Tag: drugs

Mexican mayor decapitated days after taking office in Guerrero

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The mayor of the capital of Mexico’s violence-plagued state of Guerrero was killed on Sunday less than a week after he took office, the state’s governor confirmed. Alejandro Arcos was killed just six days after he took office as mayor of the city of Chilpancingo, a city of around 280,000 people in southwestern Mexico. “His loss mourns the entire Guerrero society and fills us with indignation,” Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado said […]

Doctor charged in death of ‘Friends’ star Matthew Perry ‘incredibly remorseful’

By Steve Gorman and Jorge Garcia LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – One of two doctors who are among the five people charged in the ketamine overdose death of “Friends” star Matthew Perry was barred by a federal judge on Friday from practicing medicine and through his lawyer afterward expressed remorse. Dr. Mark Chavez appeared in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles for a brief arraignment on a single felony count of conspiracy to illegally distribute ketamine […]

French navy seizes 2.4 tonnes of cocaine from Atlantic fishing boat

PARIS, May 27, 2024 (AFP) – The French navy has seized 2.4 tonnes of cocaine from a Venezuelan fishing boat in the Atlantic, authorities said Monday. Acting on a tipoff from the customs department, a helicopter from the frigate Ventose landed a team on the fishing boat about 1,500 kilometres northeast of the Caribbean island of Martinique, France’s Caribbean Armed Services department said. The boat, the crew and the cocaine were handed over to Venezuelan […]

Sweden orders review after ‘explosion’ of ADHD cases

  STOCKHOLM, May 24, 2024 (AFP) – Sweden is seeing “an explosion” of ADHD cases among children that has put it far above the global average, the government said Friday as it ordered a review to find out why. Around 10.5 percent of boys and six percent of girls in Sweden in 2022 had been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Social Affairs Minister Jakob Forssmed told reporters, citing statistics from the Board of […]

Japan drugmaker reports two more deaths in supplement scare

A Japanese drugmaker whose dietary supplements are at the centre of a growing health scare reported on Thursday two more deaths potentially related to its tablets. Last week, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical recalled three supplement brands — “Beni Koji Choleste Help” and two others — after customer complaints of kidney problems. The over-the-counter products contain an ingredient called red yeast rice, or “beni koji”, which is supposed to help lower cholesterol. Thursday’s announcement brings the total number […]

Macron vows ‘unprecedented operation’ against drugs in Marseille

MARSEILLE, March 19, 2024 (AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron Tuesday pledged an “unprecedented operation” against drug trafficking in Marseille during a surprise visit to the southern port city beset by gangland killings. “In Marseille and other cities in France, we have launched an unprecedented operation to put a stop to drug trafficking and ensure republican order,” Macron wrote on X, formerly Twitter, after arriving in the city. The operation, according to press reports, will […]

UK police seize record 5.7 tonnes of cocaine hidden in bananas

British police said Friday that they had made what is believed to be its biggest ever seizure of serious drugs. The National Crime Agency said that 5.7 tonnes (5,700 kg) of cocaine were found in a container at the port of Southampton on England’s south coast on 8 February. The drug haul was discovered hidden in a cargo of bananas which had been transported from South America, the agency said in a statement. It had […]

Vietnam sentences nine to death for drug trafficking

HANOI, Jan 22, 2024 (AFP) – Vietnam sentenced nine people to death and two others to life in prison on Monday for their involvement in a cross-border drug trafficking ring, state media reported. The Southeast Asian country has some of the world’s toughest drug laws, and is notoriously secretive about its executions. At the end of a three-day trial, a court in central Nghe An province sentenced ringleader Tran Thi Mau, 56, and eight accomplices […]

Prosecutor probing gang-related Ecuador TV studio attack is killed

QUITO, Jan 17, 2024 (AFP) – The prosecutor investigating a dramatic armed assault by gangsters last week on an Ecuadoran television station during a live broadcast was shot dead Wednesday, the attorney general said. A prosecution source told AFP that Cesar Suarez had been in charge of finding the gang responsible for the terror-inspiring attack on state-owned TC Television in the port city of Guayaquil by hooded assailants armed with guns and explosives. AFP obtained […]

Mother of death row Filipina begs Indonesia president to free her

MANILA (AFP) – The mother of a Filipino drug trafficker on death row in Indonesia begged the country’s president to free her daughter on Wednesday. The plea came a day after the Philippines made a fresh appeal for clemency for Mary Jane Veloso, who was arrested in Indonesia in 2010 carrying a suitcase lined with 2.6 kilograms (5.7 pounds) of heroin and later sentenced to death. The mother-of-two won a last-minute reprieve from the firing […]

Sri Lanka detains nearly 15,000 in drug crackdown

COLOMBO, Dec 24, 2023 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s police announced Sunday the arrests of nearly 15,000 people during a week-long military-backed anti-narcotics drive, a crackdown denounced by rights activists. Police said their operation, code-named “Yuktiya” or “Justice”, led to the seizure of almost 440 kilograms (970 pounds) of narcotics, including 272 kg of cannabis, 35 kg of hashish and nine kilograms of heroin. Authorities believe the Indian Ocean island is being used as a drug […]

Drug cartels turning to online games for recruitment and sales

By Marc Antoine BAUDOUX STRASBOURG, France, Dec 20, 2023 (AFP) – Narcotics police the world over are sprucing up their video game skills, as cartels go increasingly online to sell drugs and recruit dealers. “Cartels have been incredibly tech savvy over recent years, reaching vast audiences,” Benjamin Shultz, foreign malign influence analyst at Deloitte, told a Council of Europe meeting. “The Sinaloa Cartel has a Twitter account with almost 200,000 followers and they tend to […]