An injunction barring two officers involved in the fatal shooting of a UG student from leaving the country was granted by Chief Justice Carl Singh late yesterday.
Also yesterday, a delegation from the University of Guyana Students Society (UGSS) met with Home Affairs Minister Ronald Gajraj demanding Police Commissioner Floyd McDonald’s removal. Gajraj, according to the Government Information Agency (GINA), said that this and other matters would be addressed when the Police Service Commission was established.
And UG student Ronson Grey who was shot in the chin has commenced civil proceedings in the High Court against the two officers claiming damages in excess of $50M.
In an interview with Stabroek News, attorney-at-law Nigel Hughes disclosed that legal action had been taken after information received alleged that the officers had planned to leave the country.
Additionally, the Guyana Bar Association (GBA) and Amnesty International (AI) have recruited Norwegian pathologist Dr. Sidsel Rogde, who will arrive in Guyana today, to perform an independent autopsy on the body of the slain student Yohance Douglas.
Stabroek News understands that the services of Dr. Rodge have been used extensively in Kenya for cases of alleged extra-judicial killings, and AI and the GBA will foot the costs for the foreign pathologist’s services.
Meanwhile, Hughes who is the GBA President, said the organisation had written a letter requesting President Bharrat Jagdeo to issue “a standing invitation to all thematic special procedures of the United Nations to facilitate a fact finding mission by the special rapporteur for extra-judicial, arbitrary and summary execution.”
The GBA has also sent a letter to acting Police Commissioner McDonald asking him to release the names of the officers who were involved in the fatal shooting of Douglas and the injury of Grey and another peer, Hughes stated.
“And, in a second letter, [the GBA] notified Mr. McDonald that our client (Grey) is willing and able to attend an identification (ID) parade to identify the men who shot in the car [as same is of critical importance] in a matter of criminal proceedings,” Hughes informed.
However, the lawyer noted that despite six telephone calls to McDonald’s office in the last two days, there had been no response. When contacted, both Crime Chief Leon Trim and Senior Superintendent Frederick Caesar said they had received no instructions regarding the ID parade, Hughes stated.
Other details mentioned in the letter to the Police Commissioner include the fact that the bullet removed from Grey is still at the hospital instead of having been collected and put up for safekeeping. The letter also noted the release of the motor vehicle into the hands of its owner considering that both were vital elements of forensic evidence for the prosecution of the said case. Further, that from all indications, no laboratory or forensic tests have been carried out on the vehicle in which Douglas and Grey were shot prior to its release to the owner.
Hughes revealed that the GBA was attempting to secure the services of an independent ballistics lab to conduct tests on any items of evidential importance to the case.
Proceedings to file charges of attempted murder against one of the officers will commence today, Hughes stated, adding that the GBA was working in conjunction with a Queen’s Counsel in London in the preparation of a report for submission to the UN Special Rapporteur.
In other developments the UGSS continued its protest action for the third consecutive day and was joined at the point where Douglas lost his life by the Women Against Violence Everywhere (WAVE) group.
Chanting `The police are lying while the innocent are dying’ among other things the group then made its way to the United Nations office on Brickdam.
Yesterday the university’s administrative staff visited Douglas’ home headed by the Dean of the Faculty of Technology, William Wilson. The youth’s mother, Halsyn Douglas, is a final year education student.
Yesterday the UGSS met with Minister Gajraj at his office where they made some of the same demands they had made to Commissioner McDonald.
A GINA release said that the UGSS members had also demanded the dismissal of McDonald. “After the Police Service Commission is established these matters can be dealt with,” said the GINA release. Gajraj said the names of the officers involved could not be released nor could they be interdicted from office until the investigation was completed.
Douglas along with Grey, who is seriously injured, O’Neil King, Quacy Heywood and Randolph Goodluck were travelling in the vicinity of Sheriff and Bonasika streets when the police shot at them. A post-mortem was performed on Douglas’ body yesterday.