Norwegian Held

[Mr Lee]

And the saga continues, and it sure seems like this couple is being railroaded but the fact that they would not give up the password to their computer does not look good for them, yet I do not blame them because evidence could then be planted.Kidnapping with homicide raps filed versus Norwegian, Pinay

[FlyAway]

And the saga continues, and it sure seems like this couple is being railroaded but the fact that they would not give up the password to their computer does not look good for them, yet I do not blame them because evidence could then be planted.Kidnapping with homicide raps filed versus Norwegian, Pinay

Quote from the article:The police wanted to open the laptop to check the files contained in its hard disk, but the suspects would not allow them to just do so without the presence of their lawyer.Smart move to request his lawyer be present. The media sure is handling this whole thing like a grocery store tabloid. Inquiring minds want to know all the juicy irrelevant details. When a law enforcement officer reads you your rights, pay attention to the first sentence. This is from the Philippine Constitution.Article 3, Section 12 (1) of the Constitution, which provides:

Any person under investigation for the commission of an offense shall have the right to be informed of his right to remain silent and to have competent and independent counsel preferably of his own choice. If the person cannot afford the services of counsel, he must be provided with one. These rights cannot be waived except in writing and in the presence of counsel.

I take this to mean.... shut up and wait for a lawyer if arrested and charged.

[Mr Lee]

Another update that shows they are probably innocent Their alibi checks out. So why do you think the police still charged this couple? Remember this could have been any one of us who was charged. So do you feel that we are safe from false charges being filed against us here? The Norwegian engineer and his Cebuana fiancee who were charged yesterday by the police with kidnapping and homicide were telling the truth when they said they were in Cebu City in the afternoon of Feb. 8, when 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique was abducted by a car-riding couple in the southern town of Minglanilla.That's what agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in Central Visayas (NBI-7) will report to Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia.She called in the civilian agency yesterday to validate the couple's story, amid doubts that police had rushed to file a case with weak evidence.NBI agents followed the itinerary described by 49-year-old Sven Erik Berger and Karen Esdrelon, 24, who are at the center of Cebu's most controversial case of child-snatching and suspected human trafficking.NBI agents talked to staff of the Norwegian Language School in Lahug, where the sweethearts visited to enroll Esdrelon in a language course about 3:30 p.m of Feb. 8.Agents viewed security videotapes of the Waterfront Lahug Hotel, whose camera recorded the couple checking in at 4:40 p.m.But that didn't stop the Cebu provincial police from filing charges against the couple for the “complex crime” of kidnapping with homicide and violation of the Anti-Trafficking of Persons Act. Ellah Joy was abudcted about 4 p.m.as she and other pupils were walking home from the Calajoan Elementary School in Minglanilla town on Feb. 8.Witnesses said a woman with a Caucasian male driving a black sports utility vehicle stopped by and persuaded the little girl to accept a ride home with them. The woman, a slim, dark-skinned Filipina with long straight hair, pretended to know Ellah Joy's mother.The NBI-7 findings about the suspects' whereabouts on Feb. 8 were not part of the evidence cited by police in their charges.NBI-7 Director Edward Villarta said his men just have to finish verifying the couple's itinerary and submit a report to Governor Garcia.“Hindi na kami pumasok dahil nafile na sa piskal. Bahala na and piskal to determine kung ifile sa court o idismiss. (The NBI-7 could no longer intervene in the case because charges have been filed before the prosecutor. It's now up to the prosecutor to decide whether to file the case in court or order its dismissal),” Villarta told Cebu Daily News.Governor Garcia is chairman of a new Provincial Anti-Crime Taskforce, and even dropped in the police camp last Sunday to meet Berger and Esdrelon who were undergoing investigation.She apparently wasn't satisfied with the progress.Governor Garcia called Villarta on the phone yesterday and asked the NBI-7 to verify the couple's claim that they were nowhere near the scene of the crime in Minglanilla town on Feb. 8 when the little girl was kidnapped.Ellah Joy's naked body turned up on Feb. 9, wrapped in blankets and stuffed in a sack that was dumped off a cliff in Barili town on the other side of Cebu island. There was no sign of rape but the girl was killed with a blow to the head.Defense lawyer Salvador Solima said he is optimistic the charges against his clients will be dismissed as a case of “mistaken identity.”While the suspects were “positively identified by three children, who are Ellah Joy's classmates, “documentary evidence cannot be disproved,” the lawyer said in an interview.He urged the NBI-7 to conduct a separate investigation to find out who the real killers are.He also suggested that the young witnesses undergo a lie detector test because they may have been coaxed to pinpoint the couple.The trail followed by NBI-7 agents yesterday included private offices, the Norwegian Consulate, two hotels in Lapu-Lapu and Cebu City, and Tuburan town, northwest Cebu where the couple said they spent time with each other before they were arrested last Saturday.Berger had flown into Cebu from Norway on Feb. 7.NBI-7 agents traced his movements from the day he arrived to Feb. 12, when the couple were arrested at the airport.They gathered a receipt and testimonies from the owner of the Norweigan language school in Cebu City.They talked to the waiter of Family Choice restaurant next door who confirmed the presence of Berger and Esdrelon who ate there past 4 p.m. Of Feb. 8.The security management of Waterfront Hotel in Cebu City can also attest that the two suspects stayed in the hotel based on the hotel's closed-circuit television (CCTV).NBI-7 Assistant Director Lauro Reyes and Supervising Agent Rennan Augustus Oliva went to the Sigvathsen Norweigan Language School in Cebu City.Its owner Vernel Christy Gaviola-Sigvathsen confirmed that the couple dropped in around 3:30 pm last Feb. 8 to enroll for Norweigan language studies and left about 4:10 p.m.Sigvathsen said she personally signed the receipt to prove that the couple paid P2,000 as reservation fee with Esdrelon's classes to start on Feb. 28.“I'm willing to testify. Around five people, including me, two receptionists, and two students can attest that Berger and Esdrelon were here,” Sigvathsen said.Sigvathsen said she was “shocked” to learn from media reports about the couple's arrest.“We are sure they (suspects) are innocent unless they can travel to Minglanilla in 20 minutes),” she said.Sigvathsen said the couple arrived at about 3:30 pm and left at around 4:10 in the afternoon.Sigvathsen, a Filipina, said her Norweigan husband was upset with the case.“We are very disappointed. Journalists from Norway hid their (suspects) identities in their reports. But here comes the local media, revealing their names and photos. No clear investigation was made,” she said.Sigvathsen also expressed disappointment over the police arrest.“Its a big embarassment for these two people. Shame is irreparable. Why were they indentified as suspects? They were here (when the adbuction happened). The statement I gave was the truth,” she said.The NBI-7 yesterday took Sigvathsen's testimonies.The couple's itinerary that day included checking out of Days Hotel in Lapu-Lapu City, visiting Colon Street, Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño and Metro Gaisano Colon.The next day, Feb. 9, the couple went to the the Norwegian Consulate to apply for a tourist visa for Esdrelon before they took a rented car with driver to go to Tuburan town, where they stayed until Feb. 11.The NBI-7 was able to confirm the couple's visit to the Keppel Building, site of the consultate, at around 3 p.m. Based on the guard's logbook. Another NBI-7 group went to Tuburan, Esdrelon's hometown.

[Dave Hounddriver]

"He also suggested that the young witnesses undergo a lie detector test because they may have been coaxed to pinpoint the couple."Do lie detectors work on children? If they do I wish I had one when my kids were growing up.Anyway, I do know from my own experience that local children have great judgement in recognizing foreigners they have only seen once. My question would be when did they see that particular couple? I would guess they are describing a generic foreigner using their memories of one foreigner they have see or seen a picture of.

[Old55]

The fact is we do not know what the facts are.I do hope the true perpetrators whoever they may be are found and justice is served quickly and mercilessly. It could be those two are guilty we just don't know.Truth facts and justice are rarely found in Philippines and we each must keep this in mind while we are in the country. There is a very dangerous and dark down side to this lovely place.

[Mr Lee]

So now more comes out, seems two $50 bills were in the girls school bag, so would that not lead one to believe that the kidnapper was possibly an American and not a Norwegian? Now I do not wish to besmirch this young girl reputation in any way, but is that makeup and lipstick I see on her? If so why the heck is a 6 year old wearing those items? Could it be to make her look older? If so then one must ask ones self why? As this story unfolds with a child pimp being one of the witnesses, kind of has to make one think.

The girl’s school bag was recovered nearby. Police found two P50 bills in the bag, which the victim’s father said must have come from the suspects as he does not give his daughter money.

The complete story HERE

[FlyAway]

So now more comes out, seems two $50 bills were in the girls school bag, so would that not lead one to believe that the kidnapper was possibly an American and not a Norwegian? Now I do not wish to besmirch this young girl reputation in any way, but is that makeup and lipstick I see on her? If so why the heck is a 6 year old wearing those items? Could it be to make her look older? If so then one must ask ones self why? As this story unfolds with a child pimp being one of the witnesses, kind of has to make one think.

The girl’s school bag was recovered nearby. Police found two P50 bills in the bag, which the victim’s father said must have come from the suspects as he does not give his daughter money.

The complete story HERE

Mr. Lee, I think P50 refers to 50 Peso Bills (Notes), not $50 bills. Maybe the kidnapper was a local now? Right now there is so much miss information floating around. To much "I / we will sue" blah, blah, blah. All the talk of suing over libel and slander is a probably a big reason no one ever will admit to being wrong about anything concerning this investigation. Worse thing you can do to inflame a person is call them a lier. If this is a case of mistaken identity then stop all the ego posturing and move on. Use good investigative techniques and find those guilty. Build a good solid case and prosecute.

[Mr Lee]

So now more comes out, seems two $50 bills were in the girls school bag, so would that not lead one to believe that the kidnapper was possibly an American and not a Norwegian? Now I do not wish to besmirch this young girl reputation in any way, but is that makeup and lipstick I see on her? If so why the heck is a 6 year old wearing those items? Could it be to make her look older? If so then one must ask ones self why? As this story unfolds with a child pimp being one of the witnesses, kind of has to make one think.

The girl’s school bag was recovered nearby. Police found two P50 bills in the bag, which the victim’s father said must have come from the suspects as he does not give his daughter money.

The complete story HERE

Mr. Lee, I think P50 refers to 50 Peso Bills (Notes), not $50 bills. Maybe the kidnapper was a local now? Right now there is so much miss information floating around. To much "I / we will sue" blah, blah, blah. All the talk of suing over libel and slander is a probably a big reason no one ever will admit to being wrong about anything concerning this investigation. Worse thing you can do to inflame a person is call them a lier. If this is a case of mistaken identity then stop all the ego posturing and move on. Use good investigative techniques and find those guilty. Build a good solid case and prosecute.

Whoops! Thank you for pointing out my error, :541: I am pretty sure that I read it in another news story where it said $50 and I guess I did not bother to reread this one when I posted it, so who knows what is correct but either way the father said he did not give her any money, so where did she get it. It is just a shame that whoever did it, if not this couple, is probably long gone by now.

[MikeB]

Now I do not wish to besmirch this young girl reputation in any way, but is that makeup and lipstick I see on her? If so why the heck is a 6 year old wearing those items? Could it be to make her look older? If so then one must ask ones self why? As this story unfolds with a child pimp being one of the witnesses, kind of has to make one think.

Don't little girls sometimes play by putting on lipstick and makeup?

[Mr Lee]

Now I do not wish to besmirch this young girl reputation in any way, but is that makeup and lipstick I see on her? If so why the heck is a 6 year old wearing those items? Could it be to make her look older? If so then one must ask ones self why? As this story unfolds with a child pimp being one of the witnesses, kind of has to make one think.

Don't little girls sometimes play by putting on lipstick and makeup?

The answer is probably yes, but of all the little girls I know, and I know of many in just my wifes family and surrounding families, and the many young ladies that I see walking around the malls here in the Philippines, rarely if ever do I see any wearing makeup unless it is for a show or something along those lines. Heck my wife hardly ever wore makeup before she met me and not too many adults here seem to get all dolled up either. Added, and if she was my little girl then she would not be wearing makeup. Most Filipinas are naturally beautiful and do not need makeup.