MISSING: Rochester, NY PD search for missing college students

[ViCiouS]

MISSING: Rochester PD search for missing college students
By Sara Mullen, News 4 Assignment Editor
Published: December 6, 2015, 6:08 pm Updated: December 6, 2015, 6:39 pm

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WIVB)- Rochester Police are searching for two missing college students.

Police say Nicholas Kollias and Ani Okeke-Ewo are missing under suspicious circumstances and may be in danger.

Both Nicholas and Ani are University of Rochester students and were last seen in the area of Wilson Blvd. in Rochester around 2 a.m. on Saturday Dec. 5.

They are believed to be traveling in a silver 2005 BMW X5 with Illinois registration V835470. Police say there is a possibility that there may be another vehicle that could also be traveling with them; a red/orange Mazda 6 with New York registration HBC-1803.

Nicholas Kollias is a white male with brown hair and eyes. He is 6’0 and approx. 240lbs.

Ani Okeke-Ewo is a black male with black hair and brown eyes. He is 6’1″ and approx.215 lbs.

Anyone with information is asked to call Rochester Police at (585) 275-3333.

 

[gene cisco]

I wonder what 'suspicious circumstances' authorities are referring to.

 

[Mentor B]

I wonder what 'suspicious circumstances' authorities are referring to.

Foul play may be imminent.

 

[ViCiouS]

Police: UR students 'forcibly abducted,' now safe
Meaghan M. McDermott, @meagmc12:09 a.m. EST December 7, 2015

(Photo: Provided)

Four people were in custody Sunday night after a pair of University of Rochester students were kidnapped and rescued.

One of the students, whom police did not identify, was shot in the leg before the rescue.

Ani Okeke Ewo of Aurora, Illinois, and Nicholas Kollias of Northbrook, Illinois, both seniors, were reported missing around 6:30 p.m. Saturday under “suspicious circumstances.” They had been seen on Wilson Boulevard near the university around 2 a.m. Saturday.

Rochester Police Chief Michael Ciminelli said that during their investigation, police learned the men had been “forcibly abducted” and were being held at 22 Harvest St. in northeast Rochester. Harvest Street is about four miles from the university campus.

Around 9:20 p.m., SWAT team members entered the home and rescued the men. Ewo and Kollias were taken to an area hospital with injuries that are not life-threatening, siad Ciminelli.

Four suspects were taken into custody in or near the house, Ciminelli said. They will likely face kidnapping and assault charges, and more arrests may be made.

Ciminelli said the victims were targeted and there was no threat to other students. He would not give details.

"I do want to point out this was a directed event and we have no information or evidence of any kind that this constituted a general threat to the University of Rochester community, nor do we have any information or evidence that there is a threat or safety concern to the University of Rochester community at this point," he said.

UR President Joel Seligman said he was grateful the students had been found safe. He said he had spoken to both the students and their parents, and he thanked Rochester and University police for their prompt, successful response.

Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren praised the police, particularly the SWAT Team, “for a job well done.”

MCDERMOT@Gannett.com

 

[kwazdog]

Great news they were rescued.

 

[Ceenote]

Wow... just wow

 

[TheFuser]

damn. that shit is crazy.

 

[bborn]

peace

Ole Yellowjacket nerds took a wrong turn off of Genesse St. probably looking for NicTaboe's.
Glad they didn't find em floating down the river or behind some building somewhere.
U of R Let's Go!

 

[gene cisco]

Damn. Held hostage by four people.

 

[Mrfreddygoodbud]

I just have a feeling they owed somebody some money!

glad they were found, curious as to what really happend tho?

 

[kew]

lucky

 

[Jboogiee]

Two University of Rochester students, including one who is a talented pianist and the other a star football player, were lured into a drug den and beaten and one of them was shot over a weekend-long ordeal, according to police and classmates.

The two college seniors — Nicholas Kollias, who is featured online performing Chopin melodies, and Ani Okeke-Ewo — were being treated Monday at a Rochester Hospital as police continued their investigation.

At least four people were arrested in connection with the kidnapping. Their charges had yet to be specified as of Monday afternoon, a police spokesman said. Police declined to comment on the case details, but classmates of the duo said they were lured to the house by young women, and then jumped by men inside. They were beaten up, robbed and one of them sustained a gunshot wound to one leg.
The assault and kidnapping happened inside a decrepit peach color house in a rough part of the city. Father and son Chris and C.J. Spencer live a few blocks from the residence and said college students are vulnerable in the neighborhood.

“If they know you're a nice person, a college kid, they'll take advantage of you,” C.J., 28, said Monday on Harvest St.

He described how area criminals try to lure victims into buildings with promises of women-filled parties. “When they find out you got money or something, they befriend you,” he said. “They tell you lies to try to get you.”

The duo said the neighborhood is a den for crack and cocaine dealing. Both claimed they had fended off teenage muggers on Harvest St. before.
Marquis Green, 26, who just moved in a few doors down from the property, said he and his girlfriend were asleep Sunday night when a blast woke them up, likely from the police raid.

“It sounded like a bomb,” he said outside his house Monday afternoon. “I thought we were under attack.” He and his girlfriend jumped out of bed and went outside, where he saw police blocking off the surrounding streets. “Everyone was up on the street,” Green said, saying his neighbors told him of police vehicles rushing to the property.

Like authorities, Sara Miller, a college spokeswoman, also declined to comment on the kidnapping itself, but said: “We do want to emphasize, however, that because of the circumstances of this abduction, we don't believe there to be any threat to the safety of our students and community members here at the University of Rochester.”

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nat...ticle-1.2457246?cid=bitly#_gus&_gucid=article - news - top&_gup=Facebook&_gsc=sgZNSqR

This comment below was interesting,didn't know this kind of stuff was going on:


60 Minutes just did a revealing report on how the police are recruiting college students to be CI's and some of them are being killed. The students act as drug buyers to fellow students and then tell the police about the students. They're basically undercover agents. I betcha this is what happened.

 

[TheFuser]

Man listen! There's a reason why Temple Univ is in the middle of the hood, and shit like this doesn't go down. 200 North Philly residents can go missing on Temple's campus, and not one cop will go looking. Let 2 Temple students go missing in North Philly, and the fucking National Guard might get called in. Niggas in Philly know they are OFF LIMITS. Plus that shit is bad for business. Guess Rochester residents didn't get the memo or just don't give a fuck.

 

[FJP]

Man listen! There's a reason why Temple Univ is in the middle of the hood, and shit like this doesn't go down. 200 North Philly residents can go missing on Temple's campus, and not one cop will go looking. Let 2 Temple students go missing in North Philly, and the fucking National Guard might get called in. Niggas in Philly know they are OFF LIMITS. Plus that shit is bad for business. Guess Rochester residents didn't get the memo or just don't give a fuck.

Man listen that's exactly what happened. They sent SWAT with flashbangs on some Call of Duty shit. Those kids are from Illinois U of R is a walk across the bridge from the hood and most of the students live on that side. They tried to cop some loud and the idiots got a bright idea and abducted them. Trust me they make examples of Anybody that touches U of R students

 

[Jboogiee]

Man listen that's exactly what happened. They sent SWAT with flashbangs on some Call of Duty shit. Those kids are from Illinois U of R is a walk across the bridge from the hood and most of the students live on that side. They tried to cop some loud and the idiots got a bright idea and abducted them. Trust me they make examples of Anybody that touches U of R students

Yes indeed,you know they we're made an example of when they put SWAT on their asses and the new dorms they built not long ago are right on the hood side.

 

[TheFuser]

Man listen that's exactly what happened. They sent SWAT with flashbangs on some Call of Duty shit. Those kids are from Illinois U of R is a walk across the bridge from the hood and most of the students live on that side. They tried to cop some loud and the idiots got a bright idea and abducted them. Trust me they make examples of Anybody that touches U of R students

They're about to get put UNDER the prison. The DA is gonna make an example of them when it comes to sentencing. I bet the local OGs were mad as fuck about this. It's never good to have SWAT rolling through. The local government won't be fucking with this either because this will not be good for recruiting new students. Thank God the two students are cool. This was stupid as fuck.

 

[creepin]

Cops probably were probably using them as informants and lost them at some point

 

[phanatic]

Man listen! There's a reason why Temple Univ is in the middle of the hood, and shit like this doesn't go down. 200 North Philly residents can go missing on Temple's campus, and not one cop will go looking. Let 2 Temple students go missing in North Philly, and the fucking National Guard might get called in. Niggas in Philly know they are OFF LIMITS. Plus that shit is bad for business. Guess Rochester residents didn't get the memo or just don't give a fuck.

Temple students get jacked all the time. I'm sure the culprits are swiftly apprehended because these dumb mother fuckers shit where they eat. Don't arm rob someone three blocks away from your house stupid!

 

[bborn]

peace

Yes indeed,you know they we're made an example of when they put SWAT on their asses and the new dorms they built not long ago are right on the hood side.

Damn
The Roch hasn't changed much in 20, 25 or so yrs other than spreading their influence like so.
@ one time, the river was the border until the 'monster' needs feeding in the form of more Real Estate.
SetonHall & Yale both literally have big assed steel fences to keep that hood shit @ bay so they think.
Only prob we ever had up there beyond some scraps with the locals were a few bullet spraying @ jams but it was never reported nor was it that serious where we couldn't control or handle it. We had a few more ties within the community though.

Tbem dopey assed kids must not have realized that whatever they were looking for could have been found @ RIT, S.U.N.Y. Brockport or the rest of them little schools in the surrounding area.
Stay out tbe hood if you don't know any better.

 

[STILLDOGIN]

Yes indeed,you know they we're made an example of when they put SWAT on their asses and the new dorms they built not long ago are right on the hood side.

All of this shit is a few blocks around the corner from my parents house. I go back every year, and I don't fuck around over there.

 

[Jboogiee]

Kidnapping First Degree

Lyell Strickland, 26 of Rochester

Dennis Perez, 23 of Rochester

Samantha Hughes, 19 of Pittsford

Leah Gigliotti, 20 of Rochester

Kidnapping Second Degree

Ruth Lora, 19 of Rochester

Inalia Rolldan, 19 of Rochester


Kidnapping suspect, Ruth Lora, has been indicted by a grand jury. Her case now heads to a higher court.



http://13wham.com/news/top-stories/attorney-says-u-of-r-kidnapping-suspect-was-misled
Attorney: U of R kidnapping suspect "was misled"

The attorney for one of the women charged with kidnapping two University of Rochester students said his client is being charged as an accomplice in a plot she didn't know about - by people she really didn't know, either.

"She was good friends with one person," attorney Brian DeCarolis said. "Through that, she became interconnected to some of these other people."

Ani Okeke-Ewo and Nicholas Kollias were reportedly terrorized for 40 hours in a house at 22 Harvest Street in Rochester.

Her attorney says there is only one problem.

"She wasn't at 22 Harvest Street, she wasn't inside," DeCarolis said.

DeCarolis can't say how his client knew the victims or whether she rode with them from the university in their vehicle which was later recovered near the crime scene.

"My understanding is that these two individuals - the U of R students - were misled to get there and I can tell you that my client was misled in her alleged helping of getting them there," he said.

The victims were forced to turn over cash, credit cards and pin numbers. Four of the suspects are charged with first-degree kidnapping. It's unclear who was calling the shots.

Suspect Lydell Strickland is a convicted felon who served prison time after shooting another man in the leg.

Another suspect, Dennis Perez, lived at the house where the students were allegedly held.

"They've put my client and the other man first. Whether that has any significance, I'm waiting to see," said attorney Peter Pullano, who represents Perez. "I think ring leaders, who did what, it's going to depend on who you're talking to."

Giliotti's attorney said her client knows only one of the other suspects - and only went to the neighborhood that night to meet with her good friend. The attorney will not confirm whether that friend is Samantha Hughes. However, Hughes is the only other female suspect facing the most serious charges.

The District Attorney's office said by Friday, the grand jury will have likely voted on at least one felony charge for each of the suspects. Any other details about motive will be reserved until that time.

"It is absolutely an on-going investigation," Assistant District Attorney Matthew Schwartz said. "There's certainly opportunity for additional suspects or additional charges."

University President Joel Seligman said he cannot talk about the details of the case, but offered up a comment from the students' perspective.

"You have no idea what is means to be kidnapped and in fear of your life and to face life and death," Seligman said. "So they get a second chance at life."






They apparently were lured to that location by 20-year-old Leah Gigliotti, a person they did not know well. After nearly two days of being beaten and tied up, one of them shot, they were rescued by a SWAT team.

Gigliotti is one of the six people charged.





In court, UR abduction suspect threatens to 'knock out' his lawyer
http://www.democratandchronicle.com...sity-of-rochester-lydell-strickland/77142846/


A court session Friday at which the six accused of kidnapping two University of Rochester students were told they'd been indicted turned momentarily volatile when one threatened to "knock out" his attorney.

Lydell Strickland had to be silenced several times by court security and City Court Judge Melchor Castro as he complained about being appointed Assistant Monroe County Public Defender Joshua Stubbe. Strickland threatened to punch out Stubbe if he remained his lawyer, a remark that prompted one person in the courtroom on behalf of Strickland to yell at him to shut up.

Until Strickland's appearance, the court appearances went as expected, with each of the defendants told they had been indicted by a grand jury. The particular charges will not be made public until the grand jury completes its session, Assistant District Attorney Matthew Schwartz said Friday.

 

[TheFuser]

Temple students get jacked all the time. I'm sure the culprits are swiftly apprehended because these dumb mother fuckers shit where they eat. Don't arm rob someone three blocks away from your house stupid!

It's interesting because there aren't any clear lines drawn anymore with Temple and NP. Back in the day, they wouldn't wander past the McDonald's on Diamond, and wouldn't go west of 15th. Now, I know TU students with apartments on like 20th and Norris. WTF!

And yes, they get robbed every now and again. Just like Penn students get robbed in West when they wander too far, and LaSalle student get jacked when they wander too close to Chelten. But they get caught ASAP. Those Temple alerts go up, and there are cameras and flood lights like on EVERY block. The oldheads are telling their youngins to fall back off that shit. Brings way too much heat. Especially since the district is RIGHT there.

 

[phanatic]

It's interesting because there aren't any clear lines drawn anymore with Temple and NP. Back in the day, they wouldn't wander past the McDonald's on Diamond, and wouldn't go west of 15th. Now, I know TU students with apartments on like 20th and Norris. WTF!

And yes, they get robbed every now and again. Just like Penn students get robbed in West when they wander too far, and LaSalle student get jacked when they wander too close to Chelten. But they get caught ASAP. Those Temple alerts go up, and there are cameras and flood lights like on EVERY block. The oldheads are telling their youngins to fall back off that shit. Brings way too much heat. Especially since the district is RIGHT there.

Years ago, I met this white chick at the bar that went to Temple. We were going back to her place and she tells the cab driver, "16th and susquehanna". I'm like holy shit this chick lives in a neighborhood that I wouldn't go to, and I grew up on 24th and Lehigh. Dudes sell drugs around there like it's legal.

 

[TheFuser]

Years ago, I met this white chick at the bar that went to Temple. We were going back to her place and she tells the cab driver, "16th and susquehanna". I'm like holy shit this chick lives in a neighborhood that I wouldn't go to, and I grew up on 24th and Lehigh. Dudes sell drugs around there like it's legal.

Bruh, I'm from 22nd and Indiana. And you're right, I never fkd around down that way. Even when I used to go to the games at 17th and SusQ, I got the fuck outta there as soon as them shits were over. lol

 

[phanatic]

Bruh, I'm from 22nd and Indiana. And you're right, I never fkd around down that way. Even when I used to go to the games at 17th and SusQ, I got the fuck outta there as soon as them shits were over. lol

Damn you were like five blocks away from my childhood home. 19132 fam.

 

[PSlim]

http://www.bgol.us/forum/index.php?...c-torture-for-two-ny-college-students.928305/