Phone call to Watchtower concerning California kidnapping case and possible Witness connection

the research lady

Earlier this week, Geraldo Rivera appeared on the NBC Today show and stated that Nancy Garrido, was one of Jehovah's Witnesses. Nancy, along with her husband Phillip are both being charged in El dorado county California with multiple counts of rape, forcible lewd acts on a child and kidnapping for sexual purposes. Each were also charged with more than a dozen special allegations that could bring them the death penalty if convicted. On Wednesday of this week it was reported that Phillip Garrido's lawyer stated that Phillip also was one of Jehovah's Witnesses. "Kool aid Man", who posts on this board, called the world headquarters in Brooklyn New York to get a confirmation on whether the Garrido's were Witnesses or not. To listen to the call and also to Geraldo's comments on the Today Show, here is the this link. http://www.sixscreensofthewatchtower.com/watchtower-calls.html

blondie

So has anyone called out there (California) to find out if she was 1) ever baptized 2) was df'd or da'd during that time period 3) when and if she last attended any meetings 4) did/does she represent herself as a jw (not some misguided non-jw conclusion)? I bring this up because I can remember going door to door and having people say that the people down the street were jws and celebrated birthdays and holidays. This was news to me since I had been in that congregation for several years and had never heard of them. Checking with the sisters back in the car, I found out that these people had studied with jws for a couple of years but never "progressed" to baptism and hadn't attended meetings for several years. In other words, had never been jws yet they represented themselves to others as being such or that the non-jws in their neighborhood thought that all it took to be a jw was to study with one and attend a couple of meetings and make personal assertions of being such.

jeanniebeanz

There is not really much of a surprise on that call... I would'nt have expected the headquarters to answer any questions like this, and they didn't here either. Classic, "Duh... we don't know nuttin about that."

J

blondie

The Bulgaria WTS had a comment on this murder:

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=107463

Bulgaria Police Arrest Suspect in Ritual Murder Case

Crime | September 4, 2009, Friday

The bed where Elena Tomova was discovered brutally murdered in her own villa. Photo by bTV

Bulgarian police have arrested Thursday evening a 52-year old man in connection with the savage murder of Elena Tomova, a devoted Jehovah's Witnesses follower.

The news was reported Friday by Haskovo.net.

Tomova's body was discovered Tuesday by her son-in law in her faraway villa in the village of Vlado Trichkov, near the town of Svoge, northeast of Sofia.

The murderer choked her to death, cut a cross with a knife on her body, cut off her left breast, wrapped her in her bed as if she was sleeping, and finally drew a cross on her head with blood as well as crosses all around the house.

After searching the house of Simeon Simeonov in the village of Rogozino, near the southern town of Harmanli, officers from Sofia Police found a knife with a 16-centimeter blade with traces of blood the forensic team believes belong to Tomova.

Police also found some of Tomova's underwear inside Simeonov's house. In addition to the evidence, investigators discovered many religious books and brochures similar to those located in Tomova's villa.

Tomova is known to have been a devoted follower of Jehovah's Witnesses and the residents of the village are convinced that the murder has to do with her involvement with the religious sect.

On Thursday, the Jehovah's Witnesses in Bulgaria sent a letter to the media denying any connection with the brutal murder.

Tired of the Hypocrisy

I tried to reach a couple of congos out there and only got robotic sounding answering machines. I called a couple of jw's I used to work with when the convention rolled into the Cow Palace. One responded with a snotty tone that brothers should not discuss such things. Apparently the lid is on pretty tight.....

carla

To the public it doesn't matter if one is baptized, df'd, da'd or what, if you regulary or even occasionally go to a kh you ARE a jw. It is only jw's who make these distinctions of who is a jw or not and what sort of 'standing' they have or had in a kh. If one claims to be a jw or holds thier beliefs but is not in good standing the public still sees them as a jw. If one claims to be a jw and still celebrates birthdays or other holidays the public merely sees this as many other relgions who pick and choose which doctrines to adhere to (like Catholics and birth control) and have no idea that one MUST adhere to the 'unique' teachings of jw's, be baptized and in good standing to be considered a jw by other jw's.

Satanus

Blondie

They were NOMINAL jws. The wt loves to broadly brush people as NOMINAL christians, catholics, whatever. Either the wt employs two standards, or the term can fairly be used on people like that.

S

OnTheWayOut

I listened to Rick's call and I listened to Geraldo on the Today Show. It was a single mention of JW's on Today.

The WTS people on the phone are deliberately morons- I could handle Rick's call much better just off the top of my head. I think they could at least have a small folder of statements for them to read standard answers to questions such as Rick's. BUT NO. Just "I didn't see it (The Today Show)."

Here's something that took me 20 seconds of thought: "Watchtower doesn't keep a list of members' names and we don't condone criminal actions."

Anything further than that, I would have told Rick "Unless there are any official press releases from Watchtower, there is no further information available at this time."

Satanus

Records are the wt's specialty. When i was baptized, i had to fill out a form w my name on it. I suspect, if the woman was baptized, there is a record w her name on it, somewhere.

S

quietlyleaving

here's what I got from one news channel.

Police sources said today that the girls lived inside Garrido’s house in Antioch, northern California, with him and his wife Nancy, while Jaycee was forced to live in a tent in the hidden garden compound.

'Jaycee was treated like a Cinderella who was kept out of sight and made to do the chores,' said one officer in the investigation.

Another detective in the case said that despite their long seclusion, the girls 'know the alphabet and how to draw' although they never went to school.

He added: 'They have never watched TV and have no concept of maths, geography or anything outside their town of Antioch.

'They have never heard of the President of the USA or anything about the wider world.'

Garrido sounds completely crazed. I wonder if these horrifc news stories will prompt the WTS to revise their methods of witnessing to people indiscriminatey and studying with them willy nilly.

At the trial, Garrido made the same plea for mercy he used following his arrest last week - that he had found God and mended his ways.

He testified that he did not think what he had done was wrong.

'I don't go breaking into people's houses. I don't go to hurt anybody,' he said. 'I have had this fantasy and this sexual thing that has overcome me. No way to stop it.'

Garrido told the jury that he was working with a minister behind bars in an attempt to get 'close to God'.

Victim: Jaycee Lee Dugard was 11 when she was kidnapped by Phillip Garrido

Dr Albert Peterman, who examined him for a neurological report, wrote: 'He states that he is looking forward to going to court, and has found religion and feels his life will change for the better.'

Garrido is said to have used religion again to help secure early release from his 50-year sentence.

He managed to convince parole officers in Nevada and California that he was devoting his life to God, said a detective involved in the original investigation.

Nancy Bocanegra, a Jehovah's Witness, married him while he was behind bars.

Phone call to Watchtower concerning California kidnapping case and possible Witness connection

Bulgaria Police Arrest Suspect in Ritual Murder Case

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