Author Archives: Justin
Photos Of The Day: A Bordello Of Dust
Guinea “Narcostate” Revealed
When the planes arrived loaded with cocaine, it was Guinea’s presidential guard that secured the cargo. Drug deals were conducted inside the first lady’s private residence and in the president’s VIP salon at the international airport. To avoid detection, cocaine was sent to Europe in the country’s diplomatic pouch. As the people of Guinea sit … Continue reading
Luis Arce-Gómez (The End)
In his pomp he was known as the “minister for cocaine”, a corrupt and ruthless military despot who collaborated with drug cartels and terrorised Bolivia. Luis Arce-Gómez, interior minister in the Andean nation’s 1980-81 dictatorship, made an infamous warning to foes to “walk around with their wills under their arms”. But when the former burly … Continue reading
Photo of The Day: Mount Whitney
North Korea and Office 39
Office 39, North Korea’s billion-dollar crime syndicate, pays for Kim Jong Il’s missiles and cognac. By David Rose for TheVelvetRocket.com Appropriately enough, I met Chen Chiang Liu on Las Vegas Boulevard. But it wasn’t at one of the casinos on the Strip that he loved so well; it was in a different kind of building … Continue reading
Visiting Pripyat
Founded in 1970, Pripyat was a model Soviet city built for the Chernobyl power plant workers and their families. It contained all the conveniences that a modern Soviet family could desire: high-rise apartment buildings, schools, a cultural center, hospital, swimming pools, theaters, stores, restaurants, cafes, playgrounds, and a stadium. This picture of Pripyat was taken … Continue reading
The Velvet Rocket 