Kidnapping in T&T Thread

[Toppa]

Interestingly enough - there was a comment by a Hispanic individual who was livid that Cordero did not receive the same coverage and accolades as Ramsey - because he did not speak English.

In the case of Hispanics, could that be a hindrance to the mainstream media coverage they receive? I think so...

[Toppa]

Cleveland's WEWS-TV Issues Apology For Report On Charles Ramsey's Criminal Record

TO OUR READERS & FOLLOWERS: We heard you. Wednesday night, we made a poor judgment call in posting a story about Charles Ramsey’s criminal record and how he’s since reformed. While the story was factually sound, the timing of it and publication of such information was not in good taste, and we regret it. Your comments prompted us to quickly remove the story from our website and Facebook page, but we know we can’t erase what we’ve already done. Ramsey is a hero for his actions, and we recognize that. Thank you so much for your feedback.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/10/cleveland-wews-apology-charles-ramsey-criminal-record_n_3252642.html?utm_hp_ref=media

[Toppa]

Charles Ramsey -- the hero who helped free Amanda Berry and 2 other women in Ohio -- tells TMZ ... he's not ashamed that media outlets have uncovered the domestic violence arrests in his past, claiming he used the incidents to grow into a better person.

After Ramsey exploded into viral superstardom thanks to his heroic actions (and follow-up interviews), several websites posted the details from 3 separate domestic violence arrests involving an ex-wife that all took place between 1997 and 2003.

We spoke to Ramsey, who told us ... "I've made amends with the people involved and we've all moved on and grown up."

Ramsey adds, "Those incidents helped me become the man I am today and are the reason why I try to help the community as much as I can ... Including those women."

"If I had so much hatred for women, I would have minded my own business this week and walked away instead of risking my life to save someone else."

For her part, Ramsey's ex-wife says Charles eventually apologized for the domestic incidents and the two are now on an "okay basis."

Read more: http://www.tmz.com/2013/05/09/charles-ramsey-domestic-violence-arrest-ohio-hero/#ixzz2SvFHYKkj
Visit the TMZ Store: http://tmzstore.com

[Flex]

Cleveland women held captive will suffer long-term damage: sources
By Kim Palmer | Reuters

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - Two of the women imprisoned in a Cleveland house in conditions described as similar to a prisoner of war camp suffered from severe malnutrition and will require long-term therapy for injuries such as hearing loss and joint and muscle damage, two sources with direct knowledge said.

The basement where the women were held had chains coming from the wall, and dog leashes attached to the ceiling, the sources said. The women were restrained with them and duct tape in "stress positions" for long periods that left them with bed sores and other injuries, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the investigation, who asked not to be identified.

Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight were in worse condition than Amanda Berry when they emerged from at least nine years in captivity at the home of Ariel Castro, accused of kidnapping and raping the women. Castro appeared to treat Berry better than the other two, the sources said.

"There is a reason why you have only seen a picture of Amanda (Berry)," said one of the sources, referring to the condition of DeJesus and Knight.

Berry, who broke down a door to freedom a week ago with the help of a neighbor, and then told police of the other women, was photographed smiling immediately after the dramatic rescue. Berry has a six-year-old daughter fathered by Castro in captivity.

In contrast, DeJesus wore a hooded sweat-shirt covering her head when she first went home last week, and Knight was hospitalized for days, and has stayed out of public view.

The sources said DeJesus and Knight were gaunt and had closely cropped hair when they were freed.
One of the sources, who has been in the house, said the basement had chains coming from the walls and "dog leashes attached to the ceiling." Knight and DeJesus told police they spent extensive time in the basement. A second source corroborated the details.

"One of the girls has difficulty moving her head around from being chained up," said one of the sources. The second source identified DeJesus as the woman suffering this injury.

"It was like they were POWs (prisoners of war). They had bed sores from being left in positions for extended lengths of time," a source said.

All the bedroom doors in the house had padlocks on the outside and the rooms were spare with only a mattress on the floor. Their movement through the house was very restricted, the women have told authorities.

"If he left for long periods of time he would sometimes duct tape-up the women over all parts of their faces, even their eyes, only leaving an opening so they could breathe. Then he would just rip it off pulling off skin and hair," one of the sources said.

A police report said Knight was starved for weeks at a time and punched in the stomach to induce several miscarriages. A county prosecutor intends to file fetal homicide charges against Castro in connection with the miscarriages.

The women, especially DeJesus and Knight, were now exhibiting signs of malnutrition as Castro used food as a means to torment them, one of the sources said.

"He would bring food to one or two of the girls and made the others watch as they or he would eat in front of them," the source said.

Knight and DeJesus would sneak food to each other, this source said.

Castro generally kept one woman upstairs and the other two - usually Knight and DeJesus - in the basement, the source said.

Despite their ordeal, a Cleveland city council member stressed that the women are reveling in their freedom.

"They are doing well, doing very well. They are thriving and enjoying their freedom," City Councilman Brian Cummins said on Monday.

The sources asked to be anonymous because they were not authorized to speak on the record. They were discussing some of the details of the captivity because they felt tight information control had left the impression that authorities ignored calls and reports about Castro's house that could have freed the women sooner.

Cleveland Police Chief Michael McGrath on Monday issued a statement defending the police department's policy of restricting information on the crimes.

"The disclosure of sensitive information and details of these horrendous crimes only further victimize three young women. The criticism of law enforcement efforts is disheartening. The dissemination of misinformation erodes the critical relationship between law enforcement and community," McGrath said.
Little is known about the relationship among the three women. Knight, who is now 32, Berry, 27 and DeJesus, 23, have not spoken publicly.

Psychologists say the women, who did not know each other before they were abducted, likely formed a bond that may have been strengthened by the young girl born during their captivity.

Knight delivered Berry's daughter in a plastic children's swimming pool and gave the baby mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, the police report said.

"The closest parallel would be prisoners of war," Sherry Hamby, a psychology professor at the University of South, Sewanee, said of the girl's possible relationship.

Berry and DeJesus, along with Berry's daughter, have since been reunited with their families. Knight, who is estranged from some of her family members, according to her grandmother, has gone into seclusion.
Terri Weaver, a professor of psychology at the St. Louis University, said although it remains unclear how regularly they interacted, the girls were likely helped by each other's presence.

"Having someone who has been a witness to those intimate details can really forge a powerful bond because there is a shared understanding," she said.

It is unclear how the women's relationship may develop as they put their lives back together.

Psychologists said that as people who have suffered traumatic experiences rebuild their lives, the bond is frequently maintained.

Other times, victims feel the best way to move forward is to put the whole period and those involved behind them.

(Reporting by Kim Palmer; Additional reporting by Kevin Gray; Editing by Greg McCune, Dan Trotta, Paul Thomasch and Bernard Orr)

[Flex]

Castro’s new legal team says he’ll plead not guilty
By Dylan Stableford, Yahoo! News | The Lookout

Lawyers for Ariel Castro say he'll plead not guilty to charges of kidnapping and raping three women while holding them captive for a decade in his west Cleveland home.

"The initial portrayal by the media has been one of a 'monster' and that's not the impression that I got when I talked to him for three hours," Craig Weintraub, one of Castro's lawyers, told Cleveland's WKYC-TV late Tuesday.

The 52-year-old is being held on an $8 million bond in Cuyahoga County Jail and is under a suicide watch.

"He doesn't have a television, doesn't have radio, doesn't have magazines, no access to newspapers," Jaye Schlachet, another Castro lawyer, said. "He's completely isolated from society."

Castro is suspected of kidnapping Michelle Knight in 2002, Amanda Berry in 2003 and Gina DeJesus in 2004, and then holding them captive in his west Cleveland home. DNA tests confirm he fathered a daughter with Berry in 2006.

"I can tell you that Mr. Castro is extremely committed to the well-being and positive future for his daughter, who he loves dearly," Schlachet said. "And if people find that to be a disconnect from what he's alleged to have done, then the people will just have to deal with it. We just know how he feels about his little girl."

Castro's attorneys say that how he came into contact with the women will be revealed "as the case progresses." And they say they may seek a change of venue to get a fair trial.

"I know the media wants to jump to conclusions, and all the people in the community want to say terrible things about the person who's accused," Schlachet added. "We are not even at the beginning of the process. If this was a marathon race, we're not even at the starting line yet."

Castro brothers break silence on Cleveland case

Ariel Castro's brothers say they were as shocked as everyone else to learn of his alleged crimes, and they have no sympathy for the man they now call a monster.

Pedro Castro and Onil Castro gave CNN an exclusive interview about their 52-year-old brother, who is accused of kidnapping three women—Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus—holding them captive in his west Cleveland home and raping them repeatedly over a decade. Berry's 6-year-old daughter, who police say was fathered by Ariel Castro, was also rescued from the home.
The women had several miscarriages during their captivity, police said.

"I don't know how my brother got away with it for so many years," Pedro Castro, 54, told CNN's Martin Savidge. "If I knew, I would have reported it—brother or no brother.”

Pedro said he didn't go to Ariel's house very much, "but when I did, he would let me in not past the kitchen." He found it a little unusual, but said he accepted it because Ariel was "a strange dude."

Inside the house, Pedro said, "the radio was playing all of the time. If not the radio, the TV. Something had to be on at all time in the kitchen. So I couldn't hear nothing else but the radio or the TV."

All three brothers were arrested last week. Pedro and Onil were cleared by investigators and released.

The two, who did not live with Ariel, were arrested because they were with him, police said. "It was an investigative stop," Deputy Police Chief Ed Tomba said at a press conference Thursday. "You can only imagine the chaos. We had enough probable cause to bring them into custody."

Ariel was charged Thursday with four counts of kidnapping and three counts of rape. He's being held on an $8 million bond.
“I hope he rots in that jail," Onil said.

The brothers both described Ariel as a loner.

"He always stayed to himself with his music," Onil Castro, 50, said. "And like I said, there would be times when we wouldn't see him for a month, two weeks. Mama used to say 'Check your brother, check on your brother. He lives alone in that house. He's a loner. You don't know if he's OK or what's going on.' So I would text him and he would text me back. 'What are you doing?' 'I'm fine.'"

Onil was a passenger in Ariel Castro's car when police pulled them over Monday. "I said, 'What did you do, run a stop sign or a red light or something?'" Onil said. "[Ariel] says, 'No, no. I don't know.'"

The men were held in separate cells in a Cleveland jail. Onil said he saw Ariel once when his brother was allowed to use a restroom. "When he walked past me, he goes, 'Onil, you're never going to see me again. I love you bro.' And that was it," Onil said. "And he put his fist up for a bump."

Pedro and Onil said they didn't know what they were being held for until questioned by investigators. Onil described his interrogation:
He says "Have you ever seen this girl?" and I said, "No, I've never seen that girl." And then he showed me the other one. "Have you ever seen this girl?" and I said, "No, I've never seen that girl." And he says, "That's Gina DeJesus and Amanda Berry," and my heart fell. I just dropped, not physically, but I just, I just hit the ground. I told him, "They don't look like the girls who have been pinned up and posted up," and he said, "Yeah, that's how malnourished they are."

Onil added: "This has torn my heart apart. This has killed me. I am a walking corpse right now."

Despite their release, the pair have gone into hiding because they say they have received death threats.

"I don't want to be hunted down like a dog for a crime that I did not commit," Pedro Castro said. "I don't want to be locked up in my house because somebody out there is going to do harm to me. I want to be free like I was."

He added: "You already got your monster. Please give us our freedom. I want the world to know this."

[Toppa]

"He doesn't have a television, doesn't have radio, doesn't have magazines, no access to newspapers," Jaye Schlachet, another Castro lawyer, said. "He's completely isolated from society."

Boo hoo hoo

[Flex]

Free Burgers For Life: Cleveland Kidnapping Hero Charles Ramsey Gets His Own “Chuck Card”
By Josh Wolford

You remember Charles Ramsey, right? He’s the normal guy turned hero after he helped rescue Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight, all of whom were being held prisoner on Cleveland, Ohio’s West Side. Out of that nightmare of a story, Ramsey was one bright spot – a genuine, unassuming, utterly hilarious hero with a love for McDonald’s.

Now, it looks like some local Cleveland establishments are looking to say thanks to Ramsey – in a great, big, juicy way.

According to The Cleveland Plain Dealer, about a dozen restaurants have partnered to give Ramsey free burgers for life. This includes AMP 150 at the Marriott Cleveland Airport; Washington Place Bistro and Inn in Little Italy; Fahrenheit restaurant in Tremont; Market Garden Brewery, Bier Markt, Bar Cento and Nano Brew in Ohio City; Welshfield Inn in Troy Township; Hodges and Pura Vida in downtown Cleveland; 87 West at Crocker Park in Westlake; Orchard House restaurant in Brunswick; Flour restaurant in Moreland Hills, and the Allegheny Grille in Foxburg, Pennsylvania.

“We want to honor our local hero with local food,” said Scott Kuhn, who runs a few of the eateries involved in the gift. “He stopped his meal midway through to help those women. We’re now making sure he has other opportunities to go out and fully enjoy his burger.”

Ramsey will be gifted with the only “Chuck Card,” which will entitled him to at least a free burger in all participating restaurants.

He sure wasn’t shy about his love of burgers. Remember this classic line?

“I’m eating my McDonald’s; I come outside; I see this girl going nuts,” he said, “…I knew something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man’s arms. Something is wrong here. Dead giveaway!”

Oh Charles. We hope you enjoy your burgers. We really do.

VIDEO -  Neighbor Charles Ramsey : 'I Got Amanda Berry, Send the Police Out'

[D.H.W]

Wow cool

[just cool]

What's all this talk on the internet about a spanish dude name caderro was the one who really rescued the girls and ramsey took the credit for it, has anyone heard of such??

[giggsy11]

That Chuck card come with an insurance card too? Will the local cardiologists chip in with free bipass' too?

[Flex]

Defense hints at plea in Ohio kidnapping-rape case
By THOMAS J. SHEERAN | Associated Press

CLEVELAND (AP) — A man accused of holding three women captive in his home for about a decade pleaded not guilty Wednesday, and the defense hinted that it would like to avoid trial with a plea agreement if the death penalty was ruled out.

Attorney Craig Weintraub addressed the death penalty issue after his client, 52-year-old Ariel Castro, pleaded not guilty to hundreds of charges including rape and kidnapping.

Castro, dressed in an orange jail outfit with his hands and ankles shackled and a full dark beard grown in jail, kept his chin tucked on his chest through the brief court appearance. He didn't speak or glance at his two attorneys standing by his side.

Weintraub said the defense was working to avoid an "unnecessary trial" involving the death penalty.

Current charges Castro faces involving an alleged forced miscarriage don't include death penalty specifications, but the prosecutor says that's under review.

"Mr. Castro currently faces hundreds of years in prison with the current charges," Weintraub said after the arraignment. "It is our hope that we can continue to work toward a resolution to avoid having an unnecessary trial about aggravated murder and the death penalty."

Joe Frolik, spokesman for Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty, said the defense remarks were under review.

The 329-count indictment returned Friday covered only the period from August 2002, when the first of the women disappeared, to February 2007. More charges could be filed.

A statement issued on behalf of the women said days like the arraignment "are not easy" and added: "We are hopeful for a just and prompt resolution. We have great faith in the prosecutor's office and the court."

The grand jury charged Castro with two counts of aggravated murder related to one act, saying he purposely caused the unlawful termination of one of the women's pregnancies. He also was indicted on 139 counts of rape, 177 counts of kidnapping, seven counts of gross sexual imposition, three counts of felonious assault and one count of possession of criminal tools.

News that the women had been found alive electrified the Cleveland area, where two of the victims were household names after years of searches, publicity and vigils. But elation soon turned to shock as allegations about their treatment began to emerge.

The indictment alleges Castro repeatedly restrained the women, sometimes chaining them to a pole in a basement, to a bedroom heater or inside a van. It says one of the women tried to escape and he assaulted her with a vacuum cord around her neck.

Later, he moved them to upstairs rooms where they were kept as virtual prisoners, according to investigators.

All the while, Castro continued driving a school bus and playing bass in local bands, with fellow musicians saying they never suspected a thing. He was fired as a bus driver last fall after leaving his bus unattended for several hours.

Castro has been held on $8 million bail. Last week he was taken off suicide prevention watch in jail. Cuyahoga County jail logs show him spending most of his time sleeping, lying on his bunk, watching TV and occasionally drawing.

Castro was arrested May 6, shortly after one of the women broke through a door and yelled to neighbors for help.

She told a police dispatcher in a dramatic 911 call: "Help me. I'm Amanda Berry. I've been kidnapped, and I've been missing for 10 years, and I'm, I'm here, I'm free now."

The women — Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight — disappeared separately between 2002 and 2004, when they were 14, 16 and 20 years old. Each said they had accepted a ride from Castro, who remained friends with DeJesus' family and even attended vigils over the years marking her disappearance.

The women haven't spoken publicly since their rescue.

Berry, 27, told officers that she was forced to give birth in a plastic pool in the house so it would be easier to clean up. Berry said she, her baby and the two other women rescued with her had never been to a doctor during their captivity.

Knight, 32, said her five pregnancies ended after Castro starved her for at least two weeks and "repeatedly punched her in the stomach until she miscarried," authorities said.

She also said Castro forced her to deliver Berry's baby under threat of death if the baby died. She said that when the newborn stopped breathing, she revived her through mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

The picture of Castro as a friendly musician began to erode soon after the women were freed, as family members told of a man who terrorized his common-law wife, beating her and locking her in an apartment and the same house where the women were later kept.

Castro's two brothers were arrested the same day but were released at a hearing a few days later after it was determined they weren't aware of the activities their brother is accused of. They denounced him in later interviews.

The Associated Press does not usually identify people who may be victims of sexual assault, but the names of the three women were widely circulated by their families, friends and law enforcement authorities for years during their disappearances and after they were found.

[Toppa]

Ariel Castro agrees to plead guilty over Cleveland abductions
Castro – charged with 997 counts including kidnap and rape – agrees deal with prosecuctors that will spare him death penalty

A Cleveland man accused of abducting three woman and holding them captive at his home for a decade has agreed to plead guilty, in a move that will spare him from a death sentence.

Ariel Castro – charged with 977 counts over the kidnap, rape and brutal treatment of Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight – has agreed a deal with prosecutors under which he will serve life without parole, plus 1,000 years.

Asked in court Friday if he understood that he would spend the rest of his days behind bars, the 53-year-old replied: "I do understand that, your honour". He added: "I knew I was pretty much going to get the book thrown at me."

Castro had been due to stand trial over an indictment sheet that included two counts of aggravated murder over allegations that he punched and starved one of his captives until she miscarried.

The three victims – all of whom disappeared between 2002 and 2004 – escaped on 6 May, when one of them kicked out part of a door whilst being aided by a neighbour alerted to her screams for help.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/26/ariel-castro-pleads-guilty-cleveland-abductions

[pecan]

Cleveland Kidnapper Ariel Castro Dead

Convicted 52-year-old found hanging in his cell; a review of the incident is under way
By Per Liljas Sept. 04, 2013
Follow @TIME

Notorious kidnapper Ariel Castro was found hanging in his cell at the Correctional Reception Center in Orient, Ohio, on Tuesday.

He had been sentenced to life plus 1,000 years for keeping Amanda Berry, Michelle Knight and Gina DeJesus locked up inside his basement in Cleveland for over a decade while sexually assaulting them.

Read more: http://nation.time.com/2013/09/04/cleveland-kidnapper-ariel-castro-dead/#ixzz2dxNaIti9

[ribbit]

Yuh hear castro lawyer? Like he get paid for every death threat.

[Bitter]

4 charged with severing pot clinic owner's privates
Four have been charged with kidnapping, torture, burglary and inflicting bodily injury.

AP 3:59 a.m. EST November 9, 2013
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/11/08/marijuana-dispensary-penis/3480751/


NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Four people were charged with kidnapping a California marijuana dispensary owner, torturing him with a blowtorch and cutting off his penis during a robbery because they thought he was burying piles of cash in the desert, authorities said Friday.

Ryan Anthony Kevorkian, 34, and Naomi Josette Kevorkian, 33, were arrested Friday in Fresno, a day after the FBI arrested 34-year-old Hossein Nayeri in Prague in the Czech Republic, Orange County authorities said in a statement.

Nayeri was expected to face extradition proceedings.

Another man, Kyle Shirakawa Handley, 34, was arrested in October of last year.

The four have been charged with kidnapping for ransom, aggravated mayhem, torture, burglary and a sentencing enhancement for inflicting great bodily injury. They were being held without bail and could face up to life in prison without possibility of parole if convicted, prosecutors said.

It was not immediately known whether the Kevorkians and Nayeri had obtained lawyers.

Handley pleaded not guilty to the charges last month.

"It is my hope that by bringing to justice these three additional people it will become clear that Mr. Handley was not involved in this demonic criminal enterprise," Robert K. Weinberg, Handley's attorney, said Friday.

Prosecutors said the victim was a prosperous medical marijuana dispensary owner who took some of his pot suppliers — including Handley — to Las Vegas last year for an extravagant weekend.

After the trip, Handley told some friends that the dispensary owner was extremely wealthy and they came up with a plan to kidnap and rob him, according to a statement from the county district attorney's office and Newport Beach police.

Four weeks before the kidnapping, the would-be robbers began shadowing the dispensary owner, following him on frequent trips he made to the desert outside of Palm Springs.

He went out to discuss a possible investment deal, but the four wrongly believed he was driving there "to bury large amounts of cash," according to the statement.

On Oct. 2, 2012, Handley, Nayeri and Ryan Kevorkian went to the man's Newport Beach home, stole cash, bound and beat him and kidnapped him along with his roommate's girlfriend, then drove them out to a desert spot in a van, authorities contend.

Throughout the drive, they allegedly burned the dispensary owner with a blowtorch.

At the spot where the men believed the victim had hidden his money, they cut off his penis, poured bleach on him in an effort to destroy any DNA evidence and dumped him and the woman on the side of the road, authorities alleged.

The three men then drove away with the penis so that it couldn't be reattached, authorities claimed.
"The woman ran over a mile to a main road in the dark, while still bound with zip ties, and flagged down a police car," according to the statement.

The man survived his injuries.

After the crime, Nayeri fled to Iran, where he remained for several months, prosecutors said. He was arrested in Prague while changing flights from Iran to Spain to visit family, authorities said.

[Flex]

Sister pleads: Keep Carolyn in your prayers.
By Carolyn Kissoon (Express).

Missing San Fernando businesswoman Carolyn Katwaroo worked hard to build a life for herself.

Katwaroo operated a wholesale business on her own, importing vegetables. And she ensured her relatives were always happy and comfortable.

That was how Katwaroo’s younger sister, Karen Katwaroo, remembered her yesterday as she pleaded with citizens to keep the missing woman in their prayers.

She said, “Don’t give up on her. Please keep looking for her. If anyone saw anything at all, anything strange, please inform the police. Keep reposting my sister’s picture, so if anyone sees her they can call the police. Please don’t forget my sister.”

Katwaroo was last seen leaving her Block 5, Cedar Drive, Palmiste, home around 8 p.m. last Friday. Her white Mercedes Benz was found the next day abandoned at Union Hall, San Fernando.

Katwaroo, 43, attended ASJA Girls’ College, San Fernando, and then moved to Barrackpore Secondary School, where she pursued A-Level studies.

She then studied business management at San Fernando Technical Institute and began a career in banking.

That was, however, short-lived, as Katwaroo soon got married and migrated to Philadelphia, USA.

“Then she came back to Trinidad and worked hard to build a life for herself. She worked hard to accomplish everything she has, and it is unfortunate that this has happened now,” her sister said.

Katwaroo was described as a generous, fun-loving person. Her favourite pastime was spending time with her dog.

No ransom demand

Relatives said they were ­uncertain where Katwaroo was headed on ­Friday night. Her boyfriend called her cellphone around 11 p.m., but there was no answer.

The following morning, a ­neighbour spotted Katwaroo’s vehicle parked on the roadside, the Express was told.

A report was filed at the San Fernando Police Station and the Anti-Kidnapping Squad was contacted. Investigators said there was no ransom demand.

Anyone with information can contact the San Fernando Police Station at 652-2564, or the Anti-Kidnapping Squad at 679-3165.

[grimm01]

New government in office bout a week and kidnappings start back after a 4-5 year absence? Pretty suspicious to me

[R45]

New government in office bout a week and kidnappings start back after a 4-5 year absence? Pretty suspicious to me

There have been kidnappings for the last 5 years as well, an average of 3-4 per year. I don't think it's time to pull out the tinfoil hat just yet.

[Socapro]

New government in office bout a week and kidnappings start back after a 4-5 year absence? Pretty suspicious to me

There have been kidnappings for the last 5 years as well, an average of 3-4 per year. I don't think it's time to pull out the tinfoil hat just yet.

What we will see happening now that a PNM government is in power is that the true murder and kidnapping figures will start being released to the public.

During the past 5 years there has been an on-going a PR exercise of not reporting the real muder and kidnapping figures so as to make the government in Power appear like they were doing a good job in that area.

Once we close our borders to guns, drugs and human trafficing then the figures will finaly turn around and start to decrease but it will takes some time before things turn around.

[R45]

What we will see happening now that a PNM government is in power is that the true murder and kidnapping figures will start being released to the public.

During the past 5 years there has been an on-going a PR exercise of not reporting the real muder and kidnapping figures so as to make the government in Power appear like they were doing a good job in that area.

Pardner, are you suffering from memory loss? Police fully releasing statistics has been an issue for decades, not the last 5 years. Martin Joseph was accused of instructing the police not to release murder statistics, and that was a big issue during the last PNM government. Manning/Joseph were accused big time of manipulating/hiding statistics to minimize crime, especially around the CHOGM/Summit of the Americas. It continued and the UNC/PP did it as well.

Look I hope this new administration is more transparent, but this obscuring statistics wasn't restricted to the UNC/PP. The real solution is to make the police more independent of the government of the day, and also enhance the statistics office/media relations of the Police. In an ideal world, no Minister of National Security should ever be able to influence what statistics do/don't get released.

Once we close our borders to guns, drugs and human trafficing then the figures will finaly turn around and start to decrease but it will takes some time before things turn around.

I'd love to see that as well, and I'm hopeful for it.

[lefty]

What we will see happening now that a PNM government is in power is that the true murder and kidnapping figures will start being released to the public.

During the past 5 years there has been an on-going a PR exercise of not reporting the real muder and kidnapping figures so as to make the government in Power appear like they were doing a good job in that area.

Pardner, are you suffering from memory loss? Police fully releasing statistics has been an issue for decades, not the last 5 years. Martin Joseph was accused of instructing the police not to release murder statistics, and that was a big issue during the last PNM government. Manning/Joseph were accused big time of manipulating/hiding statistics to minimize crime, especially around the CHOGM/Summit of the Americas. It continued and the UNC/PP did it as well.

Look I hope this new administration is more transparent, but this obscuring statistics wasn't restricted to the UNC/PP. The real solution is to make the police more independent of the government of the day, and also enhance the statistics office/media relations of the Police. In an ideal world, no Minister of National Security should ever be able to influence what statistics do/don't get released.

Once we close our borders to guns, drugs and human trafficing then the figures will finaly turn around and start to decrease but it will takes some time before things turn around.

I'd love to see that as well, and I'm hopeful for it.

don't know how our Constitution dealt with police power specifically as it relates to our leaders, but it sure seems like it have nutten in place to prosecute high office holders without fear of victimization.....look both a minister and senior police officer break aviation laws and nothing seems to be happening in both instances...........one even get a certain CRIME PREVENTION tv personality to come to his defense even threatening d complainant openly.

[R45]

don't know how our Constitution dealt with police power specifically as it relates to our leaders, but it sure seems like it have nutten in place to prosecute high office holders without fear of victimization.....look both a minister and senior police officer break aviation laws and nothing seems to be happening in both instances...........one even get a certain CRIME PREVENTION tv personality to come to his defense even threatening d complainant openly.

There's the Police Complaints Authority Act (and the Police Complaints Authority that enforces the act), but unfortunately since it's inception in 2006 it is a bit toothless (has limited powers), continues to be interfered with politically, and has been largely ineffective in providing oversight of the police service.

[lefty]

don't know how our Constitution dealt with police power specifically as it relates to our leaders, but it sure seems like it have nutten in place to prosecute high office holders without fear of victimization.....look both a minister and senior police officer break aviation laws and nothing seems to be happening in both instances...........one even get a certain CRIME PREVENTION tv personality to come to his defense even threatening d complainant openly.

There's the Police Complaints Authority Act (and the Police Complaints Authority that enforces the act), but unfortunately since it's inception in 2006 it is a bit toothless (has limited powers), continues to be interfered with politically, and has been largely ineffective in providing oversight of the police service.

Not speaking of police specifically but ministers and prime ministers, speaks volumes that in d states and other developed nations that even sitting Presidents and prime ministers can be charged with crimes, here ah friend of ah minister friend could could intimidate ah police officer and get him to back off, we laws need to start addressing  class equality in very serious or organized crime will always florish in T&T.

[pull stones]

New government in office bout a week and kidnappings start back after a 4-5 year absence? Pretty suspicious to me

that is ridiculous. i remember being in trinidad for christmas 2009 and the kidnappings had subsided under the AKS and sautt, that was only a few months before the election 2010. and who knows i this is a kidnapping or a simple murder like the so many people who has been gone missing since may 24 2010. there is no contact from the woman or anyone else who maybe hold her for ransom. for all we know this chick is probably deceased. and pnm hasn't been in office a good week and we are already getting anti pnm rhetoric. what nonsense.

[MEP]

Why is this considered a kidnapping when no ransom has been demanded?

[Brownsugar]

New government in office bout a week and kidnappings start back after a 4-5 year absence? Pretty suspicious to me

Actually, there has been an upsurge in this kind of activity since around late last year into early this year.  What I've found very disconcerting is that people seem to be vanishing into thin air as opposed to a ransom being demanded and relatives being returned (in some cases).

Kirby Mohammed, the lady from COSTAAT and the businesswoman from last weekend comes to mind offhand.....I find that turn of events scary.....well more scary than the previous scourge, if I can even classify either in terms of less or more scary but yuh get mih point.....

[Sando prince]

[Flex]

PM makes plea for information to help find Andrea
By Mark Bassant (T&T Guardian).

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley yesterday pleaded with citizens to come forward with information on the kidnapping of Andrea Bharatt, 23, as he addressed a news conference in Port-of-Spain. 

“When these things happen there are people among us in the population who know what happened. And all I could say is that to whoever is listening - if you know something about this young lady and what is happening to her, just remember that the upholder is worse than the thief,” he said.

Bharatt, a clerk attached to the Arima Magistrate’s Court was kidnapped after entering a what appeared to be a taxi - a white Nissan Versa. Since then four suspects were detained for questioning in her disappearance.

“If you know something, you can safely say something to the authorities to assist us in recovering her. In these crimes and similar crimes and crimes in general, there’s usually- almost always- somebody who knows something that is useful to the investigation and search. Please if you are that person, come forward or get the information to law enforcement or somebody who would get it to law enforcement to the search can be focused and have a better chance at being successful,” Dr Rowley said.

The prime minister said he refuses to believe, from what he has seen, that there are people who do not know what has happened.

Another day without success

Meanwhile, for a third straight day, police officers and hunters scoured miles of forest around the Fishing Pond area in Sangre Grande in the hope of finding additional clues.

While police confirmed to Guardian Media they had uncovered a potential clue on Tuesday, they were hoping yesterday to build on this and extended their search to other forested areas from where they had begun on Monday in Nonpariel Road in Fishing Pond Sangre Grande.

On Wednesday they extended this search further north with the assistance of hunters near the Gordon Farm settlement area and later at Phanchoo Road in Fishing Pond.

Several hunters combed the Gordon Farm area for more than four hours but found nothing. Ren Gopiesingh, one of the hunters, said they made thorough checks throughout that area but did not find anything that could assist the police in their investigation.

“We just want the public to say anything that can help the police Think about what her father and family is going through,” he said.

Close to two pm, a convoy of police vehicles left the Sangre Grande Police Station and made their way deep into the Fishing Pond area into Phanchoo Road.

The road which is approximately two miles, comes to a dead-end and is heavily forested. Close to 50 officers entered the forested area and spent several hours hoping to find any further clues that could assist them in locating Bharatt.

A senior police source told Guardian Media, “We got some intelligence and we had to search this area. During their search, they found a weed field that was destroyed but nothing was found. People are saying things on social media that’s not true,” he said.

Police Commissioner Gary Griffith issued a statement yesterday calling on people to desist from spreading false information connected to Bharatt’s case.

Claims being made on social media were that Bharatt had died and some people had been calling the family offering condolences.

The senior source said they had not obtained any other definitive clues up to late yesterday evening, but were hoping to resume their search today.

Reward reaches $500,000

The rewards offered for information leading to the safe return of Bharatt reached $500,000, due mostly to a big pledge by Crime Show host Ian Alleyne.

Alleyne yesterday offered to pay a reward of $400,000 to anyone with information that could lead to finding her.

He made the announcement on his weekday Crime Watch show yesterday, asking anyone with information to contact him.

Meanwhile, Colin Bissoondath, president of Full Throttle Hunting Club who has been assisting the police in their search, has pledged $25,000.

“It’s time to find Andrea. Crime Stoppers have put out a reward of $50,000 and Mode Alive $25,000 and now I am pledging a reward of $25,000. So that makes $100,000. We need to find her. I am taking it personally and I have not eaten or slept since then. If someone knows something, make a phone call. I am pleading with the public,” said Bissoondath.

Attorney: Suspects released

Meanwhile attorney Fareed Ali, who is representing two suspects, ages 20 and 26, claimed last night they were released by police.

The suspects, who both have the same first name and live in different areas of Arima, were released shortly after 6 pm yesterday evening.

According to Ali, one man is unemployed while the other is a PH taxi driver.

“The TTPS in examining the phone records of one of the male suspects were able to locate a female correspondent who was possession of an item that allegedly belonged to the missing Andrea Bharatt,” Ali said.

Ali, who is also representing the woman, also said that another man was arrested allegedly through her direction. She remains in police custody.

Police, however, maintained that all suspects remain in custody.

[Flex]

Beaten suspect in Bharatt kidnapping dies
JENSEN LA VENDE (T&T NEWSDAY).

THE suspect in the Andrea Bharatt abduction who was allegedly beaten by police on Tuesday has died.

Police said Andrew Morris, who was held at his Arima home, died between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. He was the father of one.

Police sources say Morris, who was arrested by officers of the Special Operation Response Team (SORT), was beaten in front of his family when he was held around 3 am, and again while in police custody.

Police sources said part of the beating allegedly took place at the Malabar Police Station.

Another man, police said, gave them information about Bharatt's bank card, which Morris is said to have used to withdraw cash.

Bharatt, 22, a clerk at the Arima Magistres' Court, went missing after getting into a car she believed to be a taxi last Friday afternoon at King Street, Arima. A co-worker who travelled with her was dropped off safely, but Bharatt never arrived home.

Police and members of the Defence Force have been searching the forested area in Sangre Grande, joined by hunters and hikers.

A total of $75,000 in rewards has been offered for information that will help find Bharatt.


STILL MISSING: Andrea Bharatt. -

[Flex]

Woman arrested in Andrea's kidnapping
T&T Express Reports.

Two suspects in the Andrea Bharatt kidnapping were released from custody without charges on Wednesday.

This according to defence attorney Fareed Ali, who said that a woman was among the three still in custody.

In a statement, Ali said that two men, ages 20 and 26, who were arrested on Sunday by a team of Special Operations Response Team (SORT) officers and detained at the Arima Police Station were released from police custody on Wednesday.

The two are from the Arima district. One is unemployed and the other a PH taxi driver, said Ali.

He said police, in examining the phone records of one of the male suspects, located a woman who was possession of an item that allegedly belonged to Bharatt.

The woman was arrested on Sunday and remains in custody.

The questioning of the woman led to the arrest of a man, said Ali.

Of the six persons held, one died on Monday, but the death of this suspect, Andrew Morris, only became known in a police press release on Wednesday evening.

Another is in hospital, purported being treated for injuries while attempting to escape the police.

Ali said he is also representing the woman.

Wednesday made it six days since anyone has seen Bharatt, a clerk at the Arima Magistrates’ Court.

An extensive search has been carried out in the forests around Sangre Grande involving police officers, soldiers and volunteers. Nothing has been found.

Last Friday, Bharatt got into a taxi at King Street, Arima, with a co-worker.

The taxi, a Nissan Versa, carried false "H" plates.

Bharatt and her friend were in the back seat. There was a man in the front passenger seat.

The friend dropped off shortly after at Cleaver Heights, Arima.

Bharatt never made it to her home at 110 Arima Old Road, Arima, where she lived with her father Randolph.

He called his daughter’s phone but a man answered saying she was not available.

The father pleaded to hear his child’s voice but the man responded, “This is about money. If you don’t pay the ransom I will cut off your daughter’s ears and send it to you.”

An investigation led to the arrests of suspects.

One of the men has been charged with 70 offences including rape, kidnapping and false imprisonment.

More than 40 of those charges are pending but he was out on bail.