Cops plan to seek out BB messengers in Kerran case
(CNS): Senior officers from the RCIPS have said that the police will now be going out to the people they believe messaged Kerran (KerryAnn) Baker after she was last seen almost three weeks ago. DS Marlon Bodden and CS John Jones said Thursday that after numerous appeals to the people who sent messages to Kerran after 7pm on 30 July to come forward voluntarily and tell the police what the messages were about, officers are now ready to go find those messengers. The police have consistently stated that the messages sent to, or received from, Kerran that night could be crucial to the investigation.
Although Blackberry technology presents a challenge to law enforcement officials, the officers stated that the police will over the next few days begin visiting the BBM friends of Karren that have not come forward.
Bodden warned the people concerned that the police had already given them ample opportunity to come to the investigating officers but as they had not, the police would be going to them. “The police will be intelligently aggressive in this approach,” Bodden said but he not specify how the police would be pin-pointing the messengers.
During an earlier press briefing this week CS Jones had stated that the police did not have a list of the BBM users who had contacted Kerran on the Saturday night, which is why they were making appeals to the public. However, they said that now they would be turning to Kerran’s BBM list to directly seek out those who may have contacted her after the critical time.
With no new clues on where the 25-year-old Jamaica practice nurse could be some 18 days after she was reported missing, police said they would be more aggressive in pursuing those individuals that the police believe may be withholding critical information.
“Rest assured, in the next couple of days my investigators will be knocking on the doors of many of those BBM contacts. We have given sufficient time for them to voluntarily come and speak to us but because of the fact they haven’t we will now go and speak to them,” Bodden said.
Although this is not the only lead that officers are following in the investigation, the senior officer said it was an important one.
Kerran Natale Baker, a Jamaican national also known as KerryAnn, has lived and worked in Cayman for the last two years. She waslast seen on CCTV footage at Foster’s Supermarket near the airport at 7pm on 30 July. Kerran was reported missing to the police on Sunday 31 July after a friend had visited her apartment and found half unpacked groceries on the counter in her apartment in Bodden Town alongside her handbag.
Her white car was discovered parked at Pedro St James around noon on Monday 1 August and the keys were found in the bushes around fifty feet away the following day.
Anyone who may have information on the whereabouts of Kerran is asked to call any of the local police stations, the crime hotline 949 7777, Wilmot Anthony Kerran’s father 321 4271 or Crime Stoppers at 800(TIPS) 8477.
Category: Local News
I feel safer in Jamaica. The entire police force is dressed down with guns, cell phones, bullet prove vest and intelligence. Whenever I am in Jamaica, I am not scared to enter stores or go anywhere because the armed police force is always present. Also, in regards to missing Anna and Kerryann, Jamaican police would have solved that so long by tormenting everybody in these ladies circle. XXXXX
Seriously?
Have you really read what the paper has to say today? 22-Aug-2011
WOW!!
The RCIP Chief Superintendant John Jones says… "We've had nothing concrete to say somebody has done this or somebody has done that to her, but, by virtue of the fact she's been missing 3 weeks now, we fear the worst. We fear that something criminal may have occured".
Really? and your just now coming to the conclusion that something criminal has happened? after 3 weeks…Really? PATHETIC!!!
Perhaps if they have no new information to report, they should probably try to have nothing at all to say, as the more they say, the more inadequate they seem.
Personally, if I had issuses, I now know that the RCIP cannot help! I wonder what the percentage of crime rate solving is vs. what crimes haven't been solved just for the 2011 year alone… 2 people missing within 6-8 months of each other and they cant tell you anything about either.
Pittyful…
The critical factor of any investigation is TIME!
More so, particularly, when the survival of a human's life is involved.
Like many, I am so very very disappointed , that the RCIPS did not take a more AGRESSIVE action to bring in all contacts concerned, as identified from her telepone messages (bbm, text, emal, facebook, etc.) to question.
Its a crying shame that we have to endure such leadership for saferty and security.
In my opinion, this shameful quality of leadership stems from the police commissioner straight down to the heads of the departments – he is no better than them.
It appears to me that those ditrectly heading up the internal affairs of our country has a different agenda when you consider the disolution of our task force and the deafening silence from our present govt who ultimately have the responsibility to ensure that the governor provides our citizens, residents and borders effective protection.
YOU ALL NEED TO STOP DEGRADING THE POLICE FOR THEIR WORK:
Since most of you have posted so many ideas as to how the police should go about doing their job in this case, why don't you come forward and bring the criminals to justice. Obviously, with all the ideas you posted, and I am sure the police has treated everyone's comment as vital to the case, yet your ideas have not materialized toanything. You yourself can't help – the police can only work on what evidence they have and many times,,,,,,,,,,, john public has all the answers, but never a proper fix for the solutions. Stop blowing hot air.
show some respect for the police – you never know when you or a loved one will have to say thank you to them.
The Royal Cayman Islands police force, you are appreciated by sensible people of the Cayman Islands
Many of us do not have the powers of the police or maybe we would have.
I give credit were credit is due. This issue is NOT JUST ON THE POLICE. It's our criminal system also. When they actually do catch someone they either can't make it stick OR the judges give them a slap on teh wrist.
HOWEVER let's get back to the police. Let me simply ask you this…..
Of all the crime you have heard happen ohe past year to two years how many have you heard get solved? Here's a list of bank jobs….
– CNB Countryside
– First Fidelity Central
– Bank of Butterfield Compass Centre
– First Caribbean – Venezia
Has anyone been caught for any of these?
How about other crimes such as the 7 to 9 reflections robberies? How about all the other businesses? How about the shootings?
Come on we want answers?
We need a police department that produces results? I would be the first to pat them on their backs if and when they are successful but solving 10-20% of crime is not what I would term as successful.
I am challenging them to be more aggressive against criminals. I don't care about people running numbers now or who has an expired license. I want to feel safe to go walking. I want to be able to wlak into a store and not have to be looking at the door all the time. I want to know that tourist who think about coming to Cayman is saying it's a safe place to travel.
YES. It's not as bad as some placesbut people that is only time now. If we continue to not demand better performance by our criminal system we will soon be there. Evernight before I go to sleep I find myself wondering did I check to make sure this was locked or that. I find myself always returning to my living room to make sure I fastened the second lock on my front door and that all my windows are locked also. Do you know how uncomfortable that is? Do you know how bad it is when you lie down you have to think WHAT IF I WOKE UP AND SOMEONE WAS IN MY ROOM? WHAT IF I HEAR SOUNDS IN MY LIVING ROOM?
The time to demand action is now not when we have steel bars on our windows.
I will stop degrading the police when and if they become professional and do what they are paid to do. I will stop degrading police when they stop using their cellphones in cars while driving, I will stop degrading police when they take my crime reporting seriously, I will stop degrading police when they get out of their patrol cars and confront criminals, I will stop degrading police when they get more succesful prosecutions and stop bungling evidence while the accused walk free, I will stop degrading police when they stop using patrol cars to pick up wives, girlfriends and children from school, I will stop degrading police when they stop wondering the grocery stores while on duty doing their shopping. I will stop degrading police when they dress properly in the uniform, I will stop degrading police when they turn their attention to solving crime instead of checking licence coupons slowing down traffic.
What has Cayman come to? A "jewel" in the sea? Far from!
What amazes me is all these "courses" the police are sent on to "solve" crime and the truth of the matter is, they cant even solve a puzzle with a cheat sheet.
What the "general" public needs to realize is, that until these "matters of ignorance" start to hit home, only then will you see major things happening.
Hypothetically speaking… do you think if the Govenors son went missing 3 weeks later they still would have no answers? do you think they could realistically tell the Govenor that we still havent found out who had last contact with your son?
Funny enough, perhaps if the ones "trying" to solve the case were'nt so currupt maybe they would acctually get somewhere. And, you want the "people" of the Cayman Islands to trust them? Perhaps they should revisit these few words " WE CARE, WE LISTEN AND WE ACT".
Lol… and thier motto & vision… whats up with that?
Our vision
To maintain a peaceful country where communities and visitors feel safe and secure.
FAILED
Our objective
The purpose of the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service is to uphold the law fairly and firmly; to prevent and detect crime; to pursue and bring to justice those who break the law; to keep the peace and to protect, help and reassure the community with integrity, sound judgment and common sense.
NOT DONE EITHER!!! THREE WEEKS LATER THEY ARE STILL WAITING ON THE PUBLIC TO DO THEIR JOB!!!!!
Our mission
We shall achieve this by focusing on performance, working with our partners, recognizing diversity and human rights and by being compassionate, courteous and patient in our work. We must be professional, calm and restrained when faced with violence, applying only such reasonable force as is necessary to accomplish our lawful duty. We will act with integrity, flexibility and commitment. We will strive to reduce the fears of the public and respond to well-founded criticism with a willingness to learn and change.
HOW CAN THIS BE RIGHT WHEN THEY CANT FOLLOW THRU ON THE FIRST TWO?
So its the polices fault that the people of Cayman are not upright lawabiding citizens, neighbors, and TRUE christians. Bad police. If they would just all quit and go home then Cayman would be just fine. Right?
Yes this is very pathetic.
Can you believe that 18 days into this situation they are JUST getting around to contacting the people who could have had BBM msgs with Ms Baker on the evening in question?
D A M N!!!!!
Listen maybe I care too much about this. Maybe it's because this is my home, the only one I have ever known and maybe the only one I will ever know but I feel sickened to my stomach over what I see happening.
Listen how safe do you feel as a woman say after 5pm in the days now? I am betting that many of you would say not very.
How safe do you feel going into a store after 5pm now?
As a business owner what are your thoughts about crime in Cayman?
Listen these are all relevant things. Long gone are the days of leaving a window open to catch some breeze. We are only a few years off now of bars on our windows ala prisoners in our own homes. We need to WTFU and take a hold of this problem by the throat.
Here we have our police playing nicey in a situation which if you haven't figured it out as yet is a murder investigation. So there is someone out there who has taken the life of another person and probably placed her somewhere where they believe the police will never find her.
In crimes such as this TIME is something you don't have. Every minute wasted is CRITICAL to the case. Evidence,precious evidence is getting washed away or throdden on. People who might remember something is loosing those memories as they fade into the background. Time is not something they can waste and they have WASTED SO F MUCH OF IT. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
18 days people 18 days before they chase some of the most crucial leads they could ever have. These are people who could have had conversations with her in her last hours. These are people who might have been told something or heard something important. These are OBVIOUSLY people who are HIDING something. I say that with 1,000,000,000% confidence. Why? Cause the little blankity blankity blanks would have come forward already and said "here is what I have…." and cleared themselves and allowed the police to possibly gain a tiny bit of insight into her frame of mind on that evening.
This to me is BLATANT stupidity on the police behalf. BLATANT.
I have no problem with asking but I would not been so gentle. Tell them that withholding information is not only against the law but if they are found to be withholding information then they will move from being simply a person of interest to being a suspect in her death.
Let me make it clear to you Mr Policeman why people do not come forward to you so you can understand:
1) You act weak. Pathetically weak.
2) Your weakness translates into incompetence and is played out in cases we have seen you fumble. Just look at the latest to walk off scott free.
3) You do not defend anything with vigilence be it evidence or the people who provide you with this information so people do not feel safe providing the information to you.
So we believe you to be pathetically weak and untrustworthy and yet you BELIEVE we will gift wrap your cases for you. Think again. Start "acting" like police officers and maybe some day we might believe you are. Until then you will have to use "commonsense" and "detective skills" to solve cases. Now I believe 90% of the force needs SERIOUS training. We have DETECTIVES out there that I believe strongly can't find salt water on a dingy in the middle of the atlantic. They need training send them to train.
I don't know about you but lets say I would prefer to spend $1 million dollars training officers to solve crimes than $1 dollar to send McKeeva away on another vacation aka Business trip.
So go train and start solving crimes. 20%-30% success rate on solving crimes is PATHETIC especially on this small Island. You should be waiting for the criminals to come home.
I want to support you I really do BUT you are not helping me either.
We are 1 year and 6 months into the "financial irregularities" case and nothing. Took you 1.5 years to speak on the GT elections situation and you said lack of evidence which I find pathetic considering CNS could post a picture of the evidence and we probably had people lining up from here to East End to be a witnesses. We have Ana who disappeared 6 months ago now and no one iota of information on her is there. We have had multiple bank jobs and NOT ONE SINGLE ARREST. Reflections alone has been hit what 9 times in 1.5 years and not one arrest. Hell the owner may consider start giving frequent robber discounts. People have been shot, one has lost and eye and fighting to save his other and what do you have? NOTHING. You have solved nothing. Look at the case of the West Bay killing. They walked away. So even when you catch someone you can't make your case stick.
Your record is far from spotless, far from spotted either. Actually we stopped looking for black spots and are starting to look for white ones where you actually solve something. That's how DESPERATE we are now.
So TAKE YOUR DARN GLOVES OFF and solve this crime.
Your incompetence is breeding criminal behaviour. The more inept you look the stronger criminals believe they are.
CNS My apologies for probably saying some things as hard as I have but I take this personal. I love my country and it hurts me to see where we are going and we depend on our police to protect us. We count on them to breath FEAR into the criminals. If criminals believe they will not get caught they become more brazen. I don't think our police GET IT YET. I believe this whole thing is flying over their heads how their INCOMPETENCE is aiding the criminal mindset. I know me nailing them is not helping but I believe unless they get called out they will not realise what they are doing. Sometimes people need a wake up call.
Your comments are so true, that you need to join the RCIPS.
What jokers our Police are. Imagine, after finding out the persons who sent BBMs to Kerrann, Instead of going immediately to those persons, no, they sit down and wait for those persons to come to them. Now they announce that they are going to their house doors. If the truth is known, those persons may not even be on the Island now.
It is obvious that the RCIPS needs some serious training in investigating/interviewing. They need to watch 'THE FIRST 48' which is on the A&E TV channel, which comes on 5:00pm. most week days. They say that the first 48 hours after a homicide is committed, is the most critical time to solve the case. This channel is factual cases in Miami and other States.
Instead of Mac running up and down and finding ways to spend tax-payers money, he needs to bring in some FBIs to give courses to our Police. Use his Nation Building Fund to pay them. That will be money well spent. Because if the crime continues on this island the way it is going, we won't even need no Minister of Tourism, because tourist will stop coming here.
As for the Nation Building Fund, before 2009, the church parishioners paid the bills that the Church incurred. His giving the Churches money is only vote buying. However, according to the many disgruntled voters, he can make good of this term as Premier. This position has gone completely to his head. Mind you, I have no qualms about him giving students scholarships or money for After-Schools programs, which in his District the only Church that is operating an After-School program for over 70 students is the John Gray Memorial Church.
HEAR, HEAR!
Well bloody said. Anyone with any sense is saying the same thing.
I am constantly shocked and appalled at this so-called British policing, which actually bears no resemblence to British policing at all. Totally illogical approach.
And this wasn't done 24-hours after she went missing because…??? I'm curious: have the police detectives on Cayman ALWAYS been so clueless and could seemingly care less about the public's safety and well-being? :-/
To 'recent US visitor', firstly, you should've saved your money and gone to Disneyworld, and secondly, in answer to your question, YUP! Until their pay is dependent on their performance, nothing will change. Good officers are run out for being 'trouble makers'.
This shold have been done right after the girl was reported missing! XXXX
This seems like the RCIPS is saying, "Well… nobody came in a solved this crime for us so… damnit… we're going to get off our butts and go out and ASK SOME QUESTIONS!"
Every RCIPS "officer" should be put on notice TO PRODUCE RESULTS OR PACK AND GO HOME!!
To 10:50–all we know is what they tell us. What they just told is is that so far they have not called up the BB messengers to see what they know, much less gone to interview them in person, and that they are only now going to do so "in the next few days." I try to support the police on these comments, but it is getting pretty hard to swallow the incredible BS that they are serving.
you "USERS" of CNS really really crack me up, we all want the matter to be investigated and resolved quickly but this isn’t like the movies, crime wont be solved in 1 hour or 42mins if you don’t count the commercials.
Give the po-po's some time, not everything they do needs to be made public, most times its better that way but in this case they are appealing for BBM contacts who had communications with here to come forward, even if all you said was Hi.
This isn’t a bash the police issue, a young girl is missing, stop cluttering the comments with "IRREVELANT POLICE HATE COMMENTS" ……… go to a Big Mac news post and hate on him.
No one has said anything about likening this case to a TV program. But this case *is* about someone's life and well-being. It's possibly about someone's death — or even their life being currently in danger. So, yes — I think that those who have been saying since the beginning that this case seemed (from all we could glean out of the CNS articles) poorly handled and not taken seriously enough have been right on the money. It's almost been like a bad version of the Keystone Cops. Checking who messaged her should have been done as of the 25th hour of her disappearance. Three weeks later is just ridiculous. Regardless of whether or not this whole thing has been solved by now isn't the issue – it's HOW it's been handled and NOT handled that people have an issue with. And rightly so. If I lived on such a small island with such a small population, I'd be afraid (and ticked off), too.
So happy to see that the RCIP have FINALLY decided to go after the people who may have sent messages to the missing young lady.At least its better late than never.Certainly hope that something substantial will come from this move if for nothing more than to give the family closure but hopefully there will be a happy ending for them.
Nice to see that the 'detectives' are finally trying to 'detect' something, but be careful Bodden, don't let the fists of ham withing the RCIP mess up obtaining this evidence legally.
You're going to be 'aggressive'?. Way to get the potential witnessess on your side. XXXXX
Actually I think he tried nice. Actually to be honest he did TOO MUCH nicey nicey. Wioth every passing day the hopes of finding Ms Baker grows slimmer and slimmer.
These so-called-friends of Kerran's should all be charged with hindering an investigation because they haven't come forward. They should also have to explain to her parents why they did not.
09:42 Where in the Cayman Islands Penal Code did you find this offence? Do you even own or has read the Penal Code? This not a Police state. As much as we want the Police to find the young lady, We cannot manufacture new laws to suit our prposes. Law is not what you or I say. It is based on the written criminal code passed in our Legislative Assembly and signed by our Governor, or embedded in case Judgements of the Court.
The Police cannot force evidence ot of a person. the statement given by our citizens is a voluntay act. If they(police) force out something out of a citizen, this would be thrown out by the Court. You cannot charge a person without evidence and if you arrest a person to squeeze information out of him, this illegal and he can sue the Government and both you and other citizens would be paying for this law suit because government derives revenue from us through taxes. It is written, "Equity will not suffer a wrong without a remedy".
That information doesn't belong to newspaper. Is it a warning to those who might be involved, meaning get lost?
I said the same thing too when I read what the police were planning. Only in the Cayman Islands police warn you in advance that they are coming for you.
Thanks to the many Blogers including Bloger Dred who have being telling the police how to investigate their case that they are now getting up their cushie a** and doing some thing.
I was never one to blame the police but they have been very lax for far too long, get out and do some thing.
Bout time!! Hope unna stories are straight. Should have come forward.
It's about time.This should have been done immediatly after she went missing !
To 22:05 – Boy, they must have read my blog!
The Tech
That is how it works? They have given them time?
Should they not havebeen knocking on doors from day one? Now almost 3 weeks later, many people will not remember something which may have seemed strange at the time.
Pathetic that they are only now taking this action. Such incompetence is why we are in the trouble we are in today.
About blanking time.
Please, pretty please with sugar on it will you come in? Huh?
What part of that is getting tough on crime?
What took them so long?
They had to get the new cars on the rd……………………………..
They were giving those messengers a chance to come forward!! But now they coward!!! They need to check with Immigration and make sure those on the list dont leave the island.
They were waiting on the "real" cop to step in and provide clues however Misty was busy settling a domestic dispute in Palm Dale. Misty please turn your full attn to finding Kerran, we believe in you cuz if you obtain driving skills and learn to talk instead of barking you could damn well be the new commissioner. Watch out Mr. Bains!!