Ohio GOP Larry Householder goes away for 20 years

Once among the most powerful politicians in Ohio, Householder is a convicted felon.

Ex Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder was sentenced to 20 years for the largest corruption scandal in state history. He bought the maximum for orchestrating a $60m illegal bribery scheme that fueled his return to politics. He was taken into custody, with a judge declaring “the court and the community’s patience with Larry Householder has expired.” Householder's tearful pleas for mercy were met with his quotes; “If you’re going to fuck with me, I’m going to fuck with your kids”

“we can fuck with him later” - “fuck him ’til he’s dead.”

The judge called Householder “a bully with a lust for power” whose scheme marked an “assault on democracy, the betrayal of everyone in Ohio.” Householder orchestrated a $60m bribery scheme secretly funded by Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp. to secure Householder’s power, elect his allies, and pass legislation containing a $1 billion bailout for two aging nuclear power plants.

Michael 'Yuppie Don' Franzese

Michael 'Yuppie Don' Franzese is a former New York mobster and caporegime of the Colombo crime family. Son of Colombo underboss John "Sonny" Franzese, Michael Franzese rose quickly in the Colombo family. By the 1980s, he was a capo. Franzese's rise was fueled by his lucrative gasoline rackets. Working with the Russian Mafia, Franzese sold millions of gallons of gasoline. The family would collect the state and federal taxes, but kept the money. At the same time, they were selling gas at lower prices than gas stations. In 1985, Franzese was indicted on 14 counts of racketeering, counterfeiting and extortion from the gasoline bootlegging racket. In 1986, Franzese pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to ten years in prison with $14m in restitution.

In 1987, while in prison, Franzese walked away from the Colombo family. Franzese renounced organized crime, become a born again Christian and became a speaker. He has spoken as a 'life skills expert'. Once described as the biggest Mob earner since Al Capone, Michael Franzese has been redeemed as a pew-packing evangelist decrying the evils of his old life, part of the deal is that he now gets to go to heaven and live forever with Jesus. His 'true-life' story has been airing forever.

Genovese capo sentenced to 24 months on gambling and racketeering charges.

John Campanella, Nicholas Calisi

Nicholas Calisi, 54, pleaded guilty to the charges in February, along with Genovese soldier John Campanella, 48. The latter was sentenced to 13 months in prison. Both men had faced a maximum of 20 years in prison. Calisi and Campanella were charged with racketeering conspiracy in April 2022 along with another capo Ralph Balsamo, solider Michael Messina and associates Michael Poli and Thomas Poli. Balsamo and Messina will be sentenced shortly.

Capo Ralph Balsamo pleaded guilty.

Romanian shoplifting ring busted in Montreal - Romanian mafia

Laurentiu Baicu, 37, Tiberius Léonard Miron, 40, and Claudia Macu.

Laval cops say the Romanians were staying in Canada after applying for asylum. They would stay for a few months stealing as much as possible, before leaving the country. Laurentiu Baicu, aged 37, remains in custody following his arrest. Tiberius Léonard Miron, 40, was released with conditions, as were Claudia Macu, Vijai Alexe and Ionel Nituwere. Valter Ionut Alexe, aged 29, and Timotei Ion, aged 27, are still wanted by cops.

Valter Ionut Alexe, 29, and Timotei Ion, 27.

Crooks targeted chains of computer equipment stores, clothing and sports equipment, as well as luxury clothing. More than $70,000 in stolen loot was recovered. Goods were sent to Romania for resale. The Romanian mafia is known worldwide for ATM-skimmings as well as pimping and drug trafficking. Gangs are organized horizontally, with the leader of a group being called 'Nașu' which means "Godfather" in Romanian.

Vijai Alexe and Ionel Nitu.

See ----->ATM deep insert skimmer - the latest thing

Vallejo HA Dennis Killough Jr. in the chit again = 46 months

A federal judge sentenced HA Dennis Killough Jr., 52, to 46 months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Jaime Alvarez

HA Jaime Alvarez, 52, of Vallejo, pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony crime. He was sentenced to 21 months in the big house.

Kenneth Caspers Jr., Dennis Killough Jr., Jaime Alvarez, and Michael Mahoney.

HA Michael Mahoney, 30, pled guilty and he's off to the pen for a mandatory minimum of 5 years. A search warrant at his home found a .38 and a 12-gauge shotgun with a sawed off barrel. HA Dennis Killough Jr., 51, pleaded guilty in federal court to being a felon in possession of a firearm and faces as much as 10 years in prison when sentenced.

Cops entered Killough’s home as part of an investigation into a brutal beating at the Vallejo chapter’s clubhouse. In October 2021, two different victims, both members of puppet clubs of the Hells Angels, were beaten by Killough and two other club members. A Taurus G2C 9 mm compact pistol and a Taurus model PT 745 Pro handgun were found by cops. Killough has prior felony convictions, including previous firearm convictions. In 2013 Killough was busted with his wife, then a CHP dispatcher. He tried to sell stolen military equipment to an undercover cop, including AR-15 assault rifles. He was also nailed for selling meth. HA Michael Mahoney has pleaded not guilty to two felony firearms charges.

The Vallejo chapter was long considered the enforcement arm for the Oakland chapter, founded by the late Ralph 'Sonny' Barger. It was notorious for involvement in an Oct. 5, 1986, mass murder of a family of four, including two children, ages 5 and 17, in Fort Bragg. It was a heinous crime that made national headlines.

Sydney gangster Alen Moradian whacked

Before he was gunned down, Alen Moradian was likened by his wife to TV mafia boss Tony Soprano. Moradian, 48, was shot to death in a targeted attack in an underground carpark at Bondi Junction. In 2011 he was sentenced to a maximum of 16 years and nine months after pleading guilty to his role in a cocaine shipment. Moradian was sentenced to a non-parole period of 10 years and five months and was released in December 2017. Moradian imported cocaine and supplied a large commercial quantity of the drug. Moradian decked out his Pennant Hills home with luxury and designer items, cars, and motorcycles. After his bust, Moradian’s lawyer arranged for the surrender of firearms, including a machine gun, grenade launcher and automatic rifle.

Alen “Fathead” Moradian was a major player in organized crime with links to the Comanchero biker gang. Moradian was part of a secret cartel called the Commission, which controls the drug market in Sydney. The two assassins dumped a grey Porsche Macan a few minutes’ drive away. The killers tried and failed to burn the luxury car as they fled, managing only to blacken the windows and partially melt the interior. Cops found a gun inside. Moradian and his wife, Natasha Youkhana, lived a decadent, luxurious lifestyle buying property, designer furniture, jewellery, and luxury travel, all using drug money.

Mexico destroys 14 'monstruos'

The Mexican government destroyed 14 homemade tanks known as “Monsters” used by the country’s narco gangs. The destruction was held in the border town of Reynosa, Tamaulipas. These most recently seized homemade tanks were made by the Gulf Cartel, Zetas and Northeast Cartel.

In the last four years, Tamaulipas state cops have seized 257 similar armored vehicles from narcos. Mexican police battling against the cartels in the area also recently made a high profile arrest, bringing in Salinas Cortinas of the Gulf cartel, whose is nicknamed “La Cabra,” or “The Goat”

Foreign-origin betel nut smuggling lassoed in India

Betel nut is the seed of the fruit of the areca palm. It is also known as areca nut.

Wasim Bawla was busted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Bawla was arrested for smuggling foreign-origin betel nuts through the India-Myanmar border without payment of customs duty. Bogus invoices facilitated the sale and purchase of betel nuts in the Nagpur region of Maharashtra.

Myanmar accounts for more than half of Southeast Asia’s betel consumption.

Use involves the ingestion of a combination of betel leaves and areca nut along with other ingredients. It is common throughout Asia. Today there are about 600 million betel users worldwide. With nicotine, alcohol and caffeine, betel nuts are one of the most popular mind-altering substances in the world. Betel nut is a stimulant and a carcinogen.

5 years for NZ smash and grab robber Christensen

Christensen's lawyer said the poor baby suffered from a “warped unreality” that showed his inability to distinguish between right and wrong.

Bayley James Christensen, 20, was involved in 4 robberies that came to light when cops found pictures on his phone of him with stacks of cash and messages of him boasting about his stolen loot. He appeared at the Christchurch District Court and sat in the dock smirking with his supporters, some of whom sniggered as one of his victims retold the terrifying story of crooks smashing through her store. The victim said she couldn’t find the words to describe the helplessness she felt when the youths burst in, masked and yelling threats while smashing the counter glass with hammers.

'Trump won!' yells Danial Rodriguez as he's put away for 12 years

Daniel (DJ) Rodriguez, 40, yelled, "Trump won!" as he was led out of the courtroom. Its 12 years and seven months behind bars for the retard for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. The judge said Rodriguez was "a one-man army of hate, attacking police and destroying property" at the Capitol. Cop Michael Fanone's body camera captured him screaming out in pain after Rodriguez shocked him with a stun gun while he was surrounded by a mob. He later suffered a heart attack.

Tharushan Nirmalachandran busted for lots of drugs

Tharushan Nirmalachandran, 33, of Île-Bizard, and a 38-year-old man from Ontario were arrested and were scheduled to be charged at the Montreal courthouse. Cops landed 38 kg of cocaine, 9 kg of meth, 5 kg of purple fentanyl, and 28,000 speed tablets. Cops also discovered nearly $1 million in cash. Nirmalachandran faces a total of nine charges. Nirmalachandran bought 15 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud in the US in 2020. They used cloned debit cards at ATMs.

Ecuador shrimp mafia - update

A second death in 2023 has been recorded in Ecauador as robbery, extortion, assault, and murder of shrimp farm workers by armed gangs feeding off the lucrative industry rises. In the last three years organized crime groups have murdered seven shrimp farmers, injured at least 60, and stolen shrimp and equipment worth millions. Authorities have proven unable to protect the shrimp sector workers. The entire shrimp sector in the country is under constant attack. Ecuador’s shrimp exports reached a record $3.65 billion in 2021, but that success has also brought organized crime that is beyond control of authorities.

Ecuador’s shrimp industry is a rising economic star, globally. The sector now produces more than $5b in annual exports and has solidified its position as the country’s second-largest industry after oil. China imports almost 900,000 tons of shrimp, of which 70% comes from Ecuador. The Ecuadorian shrimp industry continues to battle rising organized crime attacks. Criminals intercepted a boat working in the shrimp sector in the Gulf of Guayaquil. The attack led to the vessel's operator being taken to a medical facility after receiving first aid.

This year there have been 48 criminal incidents involving the shrimp sector, leaving 31 people injured.

A trade body is working with the police and navy to concentrate their efforts in areas such as kilometre 26 of the Naranjal road, the Gulf of Guayaquil (Puerto Roma and Punta Piedra) and the Jambelí Archipelago.  Compared to the same period last year, theft from sites has increased by 35%, and feed theft by 100%. At the same time the number of injured has doubled.

QuadrigaCX - Gerald Cotten - BC forfeiture wants stolen loot

Gerald Cotten, a co-founder of QuadrigaCX, died mysteriously in India in 2018. Co-founder Michael Patryn benefited from using QuadrigaCX client money through unauthorized trades and falsifying documents says a lawsuit filed by the province. They want to keep more than $600k in cash, gold bars, watches and jewellery from a safety deposit box and a CIBC bank account in Vancouver. The safety deposit box contained $250,200 in cash and 45 gold bars. It also contained four watches, including two Rolexes, jewellery, and a Ruger .45 and two loaded magazines. The box also contained a birth certificate, name change certificate, credit cards and cheques in Patryn’s name. The QuadrigaCX fraud was over $250m.

Michael Patryn, former name, Omar Dhanani.

QuadrigaCX was one of Canada’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges.

QuadrigaCX’s court-appointed auditor revealed the addresses for the cryptocurrency exchange’s offline Bitcoin wallets. The cold storage wallets are empty – aside from $400k worth in Bitcoin. The news comes after the exchange said that it owed customers $134m worth of cryptocurrency.

Founder Gerald Cotten died as a result of complications of Crohn’s disease while travelling to India with his wife on December 9 2018.

There are calls to probe Cotten’s sudden and curious death. A death certificate issued by India was quickly dismissed as “worthless” by QuadrigaCX customers who demanded to see Canadian documents. The Indian certificate had Cotten’s name spelled incorrectly, adding fuel to conspiracy theories.