Agent ‘Double-O-Vation’ Cracks IMEX Kidnapping Case
Bear hugs and lavish praise were the order of the day at Ovation Spain’s Barcelona base recently, but Poirot Bear stopped short of taking all the credit for the safe return of the kidnapped cub, Jose Luiz.
Poirot Bear had dispatched Ovation’s Managing Director, Patrick Delaney (agent code name ‘Double-O-Vation’) to the AIBTM tradeshow in Baltimore in the hope that the now-infamous tradeshow kidnapper would be in attendance.
Double-O-Vation did not disappoint. Acting on a tip off from Myriam Harrag of GL Events CCIB, Delaney kept Myriam’s CCIB colleague Philip Cross under close surveillance during the tradeshow. The breakthrough came when Cross (pictured below) got sloppy and decided to bring the Ovation bear cub to see U2 in concert.Primed from his years of yoga training, agent Double-O-Vation pounced on the kidnapper with spiderman-like precision.
Poirot Bear flew to Baltimore to debrief Delaney and escort the kidnapper back to Spain, where he now awaits trial.
Update
These pictures were sent in recently. I am getting very close to my prime suspect now...he/she is looking for a handover - I prefer a full on arrest!
The Kindapper(s) have made contact
From: Bear In Distress [mailto:bearindistress@hotmail.com]
Sent: Monday, 30 de May de 2011 5:00
To: Rudolf Rannegger (Ovation Spain)
Subject: RE: The Bear
Pink Bear is fine!
See attached...we are expecting your moves soon or he may not come back...he almost drowned this weekend swiming over the ocean and hasnt slept since!
Subject: RE: The Bear
Date: Mon, 30 May 2011 11:02:02 +0200
From: Rudolf.Rannegger@ovationdmc.com
To: bearindistress@hotmail.com
Dear Kidnapper,
Thank you very much for your e-mail. We are really disappointed that you took our beloved Pink Ovation Bear. When I realized that you took it, we were all sad and searched all over the fair if we find him. We had a weekend (my + the black bear) without sleep and I can assure that I will do the upmost to get our bear back.
Suspects for IMEX Frankfurt Kidnapping
Based on Poirot Bear's interviews and crime scene analysis, the following suspects are currently the focus of the investigation:
Name | Affiliations | Reason |
|---|
Gabriele Restivo | Nuñez i Navarro Hotel | Proximity - Gabriele was sitting opposite the Ovation Spain stand for the duration of the show. |
| Maria Bang | Principal Hayley LA MOLA and Conference Centre | One of our Ovation Spain staff overheard Maria saying "that adorable pink bear would be ideal for welcoming guests to my convention centre back in Denmark" |
| Frank Garcia | CCIB | It is a well known fact that there is a mutual admiration between Ovation Spain and the International Convention Centre of Barcelona. Could this familiar friend be responsible for the cub kidnapping? |
| Josep Abellan | Stop Events, Barcelona | Poirot Bear found traces of Jose Luiz's presence at the Stop Events stand. However, it is not known if this was before or after the kidnapping occurred. |
Investigation Update -
This mugshot was sent to the Ovation Spain Facebook page. Although he appears to be held up in a dark room, the Ovation Bear Cub, Jose Luiz, looks like he is being well looked after...
Tradeshow Kidnapper Strikes Again
There is a growing fear that a serial kidnapper has begun to target tradeshows in the Meeting and Events industry. Ovation Spain has reported that Jose Luis, one of Ovation Bear’s adorable cubs, was abducted from the Ovation Spain booth at IMEX Frankfurt 2011.
Last year, following an international manhunt, Thomas Stecher from Ovation Spain was arrested by Poirot Bear for the kidnap of a heavily pregnant Ovation Bear at EIBTM Barcelona. This is where it becomes interesting; Thomas did not attend IMEX Frankfurt! Based on this evidence, Poirot Bear has absolved Thomas of the Barcelona kidnapping and is now on the hunt for what is believed to be a serial tradeshow kidnapper.
Ovation Bear immediately dispatched Poirot Bear to interview the grief stricken members of the Ovation Spain office. Rudolf Rannegger commented how “People were asking if they could take home an Ovation bear cub for their kids” and that “once attendees realised that the Ovation Cub Club was made up of select Meeting and Events professionals, everyone wanted one”.
Out of necessity, Poirot Bear has reopened his ‘Kidnapped Cubs Investigation Centre’ and is appealing for help in apprehending the now infamous “tradeshow kidnapper”. The only leads he has to date are a short note and a ‘proof of life’ photo…
Do you have any information that might help the investigation? There are a number of ways you can help Poirot Bear build up a profile of the kidnapper:
It Was An Inside Job!
Poirot Bear has arrested, with mixed emotion, Thomas Stecher at his Barcelona home. The arrest of Stecher, who ‘bears’ a remarkable resemblance to TV crime anti-hero Dexter, represents what was effectively an inside job amongst the tightly knit Ovation Global community. A widely respected member of the Ovation Spain sales team, Stecher had actively contributed to the investigation process in recent weeks.
Speaking from Switzerland alongside his 2010 Huggability Award winner Barbra Albrecht, Ovation Bear acknowledged “the huge support given to Poirot Bear from all his industry colleagues, especially those who contributed via the Investigation Centre”. A statement released by Stecher expressed no remorse; “I did it for the love of a good woman, I needed to increase my Huggability factor”, he said. Ovation Bears are renowned the world over for their charm and Huggability factor. Ovation’s EIBTM staff had even reported numerous Ovation Bear theft attempts at the show.
Investigation Update - Prime Suspects Revealed
January 6th 2011- The net is closing...
Name | The Goldserve Sales Team, Bedfordshire, UK |
Possible Motive | I received the following encrypted message from the sales team at Goldserve – “ We have the Bear, send the Guinness first and the Bear will be unharmed.” |
Poirot Bear says | I have yet to establish if this threat is for real, but I have deployed a task force to stake out the Goldserve offices in Bedfordshire. |
Name | Thomas Stecher, Barcelona |
Possible Motive | The Ovation Bear could very well be a prestigious gift for his new Czech girlfriend. |
Poirot Bear says | It pains me that my suspicion represents, basically, an "inside job". I have received solid information, from numerous sources, that Thomas has been attempting to “smooze and woo” his new love interest by using the adorable OB cubs. |
Name | Hamish Reid, Jersey |
Possible Motive | Hamish contacted the Investigation Centre to advise we should simply just “grin and bear” the kidnapping of our beloved OB cubs. |
Poirot Bear says | Aside from his terrible pun, Hamish is displaying a classic kidnapper mentality by taunting us here in the Investigation Centre. I will be keeping a close eye on him. |
Name | Kerry Raffray (nee Byrom), Cape Town |
Possible Motive | Sightings of Kerry’s adorable daughter, Kirstin, playing with an Ovation bear have been reported. |
Poirot Bear says | Although I cannot reveal my sources, the allegation was made by a guest who had breakfast with the Raffray family recently. |
Name | Brett Hatch, last seen in the Chicago area |
Possible Motive | Colleagues reported Brett as being awfully nonchalant about the whole Ovation Bear kidnapping. A telltale sign of guilt perhaps? |
Poirot Bear says | Brett from Maui Jim was overheard by Laurie Sprouse having a “deeply suspicious” conversation during our Ovation post-Site trip in South Africa. |
| Name | Lorenzo Turco, Monaco |
| Possible Motive | In the past Lorenzo has contacted me seeking guardianship of an Ovation Bear. |
| Poirot Bear says | Aversion Tactics. My suspicious nature tells me that Lorenzo contacting me recently, to vouch for the EIBTM Monaco stand, was purely an atempt to throw me off the scent. Nice try Mr. Turco!! |
The Back Story
On Thursday December 2nd 2010 a heinous crime was committed in broad daylight at EIBTM Barcelona. One of Ovation Bears beloved cubs appears to have been abducted from the Ovation Global DMC stand. An earlier would-be kidnapper had launched an abduction attempt by stating “but I thought they were giveaways”. This excuse did not wash with Cub Clubbers or OB, as everybody in the meetings and events industry knows that you must earn the privilege of guardianship of an Ovation Bear cub.
The investigation is being headed up by Ovation Bear's cousin Detective Inspector Poirot Bear. In order to kick start the investigation DI Poirot Bear has appealed for anyone who was at, or knows someone who attended, the EIBTM to get in contact with any information. Please CLICK HERE to make a statement and help Poirot Bear draft a list of suspects. What possible motives could someone have to commit this unBEARably scandalous crime! OB has offered a pink ipod Nano to whoever can provide the information which leads to the return of his beloved cubs, so mail him ASAP!
Keep up to date with the latest investigation developments here -
