I'm sorry it happened to another woman but thank God they guy has been caught!! Thanks for the update and please continue to keep us posted.

Very good news. Let's hope he stays there so he can't hurt any other women.

I contacted a woman who posted about the rapist on Trip Advisor because she lives in Puerto Viejo and obviously has much better access to information than I do. She responded and gave me permission to share what she wrote.

My impression is that, now that the rapist is behind bars, Puerto Viejo is once again a lovely place to visit, as long as reasonable caution is observed.

Hi Moolyn,

Your facts are 95% accurate and he is still in Jail. We are all very relieved! It looks as if he'll be there for a long time now.

Costa Rican law is strange. Part of the problem with keeping him in custody before (besides a lack of solid evidence) is the rule that a judge has to be involved within 3 days of arrest in order to keep the criminal in custody. We do not have a judge in the area and due to the location and time constraints... he kept getting released. It was horribly frustrating!

Two of his victims are good friend of mine. They have worked tirelessly to make sure he stays locked up.

I live in Playa Chiquita across the road from his family’s residence.

Many people confuse his brother for him (they look very much alike) and that may be why some folks have thought he was trying to change his appearance. His brother is a very nice person, and is welcome in our home anytime.

We do not have a lot of violent crime here, but from dusk to sun up, it is never a good idea to walk the beaches alone. Man or woman! Robbery is the most frequent problem/concern.

Most of the time my daughters and I feel pretty safe.

I spoke with a member of the family the other day. He said that the family is paying for counselling for Rolando... the rapist... to help him overcome his mental illness. I for one hope it works!

Kimikins

I am the woman he attacked in May. I am the woman who fought him and saw him. I am the woman who was left for dead. I am the woman who suffered 25 stitches in my head, a hematoma, knife wounds, 6 hospital trips, and other injuries from the attack. I am the woman who could provide forensic evidence and identify him. I am the woman who had help from the locals to navigate the complicated judicial system and I stayed until he was captured. I am the woman who put him in jail for attempted murder, attempted rape, and sexual assault. I am the woman who would not rest even with serious injuries, nor would I leave the Country, until I had confirmation that he would be kept in jail until the trial. I am the woman who did this with the help of the community and the locals who stepped up to work 22 hours a day for almost 2 weeks are the reason this psychopath is looking at a 50 year sentence.

Shay, my heart goes out to you. What a terrible, terrible time you've had.
You are an extremely strong woman. What a horrible frightening time it must have been, and yet you stayed to make sure this monster was behind bars. You stayed when many would not have had the courage.

I hope you are healing from this horrible ordeal.

Take good care of yourself, and take pride in the fact that you stayed to do something that needed to be done.

Shay, you are a hero. To say thank you can never be enough.

Thank you for doing what you did Shay_F. You did the right thing for many other women, at great cost to yourself.

I just saw this on facebook, about the May attack and the subsequent events...
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=88463811446

Shay, on behalf of my niece and my family, I am immensely grateful for all that you did to put this wicked psychopath behind bars. I am so sorry for all the physical and emotional scars that you suffered at his hands; I had no idea that your were injured so seriously. Your bravery in spite of your pain spared many more women from his escalating violence. Eventually, he probably would have killed someone so you undoubtedly saved lives by your staunch efforts to make sure he was placed behind bars.

Knowing that this monster was in prison brought a measure of peace to my niece and to the other women he attacked, even though many of them never came forward as valiantly as you and the small group who also reported their attacks in the face of an unwieldy justice system. Hopefully this evil predator will now spend the rest of his life in prison.

Shay, you are a hero to me and mine and I appreciate that you shared your personal experiences with us here, in this safe place. I hope you return to read all the comments and feel the admiration we have for your courage. Thanks so much for coming forward with your story! You are in our hearts.

I thank Shay also; a very brave human being.

Shay - God Bless You. You are so very brave. Please know that the readers on this post will continue to pray for you. I so wish you did not have to suffer the way you did. You have proven how resilient we women are. I hope 2010 brings much love and happiness to you. Again, thank you for all your efforts to have this criminal removed from society.

Sadly, the bungling of the justice system continues in regards to this case - in spite of the diligent efforts of so many courageous and concerned women. My niece was informed that her file has been lost and she will probably have to testify again. I can only imagine how difficult reliving her experience will be for a teenage girl.

Even more horrific, it's possible that the attacker will be released from prison shortly, regardless of the danger he poses, especially to foreign women on vacation.

Shay and any others visiting Costa Rica or with contacts there, please continue to help keep the information posted here factual and up to date so that other women are warned about the dangers of visiting the beach on their own and avoid suffering the same traumatic experiences.

My prosecutor is Janet Mena. Please contact her and Celso Gamboa regarding linking additional cases to mine & informing them immediately of any suspicious-type events, like "lost files". Additionally, please also reach out to Antonio Calvo Vargas who is able to provide updates. Contact: 8916-6244, 2751-0135, [email protected]

Please call them and mention that you are a concerned citizen, local, or associated with the business community. It is vital to contact these people asap and show that this matter is crucial and not forgotten.


Be vigilant, stay diligent.

Thanks so much, Shay! I'll pass this information along to my sister-in-law right away in hopes that it can help.

Shay, my sister-in-law was in touch with your attorney.

My email address is [email protected]

I find this very powerful, witnessing victims being able to get together behind justice in this thread. Fodors is an amazing place.

I wonder if the Judge has a daughter?
How horrible! It is so sad that women have to deal with all of this, not only in CR but other areas of the world.

I have followed this story for a very long time and was both incensed and distraught by the local police's inability or indifference to catch this monster. We made different travel plans simply because of this issue and avoided the area altogether.

Thank you, Shay. Thank you, thank you, thank you. You have single handedly made the world a safer place.

Shame on the legal system (in all countries) for not taking the necessary steps to keep these monsters off the streets.

The justice system has many problems to start with but it was multiplied in this case for several reasons. Everyone knew who the perpetrator was but he is the son of the local drug lord. He also selectively preyed on foreign women and it was very difficult for any of them to report the crime in a country where they didn't know the system and didn't speak the language. It is felt that the majority of his victims left Costa Rica without anyone there ever knowing of their experience. Many local businessmen didn't want tourists to know about the situation and stay away so they didn't offer warnings.

Eventually, like all criminals, this one made the mistake of attacking Costa Rican residents who look foreign and their cases were gathered together by a concerned former judge who offered his services gratis. And he also made the mistake of attacking a strong foreign woman, Shay, who stayed behind and to identify him and make sure that he was put behind bars.

I'm concerned right now about the possibility of a release soon but it seems that Shay's prosecutor and others are working diligently to make sure that this doesn't happen.

Some good news to share! There has been enough solid evidence put forth in the case against the rapist to extend his inprisonment for at least another four months, a great relief!

No trial date has been set as yet but legal proceedings are moving slowly towards this end, thanks to the brave efforts of Shay and all of the other dauntless women who have come forward to testify.

Is there something we as travelers can perhaps do to help keep this rapist in jail until the trial? If we signed a petition that said we as part of the traveling community will boycott Costa Rica if this man is released, would it help to show that the word has gotten out and that this is going to affect the tourist dollars?
Maybe moonlyn or shay, who are closest to the lawyers in the case, could respond...

Unfortunately I have no recommendations other than helping to keep this thread alive. However, Shay suggested contacting Antonio Calvo Vargas in her last post and provided both telephone number and email address.

The trial is in November. He is being kept in jail until then.

Thanks, Shay! This is a relief. I've been wondering.

My niece was able to give her deposition before going on holidays.

While this is a tragedy, I hope it will not keep single women from traveling to the Caribbean coast. I have done it as a single woman and I know of a number of single women who live there. It is a beautiful place and well worth the trip. Of course, you have to be careful.

Glad to know this guy is in jail - laws are different in Costa Rica and it is sometimes tough to put someone away. Looks like whatever all of you did worked and I'm glad your niece will be able to feel that there is some justice.

The Tribunal has set the trial date for October 25th-28th. Thankfully he's been locked up this whole time awaiting trial (since May 9th, 2009).

Please feel welcomed to contact me if you want any more information.

Gratitude to all who played a part (in whatever way) for helping lock this sick saddistical bastard up.

Shay

Shay, thanks for keeping us up to date as well as everything else you have done. I am anxious to hear the outcome of this trial.

Please spread the word throughout the communities to support the women who have come forward to testify against him. This trial is open to the public/community. If you can attend, please GO to the Trial in person!

If you are unable to attend the Trial, Sylvia Cabezas has the contact info for the prosecutor (Janet Mena) and the Tribunal. Contact them! Tell them you support locking this monster up and giving him the MAXIMUM SENTENCE AND NO EARLY RELEASE FROM PRISON!!!!

(and say thanks) to Sylvia Cabezas. Her email is: [email protected]

Shay, my sister-in-law is in Canada at the moment but will be back in Costa Rica for the trial. My niece is determined to testify. Perhaps you will all meet.

Thank you so much for your major role in bringing this monster to trial and helping to keep him in jail in the meantime. It took the effort of many brave women to reach this point. I will email Sylvia.

Tragic! Such areas with high intensity of crimes should be spotted by the authorities. Proper action will make such cases almost nil if not zero.

Mohet You obviously have no understanding of the culture or legal issues in Costa Rica. It is very complicated. And "proper action" in other countries does not make such cases "almost nil if not zero." There are millions of people in jail in the US, for instance, but there is still crime.

First, I want to send my condolences to all affected by this freak and to pay my respects to Shay for her bravery! My large family and I are going to be staying in a villa south of Playa Chaquita in a couple of months so I thank you for your words of warning. What has the range of these attacks been? Have they all occured at playa chaquit?

jroll1, this particular rapist is now on trial and the verdict will be given on Thusday. He has been in prison for several months and hopefully will spend the rest of his life there.

Another recent thread discusses a violent attack of a different kind, Marin County Man Shot in Puerto Viejo, so please exercise caution while you are there. Nobody in your party should go out on their own, day or night. Consult local people for safety advice as they will have up to date information. Most people who visit this area have no problem but it is wise to be aware of potential local dangers, just as you would be at home.

Thank you moolyn. I really appreciate the words of warning. We will definitely be more careful then we otherwise would have. I have let everyone in my family know and we will definitely stick together.
Thanks.

I was in Puerto Viejo recently and walked alone on the beach several times. Would I avoid walking into a crowd of young men obviously having a "meeting?" Yes. Would I walk on the beach alone at night? No. Would I avoid walking on the beach during the day because I was afraid to walk alone? No.

People are killed in the northern California area every day but no one ever says,"If you are walking in Oakland, make sure you don't walk alone and never go out at night."

hsmithcr, it's very fortunate for you then that the Puerto Vielo Rapist is currently in jail and has been on trial this past week since he did not respect day or night. I for one am hoping that he will spend the rest of his life in jail!

Yes there is crime everywhere and due dilligence should be observed - even in Oakland - especially if you are a women. If there is a particular menace in a particular place who preys on tourists, thankfully we have a forum like this where warnings can be posted and anguish can be prevented.

Moolyn - I didn't mean any disrespect to you and I also hope the rapist spends a long time in jail. And it is definitely a good thing to have warnings about certain areas.

But there needs to be a balance between extreme fear and common sense caution.

I would recommend that wherever people are staying in the Puerto Viejo area, they should just ask at their lodging for advice on safety. The local people will know the latest and can advise accordingly.

hsmithcr, if you read all through this thread you will find that a consistent effott has been made to remain accurate and balanced and to offer common sense advice. People have not been advised to avoid Puerto Viejo, just warned that women should not go to the beach there on their own.

I totally agree with your suggestion to ask for safety advice locally - wherever you go. The people of Puerto Viejo were aware of the identity of the rapist long before he was thrown in jail and were every bit as anxious as the rest of us that he be brought to justice!

There has been a great deal of testimony presented in the current trial. The verdict should be given today so hopefully I will be able to share it with you all later.

Best of luck, moolyn; hopefully justice will be served.

Thanks, volcanogirl! No news about a verdict yet but it's reassuring that so much testimony has been presented.