Police acted on false information
-used ‘vacation’ instead of ‘deportation’
SENIOR Counsel Mr. Bernard De Santos, who has instructed that Habeas Corpus proceedings be instituted against the Police Commissioner and Assistant Police Superintendent Terrace Paul, relative to the custody of a child, will have the matter aired in court today before Justice Brassington Reynolds. Facing claims by the police that the child is now out of the jurisdiction, Mr. De Santos is blaming this fault on what he called reckless investigation by the police, who showed no respect for the court’s order.
Counsel advised his client, who said in her affidavit in reply that “simple police investigation would have revealed that Harry Narine Arjun was not the paternal grandfather of the child Ethan, and that neither he nor the father had had custody prior to the deportation of the mother from Canada, and particularly in view of paragraph 20.
“It is the view of Senior Counsel that the Commissioner of Police; the Commander of Division “D”, Mr. Christopher Griffith; and Asst. Supt of Police Terrance Paul were lacking in their duties and unmindful of the order of the court in allowing the child to be removed from Guyana when there were opposing claims to its custody,” Counsel said, adding that “the court has given us leave to file an affidavit in reply to theirs…”
The reply which has been filed in the Supreme Court Regisry reads: “I, Denowattie Sookdeo, residing in Cummings Lodge, Greater Georgetown, being duly sworn, make oath and say as follows:
“I have read what purports to be the Affidavit in Answer filed by ASP Paul.
“I am informed by my sister, Tarawattie Riwen, and do verily believe, that she was arrested by ASP Paul at her home, and ordered to take the child Ethan with her to the Leonora Police Station.
“At the station, on threats of further incarceration, she informed me, she was forced by Mr. Paul to hand over the child Ethan.
“ASP Paul had the means of checking the veracity of Jaichand’s declaration, which was false in material particular, inasmuch as Anita Persaud was deported from Canada and therefore could not come to Guyana on vacation. These facts were easily verifiable by ASP Paul, who recklessly and/or intentionally did not make the check…
“Further, ASP Paul knew that no abduction took place, and has to date not charged Tarawattie or anyone else with that or any other offence.
“The said Anita Persaud informed me, and I verily believe, that the Canadian Immigration authorities deported her and the infant child Ethan.
“As regards paragraph 12, simple police investigations,  if they were done, would have verified the fact that Anita Persaud had no immigration status in Canada, had been arrested as an alien in  Canada, had been imprisoned  for 3 weeks and then deported on 30th March, 2012 to Guyana.
“Simple police investigations would have revealed that Harry Narine  Arjun was not the paternal  guardian of the child Ethan, and that neither he nor the father had custody prior to the deportation of the mother, and particularly in view of paragraph 20.
“As regards paragraph 14, what was shown to the police was a private statutory declaration which had no legal validity whatever.
“Paragraph 19 shows the complete, reckless and illegal misuse of the criminal law by placing a person in custody in order to secure information.
“Paragraphs 21/22 were a contrived set of facts to try to validate, ex-post facto, the wrongdoing of the police.