Boy gives kidnappers $20 for food

TEENAGED kidnapped victim Geewan Geelal lent his kidnappers $20 after they ran out of money to buy food, the victim said in an interview yesterday, hours after he was released in the Arima area by his captors. Geelal, 13, of El Socorro, San Juan, told Sunday Newsday that he told his kidnappers that whenever they got back the money, they could repay him.

The youngster, student of Trinity East College, was snatched at gunpoint Wednesday morning while being driven to school on the Aranjuez Main Road. One day after he was snatched, the kidnappers called his relatives and demanded a $3 million ransom for his safe return.  Just over $200,000 was paid and young Geelal, son of businessman, Premnath Geelal, was reunited with his family around 4.10 am yesterday after he was dropped off at Jacob Hill and found by taxi driver Ruthven Romero. Recounting the three-day ordeal, Geewan said when he was first kidnapped, he wondered if it was a real kidnapping or an act of terrorism. “I went into shock,” he said.

He said they taped his hands and mouth with duct tape and drove around for awhile, after which the kidnappers brought their vehicle to a halt and switched cars. “They took off the tape from my hands and tied my hands to the back. They then taped my eyes,” he added. After, Geewan continued, the kidnappers drove around with him on roads, some he described as rough, others smooth. When they finally got to their destination, Geewan said he realised he was being kept in a forested area. “They gave me a pack of biscuits and water and KFC,” he said. 

It was then, he said, the kidnappers ran out of money.  “I offered them $20, and I told them when they get it back, they could pay me back,” Geewan explained. During his time in captivity, Geewan said he was moved around in the forest, and on Thursday night got pies and soft drink.  He said he did not get anything to eat all of Friday, but in the night, he received bar-b-que chicken and macaroni. That same morning, Geewan said, he was allowed his first bath in a nearby river. The teenager said his kidnappers did not physically abuse him, but his life was threatened. “They told me if I do anything to get them locked up, a bullet will be in my head,” he said.

Saying he was in shock, Geewan said when he realised his predicament, he began to cry on Friday and was eventually allowed to speak with his father that night. Three hours later, Geewan, who was blindfolded during his time in captivity, said he was taken out of the forest, and then placed at the side of the road. “They told me don’t move and don’t take off the blindfold until  the car drives off,” Geewan recalled, adding that the kidnappers gave him $9 to get to his home.   Once the kidnappers drove off, Geewan said he got up, removed the blindfold and started flagging down passing vehicles, none of which stopped, that is until Romero came to his rescue. “He (Romero) took me to the Arima Police Station and then I saw a doctor and came home,” he said. Geewan thanked Romero for coming to his aid.