Baby killer and kidnapper caught in Coral Springs
Janus Saintil
Update June 4, 2011: A 24-year-old man angry at the mother of his infant son forced the woman and two other adults to drive to Port St. Lucie Thursday night at gunpoint with the baby. Once there, Janus Saintil dropped the baby off with friends and eventually left the three adults abandoned, prompting a multi-jurisdictional hunt for the infant, the father and the stolen car he was driving. The search ended sadly Friday afternoon when Saintil inadvertently parked the stolen Kia next to a Coral Springs police officer who was looking for him. The officer found the tiny body of Josiah Saintil in the trunk.
The ordeal started around 7 p.m. Thursday when Saintil was heading to a North Lauderdale Walmart with his girlfriend, Claudia Harriott, their son and two friends. He and Harriott argued, and he took out a gun. He made the group drive up to Port St. Lucie, where he has friends. He stopped at a house and dropped off the baby. The girlfriend and two other victims were unfamiliar with the house and couldn’t tell investigators where it was. They drove to a second house and then to an ATM, where Saintil attempted to force Andrew Pennent to withdraw cash. Pennent refused and yelled for help, prompting Saintil to flee in the black Kia Spectra, which belonged victim Marissa Murray’s mother. It’s unclear where Saintil went when he left them shortly after 10 p.m.
With the help of the U.S. Marshals Service, Coral Springs police developed information that led them to the Palm Terrace condominiums. An officer was waiting there when Saintil pulled in around 2:45 p.m. Friday. He and an 18-year-old woman were taken into custody. The officer found the baby shortly afterward as he searched the car.
The Broward Sheriff’s Office is investigating the armed kidnappings and homicide of Josiah Saintil. Janus Saintil is facing charges of first-degree murder and armed kidnapping. The Broward County Medical Examiner will determine Josiah’s cause and manner of death.
6-1-2012
The Broward Sheriff’s Office and the Port St. Lucie Police Department are trying to locate a two-month-old baby kidnapped by his father Thursday night. Josiah Saintil was wearing a blue onesie with the words “Mommy All Star” on the front. He has a light skin discoloration on his chin, earlobe and left temple. Detectives are also looking for his father, 24-year-old Janus Saintil of Deerfield Beach, who was last seen driving a stolen black, four-door Kia Spectra with tinted windows and the Florida tag K52 8LH.
Janus Saintil was with two women, another man and the baby around 7 p.m. Thursday enroute to a North Lauderdale Walmart when he became angry and pulled out a gun. One of the women is the baby’s mother. He drove to Port St. Lucie, where he dropped the baby off at an unknown address. Saintil and his victims went to a second house in Port St. Lucie and then to an ATM, where Saintil and a second suspect tried to force one victim to get cash. The victims yelled for help, and Saintil left in the Spectra. Janus Saintil should be considered armed and dangerous. He has a lengthy criminal history and an outstanding warrant for armed robbery. Anyone who sees him or the baby or knows of their whereabouts should dial 911 immediately.
