System D

Insatiable appetite for gold fuels India’s smuggling industry

"Indian gold smugglers are adopting the methods of drug couriers to sidestep a government crackdown on imports of the precious metal, stashing gold in imported vehicles and even using mules who swallow nuggets to try to get them past airport security. Stung by rules imposed this year to cut a high trade deficit and a record duty on imports, dealers and individual customers are fanning out across Asia to buy gold and sneak it back into the country. Sri Lanka, Thailand and Singapore are the latest hotspots as authorities crack down on travellers from Dubai, the traditional source of smuggled gold." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingInsatiable appetite for gold fuels India’s smuggling industry

Even more smuggled gold enters India

"In the biggest ever catch at the Hyderabad airport, customs officials have seized 18 kilograms of gold and arrested three people. The trio had arrived from Singapore and were hiding the gold bars in their trousers and shoes. In another incident, officials of the customs department recovered gold hidden in dates from a man who landed at the Pune International Airport. Investigation revealed that the seeds of these dates had been replaced with gold beads wrapped in black packets. Gold seizures have almost doubled for the period 2013-2014. Whistleblowers who help bust illegal gold shipments can get a bigger reward in India than those who help catch cocaine and heroin smugglers." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEven more smuggled gold enters India

Life Takes Visa—Except If You Want to Buy Pot

"Because of regulations that bar banks from doing business with drug traffickers, many financial institutions refuse to open accounts for dispensaries or give them small-business loans. The same goes for major credit-card companies like Visa and MasterCard. Merchant service providers—the middlemen between retailers and credit-card companies who process customers’ payments—are also reluctant to run afoul of the federal government, so most won’t accept payments from dispensaries. These restrictions force dispensaries to operate as cash-only businesses. Without a bank account, dispensary owners can’t deposit their money in a secure place or write checks to their landlords." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLife Takes Visa—Except If You Want to Buy Pot

Atlantis: Online Drug Black Market Shuts Its Doors

"One of the sites that was more or less a copy of The Silk Road and the second largest online black market, The Atlantis Market, was forced to shut their doors for good due to 'security' reasons. Atlantis offered black market, anonymous items, in exchange for Bitcoin and Litecoin. Users will have one week to withdraw any of their funds before the market shuts down permanently. Below is a statement from the Atlantis team." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAtlantis: Online Drug Black Market Shuts Its Doors

Underground — And Illegal — NYC Dinner Parties

"It may look like a dinner party, but it’s really an underground supper club. The diners are a mix of New Yorkers and tourists. CBS 2’s undercover cameras captured one experience — eight people who didn’t know each other eating a meal in a stranger’s home. That hostess, Naama Shafi, writes about food but is not a chef. Leitner found her through a website, which connects amateur foodies and professional chefs in 20 different countries with people who want unique dining experiences. Clandestine dinner parties like the one Leitner attended are completely unregulated. If caught hosting an underground dinner party, the hosts could be fined $2,000 and ordered to shut down." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUnderground — And Illegal — NYC Dinner Parties

Cop convicted for selling machine guns

"A former Basel police detective received a ten-month suspended jail sentence on Monday for using his position to acquire and re-sell illegal machine guns, firearms, hand grenades and other accessories. The 51-year-old, who worked for the cantonal police force for 20 years, was authorized to order guns and other weapons, according to an online report from 20 Minutes newspaper. However, he took advantage of his position to order firearms, which he paid for with his own money then resold to others, the newspaper reported. He admitted in the Basel criminal court to selling to a Zurich friend illegal weapons, including Heckler & Koch MP5 machine guns with silencers and other guns." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCop convicted for selling machine guns

New York Police Officer, Customs Officer Arrested For Trafficking Illegal Guns

"A New York Police Department officer and two of his brothers were arrested for allegedly trafficking high-powered firearms out of the United States and into the Philippines, federal law-enforcement officials announced on Friday. Rex Maralit, a 44-year-old officer assigned to police headquarters in Lower Manhattan, was arrested on charges of conspiring with his brothers to violate the Arms Export Control Act and engage in unlicensed firearms dealing, law-enforcement officials said. His brother, Wilfredo Maralit, 48, a Customs and Border Protection Officer at Los Angeles International Airport, was also arrested." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNew York Police Officer, Customs Officer Arrested For Trafficking Illegal Guns

Guns, Badges, and Cartels

"Drug dealers are not going to obey laws that supposedly control guns. If you want to get drug dealers to stop buying guns, then you had better vote to de-criminalize drugs. But liberals want to criminalize guns, and conservatives want to criminalize drugs. If you think this argument makes no sense, then don’t expect liberals to respond to this argument: 'People who are prepared to defy the laws against murder aren’t going to obey laws against owning guns or large-capacity magazines.' Cartels want above-market income on state-protected turf. This takes guns. The debate is over who gets to carry the guns legally, and who will carry them illegally." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGuns, Badges, and Cartels

Carlsbad radar device part of smuggling crackdown

"A large radar device recently installed at Carlsbad’s Ponto Beach is part of a federal crackdown on drug and immigrant smuggling along the California coast. The device, which can track any vessel within 20 miles, could help law enforcement agencies spot and apprehend smuggling boats or terrorists before they get to shore. It is the first of its kind in the country. Federal officials have begun to focus more on securing the coastline after sharply reducing smuggling by air during the past 25 years, said Keith Jones of the Air and Marine Operations Center in Riverside, which is run by U.S. Customs and Border Protection." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCarlsbad radar device part of smuggling crackdown