英语听力精选进阶版 14077

Pensioners² accused of kidnapping

Summary

10 February 2010

Four pensioners have appeared in court accused of kidnapping their financial advisor³.

The pensioners allegedly blamed him for losing two and a half million euros of their money during the recent financial crisis.

Reporter:

Steve Rosenberg:

Report

In Germany, if you think your financial advisor has been giving you bad advice and messing up your investments, you can complain to the regulators, you can go to the police. But in Bavaria, one group of pensioners stands accused of employing a much more direct method of registering their dissatisfaction. They're on trial for kidnapping their financial advisor and holding him hostage.

Four senior citizens, aged⁵ between 63 and 79, had invested nearly three and a half million dollars in the US property market and lost it all in the sub-prime mortgage meltdown. They'd concluded that the man who'd handled the investment should now reimburse⁶ them.

According to prosecutors⁷, last summer the pensioner¹ posse plus one accomplice⁸ abducted⁹ the financial advisor outside his house, tied him, gagged him, put him in a box and transported him in the boot of a car 450 kilometres to a lakeside retreat.

He claims to have spent four days locked in the cellar there and to have been tortured. After agreeing to their demands, the prisoner was allowed to send a fax to Switzerland arranging payment. He concealed¹⁰ the phrase 'call the Police' in the text and the alarm was raised. Soon after a crack team of commandos came to the rescue.

On the opening day of the trial, the 74 year old alleged⁴ ringleader of the gang avoided using the word 'kidnap'. He said he and his co-defendants had only wanted to treat their guest to a couple of days holiday in Bavaria.

Steve Rosenberg, BBC News, Berlin

1 pensioner   

n.领养老金的人

参考例句：

• The tax threshold for a single pensioner is$ 445.单身领退休年金者的纳税起点为445英镑。
• It was the pensioner's vote late in the day that influenced the election of Mr.Sweet.最后是领取养老金者的选票影响了斯威特先生的当选。

2 pensioners   

n.领取退休、养老金或抚恤金的人( pensioner的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He intends to redistribute income from the middle class to poorer paid employees and pensioners. 他意图把中产阶级到低薪雇员和退休人员的收入做重新分配。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am myself one of the pensioners upon the fund left by our noble benefactor. 我自己就是一个我们的高贵的施主遗留基金的养老金领取者。 来自辞典例句

3 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

4 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

5 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

6 reimburse   

v.补偿，付还

参考例句：

• We'll reimburse you for your travelling expenses.我们将付还你旅费。
• The funds are supposed to reimburse policyholders in the event of insurer failure.这项基金将在保险公司不能偿付的情况下对投保人进行赔付。

7 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

8 accomplice   

n.从犯，帮凶，同谋

参考例句：

• She was her husband's accomplice in murdering a rich old man.她是她丈夫谋杀一个老富翁的帮凶。
• He is suspected as an accomplice of the murder.他涉嫌为这次凶杀案的同谋。

9 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

10 concealed   

a.隐藏的，隐蔽的

参考例句：

• The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。
• I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。