Kidnappers demanding ransom for 19-year-old Mon Repos carpenter
Was held during visit to Buxton
- visiting Buxton for some time now in an attempt to collect wages owed to him by a building contractor there.
By Nigel
Williams
Two days have passed since kidnappers
snatched a 19-year-old man from Mon Repos and demanded ransom and up
to press time yesterday the police were still trying to find out
what had happened to him.
Heeraman Sahadeo, called `Jappo', of Lot 114-115 Mon
Repos, East Coast Demerara has been in
the hands of his captors somewhere in the village of Buxton since
Tuesday.
|
Up to late last evening his
relatives and friends were keeping vigil at his home hoping that his
captors would call.
The young man was said to have been visiting
Buxton for some time now in an attempt to collect wages owed to him
by a building contractor there.
Contacted yesterday Assistant
Superintendent of Police, David Ramnarine said that the police
are investigating the matter. Major Hubert Meusa of the Guyana
Defence Force told Stabroek News that while the army is aware of the
report it has not been asked by the police to assist.
Two other
East Coast men who were kidnapped in recent months were later
discovered dead in or close to Buxton.
Sahadeo's grandmother
Krishendai Seenanand speaking to this newspaper yesterday said that
she found it very strange that Sahadeo had been asked to visit
Buxton to be paid when usually he and other workmen are paid at
work. The woman said that on Tuesday at about 2:20 pm Sahadeo went
to her home and told her that he was going to Buxton to collect some
money owed to him. She said it was about two weeks since he had been
going to Buxton for the money, but on all the previous occasions the
man had been making promises to him. Seenanand said shortly after he
told her his plan, his mother Radha Sahadeo came across to her house
which is in the same yard and handed him $40 for his bus
fare.
The young man set off at about 2:30 pm telling both his
mother and grandmother that he was going by a `Rasta man' for his
money. Seenanand said as the hours slipped by and Heeraman did not
return they became very concerned.
At 6 pm the young man's uncle
Budraj Sukhdeo answered a telephone call. Sukhdeo said he allowed
the phone to ring twice before answering it. "All I hear was a male
voice and the man ask me where is `Sadesh' which is another call
name for Heeraman."
Sukhdeo said he answered the person in the
negative and immediately the phone was hung up on him. Sukhdeo told
this newspaper that he heard loud voices and music in the
background.
Thirty minutes later the phone rang again and this
time Seenanand answered the phone.
"Where is Sadesh?" the voice
inquired. "Me nah know weh he deh," Seenanand responded.
She
related that soon after she said that, the man on the phone said
that he would like to speak to Radha, adding that he was her
friend.
Seenanand said she called her daughter over to answer the
phone and then the man told Radha that he and others had kidnapped
her son and demanded that she pack up all of the gold jewellery she
had along with $5 million and keep it for them. Radha said on
hearing that she requested to speak to Heeraman and her request was
granted. When her son came on the phone he was only allowed to say
"mummy" and the phone was hung up.
With the second call Radha
said she immediately went to the Beterverwagting Police Station and
made a report. While she was at the station Sukhdeo said he received
another call from the men asking whether they had already
accumulated the money.
"I ask dem how much they want and the man
said $5 million and I ask him how he is going to get it and his
response was bring it down at Kitty Market."
Sukhdeo said he also
asked the man how he could recognise him if he should go to the
market, and the caller told him that he would know him, and if he
does not carry the money they would burn down their house and kill
everyone.
The phone was hung up after the threats but 15 minutes
later another call was received inquiring whether they were serious
about handing over the money.
"Our business is to kill, you all
best deh pon business, because if we don't get de money is kill we
gun kill he and when we done we gonna blow up de house regardless of
police or soldier," Sukhdeo quoted the man as saying.
Leaving
Heeraman's relatives, the kidnappers called his paramour's mother
who resides at Success, also on the East Coast, and inquired first
whether she was his mother-in-law. Stabroek News understands that
the woman answered in the affirmative and after she did, they told
her that he was being held and they needed $2 million from her for
his release. Sukhdeo said that Heraman was allowed to speak to the
woman briefly.
The teenager's relatives said that from all
indications the kidnappers have been questioning him since some
personal business was leaked by the kidnappers to his
mother-in-law.
Since then there has been no other calls to either
the teenager's mother-in-law or his grandmother.
Heeraman's
relatives said that they are very poor people and there was no way
they could meet the ransom demand. The young man is to be married
soon. He is known in the area for his carpentry skills and was
described by his relatives as a very quiet and peaceful
person.
Thursday, December 19, 2002