Real life pirates have stolen around $20,000 worth of equipment and checks from the production team filming the second and third parts of the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy in The Bahamas.
Jemini Seven Entertainment CEO Jason Kakebeen said the crews were robbed four times over a one-month period while on location in Grand Bahama.
“We’ve had a slew of robberies on the actors who are currently working for Pirates of the Caribbean over at the Port Lucaya Resort,” he said. “They were able to get into the room with a key and stole everything from laptops, passports, checks and other equipment. The money they stole was actually the actors’ pay checks”.
Mr Kakebeen stressed the robberies didn’t happen at one hotel but said it will be the last time his company filmed in The Bahamas. He added that when the latest robbery happened on November 11 at the Port Lucaya Resort, top movie companies decided to pull the plug from any future investments in the island. “This may affect the fact that Walt Disney will never do business at Freeport Island again, as well as Sony and Warner Bros,” he said. “I know that these companies bring the island a lot of money.’
A spokesperson at Port Lucaya Resort confirmed there was a robbery on November 11.
“We did get one report from the crew,” she said. “And yes it was on that day.
Members of the film crew woke up to find two men stealing their equipment while they slept, Mr Kakebeen said, prompting two of the actors to leave the island in fear of their lives. He added that the loss of equipment as well as the actors’ absence has brought production to a standstill. The CEO also said his company is calling on the hotel’s management to reimburse them for the $5,000 worth of equipment stolen during the latest raid or the hotel will face “serious consequences.
“If there is no reimbursement then we will actually put a letter out to all the travel agencies in the States to let people know in America that they can’t stay at that resort because they will be robbed,” he said.
Hotel management at Port Lucaya Resort and Pelican Bay, another hotel where crew members stayed, refuted claims by Mr Kakebeen of slow reactions to the reports – and said their hotels’ security speedily responded to the calls. Mr Kakebeen also claimed that Freeport police accused the film crew of lying about the incidents when they made their complaints. “We reported it to the police each time,” he said. “And they said we were just lying about the robberies ever happening, they didn’t believe us and it just makes no sense because we have no reason to make this up. He said the company is offering a $2,500 reward to anyone who can give them information in an attempt to retrieve the stolen goods. The highly anticipated additions to the trilogy are expected to be as successful as Pirates of the Caribbean Part 1: The Curse of the Black Pearl, which grossed over $650 million worldwide. The movie features A-list actors such as Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightely.
By IANTHIA SMITH, Nassau Guardian Staff Reporter
11-24-2005, Editor’s Note: Jason Kakebeen turns out to be an actor’s extra on the ‘Pirates’ set. He was angry after being robbed so he pretended to represent the Disney production company when speaking to a Nassau Guardian reporter. The naive reporter never verified the facts. Please see the follow-up article.
