Lonan3 Posted January 21, 2006 Share Posted January 21, 2006 If I remember correctly, one of those posters who regularly depicts our own island as a centre of corruption was planning to retire to the gentle paradise of Tenerife. Can't help wondering what he thinks of this: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=1...-name_page.html AWAY from the smart hotels, pristine villas and sparkling beaches, lurks another Tenerife, a dark and violent place of dirty deals and bloody murder. This week an even darker shadow was cast over the island's once sunny reputation by the shocking murders of Billy and Flo Robinson. The couple, middle-aged, always sun-tanned, always immaculate and very, very wealthy had made their fortune in the timeshare industry. Florence, 55, was discovered bludgeoned to death in her two-seater Mercedes, yards from her home. Her 58-year-old husband was found less than a mile away, slumped on the back seat of his new Porsche Cayenne. His throat had been cut and he had been shot in the head. The murders bore all the marks of a professional assassination, and present a telling glimpse into a sinister underworld of drugs and gang warfare. Local police believe the double murder is a brutal escalation of the tangled web of corruption, money laundering, extortion and even gun-running that has invaded their island. Over recent years, Russian hoods and eastern European gangs have muscled in on the lucrative industry. Now the island's tranquility is often shattered by shootings involving Albanian, Kosovar and Romanian thugs. And there is a darker, more dreadful side beginning to emerge. Profits from timeshare scams are believed to have funded Middle Eastern terror groups Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rog Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 I guess that’s me as we’re arranging to move to Tenerife in the ear future having bought a villa there and presently having it modernised. There is some serious crime on Tenerife but not exceptionally so. The timeshare and holiday business is what attracts most of it. The Palmer affair is old news. The people in the know maintain that although Palmer was a wide boy and who certainly had a reputation (unquestionably well earned) he was actually set up by others when he refused to ‘play ball’ and continue to run his ‘Island Village’ resort, a really nice place incidentally, as well as the rest of his empire as an ‘independent.’ Reading that the Robinsons were associated with him makes the whole business drop into place for me. For the permanent residents the level of crime per capita is actually less than on the Isle of Man and certainly the drug scene is far smaller per capita, and almost exclusively associated with the popular holiday resort and even there mostly to be encountered on The Veronicas Strip. On the positive side Tenerife is not known for the unutterably blatant degree of government corruption as the isle of Man, the situation surrounding one noteworthy case where it seems to be getting put back repeatedly (on the assumption that there will come a point where it will be claimed that a fair trial is impossible because of all of the supposed knowledge and bias in the public domain?) would not be permitted to take place by Spanish law if nothing else. I actually wonder if there is not a case for the plaintiffs involved in some aspects of what is associated with this whole disgusting matter to look to see if their Human Rights have been affected – I suspect they have been already and continue to be with the connivance of the AG and probably others.. Instead of the utter incompetence to be seen again and again in decisions reached in the Keys combined with the perversion of Freemasonry into something closer to the Mafia by the Isle of Man movers and shakers there is simply the archetypical Spanish ‘Manyana’ (still doesn’t hold a candle to the Manx ‘Traa da Lhoor, yesser’) and the petty self interest decisions that get taken rather than the bare-faced rip-offs seen time and again in what takes place on the Isle of Man. To get a comparison with Tenerife government I would look towards Mainland Spain and a local council there, whereas to get a comparison to Manx government Zimbabwe would make a better match, not only in corruption and underhand dealings but also in the way that the leadership don’t give a toss about Joe Public. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gladys Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 Rog Your comparison of the IOM Govt with that of Zimbabwe, is either ill-informed or intended to goad! But, hell, what's changed about your posting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rog Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 Rog Your comparison of the IOM Govt with that of Zimbabwe, is either ill-informed or intended to goad! But, hell, what's changed about your posting! Ill informed? Not as ill informed nor as inacurate as might at first glance seem to be the case. Though the detail may (sugnificantly) differ many principles are the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 At least the Isle of Man government don't treat comeovers like Tenerife does - by demanding in cash half the value of any property owned by by any ex-pat widow/er immediately after the death of their spouse. Meaning a grieving widow often has to sell up the home they shared with their partner to pay the money required by law - and the Government send their own valuers in too who often over-value the propety. you have to pay half of their valuation too - not half what you get for it if you have to then sell up. Puts the whining from comeover pensioners about not getting our pension money into perspective doesn't it? Tenerife wanted the money - so they let the Russians in. Of course now it's flooded with Russian mafia, it's turf war stuff, but no doubt this will bring things to a head and the police will start cracking down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rog Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 "At least the Isle of Man government don't treat comeovers like Tenerife does - by demanding in cash half the value of any property owned by by any ex-pat widow/er immediately after the death of their spouse. " All that's needed is to make sure your affairs are in order to avoid this. As it stands it would probably do a great deal for the REAL Manx if such a law WAS to be introduced on the Island. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoneWolf Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 the archetypical Spanish ‘Manyana’ (still doesn’t hold a candle to the Manx ‘Traa da Lhoor, yesser’) You may want to revise that statement after a while. I worked in Spain for a while (not the Canaries I agree!) and whichever way up you look at it they are one layed back people. Certainly in the Alicante area "Manyana" has been turned into an art form. Im a bit jealous of you though, fabulous people, nice climate and despite the thrust of this thread a good quality of life including low crime rate. Good luck with the retirement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheesemonster2005 Posted January 24, 2006 Share Posted January 24, 2006 Spain would be an ideal place to retire providing you choose somewhere which isn't full of British tourists. The country has a great standard of living and a relaxed attutude to life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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