Washington Post journalist detained in Iran reportedly indicted

April 11, 2013: Jason Rezaian, an Iranian-American correspondent for the Washington Post, smiles as he attends a presidential campaign of President Hassan Rouhani in Tehran, Iran. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)

A Washington Post journalist detained in Iran has been indicted and will stand trial, Iran’s official news agency reported Wednesday.

The official IRNA news agency, quoting Tehran prosecutor Abbas Jafari Dowlatabadi, said that Jason Rezaian, the newspaper’s bureau chief in Tehran since 2012, had been indicted. He is an Iranian-American who holds dual citizenship.

The news agency did not disclose what charges Rezaian, who has been held since July 22, faces. However, the report said he will stand trial in Iran’s Revolutionary Court, which mostly hears cases involving security offenses.

State Department spokesman Marie Harf said at a Wednesday afternoon briefing, “We’re looking into those reports” and added there was “no independent confirmation.”

Last October, Iran released Rezaian’s journalist wife, Yeganeh Salehi, an Iranian reporter for the Abu Dhabi-based English-language newspaper The National. She also had been held since July.

“We still do not know what charges the Iranian authorities have brought against our correspondent Jason Rezaian, but we hope the referral of his case to a Revolutionary Court represents a step forward toward Jason’s prompt release,” said a statement from Martin Baron, executive editor of The Washington Post. 

“This step gives Iran’s judiciary an opportunity to demonstrate its fairness and independence by determining that the charges are baseless. We call on Iran to make these charges public, to allow Jason access to a lawyer and to bring a swift and just resolution of a  six-month-long nightmare that has been extremely difficult for Jason and his family.”

The report by the official IRNA news agency came the same day as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif before talks with world powers resume over the Islamic Republic’s contested nuclear program.

It wasn’t immediately clear if the two events were connected, though Zarif earlier said he hoped the case against reporter Jason Rezaian could be “resolved.”

“We will have to wait for the judiciary to move forward, but we will try to provide all the humanitarian assistance that we could,” Zarif told journalists in Geneva. “We hope that this issue could be resolved but unfortunately there are judicial issues involved which the judiciary has to deal with.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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Washington Post journalist detained in Iran reportedly indicted

Five guns, ammo recovered in 24-hr period, 12 detained

Saturday, October 04, 2014 | 12:03 PM    

KINGSTON, Jamaica – The police have, over a 24-hour period, seized five illegal firearms and a number of ammunition across the parishes of St Catherine, Manchester and St James and have detained 12 people in connection with the busts.

The first instance was Friday morning when the police searched a dwelling in Old Harbour, St Catherine and found two firearms — a 9mm Smith and Wesson pistol along with two magazines and 15 9mm rounds and a .38 Kurz pistol. A loaded magazine was also found with the .38 seizure. No arrests were made.

In Manchester, three men were held for questioning after the police found a Taurus 9mm pistol and a magazine containing nine 9mm rounds hidden in a bag at the back of the bus in which they were travelling. The bus was stopped at night along the Porus main road.

The third seizure occurred in Anchovy, St James on Saturday morning between 2 o’clock and 4 o’clock as the police carried out an operation at a night club in the area.

Two firearms were seized — a Carandina 9mm pistol with a magazine containing 12 9mm rounds and one Beretta 9mm pistol with a magazine containing 18 9mm rounds — and nine people detained in connection with the seizures.

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Five guns, ammo recovered in 24-hr period, 12 detained

41 persons detained... during joint police/military operation in western Jamaica

Police detained 41 persons during a joint police/military operation in western Jamaica between last Monday and Tuesday.

The team led by the Lottery Scam Task Force (LSTF) comprised of the Street Crime Units, the Fugitive Apprehension and the Proactive Investigation Teams within Area One, as well as the Jamaica Defence Force, carried out a series of raids simultaneously in Westmoreland on Monday.

Police said operations were conducted in several communities including Petersfield, Shrewsbury, Llandilo, Chantilly, and Cooke Street.

A total of 22 persons were detained, 15 of whom have been charged for breaching the Law Reform (Fraudulent Transactions) (Special Provisions) Act, 2013.

A similar operation was carried out in Trelawny on Tuesday, in the communities of Spicy Hill, Stone Brook, Martha Brae and Clarks Town. Nineteen persons were arrested in this operation, and several items including a Toyota Mark X, two Honda Accords, a Nissan Cefiro, several laptops, high-end electronics and the identity information of persons living overseas, were seized..

Police said the remaining 26 people will be questioned in the presence of their attorneys with a view of proffering charges.

The Lottery Scam Task Force is again warning persons who are involved in such nefarious acts, that a zero-tolerance approach will be taken if they are found to be involved in, aiding and abetting or accommodating in anyway, these illicit activities. They are also being reminded that they can be fined or imprisoned for a period of up to twenty years if they are caught in contravention of this Act.

The Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Task Force (MOCA) and LSTF wishes to remind members of the public who may have any information that could assist them to contact MOCA at 754-3435 or 906-6318 or by email at moca@jcf.gov.jm or visit Facebook page at www.facebook.com/MOCAJamaica.

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41 persons detained... during joint police/military operation in western Jamaica

FOURTEEN DETAINED FOR FIREARMS AND AMMO

Three firearms and several rounds of ammunition were seized and 14 people detained during an operation on Regent Street in Kingston yesterday.

The operation was conducted by members of the Kingston Central police, the Motorised Patrol Division and the Area Four Headquarters.

Reports from the Kingston Central police are that between 5:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., officers were conducting cordon and search operations when a premises was searched and the firearms – one Magnum 12-gauge shotgun, one Browning pistol with eight 9mm rounds and one Mac 11 sub-machine gun, were found.

The operation was carried out in response to gang feuding and tensions in the area.

The police have since launched a series of counter gang strategies to include robust operational and proximity/community-based policing initiatives.

The police said more information will follow as soon as it becomes available.

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FOURTEEN DETAINED FOR FIREARMS AND AMMO

Woman detained in Curacao politician murder probe

News

Monday, August 05, 2013

KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — Authorities in Curacao have detained a 43-year-old woman in their investigation into the May slaying of a lawmaker who led a major political party.Helmin Wiels was hit by five bullets as he socialised on a Curacao beach on May 5. Two assailants sped off in a gold-covered car after fatally shooting the leader of the leftist Sovereign People Party, a big player in Curacao’s coalition government.A brief Saturday statement by police identifies the detained suspect by her initials, MAB. Detectives also searched two homes on the island, confiscating several items.Police have not released further details.In June, police spokesman Reginald Huggins said two suspects had been identified in Wiels’ murder. One of them was Raul Jacinto Martinez, who was found decapitated on the island.

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Woman detained in Curacao politician murder probe