Post by Saint on Nov 15, 2003 9:17:17 GMT -5
On October 24th 2003 this author traveled to Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico to learn the truth about the Luster/Chapman fiasco that occurred on June 18th 2003 when Duane ‘Dog’ Chapman, his son Leland, his brother Timothy, Producer/Cameraman Jeff Sells and actor Boris Krutonog located the Max Factor heir who had been using the alias of David Carrera while a fugitive from justice in California.
Duane Chapman and his crew of vigilantes spotted and approached Luster at a taco stand near the intersection of avenues Mexico and Honduras. Using mace and handcuffs, Chapman and his posse seized Luster after Luster punched Chapman in the eye knocking him to the ground. After seizing their prey they piled into two trucks, a Chevrolet Suburban and a Chrysler Voyager, as witnesses to the scuffle alerted the police who ultimately arrested Chapman and his gang on the road to the airport. The Chapmans were charged with ‘illegal deprivation of liberty’ and ‘criminal association’ then incarcerated at the Carcel Las Juntas (local jail).
A few days following their arrest the Chapman gang appeared before an Immigration Board where they signed documents pledging not to leave the country and promising to stay in Mexico for a hearing on the charges resultant of illegally capturing Luster. After leaving the Immigration Office they were brought to a state court where they again signed pledges not to leave the country and to report to the court every Monday. They were then each released after posting $1,430.00 bail apiece. Charges against cameraman Jeff Sells and actor Boris Krutonog were not prosecuted and they were released.
A CNN report on July 2nd quoted Chapman’s attorney as saying, “… that he and the four others had come to Mexico on vacation, not for the purpose of arresting Luster. The five happened to be out one night dining when they spotted and recognized Luster, and they decided to apprehend him.” This statement is in direct contradiction to Chapman’s own admission that he left for Mexico to apprehend Luster. It is also in direct contradiction to reports that Chapman and his fellow-villains made contact with Luster in the early morning hours at a taco stand.
On July 3rd Duane Chapman surfaced in the United States in deliberate violation of the bail conditions set by the Jalisco court in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico that he report to the court every Monday. Also on July 3rd USA Today reported Chapman as saying, “My brother came and said, ‘He’s in the club right now and the flashing lights are on him and the girls are 17 years old walking around. He’s like the troll on the bridge, rubbing his hands. He’s looking at the prey.” This is an absolutely ridiculous story for Chapman to weave. He had already said that when he first saw Luster he reacted immediately.
On July 7th 2003 Duane ‘Dog’ Chapman failed to appear for his hearing in Mexico. An article in the Los Angeles Times on July 8th 2003 quotes Puerto Vallarta District Attorney Marco Roberto Juarez, “It’s a little ironic, no? They chase fugitives and then they become fugitives. With this, we’ve corroborated that these people have not demonstrated any respect for the laws.” Chapman, however, said he did not need to appear in court in Mexico, and that his attorneys, who could not be reached for comment, were handling the proceedings for him. “The reality is that the Chapmans are in contempt of court, which is why it is necessary that they come back to answer for the crimes they committed here,” Juarez said.
The Los Angeles Times further stated: Judge Jose Jesus de Pineda, reached in his office at the Jalisco State Penitentiary just outside central Puerto Vallarta, said Monday that if Duane ‘Dog’ Chapman did not appear in court by 4pm on July 7th, he would “proceed with what the law tells us must be done. It’s going to have its consequences, that are evident, [his] attorneys know. They know the law,” Pineda said. Chapman did not appear consequently on July 8th 2003 the Mexican court issued a warrant for his arrest.
On July 11th Chapman appeared on the Catherine Crier show (Fox News) saying Andrew Luster was traveling with five bodyguards. I spoke with a police representative in Puerto Vallarta who stated to the best of their investigation they could find no evidence of Andrew Luster having bodyguards nor did all those they spoke with ever see any bodyguards.
On August 5th Ventura County Superior Court Judge Edward Brodie ruled that Duane Chapman is not entitled to any of the bail money. In his ruling Judge Brodie said, “I cannot do vigilante justice. In my view, you violated state statutes and Mexican statutes, therefore you are not entitled to any restitution.” In issuing his decision, Judge Brodie told Chapman there was no agreement, no authority to take anyone into custody. Chapman stormed out of the courtroom with Smith following close behind while the Judge was still speaking Yet Chapman told Court TV in January 2003 that he wasn’t in it for the money. He said, “I’m a bounty hunter, this is the number one fugitive in America, and I’m on his ass. This one has become personal. If one of the victims comes up to me and says, Dog, thank you, that’s it, I’m paid.”
When asked by Dan Abrams of MSNBC’s Abrams Report that aired on August 7th if there was a little ruckus in getting Luster into the car Chapman stated, “Well, we apprehended him and put him in the car to drive him to the local Mexican police department, and on the way there is when we got pulled over.” The fact is Chapman and his posse were pulled over by the Mexican police on Blvd. Francisco Medina Ascension, 1.7 kilometers from the Gustavo Diaz Ordaz International Airport, which is in the opposite direction of any police station. Beth Smith said they were only taking him (Luster) to a more secure location.
When shown a video clip of an FBI spokesperson saying Chapman’s actions was a little beyond the bounds that he could condone, Chapman commented, “That guy is lying because I was working with the FBI.” Law enforcement officials bristled at the mention of Chapman in a press conference chastising him for going too far, and signaling that they would not help the bounty hunter dodge potential kidnapping charges. “I think his actions are just beyond the bounds that I can condone,” said Ralph Boelter, the assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Ventura office. “He’s out there acting on his own ... Certainly it is not something the FBI would condone. We will not be acting on his behalf.”
The FBI has been able to retrieve over forty fugitives from Mexico in year 2003 that have been charged with a variety of serious crimes including murder. Chapman and certain prejudicial media types have consistently disrespected the feds by saying he (Chapman) outdid the FBI. The FBI received the same info from the tipsters as Chapman received but a couple of days later. Following receipt of the info regarding Luster’s whereabouts the FBI immediately began their procedures for effecting a ‘provisional arrest’ and extraditing Luster. The FBI would have certainly captured Luster within forty-eight hours if Chapman and his illegal posse had not interfered in the ongoing federal investigation. Chapman did not resort to any procedural process and was reactive instead of proactive.
International extradition is a long and complicated process where anything can and sometimes does go wrong. If the FBI’s legal attaché hadn’t acted so quickly in arranging for Andrew Luster’s return to the United States, Luster would not have been deported because Mexico’s views the United States justice system as being too harsh and they do not believe in life or death sentences nor do they recognize sentencing ‘in absentia’. Luster did not receive a life sentence or a death sentence so during the time Mexico was pondering what it was all about the FBI’s legal attaché was able to successfully manage the legal process enough to get Luster out of there by having him immediately deported for entering Mexico illegally instead of going through the long process of having Luster extradited. If a little more time had elapsed causing Mexico to not deport Luster he could have been re-tried and sentenced in a Mexican court and could eventually have paid his way out of prison. How would Luster’s victims have felt then about Chapman who would have been directly responsible for Luster walking the streets as a free man in Mexico?
When asked if he felt unappreciated, Chapman replied, “You know, I feel disappointed and like my feelings are hurt. Yes, I do.” Dan Abrams then asked, “Why?” Chapman replied, “ Well, you know, I took a rapist off the streets. He wasn’t only raping in America, but he was raping in Mexico.” Mexican law enforcement authorities have stated emphatically there is no evidence of Luster raping anyone in Mexico and no one has come forward with such a complaint nor were any date rape drugs found in room #20 at the Hotel los Angeles where Luster was staying for $38.00 per night.
On August 12th Chapman again appeared on the Abrams Report with Dan Abrams. When questioned how he was able to leave Mexico Chapman replied… “Well, I walked right out, just like a normal person would. You can’t sneak out of there. I mean I didn’t swim the Rio Grande or nothing. We went out like anyone else would. They said when we want you back, we’ll let you know.” Beth Smith, Chapman’s significant other, stated via telephone that Chapman is not a fugitive from Mexico yet he failed to appear in the Mexican court on July 7th and the court issued an order for his arrest on July 12th.
Duane Chapman and his crew of vigilantes spotted and approached Luster at a taco stand near the intersection of avenues Mexico and Honduras. Using mace and handcuffs, Chapman and his posse seized Luster after Luster punched Chapman in the eye knocking him to the ground. After seizing their prey they piled into two trucks, a Chevrolet Suburban and a Chrysler Voyager, as witnesses to the scuffle alerted the police who ultimately arrested Chapman and his gang on the road to the airport. The Chapmans were charged with ‘illegal deprivation of liberty’ and ‘criminal association’ then incarcerated at the Carcel Las Juntas (local jail).
A few days following their arrest the Chapman gang appeared before an Immigration Board where they signed documents pledging not to leave the country and promising to stay in Mexico for a hearing on the charges resultant of illegally capturing Luster. After leaving the Immigration Office they were brought to a state court where they again signed pledges not to leave the country and to report to the court every Monday. They were then each released after posting $1,430.00 bail apiece. Charges against cameraman Jeff Sells and actor Boris Krutonog were not prosecuted and they were released.
A CNN report on July 2nd quoted Chapman’s attorney as saying, “… that he and the four others had come to Mexico on vacation, not for the purpose of arresting Luster. The five happened to be out one night dining when they spotted and recognized Luster, and they decided to apprehend him.” This statement is in direct contradiction to Chapman’s own admission that he left for Mexico to apprehend Luster. It is also in direct contradiction to reports that Chapman and his fellow-villains made contact with Luster in the early morning hours at a taco stand.
On July 3rd Duane Chapman surfaced in the United States in deliberate violation of the bail conditions set by the Jalisco court in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico that he report to the court every Monday. Also on July 3rd USA Today reported Chapman as saying, “My brother came and said, ‘He’s in the club right now and the flashing lights are on him and the girls are 17 years old walking around. He’s like the troll on the bridge, rubbing his hands. He’s looking at the prey.” This is an absolutely ridiculous story for Chapman to weave. He had already said that when he first saw Luster he reacted immediately.
On July 7th 2003 Duane ‘Dog’ Chapman failed to appear for his hearing in Mexico. An article in the Los Angeles Times on July 8th 2003 quotes Puerto Vallarta District Attorney Marco Roberto Juarez, “It’s a little ironic, no? They chase fugitives and then they become fugitives. With this, we’ve corroborated that these people have not demonstrated any respect for the laws.” Chapman, however, said he did not need to appear in court in Mexico, and that his attorneys, who could not be reached for comment, were handling the proceedings for him. “The reality is that the Chapmans are in contempt of court, which is why it is necessary that they come back to answer for the crimes they committed here,” Juarez said.
The Los Angeles Times further stated: Judge Jose Jesus de Pineda, reached in his office at the Jalisco State Penitentiary just outside central Puerto Vallarta, said Monday that if Duane ‘Dog’ Chapman did not appear in court by 4pm on July 7th, he would “proceed with what the law tells us must be done. It’s going to have its consequences, that are evident, [his] attorneys know. They know the law,” Pineda said. Chapman did not appear consequently on July 8th 2003 the Mexican court issued a warrant for his arrest.
On July 11th Chapman appeared on the Catherine Crier show (Fox News) saying Andrew Luster was traveling with five bodyguards. I spoke with a police representative in Puerto Vallarta who stated to the best of their investigation they could find no evidence of Andrew Luster having bodyguards nor did all those they spoke with ever see any bodyguards.
On August 5th Ventura County Superior Court Judge Edward Brodie ruled that Duane Chapman is not entitled to any of the bail money. In his ruling Judge Brodie said, “I cannot do vigilante justice. In my view, you violated state statutes and Mexican statutes, therefore you are not entitled to any restitution.” In issuing his decision, Judge Brodie told Chapman there was no agreement, no authority to take anyone into custody. Chapman stormed out of the courtroom with Smith following close behind while the Judge was still speaking Yet Chapman told Court TV in January 2003 that he wasn’t in it for the money. He said, “I’m a bounty hunter, this is the number one fugitive in America, and I’m on his ass. This one has become personal. If one of the victims comes up to me and says, Dog, thank you, that’s it, I’m paid.”
When asked by Dan Abrams of MSNBC’s Abrams Report that aired on August 7th if there was a little ruckus in getting Luster into the car Chapman stated, “Well, we apprehended him and put him in the car to drive him to the local Mexican police department, and on the way there is when we got pulled over.” The fact is Chapman and his posse were pulled over by the Mexican police on Blvd. Francisco Medina Ascension, 1.7 kilometers from the Gustavo Diaz Ordaz International Airport, which is in the opposite direction of any police station. Beth Smith said they were only taking him (Luster) to a more secure location.
When shown a video clip of an FBI spokesperson saying Chapman’s actions was a little beyond the bounds that he could condone, Chapman commented, “That guy is lying because I was working with the FBI.” Law enforcement officials bristled at the mention of Chapman in a press conference chastising him for going too far, and signaling that they would not help the bounty hunter dodge potential kidnapping charges. “I think his actions are just beyond the bounds that I can condone,” said Ralph Boelter, the assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Ventura office. “He’s out there acting on his own ... Certainly it is not something the FBI would condone. We will not be acting on his behalf.”
The FBI has been able to retrieve over forty fugitives from Mexico in year 2003 that have been charged with a variety of serious crimes including murder. Chapman and certain prejudicial media types have consistently disrespected the feds by saying he (Chapman) outdid the FBI. The FBI received the same info from the tipsters as Chapman received but a couple of days later. Following receipt of the info regarding Luster’s whereabouts the FBI immediately began their procedures for effecting a ‘provisional arrest’ and extraditing Luster. The FBI would have certainly captured Luster within forty-eight hours if Chapman and his illegal posse had not interfered in the ongoing federal investigation. Chapman did not resort to any procedural process and was reactive instead of proactive.
International extradition is a long and complicated process where anything can and sometimes does go wrong. If the FBI’s legal attaché hadn’t acted so quickly in arranging for Andrew Luster’s return to the United States, Luster would not have been deported because Mexico’s views the United States justice system as being too harsh and they do not believe in life or death sentences nor do they recognize sentencing ‘in absentia’. Luster did not receive a life sentence or a death sentence so during the time Mexico was pondering what it was all about the FBI’s legal attaché was able to successfully manage the legal process enough to get Luster out of there by having him immediately deported for entering Mexico illegally instead of going through the long process of having Luster extradited. If a little more time had elapsed causing Mexico to not deport Luster he could have been re-tried and sentenced in a Mexican court and could eventually have paid his way out of prison. How would Luster’s victims have felt then about Chapman who would have been directly responsible for Luster walking the streets as a free man in Mexico?
When asked if he felt unappreciated, Chapman replied, “You know, I feel disappointed and like my feelings are hurt. Yes, I do.” Dan Abrams then asked, “Why?” Chapman replied, “ Well, you know, I took a rapist off the streets. He wasn’t only raping in America, but he was raping in Mexico.” Mexican law enforcement authorities have stated emphatically there is no evidence of Luster raping anyone in Mexico and no one has come forward with such a complaint nor were any date rape drugs found in room #20 at the Hotel los Angeles where Luster was staying for $38.00 per night.
On August 12th Chapman again appeared on the Abrams Report with Dan Abrams. When questioned how he was able to leave Mexico Chapman replied… “Well, I walked right out, just like a normal person would. You can’t sneak out of there. I mean I didn’t swim the Rio Grande or nothing. We went out like anyone else would. They said when we want you back, we’ll let you know.” Beth Smith, Chapman’s significant other, stated via telephone that Chapman is not a fugitive from Mexico yet he failed to appear in the Mexican court on July 7th and the court issued an order for his arrest on July 12th.
