An online crowdfunding campaign has been launched to provide for the daughter of a Vancouver woman slain in a double homicide.

The GoFundMe campaign was created by Samantha Le’s sister, Minh, and has set a goal of raising $100,000 for the Le family. As of Friday afternoon, more than $19,000 had been raised.

On Sept. 17 shortly before 10 p.m., Vancouver Police were called to the 100-block Dieppe Place for an abduction call. Upon arrival, officers entered a house and found the bodies of 29-year-old Le and 24-year-old Xuan Vanvy Bacao, both of whom lived inside the home. Officers also found a terrified four-year-old child and evidence of a kidnapping.

Two days later, officers staged a takedown in New Westminster and were able to rescue a kidnap victim and arrested three men. Investigators believe the incident is targeted, and the three men have been charged.

Harinam Ananda Cox, 21, Shamil Amir Ali, 22, and Gopal Figueredo, 24, are charged with four offences, including kidnapping without the use of a firearm, unlawful confinement or imprisonment, extortion and aggravated assault.

“My sister Sam — whom I always said was Mother Teresa with a little side of party thrown in — is gone,” writes Le’s sister on the GoFundMe campaign. “She could not have prepared for this. She thought she had decades of living left. She thought she would see her daughter grow up. She thought she had time to prepare for the future.”

According to the campaign description, Le did not have life insurance or savings. Her daughter Angel celebrated her 12th birthday on Monday, just two days after Le’s passing and the same day police arrested suspects in the double homicide.

“Sam always told me I never knew when to ask for help. People are asking me how they can help. I have decided, that the best way to honour Sam is to ask for help,” the messages continues.

Funds from the campaign, which can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/2qk8tbe9, will go toward paying for Le’s funeral and to provide for her daughter, the note reads.

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A Taiwanese man who alleges his young daughter was abducted by his former wife and brought to Canada has won a B.C. court order that the child be surrendered to him.

Lyndon Chen, 50, says that more than five years ago his ex-wife, Hsin-Chen Shu, took both of their children to Hong Kong against his wishes. A court in Taiwan ordered the return of his now-10-year-old son.

The Taiwanese court couldn’t make the same order regarding their daughter because Shu, who is also known as Sin Chen Chang and Yun-Syuan Shu, denied that Chen was the father, according to documents filed in B.C. Supreme Court.

Nearly two years ago, following several years of legal wrangling, the 43-year-old mom moved to Canada from Hong Kong with the now-eight-year-old daughter.

Chen, who was divorced from Shu in August 2007, alleges that his wife fled Hong Kong right before a court issued a restraining order preventing her from going abroad.

He went back to court in Taiwan and was awarded sole custody of the girl last year, according to the documents.

Chen and his son, Dare, appeared in B.C. Supreme Court on Tuesday. Chen was granted an order declaring that the girl be surrendered to him until a full hearing is held into the custody of the child.

Justice Gordon Weatherill also ordered that the mom give up any passports she might have, as well as passports of the child, and not have access to the child until the hearing. The dad will have the responsibility of ensuring the girl is taken to and picked up from school.

The judge added that he expected that it would be a “very hotly contested” matter when it returns to court. He said the mother, who was not in court Tuesday, would be entitled to appeal his interim order.

“We’re just getting a temporary order to make sure the daughter stays in B.C. until we can have the matter heard in front of a judge on an expedited basis,” Leena Yousefi, Chen’s lawyer, said outside court.

Chen, a businessman who is in B.C. for the next three weeks, was pleased that the judge had ruled in his favour.

“I want to thank the judge for giving me a chance to see my daughter,” Chen said outside court. “I haven’t seen my daughter for five years. It’s going to be hard for us and hard for her, but it’s fair for her to see her only brother and her father.”

Court documents filed in Taiwan by the mother indicated that the mom was living in Burnaby and that the girl is attending school there.

“I don’t know if she’s being treated well,” said Chen. “I don’t know anything about her.”

In the B.C. court application, Chen says his ex has now remarried and her new husband has his own children. He says his economic situation is good and he is able to support the children, and also understands that the kids need their mother in their lives as well.

Yousefi said despite indications that the mom lives in Burnaby, they are not certain and welcome anyone contacting her law office with information about the mom’s whereabouts.

The mother could not be reached for comment.

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A man has pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter in connection with a high-profile abduction and slaying in North Vancouver.

Tian Yi Eddie Zhang was initially charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping after the body of Chinese national Peng Sun, 22, was found in a quiet residential street in September 2015.

His trial had been scheduled to get underway later this month, but following discussions between the Crown and defence, he entered a plea Thursday in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver to the lesser and included offence of manslaughter.

Zhang, who has been in custody since his arrest, also pleaded guilty to the unlawful confinement of the victim and to the extortion of Cang Sun and Hau Li, the parents of Sun.

The accused’s pleas were entered before B.C. Supreme Court Justice Jim Williams, who verified that Zhang had made the pleas voluntarily and that he understood that the court was not bound by any agreement of the lawyers on sentencing.

Zhang, who was assisted in his pleas by a Mandarin interpreter, wore red prison clothing during the brief court appearance.

Manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of life in prison but typically results in a shorter jail term. The length of the jail term depends upon a number of factors, including the circumstances of the offence and the offender.

Full details of the slaying will be outlined during a sentencing hearing expected Feb. 21.

The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team was called to the scene after Sun’s body was found in the 900-block Wellington Drive.

Three vehicles, a black BMW SUV, a white Bentley and a Chevrolet Malibu, were hauled from the crime scene on flatbed trucks. Only the Bentley had a tarp placed over it, prompting residents to suspect the victim was inside that vehicle.

Casey James Hiscoe, Zhang’s co-accused, is expected to make his next appearance in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on Feb. 15. He was also charged with kidnapping.

Two other men who were arrested and charged with interfering with a dead body have had their charges stayed.

Zhang has also been charged with additional offences relating to a separate incident in Richmond two weeks before the slaying. He was accused of forcible confinement, assault and uttering threats.

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The B.C. RCMP has created a group to investigate a series of false kidnapping threats targeting Chinese nationals living in Metro Vancouver.

In July, Mounties issued a public warning after at least six people reported receiving messages that said their personal information had been compromised and that they had been implicated in a crime back in China.

They were then instructed to contact Chinese officials and that if they didn’t cooperate, their family back in China would be harmed. The suspects, who falsely claimed to be government officials, appeared to be targeting female Chinese nationals attending school in B.C.

Related

• Metro RCMP warn Chinese students of fake kidnapping scheme

Meanwhile, the students’ families back home were told their relative was being held against their will and that a ransom would need to be paid.

“While the methods used to target the victims may change over time, the way to protect yourself remains the same,” said Staff Sgt. Annie Linteau.

“Anyone who receives such a message or phone call should not comply with any demands, end the conversation and report the incident to police immediately.”

The new group, announced this week, will coordinate investigative efforts across B.C. police jurisdictions.

Linteau said senior RCMP leaders had also met with representatives from the Chinese consulate recently to discuss the reported incidents and investigative plans moving forward.

Chinese nationals in Canada are reminded that any criminal investigations taking place in China would notify nationals living abroad via formal written notice through the Chinese embassy in Ottawa or the consulates in Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto or Calgary.

These diplomatic or consular agencies would not contact criminal suspects by phone and would not ask for personal banking information.

Anyone who may have received a fraudulent phone call or threats by people claiming to be Chinese government officials are advised to contact police at 911 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

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DAWSON CREEK — RCMP in northeastern B.C. say they are investigating what appears to be a triple kidnapping.

Cpl. Madonna Saunderson said police in Dawson Creek learned of the case on Saturday.

A woman reported she had been kidnapped and held against her will for several days but had managed to escape from the home in a rural area near the city.

A second person also reported they had been kidnapped and told investigators a third person was still in the house.

Saunderson said RCMP and emergency response team members entered the home and found the third person, and all three people were treated for injuries described as non-life-threatening.

Police have not said if any suspects have been identified or if any arrests have been made, but they confirm the investigation is continuing and the public is not believed to be at risk.

It was December 2008, some 114 days into the captivity of her daughter, Amanda Lindhout, that Lorinda Stewart started planning the welcome home party. She bought perfume, pyjamas and pink wrapping paper. There would be pink helium balloons, a pink pinata, and cotton candy to welcome her daughter when, not if, she returned home, Stewart decided. 

When Lindhout was kidnapped in Somalia on Aug. 23, 2008, her mother also became a prisoner. For 460 days, the length of her daughter’s captivity, Stewart was virtually chained to the Somalian criminals who had kidnapped her daughter, negotiating by phone in whatever guise was required: she was mom, friend, forgiver and toughest foe.

Stewart was her daughter’s best and only hope, drawing on reserves she did not know she had, maintaining calm even when her daughter sobbed and pleaded for her life: “Mom, they’re going to kill us.”

“One day closer was my mantra,” said Stewart in a phone interview with Postmedia from her home in Nelson, B.C. It’s also the title of the book Stewart has written, which recounts every agonizing detail of the quest to free her daughter.

While in captivity, Lindhout found solace visualizing an imaginary house in the sky she could drift into. Stewart imagined pink balloons, giddy with helium. “I guess my own house in the sky was that pink party.”

Stewart’s voice on the phone cracks and trembles. She suffered from anxiety, PTSD and depression after the ordeal — and is now on a healing journey, hoping that her story will offer comfort to others in crisis. 

Author Lorinda Stewart Portrait in Krestova, near Nelson, B.C. on Friday, October 27, 2017. Stewart is the mother of Amanda Lindhout, a woman held hostage in Somalia for 460 days.

Lindhout, now 36, was kidnapped at gunpoint along with Australian photographer Nigel Brennan near Mogadishu in 2008 when the duo were travelling to do a story on a displaced persons camp in Somalia. Lindhout had been building a career as a freelance journalist, filing stories from Iraq, and although she was aware of the dangers of travelling in Somalia, where piracy and kidnapping were common, she was compelled to cover the region, looking for stories that no one else had told.

Although Lindhout had taken appropriate precautions and hired a fixer, a local guide tasked with safety and transportation, Stewart had a “foreboding feeling” about the trip. But she had long since learned there was little to be gained from trying to dissuade her daughter. 

At the time of Amanda’s kidnapping, Stewart was scraping by on a minimum wage job in Balfour, B.C. She grew concerned when she didn’t hear from Amanda for two days. Then Stewart’s ex-husband, Amanda’s father, Jon Lindhout, called, screaming that Amanda had been kidnapped. His driveway was filled with news trucks.

Stewart drove all day to his house in Sylvan Lake, Alberta, where RCMP investigators were waiting. The kidnappers, an ad hoc group of Islamic extremist criminals, had already called and left a message demanding $1.5 million in ransom.

Stewart was living on the poverty line, and Amanda’s father was on disability. There was no money.

The officers explained that Canada has a no-ransom policy, but said hostage releases had been secured using benefits like social aid, schools and pharmaceuticals to win their freedom. It would be against the law for Amanda’s parents to fundraise for a ransom. 

The RCMP team explained they needed someone to act as the primary contact and main negotiator with the kidnappers. Stewart, they felt, was the best choice. 

“I wasn’t forced into it, but I chose to take on that role because I had the assurance that the RCMP would train me, and because I hoped that I would at times be connected to Amanda, and she would hear my voice and I would hear her voice,” said Stewart. 

She would have the support of a professional negotiator alongside her at all times. 

“My first call with Amanda, she sounded strong. We both felt very confident that it would be over soon. It was four days in.”

Stewart was also surprised when she first spoke with the principal negotiator for the Somali gang, who identified himself as “Adam.”

“My expectation was based on watching movies, that I was going to have this hostile man yelling at me and threatening me. He was soft-spoken, polite, thanking me, so that was a surprise. I felt like I could build a rapport with Adam and he would work with me.”

Over time, Adam terrorized Stewart, calling her day and night, threatening to marry Amanda or harm her. And although he was Stewart’s contact — and soon took to calling her “mom”— he was part of a larger cell of violent criminals holding Amanda and Nigel Brennan for financial gain.

The RCMP installed Stewart in a secret location they dubbed the Sylvan Lake Command Centre, SLOC. The windows were covered with cardboard, and no one entered unless they knew the password: Pink Cotton Candy.

“Speaking boards” were plastered on the walls with harrowing scripts to follow. If Amanda was being tortured: “You must protect her. She is your sister. I am doing everything I can to get the money.” And if the worst happened: “Do you have their body/bodies? You are responsible for returning their bodies to their families.”

Lorinda Stewart had to man the phones and use scripts provided to her by the RCMP in 2008. When her daughter Amanda Lindhout was taken hostage in Somalia, Lorinda Stewart gave up everything — her job, her home, her freedom, to become the lead negotiator, desperately working to secure her daughter’s freedom.

“At first, we had total faith in the government,” said Stewart. She immersed herself in the process, learning about Somalia, and scrutinized video their captors released of Amanda and Nigel. Stewart was completely confined in the SLOC, and ordered not to speak to media or tell anyone what she was doing.

During her confinement, Stewart began to have flashbacks to her own history of childhood and domestic abuse, including the loss of a child when she was a teenage mother during an interlude with the Children of God cult. She took comfort in the camaraderie of the RCMP officers and had faith in her daughter’s feisty character — one that was not so different from her own.

“I had so much confidence in Amanda. She had already managed many difficult situations in her travels and my hope was that those same skills that had got her out of various situations would help her in this one,” said Stewart.

As the months dragged on, the situation deteriorated and Stewart coped with terrifying rumours — that Amanda and Nigel had been sold to another group, that Amanda had given birth in captivity, that Amanda had tried to escape or been killed.

“The first really difficult conversation with Amanda was December 13, 2008. It was absolutely devastating. Amanda and I were both crying on the call, that was something that I was trying very hard not to do. I wanted her to hear my voice as strong and confident, but I knew from her voice and the way she was crying and begging that whatever was happening was very bad, very serious.”

Stewart became consumed with anxiety. She and Amanda’s father began to question whether following the directives of the Canadian government was the best course of action. The family of Nigel Brennan was becoming frustrated as well. 

By April, little progress had been made. The RCMP closed the SLOC and told Stewart that further negotiations would be managed by a team in Nairobi. “I felt abandoned by Ottawa,” said Stewart. 

Stewart measures her words carefully when she talks about Ottawa’s no-ransom policy. “I can’t put a blanket statement on what Ottawa should or shouldn’t do, but in our case, one of the scariest parts about leaving Ottawa was that we really didn’t know who to trust or who to go to. It was the life of our daughter on the line.”

Amanda’s parents and Nigel Brennan’s family decided to hire the private security company AKE, led by John Chase, to try to rescue Amanda and Nigel. The decision was terrifying.

It was also the best decision the families could have made. After 460 days, and an ordeal that included beatings, starvation, torture and sexual assault, Lindhout and Brennan were freed on Nov. 25, 2009. The cost of nearly $1.2 million was shared between both families, with help from generous donors. Amanda’s parents sold everything they had and liquidated their meagre savings. 

Stewart quickly learned that winning her daughter’s freedom did not guarantee a happy ending. There would be no pink party. “When I saw Amanda get out of that vehicle, I was feeling joy, relief and utter horror. It was clearly evident that she had not been treated well, that she had been starved. I could see the bruises on her ankles, where she had been chained. Her eyes looked so haunted. She was so weak she couldn’t stand up for very long, she needed a wheelchair. There wasn’t going to be any party. She was far too sick.” 

Mother and daughter moved into a small home in Canmore, Alberta. “When we came home I did not expect to have a huge breakdown, a dark depression, suicidal thoughts, lose my physical health. When I look back on it now, of course, all that stress was going to take a toll, but I was thinking I should be happy, we should be having parties, I don’t know why I’m feeling like this.”

Lorinda Stewart (right) and her daughter Amanda Lindhout are photographed in Toronto on Monday, October 16, 2017, as they promote Stewart’s book “One Day Closer.” The book is Stewart’s account of her quest to bring her daughter, Amanda Lindhout, home after she was kidnapped in Somalia in 2008.

Although Amanda was coping with severe PTSD, it was she who rescued her mother this time, and got her help. Both mother and daughter have been active in seeking therapy, healing and rebuilding their lives. 

After her release, Amanda wrote a bestselling book about her ordeal, A House in the Sky, founded the Global Enrichment Fund and has returned to Somalia to help rape survivors. 

Amanda Lindhout is photographed in Toronto on Monday, October 16 , 2017, as she helps promote her mother Lorinda Stewart’s book “One Day Closer.” The book is Stewart’s account of her quest to bring her daughter, Amanda Lindhout, home after she was kidnapped in Somalia in 2008.

Now Stewart is hoping to help others. “Lots of people ask me how did you get the strength to get through? The answer is so simple: it’s love. Love gives you the strength. I hope it is inspiring for other families in crisis of any kind.”

Mother, daughter and Nigel Brennan recently testified at the 10-day trial of Ali Omar Ader, the alleged kidnapper known as Adam. Ader was lured to Canada in an RCMP sting, arrested and charged with hostage-taking. Justice Robert Smith is expected to rule on the case in January.

“A lot of people have said to me that they hope the trial will bring closure,” said Stewart. “To me, ultimately, closure happens with forgiveness, when the emotional charge from the experience is gone, and that’s still a work in progress for me.”

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Lorinda Stewart and Amanda Lindhout will share their story onstage at Indigo Books on Granville, Nov. 2, 7:00 pm

VANCOUVER — A convicted child abductor will stay behind bars after a parole board determined he is still likely to harm a child if released from prison.

A Parole Board of Canada Decision issued earlier this month says 52-year-old Randall Hopley has not participated in rehabilitation programming and has declined to participate in psychological assessments.

“Your offending behaviour has been described by professionals as difficult to treat and you have refused to participate in interventions while incarcerated,” the decision says. “There is no indication that you have lessened your risk to the community.”

Hopley snatched a sleeping three-year-old Kienan Hebert from a second-floor bedroom in Sparwood, B.C., in September 2011. He kept the child for four days before returning him physically unharmed after Hebert’s parents made a public plea.

Hopley later pleaded guilty to abducting the boy, breaking and entering and possession of stolen property. He was sentenced to more than seven years in prison, plus 10 years of supervision following his release.

He was also designated a long-term offender after various courts have heard that he sexually assaulted young children while living in a foster home as a teen.

The recent parole board decision notes Hopley has a long history of offences against children and displays “little remorse or understanding” of his criminal behaviour.

The decision says Hopley will remain in custody because officials believe he still poses a threat to children in the community.

“The board concludes you are likely, if released, to commit a sexual offence involving a child before the expiration of your sentence,” the decision says.

The document recommends that Hopley completed a sex offender management program and demonstrates some insight into his crimes before his case is reviewed again next year.

Police are searching for a Vancouver woman who allegedly abducted her own son contrary to a court custody order.

According to Vancouver police, Shawana Chaudhary has allegedly taken her nine-year-old son, Emerson Cusworth, and may be travelling with him and her six-year-old daughter.

Police say there are signs Chaudhary “made plans to be away from home for an extended period” and is likely to be in the company of her two children and one or two dogs. Police do not believe that either child is in danger.

The boy’s father called police on Friday after he went to pick up his son at school, as per his court ordered parenting time, but Emerson was not there. 

Emerson was last seen Friday morning with his mother and his sister.  

Chaudhary is 34, appears South Asian, stands about 5-feet-8, and weighs about 106 pounds. She has long dark hair and dark eyes. Emerson is nine, appears South Asian, weighs about 55 pounds and has short black hair and dark eyes.

Vancouver Police are continuing the search for 9-year-old Emerson Cusworth who is believed to be with his mother, 34-year-old Shawana Chaudhary also known as Shawna.

VPD spokesperson Jason Doucette said investigators have information that suggests Emerson’s appearance could have changed and his hair may have been dyed. 

Doucette said Shawana Chaudhary, also known as Shawna, may be using her old legal name Virjinia Leeman which also could be spelled Virginia Leman.  

No information is being released about Chaudhary’s daughter as she is not subject to a court-imposed custody order.

Anyone with information about Chaudhary’s whereabouts or who recognizes the mother or her son is asked to contact police at 911 or investigators at 604-717-0601. Those who wish to remain anonymous can contact Crime Stopppers at 1-800-222-8477.

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Police are searching for two brothers from Surrey who are wanted for a targeted kidnapping where the victim was held captive and violently assaulted.

According to Surrey RCMP, Pavandeep Uppal is a 22-year-old South Asian man, about 6-foot-2 and 146 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes. Police have provided a photo of Pavandeep to the public.

Jasondeep Uppal is a 19-year-old South Asian, about 6-foot-3 and 155 pounds. He also has black hair and brown eyes.

The brothers are wanted in a March 6 incident where the victim was confined, assaulted and then released. The victim’s injuries were not life threatening and police said the choice of victim was not random.

Surrey RCMP say the Uppals are wanted on charges of forcible confinement, kidnapping, assault causing bodily harm and assault with a weapon. Jasondeep Uppal is also charged with one count of robbery.

Anyone who has information about the brothers or their whereabouts are asked to contact investigators at 604-599-0502 and cite file #2018-31954. Those who recognized the brothers are asked not to approach them and to call police immediately at 911.

Those who wish to remain anonymous can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or visit solvecrime.ca.

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DAWSON CREEK — RCMP in northeastern B.C. say they are investigating what appears to be a triple kidnapping.

Cpl. Madonna Saunderson said police in Dawson Creek learned of the case on Saturday.

A woman reported she had been kidnapped and held against her will for several days but had managed to escape from the home in a rural area near the city.

A second person also reported they had been kidnapped and told investigators a third person was still in the house.

Saunderson said RCMP and emergency response team members entered the home and found the third person, and all three people were treated for injuries described as non-life-threatening.

Police have not said if any suspects have been identified or if any arrests have been made, but they confirm the investigation is continuing and the public is not believed to be at risk.

Government officials in Burkina Faso have confirmed a Canadian mining company employee has been found dead after being kidnapped in the west African country.

An official with the Ministry of Security says Kirk Woodman, a Halifax man who worked for the Vancouver-based Progress Mineral Mining Company, was found dead late Wednesday in Oudalan province.

Jean Paul Badoum said from Ouagadougou, the country’s capital, that the body was found with bullet wounds.

Badoum said Woodman was kidnapped by armed gunmen from a mining camp, but officials have not yet identified the kidnappers.

He said no group has taken responsibility for the kidnapping.

Badoum said the body was found alone.

Acadia University professor Sandra Barr said in an email late Wednesday that Woodman was quite well-known among geologists in Nova Scotia, where he was based, and had worked in Africa for decades.

“He was very passionate about the work that he was doing there,” she said.

David Duncan, a veteran exploration geologist based in Windsor, N.S., said he worked with Woodman on projects in Nova Scotia and overseas for more than four decades.

In an interview Wednesday, he described Woodman as a talented geologist — part of a wider community of Nova Scotia-trained geologists who helped find mines around the globe. He had the ability to tell whether a good prospect could become a producing mine, he said.

Duncan and Woodman worked for Etruscan Resources of Halifax on some of the first gold mines in Niger and then Burkina Faso — as part of a close-knit group of Canadian geologists who were pioneering the development of mines in western Africa.

After Duncan left in 2005, Woodman stayed on at Etruscan and firms that purchased its properties as their original discoveries were developed into operating gold properties.
“We were the up front guys, the go-in-first guys to see if there was anything there worthwhile,” said Duncan, recalling how they worked together on the Youga gold mine in Burkina Faso in the early 2000s.

He said working as an exploration geologist in western Africa always had its dangers, ranging from the risk of traffic accidents to contracting diseases such as malaria, but Duncan said in recent years the risk increased with the rise of Islamic militancy.

“It’s a terrible thing, a terrible thing. We understood since the Canadian diplomat Robert Fowler was kidnapped in Niger that part of the world had changed … with the introduction of Islamic fundamentalists into that part of the world,” he said.

“It’s gotten to be a much harder place… We were never worried about being kidnapped. Today, it’s a different world.”

The news comes soon after a 34-year-old Quebec tourist and her travelling companion were reported missing in the west African nation.

Sherbrooke native Edith Blais and her Italian friend Luca Tacchetto were travelling by car in southwestern Burkina Faso when all communication with their families abruptly ended Dec. 15.

A statement by Security Minister Clement Sawadogo referred to the disappearance of Blais and Tacchetto as a kidnapping.

West Africa’s Sahel region has seen a number of abductions of foreigners in recent years by extremists linked to al-Qaida or the Islamic State organization.

Burkina Faso recently declared a state of emergency in the region as attacks by Islamic extremists increased, especially along the border with Niger and Mali.

Sawadogo said foreigners should use extreme caution when travelling in dangerous areas of the country.

With files from The Associated Press