Fears El Chapo arrest will spark bloody gang war with 'Kim Kardashian of crime'

• By Christopher Bucktin , Jon Dean

If the Mexican cartel boss is extradited to face charges in the US, selfie-loving Claudia Ochoa Felix could make a power grab for the resulting vacuum

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El Chapo's arrest is feared to spark a bloody internal fight for power involving the world's deadliest woman dubbed 'the Kim Kardashian of organised crime'.
Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman was captured on Friday following a gunfight with Mexican cops after six months on the run.
And if the 58-year-old Sinaloa Cartel boss is extradited to the US, gangland experts believe other drug lords could make a power grab for the resulting vacuum.
One of those is selfie-loving Claudia Ochoa Felix , the head of their ruthless hit squad Los Ántrax, known as the Kim Kardashian of crime because of her curves and social media addiction.

Instagram / claudiaafelixx

Pout: Claudia is known as the Kim Kardashian of crime

Instagram / claudiaafelixx

Deadly: Bikini-clad Claudia is the leader of an assassin squad

Read more : World's oldest mafia don celebrates his 100th birthday with fireworks at huge party
Now El Chapo is back behind bars, the big question is whether the drug lord will be sent to America.
If he is left in Mexico, the Sinoloa Cartel will be able to carry on as normal, with Guzman running things from behind the scenes, it is believed.
The cartel's number two - Ismael Zambada García, known as El Mayo - is still at large and will take the reigns.

Instagram / claudiaafelixx

Curvy: The Mexican took over the hit squad after her boyfriend boss was arrested

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Femme fatale: Claudia Ochoa Felix is said to be boss of the los Antrax group

Read more: World's Top 10 Most Wanted fugitives following the dramatic capture of El Chapo
But his extradition could well spark a deadly internal gang war with splinter groups such as Los Antrax gunning for power.
Drug policy expert and Mexico crime author Nathan Jones said: "If Guzman is extradited, he could lose significant operational control over proxies, which could adversely impact internal Sinaloa cartel cohesion.
"It is possible sub-networks such as Los Antrax or the Gente Nueva (enforcer paramilitary apparatuses) could potentially break free and into internecine conflict with the Sinaloa Cartel."

Meeting: A recent interview with Rolling Stone saw the kingpin brush with celebs

Mexican Prison Authority

Caged: Mexican drug trafficker Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman is back behind bars

Dr Jones stresses this is a worst case scenario.
Felix was installed as boss after her boyfriend and former head of the group, Jose Rodrigo Arechiga Gamboa, was arrested.
The mother-of-three gained notoriety after it was wrongly reported she had been tortured and assassinated.
The victim was, in fact, Yurina Castillo Torres, a former girlfriend of Gamboa who looked remarkably like Felix.

Instagram / claudiaafelixx

Custom: This pink AK47 is said to have been made for Claudia

She wasted no time capitalising her notoriety via a flood of incriminating pictures of her in stilettos, caressing her custom-made pink AK-47 automatic rifle.
The pouting femme fatale is also seen reclining among masked men and propping a deadly M16 assault rifle on her tiny hips.
As news emerged of her rise to power she was quick to delete as much evidence as she could linking her to the gang.
Now she emphatically denies she is La Emperatriz de Los Ántrax - the Empress of Los Ántrax.
Either way, Dr Jones believes it is likely that her boss will stay caged in Mexico.

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Arrest: El Chapo cut a desolate figure has he was captured

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He said: "The fear for the Mexican government is that Chapo has too much information on high-ranking corrupt officials such that his extradition to the US could be highly embarrassing."
Read more: Video of El Chapo's safehouse reveals sophisticated tunnel network which helped him evade capture
If he is extradited, warfare could break out.
Dr Jones told the Mirror Online: "These groups are currently enforcers, contracted in by the cartel.
"But the fear is they could see Guzman's arrest as an opportunity.
"Another danger is Los Zeta, an extremely violent cartel who again started life as enforcers.

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Held: The drug trafficker was in the run for more than six months

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"They were Mexican special forces who deserted - 'sky Ninjas' who would attack by helicpoter.
"They could also start a war with the Sinaloa cartel."
The report suggests any future arrest of El Mayo could be more important than that of El Chapo.

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Vacuum: Will El Chapo be extradited?

Dr Jones, who is also assistant professor at Sam Houston State University , said: "In fact, Los Antrax had more links to El Mayo."
In his report, he adds: "Many of El Mayo’s sons have been arrested and extradited to or captured in the US.
"This weakens his succession mechanisms and could be an indication that El Mayo’s arrest might be more significant to the Sinaloa Cartel than Chapo’s.
Read more: El Chapo's cartel henchman slain in final stand lie slumped and bloodied in gruesome aftermath images
"If El Mayo is arrested after having lost too many of his sons to arrest and US extradition, that could lead to more internal fragmentation within the Sinaloa Cartel network.

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Aftermath: El Chapo was arrested following a bloody gun battle with police

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He adds: "If there is division within the Sinaloa Cartel, other drug trafficking networks could sense weakness and target the Sinaloa Cartel’s front businesses, territories, assets, drug loads, etc.
"In this sense, the government targeting of drug trafficking organization leadership figures might not have had the desired effect of making them more manageable.
"Instead...it might have created more violent fragmented networks that increase overall levels of violence."
Despite the high profile of Felix, Dr Jones says her boyfriend could still be pulling the strings.
He said: "I am skeptical about how much power she actually has.

Instagram / claudiaafelixx

Gun-toting: Images of Felix carrying guns flooded her social media accounts

Expert: Dr Jones has warned of a possible power struggle

"Quite often you see husbands and boyfriends go down and these women are very public but doing it with the power of the mafiosi behind them.
"Even the law enforcement agencies are confused, because on bugged phones women will make calls pretending to be Claudia, and vice versa.
"I would love to see the contents of the extradition document - and how much of his billions will Guzman have to give up for a plea bargain?
"But either way things are going to get interesting."
Dr Jones' new book, Mexico's Illicit Drug Networks and the State Reaction, is published on March 26 and is available on Amazon . 

Culled from Mirror 

Bayelsa re-run: IGP Arase confirms 3 killed - From Magnus Eze, & Femi Folaranmi

at:Home»COVER»Bayelsa re-run: IGP Arase confirms 3 killed

Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Solomon Arase, has contradicted the figure being bandied that many lives were lost during last Saturday’s supplementary election in Bayelsa State, saying police records indicated that only three persons were killed.
Arase spoke at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, yesterday when Information and Culture Minister, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, met with the Police Management Team in continuation of his consultations with stakeholders to seek support for the Federal Government and the Armed Forces in the war against insurgency.
The IGP stated that he had on assumption of duty pursued four major policing strategies in line with the current national security realities.
He listed them as Rule of Law-driven policing, technology and intelligence-led policing, citizens-driven policing and police accountability.
Arase said with the firm motivation and support from the present administration, the police leadership has commenced projects aimed at enhancing the technical intelligence capacity of the force to strengthen their operational competency in the handling of highly organised crimes including terrorism, kidnapping, armed robbery, cybercrime and other crimes of national security concern.
He assured the minister that the force would immediately begin protection of broadcast premises and installations nation-wide without cost. He urged the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON) to provide his office with inventory of facilities to be protected.
Arase appealed to the minister to deploy the broad network of the ministry in advancing the concept of police- community partnership and also assist in disseminating public education on civic responsibilities in respect of national security and crime prevention.
Earlier, Mohammed urged the police to use its large network, investigative capacity and the advantage that the personnel live largely with the people to protect vulnerable places that have become soft targets for Boko Haram terrorists.
He implored the IGP to provide 24-hour police security for broadcast premises, noting that such offices were likely targets of terror attacks especially as they partner the Federal Government in national security awareness campaign.

Culled from Sun

Sean Penn, El Chapo and Hollywood’s mutual fascination with Big Crime -By Ann Hornaday

Movie star Sean Penn detailed his secret October meeting with Mexican drug lord "El Chapo" in a Rolling Stone article published Jan. 9. Here's what you need to know about it. (Monica Akhtar/The Washington Post)

 

It may be tempting to chalk up Sean Penn’s recent encounter with Mexican drug lord and prison escapee Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán to the actor’s long-standing penchant for inserting himself into the heart of geopolitical intrigue. But the episode continues a well-established tradition of symbiotic codependence and mutual regard between Hollywood and organized crime.

Like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers (“He gives her class, and she gives him sex”), organized crime and Hollywood have given each other what they needed most, whether in the form of capital, muscle and the alluring aroma of danger on the one hand, or legitimacy, proximity to celebrity and a glamorous public image on the other.
From the days when Charles “Lucky” Luciano and Al Capone battled over Hollywood turf, to Chicago mob associate, lawyer and legendary fixer Sidney Korshak pulling strings so that MGM would let Al Pacino play Michael Corleone in “The Godfather,” show business and the mob have fit together like a brass-knuckled hand in a silk opera glove. The relationship goes back at least to the 1920s, when the Chicago “outfit” — which controlled the labor unions — arrived in Los Angeles to help studio executives ride herd on their crews. As Gus Russo, who wrote about Korshak in his book “Supermob,” told me, Hollywood “was a mob town” for decades, possibly into the 1980s.

“Many of the movies you know and love were brokered by the Chicago outfit, with their extensive labor pull,” Russo said. A particularly toothsome bit of legend and lore has it that Jill St. John got her role as a Bond girl in “Diamonds Are Forever” thanks to her friendship with the intimidatingly well-connected Korshak — who, let the record reflect, was never indicted or convicted for any crime.

Sean Penn and then-fugitive Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán on Oct 2. After a long dinner and conversation, Guzmán granted Penn’s request for a formal interview, which was published in Rolling Stone. (Courtesy of Rolling Stone)

“Let’s just say that a nod from Korshak, and the Teamsters change management,” the producer Robert Evans wrote in his book “The Kid Stays in the Picture.” “A nod from Korshak, and Santa Anita closes. A nod from Korshak, and Vegas shuts down. A nod from Korshak, and the Dodgers can suddenly play night baseball.”
Perhaps the most valuable things organized crime and Hollywood have given each other, of course, are stories. From Jesse James and Capone — whose underlings reportedly consulted with “Scarface” screenwriter Ben Hecht — to “Bonnie and Clyde” and “Goodfellas,” the exploits of criminals and outlaws have been Hollywood’s most reliable fodder, with the miscreants themselves being the movies’ most ardent audience. As “Godfather” author Mario Puzo told Vanity Fair’s Nick Tosches in 1997, “The word ‘godfather’ had never been used in a Mafia sense.” But after the book and the movie were released, he said, “they even started calling themselves godfathers. It’s a fairy tale.”
In the case of Penn and Guzmán, that fairy tale has taken a pointedly surreal turn, the result not just of Hollywood’s congenital fascination with tough guys, but also a media culture in which heroes and villains are now empowered to be their own Brothers Grimm. Whereas 1931’s “The Public Enemy” was adapted from an (unpublished) novel by two former colleagues of Capone’s, and both “Goodfellas” and the book that inspired it were written by journalist Nicholas Pileggi, such formalities are laughably obsolete in the era of Twitter, citizen journalism and PR-savvy self-branding.

Culled from Washington post

Catholic Church plans to transfer Fr. Mbaka by Petrus Obi, Enugu

INDICATIONS have emerged that fiery priest and Director of Adoration Ministry, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka may be transferred out of his station, Christ the King Parish in GRA, Enugu State.
The speculated transfer of Mbaka by Enugu Catholic Diocese is coming against the backdrop of his recent prophecies especially in the politics of Nigeria where he predicted the defeat of former president Goodluck Jonathan at the polls.
Reliable sources told Dai­ly Sun that the decision to remove Mbaka was sched­uled to affect other priests in an attempt to make it look like a routine church affair.
Another source, how­ever, confirmed that the church is afraid of the possi­ble reaction of his followers and the adoration faithful, who make up more than 80 per cent of the population of Enugu Catholic Diocese.
Mbaka was criticised extensively by the clergies in the South East when he backed President Muham­madu Buhari to beat Jona­than in the March 28, 2015 elections.
In his New Year message, Mbaka lambasted those who labeled him a false prophet and demanded to know who is the false prophet.
Speaking on the issue, Director of Social Com­munications of the Diocese, Rev. Fr. Joseph Offor noted that the Diocese embarks on postings of priests every six years.
Offor, who spoke to Dai­ly Sun on phone, explained that there would be general posting and re-posting of priests this year.
“Yes, the postings will be announced this week. The bishop decides who should be posted where; it has nothing to do with a particular individual. It is a routine practice which is done every six years.”
Also reacting, Mr. Val Nnadozie, a politician and adoration faithful said: “For me, I think it’s just a rumour which is making the rounds. And it is my view that the bishop has the right to trans­fer any priest.
“However, it won’t be right if such a transfer is done with malice or as a pu­nitive measure for holding an opinion on an issue.”
Our source revealed that the transfer, which is due to be announced this week, may see Mbaka being post­ed to the adoration ground, Emene, which is not yet a parish.
He claimed his predic­tion was based on prophetic revelations, saying he was compelled by divine intu­ition and unsavoury socio-economic incidents in the country to voice out his concern.
Delivering a sermon titled “From good luck to bad luck” during the cross­over night Adoration mass to usher in the New Year, the radical priest said he and millions of other Nige­rians were disappointed by Jonathan’s administration, arguing that it had failed to rescue the Chibok girls kidnapped by Boko Haram terrorists in April 2014.
Interestingly, Fr. Mbaka had earlier anointed former President Goodluck Jona­than’s wife, Dame Patience Jonathan, as the next First Lady of Nigeria.

Culled from Sun

Bayelsa poll: TMG tasks security agencies on peaceful conduct

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By Caleb Ayansina

ABUJA—The Transition Monitoring Group, TMG, yesterday, called on security agencies to provide adequate security to ensure a peaceful supplementary governorship election in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, tomorrow.

Timipre Sylva and Seriake Dickson

The group added that it would deploy 99 quick count observers for the poll.
The governorship election in the state was declared inconclusive due to violence that made it impossible for the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to conduct election in Southern Ijaw, one of the eight local government areas in the state.
TMG, in a statement by its Chairman, Ibrahim Zikirullah, in Abuja, said that despite its earlier warning to all political parties to play the game in line with the law, some of them still allowed their personal ambitions to plunge the state into crisis.
Zikirullahi, called on “the political parties and the contestants to ensure that the sad incidents of December 5, 2015 are not repeated tomorrow. We call on the security agencies to ensure that space is secured for the peaceful conduct of the poll.”

Culled from Vanguard

Ooni Urges Osun People to Pay Taxes for Development

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi and Governor, State of Osun, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, at the Government House, during the monarch's visit to the governor

Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo.
His Imperial Majesty, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II
on Wednesday  informed the Governor of Osun state Mr, Rauf Aregbesola that Ife and Modakeke have come together with a resolve that there will no longer be rivalry and war during his reign as the Ooni of Ife and thereafter.

He also  called on the people of the state to pay their taxes for government to be able to continue with her developmental projects in the state.

Ooni equally called on the Governor to support the initiative of the two communities setting up a trust fund by House of Oduduwa to assist youths and rebuild the ruins of war in the area.

The Imperial Majesty, who visited the Governor on a thank you visit also commended the Governor  Rauf  Aregbesola for promoting the Yoruba culture and ethos by adopting the Oranmiyan title.

This was even as the Governor of the state charged the traditional ruler to use his position to unite all Yoruba Sons and Daughter's all over the world.

The Imperial Majesty during a "Thank you" visit with Ife Monarchs and Chiefs to Governor Aregbesola at the Government House in Osogbo called on Ife Chiefs to pray for the governor for bringing unity to the cradle of Yorubaland.

Culled from Thisday

IMF to scrutinise FG’s 2016 budget—Lagarde -By Emeka Anaeto, Economy Editor & Levinus Nwabughiogu

Says she is not in Nigeria to negotiate loan
Notes with right policies, Nigeria has no reason to borrow
Backs Buhari’s fight against corruption
Ministers’ll give account of funds —Buhari

ABUJA — There were indications that the 2016 Appropriation Bill may be subjected to further scrutiny and amendments by the International Monetary Fund, IMF, despite being already presented to the National Assembly for legislative action.
Managing Director of IMF, Ms Christine Lagarde, who is visiting Nigeria, told newsmen in Abuja, yesterday, that the multilateral financial institution would be discussing the budget next week with Nigerian officials.
Lagarde responding to question on the 2016 budget said: “A team of economists is going to come here (Nigeria) next week to review and audit (the bill) and have a good discussion with the government authorities to really assess whether the financing is in place, whether the debt is sustainable, whether the borrowing costs are sensible and what strategy must be put in place in order to address challenges going forward.”
The IMF boss, who held meetings with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN; Finance Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, as well as a closed door sessions with President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, had refused to comment directly on the content of the 2016 Appropriation Bill because there are procedures at the IMF that must be followed.
She noted that she will continue to have discussions with Nigeria’s Finance Minister and CBN Governor on issues of fiscal discipline, financing, monetary policies and the degree of flexibility, because despite “Nigeria being a vibrant and large economy still has to deal with a lot of poor people with a lot of inequality. Those two components should certainly always be the drivers of reforms, whether it is looking at subsidies, how they are structured and how they can be faced out.”
Don’t strangulate poor Nigerians
Following the dwindling oil prices that have apparently affected the national income of most countries, the IMF boss warned the Federal Government not to strangulate poor Nigerians with rigid economic policies.
She also stated that it was concerned by the condition of teeming population of poor Nigerians who would be affected by the rigidity of policies, stressing the need to inject fiscal discipline in the policy formulations.
According to Lagarde, her mission to Nigeria was not connected to the negotiations of any loan with any kind of conditionalities but to have discussion on the economic reforms and objectives of the present government.
 A lot has changed in Nigeria

President Muhammadu Buhari receiving IMF Managing Director, Christine Lagarde in Abuja.

Recalling the tremendous progress Nigeria has made in its democratic process, Lagarde said a lot had changed in the country since she last visited four years ago.
She said: “I was in Nigeria four years ago and in four years, many things have changed. That has been the topic of our discussions with President Buhari and his team. Looking back four years ago, massive democratic change has occurred in this country peacefully. Nigeria has become the largest economy in Africa, certainly the most populated and with a very attractive market.
“But things have changed in a more complicated way in the sense that the source of revenue to the government of Nigeria which was predominantly oil has seen its price divided by more than half and the financing cost around are beginning to rise if only because the economic situation in the United States has improved and interest rates will begin to rise. Added to which emerging countries economies are decelerating their growth.
Not here to negotiate loan
“First, let me make it clear that I’m not here nor is my team in this country to negotiate a loan with conditionalities. We are not into programme negotiations and frankly at this point in time, given the determination, resilience displayed by the President and his team, I don’t see why an IMF programme will be needed. So, of course, discipline is going to be needed, of course, implementation is going to be key for the objectives and the ambitions to serve the country well, in order for it to be actually sustainable.
“We believe that with very clear primary ambition to support the poor people of Nigeria, there could be added flexibility in the monetary policy, particularly if as we think, the price of oil is likely to be possibly low for longer, because clearly the authorities should not deplete the reserves of the country, simply because of rules that will be exceedingly rigid. I’m not suggesting that but that rigidity be totally removed but some degree of flexibility will be enough.
“We have excellent discussions with Buhari and we discussed the challenges ahead stemming from oil price reduction. The necessity to apply fiscal discipline and the need to also respond to the population needs while addressing the Medium Term specifics of improving the competitiveness of Nigeria and yet also focusing on the short term fiscal situation which requires that revenue sources be identified in order to compensate the shortfall resulting from oil price decline.
“Oil is not the major contributor to the Nigerian GDP, it is only about 40 per cent but it is a big source of revenue for the government.
To discuss budget next week
“We discussed with the President, Vice President and the Minister of Finance and Minister of Budget how more efficiency, more transparency, better accountability, enlarging the base of revenue could actually contribute to sound budget going forward.
“It is not for me here and now to actually approve or comment on the budget because we have procedures in the IMF under which a team of economists is going to come next week actually to do what we call the Article 4 which is to review….good discussion with partners, IMF on one hand, country’s authorities on the other hand to really access whether financing is in place, whether the debt is sustainable, whether the borrowing cost are sensible and what strategy put in place in order to address challenges going forward.
On war against corruption
“But what I certainly mentioned to Mr. President was that his fight and his determination to fight corruption and his determination to bring about transparency and accountability at all levels of the economy are very important agenda item and very ambitious goal that needed to be deliberated upon which he, himself is definitely committed to as he indicated this morning and as he inspires his team members.
“With that I am going to have more discussions with the finance minister, with Governor of Central Bank. We will be discussing issue of fiscal discipline, financing monetary policies and the degree of flexibility, all that with the fact that Nigeria with a vibrant large economy still has to deal with poor people, a lot of inequality and those two components should certainly be the drivers of reforms, whether it is looking at subsidies and how they are structured and how they can be phased out, whether it is monetary policy and the flexibility needed and knowing what effect it has on the poor, all, of those are ambitions that we could quickly recognize and support.”
IMF backs Buhari’s  war against corruption
The IMF MD, who was flanked by the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, at the beefing also lauded the anti-corruption fight of President Buhari, saying that the course would engender the needed transparency and accountability in the financial system of the country.
“But what I certainly mentioned to Mr. President was that his fight and his determination to fight corruption and his determination to bring about transparency and accountability at all levels of the economy are very important agenda item and very ambitious goal that needed to be deliberated upon which he, himself is definitely committed to as he indicated this morning and as he inspires his team members,” she said.
Ministers’ll give accounts of funds —Buhari
Meanwhile, President Buhari has said that his ministers will render accurate account of every kobo they spent in their respective ministries.
He also said that his administration will enforce regulations to stop financial leakages and adopt global best practices in generating more revenue to mitigate the effect of dwindling oil prices on the Nigerian economy.
The president, who gave the assurance when he received the IMF boss at the Presidential Villa said that his administration will enforce greater discipline, probity and accountability in all  revenue generating agencies of the Federal Government.
He said: “We have just come out of budget discussions after many weeks of taking into consideration the many needs of the country, and the down turn of the economy with falling oil prices and the negative economic forecasts.
“We are working very hard and with the budget as our way forward, we will do our best to ensure that our country survives the current economic downturn.
“We have also told all  heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government that on our watch, they will fully account for all funds that get into their coffers.”

Culled from Vanguard