DOCTORS at the Paediatric Hospital, Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) in Mt Hope, have described nine-year-old multiple-chopping victim Keiwon Sullivan as a “fighter” who despite his near fatal injuries is expected to make a painful but full recovery.

Sullivan, a Standard Two student of the Aranjuez Government Primary School, was brought to hospital in a semi-conscious state on Thursday evening, after he was found bleeding inside an abandoned wooden house at La Resource Road, D’Abadie, by an off-duty prison officer Sullivan’s father Andy Williams told Newsday: “The doctors say is only because he is a strong boy, it look like he go make it … but he in a lot of pain right now.” The worried father said the family had received a ransom demand of $10,000 prior to Sullivan being found in the abandoned house. “What I want to know is why the man chop up my son so. Is one thing to demand a ransom and hold the boy but something else to chop him up so. My son lucky to still be alive.” He also dismissed police investigators’ theory that the abduction and chopping may have been the result of bad blood between his family and a man over a piece of land near the Williams’ home in Bagatelle, Diego Martin.

Checks with police revealed that up to late yesterday no arrests had been made, but sources said they knew who Keiwon’s attacker was and a manhunt has been launched. PCS Sheldon Sylvester and Davidson are continuing investigations. According to police reports, at around 4 pm on Thursday, Keiwon’s relatives received a telephone call telling them that the boy had been kidnapped. An hour later, an off-duty prison officer on his way home, heard moans coming from an abandoned house and on checking, saw Keiwon lying in a pool of blood with chop wounds about his head and body. Williams told Newsday his son is warded in the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital and surgery may have to be done on his jaw.

A TEST technician at Electrical Industries Limited (EIL) in Arima died yesterday after he was electrocuted at his workplace.

The dead man has been identified as Michael Cowen, 24, of Chaguanas.  At around 10 am, Cowen was on duty and went into the testing area where a medium voltage had been applied. Cowen, who has been with the company for just over one year, had not turned off the power and was electrocuted.

Cowen was responsible for testing cables and power supplies.  After the electrocution, efforts were made to revive him. An ambulance from the Emergency Health Services (EHS) was summoned and Cowen was rushed to the Arima Hospital where he died. Hayden Kublalsingh, one of the company’s directors, said the incident has left employees devastated and saddened.  He said he has expressed condolences to Cowen’s parents. Kublalsingh added that the company is investigating the electrocution. He said Cowen was responsible for turning the power on and off and that no one enters the restricted area while the power is on.

AN AUTOPSY on the body of Savitri Ramkissoon confirmed that she died from strangulation, not ingestion of poison.

The report confirmed detectives’ theory that Ramkissoon’s lover, who was also her brother-in-law, Kamal Mohammed, strangled her in a bedroom before hanging himself from the doorway of his house at Partap Trace, South Oropouche, on Thursday.  Relatives of the deceased speculated that the deaths may have been a result of a suicide pact since a greenish substance resembling a weedicide was found on Ramkissoon’s blouse. Mohammed was discovered hanging in his house on Thursday by his son, Ryan, who alerted relatives. Only after authorities were called in was Ramkissoon’s body found in a bedroom.  Both funerals have been tentatively scheduled for today.

POPE John Paul on Thursday welcomed Trinidad and Tobago’s new Ambassador to the Vatican, Mr Learie Rousseau and advised that the concept of development should not be limited to merely satisfying material necessities, but must highlight the dignity of the human person.

At the ceremony of Rousseau’s presentation of Letters of Credence at the Vatican, the Pope extended his gratitude for the welcome he received when he visited Trinidad and Tobago some years ago and sent best wishes to President Max Richards and the Prime Minister and Government. He said “In a multi-cultural and multi-religious society such as that found in your own country the imperative of recognising and protecting the intrinsic dignity of every human being is keenly felt. “Furthermore, the quest to achieve national unity through diversity and social harmony through tolerance when firmly anchored in a willingness to defend the values rooted in the very nature of the human person, becomes not just a matter of passive acceptance but a means of active cultural enrichment for all.”

The Pope said cultural and religious difference are treasured as gifts. The Pope spoke of the right to meaningful work and an acceptable standard of living, the assurance of a fair distribution of goods and wealth and the responsible use of natural resources all depend upon a concept of development that highlights the dignity of the human person. The Pope touched on the acute social problems affecting Trinidad and Tobago and the world and said that the assault on family life which seems “tragically a sign of our times takes on many forms, including the pernicious trade and use of drugs which fuels crime and violence and contribute to the desolation of family life.” He said he was confident that the TT mission in the Vatican would help to strengthen the bonds of understanding and cooperation between TT and the Holy See. Rousseau was the former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

TOCO COMMUTERS breathed a sigh of relief yesterday after officers from the Toco Police Station removed logs and debris scattered along the Toco Main Road, L’Anse Noire on Wednesday night by residents protesting the slaying of a villager by police during a raid.

The residents cut trees and threw concrete blocks and rusted metal to block the Toco Main Road, causing travellers to walk almost three miles from Trois Roches to get to L’Anse Noire Village. Taxi drivers were also caught in the fray and a few refused fares to the protesting village. The protest began around 10 pm Wednesday night after villagers heard about the shooting death of Glenroy “Bro Bro” Elder. Elder was described by residents as a quiet and hard working young man whose only “vice” was smoking marijuana.

The incident unfolded when officers on a routine exercise in the area stopped and searched two men. Elder and another man was liming in an abandoned building on the Main Road and on seeing the officers they ran. One of the officers pursued Elder and a single shot was fired, which caught him in the shoulder. He later died from the gun shot wound. Residents on the scene said they blocked the road to protest the manner in which Elder was shot, and to attract the attention of the “higher authority so that they would investigate the incident thoroughly”.

When the clean-up got underway yesterday, officers from the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation’s Toco Regional Office sought the assistance of the villagers to ensure the roadway remains unobstructed. One resident, who preferred to remain anonymous, said “it was just a matter of wait and see what comes out of the investigation, and how they handle the officer who pull the trigger”. “Bro Bro was a real cool fellah and it sad to see him get killed in that manner. Somebody have to pay for taking away a good soul. We just watching and waiting now.” Relatives say they are waiting for the autopsy  before making any funeral arrangements.

BWIA flight attendant Frances Dow has been acquitted of all drug-related charges in the United States.

A jury deliberated for two hours on Thursday and found Dow not guilty on the four-count indictment in the United States District Court – Southern District of Florida. As a result, Dow who has been in the United States since Valentine’s Day — February 14, 2003 will return home shortly. She had been on bail pending the hearing and determination of her trial. Dow was charged jointly with former BWIA flight attendant Michael Andre Le Blanc and Gregory Oral Lakhan with four counts, including conspiracy to import five kilos of cocaine into the US, importation of the cocaine into the US, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and possession of cocaine. Dow escaped life imprisonment.

Le Blanc pleaded guilty last Monday to the charge of conspiracy and will come up for sentence before Judge Donald Middlebrooks on August 24. Lakhan also pleaded guilty to conspiracy some time earlier and his sentence will be handed down in August. While Lakhan remains on bail in the US, Le Blanc is detained at the federal prison in downtown Miami. Dow was arrested at the Holiday Inn Hotel located at the corner of 36th Street and 205 Lejune Road, Miami, on February 14, shortly after arriving from Trinidad as a member of the flight crew aboard the national airline BWIA. She went on trial on Tuesday before Judge Middlebrooks. During the trial, Le Blanc testified on behalf of the Trinidadian defendant. The prosecution alleged that Dow was arrested with a suitcase containing the cocaine. Dow denied the allegation, saying she was unaware what was in the suitcase.

At the end of the trial, the jury deliberated and found Dow not guilty on all four counts. She was represented at the trial by American attorney David Oscar Markus. As a result of Dow’s acquittal, Newsday yesterday spoke to BWIA’s Corporate Communica-tions Director Clint Williams on the situation regarding the flight attendant’s employment. Williams said he could not discuss the employment status of an employee or former employee, because it was a private matter between the company and the employee. But Newsday was reliably informed that Dow’s employment was terminated when she was arrested in Miami in February for breach of her work contract in that she was supposed to have known what was in her suitcase.

Meanwhile, Le Blanc has appealed against the decision of Judge Middlebrooks to dismiss his motion to suppress evidence. The judge dismissed the motion last Monday, but Le Blanc’s attorneys indicated their intention to appeal to the US Supreme Court. Le Blanc will know on Wednesday the date of the hearing of his appeal. Le Blanc filed the motion claimed that his rights were infringed when he was arrested at the Holiday Inn on February 14.

Chief Secretary of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Orville London said Thursday it was clear the owners of the Pigeon Point estate were not prepared to negotiate. He said Government would have no choice but to acquire the property as requested by the THA.

“It is the responsibility of this (THA) administration to ensure that Cabinet agrees,” said London. The THA Chief Secretary emphasised the point at the weekly post Executive Council meeting press conference at the THA Administrative Complex at Calder Hall in Scarborough. He accused the Pigeon Point owners of reneging on all the proposals that were hammered out over two years of negotiations to resolve the long-standing impasse. He charged that they came up with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that sought to change all the proposals.

London said the THA put forward a number of proposals for resolution of the controversial issue in discussions with representatives of Robinson Crusoe Ltd/Club Pigeon Point and “there was consensus that this is what we wanted and what we had agreed.” “I made it very clear at that meeting that this was the make-or-break point, because we had a situation where we had got the original proposals from Robinson Crusoe, we had the original proposals from the fisherfolk and other interested parties and then based on that we came up with the proposals coming from the THA.”

London said some of the proposals were “quite controversial and did not necessarily meet with the approach of every single sector.” He said they were however prepared to act on them because it was felt they could resolve problems at Pigeon Point. “What we got in response was a Memorandum of Understanding that would have adjusted or attempted to change every single one of those proposals.” The THA has refused to sign the MOU. London said it was against this background that the THA Executive Council decided to seek compulsory acquisition of the property for public purposes.