Jesse Ramdeo
Senior Reporter
jesse.ramdeo@cnc3.co.tt
Two days after kidnapping victim Jankie Satie Karim was rescued by police after spending eight days in captivity, residents of Spring Village, Valsayn—where she was snatched—remain gripped by fear and unease.
The once vibrant community is now filled with whispers of worry.
Guardian Media returned to the area yesterday, where residents painted a picture of a shaken community.
Just before midday, police investigators were seen visiting Karim’s family home along Anoop Street as the probe into the brazen kidnapping continued.
Karim, a mother of one, had vanished after being kidnapped on July 13 just metres from her home.
On Monday night, she was dramatically rescued by a team of officers in an abandoned beach house along the Toco Main Road in Rampanalgas, alive but traumatised. A ransom demand was made; however, Guardian Media could not confirm if it was paid.
One suspect, a 24-year-old man from Sea Lots, was shot dead during a confrontation with officers at the scene, while another, identified as Zechariah Williams, 24, from Piarco Old Road, died after a police involved shooting the following day.
But despite the rescue, residents where Karim lives remain in shock.
Speaking under the condition of anonymity, a 55-year-old resident who lives a few houses away from the Karim family said he was grateful that the mother of one was no longer enduring the ordeal.
“I was praying day and night that they release her, and whatever they ask for, they get it, and they let her go. Thank God she is alive. They are good people.”
The man said the brazenness of the kidnapping raised security concerns for those in the area.
“I really can’t even find the words to describe it because it’s not safe anymore. You are not sure about anything; you can walk out the road and you not sure to come back.”
The man said that while he acknowledged the efforts being made by the police to address the crime concerns, there was room for more to be done.
“How much they could really do if they don’t get the help of the people?”
Jerome Boodram, who resides a short distance away from Karim, said he is now fearful about crime in the country after learning about the horrific ordeal his neighbour endured.
“I get frightened and all too, when I see that happen. I does get up early in the morning for work, and you does see cars passing up and down, and you just don’t know who is who at that hour. It really is a scary thing now.”
According to Dianand Sookhai, the vibrancy of Valsayn has faded with the aftershocks of Karim’s kidnapping reverberating throughout the neighbourhood.
“After that incident, safety has gone up more as a small businessman. You know how it does be. Right now we have to be alert.”
With a State of Emergency ongoing, Sookhai added that a curfew should be considered as efforts by law enforcement to peg back criminal elements continue.
