JENSEN LA VENDE and KALIFA CLYNE
German authorities are discussing whether they will send police to Tobago to help investigate the murders of German citizens Hubertus and Birgid Keil. The Keils were found hacked to death near their home at Minister’s Bay, Bacolet, shortly after 11 am on Saturday. They died from chop wounds to the back of the heads, which almost decapitated them. The couple was last seen the Thursday before their murders.
Police said they found the couple’s villa locked and in a pristine condition. The Keils lived alone and had been visiting Tobago annually for the past 20 years during the winter months. Speaking with the T&T Guardian yesterday, Chargé d’Affaires Dr Michael Freudenberg said the decision to send members of the German Federal Police had not yet been taken but had been discussed.
Freudenberg said the standing advisory for Germans planning to visit this country also had been updated and now warned people to be careful in Port-of-Spain and not to go to certain areas in T&T alone and after hours. He added that the updated advisory now included the murder of the couple. Asked about funeral arrangements, Freudenberg said that was up to the family, who were too distraught to speak with the local media.
“The German media do not take photographs and interview the relatives of victims of crime like here,” Freudenberg said, adding it would be a culture shock for their daughter. The story of the Tobago murders has featured prominently in German media, such as Das Bild, a tabloid paper, and Die Welt, a more conservative daily.
“We were shocked and horrified when we learned of this, which was not the first tragic incident that took place in that area. We only hope that this time the perpetrator would be caught,” Freudenberg said.
Hate crime by serial killers?
The Keils’ neighbour, Malcolm Johnson, a British citizen, said yesterday he thought the attack, and those on other foreigners in the past, were committed by a xenophobic serial killer at the request of high officials. He said in Tobago there was a disdain for foreigners which he himself had experienced and said that xenophobia was rooted in the island’s drive for independence
“This is undoubtedly a hate crime. There is a lot of resentment in Tobago towards foreigners. Expats are voiceless there because they are afraid of reprisals and there is a lack of assistance from the police there,” Johnson said in a telephone interview. Foreigners and local residents plan to meet on Saturday at the Buccoo Integrated Centre to discuss the couple’s murder, he said, adding that something has to be done.
Johnson also plans to hold a march against violence within the next two weeks in honour of his neighbours and as a signal to the attackers that the foreign residents will not be intimidated. He said the Keils viewed Tobago as their Utopia and were kind and thoughtful. He added: “We will not allow their lives and those of victims of the past to be lost in vain and we will do all we can to create awareness to the increasingly worrying issues of violence on this island.
“For too long now on Tobago, longer than the 20 years I've been coming here, serious crimes have been committed with little or no resolve and sadly quickly swept into oblivion.” On his Facebook page he said he and other overseas residents were hoping to organise a peaceful protest march,
"‘The Freedom of Violence Walk’, soon will boost the awareness to these issues in memory of all those victims who have fallen as a result of this senseless violence over the years. Enough is enough and we have to make it clear that this trend cannot go on,” he stated.
Official reactions:
In a media release yesterday, National Security Minister Gary Griffith said he was paying special interest to the case. Saying it had the potential to damage the country’s reputation with the international community and erode the benefits of much of the gains made in the war against crime, he said:
“The Ministry of National Security remains committed to its efforts to the reduction of crime in Tobago through the provision of additional maritime assets, police vehicles and manpower, with specific air assets dedicated to Tobago operations.
“An expanded CCTV system to provide islandwide coverage is in train and is evident that all the tools necessary to complement all anti-crime initiatives on the island are being sourced to enhance this effort.” Contacted yesterday on Johnson’s suggestion, acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams said he was in a meeting and would not be able to respond at the time. A text message was sent to him but up to press time he had not responded.
During a press conference in Tobago on Monday, Williams said the investigation would be given priority and a $100,000 reward is being offered for assistance in catching the perpetrators. A hotline has also been set up to accommodate the provision of such information.
Hotline numbers: 708-9302, 708-9142 or 800-TIPS.
Other foreigners attacked
• August 2009: British couple, Murium Greene, 59, and her husband Peter, 65, beaten and chopped at their Bacolet home.
Peter was chopped about his head and face. Police suspected robbery as a motive for the attack.
• October 2008: Swedish couple chopped to death at their villa in Bon Accord in what police described as an attempted robbery.
The couple, Anna Sundsval, 62, and Oke Olsoon, 73, had come to Tobago for two weeks before a planned trip to Australia. Olsoon was also chopped in the head and face.
• Also in October 2008: Two British women were sexually assaulted by a knife-wielding man while staying at a guest house on the island. They were also robbed.