from the previously mentioned article.

NPR issued the following correction: We incorrectly said that reporter Nicholas Schmidle had spoken with the Navy SEALs who participated in the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. Schmidle used information from others who had debriefed the SEALs; he did not speak with them himself. I was right that the New Yorker, via Schmidle, was bamboozling the American public on behalf of Obama. I just didn’t realize how shameless the effort was.

After reading Larry Johnson’s article, I contacted him via email and after a few brief exchanges, I asked him if he would mind to elaborate on his previous comments as well if he would mind being quoted. I asked him in so many words if he thought that Schmidle intentionally lied or was it simply bad journalism. Here is Mr. Larry Johnson’s complete response:

George,

I think Nick was spoon fed an account by the White House and lacked the energy or incentive to actually check out the details of the story. His failure to interview a single member of the SEALS and his naive acceptance of implausible tactics exposed him as a sloppy journalist. For example, he offers an account of the SEALS entering Bin Laden’s bedroom that features one of the SEALS wrestling the Bin Laden wives to the ground. Anyone who knows the basics about room entry techniques with weapons understands you never put yourself in a position of having to wrestle anyone. The target could get a hold of your gun and shoot you.

You may use the above as a quote.

Best

LJ

Another article titled, John Brennan: Immunizing the Truth written on 5 August 2011 by Emptywheel, also questioned Schmidle’s integrity in regards to reporting. The article was also referring to the Navy SEALs take down of Osama Bin Laden. Here are a few excerpts from the Emptywheel piece:

While this piece doesn’t tell us what details are false, it emphasizes that Schmidle did not source the article where it appears to be sourced, to the SEALs who took part in the operation.

Now, I’m not surprised folks within the Obama Administration are leaking such heroic versions of the OBL raid. But in the context of the Administration’s war on leaks, it deserves more discussion.

For example, I find it telling that a “counterterrorism official” repeatedly refutes the events presented from the perspective of the SEALs that–we know–Schmidle isn’t reporting directly.

Finally, though, the whole thing raises questions about who leaked this, presumably with Obama’s explicit or implicit permission.

Operation Mockingbird

Operation Mockingbird, according to Wikepedia, was a secret Central Intelligence Agency campaign to influence media beginning in the 1950s. Most of my readers will have not have a hard time digesting this this type of information and many know much more than I do about it. However, as I always strive to reach as many readers as possible as well as expand people’s mental horizons, a few readers may be somewhat skeptical or simply uninformed. Just a few minutes of research will bring quite surprising results to those new to such topics as disinformation and Operation Mockingbird. I plead with those whom might be skeptical to spend the time and do their own research. I intentionally include as many links as possible for the reader for both researching as well as sourcing my quotes.

In an article titled, CIA Controlled Media: CIA Admits Using News To Manipulate the USA, published by The Intel Hub, they even include a video clip of Congressional hearings. The CIA was infiltrating the U.S. media back in the 1950′s – to what extent they influence or control today’s media is unknown. However, it most probable that over the years that they have had a much larger influence as opposed to a lesser role. This reminds me one one of my favorite quotations:

We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false. ~ William Casey, CIA Director

Here is an archived clip of different Congressional hearings that exposes the fact that the CIA directly plants stories in the media, both in the United States and the rest of the world.

The Ghost of Bulgaria

In my mind, one very important question in regards to Schmidle is that of access. For instance, Peter Mirchev’s name, the director of Bulgaria’s KAS Engineering as well as Viktor Bout’s long time friend was splashed throughout the trial. KAS kept coming up over and over again. At one point there were rumors that Bout’s defense would call Mirchev to testify. To this day I do not know if that was ever a realistic option. I did find it rather extraordinary both the fact that Peter Mirchev suddenly decided to talk about his business relationship with Viktor Bout as well as how easily Schmidle was able to contact him. At least according to the version in an abstract piece that also ran in The New Yorker a few days ahead of the full article.

The abstract was titled Viktor Bout and Friend, here is a quote:

Then, on one of the last days of the trial, they projected a screenshot from Bout’s computer, showing a Microsoft Outlook entry for Mirchev that included an e-mail and cell-phone number. I called the number a few days later. Mirchev answered. He said that he never spoke to journalists, and was about to hang up when I told him where I’d gotten his number, how his name had already been dragged through the dirt in an American courtroom, and that I wanted to hear his side of things—in person. I said I could be in Sofia within a week or two. He finally agreed.

I also contacted Peter Mirchev via LinkedIn and asked him if cared to comment, add or dispute anything written about him in the article. I was not as lucky as Schmidle, perhaps he was the one journalist in the world that Mirchev would speak with. Peter Mirchev did not reply but he did on at least two occasions view my LinkedIn profile.I have the screens shots to prove it.

I do not take it personally that Mirchev has not replied to me, however, I find it overwhelming suspicious that he would suddenly appear to do a high profile piece and then vanish. Before the judge granted defense attorney Dayan a postponement of the sentencing date to 28 March 2012, it was originally set for 12 March 2012, exactly one week after The New Yorker piece ran. The article was without question catastrophic to Bout’s case, especially so close to sentencing and as Richard Chichakli reminded me, the DEA has another indictment pending against him. Therefore, if for any reason the prosecutors do not think that Bout’s sentence is tough enough, you can guarantee that they will bring out the second indictment. Unlike the first indictment, this second one also includes Richard Chichakli. I have added a link of the indictment for those of you who are curious. The reason this particularly indictment went almost completely unnoticed is that it was issued exactly the same time as Viktor Bout’s extradition from Thailand to America.Thus the media’s attention and was entirely focused on the actual news of his extradition as this second indictment was missed by most.

U.S. Announces New Indictment Against International Arms Dealer Viktor Bout and American Co-Conspirator for Money Laundering, Wire Fraud, and Conspiracy.

This opinion of damage to Viktor Bout’s case was expressed to me by at least two other attorneys. One attorney who asked not to be named, said that the article could very possibly be used against Bout in the future. Over the weekend during a conversation with another journalist, they were shocked that Mirchev would self incriminate himself like that, it just didn’t make sense. Then I asked them, “Does it also incriminate Bout?” They replied, “Of Course!” At that point I said, there you have it, objective achieved. I also added, don’t worry about Mirchev, he is protected. The following excerpts are quoted by an anonymous source:

I heard that Peter [Mirchev] was an informant for the agency [CIA]. I also heard that his deal with the US government is a standard deal, he reports who wants what and by who pay for smaller deals, gets an approval for large consignment, and that keeps him alive and maintain his business going without “legal” problems. The government wants to maintain dealers like Peter in order to stay informed of what is going on in the market, and more important to avoid surprises that maybe caused by “unknown dealers or unknown deals.” The US government wants to maintain the arms market similar to what they do with the drugs, allow it but control it and benefit from it.

However, in regards to his “future”, the way I see it, he is already way beyond his borders and he is likely to be replaced. It is possible now that he could be prosecuted after he implicated himself into the Angola and Congo affairs, the Bout matter, and the general supply of arms to “questionable” locations. However, the prosecution of Peter is unlikely because it is [not] in any government interest to have him speak out about his dealing which they have to approve, it is rather more likely – depending on how significant of a source he is, that he could land the Agency’s special list, so a car or ski accident, or similar “unfortunate” events may cause his demise as usually happens in such cases. It is just a matter of time, “when” not “if”.

If my source is correct about Peter Mirchev it should not come as a huge shock. Especially when just last January the fact that Liberian War Lord Charles Taylor was splashed all over the international media as being a CIA asset. It sounds very similar to Peter Mirchev’s case. To keep track of the buyers and sellers, what countries and factions are at war with whom, sounds like very valuable intelligence. It is key in any market to know whom the buyers and sellers and sellers are whether you are dealing in stocks, commodities or arms. It makes sense that if it is known that Mirchev is running KAS for decades and is able to talk about it in the press and is still free, that fact speaks for itself. He is obviously being protected.

In January, Al Jazeera published an article titled, Accused war criminal Taylor ‘worked with CIA’, here are a few excerpts:

Liberia’s ex-president, now on trial in The Hague, worked with US intelligence agencies, officials admit.

He stands accused of funding rebels who hacked the arms off small children, smuggling blood diamonds, keeping sex slaves and torturing his opponents, but former Liberian President Charles Taylor also had another career – providing information to US intelligence agencies, according to information obtained by the Boston Globe newspaper.

While the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), the Pentagon’s spy arm, confirmed its agents and CIA agents worked with Taylor in the 1980s, they would not reveal details of the relationship on national security grounds.

“When he became president [in 2001], George W Bush found out that Taylor was still being paid by CIA and put a stop to it,” Alexander Yearsley, a former investigative campaigner in West Africa with the NGO Global Witness who now works in the private sector, told Al Jazeera.

Jeffrey Michaels, a professor of war studies at the University of King’s College in London, said US-support for Taylor needs to be viewed in the context of the Cold War.

“I think that they probably recognised there are problems in getting into bed with these dictators and other unsavory people,” Michaels told Al Jazeera. “

If you look at the most prominent cases where the US has been involved, such as Ngo Dinh Diem in South Vietnam… and [Manuel] Noriega in Panama – the CIA is there as an adjunct to foreign policy, to keep a leader who is generally aligned with US interests in power.”

Miraculously, he [Charles Taylor] escaped from the Plymouth House of Correction in 1985. Analysts believe US intelligence operatives helped with the prison break.

Taylor was elected president in 1997, after inspiring almost a decade of virtual civil war. “He was being advised [by the US] on how to carry-out the conflict,” Yearsley said.

Now that it comes out that Taylor was a proven CIA asset whom was working in the interests of the U.S., he would say about anything to put money in his pocket and to stay out of jail and especially to remain in power. Viktor Bout told me in front of several other journalist’s that he never met Taylor. In fact Bout said he has never been in the same room with Taylor. Two of the journalists I remember by name, a Swiss journalist named Kurt Pelda and a German journalist form Der Spiegel, named Thiole Thielke that he never met Taylor.

This article from Aangirfan titled CHARLES TAYLOR WORKED FOR THE PENTAGON, is much more blunt in its approach to Charles Taylor. Here are several excerpts from the article:

From the early 1980s onwards, Charles Taylor worked for the USA’s Defence Intelligence Agency.

In January 2012, this was confirmed by the Pentagon, thanks to a Freedom of Information request from the Boston Globe.

Taylor, former president of Liberia, is linked to the financing of 9 11.

“According to British and Israeli intelligence sources, Taylor enabled Al Qaeda to launder blood diamonds for cash through Liberia…

Liberia is run by the CIA and Pentagon, reportedly.

The Madness of Crowds

It is becoming very hard to decipher what is true as compared to half-truths, lies, planted stories and propaganda in todays media. However, it is obvious as it did exist over 50 years ago that todays media is also tarnished, manipulated and infiltrated by governments and intelligence agencies to meets their objectives and agenda’s. Exactly whom Schmidle is working for, is not certain. It is very possible he is an asset working in conjunction with the Central Intelligence Agency. I say asset as I would never knowingly reveal an actual agent.

However, I think it is more plausible given his recent escapades with the Osama Bin laden fairytale and his access to high level White House advisors, he is working for someone within the current administration. This especially makes snse given the current administrations record on leaks which is abysmal. The leaks in the current administration almost rivals that of Anonymous and Wikileaks. Thus the Bout case would falls under the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice, which would be under the watch of Eric Holder’s and President Obama. This is what former CIA agent Larry Johnson alluded to, someone within the White House was feeding Schmidle. One must keep in mind that Schmidle is a ‘freelance’ journalist thus making him a free-agent if you will.