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Jumat, 04 Juni 2021

'Kidnappers' send pic of 'torture victim' to his family demanding $100,000,000 - Metro.co.uk

Image sent to family of ex-gang member demanding $100m before he was freed by cops from burning building — Dillon Mancuso was allegedly abducted at gunpoint and taken to a warehouse in Sydney

This photo of a bloodied and gagged ex-motorcycle gang member was sent to his family on the night he was allegedly kidnapped in Australia.

The gang was reportedly demanding AU$100 million (£54.6 million) for the release of Dillon Mancuso, 37, who was allegedly abducted at gunpoint and driven to a warehouse in Sydney, where he was held for six hours.

Mancuso, a former member of the Lone Wolf gang, was photographed with duct tape covering his eyes and mouth, while blood streamed down his face and swollen lip.

A text message accompanying the image read: ‘Hello brother’, followed by three smiley-face emojis.

It goes on to say: ‘Send to his friends who value his life and will negotiate’, the Daily Telegraph reported

But the extortion plot failed when armed police stormed the building as it was allegedly set on fire by the gang, before Mancuso was rescued wearing nothing but his white underwear.

According to police, a group of men, one of them armed with a gun, had forced their way into a property in Bringelly at around 3am on Tuesday and dragged Mancuso into a waiting vehicle outside.

The text with what appears to be a ransom picture of former bikie Dillon Mancuso — A picture of **Mancuso** was sent along with the message ‘Hello brother’ and three smiley-face emojis

They were tracked by expert investigators to an industrial warehouse some 28km away in Revesby, where hostage negotiations took place.

He was freed after police stormed the building while the gang allegedly set fire to the warehouse as they entered.

A nearby office worker told Daily Mail Australia: ‘I looked out the window and three cop cars were blocking the driveway and calling for the people in the unit to come out.

‘We sort of saw it coming. Those guys had been rolling around for a few months bringing in motorbikes and exotic cars and making a lot of noise.’

Detective Superintendent Andrew Koutsoufis said: ‘At this stage it appears there are some organised crime and bikie-related links’.

Eleven men have been arrested after another man was allegedly kidnapped in the middle of the night and held hostage in a warehouse which was then set on fire. Police allege a group of men - one armed with a firearm - forced their way into a home in Bringelly in Sydney's far south-west about 3am on Tuesday and confronted a 37-year-old and a 61-year-old man who were inside. The gang allegedly assaulted the older man before bundling the younger man into a waiting vehicle outside the Jersey Road home. — Armed police stormed the warehouse as the gang set it on fire

He added: ‘The level of violence towards the alleged victim was quite severe and concerning. We believe it was completely targeted.

‘The incident was exceptionally dangerous and could have been even more severe, or even fatal.’

Seven males – two 23-year-olds and the others aged 16, 19, 22, 26 and 27 were later charged with kidnapping with intent to ransom resulting in actual bodily harm, break and enter, tampering with evidence, and participating in a gang.

Mancuso is facing several gang-related charges after Federal Police seized more than $1million (£547,000) cash and three luxury cars valued at more than $100,000 (£55,000) each last year.

Inquiries into the incident are continuing.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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2021-06-04 20:29:00Z
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G7 nations close to historic deal to tax tech giants in plan that would 'change the world', says German finance minister - Sky News

The world's leading economies are on the brink of announcing a historic deal to tax the tech giants, the German finance minister has told Sky News.

Olaf Scholz said the plan to reform the taxation of tech companies and introduce a minimum level for business tax rates would "change the world", bringing in billions of pounds in tax revenue which would otherwise have been shifted to low tax countries.

The comments came as ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) industrialised economies met in London for the first such face-to-face summit since the onset of COVID-19 over a year ago.

In part because of pressure from the Biden White House and US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen, the G7 ministers are understood to be on the brink of announcing an unprecedented set of reforms.

The plan would help combat profit shifting, where companies - including tech giants and multinational brands - can shift profits to low tax jurisdictions.

The deal entails two "pillars": First, there will be special rules to change how much tax some large companies will pay, and where those taxes are paid.

Hitherto business taxes were based purely on company profits; in future a chunk of those taxes will be calculated based on sales.

The second pillar involves the creation of a global minimum corporate tax rate, designed to encourage countries not to cut their business tax rate below 15%.

Speaking on the fringes of the London meeting between the US, UK, Japanese, German, French, Italian and Canadian finance ministers, Mr Scholz said: "That we've made progress on both pillars is what we have worked on so hard.

"It looks as if we will now make it, and it will change the world.

"We've worked very hard in the last few years to make progress step by step, we discussed with many people and many experts on this question and with many other countries, but now we are at a stage where an agreement is feasible.

"This is a historic moment, and it will help us to do our job: to serve our people. It's about fairness and justice."

Asked about the implications of a deal for the tax revenues of developed countries, which some experts calculate could be boosted by many billions as profits are shifted back from tax havens, Mr Scholz said: "This will help finance our countries.

"We will profit very much from an agreement like this. But it's also a starting point for more fairness - that's what this is what it is about."

According to others close to the negotiations, the technical talks are still ongoing, with "sherpas" from G7 nations expected to carry on discussing details through the night.

However, Mr Scholz's comments represent the clearest sign yet that the G7 is likely to seal a deal on tax avoidance on Saturday.

That deal would be highly significant since it would encourage finance ministers from other, smaller countries to sign up to the deal.

But, there are some nations - most notably Ireland - which are holding out.

With its 12.5% corporate tax rate, Ireland would be directly affected by the global minimum rate, and would have to decide whether to increase its level or to face penalties from those economies committing to the new pact.

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2021-06-04 19:22:46Z
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Belarus journalist Roman Protasevich 'forced into tearful confession' - BBC News - BBC News

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2021-06-04 15:45:40Z
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Hong Kong protesters light candles to mourn China's Tiananmen victims - BBC News - BBC News

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2021-06-04 13:58:34Z
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Roman Protasevich arrest: EU to ban Belarusian jets from airspace after critic snatched from plane - Sky News

Brussels is to ban Belarusian planes from EU airspace as it ramps up pressure on the Minsk regime over the forced diversion of a passenger jet and arrest of a government critic.

The move will also see European airlines strongly encouraged to avoid flying over the ex-Soviet country, which sparked an international outcry after a Ryanair flight was forced to land by a fighter jet and dissident journalist Roman Protasevich was detained.

The 26-year-old has subsequently given an interview to state-controlled TV, claimed to have been made under duress, in which he appears to praise the Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, saying he had "acted like a man with balls of steel", despite the "pressure" of opposition movements.

The step by the EU, which forms part of a wider package of sanctions against Belarus, is due to come into effect at 10pm (UK time) on Friday barring any last-minute objections by member states, which is not expected.

According to the European air traffic control agency, Eurocontrol, about 400 civilian planes usually fly over Belarus every day.

Many airlines had already announced they would avoid the country, including Lufthansa and Air France.

Belavia, the Belarusian national carrier, runs flights to some 20 airports in Europe including Helsinki, Amsterdam, Milan, Warsaw, Frankfurt, Berlin, Munich, Paris, Rome and Vienna.

Enforcement of the ban will fall to national governments, many of whom are also members of NATO.

The measure will serve to increase the isolation of Mr Lukashenko, who has been president of Belarus since the office was established in 1994.

The close ally of Russian leader Vladimir Putin is often referred to as Europe's last dictator.

He won re-election for a sixth time in 2020 with 80% of the vote, in a ballot deemed "neither free nor fair" by the EU.

Since winning the disputed election last August, Mr Lukashenko has cracked down on dissenting voices, with many opposition figures arrested and others forced into exile.

Mr Protasevich was arrested after his flight from Athens to Vilnius, Lithuania, was diverted following an alleged bomb threat.

In the latest video released, he tearfully confesses to his role in anti-government protests and admitted plotting to topple Mr Lukashenko by organising "riots".

Insisting he had not been coerced, Mr Protasevich said: "I immediately admitted my guilt in organising massive unauthorised actions."

Withdrawing his previous criticism of Mr Lukashenko, he added: "When I became more involved in political topics, I began to understand that he was doing the right thing and I certainly respect him."

At the end of the 90-minute interview he covered his face with his hands and wept, with marks left by handcuffs clearly visible on his wrists.

Analysis: Dissident's tearful interview sends out message to Lukashenko's critics

By Adam Parsons, Europe correspondent

The words of Roman Protasevich have to be seen through a prism.

Firstly, he was speaking to state-controlled media and in Belarus, that link is becoming ever closed.

His interview was recorded entirely on behalf of creating propaganda for Alexander Lukashenko - if Mr Protasevich had made any criticisms in his so-called interview, they would never have been broadcast.

Would he have dared to criticise?

He is a resolute character, but it's not hard to imagine his time in detention has been profoundly unpleasant.

His friends and family have already said that they believe he has been mistreated, and even tortured, while in captivity.

So what he said was almost certainly said under duress.

How else to explain his praise of the courage of Mr Lukashenko - a man who Mr Protasevich clearly loathes?

But, just like his original arrest, the subtext of this interview is what matters.

The message being sent out from Minsk is that Lukashenko's critics can never rest - that the Belarus regime has the determination to first arrest someone on an aeroplane flying over the country, and then to force them into empty words of praise.

This isn't about Mr Protasevich changing his mind.

It's about Lukashenko flexing his muscles and humiliating an opponent - showing the world that, whatever sanctions that may impose, he is still in charge.

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2021-06-04 11:57:40Z
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Anthony Fauci urges China to release medical records of Wuhan lab workers - Financial Times

Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser has called on China to release the medical records of nine people whose illnesses might provide vital clues into whether Covid-19 first emerged as the result of a lab leak.

Dr Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, or NIAID, told the Financial Times that the records could help resolve the debate over the origins of a disease that has killed more than 3.5m people worldwide.

The records in question concern three researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology who reportedly became sick in November 2019, and six miners who fell ill after entering a bat cave in 2012. Scientists from the Wuhan Institute of Virology subsequently visited the cave to take samples from the bats. Three of the miners died.

Shi Zhengli, the institute’s leading expert on coronaviruses, has previously denied there were any infections at the lab — a claim Fauci did not dispute, but said should be investigated further.

“I would like to see the medical records of the three people who are reported to have got sick in 2019,” Fauci said. “Did they really get sick, and if so, what did they get sick with?

“The same with the miners who got ill years ago . . . What do the medical records of those people say? Was there [a] virus in those people? What was it? It is entirely conceivable that the origins of Sars-Cov-2 was in that cave and either started spreading naturally or went through the lab.”

The state department did not immediately respond to a question about whether the Biden administration had asked China for the medical records.

China’s foreign ministry declined to say whether it would consider releasing the medical records of the nine individuals at a press briefing on Friday. But Wang Wenbin, a spokesman, repeated a statement made by the institute in March that none of its staff had ever been infected with Covid-19.

The origins of Covid-19 have become one of the most contentious questions of the pandemic. Donald Trump, the former US president, said last year he thought the coronavirus had leaked from the Wuhan lab, but he was widely dismissed by most of the scientific community, who argued it was far more likely to have naturally jumped from animals to humans.

However, the lab leak theory has gained traction in recent weeks after a group of prominent scientists signed a letter arguing it should be taken seriously. There has also been a renewed focus on the Wuhan researchers who were sent to hospital weeks before the first case of Covid-19 was officially recorded.

Biden last week ordered US intelligence services to come to a conclusion within 90 days about what started the pandemic. The White House said two branches of the intelligence community believe the Sars-Cov-2 virus was transmitted naturally, but a third believes it came from the Wuhan Institute. None of the branches have a high level of confidence in their conclusion.

Fauci has been accused, especially by conservatives, of playing down the lab leak theory, in part to protect the reputation of NIAID, which helped to fund controversial bat research at Wuhan.

David Asher, former head of the state department’s Covid-19 origins investigation, questioned why Fauci was only seeking the medical records now. He pointed out that the Trump administration said publicly in January that US intelligence believed the Wuhan scientists had fallen sick with symptoms of the virus.

“I’m stunned that Fauci would now ask this question,” said Asher, who is now at the Hudson Institute, a conservative Washington-based think-tank.

Asher added that while he respected Fauci, he was frustrated at what he perceived as a lack of interest at NIAID and its parent agency, the National Institutes of Health, into pursuing the possibility that the virus had leaked from the lab.

Fauci told the FT he continues to believe the virus was first transmitted to humans via animals, pointing out that even if the lab researchers did have Covid-19, they could have contracted the disease from the wider population. But he said he thought the question warranted further investigation, not least because of the renewed public interest.

“I have always felt that the overwhelming likelihood — given the experience we have had with Sars, Mers, Ebola, HIV, bird flu, the swine flu pandemic of 2009 — was that the virus jumped species,” he said. “But we need to keep on investigating until a possibility is proven.”

He dismissed the idea that his organisation might bear any responsibility for the pandemic, however, saying: “Are you really saying that we are implicated because we gave a multibillion-dollar institution $120,000 a year for bat surveillance?”

Additional reporting by Christian Shepherd in Beijing

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2021-06-04 09:04:35Z
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Hong Kong police out in force to prevent Tiananmen commemoration - Al Jazeera English

Thousands of police were deployed in Hong Kong on Friday and the organiser of the territory’s now-banned annual vigil of China’s Tiananmen Square crackdown arrested, as the authorities tried to prevent people from gathering for any kind of remembrance of the events of 1989.

Hong Kong usually holds a mass vigil to remember those killed when soldiers stormed the square, which was packed with protesters calling for democracy, but police have banned the events for the past two years blaming the coronavirus pandemic.

This year is the first to be held since China imposed national security legislation on Hong Kong that punishes anything Beijing deems subversion, secession, “terrorism” or collusion with foreign forces with up to life in prison.

Police have not clarified whether commemorating the crackdown, which has been all but erased from history in the mainland, will breach the law, but in a statement late on Thursday said any gathering posed “considerable threats to the public health and lives” and warned that those taking part in “unauthorised assemblies” could face as many as five years in prison.

“Police will deploy adequate manpower in relevant locations on the day and take resolute action to enforce the law, including making arrests,” the police said.

Some 7,000 officers will conduct stop-and-search operations throughout the day, public broadcaster RTHK reported, citing unnamed sources.

Hong Kong was promised political and civic freedoms unknown on the mainland when it was returned to Chinese rule in 1997, but since the National Security Law was imposed nearly a year ago, dozens of activists and pro-democracy politicians, including popularly elected legislators, have been arrested and some jailed. Others have gone into exile.

Chow Hang-tung, the vice chair of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which organises the annual vigil, was arrested on Friday morning by plainclothes officers outside her office in the city centre.

A police source told the AFP news agency that Chow was being held under Section 17A of the Public Order Ordinance, which covers publicising unlawful assemblies.

A 20-year-old was also detained on Friday morning after sharing social media posts that police said were found to “advertise or publicise a public meeting that had been prohibited by the police,” Senior Superintendent Terry Law was quoted as saying by the Hong Kong Free Press.

The territory’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam has not commented on the commemorations, saying only that citizens must respect the law, as well as the Communist Party, which marks its 100th anniversary next month.

In the afternoon, police closed off parts of Victoria Park, where the vigil is usually held. The park is only a couple of hundred metres from Beijing’s national security office.

Analysts said it seemed the authorities were trying to extinguish any form of remembrance of Tiananmen in the territory.

“All this shows the government is doing all it can to stop people from lighting a candle or commemorating June 4,” Alkan Akad, a China researcher with Amnesty International told Al Jazeera. “According to international human rights law there’s no need to seek permission from any authority for peaceful assembly. Lighting a candle is not a crime. Peacefully remembering an event that happened 32 years ago is not a crime.”

Ficker of remembrance

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Tiananmen protests were “echoed in the struggle for democracy and freedom in Hong Kong” noting that this year’s vigil had been banned.

“The United States will continue to stand with the people of China as they demand that their government respect universal human rights,” Blinken said in a statement. “We honor the sacrifices of those killed 32 years ago, and the brave activists who carry on their efforts today in the face of ongoing government repression.”

#Breaking #ChowHangTung, the vice chair of #HongKong Alliance has been arrested for allegedly promoting or publishing an unauthorized assembly in the morning of #June4. We are supposed to interview her this morning. Here is our LIVE report. @AJEnglish @sarahclarkehk pic.twitter.com/rgbYo2tuvE

— Bertha Wang (@berthawangg) June 4, 2021

The arrest of high-profile leaders follows a pattern.

But the arrest of a 20-year-old food delivery man for promoting the vigil sends a different message to regular Hongkongers. https://t.co/RVuoBKZEO2

— Tom Grundy (@tomgrundy) June 4, 2021

Tens of thousands of Hong Kong people defied 2020’s ban on the vigil, gathering in the city’s Victoria Park and lighting candles.

This year, many plan to light candles again in their neighbourhood, if safe to do so. Some churches will be open for prayers.

Jailed activist Jimmy Sham said via his Facebook page he planned to “light a cigarette at 8pm”.

“We do not see the hope of democracy and freedom in a leader, a group, or a ceremony. Every one of us is the hope of democracy and freedom.”

Prominent activist Joshua Wong was given a 10-month prison sentence last month after pleading guilty to participating in last year’s vigil, while three others received four- to six-month sentences. Twenty more people are due in court on June 11 on similar charges.

The Hong Kong Alliance has said it would drop calls for people to show up at Victoria Park and not run an online commemoration as in 2020.

Its chairman Lee Cheuk-yan is in jail over an illegal assembly.

On Wednesday, Hong Kong’s June 4th Museum said it would temporarily close due to an investigation into whether it had a public entertainment venue licence.

Commemorations of Tiananmen are banned in China, and the semi-autonomous territory of Macau has also banned June 4 activities.

On the democratic island of Taiwan, a memorial pavilion will be set up in Taipei’s Liberty Square, where people can lay down flowers while following social distancing rules. A light-emitting diode or LED installation of 64 lights will also be set up in the square.

China has never provided a full account of what happened in 1989. The death toll given by officials days later was about 300, most of them soldiers, but rights groups and witnesses say thousands of people may have been killed.

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2021-06-04 03:18:58Z
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Jumat, 04 Juni 2021

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