–Mastermind allegedly hoping for financial settlement

IT will take the devil’s own job for the Guyana Police Force to prove to the citizens of this country that, as an organization, it is really serious about any reform process and engaging the communities in a way that will see cooperation.Any sincere, concerted move by the Guyana Police Force to regain the public confidence would necessarily have to entail ejection from the Force of every single rank who has proven morally unfit and psychologically unwilling to serve and protect the citizenry of the land.

There are new reports that the Guyana Police Force is investigating a case of teen torture at the Sparendaam Police Station. Specifically, the teen has allegedly sustained burns to his hands, inflicted when ranks who were questioning him in relation to an offence reportedly employed the use of methylated spirits in a certain procedure.

The Guyana Police Force yesterday confirmed that the matter is engaging the attention of the Police Office for Professional Responsibility. Officials state that the incident occurred between May 25 and 27 at the station located in the Police C Division district.

The Guyana Chronicle has been reliably informed that the police who was in charge of the station at the time of the incident was fingered in a similar incident involving the same modus operandi back in 2009.

The police have since issued a press release about the Sparendaam issue, detailing that 19-year-old Junior Torrington of Eastville Housing Scheme, Annandale, East Coast Demerara alleges being burnt to the hands by the police while in custody at the Sparendaam station.

The police also stated that at the time of the incident, the child was being investigated for a criminal offence.

This latest incident involving police excesses comes even as that organisation is working with several communities to improve the relationship with young people, as well as in face of the ongoing investigations of one case of police brutality and torture at the Timehri Police Station, and another case of police excesses where a cadet officer shot a teenager in his mouth.

Although the matter is presently engaging attention of the Police Office of Professional Responsibility, this publication has been informed that none of the ranks at the Sparendaam Police station is currently under close arrest.

The Guyana Chronicle was also informed that the police rank at the centre of the investigation approached the teenager’s family with a view to settling the matter financially.

It is however unclear if the family accepted financial settlement, but it has been learnt that the police will still go ahead with internal investigations as it tries to get to the bottom of this unsavoury development.

(By Leroy Smith)