San Ignacio store secuirty ahent shot dead during robbery www.privateofficer.com

 

San Ignacio Belize, Central America May 17 2013 Randy Casey, a 23-year-old resident of Camalote who was a security guard at a store in San Ignacio, is dead after a masked man shot him multiple times while he was on duty. Police have since detained a 16-year-old young man who they believe can assist them in solving this senseless murder. The killing occurred about 8:00 p.m. on Friday, May 10, at Kenny Store on Flamingo Street in San Ignacio.

According to police, they responded to a shooting on Flamingo Street in San Ignacio, and went to the store, where they saw the security guard, Randy Casey, lying on the floor gasping for breath with three gunshots wounds. He had been shot in the lower and upper left side of his chest, and in the right side of the abdomen. Police took him to the San Ignacio Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

It appears that Randy Casey might have been killed for his firearm. Police say he was on duty outside the store when an armed, masked man came up and opened fire on him, hitting him multiple times. Witnesses in the store told police that when Casey fell down after being shot, the killer quickly stole his firearm and ran away.

The killer was reportedly dressed in a black t-shirt and black 3/4 pants, with a mask over his face.

After launching an investigation, police detained a 16-year-old for questioning. However no one has yet been arrested for the death of the security guard.

Randy Casey, who previously worked as a prison officer, had only been working with the company that was his employer for a month when he was killed. The day on which he was shot was reportedly the first day on which he was given a firearm to work with.

A family friend told Amandala that on the evening of his murder, Casey spotted a suspicious-looking man lurking in the area, and had called his girlfriend and asked her to take good care of their five-month-old baby, and he reportedly told her that, just in case anything happened to him, he wanted her to know that he loved them. It was not long after this call that his murderer approached and shot him.

One of Casey’s brothers said that they were at home when the police called and told them that he had been shot and that he was in critical condition at the San Ignacio Hospital. Shortly after, the owner of the security company that employed Casey called and told them that he had died.

Randy Casey is survived by his 5-month-old son, his parents, four brothers, two sisters, his girlfriend, and a host of other relatives and friends

G4S: Labor Shortage Big Headache for Private Security Industry www.privateofficer.com

ENGLAND May 15 2013 Board member of private security company G4S Artjom Sokolov said that technology is playing an ever increasing role in security as the working-age population declines, and finding employees is more difficult.
Statistics Estonia predicts a 7 percent decrease in the working population in the next ten years, but a 30 percent decline is expected in the young workers segment, which is the primary source of new staff for security companies.
“Clients and security companies both need to take into account these demographic realities when devising their long-term strategies,” said Sokolov, speaking to uudised.err.ee on Friday.
According to freshly released figures by the Security Association, the private security market grew in 2012 by 8.8 percent to 127.2 million euros.
G4S is still the largest private security provider in the country, with a 43 percent market share, even after a drop from 46.3 the previous year.
Urmas Sõõrumaa’s USS has climbed to second place, up from 7.1 percent in 2011 to 9.1 percent last year. Securitas is third with 6.4 percent of the market.

 

England May 14 2013 G4S, the security company that had a high-profile failure at the London  Olympics, says it has been hired to support police at the G-8 summit in Northern  Ireland next month.

The firm said Thursday it would supply 450 employees to the June 17-18 event  at the Lough Erne golf resort.

Thousands of soldiers and police officers from across Britain will also be  brought in to help the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

The annual meeting of leaders from the U.S., Britain, Russia, Japan, Germany,  France, Italy and Canada is expected to attract protests, and IRA dissidents  also could mount attacks Britain had to call in thousands of troops after G4S acknowledged weeks  before the Olympics began that it could not provide the 10,400 guards it had  been contracted to deliver.

Civic body to deploy private security guards in hospitals www.privateofficer.com

 

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY NEWS

NASHIK INDIA MAY 14 2013 The Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC), which had earlier decided to deploy home guards at its hospitals and maternity homes, will now be hiring private security guards.

The civic body’s plans to have home guards did not work as it requires women security personnel for hospitals. It is now seeking the help of private agencies through e-tenders.

In mid-February, the NMC’s medical department had put forth a proposal to deploy 140 security guards in hospitals and maternity homes as a precautionary measure to prevent theft of newborn babies. The decision came after receiving instructions from the state government following cases of baby-lifting in hospitals.

Deputy municipal commissioner (octroi) and security in-charge of NMC, Haribhau Phadol said, “We had asked for home guards for security purposes and also requested the Suraksha Mandal for the same. Security is needed at our hospitals and schools. However, we did not get any response from home guards and the Suraksha Mandal does not have any female security staff. Moreover, during occasions like Shivaji Jayanti, Ambedkar Jayanti and Ganesh Chaturthi, home guards are withdrawn. So, we have decided to ask for well-trained security from private agencies.”

He said that there has been a demand for security guards in NMC schools as well. “We need women security in hospitals but for schools we can get security men. We will ask for 70-80 security guards from the Suraksha Mandal for schools and places where they will be required. Soon 20-25 of our security guards will become free from octroi posts when the local body tax replaces octroi. We can also post them in schools,” Phadol added.

A G Wabale, staff officer of Nashik home guards said that the NMC required more female security guards in their hospitals and that the home guards had fewer women staff. The NMC has invited e-tenders till May 18 and centres for filing these will be opened in front of the official representative of the private security agency.

When contacted, the Staff officer of Homeguards, Nashik, A G Wabale said that the NMC required more of female security guards in their hospitals and that the homeguards had less number of women staff.

Meanwhile, the NMC has invited e-tenders till May 18 which will be opened in front of the official representative of the private security agency.

Source- The Times of India

Australian City Council wants better security training www.privateofficer.com

 

Orange Australia May 13 2013 There are calls for security guards at pubs in Orange to be better trained, to try to reduce alcohol related crime in the city.
Representatives from the Orange City Council have visited Newcastle to look at ways the city has reduced its night time violence.
There have been growing calls to combat the problem locally, including the suggestions of a midnight closing trial for licensed venues in the CBD.
Councillor Neil Jones says one of the suggestions made in Newcastle was to improve the security guards’ training.
“Security guards can be very intimidating and I think they’re dealing with people who of course have had perhaps too much to drink, and it’s not surprising that conflicts can arise,” he said.
“So, there needs to be, I think, improvements to security guard training.”
Councillor Jones says he would like to see the number of venues in Orange opening until 3am reduced.
He says a key element to Newcastle’s success has been multi-venue barring.
“That means that the hotels and licensed premises are co-operating and working together, which I don’t think is happening in Orange,” he said.
“Working together to ensure that anybody who has behaviour or incidents that can be recorded are barred from moving from one premises to another.”

Nassau security officer shot and robbed www.privateofficer.com

 

Nassau, Bahamas May 6 2013 – Police are actively searching for three (3) men responsible for an armed robbery and a shooting. The incident reportedly occurred around 9:45 am on Saturday 4th May, 2013.Preliminary reports indicate that a security officer was a making a deposit at the Royal Bank of Canada, FINCO Branch Carmichael Road when he was approached by a champagne Honda Inspire occupied by three (3) men.
It is reported that one of the males exited the vehicle, robbed the officer of a deposit bag containing an undetermined amount of cash and subsequently shot him. The 54 year old was taken to hospital where he is detained in serious condition.
Police are investigating and appealing to members of the public who may have information that can assist police with their investigations to contact them at 911, 919,322-3333/4, the CENTRAL DETECTIVE UNIT @502-9990/1 or CRIMESTOPPERS @ 328-TIPS.

Australian airport security workers honored www.privateofficer.com

 

Victoria Australia May 6 2013 Al Paterson recently accepted the Commissionaires Governor General award on behalf of the Airport Security Department of Victoria International Airport.
The award recognizes the Security Department for its part in the airport winning the Airports Council International Airport Service Quality Award for airports in North America carrying as many as two million passengers a year.
Paterson was chosen to accept the award by his peers because of his contribution above and beyond the call of duty.
Apart from security and showing travellers where to go, Paterson dons a Santa suit every Christmas season, putting smiles on the faces of children and parents while they wait for their flights.
“He removes the stress of flying with one walk through,” says Jose Brochez, a colleague.
After Christmas, he shaves off hair, beard and eyebrows in the main terminal, raising money for the Victoria Hospice, his charity of choice since the passing of his wife three years ago.
Paterson, chief of site security at the airport, downplays his accomplishments.
“The 50 or so employees at the airport all have a hand in the win,” said Paterson, who was stationed in the military in New Brunswick in 1996. “They all go out of their way to make sure people get to where they’ve got to go in the most efficient way to do so.”
The self-described rotund individual also donated the prize money that came with the award to the hospice

Philippine law does not empower guards to detain suspects www.privateofficer.com

 

Philippine May 4 2013 The death of alleged shoplifter Mario Alfie Ducayag inside the Metro Gaisano Colon store’s security office last April 12 has raised a question: Does mall security personnel wield the power of a police officer?
The answer is no, according to the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) revised rules and regulations implementing Republic Act 5487 (the Private Security Agency Law) as amended, which governs the organization and operation of private security agencies, company security forces and government security forces.
But under Rule 13 (powers and duties) Section 2 of the law, any security personnel may effect an arrest under any of the circumstances:
• “When, in his presence, the person to be arrested has committed, is actually committing, or is attempting to commit an offense;
• When an offense has just been committed and he has probable cause to believe based
on personal knowledge of facts, and circumstances that the person to be arrested has comitted it; and
• When the person to be arrested is a prisoner who has escaped from a penal establishment or place where he is serving final judgment or temporarily confined while his case is pending or has escaped while being transferred from one confinement to another.”
The law also states that when making an arrest, the security guard should inform the person to be arrested, of the intention to arrest him and cause of the arrest.
But the guideline does not apply when the person is caught in the act, or arrested after attempting to escape or resisting arrest.
Turnover
“The security guard/private detective making the arrest shall immediately turn over the person arrested to the nearest PNP for custody and/or appropriate action, or … to the proper court,” the law states.
Article 125 punishes any public officer or employee who detain any person, even on legal ground, if he or she fails to bring the suspect to the proper authorities within 12 hours for offenses punishable by light penalties; 18 hours for those meted correctional penalties; and 36 hours for capital crimes.
In Ducayag’s case, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 said the housekeeping student was held inside the Metro Gaisano’s security personnel office for about 30 minutes.
After he was allegedly mauled to death by the store’s security officers, he was brought to the Cebu City Medical Center, where he was declared dead-on-arrival at 3:30 p.m.
Report
At 5:35 p.m., the store’s security camera operator, Jeffrey Aquino, and security guard Margie Gaser reported the incident to the Waterfront Police Station, said Ducayag’s sister Marie Shantylle.
Aquino and Gaser, she said, were held but they were later reportedly released by the police.
The law also allows a security guard or private detective to search the arrested person in the presence of at least two witnesses.
Metro Gaisano spokesperson Cerwin Eviota said the store’s house detective is tasked to first observe the suspected thief. The store detective will only approach the suspected shoplifter when he or she has left the store’s premises.
Polite approach
“The rule is to approach him politely,” said Eviota.
He said the suspected shoplifter is given chance to go back to the counter to pay the items he allegedly stolen. But if the suspect continues to deny the charge, he will be brought to the investigation room to get more information from him like name, address and age.
Afterwards, he will be turned over to the nearest police station.
“The procedure should not go beyond 30 minutes,” said Eviota. “Much better if it will only take 10 to 15 minutes.”

Source- sun star

Nigeria certifies private security companies to protect airports www.privateofficer.com

 

Nigeria May 4 2013 The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority NCAA), has certified seven private security companies to provide aviation security services at the nation’s airports to support the services of Aviation Security (AVSEC) of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
Speaking at the presentation of certificates to the companies, acting Director General of the regulatory body, Mr. Joyce Daniel Nkemakolam, told the security operatives that safety and security were most critical to air transport operation all over the world.

“This is the time you need to deploy your expertise as you are all aware of the global security threat of which Nigeria is not an exemption.”
Nkemakolam commended the security organisations for pulling through the rigorous process of certification, which was carried out by NCAA Aviation Security Inspectors, reminding them that it was mandatory under the Nigerian Legislation and the terms of the National Civil Aviation Security Programme (NCASP) section 10.9.1 for all private security companies working with the airlines at the airports to be registered and granted approval by NCAA.

“It requires each security company to obtain security clearance from the State Security Service through the Federal Ministry of Aviation. Thereafter they will submit a copy of their security programme to NCAA for assessment. This assessment is to further ensure the companies meet with the requirements of the National Civil Aviation Security Programme (NCASP), which reflects the policy of Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations Part 17,” the acting Director General explained.
According to him, it was heartwarming that the seven private security companies had complied with the stringent requirements and their security programmes were assessed and found appropriate.

These companies include: Aviation Logistics and Management Limited; Olasco Company Nigeria Limited; Pathfinders International Security Limited and Planet Resources Limited. Others are Migga Dinns Limited; Checkport Security Nigeria Limited and Phillippe Associates International Limited.

Nkemakolam said the certification of the security operatives was the beginning of hard work for all of them.
“You must ensure compliance with the condition attached to this approval, failure of which will lead to revocation or suspension of the certificate”. After receipt of the certificates, the security outfits pledged to provide high caliber security service to the airlines to ensure secure and safe flights. They also promised never to disappoint or betray the trust the Director General reposed in them and expressed appreciation for the certification.

Two Wirral security officers recognized for rescue of man www.privateofficer.com

 

Liverpool England May 1 2013 Two Wirral security guards who helped rescue a man from the River Mersey have been praised for their bravery.
John Royden from Higher Bebington, James Stewart from Bebington and Chris Kewley from West Derby raced to the man’s rescue on October 28.
The trio, who work for Liverpool-based Stone Security, were presented with awards by the Liverpool Shipwreck and Humane Society during Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service’s Long Service and Good Conduct award ceremony at Aintree Racecourse.
Recalling the incident James Stewart, 30, said: “We were initially contacted by Merseyside Police control room with a concern for welfare and given minimal information as to a description of this man.
“I dispatched the two officers to conduct a waterfront check as we would do in these instances.
“Upon shouting out into the Mersey, the two officers were answered with shouts of ‘help me’.
“I then joined them on the waterfront to assist. We never expected to receive any nomination or award for what we did on that night.
“I am just happy to know this man was saved as a result of our actions.”
A Stone Security Services officer in their control room also liaised via radio with the three and the emergency services over the phone to keep them updated on the situation and emergency services response.
John Royden, 27, said: “We started our search at the waterfront, we shouted out into the darkness and were met with shouts of ‘help me’.
“We got life rings to him in the Mersey and did what we could to keep him as safe as possible until the emergency services arrived.
“We couldn’t have done what we did individually. We worked well as a team that night.
“To be recognised for this is special but it’s not about the recognition, it’s about knowing that we saved his life that night.”
Firefighters from City Centre fire station attended and pulled the man out of the water from the bottom of the steps.
By this time he was succumbing to a combination of hypothermia, exhaustion and swallowing water. Paramedics treated the man and he survived.
Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service Group Manager Paul Murphy said: “Undoubtedly, this man would have been washed away in the strong tidal current and drowned without the assistance of the three security guards who made good decisions under pressure.
“These three members of security staff have no specialist experience of swift water rescue, unlike members of Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service who have training for river rescues as well as from lakes and canals, but they kept calm and carried out a successful plan of action.”

No framework to regulate private security agencies in India www.privateofficer.com

 

Mumbai India May 1 2013 The government Monday told the Supreme Court that there were no guidelines or rules to regulate the working of private security agencies and an offence by a private security guard would be individual in nature and no liability could be attributed to their agency.
“There is no concept of vicarious liability under IPC (Indian Penal Code) and for the use of firearm resulting in the commission of an offence, the liability would be individual in nature and thus the private security agency cannot be held liable under the IPC for the commission of offence by the security guard,” the union home ministry told a bench of Justice P.Sathasivam and Justice M.Y.Eqbal in its affidavit.
However, the court was told that that a private security agency could face the consequences of an offence committed by its security guard if there are “circumstances such as common intention, common object, conspiracy or abetment based on evidence”.
The court was told that Section 100 of IPC providing for “private defence which applies to every person shall apply to private security guard”.
However, the home ministry affidavit said that the private security guard can be held liable under the provision of IPC for committing offences and violating the law of the land. He would attract punishment and penalties for the misuse of arms and the violation of terms and conditions of licence.
It told the court that by a 1987 notification, companies, firms, banks, industrial and other establishments could hold the licence to possess fire arms but that did not extend to private security agencies. The “private security agencies in whatever form will not be included in the definition of company, firm or industrial establishment”, the court was told.
The home ministry had filed its affidavit in pursuance to the apex court notice seeking details of the on the legal regulatory framework under which the private security agencies were operating.
The court had Nov 21, 2012, issued notice taking cognizance of the of the killing of Ponty Chadha and his brother Hardeep Singh Chadha in a shoot out.
Taking suo motu cognizance of the killings of Chadha brothers, an apex court bench of Justice D.K.Jain (since retired) and Justice J.S.Khehar said: “We take suo motu cognizance of the said reports, relating, inter alia, to the licensing and working of private security agencies.”
The court wanted to know what was the legal regulatory framework under which the private security agencies operate and what were the parameters/norms that are considered for issue of firearm/weapon licences to private security personnel.
As Additional Solicitor General Siddarth Luthra told the court that there was no guidelines or regulation to regulate private security agencies, the court Monday appointed senior counsel Ranjit Kumar as amicus curiae to assist the court in the hearing of the matter.

Source- Business Standard

Bank withdrawal lands security guard in court www.privateofficer.com

 

Jamaica April 30 2013 A security guard accused of transferring $85,000 from another person’s account to his, after which he withdrew some of the money, was last week offered $100,000 bail.

The 22-year-old accused, Odane Smith, was given his freedom after his attorney, Ramona Nelson, presented a strong case as to why he should be offered bail despite strong objections from the prosecution.

The prosecution is alleging that Smith, who had less than $20,000 in his Bank of Nova Scotia account, transferred $85,000 from another customer’s account to one of his accounts and then transferred the said amount to another account belonging to him.

The prosecution is also alleging that on the same day that Smith transferred the money he went to the bank and withdrew $61,000. According to the prosecution, Smith was captured on photographs.

However, Nelson, during her bail application in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court, fiercely challenged the allegations.

Nelson argued that her client had nothing to do with the illegal transfer of funds to his account and that the prosecution had no evidence to suggest that it was he who had transferred the funds to his account.

Further, she said he only found out that he had that amount of money after his account was frozen and he went to the bank to make inquiries. Subsequent to that, she said he turned himself over to the Organised Crime Investigation Division after he was instructed by the bank to do so — and those actions are contrary to someone who had transferred money to his account.

As to his reasons for withdrawing $61,000 from his account, despite the fact that he did not have that amount, Nelson explained that her client had been expecting an insurance claim and did not think it was strange for the account to be showing that amount.

Following her arguments, Magistrate Lorna Shelly Williams ignored the prosecution’s objection and offered Smith bail on condition that he report to the Bridgeport Police Station on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and surrender his travel documents. A stop order has also been placed on him.

Smith is to return to court on May 2.

source- http://www.jamaicaobserver.com

G4S security van driver accused of £800,000 theft www.privateofficer.com

 

Essex England April 25 2013 A security van driver has appeared in court accused of stealing more than £800,000 from his employer.

Raymond Boland, 38, of Kings Head Hill, Chingford, Essex, was charged with theft by employee from the security company G4S in January, 2012.

At the end of the brief hearing at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court, father-of-three Mr Boland was released on conditional bail.

His case will be committed to Chelmsford Crown Court on 5 June.

The alleged theft of £809,000 happened near Harlow.

Jamaica security officers frequently victims of violence www.privateofficer.com

 

Kingston Jamaica April 12 2013′Killed in the line of duty’ is usually a line you hear at the funeral or in the reflections for a policeman or soldier.But perhaps an indication of how relatively safe some people think the job is, many seem to forget the same fate might also befall a security guard. The fact is, whether patrolling a plaza or guarding a residence, security guards can be in as much danger as their more heralded colleagues. Think about the guard who is keeping watch on a store. He doesn’t know for certain which ‘customer’ is up to no good. And if things flare up, he must act. The death of a security guard at Escape Nightclub in the early hours of Monday, February 18, is just another reminder of the hazards of ‘security work’. But this wasn’t a one-off situation, 2012 was not a good one for private security guards. A number of guards were killed as they manned various establishments, just doing their jobs, trying to protect other people’s property.

Triple murder Perhaps the most gripping case occurred on June 29 when three Guardsman security guards were murdered at the company base in Westmoreland.

On March 29, in the usually quiet town of Mandeville, a security guard was killed during an attempted robbery at a gas station. In consecutive days, July 18 and 19, two more guards lost their lives while on duty. First, another security guard in Mandeville was killed during another robbery and then an Atlas security guard was killed in a housing scheme in Old Harbour the following day.

The story continued when on November 23, a Quest Security Services guard was killed at the Riverton landfill. Local Government Minister Noel Arscott was among those who condemned that act. Another guard was found dead in Discovery Bay, St Ann, on Boxing Day.

The women were not exempt from the bloodshed either. On February 10, a female security guard was killed in Port Maria. Even when not patrolling their assigned areas, guards have perished while trying to do good. For example, in a case on April 29, 2011, a guard was killed while trying to stop a robbery on board a bus on Spanish Town Road. While it would be extreme to say guards are being targeted, they certainly aren’t immune to violent perpetrators. And that’s one thing industry executives want potential recruits to understand – always be on the alert
Source: gleanerjm.com

Triple amputee builds life as school security guard www.privateofficer.com

 

Taoyuan County’s Gueishan Township April 10 2013 Despite having both of his hands and part of his left leg amputated due to an accident 16 years ago, the security guard at Da Gang Junior High School in Taoyuan County’s Gueishan Township (龜山) has excelled at his job and has won the respect of the schoolchildren.

Hsia Yung-hsiang (夏永相), 44, said that in September 1997, he was playing with a wireless radio and e xtended the radio’s antenna to 10m high, but accidentally touched a power line while going uphill and was electrocuted. “The doctors said that both of my forearms had to be amputated, as well as my left calf,” Hsia said, adding that hearing those words had felt like the end of the world to him. Hsia said that if it were not for his mother’s and brother’s encouragement, he would not have had the courage to continue living.

Hsia said he firmly believed that as long as he abided by the law, acted ethically and was not afraid of doing any job — however menial — there was no reason he could not make a living, adding that he was able to earn money selling lottery tickets and using the skills he had learned from attending a computer class.

Hsia became a security guard at the junior-high school in 2008, and despite the relatively low pay — NT$20,000 a month — said that he was satisfied with his lot, adding that he was able to perform all his duties, such as directing traffic, taking telephone calls, typing or writing, and collecting mail.

The students have a high opinion of Hsia, saying he stands up for what is right and stops bullies from picking on other students. They said that Hsia once stopped a car by himself when the driver did not notice students who were about to cross the street, earning him the name “Da Gang Double Hook Hero.”
Source- The Taipei Times

A Gold Coast security guard is in a serious condition after being set afire www.privateofficer.com

Nerang AU April 3 2013 Police said a security guard was walking to his car parked on Brendan Dr in Nerang about 11.30pm after his shift when he noticed two other men standing nearby.

The security guard said one of men then allegedly assaulted him while the other set fire to the car. During the altercation, it is alleged the man pushed the security guard against the burning car, setting his clothes alight and causing extensive burns to his body.

The two men fled the scene on foot. Fire crews arrived a short time later and had extinguished the blaze by 11.50pm.

Ambulance officers treated the 50-year-old man from Pacific Pines for smoke inhalation before taking him to the Gold Coast Hospital with burns to 20 per cent of his body

. He has since been transferred to the Royal Brisbane Hospital for surgery. Police are still confirming details surrounding the incident and investigations are continuing. They are urging anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers via 1800 333 000 or crimestoppers.com.au.

Violence prompts calls to arm hospital security officers www.privateofficer.com

Australia April 1 2013 Security guards want to carry guns in hospital emergency departments to protect the public and themselves from violent and drugged patients.

The Health Services Union has renewed a push for weapons, saying that hospitals were becoming increasingly dangerous. But the Australian Nursing Federation and the Australian Medical Association have rejected the call, saying that weapons would only make emergency departments even more dangerous. Nurses want more highly trained security guards at hospitals, slamming the State Government for backing down on a $21 million security boost promised two years ago.

Health Services Union Victorian secretary Diana Asmar, who represents hospital security guards, said her members wanted the same weapons as Armaguard staff.

Ms Asmar said guards were already monitoring violent patients but had also been forced to collect cash on behalf of patients, who had been bringing thousands of dollars into emergency departments.

To have security guards carrying valuables, normally they would carry arms like Armaguard,” she said. Ms Asmar said the union would raise the matter with health authorities and take the matter to Fair Work Australia if it did not get an acceptable response. Recent examples of violence include: A PATIENT trashed Werribee Mercy Hospital emergency department;

A REGISTRAR at a Melbourne hospital was threatened by a visitor claiming to have an HIV-infected needle; THREE women bashed two security guards in the Royal Women’s Hospital emergency department;

A NURSE was hit on the head by a disturbed patient;

AN ELDERLY patient punched two nurses; and A PATIENT allegedly threatened nurses with a machete at a Melbourne emergency department. Nurses federation secretary Lisa Fitzpatrick admitted security was a problem at hospitals, but said armed guards were not the solution. “Numbers (of security guards) are more important than arms,” she said. “The Government said it would spend $21 million on security.

That’s another broken promise. All we got was $1.2 million for distress alarms.” AMA Victorian president Stephen Parnis said hospitals needed highly trained security staff who were part of the health care team and employed by the hospital. “You can’t have a security guard who one night has a job at a nightclub, and then moves to the hospital the next,” he said. He told 3AW radio this morning that the proposal was a “very bad idea”, and that the union was “sadly misinformed”. “It would be the best way to try and increase the risk of violence … if you put weapons on guards in hospitals,” he said.

“This is part of the health problem and it should be treated as a health problem – this isn’t a law enforcement issue. Dr Parnis told 3AW that alcohol was the biggest cause of violence on the wards. “Alcohol is in a class of its own in terms of the harm that it does,” he said. “It’s a bigger problem … than all the other drugs put together.” A 2011 parliamentary inquiry, prompted by the Coalition Government’s plan to put armed Protective Services Officers in emergency departments, rejected plans to give security guards guns. Victorian Government spokesman Ashley Gardiner said it was drafting new laws with harsher penalties for people who attacked emergency services staff.

Russian police propose allowing private security seach and seizure authority www.privateofficer.com

MOSCOW, Russia March 15 2013 - RAPSI. The police has proposed granting private security guards with the unrestricted right to search and detain public order violators and criminals, Deputy Interior Minister Alexander Gorovoi said at a meeting of the Coordinating Council for Cooperation with Private Security and Private Detectives on Thursday.

Private security guards are not allowed to search or detain suspects and must first call the police. Accidents are common in situations where private security guards refrain from taking any action due to their limited capabilities.

“We should consider amending the federal law to grant private security guards the right to search and detain public order violators and criminals – first at a limited number of facilities,” Gorovoi said. He noted that, as a result of law enforcement reform, staff have been cut by 20% and the police “has difficulty preventing and investigating crimes, especially street crimes and crimes committed in public places.

” In 2011, then-President Dmitry Medvedev launched broad police reform, slashing the force from 1.2 million to 1 million through reevaluation tests in an attempt to cull corrupt and incompetent officers.

Egypt considers giving private security police powers www.privateofficer.com

EGYPT March 11 2013 Talks of the Interior Ministry contracting private security companies have created a stir, especially after a leading member of the Freedom and Justice Party called for granting them arrest powers. News reports claimed negotiations are under way between Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim and private security companies to aid the ministry in clamping down on protests and widespread unrest. Saber Abul Fotouh, head of the FJP labor committee, called for alternative methods to maintain security in the country in light of a recent wave of police strike that saw Central Security Forces close their camps and dozens of police stations close nationwide. Among Abul Fotouh’s suggested methods is a draft law that would allow private security personnel to arrest citizens and hand them over to the prosecutor general, raising fears of laxer laws creating fertile grounds for armed militias. On his Twitter account, the chairperson of the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights, Hafez Abu Seada, said no party or parliament is entitled to form “special forces” or “militias” with arrest, arguing it is unconstitutional. However, Abul Fotouh downplays any talk of militias, blaming it on media hype, and explaining that he rather seeks “legal measures” to maintain security. He tells Egypt Independent that the draft law was merely a personal suggestion that is a result of the current crisis, namely the police strike. A suitable solution, Abul Fotouh says, would be drafting a law that would issue licenses to grant private security companies legal powers “to protect citizens and institutions from any assault.” The draft law, he says, would allow private security companies to “combat assailants and hand them over to either the prosecution or the Justice Ministry.” He also suggests forming people’s committees akin to those formed during the 18-day uprising in 2011 after the police forces withdrew from the streets. Abul Fotouh explains that the media created unsubstantiated rumors about the formation of militias, and that he only seeks legal methods to maintain security, bound by the suggested draft law. He says ideally, the Interior Ministry would be doing its job in maintaining order. However, he laments the “scheming by remnants of the ousted regime and [former Interior Minister] Habib al-Adly’s followers,” who he alleges are causing the crisis.
In January, the Shura Council approved a controversial law granting the Armed Forces judiciary powers to arrest and try civilians. The Armed Forces were also previously given temporary arrest powers during the constitutional referendum in December. For its part, the Interior Ministry media office has said it had no knowledge of any negotiations with private security companies. Tarek Khedr, head of the constitutional law department at the Police Academy, fully rejects the idea of giving private security companies arrest powers. “Private ­­­­security companies cannot under any circumstances obtain arrest powers,” Khedr says, adding that it would undermine the state’s authority and fuel the current state of polarization, further spreading chaos and disorder. Khedr sheds light on private security companies’ “legislative limits,” saying they have to be redefined. Only police are entitled to arrest powers, Khedr explains, and the Armed Forces were the only exception.

New Kingston nightclub security fatally shot www.privateofficer.com

New Kingston Jamaica Feb 19 2013 Two persons were shot, one fatally and another injured, by unknown assailants inside the Escape Nightclub along Knutsford Boulevard in New Kingston, this morning.

An eyewitness, whose vehicle had been shot at, said that a dispute had allegedly occurred inside the club between a female worker and the night manager.

The eyewitness further claimed that at some point the female worker left and returned with her boyfriend along with another man.

During the ensuing argument the night manager was shot and injured and the security guard killed.

The night manager was subsequently taken to hospital.

Head of MIT Superintendent Michael Phipps, who was present on the scene confirmed that there had been a dispute involving a worker at the club and that a security guard had been killed and the night manager shot and injured.

An investigation has now been launched into the incident.

source-gleanerjm.com

S Africa private security forces larger than army www.privateofficer.com

Johannesburg, South Africa Feb 12 2013(CNN) – Manned by a pair of trained officers, a large private security jeep moves slowly past the high walls lining a residential street in the suburbs of Johannesburg, South Africa.
Heavily armed and alert, the officers scan the designated area, looking for any suspicious activity.
They work for CSS Tactical, a private security company hired by local residents to patrol their area and protect them from any potential criminals.
“To be proactive, we need to be noticed,” says Ricky Croock, managing director of CSS Tactical. “We need people to say ‘hold on, there is a dedicated tactical vehicle.’
“A tactical vehicle is a bigger vehicle — it is more aggressive, it’s a deterrent. So the first point is we want to deter as opposed to catch crime.”
The security officers are well armed. They carry semi-automatic weapons and hand guns and they’re trained in how and when to use them. And while only the police have the power of random stop and search in public places, security companies also stop people they regard as suspicious.

From April 2011 to March 2012 there were 15,609 murders in South Africa, as well as 64,514 sexual offenses and 101,203 cases of aggravated robbery.
According to the country’s latest “Victims of crime survey,” 57% of respondents felt that housebreaking/burglary was the crime most feared in their area of residence.
In recent years, South Africa has stepped up efforts to tackle crime, one of the country’s worst social ills. Last September, the South African Police Service said that serious crime in the country had been reduced by 31.8% from 2004/5 to 2011/12. But 2011 to 2012 saw a reduction in serious crime of just 1.9%.
“We only have the official crime statistics to go by,” says Rudolph Zinn of the Institute for Security Studies in South Africa. “If you look at what the police would report annually in September of every year, we see over the last three or four years that crime has leveled off.
“The more concerning factor is the high percentage of so-called violent or contact crime, which is about a third of all the crime reported to the South African Police Service.”
And that’s what has fueled the boom in the country’s private security industry, crime experts say. There are nearly 9,000 companies and 400,000 registered active private security guards. That’s more than the police and army combined, according to South African officials.
“The security industry is bigger than what it has ever been in South Africa,” says Zinn. “I think the growth in the industry is definitely attributed to the fact that, let’s call it a weak policing or ineffective policing, and it created the opportunity for private individuals to move into the market.”
Some of those individuals have a military background. Waal de Waal, chief operating officer at South African-owned Protea Coin, spent 18 years in the special forces and military intelligence before joining the private security sector a decade ago.
He is today one of the 17,000 people employed by Protea Coin. Part of the multi-million dollar company’s work is dealing with small-scale crime, like recovering fuel stolen from a petrol station.
The company, which also provides security at many of South Africa’s mines and has been kept busy by the recent strikes in the sector, offers a range of services, including 24-hour property monitoring and protection against organized criminal syndicates.
“The role of private security companies is distinctively different to that of the police,” says Petrus Van Niekerk, the chief executive of Protea Coin. “We view our role as private security to really aid and support the police.”

But what happens when private security companies take matters into their own hands?
The South African government claims that it’s an industry that threatens national security and is determined to tighten its regulation. “A very dangerous situation arises if you have a security industry that outstrips both your police and your army and there is completely no regulation of that industry,” says Jenni Irish-Qhobosheane, the head of the Civilian Secretariat for Police.
“I think the public can find themselves in situations where, basically, they are put at the mercy of private security companies who are unprofessional,” she adds.
One measure considered by the country’s government is that private security firms must be owned by South Africans.
“This type of move is going to frighten away foreign direct investment and I think that is a danger,” says Hanes Venter, sales director at the South African arm of G4S, a London-listed global security giant. “Foreign direct investment is already down year on year but this is a worry from that perspective for me.”
Whatever regulations the South African government eventually introduces, it seems unlikely the demand for private securities companies will diminish amid high unemployment rates, as well as widespread poverty and simmering industrial tensions.

Several security guards die in massive Brazil nightclub fire www.privateofficer.com

SANTA MARIA, Brazil Jan 29 2013 — Brazilian police officials said Monday they’ve made three detentions and are seeking a fourth person in connection with a blaze that ripped through a nightclub in southern Brazil over the weekend, killing more than 230 people.

Inspector Ranolfo Vieira Junior said at a news conference that the detentions are for investigative purposes and those detained can be held up to five days. He declined to identify those detained or the fourth person sought, but the Brazilian newspaper Zero Hora quotes lawyer Jader Marques saying his client Elissandro Spohr, a co-owner of the club, had been held.

The paper also says police detained two band members who were on stage when the blaze broke out and were thought to have used pyrotechnics in their act.
A military brigade official said Monday the death toll now stands at 231 people in the early Sunday blaze in the Kiss nightclub in Santa Maria, a university town of about 260,000 people in southern Brazil. Many of the victims were under 20 years old, including some minors. Most victims died from smoke inhalation rather than burns.
Police have said they think the pyrotechnics ignited sound insulation on the ceiling, while witnesses have reported a fire extinguisher didn’t work and that there was only one working exit. Many of the dead were also found in the club’s two bathrooms, where they fled apparently because the blinding smoke caused them to believe the doors were exits. “It was terrible inside — it was like one of those films of the Holocaust, bodies piled atop one another,” said police inspector Sandro Meinerz. “We had to use trucks to remove them. It took about six hours to take the bodies away.”
Survivors and another police inspector, Marcelo Arigony, said security guards briefly tried to block people from exiting the club. Brazilian bars routinely make patrons pay their entire tab at the end of the night before they are allowed to leave. “It was chaotic and it doesn’t seem to have been done in bad faith because several security guards also died,” Arigony told The Associated Press.

Firefighters responding to the blaze initially had trouble getting inside the Kiss nightclub because “there was a barrier of bodies blocking the entrance,” Guido Pedroso Melo, commander of the city’s fire department, told the O Globo newspaper.
Authorities said band members who were on the stage when the fire broke out later talked with police and confirmed they used pyrotechnics during their show.
Guitarist Rodrigo Martins told Radio Gaucha that the band, Gurizada Fandangueira, started playing at 2:15 a.m. “and we had played around five songs when I looked up and noticed the roof was burning.”
“It might have happened because of the Sputnik, the machine we use to create a luminous effect with sparks. It’s harmless, we never had any trouble with it,” he said. “When the fire started, a guard passed us a fire extinguisher, the singer tried to use it but it wasn’t working.”
He confirmed that accordion player Danilo Jacques, 28, died, while the five other members made it out safely.
Survivor Michele Pereira told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper that she was near the stage when members of the band lit some sort of flare that started the conflagration. “The band that was onstage began to use flares and, suddenly, they stopped the show and pointed them upward,” she said. “At that point, the ceiling caught fire. It was really weak, but in a matter of seconds it spread.”
Police inspector Meinerz, who coordinated the investigation at the nightclub, said one band member died after escaping because he returned inside the burning building to save his accordion. The other band members escaped alive because they were the first to notice the fire.
Television images from Santa Maria showed black smoke billowing out of the Kiss nightclub as shirtless young men who attended the university party joined firefighters using axes and sledgehammers to pound at the hot-pink exterior walls, trying to reach those trapped inside.
Teenagers sprinted from the scene after the fire began, desperately seeking help. Others carried injured and burned friends away in their arms. About half of those killed were men, about half women.
Bodies of the dead and injured were strewn in the street and panicked screams filled the air as medics tried to help. There was little to be done; officials said most of those who died suffocated within minutes. “There was so much smoke and fire, it was complete panic, and it took a long time for people to get out, there were so many dead,” survivor Luana Santos Silva told the Globo TV network.
The fire spread so fast inside the packed club that firefighters and ambulances could do little to stop it, Silva said.
A community gym soon became a horror scene, with body after body lined up on the floor, partially covered with black plastic as family members identified kin.
Outside the gym, police held up personal objects — a black purse, a blue high-heeled shoe — as people seeking information on loved ones crowded around hoping not to recognize anything being shown them.
The party was organized by students from several academic departments at the Federal University of Santa Maria. Such organized university parties are common throughout Brazil.

Police Maj. Cleberson Braida Bastianello said by telephone that the toll had risen to 233 with the death of a hospitalized victim.
Brazil President Dilma Rousseff arrived Sunday to visit the injured after cutting short her trip to a Latin American-European summit in Chile. “It is a tragedy for all of us,” said Rousseff, who began her political career in the state where the tragedy took place.
Dr. Paulo Afonso Beltrame, a professor at the medical school of the Federal University of Santa Maria. said he was told the club had been filled far beyond its capacity. He had gone to the city’s Caridade Hospital to help victims. “Large amounts of toxic smoke quickly filled the room, and I would say that at least 90 percent of the victims died of asphyxiation,” Beltrame told the AP. “The toxic smoke made people lose their sense of direction so they were unable to find their way to the exit. At least 50 bodies were found inside a bathroom.”
In the hospital, the doctor “saw desperate friends and relatives walking and running down the corridors looking for information,” he said, calling it “one of the saddest scenes I have ever witnessed.”
Rodrigo Moura, identified by the newspaper Diario de Santa Maria as a security guard at the club, said it was at its maximum capacity of between 1,000 and 2,000 people, and partygoers were pushing and shoving to escape.
Santa Maria Mayor Cezar Schirmer declared a 30-day mourning period, and Tarso Genro, the governor of the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, said officials were investigating the cause of the disaster.
The blaze was the deadliest in Brazil since at least 1961, when a fire that swept through a circus killed 503 people in Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro.
Sunday’s fire also appeared to be the worst at a nightclub since December 2000, when a welding accident reportedly set off a fire at a club in Luoyang, China, killing 309 people.
In 2004, at least 194 people died in a fire at an overcrowded nightclub in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Seven members of the band playing at the club were sentenced to prison for starting the flames.
A blaze at the Lame Horse nightclub in Perm, Russia, killed 152 people in December 2009 after an indoor fireworks display ignited a plastic ceiling decorated with branches.
Similar circumstances led to a 2003 nightclub fire that killed 100 people in the United States. Pyrotechnics used as a stage prop by the 1980s rock band Great White set ablaze cheap soundproofing foam on the walls and ceiling of a Rhode Island music venue.
The band performing in Santa Maria, Gurizada Fandangueira, plays a driving mixture of local Brazilian country music styles. Guitarist Martin told Radio Gaucha the musicians are already seeing hostile messages. “People on the social networks are saying we have to pay for what happened,” he said. “I’m afraid there could be retaliation”.

Source-world.time.com

Lethem security guard killed, three nabbed with $4M www.privateofficer.com

Lenthem Guyana Jan 21 2013
John Friday aka Chris, of Culvert City, Lethem, was believed to have screamed his way to death. The 43-year-old security guard was attached to the Strategic Action Service Limited which provided a service for the Region Nine Administration.
He who would have celebrated his birthday yesterday but one day earlier he met his demise while on the job, guarding the Region Nine Democratic Council (RDC) Office in Lethem.
This newspaper understands that shortly after 20:00hrs on Friday, two unidentified men entered the RDC compound and attacked Friday and his colleague identified as Rudolph Bernard. The perpetrators assaulted the two defenceless men and quickly turned them into hostages. Both victims’ limbs were tied and they were gagged with pieces of cloth. They were placed in separate rooms within the RDC building.
The perpetrators reportedly broke into the RDC Building and the Post Office. A cutting torch was used to cut open five safes from which an undisclosed sum of money was stolen, the police later reported.
The men then returned to the hostages, before making their escape.
At daybreak, rescue came but by then it was too late for Friday. However, his colleague was rushed to the Lethem Hospital where he was admitted and remains a patient nursing several head wounds. And though traumatized, Bernard is listed in a stable condition.
From his hospital bed yesterday, Bernard recalled the incident. He told Kaieteur News that he believes Friday screamed until his last breath.
According to the survivor, when he was initially tied up he screamed but soon stopped when he realized that it was of no use. However, he recalled hearing Friday’s screams for help for an extensive period.
Bernard said that after a while, the bandits revisited him and lit a match by his face, “but I close my eyes and didn’t move so they thought I was dead and they left.” Police visited the scene and took necessary statements.
A statement yesterday noted that “All police divisions were alerted.”
Around 08:15h yesterday, ranks at the Mabura Checkpoint stopped and searched a motor car. During the search over $4M was found hidden under the rear seat.
Two men and a woman who were in the vehicle have been arrested and are in police custody assisting with the investigations.

Antigua Certification of Private Security Guards Begins www.privateofficer.com

Antigua, St. John’s Jan 8 2013 – Private security guards will sit their first certification exam next week Tuesday, in a move aimed at ultimately buttressing the work of law enforcement.
The assessment falls under the purview of Commissioner of Police Vere Browne who has reported “overwhelming interest” from the security companies operating in the country.

“We are extremely elated” he said of the response.

Minister of National Security Dr Errol Cort said the venue for the January 15 exam will be announced shortly.

“The process will begin and ultimately we should be able to be in a position to put greater reliance on private security guards operating in this country,” he said.
After successful completion of this exam, the estimated 3000 private security guards will have to pass an advanced exam before they can be given the powers of a constable.

The certification process was originally set to commence last July but that deadline passed without information being released about what caused the delay.

This caused Minister Cort to express disappointment in the setback. He insisted that the process move forward.

Those operating private security firms said since last year they were ready for the certification, with many guards already trained.

Police searching for suspect in security officer assault www.privateofficer.com

Porirua nz. Jan 3 2013 Police are looking for a man in connection with the assault of a Porirua security guard in the early hours of this morning, in a robbery attempt.
Police detective sergeant Peter Middlemiss said the guard was on his rounds in Mohuia Cres, Elsdon, when he was approached from behind and grabbed around the neck, before the assailant demanded the guard’s wallet.
When the guard refused, his was forced to the ground, kicked in the stomach and chest, and his torso stomped on, before the assailant ran off.
The guard was bruised on his torso and ribs, but was otherwise uninjured.
The male offender was described as Maori, of solid build, about 5’8″ (172cm) and was wearing a black hooded sweater, dark jeans and white sneakers.

Security guard to hang for girl’s murder www.privateofficer.com

JOHOR BARU Dec 27 2012 A 47-year-old security guard was sentenced to death yesterday for killing a 16-year-old girl in an oil palm estate last year.
High Court judge Datuk Abdul Halim Aman described the defendant, D. Kalaiselvan, as cold-blooded and uncivilised.
He said the gruesome act did not end when Nur Rahayu Qomarodin died.
Instead, Kalaiselvan chopped the body into pieces, drenched the body parts with fuel and set them on fire.
“Your vicious act showed you wanted to destroy all the evidence.
“When taking the oath at the witness stand, you have denied your crime and even concocted a name called Sivarasa as the person behind the murder.”
Kalaiselvan was calm when Halim passed the death sentence.
Rahayu’s father, Kamarudin Bajuri, 48, was overcome with emotion.
“Justice was done. Justice was done,” said Kamarudin, a contractor. He had not missed a day of the hearing which lasted 18 months.
Kalaiselvan, together with another accomplice, still at large, were charged with killing Rahayu in the Sungai Masai oil palm estate, between 2.30am and 2.50am, on June 18 last year.
Her charred remains were found at two separate locations on July 3 last year.
Deputy public prosecutor Muhamad Iskandar Ahmad appeared for the prosecution, while the accused was represented by Md Zahar Ngah.
A total of 18 witnesses and 71 exhibits were produced during the course of the trial.

Ship security officer killed in gunbattle www.privateofficer.com

Nigeria Dec 19 2012 Heavily armed pirates using machine guns chased and fired upon the Honduras-flagged offshore support vessel, PM Salem, in a speed boat early on 14 December. All the crew, apart from the master and the naval security personnel, retreated to the 2,943gt ship’s citadel. The security team returned fire.
A 20-minute battle ensued before the pirates gave up their attack. In the meantime, one security guard was killed and another two were wounded. The incident happened about 14nm West Pennington Terminal, 25nm southwest of a region called Bayelsa, in the Niger Delta. The vessel was on the way from USARI field to Lagos. The ship’s owner is listed as Project Masters International of Nigeria and reportedly chartered to ExxonMobil.
West Africa maritime security analyst Steve Phelps said that 2-3 incidents have taken place in the same area in recent weeks, and the same group could be behind all of them.
Phelps also pointed out that the attacks are occurring close to a region controlled by former warlord Government Ekpumopolo (aka Tompolo). Tompolo was recently awarded a multimillion-dollar government contract to guard the Niger Delta’s oil pipelines and installations.
“These attacks will be embarrassing for him,” Phelps pointed out. In a message sent to the Wall Street Journal in August, a spokesman for Tompolo said “absolute peace” would be “guaranteed” in the Delta.

Mall security guards deputized as MMDA traffic enforcers www.privateofficer.com

Manila Phillipines Dec 16 2012 Mall security guards may have another duty to fulfill during the holidays: partly traffic enforcers deputized by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority.

The MMDA tapped the guards to help ease traffic flow around the malls as Christmas shopping started peaking this weekend, according to a report on “Balitanghali.”

But the guards’ authority will extend only to the immediate vicinity of the malls they work in, the report said.

Meanwhile, the MMDA over the weekend appealed to malls and commercial establishments to advise it of their extended operating hours, with Christmas shopping and partying now peaking.

The MMDA made the appeal after traffic was heavy in many parts of Metro Manila, including the areas near malls, radio dzBB reported.

According to the MMDA, it needs advisories from mall and establishment operators so it can juggle the schedules of its traffic enforcers.

It said it does not have enough traffic enforcers, especially those in the night shift.

Much of Friday night’s traffic was due to people flocking to malls and commercial establishments that were holding special holiday sales, the dzBB report said.

Several people were also outdoors on Friday night to attend various Christmas parties, the report added.

On Friday afternoon, the MMDA met with representatives of malls to map out ways to ease traffic congestion during the holidays, but not all mall chains were represented.

The MMDA has also opened 12 new Christmas Lanes as alternates to major thoroughfares, and imposed a modified truck ban during the holidays.

Bounty offered to kill Kenya’s securty officers www.privateofficer.com

Kenya Africa Dec 14 2012 Al-Shabaab is offering a large bounty for the killing of Kenyan security officers, Garissa County Commissioner Mohamed Maalim announced Wednesday (December 12th).
The militants are awarding up to $8,000 for any security officers killed.
The payment depends on the rank of the officer,” Maalim said during Jamhuri Day celebrations at Garissa Primary School.
Security was tight during the celebrations marking Kenya’s independence following reports that members of al-Shabaab were planning attacks.
On Tuesday, security officers in Garissa arrested six people believed to be planning to cause mayhem during the festivities. Four suspects escaped the security operation and are still at large.
Maalim said the government learnt of the bounty through intercepting al-Shabaab communications from Dobley, Somalia, to the Ifo camps in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee complex.
The Kenyan government has acquired state-of-the-art equipment to intercept the militants’ high frequency radio communications used to plan their attacks, Maalim told Sabahi. He said the government would shut down some radio communications to North Eastern Province to prevent terror attacks.
“Some people have installed radio communications in their businesses, but we have to review the system because militants are using the same ones to plan attacks in Kenya,” he said, adding that several owners of radio communications equipment are under investigation over suspected links to al-Shabaab.

India security guard kills co-workers www.privateofficer.com

Kolkata India Dec 8 2012 A 57-year-old State Bank of India security guard shot dead a colleague and then a cashier in front of customers this afternoon, apparently because he could not take their slights and taunts any more.
The killings by the “mild-mannered” Sunil Kumar Sarkar, posted at the SBI’s Bhowanipore branch on Ramesh Mitra Road since 1995, sent most of the 100-odd people present running helter-skelter.
Having killed fellow guard Radhakrishna Mondal on the third floor, Sunil, a former serviceman, had walked down to the ground floor and shot cashier Manab Bose.
Branch manager Chhabi Sarkar stepped out of his cabin hearing the shots and saw Sunil walk away from Bose’s blood-splattered counter and prepare to reload the gun. When the manager, also a retired army man, walked up to Sunil and grabbed his double-barrelled gun, the 5’8”, well-built guard did not resist.
“I did what I thought was the right thing,” Sarkar said. “As I grabbed him, people around me started screaming, ‘This is the man who gunned down our accountant’.”
Sunil remained calm as he was led to Sarkar’s room. He revealed there was another “body lying on the third floor”.
Mondal, 45, a resident of Madanpur near Kalyani in Nadia, lay on a bed meant for bank guards to rest. He had gone up to the third floor for lunch.
The police said Sunil, who lives in Nababganj at Ichhapore, North 24-Parganas, has a daughter studying in Calcutta University and a son pursuing a commerce degree at a Calcutta college.
Actress Koneenica Banerjee, who has an account at the branch, said she remembered the elderly guard handing her slips to deposit money.
“I know him very well…. I can almost imagine him in front of me. Whenever I went to the bank, he and the other guard helped me fill in slips and draft forms. He’s a very helpful man,” she said.
“Amakey ‘didi, didi’ bolto (they would address me as ‘didi’). My entire family has accounts in this branch.”
Koneenica’s father had been to the bank barely 15 minutes before the shooting.
The police said Sunil told them he knew the consequences of his action. “I may be hanged for this but I couldn’t take it any more,” an officer quoted Sunil as saying.
He said Sunil did not elaborate. The guard apparently told the police: “There are a lot of reasons; I can’t tell you all of that right now.”
Investigations suggest Sunil had been the standing victim of colleagues’ pranks, but the murder motive is yet to be confirmed.
The chief general manager of State Bank’s Bengal circle, Sunil Srivastav, said Sunil was a bank employee like all other SBI guards. The bank only recruits ex-servicemen as guards and someone of Sunil’s age would have earned around Rs 27,000 a month.
A police officer said Sunil was in charge of working out the roster for the four guards at the branch who worked in shifts of two. “Some of his colleagues used to ignore his orders or go on leave without telling him,” the officer said.
Bose was a leader of the bank employees’ union and, a police officer said, Sunil had taken his problems to him but to no avail.
“Colleagues would sometimes taunt him about his age, asking him ‘how much longer can you work’,” an officer said.
At Ichhapore, Sunil was known as a friendly neighbour. He had organised a residents’ team to guard the locality at night and “would be with us once a week”, a neighbour said.
Among his “friends” was colleague Mondal, said Mondal’s brother-in-law, who arrived in Calcutta today. Mondal’s daughter is in her first year of college and his son is a Class VI student.
The police said Mondal was scribbling something when he was shot but wouldn’t say what the note contained.
Bose lived in Paschim Putiary near Tollygunge, Calcutta. His son, a first-year student at a north Bengal engineering college, was at home when TV flashed the news. He immediately phoned his father but the call went unanswered.
The bank branch will resume normal service on Monday, SBI said. Arrangements have been made for its customers to conduct transactions from SBI Kalighat till then.