paradiseisland

Cat lovers who frequent Atlantis Paradise Island are standing in support of Bruce Maura, a long-time sanitation employee whose termination after 43 years of service has sparked concern about the welfare of stray cats on the resort’s property.

“Bruce is not just an employee, he’s a lifeline for these cats,” frequent Atlantis visitor Casey Patrice said.

Maura, known among guests and staff for caring for cats across the island, had taken on the responsibility of feeding and monitoring dozens of stray cats over the years. His dismissal has prompted an online petition calling for his reinstatement as his contract ends in January.

Patrice says she first noticed the cats during her stay at the resort and quickly became aware of Maura’s daily commitment to their care.

According to Patrice, Maura has personally cared for more than 70 cats, many of them living in secluded areas such as bushes, parking lots, and spaces guests rarely see. She says he built feeding stations across the island and often paid for food out of his own pocket.

“These cats depend on him every single day,” Patrice said. “If Bruce is removed, there is no clear backup plan and many of these animals would suffer.”

She described the cats as gentle and resilient, saying they add to the atmosphere of the resort in ways guests may not always notice.

“They’re part of what makes Atlantis feel alive and magical,” she said. “Guests bring treats when they can, but that doesn’t sustain the cats, especially those away from guest areas. Bruce does.”

Supporters argue that the issue goes beyond employment, framing it as a matter of compassion and responsible animal care.

“This isn’t just about a job,” Patrice said. “It’s about preserving a humane system that already works. Replacing Bruce risks undoing years of routine, trust, and care that these animals rely on to survive.”

The petition is gaining attention, and those advocating for Maura say the cats have become part of Paradise Island’s identity, adding that removing Maura who has consistently cared for them could lead to harm.

“The cats of Atlantis are part of the heart of the island,” Patrice said. “Bruce is their constant.”

LGBTQ Pastor Marcus Payne II and the congregation of Lighthouse Church of Chicago are holding nights of prayer, hoping for the safe return of Taylor Casey to Chicago, Illinois.

“Our community is broken and distraught right now during this time,” Payne said at a press conference in Chicago, in honor of Taylor’s birthday.   Payne, Taylor’s family and friends pleaded for the government’s assistance in finding the 42-year-old last seen in the Bahamas.

“She is a vital heartbeat, the heart pulse of our people.”

Taylor, a transgender woman, visited the Bahamas for a four-week yoga training course at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat Center on Paradise Island. She was last seen on June 19. Now Bahamian investigators are trying to piece together the puzzle of her mysterious disappearance.

Her phone found roughly 56 feet below water could not be accessed by investigators and her US passport has not been found, police said.

Taylor’s mother, Collette Seymour has called for assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and, she is now pressuring US elected officials to do more to find her child who celebrated her 42nd birthday on Thursday.

Taylor served actively in her church where she was on the hospitality team and “regularly participated in monthly meals [and] community conversations throughout the week.”

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Lighthouse Church of Chicago is an LGBTQ-affirming church, whose mission Payne said is to be passionate about social justice and the gospel of Jesus Christ, “through, empowerment, entertainment and education.”

“Taylor’s fashion sense, her sense of curiosity towards the world, how she saw the world as beautiful and saw God through it, is something our community is all right now, missing deeply and truly,” Payne said.

The church has organized prayer calls for Taylor and is sharing updates on social media.

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He urged elected officials to help find Taylor. “Government needs to move urgently.”

The family of the missing Chicago woman is expressing new concerns after being told that an unidentified man wandered onto the property where Taylor Casey stayed before she mysteriously disappeared.

Taylor’s mother Collette Seymore said the Royal Bahamas Police Force failed to inform her of an encounter the unknown man had with participants of the center, but it was revealed by the lead manager of the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat, who said he (the manager) had given his statements to the local authorities.

According to reports, the Monday before Casey’s disappearance, an unknown man with a walkie-talkie was seen walking the platform where Taylor’s tent was located.

“When the man saw an employee, he went in another direction and walked off of the property,” Seymore said, recounting the story as told to her.

See OTHER News: ‘She was a brilliant woman’: Friends grieve American woman struck by a boat

On the day Taylor disappeared, a man approached a yoga participant while she was sitting alone on the beach, according to Seymore. The man reportedly walked from the direction of the Atlantis Resort and approached her.

The man wore all black with a Celtics baseball cap, claiming to be from Chicago, and expressed interest in taking a yoga class. He proceeded to follow her onto the property, according to Seymore.

“It’s strange.”

Seymore who arrived last week Wednesday, has since left the Bahamas after meeting with the officials of the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

“I had to come home (Chicago) without my child. We need answers,” she told Brian Entin on Banfield NewsNation.

The 41-year-old’s phone pinged in waters and retrieved some “56 feet out,” the mother said.

A police search has failed to yield the discovery of missing Chicago woman Taylor Casey so far, whose disappearance is a mystery and is making international headlines as the safety concerns for tourists visiting the Bahamas weigh in the balance.

“We’ve used our drone technology. We’ve used our K9. We’ve used our divers. We’ve used a number of resources, and so our investigations continue,” Police Spokesperson Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings said at a press conference.

Taylor’s family met with the officials of the Royal Bahamas Police Force after arriving from the United States on Wednesday to assist in searching for the 41-year-old woman who visited the Bahamas to train as an instructor at a yoga retreat center on Paradise Island.

So far, her phone has pinged in waters but police did not say if they retrieved it.

Skippings said, “We have updated the family where we are in the investigation.

“We have a very good relationship. They are very, very pleased with the investigations thus far,” she said.

PREVIOUS: What we know and still don’t know about the disappearance of Taylor Casey

Taylor has been missing for seven days and her mother said she believes her daughter is in danger because Taylor was eager to return to teach yoga in Chicago.

Taylor’s niece Traysia Conard told NewsNation Live on Wednesday that her aunt has been practicing yoga for 15 years and visited the Bahamas in February.

“She takes trips all the time,” Conard said. “This (disappearance) was an out of the ordinary.”

“Our priority is to find Taylor in good health,” Skippings reassured.

Newsnation Brian Entin, onsite where Taylor practiced and learned the craft, highlighted that other guests were arriving at the retreat center and were unaware Taylor was missing since no flyers were posted.

Featured image: Taylor Casey is seen with her mother

Since 41-year-old American woman Taylor Casey disappeared in the Bahamas five days ago, family and friends are worried sick.

“Taylor is such a sweet person who cares so deeply about community.

“I’m currently in shock and can’t believe I’m making this post,” her friend Anna Deshawn said.

The transgender woman who came to the Bahamas from Chicago arrived on June 2 to attend a yoga retreat but disappeared on June 19. Authorities were alerted when the retreat center on Paradise Island realized she did not come to its class on July 19. They then notified Taylor’s family.

Only her cell phone was found on a beach.

PREVIOUS: American transgender woman is still missing in the Bahamas. Police find her cellphone

Her family including her mother and grandmother are expected to arrive in the Bahamas on Tuesday to assist in the search effort.

Her mother Colette Seymour told CBS News, “We are deeply concerned for Taylor’s safety and wellbeing. We love Taylor and want her home.”

It is still unknown whether or not other items belonging to Taylor were found, if she traveled to the Bahamas alone, if she met up with a friend in the country, where she stayed, who paid for her accommodations, and if she left the resort.

The son of a Canadian elderly woman assaulted while on vacation in the Bahamas is devastated after learning of the horrific events surrounding his mother.

“It’s just an unspeakable, horrendous, vile, violent, angry crime against somebody who is so vulnerable,” said David Ahrens.

The 80-year-old woman with Alzheimer’s was on a trip with her daughter at the Warwick Hotel on Paradise Island when the two were separated after the daughter got off the elevator and the mother was left inside with a male guest.

“My younger sister stepped out of the elevator and as she turned around to sort of hand out to get my mom, the doors closed and effectively my mother disappeared,” Ahrens to CTV News.

The daughter frantically searched to find her mother around the hotel for approximately thirty minutes.

With help from other guests and staff, a man and Ahren’s mother were seen coming off the elevator with her underwear in hand.

“Of course my mother was frightened and while we don’t need to go into a ton of detail, but what I will say, and it is horrendous, that she was holding her own underwear in her hand at that point in the elevator,” Ahrens said.

He said a security video shows his mother resisting the man who took her into a hotel room.

His mother was taken to the hospital and doctors confirmed she was sexually assaulted.

Bahamian authorities arrested and charged a 61-year-old Nova Scotia man, accusing him of raping the woman.

“Our concern is the combination of Alzheimer’s plus this incident of being sexually assaulted and rape, you know, that’s playing with her mind. So we’re just worried it’s playing in her subconscious and it’s just making things worse at the moment,” Ahrens said.

Ahren warns families with vulnerable family members to travel safely and use caution.

Minutes after a woman died jumping off the Sir Sidney Poitier Bridge on Sunday, a reporter in the area witnessing the horrifying ordeal, gave insight into what happened the moments before tragedy struck.

The woman, described as heavily built and wearing a black top and shorts, is believed to be in her mid-30s. Authorities are still trying to identify her by name.

“It’s scarring,” Anthonique Smith, a reporter from ZNS said, describing the moments after she learned the woman she spotted earlier had jumped to her death.

Smith and a cameraman were in transit when they heard “agitated patrons” nearby. When they stopped, they saw a woman perched at the top of the bridge.

“The woman sat for a while, a bus passed and the silhouette of the woman was gone.”

“I realized she jumped,” Smith said.

A boat went out and retrieved her but she was dead.

Authorities said they received a call around 3 pm of a woman attempting to jump over the bridge, but when they arrived, the woman was not present as reported.

What’s unknown

Police do not know the name of the woman or her next of kin.

A motive for the alleged suicide remains unknown.

The reaction

When news circulated on social media, many Bahamians expressed shock.

Montez Brown believes mental health is a serious issue that needs to be immediately addressed.

“Too many people walking around suffering mentally with no one to turn to…People walking lost and even some fully functioning but dep down going through stuff and don’t know why they having the feelings they have.”

Harold Longley reflected on life, stating that people’s problems may seem insurmountable and they may resort to taking their own lives.

Nikita Campbell asks that we pray earnestly for others.

If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis, call the Bahamas Crisis Center at 326-0121. Or speak to a trusted friend or pastor.

An embattled Bahamian entrepreneur Toby Smith condemned the government, irked that Prime Minister Philip Davis and his government favor foreign investors over Bahamian investors.

“Foreign all the way. When last did you announce support for any Bahamian-owned stores, wholesalers, retailers, bonefish camps, lodges, boutiques, [and] Bahamian-owned resorts? In fact, anything Bahamian owned?” a furious Smith asked in a social media post. He referred to the government’s signing of a $550 million Heads of Agreement with foreign developers on Monday for a new luxury resort in Faith Cave Cay, Exuma, which comes after a recent signing of other Heads of Agreement for $25 million for a boutique in the island chain. The signings come on the heel of the government’s decision to grant Crown Land to Royal Caribbean International (RCI) for its $100 million beach club project, which Smith says he has a lease. Smith has been in a long battle with the government for the property located on the western end of Paradise Island for the development of his Paradise Island Light and Beach Club. But Chief Justice Ian Winder recently ruled that he does not have claim to the land because it was never executed.

Davis supported Smith while in opposition but has since changed his view after winning the seat of government, now granting RCI approval to develop the land.

One of Davis’ cabinet ministers, Glenys Hanna-Martin said she still opposes the RCI project and has come out in support of Smith as developers prepare to break ground, “almost immediately.” She stands by her statement when she accused the Minnis administration in 2021 of “kicking a Bahamian developer to the curb” in favor of the cruise line.

Smith said he was proud of Hanna-Martin’s support for his project, “and not being a hypocrite but staying true to her word.”

Hanna-Martin’s opinion goes against cabinet procedures and Opposition Leader Michael Pintard has called for her resignation since cabinet ministers are expected to present a unified front based on the West Minister’s principle of collective responsibility. But Davis hit back expressing “full confidence” in Hanna-Martin, adding that she did not violate the ministerial code.

Smith then lashed out at Davis in another social media post, “On the defensive! Lay with dogs, pick up fleas.”

Davis requested that Smith resubmit an application for his project.

Attorney General Carl Bethel contends that Bahamian developer Toby Smith violated his privacy following Smith’s exposure of a WhatsApp message with Bethel.

Bethel released a press statement on Wednesday after the social media message was revealed to the Tribune where Bethel is shown telling Smith that Royal Caribbean was being “unreasonable” with its rival demands in its battle for a Paradise Island crown land lease.

Why it matters

The March 2020 social media exchange comes amid Smith’s fight in court in which he is seeking the assistance of the Supreme Court to validate the lease of the Paradise Island property and confirm that the crown land lease is legally binding.

The big picture

A Crown Land on Paradise Island is in dispute between Smith and Royal Caribbean Cruise Line which Smith wants to develop into a beach club but has since been approved for development by the government.

Smith is suing the government for violation of the agreement.

What the AG is saying

Bethel told the Tribune on Tuesday night that the exposure was a “grotesque” breach of his privacy.

“I have no comment on such a gross violation of privacy,” he said.

Bethel said he was asked by Cabinet to conduct negotiations, seeking to resolve the proposed lease of Crown Land on Paradise Island where a face-to-face preliminary meeting was held with Smith.

“Subsequently, Mr. Toby Smith contacted me via social media on the basis of privacy. Negotiations continued on that basis.

“Regrettably, Mr. Smith has breached the privacy that he himself indicated in his initial contact,” he said.

Bethel continued, “Negotiations are not usually assisted by arguing and telling the other party to the negotiations that he, himself, is completely unreasonable.

“Since that time, Mr. Smith has commenced a legal action in the Supreme Court.

“Informal contact accordingly ceased.

“It is interesting to know that the said legal action seems not to be going anywhere, and that Mr. Smith now appears to prefer litigating in the press, rather than in court,” Bethel said.