// snipped lots of header info //
>I wish to warn you about a new crime ring that is targeting business
>travelers. This ring is well organized, well funded, has very skilled
>personnel, and is currently in most major cities and recently very
>active in New Orleans. The crime begins when a business traveler goes
>to a lounge for a drink at the end of the work day. A person in the bar
>walks up as they sit alone and offers to buy them a drink. The last
>thing the traveler remembers until they wake up in a hotel room bath
>tub, their body submerged to their neck in ice, is sipping that drink.
>There is a note taped to the wall instructing them not to move and to
>call 911. A phone is on a small table next to the bathtub for them to
>call. The business traveler calls 911 who have become quite familiar
>with this crime. The business traveler is instructed by the 911 operator
>to very slowly and carefully reach behind them and feel if there is a
>tube protruding from their lower back. The business traveler finds the
>tube and answers, "Yes." The 911 operator tells them to remain still,
>having already sent paramedics to help. The operator knows that both
>of the business traveler's kidneys have been harvested.
>
>This is not a scam or out of a science fiction novel, it is real. It is
>documented and confirmable. If you travel or someone close to you
>travels, please be careful.
// snip //
>Yes, this does happen. My sister-in-law works with a lady that this
>happened to her son's neighbor who lives in Houston. The only "good"
>thing to his whole story is the fact that the people doing this horrible
>crime are very in tune to what complications can happen afterwards
>because of the details precautions they take the time to set up before
>leaving the room. The word from my sister-in-law is that the hospital
>in Las Vegas (yes, Vegas) prior to transferring him back to Houston
>stated that these people know exactly what they are doing. The incision,
etc.
>was exact and clean. They use sterile equipment etc. and the hospital
>stated that other than the fact that the victim looses a kidney there
>has not been any reports of other complications due to non-sterile,
>etc. tactics that were used.
// snip //
>Sadly, this is very true. My husband is a Houston Firefighter/EMT and
>they have received alerts regarding this crime ring. It is to be taken
>very seriously. The daughter of a friend of a fellow firefighter had
>this happen to her. Skilled doctor's are performing these crimes!
>(which, by the way have been highly noted in the Las Vegas area)
>Additionally, the military has received alerts regarding this.
// snip //
>This guy went out last Saturday night to a party. He was having a good
>time, had a couple of beers and some girl seemed to like him and
>invited him to go to another party. He quickly agreed and decided to
>go along with her. She took him to a party in some apartment and they
>continued to drink, and even got involved with some other drugs.
>The next thing he knew, he woke up completely naked in a
>bathtub filled with ice. He was still feeling the effects of the drugs,
>but looked around to see he was alone. He looked down at his chest, which
>had "CALL 911 OR YOU WILL DIE" written on it in lipstick. He saw a phone
>was on a stand next to the tub, so he picked it up and dialed. He
>explained to the EMS operator what the situation was and that he didn't
>know where he was, what he took, or why he was really calling. She
>advised him to get out of the tub. He did, and she asked him to look
>himself over in the mirror. He did, and appeared normal, so she told
>him to check his back. He did, only to find two 9 inch slits on his
>lower back. She told him to get back in the tub immediately, and they
>sent a rescue team over. Apparently, after being examined, he found
>out more of what had happened. His kidneys were stolen. They are worth
>10,000 dollars each on the black market. (I was unaware this even existed.)
>
>Several guesses are in order: The second party was a sham, the people
>involved had to be at least medical students, and it was not just
>recreational drugs he was given. Regardless, he is currently in the
>hospital on life support, awaiting a spare kidney. The University of
>Texas in conjunction with Baylor University Medical Center is conducting
>tissue research to match the sophomore student with a donor.
>
>Any information leading to the arrest of the individuals may be
>forwarded to the University of Texas Campus police, or the Texas Rangers.
>
>Kimm Antell, Editor of the Daily Texan University of Texas at Austin
>Mechanical Engineering, Graduate Office
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Are you still with me?
I tend to think I don't shock easily but this shut me up for a couple of
minutes... Not just what they did but the way they did it.
Ev, if you run into the monsters doing this stuff...
do just that: run into them - full speed.
We really need to push the bio-tech reasearch that will allow us to use pig
kidneys or such (I've heard of pighearts as donororgans), as
transplantation technology becomes more advanced the shortage of organs
will rise, and thus their black-market value.
Two points:
1) Why is it that only about 20% of the population caries a document that
allow doctors to use their organs in case of sudden death, while over 90%
of the population wishes to receive donororgans if it can save (=extend)
their life.
(figures relate to the Netherlands)
It seems to me that it's rather strange that people who are willing to have
their organs used die waiting for organs that are being used by people who
would not have made their tissues available for their fellow human.
Maybe their should be seperate waiting lists. You don't have to give
consent for tissuedonation, but then you face the consequences if your
lottery ticket comes up.
2) If we extend that principle (I'm treading on dangerous ground here) it
could be argued that people that expose themselves to certain health risks
(diet, sports or certain drugs) should have a lower priority in case of
tissue shortages. Everybody is free to live the way they please but when
that's one liver for two people the person that is a personal friend &
customer of Jack Daniels maybe should not get it (all other variables being
equal).
I do a lot of mountaineering myself and because of that I pay an extra
insurance fee to cover the higher-than-average medical costs. I do not
consider this an unreasonable demand. It's my choice to climb (and get hurt
every now and then).
I should pay the extra costs of patching me up when something goes wrong.
3) I'm not a doctor but the 'retrieval' operation described would cost some
serious money, how can they make a profit that makes it worth the risks?
It's a bit morbid but I can't help being curious.
Kind regards,
Arjen Kamphuis
mountain@knoware.nl
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Don't be afraid to go out on a limb...
that's where the fruit is."