Paramedic Charged In $25 Million Travolta Extortion Plot

NASSAU, Bahamas — A Bahamas paramedic was charged Monday in an alleged scheme to extort $25 million from John Travolta after his chronically ill son died of a seizure at the family's vacation home.

Tarino Lightbourne, 47, pleaded not guilty to charges of attempting to extort and conspiracy to extort from the movie star.

Details of the alleged plot remain fuzzy, but prosecutor Bernard Turner said investigators are looking for a "certain document" and police say it involved $25 million. Magistrate Carolita Bethel remanded the suspect to jail after Turner objected to bail.

Senior Assistant Police Commissioner Marvin Dames said the actor's lawyers filed a complaint of attempted extortion after Pleasant Bridgewater, an attorney and then-senator, allegedly informed them that Lightbourne claimed he "was in possession of a document that, if released, would prove damaging to the Travoltas."

Lightbourne was detained after police issued an alert that he was wanted for attempted extortion and was considered dangerous.

Earlier, several tabloids had quoted Lightbourne describing efforts to revive 16-year-old Jett Travolta after he collapsed Jan. 2 on Grand Bahama.

Bridgewater was arrested on Thursday and charged with abetment to extort and conspiracy to extort, and was released on $40,000 bail.

She has vowed to prove her innocence but resigned Saturday from her seat in the legislature.

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Another parliamentarian, Obie Wilchcombe, was detained Friday, questioned and released pending further investigation. He has not been charged.

"We don't have anything at this stage of our investigation to implicate him," Dames said Monday.

Wilchcombe has described himself as a friend of Travolta who was with the actor shortly after his son died. He said Bridgewater told him "someone was doing something untoward" after the boy's death _ a message he said he relayed to the actor's lawyers.

"She (Bridgewater) knew I was close to the Travoltas. She wanted to bring something to my attention," Wilchcombe told Us magazine in an interview published Saturday.

He called it "absurd" to suggest he'd sought money from the movie star, saying one "single individual" had tried to take advantage of the family.

The actor and his wife, Kelly Preston, returned home to Florida with the ashes of their son shortly after his death.

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Associated Press writer Juan McCartney in Nassau, Bahamas, contributed to this report.

Comments

[rara99]

I'm Bahamian and all I can do is roll my eyes. Such bad publicity. It's like Anna Nicole crap all over again. This thing going to turn political because Pleasant and Obie are both part of the opposition PLP in island dominated by the FNM.

[Rockwell]

Don't feel bad. Human garbage can come from anywhere, whether an ambulance drive in an island paradise or a faux cowboy from Crawford, Texas.

[leatherbunny]

I hope the scumbags get the Jail Time they deserve.

[yesiknow]

I don't know why this is so hard for some people to understand.

Who cares where the pictures were taken? In the bathroom, on the way to the ambulance, in the ambulance. The pictures were taken, or the Travolta's have been told there was pictures taken and were told they would be sold to Tabloid Magazines if the "photographer" was not paid by the Travolta's.

Either way the paramedic was planning on getting paid for pictures he says he has in his possession.

It is wrong, wrong and wrong for anyone to do this to anyone at any point in time. I hope he is found guilty and put away for a long time. I hope the same for anyone else who is tied to this.

[ColoradoDan]

We don't know this at all.

Perhaps the ambulance driver commented on something that the Travolta's want unsaid ... to remain a secret.

Maybe his story does not gel with what some new 'truth' that might be planned? Already the story has altered from what those first on the scene described.

So where is this tape that has him asking for $20 or (the number has changed already) $25 million dollars?

[scorpioleidy]

This is really sick!

[JD2774]

Supposedly they had photos of the child right after death and they were going to sell them to tabloids if they weren't paid. Sick bast**ds.

[SwingingFromCenter]

OK, this "extor,tion" story keeps coming up, but there's one very important detail that is consistently missing:

What exactly, are they attempting to ext,ort for? What on earth could people demand money of Travolta for regarding his de,ad kid?

[harriettubman]

The news is reporting some type of document.

[SwingingFromCenter]

OK, this "extortion" story keeps coming up, but there's one very important detail that is consistently missing:

What exactly, are they attempting to extort for? What on earth could people demand money of Travolta for regarding his dead kid?

[horsey]

i'd like to know to..

[Changeling]

Selling pictures of the dying or dead boy to tabloids..­.. where millions of people like them would lap them up.

[amdezurik]

if that is the case, very very sick puppies...

[SwingingFromCenter]

For $25 million? Somehow I doubt that very much. Besides, how would they get pictures of it, unless they took pictures while John was standing right there in the bathroom with them.