‘Ballena Blanca’ Costa del Sol money

Euro Weekly News | Request refused | Costa del Sol | News | The Largest English Language Newspapers in Spain: "ONE of the accused in the ‘Ballena Blanca’ Costa del Sol money laundering case expressed his wish to change his lawyer, but was refused by the court as they believe it to be a ruse."

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Traffic fines to be pubished on the internet in Spain

Traffic fines to be pubished on the internet in Spain: "DGT traffic authority in Spain is to start publishing traffic fines on the internet. From Thursday this week a list of all those drivers who the DGT have been unable to locate will be placed online.

Until the now the official notification of fines has been placed in the Official Provincial Bulletin, but one in three is not paid as the offending driver is not located. Now it is presumed that the driver does have internet access.

Ramón Ledesma from the DGT said that the current system often resulted in guilty drivers’ first finding out about their fine when their bank account is embargoed."

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Santa María Green Hills, in Las Chapas, and El Palmeral in Nueva Andalucía.Two urbanisations made legal in Marbella

Two urbanisations made legal in Marbella: "Marbella Town Hall has, this Tuesday, given the go-ahead to regularise more than 200 properties which were built illegally during the time the GIL Party was in power in the town. It affects two developments of a total of 225 houses, which are now made legal under Marbella’s new local development plan, the PGOU, and the compensations system set out under the plan.

The Town Hall gave the names of the urbanisations concerned in a press release on Tuesday as Santa María Green Hills, in Las Chapas, and El Palmeral in Nueva Andalucía.

In the first case, the developer’s compensation to the Town Hall for exceeding the ‘buildable’ area is payment of more than half a million €, plus carrying out improvements to the road which passes in front of the urbanisation. The agreement for the developer of El Palmeral, in addition to monetary compensation, is ceding an area of land to be used for social housing and another area for a park. Responsibility for creating the park will fall to the development company itself."

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Marbella will not carry out demolition orders | Costa del Sol | News | The Largest English Language Newspapers in Spain

Euro Weekly News | Marbella will not carry out demolition orders | Costa del Sol | News | The Largest English Language Newspapers in Spain: "MARBELLA Town Hall has informed the courts of the legal impossibility of carrying out demolition orders in the town. The new General Plan for Urban Development (PGOU) in Marbella which came into effect almost six months ago will legalise more than 16,500 homes which were built with licenses handed out illegally during the Gil era.
The aim is to protect the people who bought the properties in good faith from seeing their homes knocked down.
Some 900 demolition orders were sentenced by the court, but with the new PGOU the properties are now legal.
The town hall had already taken its plans, which were approved at a local meeting, to the Andalucian Supreme Court of Justice before the new PGOU was approved."

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Eight international criminals arrested in Spain

Eight international criminals arrested in Spain: "National Police say they have arrested eight international criminals wanted on charges of homicide, drug trafficking, frauds and other crimes including kidnap and people trafficking.

The arrests come thanks to international cooperation with Interpol, Europol and Sirene, and with help from judicial authorities in Belgium, Italy, France, Romania, the Unites States and here in Spain.

Most of the eight were involved in organised crime, including Richard S.P. from the United States who was arrested close to a restaurant in Barcelona Port. He is wanted for fraud and money laundering and defrauded his victims, most of whom were from the U.K., of 127 million dollars selling worthless shares in fictitious companies.

Also among those arrested are a couple known as the Belgium ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ who were wanted for fraud and other charges. Didier G and Patricia K were arrested close to their home in Peñiscola, Castellón.

40 year old Fabrice David N, from France, who jumped prison after a pass, when serving ten years for armed robbery, was arrested in Las Palmas.

The French authorities were also looking for 28 year old Abdelkader H, who faces two murder and kidnap charges. He was arrested last week in Benalmádena, Málaga"

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BBC News - Morocco 'raided Western Sahara camp to sabotage talks'

BBC News - Morocco 'raided Western Sahara camp to sabotage talks': "prominent human rights campaigner has told the BBC she believes the clearing of a protest camp in Western Sahara by Moroccan forces could be classed as a crime against humanity.
Aminatou Haidar, nicknamed the 'Gandhi of Sahara', said Morocco was deliberately escalating the clashes.
It was a tactic to block UN-sponsored talks on the territory, which was annexed by Morocco in 1975, she said.
At least eight people died in the violence on Monday.
Moroccan authorities have not reacted to Ms Haidar's comments - Morocco's London embassy told the BBC it was not entitled to comment on recent events in Western Sahara.
The region's pro-independence movement, the Polisario Front, said 11 people had been killed.
The Gadaym Izik camp was set up about a month ago outside Laayoune, the capital of the disputed territory, as a protest by displaced Sahrawi people about their living conditions. It was home to more than 12,000 people.
Polisario said Moroccan troops used live ammunition, tear gas and water cannon against thousands of people at the camp."

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French and Spanish car sales plunge in October | Reuters

French and Spanish car sales plunge in October | Reuters: "French and Spanish car sales plunged in October as Spain continued to suffer from the end of a scrappage scheme and France's reduced subsidy was not enough to prevent a drop versus the strong sales this time last year.
The subsidies launched to encourage drivers to trade in old cars were highly successful but carmakers are now facing tough comparisons with the booming sales last year when schemes boosted sales."

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