-probe launched into how he got cellphone as a prisoner in hospital

THE court on Friday served an order on the acting Director of Prisons detailing its decision to release Colwyn Harding on self-bail.Harding has accused the police of a brutal sexual assault with a baton.Harding has been in the custody of the prisons since November and more recently under guard by a prison rank as he is currently in the Georgetown Public Hospital undergoing treatment for injuries he allegedly sustained while in police custody.

Meanwhile, prison officers are being accused of roughing up the prisoner on Thursday night while he lay on his hospital bed as they attempted to wrestle a cellphone from him. Information regarding this incident has been passed on to the high command of the prisons and the hospital management.
On Friday night Chief Executive Officer of the Georgetown Public Hospital, Michael Khan, confirmed that he had received a complaint of this nature and he subsequently asked for a report to be sent to him by the health professionals who were supervising the patient at the time. After reading that report he will be in a better position to comment on the issue.
The Guyana Chronicle was able to confirm that the Guyana Prison Service has launched an investigation into determining how the prisoner was able to obtain a cellular phone, which is one of the items prohibited to prisoners.
A source close to the investigation told the Guyana Chronicle that the prison would “love to know who gave him that cellphone so that we can have them charged.”
The source who asked not to be named stated that it is against the law for the prisoner to have a cellphone and at the time that he was in possession of the cellphone he was still a prisoner and under the supervision of the Georgetown Prisons.
The source said that based on Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) the cellphone will not be returned to the prisoner, even though he is on self-bail as directed by the court.
The cellphone will now be an exhibit to be used in the probe and possible prosecution of whoever was responsible for supplying the prohibited item to the prisoner.
Meanwhile, the Guyana Police Force is continuing its investigation into reports regarding the sexual abuse of Harding and Commissioner of Police Leroy Brumell said at a press conference on Thursday that the investigation should be completed by tomorrow.

(By Leroy Smith)