A RESIDENT of Kwakwani has found himself in hot water after slapping a 16-year-old student of the Kwakwani Secondary School last Thursday, at the school sports activity.
It is alleged that the Personal Assistant to the General Manager of Kwakwani Utilities Incorporated, Dwayne Marshall, assaulted the youth who hails from Aoriama, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Upper Berbice). The boy resides at the Kwakwani Hostel.
In a video seen by this publication that has gone viral on social media, prompting much commentary, Marshal, after a few seconds of verbal confrontation with the child, dealt him a slap, all in the presence of everyone in the sports ground. He then walked away and said, “I don’t care what y’al seh don’t slap me child.”

In a telephone interview, the student related to this newspaper that he did not know Marshall prior to the incident and it stemmed from an altercation he had with his son and wife earlier. He said his teacher requested that he and two of his classmates collect food for the students participating in sports. When they arrived at the location, another student was there. He enquired what he was doing and the student, who happened to be Marshall’s son, told him that he was sent to collect the food. He became verbally abusive to one of the boys and the victim said he intervened, asking him to desist from his behaviour, since he was younger than the trio. “He said, I is not he father and I can’t tell him what to do and if I know who is he, so I took it as a threat and give him three touch on his cheeks and told him I don’t like people threaten me,” he related. The boy dared him to remain there as he was going home, but he paid him no mind and continued back to the sports ground.
Then suddenly, a woman whom he assumed to be the boy’s stepmother, came out of a house and started using indecent language. He said they paid her no mind as well and returned to the sports ground.

While conversing with his teacher, he (assault victim) felt two taps on his shoulder. Upon turning around, a complete stranger asked him if it was he who slapped his son and threatened to “juk up” his wife. Before he could have answered, the man dealt him one slap. This infuriated teachers and parents on the ground who reprimanded Marshall for his action against a minor.

The matter was reported to the Kwakwani Police Station and the probation officer was alerted; statements were also taken from eyewitnesses and charges were laid against Marshall. He is expected to appear in court on October 4, 2019.