Israel’s Black Cube said to have uncovered widespread corruption in Panama : Weekly News Roundup, September 7th 2019

Israel’s Black Cube said to have uncovered widespread corruption in Panama : Weekly News Roundup, September 7th 2019

Sep 7, 2019 | Panama News

Welcome to the Panama Weekly News Roundup! Here’s the latest.

Welcome to the Panama Weekly News Roundup! Here’s the latest.

Israel’s Black Cube said to have uncovered widespread corruption in Panama.

Agents working for the private Israeli intelligence company Black Cube recently uncovered alleged corruption in Panama’s justice system that included bribes to top judges, a Panamanian newspaper has reported.

Recordings obtained by La Prensa featured an attorney at the center of the case boasting to undercover Israeli agents of his ties to the judiciary, which he described as a “mafia.”

According to several stories published in La Prensa on Tuesday, the case began with an unidentified Panamanian businessman who, frustrated by what he believed were a series of unreasonable rulings regarding his affairs, hired the Israeli firm to try and sniff out whether corruption was involved.

Source: The Times of Israel

Lost Cocktail Culture: Navy Drinks from the Panama Canal Zone.

“I should probably preface what I’m going to say by reminding everyone that there used to be a piece of American territory called the Panama Canal Zone. Running right through the middle of that country, it extended five miles from the Canal on either side, including mountains and jungles and swamps and lakes (or slices of them), along with towns full of Panamanians who, back in 1903 when the thing was arranged, suddenly found themselves Americans, and just as suddenly found themselves Panamanian again in 1979, when we gave it back.”

Back in those days before Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles, long-range jet bombers, nuclear submarines and whatever nastiness is lurking up there in geosynchronous orbit that they don’t want us to know about, the Panama Canal was a serious military asset. With the Canal, the U.S. Navy only had to build one huge fleet, not two: if we got attacked on our Atlantic side, we could quickly bring reinforcing ships in from the Pacific, and vice versa.

But that meant that there was a significant chance that, should the world go mad and everybody start shooting at each other, some dawn would draw back the curtain of night to reveal a fleet of hostile battleships and all their supporting vessels anchored off of Colón, on the Caribbean side of the Canal, or Panama City, on the Pacific side.

Source: The Daily Beast

Gold Smugglers Innovating Along Colombia-Panama Route.

A criminal network which used creative methods, including hiring legitimate jewelers, to help smuggle gold into Panama and launder proceeds back in Colombia has been brought down, underscoring the rising importance of this illegal gold trafficking route.

On August 22, Colombia’s Attorney General’s Office announced the takedown of a prolific gold smuggling ring. The criminal network obtained the gold from illegal miners and smelters in Colombia’s departments of Santander and Antioquia, especially the sub-region of Magdaleno Medio.

In order to increase the chances of not being caught, human “mules” then used diverse methods to smuggle the gold onto flights to Panama.

Source: Insight Crime

 

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Source: International Relocation Firm Blog

International Relocation Firm Staff Writer

International Relocation Firm Staff Writer

As one of the leading Panama Law Firms, and one of the regions most reliable service providers, International Relocation Firm brings a wide range of professional knowledge to our clients needs. Our staff is made up of professional consultants, Panama attorneys and immigration specialists who are experienced in international relocation, and are experts in providing a seamless Panama immigration process.

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