Readers of Barbados Free Press will recall that as the election approached during the last half of 2007 and into 2008, numerous death threats were posted on the internet against various persons including local hotelier and citizen journalist Adrian Loveridge.
Also, within one 24-hour period, there were suspicious happenings at Loveridge’s home and business – a nighttime break-in, a fire and most chilling: a ladder left up against Adrian’s bedroom window in the small hours of the night as a none-to-subtle message.
Barbados Free Press and other blogs supplied Adrian Loveridge with the IP numbers of the person(s) who had posted the threats against Loveridge, his family and his business.
These IP numbers would allow the police and Cable & Wireless to immediately identify the physical address and internet account from which the threats were made – and if they really were interested in knowing the identity of the criminal – to monitor the criminal’s internet activities to catch them in the act as the threats were ongoing for months.
On December 29, 2007, Mr. Loveridge wrote a letter to then Prime Minister Owen Arthur that we published on December 31, 2007 in our article Barbados Death Threats: Copy Of Letter From Adrian Loveridge To Prime Minister Owen Arthur.
On January 2, 2008, Adrian Loveridge faxed a letter of complaint to Commissioner of Police Dottin – which included enough information for the police and Cable and Wireless to know the identity of the person making the death threats.
We have no doubt that Cable and Wireless and the Royal Barbados Police Force are now fully aware of the identity of the criminal(s).
So… what happened?
Nothing at all. That’s what.
Then Mr. Loveridge received a fax from the police, but only after we published criticism of the police in our January 9, 2008 article Barbados Police Ignore Death Threats Against Hotel Owner – How Will Other Offshore Investors React?
Here is what the letter from the police said as contained in a comment posted by Mr. Loveridge on January 11, 2008…
Yesterday (10th January 2008) I received a faxed letter dated 9th January 2008 from the Office of The Commissioner stating,
‘Subject Death Threats – I wish to inform you that the matter is being investigated and you will be informed of the progress in due course’.
Your faithfully
Jedder Robinson Supt.
Head of Special Branch
for Commission of Police.I am grateful for the response and sincerely hope that with the assistance of Cable and Wireless, the Police will be able to identify and prosecute the sender (s) of the various threats.
Comment by Adrian Loveridge (original here)
Tell Us What Happened, Mr. Loveridge
Did the police go to Cable & Wireless with a warrant or some legal document to compel C&W to reveal the identity of the criminal? Were charges laid? Did the police explain their actions to you and keep you informed of the progress of their enquiries? When do you testify in court?
Tell us, Adrian…
What happens when an investor and business person on Barbados is threatened by a criminal whose identity can be known in five minutes with the records from Cable & Wireless? What happened, Adrian?