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TAMPA - TAMPA - Robert Cash Jr. said he felt like somebody was targeting his Palma Ceia home. About two weeks ago, he found a claw hammer covered with a rag in a backyard flower bed. Last week, he saw the gate to his wooden privacy fence in the 4100 block of West San Luis Street had been opened. He secured it with a new lock. "It was obvious something was about to happen," recalled Cash, 40. "You don't know what to think." About 2:50 a.m. Saturday, everything gelled. Tampa police said Cash surprised a man who had tunneled under...

Illinois businessman fights extradition to Poland By Jeff Coen Chicago Tribune (MCT) CHICAGO - A lawyer for Glenview, Ill., businessman Edward Mazur pleaded with a federal judge Wednesday not to extradite his client to Poland to face trial for allegedly soliciting the high-profile murder of one of that country's top law enforcement officers. In a daylong hearing at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse, lawyer Chris Gair argued Mazur would be unfairly tried in the same legal system that concocted a case against him. "I do not exaggerate when I say you are the only thing standing between my client and the...

Businessman accused of offering cash for Polish official's murder was U.S. campaign donor By MIKE ROBINSON, The Associated Press Jan 7, 2007 1:00 PM CHICAGO - A businessman charged with offering $40,000 for the murder of a top Polish police official has been a steady contributor to U.S. candidates and political committees, campaign finance records show. Millionaire Edward A. Mazur, who holds dual U.S. and Polish citizenship, has donated to candidates as varied as President Bush and Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich over the past six years. He was arrested in October at his suburban Chicago home on Polish charges that...

U.S. suspect in Poland murder to fight extradition By Andrew Stern Wed Oct 25, 7:54 PM ET CHICAGO (Reuters) - A Polish-born Chicago businessman accused by Polish authorities of soliciting the murder of the nation's police chief in 1998 will fight extradition, his lawyer said on Wednesday. Edward Mazur, 60, was arrested last week and held on charges he offered $40,000 for the murder of Marek Papala, former chief of the Polish National Police. The charges were brought more than a year ago in Poland. Papala was shot once in the head and killed as he was getting out of...

FBI detains suspect in murder of Poland's ex-police chief Oct 20, 2006, 16:35 GMT Warsaw - The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has detained a Polish-American businessman suspected of contracting the killing of Poland's ex-national police commander General Marek Papala in 1998, Poland's justice minister said Friday. Polish Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro confirmed Poland's request to the US to extradite Mazur for trial. The procedure was under way Friday, but it remained unclear when the US would actually hand-over the suspect. 'We understand this is a long procedure...but we believe this is the beginning of the road to putting...

Just days after a British climber was left to die near Mount Everest's summit, an American guide abandoned his second bid to stand on top of the world so he could rescue a mountaineer mistakenly given up for dead. Not only did Daniel Mazur not scale the world's highest peak from the northern side, he also failed to get his two paying clients to the top. "It was very disappointing for me to miss my chance at the summit, but even more that I could not get my job done," Mazur, of Olympia, Wash., told The Associated Press upon returning...