65 abducted, $20M in ransoms demanded

POLICE COMMISSIONER Hilton Guy yesterday expressed concern that bandits and gangsters are using kidnapping for ransom as the crime of choice.

For the year to date 65 persons, including three children, have been abducted. Ransom demands totalling $20.74 million were made for 12 of the victims. Guy said two members of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad are leaving soon for a special course on kidnapping and the AKS is being strengthened with more personnel and electronic devices. “Through our intelligence, we have seen a shift in the crime structure, especially whenever ransom are paid. We are seeing criminals turn from their usual trade and gravitate towards kidnapping and we view this as a very worrying trend,” Guy said.

“When relatives of kidnap victims pay ransom, they unwittingly encourage and nurture the crime of kidnapping. And while I know my statement will not go down well with relatives of kidnap victims, I am warning the public that payment of ransom does not necessarily guarantee that victims will be returned alive.” Guy was speaking at a press conference yesterday morning at Old Police Headquarters where he unveiled a new three-month intensive assault on crime, with emphasis on ridding the nation of illegal firearms.

Guy expressed concern that two previously unheard of illegal narcotics — heroin and ecstasy — have infiltrated the local illegal drug trade. Guy also gave a breakdown of crime statistics including the murder and kidnapping rate for this year and a report on the success of the first three-month crime crackdown between January and March. Commissioner Guy said although criminals perceived kidnappings as a lucrative and safe means of making large sums of money, the Police Service had major successes in solving the crime. He said that in many countries, including the United States, the success rate for solving kidnappings was low, but in this country, the success rate was around 35 percent.

Guy pleaded with the public and relatives of kidnap victims to cooperate with the AKS and not pay ransoms. “A relative of kidnapped persons would be in a very emotional state. As such, I advise that any and all negotiations with the kidnappers should be done by the trained AKS officers.” He also pleaded with kidnap victims and their relatives to support the police when the cases reached the courts. “We have to send a stern message that kidnapping is not and will never be a legitimate means of earning money in a civilised country such as ours.”

Guy said while he could not make any pronouncements on proposed new legislation to strengthen existing anti-kidnapping laws, the Police Service would support any new legislation which would make penalties for kidnapping more painful than existing ones. Regarding San Juan/Barataria MP Dr Fuad Khan’s launch of a civilian based, community oriented anti-kidnapping unit to carry out surveillance work, CoP Guy said he had no problem with the group once they operated within well-established Community Policing guidelines. Guy later said the success of the first three-month crime assault was evident in the generally crime-free Carnival season. He thanked all who supported the police during the three-month crime attack and promised to continue with the plan.