‘Cops kidnapped me’

EIGHTH months ago to the date, Darrell Cuffy was snatched by two masked men, who he suspects are police officers and kept for six months while the kidnappers unsuccessfully begged for a ransom.

In one of the most unusual cases of kidnappings in TT, Cuffy, without a ransom being paid, was released by his kidnappers. Apart from being taken away from his loved ones, blind folded for most of the time in captivity and fending off insects, Cuffy remained unharmed.The 19-year-old's suspicion that those sworn to protect and serve, with pride, kidnapped him, was relayed to Police Commissioner Gary Griffith a few weeks ago.

In an interview with Sunday Newsday on October 9, Cuffy's father, Farrell Cuffy said his son, following his release, told him that he was convinced it was police who kidnapped him. He said his son's reasoning was simple, the kidnappers did not inflict physical harm and while he was in their vehicle he overheard a report about a shooting in the Maraval area.

On April 25, Darrell was snatched as he drove his father’s car in Fairways, Maraval. Footage from surveillance cameras showed he was taken by two men in a dark SUV with blue flashing lights. On October 5 he was released around 1 am near the Caroni Bird Sanctuary and alerted a passer-by who contacted the police. Cuffy was taken to his Port of Spain home and reunited with his family.

The night Cuffy was kidnapped there was a report of a shooting incident in the Maraval area. The two incidents were conflated at first and there were reports that Cuffy was the person shot.

Two weeks before Cuffy was released Griffith met with his parents. Griffith then asked AKU officers to use the information he had received to complete the investigation. This resulted in several places being searched. Cuffy after his release wanted to speak with police only in the presence of Griffith.

"I spoke to him (Darrell) a few weeks ago. We spoke at length and he gave a lot of information that could be of value that could put a closure to this case" Griffith said when asked about the status of the investigation. He added that he could not say more as any ongoing investigation must be kept under wraps as releasing information will compromise the investigation.

When Sunday Newsday contacted Darrell, last week, he said he spoke to Griffith and had put the matter behind him and was leaving it in the hands of the Police Commissioner. Since giving his statement directly to Griffith, Cuffy said he has had no communication with the top cop.

"Yeah they (police) had a part to play in my kidnapping" he said adding that he was now "over that".

During the interview in October, Farrell said after his son confided in him, he believed him and believed that the meeting he and his wife had with Griffith led to his kidnappers releasing him. He added then that there is some sort of kidnapping syndicate as most of the kidnapping he had heard of from news outlets always hinted that the kidnappers held their victims in a remote bushy area, just as his son was.

He said then that when his first born son was released, his hair was matted and his face two-toned from being blindfolded. He also lost significant weight. Cuffy in dismissing suggestions that his son faked the kidnapping to squeeze cash out of him, said his children were not raised in such a way.