This page will detail some of history’s great crimes. Sibling rivalry is as old as the hills, but some, detailed on this page, take the breath away. You will see that some took it to homicidal levels. For many it was kill or be killed.

Others saw a chance to grab the main prize, and if that meant creating and stepping over corpses, so be it. Many of our trips involve exploration of historical sites and tales.

There are lessons for the here and now from these horrid tales of the past, which include, not only brutal murder, but scandalous abuse of sanctuary, and other crimes.

It also details historical tales of empire building, seizing and some setting historical records straight.

Historical Tourism

I have been to several countries, absorbing the culture and history. It’s so worth it. If you are a history buff, a true crime buff, a stickler for historical authenticity, then this page is for you. There’s so much to see and enjoy. Long forgotten civilisations, tales of wars, conquests, peace, usurpation, rebellions, but it’s so much more than blood, gore and devices of inhumanity.

We hope by reading these articles, you will visit these places for yourself and return with a new understanding of long forgotten history that helped to shape the world. Read, enjoy, and above all go and see these places for yourself!

Scandal

25 years ago today a precursor of the ‘Me Too’ movement claimed a very important victory in an unlikely place. Morocco, at the time, was seen as a place where police officers, especially male ones, were entitled to do as they pleased. Nothing emphasised this culture more than the Tabetgate Scandal. Over a period of many years a top police officer, who ended his ‘service’ in Casablanca, had committed several crimes against over 500 women. The offences included rape, deflowering virgins and kidnap, among many others.
Tabert had been aided and abetted in his crimes by other officers including his superior Ahmed Ouachi, who covered up for Tabet and destroyed evidence. Police Commissioners, Abdessalam Bekkali and Mustapha ben Maghnia were also complicit in Tabet’s crimes.

Tabet could and should have been stopped many years earlier. Rather than submit to his unwanted advances a young woman in the historic city of Beni Mehall – near Jbel Tassemit in the High Atlas Mountains – threw herself out of the window. Scandalised, the area’s member in the House of Representatives fired off letters demanding action against Tabet to the Governor of the province, Ministry of the Interior, the Director of National Security, and the relevant prosecutor in 1980.

The action that followed illustrated the entitlement culture at its worst – Tabet was transferred to Rabat. The best opportunity to stop the serial rapist early had been lost. Hay Mohammadi-Ain Sebâa, the Chief of Security of that prefecture, enters the story there.

The Culture of Entitlement

This culture of police entitlement continued unabated for over a decade. Tabet, encouraged by the lack of consequences, became reckless, especially when in Casablanca, retaining incriminating evidence. This was to be his undoing. In 1989 he was appointed Casablanca’s Chief Police Commissioner. Colleagues and even civilians and, worse still, a gynaecologist were involved in national scandal that was exposed in a sensational trial of the high-ranking, self-confessed sex addict police officer whose litany of crimes were covered up by colleagues. It continued so long partly due to the law of the time requiring eyewitnesses to corroborate a woman’s word.

Casablanca’s Chief Police Commissioner El Hajj Mohamed Mustapha Tabet, 54, took advantage of that to rape and sexually assault several women. He felt so secure that he videoed his crimes and kept detailed notes. Over the years he was assisted by several police colleagues: Ouachi, Bekkali, ben Maghnia and Sebâa were the most senior officers involved. However, others ranking Inspector or below were implicated too. Azii Sebbar, Abderahim Bouddi, Abdellatif Abbad, Lahcen Jaâfari, Zouheor Fikri, Aït Si Mustapha, Slimane Jouhari and Sellam Fedali were joined in the dock by Dr Driss Lahlou and civilians Abdelkader Dou Ennaim, Abdllatif Boussari, Monhamed Rabii and Abdelahad Mrini.

Lahlou’s crimes were shocking. The doctor performed unwanted abortions on the victims and repaired hymens to conceal the rapes.

Downfall

Tabet’s crimes ended after two of his victims brought a civil action against him. It resulted in a 25 day criminal trial beginning on February 18th. After 25 days Tabet was convicted of multiple counts of rape, deflowering virgins, sexual assault, abduction and other sexually-motivated crimes. At his trial 118 videos of his attacks on 518 women, some of which were committed with friends, were shown. Tabet’s detailed confession, computerised records of his victims’ identities and proof of identity of many victims that were found in the flat in Casablanca that Tabet used for his attacks also provided strong evidence against him.

He demanded sex in return for issuing documents including passports, and offered a defence that stretched credibility to absurd lengths. He claimed that he had had sex with about 1600 women over three years – more than one per day throughout his job in Casablanca, but according to him all were consensual. His denials of using violence on the women was proved false by some of the videos.

Crime and Punishment

On the Ides of March 1993 the sentences were handed down. Tabet received the death sentence. Ouachi was jailed for life for destroying evidence of Tabet’s crimes. Ten other officers were jailed for up to 20 years. Bekkali received 20 years and Ben Maghnia, ten. Lahlou was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment but with one exception the sentences were not served in full.

Bekkali died in prison in 1994 and was pardoned posthumously in 1997. Lahlou was released after serving just two years of his 15 year sentence. Ouachi, Sebâa, Boussari, Abdelkader and Rabii – the only ones remaining in prison by the turn of the century, were pardoned by the King on March 16th 2000, having served 7 years of their sentence, some still protesting their innocence.

Over a decade later the pardons process was brought into disrepute when a convicted Spanish paedophile Daniel Galván was released just two years after being convicted of raping 11 children. The pardon led to a peaceful protest that was attacked and a review of the pardons system – Galván was a particularly unworthy recipient.

Tabet was executed in Kenitra Central Prison – near Rabat – by firing squad on August 9th 1993 after his final appeal was dismissed. It was the last execution in Morocco to date and eleven years after it was last used when two people were executed over the Moutachawiq case.

My latest book Trials and Tribulations – Innocence Matters is available to order through FIP. Our next publication will be Bad Form – How Tariffs Protect the Guilty and Punish the Innocent. It will detail the issues I discuss in the video in greater detail.

https://www.facebook.com/satish.sekar.3/videos/1376131822491496/

We will be publising Bad Form – How Tariffs Protect the Guilty and Punish the Innocent early next year. It will reveal important new facts on how the tariff on Gafoor is an even bigger travesty than had been previously thought.

Here’s a taster: https://www.facebook.com/satish.sekar.3/videos/1374091852695493/

Richard Horwell QC has completed his report and it has been considered by the Home Secretary, who scraped back into Parliament by the skin of her teeth. Amber Rudd has welcomed it – no surprise there. Horwell thinks the failures were due to human error. That contributed to it, but it was at best a lacklustre prosecution. It refused to utilise important evidence that unequivocally proved the Cardiff were innocent, and did so before they stood trial in 1989 and again in 1990. High quality evidence proving this was conspicuous by its absence in the prosecution case in 2011 and even in rebuttal of the outrageous defence. Adding insult to injury the sham processes culminating in the Horwell Report have not even acknowledged that this evidence existed, let alone deal with its exclusion. Rudd welcomes the sham and hopes that this is the end of the story. It is not. Justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done. In this case, despite the clearest vindication possible, justice has been seen to be denied. It still is. Horwell had an opportunity – albeit limited – to redress a gross wrong. He has failed to do so.

It should now be clear that the approach favoured by South Wales Police and others of aiding the three sham inquiries and refusing to comment on the shameful miscarriage of justice that befell the Cardiff Five and affected the community that had a right to expect the highest standards that it did not receive, has achieved its intent. Whether that force (its highest ranks shared that intent or not) the deliberate prevention of learning the lessons of an utterly shameful miscarriage of justice has occurred because of these processes that had no ability to deliver justice, or intent – their aim was altogether more sinister. The sham processes served their purpose of taking the case off the agenda long enough for it to be forgotten about and the damage that it was perceived that it could cause, limited. The dismal failures of this approach and failed processes have not been addressed. The pathetic platitudes about innocence and miscarriage of justice are risible – contemptible in fact.

All three sham processes the HMCPSI, IPCC and now Horwell achieved their purpose of delaying and ultimately thwarting justice. They were and are the pathetic sham I knew they would be. It was obvious what they would be. The Terms of Reference of all three made that clear. They were a gross waste of public funds and the politicians responsible should be surcharged.

South Wales Police’s PSD stole my work and published it to others in flagrant breach of my copyright, and knowing that I not only did not support these sham processes, but that I viewed them with total contempt. The justification provided for that theft was a year after the fact and demonstrably wrong in law – it is astonishing that Police Complaints Commission (it has to demonstrate independence in practice for me to call it Independent) failed to notice that. The fact that South Wales Police see nothing wrong with the department complained of investigating itself and expect me to provide paperwork their officers failed to provide, despite it being made clear that was required, demonstrates bad faith. It is amazing that the so-called complaints procedure and senior ranks who discussed it accept the shoddy note-keeping etc when it suits them, but ignore the fact no note exists of the terms of my cooperation at all. How convenient for them. If that is not properly redressed I reserve the right to take whatever action is necessary regarding it. South Wales Police stole my cooperation for processes they knew I had concluded were designed to cheat justice. They even had the very officer complained about investigating himself!

All three of these shams ignored the original miscarriage of justice and its causes and effects. All three ignored the disgraceful abuse of justice that jailed three vulnerable people (the bullied witnesses I refer to as the New Cardiff Three) that the court accepted had been subjected to conduct that was ‘unacceptable in a civilised society’. The archaic demands of the law on duress was conspicuous by its absence in all three shams. All three failed to notice that the 2011 farce was set up to fail – disclosure providing a neat smokescreen to hide inexplicably crass prosecutorial decisions. An illuminating light will be shone on those decisions in my forthcoming book Trials and Tribulations – Innocence Matters?

I have already detailed some of these failings in my previous books Fitted In: The Cardiff 3 and the Lynette White Inquiry and The Cardiff Five: Innocent Beyond Any Doubt. Criticisms raised in them of the investigative and judicial processes that led to the notorious miscarriage of justice and maintained it even after vindication, are conspicuous by their absence in the three shams. The failure to use compelling scientific evidence even after a deplorable and utterly false defence was advanced in 2011 trial is disgraceful. Where was the analysis of that in the three sham processes?

The processes that South Wales Police and others supported have failed miserably. Rather than reward mediocrity and gross injustice, if any truly care about justice they will not only join me in demanding a Truth and Justice Commission into the whole case, but campaign actively until that Commission is established. Justice and integrity demand nothing less!

by Satish Sekar © Satish Sekar (March 14th 2013)

Lessons Learned?

The USA restored the death penalty after a four year break in 1976. In fact, there had been no executions since 1967 – the Supreme Court ruled the statutes unconstitutional in 1972 (Furman v Georgia). States amended their statutes and in 1976 the Supreme Court ruled Georgia’s new death penalty statute was constitutional (Gregg v Georgia).

Anyone on Death Row prior to the Furman decision had their death sentences commuted to life imprisonment. The first person executed since restoration was Gary Gilmore (Utah January 17th 1977).

Somewhat surprisingly, all of the first five executed since restoration were white – only one fought against his fate. The other four, including Gilmore, abandoned their appeals and demanded to be executed. One – the first in Virginia for twenty years – was a former police officer turned armed robber and murderer.

Cops and Robbers

Frank Coppola was the first person executed by Virginia since 1962 (Carroll Garland on March 2nd for murder). Among the careers Coppola had in his short life (38 when he died) was police officer in Portsmouth, Virginia. He was forced to leave in 1967 after making false statements about an assault on a prisoner committed by a colleague. He had also tried to become a priest – quitting after a year – and a sports scholarship that he did not complete. He joined the police in 1965.

In the 1970s he had a new career in crime, having been sentenced to four years for burglary in 1971. Seven years later, the former prisoner committed the crimes that cost him his life. He robbed and viciously beat Muriel Hatchell to death in her home.

Donna Mills and Joseph Miltier – also an accomplice in the 1971 crime – were involved in the robbery and Coppola’s wife, Karen, was an accessory. Hatchell’s husband, Peyton, arrived during the robbery and was viciously clubbed over the head. He was severely injured, but survived.

Cops Turned Robbers

Coppola was convicted of robbery and murder on September 26th 1978. He was sentenced to death. His accomplices received long terms in prison. Coppola chose to waive appeals and went to the electric chair on August 10th 1982, over 20 years since the last execution in that state. Coppola’s execution was botched, requiring two jolts of electricity.

He was not the only former police officer to turn to crime before committing a further crime that resulted in execution. During his career as a police officer, which began in March 1920, James Power disgraced the profession (http://fittedin.org/fittedin/?p=899). He was thrown out just shy of three years later. He made a living by impersonating a police officer and demanding money with menaces from courting couples. On July 2nd 1927 he raped and murdered Olive Turner, the offence that sent him to the gallows on January 31st 1928.

Infamous

Over 55 earlier an even worse example occurred in Northern Ireland. Sub-Inspector Thomas Montgomery, a seemingly respectable police officer, was anything but. The officer needed money, so he tried to rob the Northern Bank on June 29th 1871, as it was closing. He murdered cashier, William Glass, with a spike. Montgomery then took charge of the investigation into Glass’ murder.

Eventually witnesses placed him at the scene of the crime an hour earlier, and colleagues discovered his financial woes. They built a case against him which resulted in his conviction after two mistrials. Montgomery was the last person executed in Omagh jail – going to the gallows on August 26th 1873.

Deterrence?

Article 50 has been triggered, but it has emerged that many Brexit supporters want more than tighter immigration controls – they want the return of capital punishment too, but what does it achieve? Deterrence?

If anyone should be deterred, it should be those aware of the consequences – police, lawyers, prison offices, for example, so let’s see whether it works in practice. It has been over half a century since Britain carried out its last execution. The 1950s was an important decade for executions in Britain – four serious miscarriages of justice and the only serving police officer at the time of his offence hanged for murder.

A Unique Place in Infamy

James Robertson was hanged on December 16th 1950. He was the only police officer to suffer execution in Britain in the 20th Century (http://fittedin.org/fittedin/?p=635) although former officers had been hanged in both that century and the preceding one too. But Britain is far from alone in executing police officers whom the death penalty failed to deter.

Robertson’s crime was callous, but Mohamed Mustafa Tabet was the Poster-boy of Infamy. His litany of crimes and the cover-up that was attempted disgrace any notion of justice.

Tabet was executed by firing squad on August 8th 1993. He was a serial rapist, believed to have claimed as many as 518 victims, mostly school-girls. Tabet had abused his position as a Commissioner of Police in Casablanca, and been allowed to commit these heinous crimes through the complicity of colleagues – later jailed – and a doctor who disgraced his profession, Dr Driss Lahlou (http://fittedin.org/fittedin/?p=1339).

Heinous

Despite terrorist atrocities in 2003 and 2007, Morocco’s last execution was that of Tabet. So what about countries that retain and use the death penalty? Has the death penalty deterred law enforcement officers from committing capital offences?

Tabet and Robertson are not the only examples of police officers who have been executed. Resenting the loss of his position as Vice-Chairman of the Brigade Revolutionary Committee, for failing to adhere to family planning policy, the Brigade Militia Company Commander Wang Xiwen’s became a mass murderer. His shooting spree killed seven and wounded 12 in Handan on November 17th1980.

His support for the notorious Gang of Four, and actions in support of them made clemency even less likely. The trial of the Gang of Four had been due to begin that month. Xiwen broke into an armoury and stole weapons, including grenades. He returned to stock up on weapons too. His rampage left six dead – another fatally wounded – and 12 more injured, five of them seriously.

Found guilty on April 1981, Xiwen’s appeals proceeded quickly – the last of which was dismissed on June 10th 1981. He was immediately executed by firing squad in front of a 50,000 crowd at the Handan Municipal Stadium.

Elite Assassin

On January 4th 2011 the Governor of Punjab (Pakistan), Salmaan Taseer was assassinated by his bodyguard Malik Mumtaz Qadri, because Qadri a fundamentalist Muslim, objected to Tasseer’s opposition to Pakistan’s blasphemy laws.

Qadri shot Taseer 27 times with an AK-47. Qadri was convicted at an Anti-Terrorism court in Islamabad on October 10th 2011. His appeal against the death penalty was dismissed by Pakistan’s Supreme Court on December 12th 2015. He was hanged on February 29th 2016.

Qadri had been a member of the Elite Police – ironically a domestic counter-terrorist unit in the Punjab – since 2010. It also provided VIP protection.

Icons

Emmy Musonda is not the only former sporting icon to miss out on Zambia’s first international tournament. The Chipolopolo are one of only two AFCON winners never to have hosted the senior event. Until today Zambia had never hosted any AFCON. Legends and legends in the making, who were robbed of the careers they should have had were not included as they had hoped to be.

A Sporting Chance of After-care – Zambia filled a gap. It wasn’t just about Musonda, terrible as his plight was. Just over two years ago football united around three young Zambian footballers. While on national team duty a crash left them seriously injured, robbing two of them of their playing careers. Zesco United’s Nyambe Mulenga still hopes to play again, but time is running out for him. Green Eagles’ goalkeeper Satchmo Chakawa came back too soon in 2015. A hip injury related to the crash sidelined the young keeper again. He made a full recovery, returning to action in 2016. Mulenga is still out of football.

Zesco want Mulenga to take another job with them, but he still hopes to play – time ticks on his playing career – he was in Zambia’s AFCON winning squad in 2012, but both are fortunate, if that is the right word, compared to Chipolopolo team-mate, Changwe Kalale of Power Dynamos.

He will certainly never play again. He was paralysed by the accident near Green Restaurant in Kabwe, on December 14th 2014, which resulted in the death of the bus driver and three people in the other vehicle, which had lost control. Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter sent them a message of support at the time, but all three need support and assistance still, especially Kalale.

Priorities
Despite focusing on his task of winning the Under-20 AFCON, Zambia’s coach, Beston Chambeshi, found time to show support, not just to former team-mate Musonda, but to Chakawa, Kalale and Mulenga (see his message here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jubqxUE0z7c&feature=youtu.be).

But Chambeshi has more to add. As with Musonda, Chambeshi believes that these young players still have important gifts to give to football – a treasure trove of football knowledge. See his call for them to be involved in Zambian football here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gos5ozXKRCI&feature=youtu.be).

Chambeshi led his Under-20 Zambia team to glory. They clearly were the team of the tournament. They defeated Thabo Senong’s Bafana Bafana in the semi-final to reach the final. Despite the disappointment, Senong found time to send a message of support to the three young Zambians whose careers were cruelly cut short. See his message here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5JhHJ_ycSA&feature=youtu.be).