Archive for July, 2009
ICO website hacked
(CNS): The website of the Cayman Islands Information Commissioner has been hacked into for the second weekend in a row. A CNS reader spotted the hacking of the website Saturday morning, and according to Information Commissioner Jennifer Dilbert, this happened last weekend as well.
Cops set up murder voicemail hotline
(CNS): In the wake of the recent shootings in both George Town and West Bay, the police have created an anonymous hotline. A police spokesperson said the voicemail facility was completely and totally anonymous and was there for people to simply leave information for the police regarding the recent murders or any other crime. The number is 949-7777. “None of the calls to this number will be traced. There is no caller ID. It is totally anonymous,” the RCIPS promised. "The public can now call a dective directly, or any officer they trust, a police station, this new facility or of course crimestoppers," a police spokesperson added.
The plea to the public comes following the shooting last Sunday morning of 28 year old Omar Samuels, who was shot in the leg and died from his wounds, and then the triple shooting in West Bay on Wednesday evening, which left 20 year old Marcus Ebanks dead, his 18-year-old brother Rod seriously injured and 14 year old Adrian Powell fighting for his life.
Police said on Saturday they wanted to create as many ways as possible for the community to make contact with them to give them whatever informaiton they may have to help solve these crimes.
Police have said that although they have two men in custody in relation to Wednesday evening’s shooting, they need the help of the community to piece together the events of the evening and for any information regarding the identity of the two masked gunmen, said to have emerged from bushes and fired on seven young men who were sitting on a wal.
So far police have not disclosed if any arrests have been made in connection with the killing of Omar Samuels in McField Lane, but it is understood there were hundreds of witnesses in the area at the time.
Police Commissioner David Baines said on Thursday afternoon that there were a number of people in the community who know far more about these crime than they have been prepared to say, and he asked people to search their consciences and tell what they know.
Yesterday, Superintendent Kurt Walton, lead dectective on the West Bay shooting, asked people for their help.
“If you have information about what took place or the events that led to it – it is your duty to come forward. Speak to an officer you know and trust or call Crime Stoppers, but get your information to us somehow. Even if you think it is insignificant, it could be vital to us,” he said.
Aside from the anonymous hot line two dedicated hotlines which are manned 24-hours a day have been set up for residents to reach the investigation team directly. The hotline numbers are: 926-1773 and 926-3975 and callers can remain still remain anonymous. “We need to put an end to violence. We need to take those responsible off the streets. If you can assist us to do this, please come forward,” Walton added.
Looking for love, 650-pound virgin loses 410 lbs
(MSNBC): He was enormously obese — a lost soul with no friends and no life who had given up on himself and on life. David Smith even hatched a plan to end it. He would get an inflatable swimming pool, and he would take it to a remote spot in the Arizona desert. He would fill it with gasoline, get in, and light a match. It would be a horrific and painful way to die, but that’s what Smith thought he deserved. And the best thing about it would be that the fire would consume his 650-pound body.
‘Genie’ sued for harassment
(BBC): A family in Saudi Arabia is taking a "genie" to court, accusing it of theft and harassment, reports say. They accuse the spirit of threatening them, throwing stones and stealing mobile phones, Al Watan newspaper said. The family have lived in the same house near the city of Medina for 15 years but say they only recently became aware of the spirit. They have now moved out. A local court is investigating. In Islamic theology, genies are spirits that can harass or possess humans. "We began to hear strange sounds," the head of the family, who come from Mahd Al Dahab, told the Saudi daily. He did not want to be named. "At first we did not take it seriously, but then stranger things started to happen and the children got particularly scared when the genie started throwing stones."
Chuckie joins war of words
(CNS): The former tourism minister, Charles Clifford, has hit out at the financial secretary for the way he has presented spending on Cayman Airways by the former minister under the emergency funding provisions of the PMFL. He accused Kenneth Jefferson of deliberately misrepresenting and manipulating the facts, as he says the $3 million spent on CAL was not just for one route, as stated by the FS, but for the acquisition of an aircraft, the launch of the Washington and re-instatement of the Chicago routes, as well as new routes to Honduras and Panama.
In the continuing war of words between members of the previous PPM administration and the current Financial Secretary, Clifford has raised the stakes by accusing Jefferson of, “very obvious and overt political posturing in the Legislative Assembly” which he said was a clear breach of the Civil Service Code of Conduct, rules and regulations.
“What is the Governorproposing to do about the Financial Secretary’s conduct in this matter?” Clifford has asked adding that the country needs to know. He said that the FS is not entitled to practice politics from the Financial Secretary’s desk and is required by law to maintain neutrality and to present fair and accurate financials to the Cabinet, the Finance Committee, the Legislative Assembly and the country.
“Given his obvious propensity for politics and to go beyond his mandate as Financial Secretary, how are we to believe that his recent statements are anything other than political rhetoric from the UDP government designed to discredit the PPM Administration,” Clifford said.
He stated that through the Financial Secretary’s political posturing he had, “divested himself of any semblance of neutrality” and as a result any future government opposed to the UDP, be it the PPM or some other group or party, would find it very difficult to work with him.
“It follows that from this point forward this Financial Secretary will feel the need to say and do whatever is necessary to keep this UDP government in office,” Clifford said. “Which of the Financial Secretary’s statements are we to believe? What is the actual financial position of the Cayman Islands Government? We still don’t know.”
He suggested that given the recent inconsistent statements from the Financial Secretary’s office an independent audit was required. “….it is unacceptable to leave these uncertainties out there and for our Financial Secretary’s conduct to go unchecked. Our current Governor claims to be the caretaker of “good governance” in this country so let us see whether he will sit idly by and do nothing on this issue too.”
Clifford claimed that Jefferson had misrepresented the $3 million expenditure from the exceptional circumstances allocation because he had described it as one “CAL route” where as Clifford said it was for a number of things for Cayman Airways: “Including but not limited to, the acquisition of the 4th Boeing 737-300 aircraft; the launch of the Washington DC route; the re-instatement of the Chicago route; and the launch of the La Ceiba, Honduras and Panama routes,” he said. “The launch of the La Ceiba route was deferred for 4 months due to unreasonable delays by the Honduran Civil Aviation Authority and was inaugurated in early June. At the time of the general elections on 20th May 2009 plans were being finalised for the launch of service to Panama.”
Clifford said the approval of the $3M was against the backdrop of a declining tourism industry worldwide and three hurricanes but notably that Cayman was uniquely placed to meet the challenges with its own national airline.
He said in consultation with the private sector a decision was made to open two new Cayman Airways gateways in the United States and to begin to invest in the South American markets. Clifford said it was perfectly justifiable spending from the extraordinary provision and was based on sound research and data: “….During the time that these decisions were taking place the world had just entered an economic crisis and governments around the world had to make decisions which required emergency funding to mitigate the impact of the crisis,” Cifford said. “The Cayman Islands was no exception and it is against this background that the PPM government used section 11(5) of the PMFL to approve the $3M for Cayman Airways which was subject to the subsequent approval of Finance Committee when the committee next met.”
Chuckie joins war of words
(CNS): The former tourism minister, Charles Clifford, has hit out at the financial secretary for the way he has presented spending on Cayman Airways by the former minister under the emergency funding provisions of the PMFL. He accused Kenneth Jefferson of deliberately misrepresenting and manipulating the facts, as he says the $3 million spent on CAL was not just for one route, as stated by the FS, but for the acquisition of an aircraft, the launch of the Washington and re-instatement of the Chicago routes, as well as new routes to Honduras and Panama.
In the continuing war of words between members of the previous PPM administration and the current Financial Secretary, Clifford has raised the stakes by accusing Jefferson of, “very obvious and overt political posturing in the Legislative Assembly” which he said was a clear breach of the Civil Service Code of Conduct, rules and regulations.
“What is the Governor proposing to do about the Financial Secretary’s conduct in this matter?” Clifford has asked adding that the country needs to know. He said that the FS is not entitled to practice politics from the Financial Secretary’s desk and is required by law to maintain neutrality and to present fair and accurate financials to the Cabinet, the Finance Committee, the Legislative Assembly and the country.
“Given his obvious propensity for politics and to go beyond his mandate as Financial Secretary, how are we to believe that his recent statements are anything other than political rhetoric from the UDP government designed to discredit the PPM Administration,” Clifford said.
He stated that through the Financial Secretary’s political posturing he had, “divested himself of any semblance of neutrality” and as a result any future government opposed to the UDP, be it the PPM or some other group or party, would find it very difficult to work with him.
“It follows that from this point forward this Financial Secretary will feel the need to say and do whatever is necessary to keep this UDP government in office,” Clifford said. “Which of the Financial Secretary’s statements are we to believe? What is the actual financial position of the Cayman Islands Government? We still don’t know.”
He suggested that given the recent inconsistent statements from the Financial Secretary’s office an independent audit was required. “….it is unacceptable to leave these uncertainties out there and for our Financial Secretary’s conduct to go unchecked. Our current Governor claims to be the caretaker of “good governance” in this country so let us see whether he will sit idly by and do nothing on this issue too.”
Clifford claimed that Jefferson had misrepresented the $3 million expenditure from the exceptional circumstances allocation because he had described it as one “CAL route” where as Clifford said it was for a number of things for Cayman Airways: “Including but not limited to, the acquisition of the 4th Boeing 737-300 aircraft; the launch of the Washington DC route; the re-instatement of the Chicago route; and the launch of the La Ceiba, Honduras and Panama routes,” he said. “The launch of the La Ceiba route was deferred for 4 months due to unreasonable delays by the Honduran Civil Aviation Authority and was inaugurated in early June. At the time of the general elections on 20th May 2009 plans were being finalised for the launch of service to Panama.”
Clifford said the approval of the $3M was against the backdrop of a declining tourism industry worldwide and three hurricanes but notably that Cayman was uniquely placed to meet the challenges with its own national airline.
He said in consultation with the private sector a decision was made to open two new Cayman Airways gateways in the United States and to begin to invest in the South American markets. Clifford said it was perfectly justifiable spending from the extraordinary provision and was based on sound research and data: “….During the time that these decisions were taking place the world had just entered an economic crisis and governments around the world had to make decisions which required emergency funding to mitigate the impact of the crisis,” Cifford said. “The Cayman Islands was no exception and it is against this background that the PPM government used section 11(5) of the PMFL to approve the $3M for Cayman Airways which was subject to the subsequent approval of Finance Committee when the committee next met.”
Man charged with attack on tourist
(CNS): Ronald Rodney Ebanks (40) appeared in court on Tuesday, 7 July charged with aggravated burglary following an incident which occurred at Lacovia Condos on West Bay Road in the early hours of 2 July. Investigations into a similar incident which occurred at an address on Boggy Sands Road, West Bay, on Tuesday, June 30 are continuing, and police say they have not ruled out the possibility that the two incidents are connected.
Ebanks is accused of entering the condo armed with a knife and threatening the female occupant who was in the room with her child. He has been remanded in custody until his next appearance which is expected to take place next Tuesday, 14 July.
Police were alerted to the incident at 3.50 am on the morning of 2 July. Officers were told a man had entered the condo, made threatening remarks to the female occupant and ran from the room when her child screamed out. Police carried out an area search which resulted in the arrest of Ebanks.
In the Boggy Sands incident which occurred during the early hours of Tuesday, 30 June, a 26-year-old woman was seriously shaken and left with minor injuries after she awoke at around 4:10am to find an unknown assailant in her home holding something in his hand that she thought could have been a gun. The woman managed to escape from the intruder, described as a dark, tall man of stout build who was wearing short pants.
Anyone with information about crime taking place in the Cayman Islands should contact their local police station or Crime Stoppers on 800-8477 (TIPS). All persons calling Crime Stoppers remain anonymous, and are eligible for a reward of up to $1000, should their information lead to an arrest or recovery of property/drugs.
Lawyers mentor students
(CNS): As part of the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce’s ‘Mentoring Cayman’ programme, a group of attorneys at Walkers acted as mentors to a number of young people over the past year, devoting a considerable amount of their own time to the project. ‘Mentoring Cayman’ pairs up each mentor with a mentee from a local school, who through regular visits to the mentor’s place of work, gains experience and exposure to working life.
Through regular contact with their mentor, the students have someone to introduce them to potential career paths, receive the benefit of good advice and help them understand their own strengths and capabilities.
"Participating in the ‘Mentoring Cayman’ programme has been an extremely positive experience
for all of us," said David Collins, partner with Walkers. "The thought of embarking on a career can be quite daunting when you are still at school, and it has been particularly rewarding to see how ambitious some of these young people are."
Also taking part in the programme were Walkers’ associates: Alexandra Woodcock, Barnaby
Gowrie, Caroline Chaloner, Michael Makridakis, Philip McGhee, Rob Jackson and Thomas Williams.
The students from John Gray High School that paired up with Walkers mentors were: David Feare, Kerseanna Ewers, Tecashanell McIntosh, Tony James and Zachary Powery. From St. Ignatius, the students were: Anthony Hurlston, Michael Sun and Yannick Whorms. Among the criteria required
for students to take part in the programme is that they must be in Year 11 with an excellent
report, be recommended by their school and receive permission from their parents.
This year’s ‘Mentoring Cayman’ programme, which began in November last year, involved the students visiting their mentors at the Walkers office on a monthly basis. Ensuring that their time with their students was fully utilised, the Walkers attorneys challenged the mentees with some interesting assignments. Much of the focus of the office sessions was devoted to the personal development of the students. In addition to drawing up ‘life plans’ and future goals, time was spent researching university entrance requirements and procedures, as well as ongoing discussions regarding academic progress. Some of the students attended lunches with a number of prominent individuals from all sectors of the economy, including accountants, airline pilots and senior civil servants.
"Other activities included trips to the Courthouse to view Court sessions in action, a visit to the Cayman Islands Law School and research into various academic and training programmes which aligned with the mentees’ interests," Mr. Collins said.
Many of the students also met with their mentors socially throughout the course of the year, including boat trips to Rum Point and playing golf. In May the mentors and students all came together for a Catamaran Cruise which was a great social event for everyone involved and provided a good opportunity for the students to share their experiences.
The programme came to an end on Wednesday June 24 with a reception at Government House, during which all the students received a commemorative award and certificate of completion. The Governor thanked all of the mentors for their time and efforts, commenting that the experience gained by the mentees would go a long way towards helping them decide on a future career path.
Launched in 2002, ‘Mentoring Cayman’ is a youth development initiative jointly funded and supported by the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce and the Ministry of Education, Training, Employment, Youth, Sports & Culture. Since inception, the programme has involved over 300 high achieving and motivated high school students, to help prepare them to become the next generation of leaders in the Cayman Islands.
Caribbean struggles to recover from ’08 hurricanes
(Miami Herald): The Caribbean is still struggling to recover from last year’s hurricanes, with crews scrambling to rebuild homes and replant crops as the region faces a new season of storms. Last year was one of the most active seasons in more than six decades, with 15 of 18 Caribbean nations reporting damages, according to the Caribbean Development Bank. At least six major storms caused an estimated $355 million in damages from the Bahamas to the Dominican Republic in 2008, Pamela Knights, of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency, said Thursday.
Crime hot spot assessed to improve safety
(CNS): Police are taking a closer look at the McField Lane area of George Town as it has become a notorious area for violent and other crimes. Installing closed circuit television (CCTV) and improving lighting were the two main subjects discussed as part of an assessment to see how crime can be ‘designed out’ of the area by police and government officials. Although police said this is now a hot spot area for them with regular patrols, more needs to be done to make the place safer.
“We want to make the area as safe as possible,” said Deputy Commissioner Anthony Ennis. “The area is already on our hot spot list, which means patrolling officers pay particular attention to it, but there is more that can be done to improve safety. Unfortunately, we cannot have a police officer on every street corner and we need to look at additional crime prevention measures to supplement our strategy.”
It is hoped that by working in partnership with various agencies measures can be taken to help residents feel safer and deter and detect crime. “Crime prevention is a job not only for the police, but for our partner agencies and the community as a whole,” Ennis added. “We need to work together to do everything we can to ensure people feel safe in their neighbourhoods.”
Ennis along with Detective Sergeant Collins Oremule conducted a walk through of the area with Brian Tomlinson, Head of the National Roads Authority and Tristan Hydes, Acting Deputy Permanent Secretary of District Admin and Gender Affairs.
Ennis explained that it was an exploratory meeting to make an assessment of the area and examine what might be possible and appropriate.
Anyone with information about crime taking place in the Cayman Islands should contact their local police station or Crime Stoppers on 800-8477 (TIPS). All persons calling Crime Stoppers remain anonymous, and are eligible for a reward of up to $1000, should their information lead to an arrest or recovery of property/drugs.