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Trip to the Dominican Republic turns into a vacation from hell: ‘We’ve lost everything’
most every drug mule and dealer in prison says they were set up. They ALL claim to be living at the foot of the cross, being good students, taking care of their sick parents after they get arrested. I say bogus!!
‘YOUR AVERAGE AMERICAN TOURISTS’
Loertscher, the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation director, called the Nalus brothers “your average American tourists,” and said the foundation believes the trio is being “unlawfully and wrongfully detained” under criteria for the Levinson Act.ROBERT LEVINSON HOSTAGE RECOVERY AND HOSTAGE.
Are they now hostages???
During covid lockdown three former Haitians on vacation in the DR.
As Haitians they should know something about the DR.
The authors of the Miami Herald opinion piece should know enough to understand,
Once one sets foot into a foreign country, one is subject to that countries laws and customs.
If the State Department desires to do so, they could strenuously protest and that's where it ends.
Unless the President and his government enact sanctions against the DR, to protest.
Don't see that happening.
If you are an average American Tourist who was born in Iran, Iraq, Libya, China, Russia (to name a few) you may be better of to book a vacation in an other country, than your home country.
In reality we don't know what really happened behind the scenes in the DR, with the three former Haitians.
Maybe the president will authorize a seal team to liberate the three US "hostages" under the cover of night.
No doubt the situation is similar in the DR, to political hostages held in Iran.
Appalling idiocy, by the Herald authors.
Read more here: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/article252302093.html#storylink=cpy
Wasn't this reported here earlier----?
I seem to remember reading it... 4 Kilos under the hood etc
I seem to remember reading it... 4 Kilos under the hood etc
It says:
I will be a year old in a few weeks. It's impossible it would've lasted this long without an article somewhere.
In this other article from Sept 20, 2020 it says they were released from prison and they were required to stay in the country for the following two months as the investigation continued. The article does say "the National Police believes is marijuana," but in the first Ministerio Público document shown in the Miami Herald at the end of the first paragraph it says "forensic analysis determines it was Cannabis." In the Miami Herald it says they were arrested on Aug 2, but there is no date in the article below. In either case, Sept 20 is a long way from Aug 2, long enough for the result of a forensic review of any substance confiscated at an arrest.
Delray Beach brothers freed from Dominican Republic prison, lawyers say
Three brothers from Delray Beach, imprisoned for more than a month in the Dominican Republic for a crime they insist they did not commit, were released Friday, according to family members and lawyers. Lovensky, Lonelson, and John Nalus were arrested in early August and charged with transporting...
cbs12.com
This other article from May 7, 2021 now claims "a mechanic claimed to have found a four pound brick of marijuana inside the car while fixing it," but no mention that a forensic analysis was done and it determine that in fact it was marijuana. To make matters worst, it doesn't mentions the National Police who were the ones that presented to the forensic what was confiscated in the car of the three guys for further testing.
Delray Beach brothers remain stuck in Dominican Republic after arrest
Three brothers from Delray Beach, arrested almost a year ago in the Dominican Republic, are still not allowed to leave that nation and return home, according to interviews with the brothers and family members in the U. S. Lonelson, Lovensky, and John Nalus were arrested in early August 2020 and...
cbs12.com
I say there is an attempt to make the accusations bogus and they are using any means possible to create that in the hopes charges woukd be dropped and they can lesve for the USA. The DR is not the place to be caught transporting drugs, even a little bit of marijuana. Some people learn the hard way.
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Friday - March 7 2021
..."In September, CBS12 News obtained what appeared to be arrest records for all of the five men in the car. A cell phone number was written next to signatures of a Dominican Republic police officer. When CBS12 News called the number, Officer Eduardo Pulinario answered.
In Spanish, Officer Pulinario confirmed to CBS12 News he recalled the events surrounding the brothers’ arrest. He said a mechanic found the package of suspected drugs near the transmission in the rental car, adding he believed the mechanic had no motive to lie or plant the drugs."...
From https://cbs12.com/news/local/delray-beach-brothers-remain-stuck-in-dominican-republic-after-arrest
..."In September, CBS12 News obtained what appeared to be arrest records for all of the five men in the car. A cell phone number was written next to signatures of a Dominican Republic police officer. When CBS12 News called the number, Officer Eduardo Pulinario answered.
In Spanish, Officer Pulinario confirmed to CBS12 News he recalled the events surrounding the brothers’ arrest. He said a mechanic found the package of suspected drugs near the transmission in the rental car, adding he believed the mechanic had no motive to lie or plant the drugs."...
From https://cbs12.com/news/local/delray-beach-brothers-remain-stuck-in-dominican-republic-after-arrest
Five armed mercenaries got free in Haiti with such pressure. There is a lot that can happen behind the scenes on some of these types of things. How else would you logically explain that they walked out of there, got on a commercial flight and left Haiti dealing with a scandal?
There is video of how it went down in the Miami Herald and a guy who isn't a police officer handling and tossing the package back into the car. Without the videos filmed from two different cameras, it would be a different story. Interestingly no one seems to be attacking the video as bogus.
The video vindicates much of what they have been saying. Prosecutors failing to show up, mishandling of "evidence" by a non-officer isn't a good look on due process rights and chain of custody.
Time will tell but it doesn't look like the prosecution will be able to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt. The prosecution seems to be looking for a way out of the mess. Cell phones, passports returned, failure to comply with procedures, one can see where this headed sooner or later.
The marijuana package was found near the transmission by the mechanic. How can the transmission be near the back of the car (unless its a Porsche, which it isn't)? Not only it's cited in the article presented by Mouintainannie, but it also says it on the Ministerio Público form shown in the link in the first post. One of the tourist guys added oil to the car before the mechanic went in and found the package next to the transmission.
It also begs the question how can a marijuana package appear near the transmission?
The only other possibility is that it was there since before they rented the car, perhaps placed there by the previous renter and for whatever reason "forgot it" before returning the car to the rental place.
Another reason to inspect a car from top to bottom before you rent it.
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If the video exonerates them, then why isn't someone standing on the roof and screaming at the US State Dept. Is the vid really that conclusive?
the US State Department can not actually do a thing for a citizen who has broken a law or is incarcerated in a foreign country except send a Consular officer to visit, make contact with families at home, perhaps provide a list of English speaking attorneys. You can see that the US has had great difficulty in getting its citizens out of -- well Russia, Iran, North Korea --- etc... The State Department is certainly not going to trouble itself over a marijuana bust in the DR.
It may just be a message that the DR is sending back to the Haitian community here in South Florida. That would be my best guess.
Sounds like the message is in fact loud and clear. If you're involved with drugs you are going to be locked up. All the songs and dance's that are done in the U.S don't go over so we'll here. The tired old "it was planted on me" claim is used by every low life dealer and mule.
A few points that could apply to such a situation:
A very large amount of drugs is certainly running into and/or through the DR each and every day.
One needs to just read the daily news to see the almost daily drug busts with only the names changing of those arrested, the location, the type of drugs and the quantities. Otherwise a simple template is need to write those stories. Officials and police are frequently involved in these drug businesses. Some of these drugs are likely to go missing from storage after being captured.
Dominicans can tell with 90% or better accuracy by looking at someone if they have Haitian origins. I can vouch for this personally as I have experienced that determination countless times.
A possible situation here is that the drugs were planted by the DR police to capture and entrap people of Haitian origin visiting from the US. I don't find that as implausible as some do.
A very large amount of drugs is certainly running into and/or through the DR each and every day.
One needs to just read the daily news to see the almost daily drug busts with only the names changing of those arrested, the location, the type of drugs and the quantities. Otherwise a simple template is need to write those stories. Officials and police are frequently involved in these drug businesses. Some of these drugs are likely to go missing from storage after being captured.
Dominicans can tell with 90% or better accuracy by looking at someone if they have Haitian origins. I can vouch for this personally as I have experienced that determination countless times.
A possible situation here is that the drugs were planted by the DR police to capture and entrap people of Haitian origin visiting from the US. I don't find that as implausible as some do.
Yes. This message has been out there for ages....ages. Further to the point of "profiling"...while waiting for your luggage at JFK from the DR, take a look at the immigration police standing at the exit line and around the carousel. Watch how they observe and then try and guess those that are going to secondary screening. It's interesting because I have been stopped two times in the past year. In my case I know why and I understand.Single guy, very little luggage and a passport loaded with stamps. But all and all they catch people for sure.
I tend to agree with you. How many times I have seen Dominicans riding down the street on their motors, passing the police without helmets. As soon as Haitian are passing, they are stopped, questioned and then beaten up. Countless times I have seen this. Ask any Haitian. They live in fear here. Those visiting from the US are naive. They are not accustomed to this. Thus, this time I agree with Windy.
Never seen that. It has to be different at the various locales.
And for sure, they miss many. Hence the daily news stories. One just the other day at POP of a catch ! But how many made it through?