Scottish low-level offenders 'will do manual labour'

BBC News - Scottish low-level offenders 'will do manual labour': "A new law has come into force across Scotland which means low-level criminals can be ordered to do manual labour instead of serving time in jail.

From now on, courts will be encouraged to consider imposing a Community Payback Order as an alternative to jail terms of less than three months.

It means offenders can be tasked with removing graffiti or renovation work.

Labour said it was a 'dark day for justice' but ministers said jail was the right place for serious offenders.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said: 'But at the other end of the scale, we need to address Scotland's appalling reoffending rate for low-level offenders.

'These offenders are going in and out of prison, time and time again and committing more crime in communities upon release."

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Are we ready for gangbos? « UK Human Rights Blog

Are we ready for gangbos? « UK Human Rights Blog: "Police and local councils gained new powers yesterday to deal with gang-related violence and crime.

The new ‘gang injunctions’, or “gangbos”, which can be sought in the county courts against adults suspected of gang involvement, function in a similar way to ASBOs (anti-social behaviour orders), although they aim to target people involved in shootings, knife crime and other serious violence rather than low-level anti-social behaviour. But will they be a helpful measure to curb gang violence, or an unnecessary restriction on liberty?

The injunctions are tailored to individuals and can involve being banned from entering certain areas, owning certain animals (such as dangerous dogs), wearing gang ‘colours’, or even using the internet. But the injunctions are not all about prohibitions; they might also impose requirements to take part in activities designed to break the individual away from gang culture, such as mentoring schemes.

The new powers were brought in by the previous government following Birmingham City Council’s failed attempt to get injunctions against suspected gang members (the Court of Appeal held that they needed to apply for an ASBO instead)."

Gang injunctions just criminalise poor communities | George Lavender | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk

Gang injunctions just criminalise poor communities | George Lavender | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk: "Gang injunctions are not solutions to social ills, nor do they make our streets safer' says Jerry Elster, a former gang member from South Central Los Angeles and an organiser with All of Us or None. 'What they are successful at is criminalising impoverished communities'.

This week, gang injunction powers similar to those in the US came into force in England and Wales. Introduced by the last Labour government, gang orders are civil orders that will be used by local authorities and police to restrict the freedoms of people they identify as members of 'gangs'. A lower standard of evidence for a civil order will make it easier to issue gang injunctions since identification of gang members can be based on no more than informal hearsay evidence from police officers.

Gang injunctions were first used in Los Angeles in the 1980s. Thirty years later, those original injunctions are still in force. They have become increasingly popular among local government and police, mainly in California but increasingly nationally as a way to get federal funding for extra policing and to push forward gentrification, under the guise of tackling street crime."

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UK Online Crime Map Crashes After Getting 18 Million Hits an Hour

UK Online Crime Map Crashes After Getting 18 Million Hits an Hour: "A British website showing block-by-block crime statistics crashed within a few hours of going online today after public interest overwhelmed servers.

The site, police.uk, crashed after receiving as many as 300,000 hits a minute, or 18 million an hour, The Press Association reported.

'Most popular gov website ever?' the British Home Office wrote on Twitter. 'Demand for new #crime maps at around 300k a minute, equivalent to 18m hits an hr. Working hard to make sure everyone can access.'

The site is intended to allow people to gauge levels of crime and police activity in neighborhoods in England and Wales. It breaks down crime into six categories: burglary, robbery, vehicle crime, violence, other crime and anti-social behavior, BBC News said."

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Police hunt US-bought guns smuggled in hold luggage

BBC News - Police hunt US-bought guns smuggled in hold luggage: "Weapons smuggled into the UK from the US in hold luggage are being hunted by police, it has been revealed.

American Steven Greenoe, 37, is accused in the US of smuggling 62 guns into the UK, including Glock and Ruger 9mm pistols.

Police fear many were sold on to criminal gangs in north-west England.

Documents posted in US courts reveal US officials questioned Mr Greenoe about the dismantled guns in his luggage, but he talked his way on to a flight.

One of the weapons allegedly bought by Mr Greenoe has been linked to a drive-by shooting in Wythenshawe, Manchester, last October, in which a man was hit in the leg."

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Woman badly injured in dog attack

Woman badly injured in dog attack - Home News, UK - The Independent: "47-year-old woman was taken to hospital with serious injuries after being attacked by a dog at a private address, police said today.

Officers said the condition of the victim, who suffered injuries to her arm and head in the incident in the Holmcroft area of Stafford, was not thought to be life-threatening.

A Staffordshire Police spokesman confirmed that a second woman, thought to be the owner of the Staffordshire bull terrier, was assisting with inquiries into the attack, which happened at about 5pm yesterday.

'The dog was seized by police and is being kennelled securely away from the public, pending the outcome of the investigation,' the spokesman added."

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Britain's most crime-ridden streets revealed by police map

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Brighton gangster jailed after kidnap and torture (From The Argus)

Brighton gangster jailed after kidnap and torture (From The Argus): "violent drug dealer who kidnapped and tortured his teenage girlfriends has been jailed indefinitely.

Steven “Dollar” Wilson is deemed so dangerous he will have to serve at least 10 years before he can even be considered for parole.

He will only then be released if he is no longer a danger to the public or the women whose lives he tried to control.

Baby-faced Wilson, 35, kidnapped both his victims and subjected them to vicious beatings during fits of drug-fuelled jealous rage.

One was snatched off the streets and bundled into a car outside Hove station in front of horrified witnesses when she was just 16."

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Yorkshire gangster's wife faces jail - Yorkshire Evening Post

Yorkshire gangster's wife faces jail - Yorkshire Evening Post: "The wife of a Leeds crime boss is facing jail after admitting laundering hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Maxine Valentine, 36, whose gangster husband Dennis Slade is serving life for robbery and conspiracy to murder, was told yesterday that prison was 'almost inevitable'."

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Asbos to be used against 2012 ticket touts

Asbos to be used against 2012 ticket touts - Crime, UK - The Independent: "Asbos will be among the battery of legal weapons to hit ticket touts and fraudsters targeting the London 2012 Games, Scotland Yard said today.

Talks have already begun for them to face tight bail conditions, possibly including a ban from the Olympic venues, and assets will be seized.

There are no guarantees that London 2012 will be a tout-free zone but 'we will put the fear on them using every possible legislation that we can', vowed Assistant Commissioner Chris Allison, the National Olympic Security Co-ordinator.

With 6.6 million Olympic tickets due to go on sale on March 15, touting is currently the top priority for Operation Podium, the police team set up to deal with serious and organised criminal networks looking to exploit the Olympics.

There have been 10 operations and 37 arrests, including for fraud offences, in the past six months.

The unit is currently running 16 operations aimed at frustrating criminals so much in the run-up to 2012, by preventing and disrupting their deeds, that they do not bother to target the Games."

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Romanian sex trafficking crime family jailed in UK | Catatanku

Romanian sex trafficking crime family jailed in UK | Catatanku: "A judge jailed a Romanian for 21 years and the man’s father for six years Wednesday for trafficking girls and women — including one of their own relations — into the UK to force them to become sex slaves, a spokeswoman for Manchester Crown Court said.

Marius Nejloveanu, 23, and his father Bogdan, 51, deceived at least five women, then aged between 15 and 23 years old, into coming to England and making them work as prostitutes in Manchester, Birmingham and on the continent.

“Each of them was identified as a potential victim either because they were young, could be isolated from their family, were low in intelligence or for some reason easily persuaded to come to the UK,” prosecuting lawyer Rachel Smith said during the trial."

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'Custody battle' gunman kills himself after 16 hour siege with armed police | Mail Online

'Custody battle' gunman kills himself after 16 hour siege with armed police | Mail Online: "The gunman who shot himself following a 16-hour siege in Luton had been denied access to his children by a girlfriend.

The man, whose name is believed to be Steven, was in the middle of a custody battle when he took his own life using a sawn-off shotgun this morning.

Police had been negotiating with the man on a football pitch, at Leagrave Common, in the Bedfordshire town, since 8pm last night.

But just before 12pm today, a shot rang out across the playing fields and he fell to the ground."

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Shot after ‘grass’ Facebook claim

Shot after ‘grass’ Facebook claim | The Sun |News: "A MAN was shot on a doorstep four hours after he was pictured and named as a police informant on Facebook.
Domenico Masciopinto, 30, had a bullet removed from his chest in hospital.

He is said to be 'critical but stable' after the attack eight days ago. He was named as a grass after records at a Bedford police station were doctored.

As rumours spread around the town, someone posted on Facebook what appeared to be a police computer screen grab with his picture, claiming he had been a grass since 2009. It is not known if he is an informant. Police said a 27-year-old civilian member of custody staff at the nick was charged with misconduct and neglecting to perform his duty.

He was remanded in custody to appear at St Albans Crown Court on February 1.

Another man was being questioned yesterday over the shooting and the doctoring of custody records. Malik Blackburn, of Bedford, will face Hatfield Magistrates' Court today.

Sources said police files would not reveal if anyone was an informant."

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Handguns are weapon of choice in gang murders - National News, Frontpage - Independent.ie

Handguns are weapon of choice in gang murders - National News, Frontpage - Independent.ie: "Handguns were used in 19 gangland murders last year, new figures show.

Garda statistics reveal there were 54 murders committed in 2010, a drop of two on the previous year.

A shotgun was the chosen weapon in four of the fatalities, while there were 15 stabbings with knives, and one with a garden shears, which resulted in the death of troubled west Dublin youth, Daniel McAnaspie.

The detection rate for the gangland murders committed in 2009 was 29pc at the end of the year but has since increased to 41pc, while the corresponding rate for last year is currently 26pc.

The overall murder detection rate for 2010 is 67pc, compared with 68pc the previous year."

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Smugglers hid cigarettes from Eastern Europe to avoid £10m tax duty jailed | Mail Online

Smugglers hid cigarettes from Eastern Europe to avoid £10m tax duty jailed | Mail Online: "Nine members of a smuggling ring which helped the Italian Mafia flood Britain with millions of black market cigarettes were jailed for more than 30 years today.

The offenders teamed up with a notorious family to sneak contraband tobacco past customs inside consignments of pickled vegetables, dog food and orange juice.

Prosecutors estimate the gang ripped off the taxpayer by up to £10m by evading duty on the cheap imports from Eastern Europe.

Wine merchant Peter Vyse, who was described as the 'main organiser' was jailed for seven years for masterminding the scam - the maximum sentence available."

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Teenager hurt in suspected shooting

 Teenager hurt in suspected shooting: "18-year-old man has been taken to hospital after an incident which may have involved a firearm.
The teenager was taken by ambulance from Frith Road, Dover, Kent, to the William Harvey Hospital at 8pm on Monday.
The Dover Grammar School for Girls is located in the street where the incident happened.
A Kent Police spokesman would not confirm whether a firearm was involved in the incident, but said there was a 'spontaneous incident in Frith Road'.
A spokeswoman for South East Coast Ambulance Service said: 'We were called to that address at about 8pm and an 18-year-old male was conveyed to the William Harvey Hospital.
'We do not have any details of his injuries.'
The spokeswoman said she could not confirm whether a firearm had been involved in the injuries suffered by the man.
Jackie Bowles, landlady of The Louis Armstrong pub in nearby Maison Dieu Road, said: 'There's lots of police activity and helicopters.
'They've shut the end of Salisbury Road and Bridge Street. The main activity seems to be at the grammar school.
'The police are just saying they've had an incident, but the word on the street is there's been a shooting.'"

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Terror kingpin Johnny 'Mad Dog' Adair is prime suspect as dodgy cigarettes flood Scotland - The Daily Record

Terror kingpin Johnny 'Mad Dog' Adair is prime suspect as dodgy cigarettes flood Scotland - The Daily Record: "MOBSTER Johnny 'Mad Dog' Adair can today be exposed as the top target for crime-busters probing a huge cigarette smuggling operation.
Police and Customs believe the convicted terror chief, whose paramilitaries were suspected of 40 murders, is now the Mr Big of a tobacco trafficking gang.
Crooks are doing a roaring trade at street markets across Scotland, selling tonsof cigarettesandrolling tobacco supplied by Chinese black marketeers.
And Customs men and police believe Adair's gang control the trade in Ayrshire, where he settled after his old UDA cronies hounded him out of Belfast.
A source said: 'Adair's name frequently crops up. They're known as Adair's gang.
'He is target number one. 'Given Adair's background in violence, murder and organised crime, some might see fake fags in Ayrshire as a form of semi-retirement. But the money to be made by those controlling the trade is massive.
'It's an attractive proposition to criminals, who risk much heavier sentences if they are caught dealing drugs.'"

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Government accused of cover-up after Ford Prison riot (From The Argus)

Government accused of cover-up after Ford Prison riot (From The Argus): "Government has been accused of staging a cover-up by refusing to publish a report into the New Year’s Day riot at Ford Prison.

The Ministry of Justice’s decision to keep the findings of its inquiry into the £3 million rampage under wraps has provoked criticism from prison officers and the community living near the open prison.

Burnt-out buildings at the prison, near Arundel, were being bulldozed (pictured) this week as independent monitors revealed the Prison Service had been warned about low staff numbers weeks before 40 inmates torched the prison’s B Wing.

Only two prison officers and four support staff were guarding about 500 men on the night of New Year’s Eve, when efforts to breathalyse inmates triggered a mutiny which lasted well into the following day."

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Forty new legal highs made in China are being sold in Britain - Telegraph

Forty new legal highs made in China are being sold in Britain - Telegraph: "Experts monitoring the appearance of so-called 'legal highs' in the UK, claim a new generation of drugs that circumvent the country's laws has been created in China by unscrupulous chemists and then exported to the UK.
Figures compiled by the Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs reveal that 40 new synthetic drugs appeared on sale in the UK during 2010. In the previous year there were 24 new drugs identified. In 2008 there were just 13.
Drug treatment experts said that young people taking the drugs were playing 'Russian roulette' with their lives.
It comes after a row last year over the ban on one designer drug called mephedrone, or meow meow, when a leading Government drugs advisor warned the move would cause users to turn to other more dangerous synthetic alternatives.
Many of the new compounds are based on illegal drugs which have been tweaked so as not to be covered by the list of banned substances."

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7/7 hero jailed over £100 mln drug ring

7/7 hero jailed over £100 mln drug ring: "A firefighter honoured for his bravery during the aftermath of the July 7 bombings has been jailed for 14 years for smuggling 110 kg of cocaine into Britain.
Simon Ford, 41, won a London Fire Brigade Gold Award after risking his life to pull victims from the bus blown up in London's Tavistock Square in July 2005.
But the fireman was jailed last year after admitting he was a key player in a £100 million cocaine and money-laundering operation.
His conviction was revealed to the public for the first time on Wednesday after the 35th and final member of the gang was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court and reporting restrictions were lifted."

Accountant found naked in bed with Chinese mistress surrounded by cash - Telegraph

Accountant found naked in bed with Chinese mistress surrounded by cash - Telegraph: "Leslie Baleham, 64, was jailed for a year after raking in thousands after turning his home in Radford, Notts, into a den for sexual encounters.
Police counted more than 400 punters visiting the brothel during three months, which earned Baleham more than £57,000.
When investigators raided the brothel, they discovered the married accountant in bed with his Chinese madame Ping Ping Li with cash strewn across the bed sheets.
Nottingham Crown Court heard that Li, who had been having a relationship with Baleham, fled after he was arrested and has not been seen since.
The court was told that Baleham had been 'smitten' with his younger woman - who was the main player in running the brothel."

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Crossbow cannibal jailed for 'wicked and monstrous' prostitute murders - Telegraph

Crossbow cannibal jailed for 'wicked and monstrous' prostitute murders - Telegraph: "Stephen Griffiths pleaded guilty to murdering Suzanne Blamires, 36, by firing a crossbow bolt into her head when she tried to run away from him in May this year.
He also admitted murdering Shelley Armitage, 31, and Susan Rushworth, 43, but police believe he might also be responsible for three unsolved murders after he indicated in an interview that he had killed six women in total.
He claimed he had cooked and eaten parts of his first two victims, boiling one in a pot, and ate the third one raw.
He pleaded guilty to three counts of murder at Leeds Crown Court this morning. The judge, Mr Justice Openshaw, described Griffiths' crimes as 'wicked and monstrous' as he told him he would never be released.
Griffiths stood in the dock to enter his pleas surrounded by five security guards."

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BBC News - No police charges over barrister Mark Saunders' death

BBC News - No police charges over barrister Mark Saunders' death: "No police officers will be charged over the death of a barrister shot by police marksmen in west London, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has said.

An inquest jury ruled Scotland Yard firearms officers acted lawfully when they killed Mark Saunders, 32, during an armed siege at his Chelsea home.

The CPS said it would review the inquest proceedings to see if significant new evidence emerged."

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Met cracks trafficking and prostitution racket with swoop on Chelsea and Earl’s Court ‘brothels’ | News

Met cracks

trafficking and prostitution racket with swoop on Chelsea and Earl’s Court‘brothels’ News: "suspected gangland pimp with alleged links to Russian organised crime was being questioned today in connection with a human trafficking and high-class prostitution racket in London.

The Russian-born Israeli national allegedly ran a series of brothels in affluent areas of the capital.
Vice squad detectives swooped on the 40-year-old at his Chelsea home and rescued five women who are believed to have been trafficked to London and forced to work as prostitutes. The women were found in police raids on two alleged brothels in Chelsea and one in Earl's Court."

Shrien Dewani withdrew around £1,000 in cash in the days before his wife Anni’s murder, including £800 on the eve of the shooting.

Lawyers for the South African government also disclosed for the first time that Shrien Dewani withdrew around £1,000 in cash in the days before his wife Anni’s murder, including £800 on the eve of the shooting.
Mr Dewani, 30, from Bristol, is facing extradition to South Africa after being publicly accused of orchestrating the murder of his 28-year-old bride, which he denies.
He has been being held in prison in London while the South African government prepares an appeal against a magistrate’s decision to release him on bail for £250,000.

Prosecutors in South Africa have accused him of hiring a gang of three men to stage a carjacking in Cape Town on November 13 when they were on honeymoon.
Mrs Dewani, originally from Sweden, was shot dead after being abducted from a car as they drove through a crime-ridden township on the edge of the city after a night out.
Mr Dewani and their driver were both apparently forcibly removed from the car during a struggle.
But in a hearing in Cape Town on Tuesday, the driver Zola Tongo pleaded guilty to involvement in the killing and claimed that he and the two other had been hired by Mr Dewani for an agreed £1,400.
Mr Dewani was arrested within hours at a police station in Bristol after the South African government lodged a formal request for his extradition.DISCLAIMER:Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder.

Sensors used in the US to detect gunshots being discharged have been installed in areas of Birmingham

Sensors used in the US to detect gunshots being discharged have been installed in areas of Birmingham with a high number of firearms incidents.

It is the first time the Shotspotter Gunshot Location System - which can pick up gunshots within a 25m (82ft) radius - has been deployed in the UK.

West Midlands Police said the sensors had been placed high up on buildings in north-west areas of the city.

The £150,000 system records an audio clip and sends police a GPS location.

A police officer trained to listen to the clips then makes a judgement on what they have heard before deploying officers.

The system, funded by the Home Office through Birmingham Safer Partnerships, has an 85% accuracy rate, Ch Supt Chris McKeogh said.

It can tell if multiple shots were fired, or if they were fired from a stationary or moving location, the number of weapons used and in which order they were fired, according to the manufacturers.

The system has been introduced in more than 50 US cities since 1995.

"The sound waves a bullet produces has a particular signature, if you like, and that should be recognisable to our force control room officers that have been trained up to listen," Mr McKeogh said.DISCLAIMER:Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder.

Husband paid me to find hitman to kill his bride, claims taxi driver | UK news | The Guardian

Husband paid me to find hitman to kill his bride, claims taxi driver UK news The Guardian: "driver of the honeymoon couple whose vehicle was apparently carjacked in South Africa pleaded guilty yesterday to playing a part in killing Anni Hindocha, 28, and claimed that her husband, Shrien Dewani, a Bristol businessman, was the instigator of the murder.
In a confession read to the Western Cape high court, Zola Tongo, 31, who has become a state witness in the investigation into the murder on 13 November, claims Dewani paid him 1,000 rand (about £92) for staging a car jacking that would end in the murder of his wife in a township.
But South African police refused to comment yesterday on whether they have asked British police to arrest Dewani, 31, who runs a chain of nursing homes in the south-west of England.
In a statement, South Africa's police commissioner, Bheki Cele, said: 'We remain committed to ensuring that justice emerges triumphant in this matter. We will follow all prescripts of the law with due regard to local and international protocols.' A spokesman for the national prosecuting authority said it had not been asked to prepare an extradition request.
Tongo, who claims he had initially been offered 5,000 rand for organising the killing, was found guilty of kidnapping, robbery with aggravating circumstances, murder and obstructing justice. Judge John Hope sentenced him to 18 years in prison."

Dewani murder exploits SA crime situation - analyst

BusinessDay - Dewani murder exploits SA crime situation - analyst: "alleged organised murder of Swedish tourist Anni Dewani by her husband Shrien could be a blatant exploitation of South Africa’s crime rate, according to researcher Dr Johan Burger.
Burger, researcher at the Institute for Security Studies crime and justice programme, says the possible involvement of Dewani’s husband in her murder is not surprising due to the level of violent crime in the country.
'You could either use the horrible crime rate in South Africa as an excuse or hide behind the incompetence of our criminal justice system in order to cover your tracks,' he said.
Anni Dewani was found dead in Gugulethu in November, following an alleged hijacking.
In a bizarre turn of events, the man tasked with driving the couple around on the night, taxi driver Zola Tongo was on Tuesday sentenced to 18 years in prison for her murder.
British businessman Shrien Dewani apparently ordered the murder of his wife and paid Tongo R15000 according to allegations made by Western Cape director of public prosecutions Rodney de Kock in the Cape Town high Court.
'The deceased was murdered at the instance of her husband,' De Kock said in reading out a plea bargain agreement which saw Tongo plead guilty to murder.
Judge President John Hlophe is the presiding judge.
In terms of the agreement, Hlophe sentenced Zola Tongo, 31, to an effective 18 years jail.
Burger says the murder has done untold damage to South Africa’s international image and fight against crime.
'We already have a huge problem, now we have to deal with people trying to exploit the situation - it is not acceptable,' he said."

SA murder victim's husband arrested - Yahoo! News UK

SA murder victim's husband arrested - Yahoo! News UK: "Shrien Dewani, whose wife Anni was shot dead last month as they visited a township, was held on Tuesday night by Scotland Yard extradition officers after a request from the South African authorities.
It followed a court hearing in South Africa, during which taxi driver Zola Tongo said he was offered 15,000 rand (£1,300) by the 30-year-old businessman to kill his wife. The Dewani family dismissed the allegation as 'totally ludicrous'.
Mr Dewani, from Westbury-on-Trym in Bristol, handed himself in at a police station in the city, the Metropolitan Police said. He is due to appear at the City of Westminster Magistrates' Court."

Honeymoon murder: Anni Dewani profile - Telegraph

Honeymoon murder: Anni Dewani profile - Telegraph: "Anni Dewani had been married for a matter of days before she was murdered during her honeymoon in South Africa.
Her car was hijacked on November 13, 2010 as it took a detour through Gugulethu, one of the poorest townships of Cape Town.
Her husband Shrien Dewani, 30, was released by their attackers and his wife's body was found on the back seat of the abandoned car the following morning. She had been shot in the neck, chest and hand."

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