2011 – Page 224

The National Drug Control Department reports the arrest of Dimitri Lopez Quintana, of Russian descent and Spanish nationality. He was arrested prior to boarding an Iberworld flight to Madrid from Punta Cana International Airport. News reports say he was waiting for the flight at one of the airport gates when agents suspected he was carrying …

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A way of raising funds quickly, known as a “pyramid” or “Ponzi” scheme, has spread among young middle class men and women, to the point that it has become the current hot topic at the country’s main private universities and on social networks like Twitter and Facebook. A message posted on Twitter by a university …

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The Dominican government has requested the extradition of a Spanish-Venezuelan citizen, Carlos Guerrero Costas, allegedly involved in a RD$1.5 billion tax swindle in the DR. Guerrero Costas was detained in Venezuela on an Interpol warrant, according to Roberto Rodriguez the legal counsel for the Department of Taxes (DGII). Guerrero Costas is president of Atlas Marine …

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The District Attorney of the National District will open an investigation into the activities of Cristian Casa Blanca, an alleged clairvoyant who “predicts” the winning lottery numbers and who is said to have a long track record of criminal activity. District Attorney Alejandro Moscoso Segarra told Diario Libre reporters that: “We have not been formally …

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The Sala Ravelo of the National Theater presents El ABC del sexo starting the weekend of Friday, 25 February, with shows continuing on Saturday, 26 February at 8:30pm and Sunday, 27 February at 6:30pm. The play is directed by Enrique Chao and produced by Rafael Ovalles. Starring Edili, Fifi Almonte and Gilberto Hernandez. The theater …

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Ballad singer Anthony Rios is booked for a performance at the Merengue Bar at the Hotel Jaragua Casino. The concert takes place on Wednesday, 23 February at 10pm. No cover. For more on ongoing and upcoming events in the DR, see www.dr1.com/calendar  

President Leonel Fernandez lunched yesterday with former Presidents George H. Bush, George W. Bush (USA), Alvaro Uribe (Colombia) and Martin Torrijos (Panama) and the former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar. The lunch was held at the Quinta Serenisima in Casa de Campo, owned by Venezuelan businessman Gustavo Cisneros. The nation’s newspapers said that although …

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This morning’s print edition of Hoy newspaper shares a front-page photograph with its readers showing President Leonel Fernandez with Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the so-called Libyan Revolution. President Fernandez visited Tripoli in August 2009 to attend the African Union Summit and the celebrations of the 40th anniversary of …

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The Dominican authorities closed down the old bridge to Haiti over the Masacre River in Dajabon yesterday and inaugurated a new set of Customs and Immigration offices and a new, larger bridge to Ouanaminthe (Juana Mendez) on the Haitian side. The new structure was almost completely funded by the European Union. However, the Haitian officials …

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The marked increase in the price of oil imports has not managed to slow down gas-guzzling in the DR. Diario Libre reports that the price of fuel went from US$53.81 a barrel in November 2009 to US$69.16 for the same period in 2010, up almost 23%. Paradoxically, while crude prices increased, the country’s consumption also …

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