Armoured & Luxury
Chauffeur Driven Cars

A man accused of deadly attacks on mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch a year ago has pleaded guilty to 51 charges of murder.

Brenton Tarrant, 29, also admitted the attempted murder of another 40 people, and one terrorism charge. He had previously denied the charges and was due to go on trial in June.

The gun attacks at two mosques sent shockwaves around the world. In the wake of the killings, New Zealand brought in stricter gun laws.

New Zealand is in a state of lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak and the plea was made at a scaled-down court hearing in Christchurch High Court on Thursday.

No members of the public were allowed in to the hearing and Tarrant, from New South Wales, Australia, and his lawyers appeared via video link.

Read More

The government is considering releasing some offenders from prisons in England and Wales to ease pressures caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said the virus poses an «acute» risk in prisons, many of which are overcrowded.

Some 3,500 prison staff — about 10% of the workforce — were off work on Tuesday because they were ill or self-isolating, a committee of MPs was told. Mr Buckland said releasing some inmates could help to «alleviate» pressures.

The justice secretary told the Commons justice committee he was «keen» to make use of release on temporary licence — where prisoners are let out for short periods, after a risk assessment.

Mr Buckland said he was looking «very carefully» at whether or not 50 pregnant prisoners could be released.

He also indicated some of the 9,000 inmates who are on remand, awaiting trial, could be transferred to bail hostels, if it was safe to do so.

Read More

At least 23 people have died in one of Bogotá’s largest jails after what the authorities are calling a mass breakout attempt amid rising tensions over coronavirus.

Colombia’s Justice Minister Margarita Cabello said 83 inmates were injured during a riot at La Modelo prison.

Inmates at prisons across the country held protests on Sunday against overcrowding and poor health services during the coronavirus outbreak. The justice ministry is investigating.

Ms Cabello said 32 prisoners and seven guards were in hospital. Two guards are in a critical condition. She said the violence was a coordinated plan with disturbances reported across 13 of the country’s prisons.

Denying claims of unsanitary conditions amid fears of a coronavirus breakout, she said: «There is not any sanitary problem that would have caused this plan and these riots. «There is not one infection nor any prisoner or custodial or administrative staffer who has coronavirus.»

Read More

Four men have been found guilty of the revenge killing of a shop worker who was shot dead in a case of mistaken identity.

Kwasi Mensah-Ababio was «simply in the wrong place at the wrong time» as he sat on a park bench in Wembley, north-west London, the Old Bailey had heard. He was shot in the head at close range.

Rene Montaque, 35, Karlos Gracia, 23, and Alhassan Jalloh, 21 were found guilty of his murder. They will be sentenced at a later date.

During the trial, prosecutor Alison Morgan QC said the 26-year-old victim was «minding his own business» when he was targeted on 7 July. Mr Mensah-Ababio had just bought a soft drink when he was approached by a group of men in Monks Park.

He was shot in retribution for the murder of 32-year-old Craig Small two days earlier, the jury was told.

Read More

All new jury trials in England and Wales have been halted until they can be conducted safely, the Lord Chief Justice has announced.

In a letter to judges and magistrates, Lord Burnett said the decision was made to «ensure social distancing in court» amid the ongoing spread of coronavirus. But he added that, where safe to do so, «efforts to bring existing jury trials to a conclusion should continue».

Scotland and Northern Ireland have already taken similar measures.

The Lord Chief Justice’s decision builds on one from last week, when it was announced that no new Crown Court trials would take place in England and Wales if they were expected to last longer than three days. On the subject of current jury trials, the Lord Chief Justice said: «Social distancing in accordance with PHE guidelines must be in place at all times and at all places within the court building.» He added: «If it is necessary to adjourn trials already under way for a short period to put those safety measures in place, this must be done.»