Gang crime in west Belfast, a gang is being blamed for an aggravated burglary in the area during which a couple in their 50s were threatened at gunpoint and told that their son was being held hostage. Four men entered the house in Springfield Park at around 9pm on Saturday night. It is understood some of the men were armed with handguns. The gang claimed they were holding the couple's son and demanded money. The gang left empty-handed and when the couple phoned their son they found he was safe. A short time later a woman in her 30s was pushed from her car as it was hijacked along the Springfield Road. The woman was driving in her black Mitsibushi Shogun when she was flagged down at around 9.30pm. When the car stopped, three men, including the male who stopped her, got into the car. They then travelled a short distance before coming to a police vehicle checkpoint. The men then pushed the woman out of the car and drove off. The vehicle was recovered in the Clonard Heights area about an hour later. Police and army technical officers were at the scene for several hours yesterday to examine the vehicle. It is understood that detectives are investigating a link between the burglary and hijacking.
William (Billy) Bowden pleaded guilty in a Winnipeg courtroom today to carrying a firearm in a careless manner in January 2007
William (Billy) Bowden, 33, pleaded guilty in a Winnipeg courtroom today to carrying a firearm in a careless manner in January 2007 and skipping out on his preliminary hearing about a year later. Other drug and weapons charges related to the 2007 incident were stayed as part of a plea bargain securing the two convictions. Bowden remains in custody though, charged with manslaughter in relation to the November 2007 killing of Jeff Engen, who was fatally stabbed at the Empire Cabaret, prompting the club to close. That charge remains before the courts. Bowden has been in custody since he was arrested Feb. 14 in Whistler, B.C., and returned to Manitoba. The Crown and defence jointly recommended that time be noted in his sentence for carrying the firearm. That crime occurred around 2:30 a.m. on Jan. 20, 2007, as Bowden was leaving the NV lounge in a truck with friend Ken Houston, court heard. Police discovered a Glock 9mm handgun loaded with 18 bullets in a pile of garbage close to where the...
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