FEATURED POST

Japan | Hakamada found religion, but then felt under attack by ‘the devil’

Published
Image
Editor's note: This is the last in a four-part series on letters that Iwao Hakamada wrote while on death row. About a decade after cursing God, Iwao Hakamada was baptized Catholic at the Tokyo Detention House on Dec. 24, 1984. “Since I have been given the Christian name Paul, I am keenly feeling that I should be aware of the greatness of Paul.” (June 1985)

India: Trapped by drug gang, boy faces death in Malaysia

Published
Delhi Police are investigating a complaint of an alleged massive job racket where unsuspecting youths were apparently used as carriers for smuggling drugs to foreign countries.

The investigations were began after a farmer's son was used as a carrier and was now facing the death penalty in Malaysia. Police sources said that they have requested the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to intervene as it looks like an innocent boy had been trapped by gang members.

Tikam Singh, a native of a small village in Dehradun, has informed the Delhi Police about the gang and urged them to interfere on behalf of his son who was facing the death penalty. "In September last year, Sanjay Chauhan, who has done BTech, was lured for a job by a company based at Delhi airport.

The family paid them Rs. 50,000 in 2 instalments and the boy was sent to Malaysia on September 28. His employer gave him a briefcase, which was supposed to be delivered at their Malaysia office," said a senior Delhi Police officer, requesting anonymity.

Chauhan's family told police that drugs were hidden in his suitcase, and the boy was caught after landing at Malaysia airport. "He was not aware of the presence of drug in the suitcase. We got to know about it when we received a letter which my son had written from jail. He had written that he might be given the death penalty," Tikam Singh told police in his statement.

Police are sensing a larger conspiracy and fear that more youths may have fallen victim to the gang. "We have received complaints of cheating previously too but this one is a serious case. The boy is facing death penalty and it requires intervention of the MEA," the officer added. Boy's family had met the external affairs minister of the outgoing government. Delhi Police have also said that it will intimate the ministry to help the family.

"We have identified the suspects and will arrest them soon. Our immediate priority is to put the death penalty on hold if possible, with the help of MEA. After that the gang, which is using innocent youths will be nabbed," the officer further said.

Source: Hindustan Times, June 2, 2014
Related content:

Most Viewed (Last 7 Days)

Missouri | Man Facing Execution Next Month Is Hospitalized With Heart Problem

Published
Image
David Hosier, who is weeks away from execution, is in a hospital after suffering what a Missouri Department of Corrections spokeswoman described as a “medical emergency." ST. LOUIS (AP) — A Missouri death row prisoner who is due to be executed next month has been hospitalized because of a “medical emergency,” a spokeswoman for the Missouri Department of Corrections said.
Read more

First Third Of 2024 In Saudi Arabia: Executions Rise By 189% And Portend Another Bloody Year. At Least 71 Currently Facing Execution.

Published
Image
Since the beginning of 2024 until the end of April, the Ministry of Interior in Saudi Arabia announced the execution of 55 individuals. This figure constitutes a 189% increase compared to the executions in the first third of 2023, which witnessed 19 executions. The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights views these numbers as a clear indication of the Saudi government's continued approach towards executing and issuing death sentences, and that the promises made in recent years have become elusive.
Read more

Cruel and Unusual: Documentary explores epicenter of Texas’ prison system

Published
Image
Every few years, from childhood until my late teens, my granddad would take me along with him to the small Texas town where he grew up—Normangee, population 522—to visit old relatives and even older graves. The drive took us up I-45, beyond the Houston sprawl, past pine forests, and eventually through Huntsville, epicenter of the state prison system. One of the city’s seven prisons was just off the interstate, and as we passed by I’d stare at the guard towers and barbed wire before turning my attention across the street to the Texas Prison Museum, which had its own mock guard towers in the parking lot. (“Prison” and “museum” were words that never seemed to go together.) Later, I learned that the museum’s central attraction was the wooden electric chair the state used for executions until 1964.
Read more

Iran | Helicopter carrying Iran's President Raisi crashes in mountains; President, foreign minister found dead at crash site

Published
Image
The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi and his Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian are missing after the helicopter carrying them crashed in the middle of the Dizmar forest. DUBAI, May 19 (Reuters) - A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his foreign minister crashed on Sunday as it was crossing mountain terrain in heavy fog on the way back from a visit to the border with Azerbaijan, an Iranian official told Reuters. The official said the lives of Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were "at risk following the helicopter crash".
Read more