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Old 23-06-2006, 03:24   #1
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Murder in Venezuela

Double Murder at Marina Bahia Redonda ~ Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela

Pierre and Marie Roelens, owners of PR Yacht Services* in Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela, were shot and killed on Monday morning (June 12, 2006).

PR Yacht Services, according to its website, has a marina with 150 slips for boats up to 90 feet, and a 50-ton travel-lift with full dry-dock and repair facilities. It is one of the largest marinas and boatyards in the area.

The Roelens had gone to the bank and were followed to the boatyard's gate. Thieves then fired bullets into the windscreen of their car, fatally wounding the couple.

Besides owning the marina and boatyard, the Roelens were also involved in the local yachting scene. They began the Clasico Regatta** in 2004 to promote the country's extensive cruising grounds. Pierre Roelens had been a resident in Venezuela for 60 years.

According to “Noonsite”: http://www.noonsite.com/Members/doina/R2006-06-13-1
”... Two days later, rumors abounded about possible reasons for revenge as those who knew Pierre and Maria Eugenia gathered for the double funeral. Colleagues noted that the murders weren’t random; police had no comment on the connection and were still looking for the shooters ... The shooting would appear to not be random or haphazard and had little to do with the average cruiser in the area.”

* PR Yacht Service: http://bahiaredonda.com/br/boatyard.php
”On Monday morning, June 12, Pierre Roelens, our boatyard manager, and his wife Maria Eugenia were killed on the way to the boatyard by persons unknown.

Bahia Redona's management and his co-workers are deeply saddened by this tragic loss. May their souls rest in peace.”


** Clasico Regatta:
http://www.bahiaredonda.com/regatta/index.php
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Old 24-06-2006, 09:12   #2
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"The Roelens had gone to the bank and were followed to the boatyard's gate. Thieves then fired bullets into the windscreen of their car, fatally wounding the couple."

Leaving the implication that thieves simply shot and robbed a rich business man who had just taken a lot of money out of the bank. Had they in fact just taken out a lot of money, and perhaps been followed out of the bank?

Or is that just a touch of disinformation?
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Old 24-06-2006, 11:20   #3
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The Facts, Ma'am, Just the Facts…

Quote:
hellowsailor posted:
Had they in fact just taken out a lot of money, and perhaps been followed out of the bank?
That is the assumption here, as is also the assumption that this was a planned hit (the killers had to have observed the Roelen's behavior in the past and predicted the same behavior in the future).

The article is not explicit on these points. Not dis-information, which would indicate an intent to mislead; just incomplete reporting that leaves some questions hanging in the air for readers to make their own inferences about.
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Old 24-06-2006, 13:15   #4
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"just incomplete reporting "

Or as some newspaper banners should read "All the news that fit to wrap fish!". Sometimes, they'll put a slant on things for a purpose. For Venezuela I could easily see a newspaper deciding "Let's call it a bank robbery gone wrong, rather than a mob hit on yachties, which might impact the tourism industry."
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Old 24-06-2006, 14:46   #5
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Let's call it a bank robbery gone wrong, rather than a mob hit on yachties, which might impact the tourism industry.
This wasn't reported as a bank robbery, gone wrong, or any other way. It was reported as the murder/robbery of a couple who were apparently returning from the bank, and whose next stop (the marina) was anticipated.

Rumors of a mob retaliation circulated at the funeral, but we don't have any information about any actions committed by the couple that a mafioso hit might have been based on. So we are left with a vacuum. Filling in that vacuum with speculation doesn't help get at the truth, and only stirs up sensationalism.

If you can provide examples of similar situations in that area (organized criminal activity covered up by law officials), you can begin to build a circumstantial case.

This guy's "crime" seemed to be promoting yachting and the associated tourism it would bring to the area. Can't figure how that would anger the local godfather.
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Old 24-06-2006, 16:04   #6
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Jeff, I didn't say, or mean to imply, that this was a "mob hit" or anything else. I did say that what passes for nooze and journalism these days often is intentional distortion, either by action or omission. (Some surprisingly well-thought newspapers, even here in the US, simply do not cover substantial events. Or conveniently fail to research what they do cover, i.e. a couple of years ago one of them reported a B52 would be making a supersonic pass over a major urban area as part of a July 4th celebration. That's physically impossible, even with a tailwind.)
The story does beg speculation though. Was the bank relevant? If it wasn't, why mention it, why not just say someone followed them on their routine business? Was it simply a murder? Or was it a robbery as well?
It is not unknown for murders to be committed for common reasons, i.e. "I want to buy your marina to put up condos, sell out or I'll kill you." Or, "What do you mean, you won't allow me to sell drugs in your property?" Or even "You donated money to my opponent, I told you not to do that."

Happens on a daily basis, all over the world. Even in the US "You stepped on my new shoes and scuffed them, you're a dead man" has literally happened.

Just curious to know what happened down there. It's unlikely that two people were "just" murdered, although again, even in the US, that happens. (Gang bangers will stab people at random in order to be initiated.)
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Old 24-06-2006, 18:01   #7
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Hello,
Quote:
I did say that what passes for nooze and journalism these days often is intentional distortion, either by action or omission.
I agree we have that here, too, when we have a healthy, growing economy, and a major paper prints a dour headline like Job Creation Rate Fails to Meet Expectations. Pul-eeze.

I have no quarrel with you, and I don't think we're too far apart here.

It would be helpful to know what that bank transaction was. If any kind of a substantial withdrawl, we can close the books on motive. But business people regularly make deposits, which might remove a simple "robbery with no regard for human life" explanation, and open the field to other theories. That is a key piece of evidence in this case.

I don't see randomness here, either: those guys were waiting for that couple to arrrive, whatever their motive.

Your example of the super-sonic B-52 is an example of mis-information. This article's fault is lack of complete information, not quite as bad a journalistic sin.

This thread is just about had it, don't you agree? lol Must be a slow topic day, for us to spill ink on something like this.

Fair Winds, and remember to use those little mirrors @ the ATM,
Jeff
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Old 24-06-2006, 19:02   #8
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"But business people regularly make deposits, which might" Yes, let's wait until AFTER someone makes a deposit, and then rob him. Sounds like the kind of robbers you see on Fox5.<G> OTOH, if he had made a withdrawl for payday or something...that's when I'd expect to see mention of a robbery.

But why set up an ambush in the car when it would be so simple to find them other ways?

Not that I'll lose sleep over not knowing the details, I just hate to see half of a story. And...in fast segue...I once heard the tail end of a joke over a CB while driving cross-country long ago. Bothered the heck out of me that it seemed like a good ending, but I just didn't know what the joke was. (Pre-internet, who could look up jokes?!)

Five months later someone starts to tell a joke at a dinner meeting, and I started laughing. I just KNEW it was going to be the first half I'd been waiting for.<G> One of the many variations of three men on a plane with two parachutes, all new back then.
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Old 24-06-2006, 21:28   #9
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That's funny, around here we laugh at the end of the joke…
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Old 25-06-2006, 08:18   #10
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Ok Hellosailor:

What was the joke?
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Old 25-06-2006, 08:41   #11
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I'll ruin it for you and give you the gist of the punch line:

Planes gonna crash, engines out, four souls on board and only three parachutes. First VIP explains why he has to live, grabs a parachute and bails. Second one does the same thing. That's when the pilot explains to you that the smartest man in the world (whoever #2 claimed to be) just grabbed his rucksack and there's still two parachutes left.

You've probably heard it old with politicians (originally a Kissinger & Nixon joke AFAIK), or Bill Gates, or any number of other "insert name here" for the #2 jumper.
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Old 25-06-2006, 11:02   #12
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Moral of the story: allways carry-on a rucksack, and know what it looks like, for just such an emergency…
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Old 25-06-2006, 22:18   #13
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Now I remember that one. Its been years since I heard it. I think it was Kissinger I heard it with.
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Old 06-07-2006, 04:35   #14
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We spent much time at Bahia redonda marina in the last few years and knew Pierre.

We have chatted with friends still there and they are reporting that they were shot 3 times each and not robbed. The one rumor was that Pierre refused to modify a boat to hual drugs, which is a big problem.

It is a shame to see this and it will impact Venezuela. But this type of crime happens all over the world and is not a cruiser specific crime.
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Old 01-10-2006, 20:38   #15
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It's horrible to hear these stories. Every time, the world of cruising gets smaller and uglier.
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