An international gang leader wanted by Interpol has been arrested in Dubai.
In a sting operation, security officers in the emirate arrested Amir Faten Mekky, a Danish citizen, on June 3.
Mr Mekky is associated with one of the world’s most notorious international criminals, Radwan Al Taghi, the head of the Angels of Death gang, who was arrested in Dubai in December 2019 and handed over to the Netherlands.
Special forces from the State Security Service in Dubai raided Mr Mekky’s residence around midnight on Wednesday and he was taken into custody.
Officers zeroed in on the suspect and monitored his movements before arresting him.
A video shared by Dubai Media Office showed Mr Mekky throwing rubbish outside his home.
Swedish police confirmed the arrest of one of the country's most wanted men. Although he is Danish, Mr Mekky is alleged to be a central figure in the gang underworld in Malmo in the south of the country, near Denmark. "We have confirmed that he has been arrested in Dubai," Petra Stenkula, head of the Regional Investigation Unit at Police Region South, told the Expressen newspaper.
The reports said two brothers, aged 33 and 32, were the suspected gang leaders and still at large. Mr Mekky was a lieutenant of the drug lords.
A video issued by the authorities showed a report in British media about a hit on an Albanian-born man in central London in late 2019. Fears that the man, who was shot in front of his wife and infant child, was subject to a contract killing were reported at the time and the murder has never been solved. Flamur Beqiri, 36, had left his homeland as child and his parents had ended up in Sweden. The record producer lived in a modest terraced house in London's Battersea district before his execution.
At the time Mr Mekky was running a drug and crime network in southern Spain known as Los Suecos, or 'the Swedes'. His henchmen were alleged to have planted bombs in rivals' storage facilities, conducted kidnappings, shootings and burnt down cafes.
A raid by 120 police on his Spanish base only one month before Mr Beqiri was shot in the back and head saw Mr Mekky flee and his whereabouts had been unknown until he was picked up in Dubai. Reports said a $250,000 watch was among the valuables seized by Spanish police.
Mr Mekky is wanted for two murders and a series of arson attacks by the Spanish authorities. The Los Suecos gang has been blamed for the murder of Spanish drug lord David Avila Ramos, the 'Maradona' kingpin of Marbella drug runners.
Before fleeing Sweden, Mr Mekky had been arrested by police on charges of murder and attempted murder carried out in Malmo but the charges could not be stood up. Mr Mekky received $22,000 in compensation for wrongful arrest.
It is alleged that Mr Mekky remains a central target of Operation Mellerud. Malmo Police and the Customs Administration Malmo have involved a number of authorities such as the Swedish Tax Agency, the Swedish Criminal Authority, the Employment Service and the Prison and Probation Service. Investigators believe that the main suspects travelled frequently between Sweden, Spain and Morocco as they built up their drugs network.
The arrest operation was carried out despite restrictions on movement in Dubai during the coronavirus pandemic, in compliance with UAE law and in accordance with international legal standards.
“All necessary measures were taken and a legal team was formed in co-operation with the Public Prosecution in Dubai and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation, which issued an arrest warrant,” a spokesman said in a statement from the Dubai Media Office.
The official said according to intelligence inputs, Mr Mekky had entered the UAE on November 14, 2018, using a different passport.
He is currently being investigated and preparations are under way to hand him over to the relevant authorities.
According to the spokesman, Mr Mekky is wanted for murder, drug trafficking and money laundering. In Europe, he evaded arrest for several years as he used multiple passports to travel.
“The high-profile arrest sends a clear message that Dubai will not tolerate international criminal activities even if the crimes have not been committed in the UAE. It also emphasised the UAE’s commitment to fulfil its responsibilities towards combating transnational crime,” the spokesman said.
Wayne Rooney's career
Everton (2002-2004)
- Appearances: 48
- Goals: 17
Manchester United (2004-2017)
- Appearances: 496
- Goals: 253
England (2003-)
- Appearances: 119
- Goals: 53
Company info
Company name: Entrupy
Co-founders: Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder/chief executive, Ashlesh Sharma, co-founder/chief technology officer, Lakshmi Subramanian, co-founder/chief scientist
Based: New York, New York
Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
Total customers: Entrupy’s customers include hundreds of secondary resellers, marketplaces and other retail organisations around the world. They are also testing with shipping companies as well as customs agencies to stop fake items from reaching the market in the first place.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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Transmission: 8-speed auto
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
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Dubai Rugby Sevens, December 5 -7
World Sevens Series Pools
A – Fiji, France, Argentina, Japan
B – United States, Australia, Scotland, Ireland
C – New Zealand, Samoa, Canada, Wales
D – South Africa, England, Spain, Kenya
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RESULT
Huddersfield Town 2 Manchester United 1
Huddersfield: Mooy (28'), Depoitre (33')
Manchester United: Rashford (78')
Man of the Match: Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield Town)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company%20Profile
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The%20specs
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French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
BABYLON
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The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
If you go
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Seattle from Dh5,555 return, including taxes. Portland is a 260 km drive from Seattle and Emirates offers codeshare flights to Portland with its partner Alaska Airlines.
The car
Hertz (www.hertz.ae) offers compact car rental from about $300 per week, including taxes. Emirates Skywards members can earn points on their car hire through Hertz.
Parks and accommodation
For information on Crater Lake National Park, visit www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm . Because of the altitude, large parts of the park are closed in winter due to snow. While the park’s summer season is May 22-October 31, typically, the full loop of the Rim Drive is only possible from late July until the end of October. Entry costs $25 per car for a day. For accommodation, see www.travelcraterlake.com. For information on Umpqua Hot Springs, see www.fs.usda.gov and https://soakoregon.com/umpqua-hot-springs/. For Bend, see https://www.visitbend.com/.
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
