Anyone heard about this? It showed up in my e-mail earlier today and I’m not sure if this really happened. (I removed the sender’s name which appeared at the bottom of the e-mail):
“A disturbing thing happened last Saturday morning to some young people I know that I want to share with you. Hopefully you will pass the word around and this sort of thing won’t happen to anyone else.
The 5 young people were traveling by car very early Saturday morning (2:30 a.m.) going home – heading west. They got diverted off the highway, and ended up on Belle Plantation road. In that lonely bit of the road, where there is nothing but huge fields on either side, a car began to overtake them and rammed them in the side, causing them to skid off the road. They stopped, as they thought it was an “accident”, but in fact thieves jumped out of the car with masks on and held them at gunpoint. Mercifully, none of the youngsters were hurt, just emotionally shaken up. The thieves took cash, cameras, cell phones, and Ipods.The police are investigating.This incident could have turned out much worse than it did. Please make sure anyone you know who travels at night knows their routes and stays on well-lit, well-traveled roads. I am not aware of any way to find out what roads are closed due to construction, but if any of you know about that, please pass it around.
Stay safe, and God Bless.”
I don’t recall reading about this in the daily print media and BFP/BU, nor have I seen it on the news (I rarely watch Channel 8, a.k.a Channel 108, to the MCTV subscribers.) Then I thought, hey, if this incident really happened, I’m not suprised that the MSM (main stream media) brushed it under the rug (surprising that BFP and BU didn’t cover it though, that is, if it happened.) After all, I only heard about the big accident that happened a week or two ago which involved a bus and resulted in several injured people, somewhere in St. Joseph (or was it St. John?) My recollection of the facts surrounding this particular accident are sketchy because the MSM didn’t have much to say about it.Instead, the first I heard about it was when the folks at the office mentioned it (a day or two after it happened, I think.) The second time was when the media went down to the Q.E.H on the evening/night of the accident (if I’m not mistaken) and instead, became the story themselves after being roughed up by members of the Royal Barbados Police Force.
So, why all the top secret stuff? Maybe the ‘powers that be’ are afraid that all of this negative press/attention will give Barbados a bad name. As it is, we depend so heavily on tourism. It’s our bread and butter and the last thing we’d want to do is to scare away the tourists and their dollars!
3 Comments
June 9, 2007 at 12:40 pm
Did it ever occur to you that these victims did not call the police …oops cells were stolen….or at least go to the nearest police station which would be in Station Hill to report the incident?
Therefore it is difficult to tell if the authorities were informed of this incident.
Before going down the cover up line …please seek the truth,I dont want another blog to end up with egg on their face because of sensationalism.
June 9, 2007 at 11:52 pm
Bystander,
Did the people involved in the incident inform the media? There are many robberies and other incidents that never make the news.For instance, I heard of a case where a minibus was stopped and several of the people inside robbed but I never heard of this making mainstream media.I don’t think unless they were contacted that there was anyway BFP/BU could have known either.
As it is, I highly doubt that this is a media cover up and although there may be some things wrong with the Barbadian press, I wouldn’t hasten to make accusations present ill-informed theories.
June 10, 2007 at 4:31 pm
Dear Chase & liquidsoap,
Honestly, I don’t know if the people involved in the accident informed the media (including BU/BFP.) or the Police.
Both of you have offered valid comments and I appreciate them, but I still prefer to hold on to mine. I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a cover up, or even the slightest hint of one. If word were to ‘get out’ more frequently concerning robberies and other incidents that occur, then we (as a tourist destination) would have a serious problem on our hands.
My little blog is not the best source for news and info on Bim and should never be treated as such. It is a personal and individual effort. This is my little soapbox. I do not write letters to the Editor. I do not take part in social debate. I do not do call-in radio shows, I do not bug people with my politics and what not.
I am a blogger, I simply blog. But just because I blog, it doesn’t automatically make me the official source, or mean that I have 100% accurate information. If that’s what you’re looking for, then the majority of bloggers, the world over, would have to stop blogging.
I, as a Barbadian, and more importantly, a free person (just like you), have a right to express my analysis, views, opinions, concerns, etc. with regards to what is going on in Barbados and the rest of the world. You are free to choose to agree, disagree, comment, debate, ignore or do whatever makes you happy.
Before blogging, we may have well all been in the same room arguing and debating. Each person offering his/her own take on things. Some good, some bad, but we all share our opinions and express our views. That’s what I’m doing.
If you or anyone else chooses to accept what I blog as fact, then that is your lookout. All I can say is, don’t believe everything you read. Go and ask your own questions and seek other sources. There’s always two sides to everything, sometimes, more than two.
Again, your comments are appreciated. I hope you folks pass through frequently and offer your own input and analysis for everyone to see.
Yours,
The Bystander.