Saadi Gaddafi Bodyguard Outlines Escape

Mr. Gary Peters name has been attached to many story surrounding the fall of the Gaddafi family in Lybia, almost to the point where it reads like a Hollywood film.   I’ll say one thing for him, he’s standing by his client to the end.

via:  Lateline

EMMA ALBERICI: What exactly did Saadi Gaddafi ask of you?

GARY PETERS: Nothing was asked of me from Saadi Gaddafi. Ah, my concern and always is with all my clients is their safety, their well-being, their rite of passage, how they’re going to get there. The secondary is their families. The third is their associates. Beginning of 2011, I instigated or tried to begin a process of getting him or extracting him from Libya to a different destination. That was in 2011. Um, why? Because of how I knew how he felt about Libya, how I knew how he felt about the circumstances there, how I knew how he felt about his family. And then my thoughts and my feelings on his safety. Not willing to lose a friend. Not willing to lose a client. And also having feelings of the same way he does about the people of Libya.

EMMA ALBERICI: I’ll just pick you up on that point about knowing what Saadi Gaddafi was feeling. Can you articulate that for us?

GARY PETERS: He wasn’t happy with the situation in Libya. He wasn’t happy with the situation in Benghazi in February when there was a massacre in Benghazi. He had nothing to do with that. The media was reporting that he ordered this and ordered that. That’s rubbish. That’s garbage. He had nothing to do with that massacre. But – he went there because he was ordered to by his father to go and talk to the people. That’s why he went there in February. But the situation in Libya, for the people, for – everything that was happening, he was very distraught about that.

EMMA ALBERICI: You talk about extracting him from Libya; what was the plan?

GARY PETERS: The plan was to get him out of Libya and his family to another destination legally, somebody that would host him, some country that would host him and do everything legally. There was like paperwork, documentation, transportation, air transportation, property acquisition and ongoing security, so to speak. That was the plan. Now he never asked for this. This was done on our own bat to be presented to him to say, “OK, boss, you know, OK, Saadi, this is what I think should happen.”

For the full (and interesting) interview including video, click HERE.

See related HERE.

Gadhafi bodyguard disputes Mexican Account of Arrest

A Canadian security contractor who served as a bodyguard for members of Libya’s deposed Gadhafi family says there was a plan to move one of the former dictator’s sons to Mexico, but it was abandoned long before a Canadian woman was arrested by Mexican authorities.

In an exclusive interview with CBC News, Gary Peters, based in Cambridge, Ont., says Cynthia Vanier consulted on a plan to move al-Saadi Gadhafi and members of his family to Mexico, but it was abandoned in June when it was deemed to be illegal.

“The idea — it was put to rest.”

Mexican authorities allege Vanier led a plot to smuggle Gadhafi family members to properties being bought in an exclusive gated community of Punta Mita near Puerto Vallarta.

For the full story click HERE.

See Related:

Partners of US Security Firm Arrested For Alleged Gaddafi Rescue Connection

Partners of US Security Firm Arrested For Alleged Gaddafi Rescue Connection

A Canadian who led a fact-finding mission to Libya last summer has been arrested in Mexico, and two partners of the U.S. private security contractor who supplied her plane are also in custody.  The Department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa confirmed the arrest of Cynthia Vanier and said consular officials at the Canadian embassy in Mexico City were gathering information from local authorities.  Also arrested were two partners of Gregory Gillispie, an ex-Marine who heads Veritas Worldwide Security, a San Diego-based company that offers, among other services, “clandestine operations,” “armed combat” and provision of weapons.

The Reason Behind Herman Cain Request for Secret Service Protection?

Herman Cain on Thursday became the first Republican presidential candidate to receive Secret Service protection.  Cain asked for the security and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and congressional leaders approved his request Thursday, Secret Service spokesman Ed Donovan confirmed.

As stated above Mr. Cain had to formally request and be approved for services this early in the campaign.   Campaign sources are stating the request came as the result of  ”threats” made against the candidate.   Spokesmen for the USSS would neither confirm or deny these statements.

While it stands to reason that having the current Republican front runner be an African American might certainly inflame hostile fringe elements,  prior to the request being approved Mr. Cain had been suffering from a series of bad press regarding his bodyguards see HERE and HERE.   This has caused  some to wonder if eliminating this negative attention and the potential errors a less-than-effective protection detail could provide played any part in the early request.

From a security perspective Herman Cain now has what many (including myself) would call the best protection team in the world watching his back and can now get back to campaigning.

Turkish Bodyguards Scuffle With UN Security

The story of scuffles between the Close Protection Team for Diplomats and the Security Detail of the Host have been a topic of recent discussion on the public message boards of the North American Bodyguard Association.  Add another example into a long list, this time occurring at the United Nations.  

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan‘s security detail got into a violent brawl on Friday with U.N. security guards outside the General Assembly hall, leaving at least two U.N. personnel injured, including one who was taken to the hospital, possibly with broken ribs, according to U.N. diplomats and officials.

The Turkish leader tried to rush to get into the U.N. chamber to take his seat.

He and his entourage, however, were stopped at an exit near the meeting room and told they could not enter the hall from that exit. The Turkish guards demanded that their prime minister be allowed to pass, and allegedly pushed the U.N. security guards. The U.N. guards pushed back, and the Turks apparently began swinging. One diplomat who was working on the floor two stories below said he could hear the fighting.

Read the full story HERE.

* UPDATED * Now includes the (shaky) video between the Turkish Protection Detail and the Uniformed UN Security Staff

Officers Suspended for Moonlighting for Celebrity

Looks like moonlighting for a celebrity came back to bite these law enforcement officers in the long run…

6 Metro Nashville Police officers were suspended for driving Taylor Swift’s security team after being denied permission to perform the outside work.

5 Officers were suspended for 10 days, with one Sargent  suspended for 12 days.

The officers sought approval for the driving job, but their request was rejected, according to the department’s internal investigation, which was completed in May.

Elrod, who recently retired from the department, said in an interview that they continued doing the job anyway, hoping supervisors wouldn’t find out.

He said they needed the $30 an hour the work provided.

Click HERE for the full story.

2011 Executive Protection Conference Wrap Up

The 2011 International Executive Protection Conference sponsored by ESI just wrapped and by all accounts it was a great success.     The good folks at Executive Security International were gracious hosts who combined industry vendors, engaging speakers, and of course valuable networking opportunities.  I plan to write more about the conference, of which I had the honor of presenting a lecture on the Perks & Pitfalls of Celebrity & VIP Protection, but right now I have to board a plane and get back to work.

Duty calls,

Elijah Shaw

Police Crack Down on Bodyguards at Canada Awards Show

The issue of regulation and licensing of Executive Protection Agents (Bodyguards) has often been an area subject to challenge, and contention within the  Protection industry.  No matter were you fall on the issue, it appears that Canada has taken a vocal stance, using the International Indian Film Awards held in Toronto to illustrate their point.

Via the Canadian Press:

Police are set to lay nearly 150 charges, alleging numerous security guards working at the International Indian Film Awards show in Toronto last month weren’t properly licensed.

Two British nationals have already been charged for allegedly providing close protection to a Bollywood star without having the credentials to do so.

And another 142 charges are pending after a police investigation into private security services during the International Indian Film Academy awards, which hosted events from June 23 to 25.

They include 24 counts of employing an unlicensed security guard, 16 counts of working as an unlicensed security guard and 96 counts of licensed agency permit uniform violation.

For the full story click HERE.

How do you feel about it, good for the industry or no?

The Updated ICON Facebook Page

Social Media.

I know some people in my industry are a bit “gun-shy” of the term (pun intended) because of privacy and confidentiality concerns.   However, I can actually remember when people thought cell phones and laptops were not going to take off because of the cost, difficultly of use, or just becuase it was different from what they were use to.   Well like it or not, it’s 2011 and Social Media is here to stay.  Nowadays Twitter, Linked-In and of course Facebook are mainstays and the phrase comes to mind “Adapt or Die”.   I feel we on the business end of the Executive Protection industry can still do our job, respect confidentiality, while at the same time make the marketplace aware of our services.

With that said, I’d like to invite everyone to visit the new interactive ICON Facebook Page.  While It’s no secret i”ve been active on the World Wide Web for many years now, I think our new Facebook page will be beneficial in integrating the networking and connectivity of Facebook with Icon’s Corporate site and Bodyguard Blog.

However, don’t just take it from me, click HERE to jump right over.   Pay particular interest to the I-C-O-N tabs along the left hand side  of the page which takes you to our Store, Training Page and Video Page.   Also please help us spread the word by clicking on the “Share” or “Like” buttons to let others in your network know.

Elijah Shaw, CEO

ICON Services Corporation

Houston Officers Disciplined for taking Photos with Celebrities

While the incident between a celebrities security and a male who happened to be a West Point Cadet has been commented on at length at several different places across the ‘net, I also want to mention another fire I saw brewing from the moment I watched the footage.  I’m speaking about the on-duty officers who stopped working long enough to take photos with the celebrity.  Unless they were clueless of the incident that occurred minutes before, I think there was a lapse in judgement, if nothing else from appearances sake.

The Houston Examiner reports :

Two Houston Police officers have been disciplined for posing in pictures with a celebrity’s bodyguards after an airport scuffle that made national headlines.

A new criminal investigation has also been launched into the encounter.

West Point cadet Richard King, 23, is suing legendary R & B singer Patti Labelle after her bodyguards pounced on him in a videotaped scuffle on March 11th.    King said his career at the United States Military Academy at West Point ended because of the ordeal.

Video that was aired on news outlets worldwide showed three of Labelle’s bodyguards confronting King in an intense physical struggle in which King claims in his lawsuit that he was beaten, shoved, and assaulted.

Shortly after medics took him away, the surveillance video of the encounter shows at least one Houston Police officer embracing Labelle and posing for photographs near a pool of blood that King had left on the ground in the spot where he was confronted.

Sgt. David Johnson has been given formal notice that he is being transferred away from the HPD Airport Division as a result of his posing for pictures in this ordeal.   One HPD source involved in the case says Sgt. Johnson had gotten into trouble for the same thing in the past. (emphasis mine, ES) That source said Sgt. Johnson had been seeking autographs and photographs with other celebrities he encountered while patrolling the airport and escorting dignitaries through the airport, which prompted supervisors to warn him against similar encounters in the future.

For the full article click HERE.

–

It’s more the mentality than anything, and I take issue when it occurs on a protective detail in which the officer are involved.  In many cases law enforcement may be used in an official (or unofficial capacity) by Executive Protection Teams, however compensation for that isn’t intended to come in the form of an autograph or a picture.  Theres a time and place for everything, and more often than not, that request comes at moments that increase rather than limit the VIP’s exposure.

As far as the rest of this story.  it’s unfortunate and one that i’m sure will be concluding in the courts.