2
CRIME
www.theolivepress.es
NEWS IN BRIEF Bad gamble
A MOTHER in Alicante has denounced the casino that allowed her 14-year-son to enter and served him drinks. Casinos are only open to 18 and overs.
Cold killer
AN evil stepmum who murdered an eightyear-old boy last year has been sentenced to life without the possibility of parole in a Spain first. Ana Julia Quezada was found guilty of murdering Gabriel Cruz, the son of her partner Angel Cruz, by a jury in Almeria last month.
Check out Chik Russian gangster sought by police on the Costa Blanca A WELL-known Russian fugitive is believed to be hiding out on the Costa Blanca. Aleksandr Chikovani, 43, is
wanted by various Russian law enforcement agencies for a number of financial frauds. According to Russian media,
100-yearold expat mugged
Liver lies
VALENCIAN courts have jailed a Lebanese family for ‘organ transplant crimes’. The father had suffered from sclerosis and was illegally offered €40,000 for a liver.
Track chase
A DRAMATIC car chase through the streets and down the tram tracks of Alicante resulted in the vehicle flipping over and the driver later being arrested. The high-speed pursuit took place October 8.
October 10th - October 23rd 2019
A 100-year-old British woman has been mugged while riding her mobility scooter in Javea. Betty Guinness was riding home after meeting friends for coffee, when a woman attacked her from behind. The aggressor tried to pull the expat off her scooter before snatching her bag and running off to a getaway car. Betty was unhurt, but shaken by the sickening attack in broad daylight. The centenarian remains ‘determined’ to keep riding her scooter as it is her ‘freedom pass’. A spokesman for Javea U3A, of which Betty was a keen member, described Bet-
But Betty will keep riding her mobility scooter she calls her ‘freedom pass’ ty as ‘much-loved’ and said that on her 100th birthday this year she was awarded a lifetime membership to the organisation. “It was a heartless attack and we must all be on the lookout for attackers like this,” spokesman Ian Rogerson said. The case has been passed to the Guardia Civil for investigation.
he has defrauded many people via a series of companies including Nord Construction and Gephest Construction.. While Chikovani (right) denied links to the companies, police in Russia proved otherwise by linking his IP addresses of other firms to them. They also discovered that the domain names of the websites were registered in his name. Gephest Construction filed for bankruptcy with a loan debt of 50 million rubles, which Moscow Arbitration Court believes was to avoid paying off debts. The court claims he owes a further 163 million rubles in unpaid tax. The law enforcement agencies became interested in the activities of Gephest after the company filed for bankruptcy. The Moscow court investigation then discovered other large fraud schemes he was allegedly involved in. As he owed over 45 million rubles, it is considered a case of tax evasion on a particularly large scale. In the course of the investigation, he was put under house arrest, but ignored the ruling and fled abroad to Spain. Chikovani’s companies have now been declared bankrupt
and he has been placed on the federal wanted list. A Russian Federation source told the Olive Press he is believed to be currently living in the Alicante area, where he has ‘fled to avoid justice’. “The Costa Blanca area has become a refuge for many fraudsters and bandits from the post-Soviet era,” said the source. “This is one of the key men we want to find.” Chikovani is understood to be a member of an ethnic criminal group operating in Russia. He was introduced to the criminal underworld by his relative Georgiy ‘Gogi’ Chikovani, a Georgian, who has served 26 prison sentences for various crimes.
Tiger tale deepens THE owners of a rare Albino tiger kept in a cage at their Alicante villa are now facing charges of drug trafficking and illegal weapons. Police visiting their home to check out reports of the big cat also unearthed 100 marijuana plants, 120 grams of cocaine, a rifle, shotgun and multiple boxes of ammunition. As the Olive Press reported last issue, neighbours had their attention drew to the Spanish owners after seeing the tiger locked in a cage by the swimming pool. There are only 20 Albino tigers in the world.
Beautiful cop THE ‘largest organised crime gang’ on the Costa del Sol has been brought down following a seven-nation investigation. A total of 81 arrests were made as 800 bank accounts were frozen and the seizure of 4,000kg of cocaine was made during ‘Operation Beautiful’. The raids came after cooperation between Spain, Colombia, France, Portugal, Romania, Sweden and the UK, supported by Europol. More than €1 million was found in the panic room of the ringleader’s house, while a total of 42 vehicles, a 25m-long yacht in Denia port and properties worth €20 million were also seized.