FORMER Director of Sport, Christopher Jones, has filed legal proceedings in the High Court against the State for executing a ‘warrantless search’ on his home and seizing barber chairs, air-conditioning units, and other equipment.

Jones, in his court documents which were filed on August 31, said the act was illegal and a violation of his constitutional rights.
His attorneys, Nigel Hughes, Ronald Daniels and Kezia Williams named Acting Commissioner of Police Nigel Hoppie; Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum; Inspector Rodwell Sarrabo; Assistant Superintendent of Police, Chibanauth Singh; Corporal Singh and Attorney General Anil Nandlall as Respondents in the civil suit.

Jones, who is the Opposition Chief Whip, is seeking damages in excess of $100,000 for the 18 barber chairs and two air conditioning units, together valued $4.8 million. He is also seeking in excess of $100,000 for trespassing at his Lot 609 Conciliation Drive, Tucville, Georgetown home. Additionally, he is seeking $100,000 for his wrongful arrest on August 21, 2020.

Jones in his Statement of Claim said that, on August 20, 2020, at or about 18:30hrs, during a power outage, the police, who were armed, cordoned off his premises and demanded entry, without informing him of any lawful reason for permitting them to do so and without a warrant.

When he requested a production of a search warrant the police failed to provide same, which led him to deny them access to his home.
Jones said that with the help of his attorneys, an application was made to the High Court, the Supreme Court of Judicature, for an interim Conservatory Order dated and entered on August 20, 2020 restraining the police entering and searching his premises. It was subsequently granted.
Although the Order was in effect, on August 21 around 00:30hrs, Jones said that the police trespassed on his premises by jumping the fence and wrongfully seizing his barber chairs and air conditioning units.

Jones is also claiming that the police wrongfully restrained, arrested and detained him. The police transported him to various police stations and, thereafter, wrongfully restrained and imprisoned him in a cell at the Diamond Police Station.

Given the aforementioned, Jones is seeking an award for exemplary damages, since the execution of the search, entry and arrest were violent, aggressive, arbitrary, unconstitutional and devised to invoke, and did invoke fear into him and his family. He is also contending that the actions of the armed police ranks caused him humiliation, since he is also a public figure.

The former Sport Director is also asking the court to declare that his constitutional rights were breached, for interest on all damages awarded, costs, and any such further or other orders that the court sees fit in the circumstances.

Meanwhile, the Attorney General (AG) in his defence filed by State Solicitor, Prithima Kissoon, is asking the court to dismiss the application.
The AG contends that a police officer has the power to arrest, without warrant, anyone whom he suspects, with reasonable cause, is about to commit an offence or whom he suspects has already committed such an offence; moreover, the offence need not actually have been committed to legitimize the arrest without warrant by a police officer.

“The Claimant is not entitled to any damages at law or at all and the claim should be dismissed for being frivolous and vexatious,” Nandlall said.
According to the AG, Hoppie and the Crime Chief are wrongly named as parties in the proceedings as they were nowhere close to, in proximity of, or at, the Jones’ premises, nor did they arrest or detain him as alleged.

The AG further contends that, at first, Jones made no objection to the search being conducted by Inspector Rodwell Sarrabo, but requested time to consult with his attorney-at-law, Joseph Harmon.

Subsequently, Jones informed the police officer that his attorney had advised him to request a warrant.
According to Nandlall, upon this request, Inspector Sarrabo did not enter Jones’ premises but joined Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Singh and other police ranks, whom he briefed, and thereafter he left the premises.

Nandlall said no court order was served on the defendants in accordance with the law on August 20, 2020, at the premises of Jones.
Further, the AG contends that ASP Singh, along with other ranks, entered Jones’ yard by jumping a concrete fence.
ASP Singh then proceeded to a western door at the bottom flat of the home, where he, along with other ranks, entered the premises through an unlock door and they met Jones and his wife inside.

The couple after being informed of the reason for the officers being present, both began to verbally abuse the lawmen in a vulgar and obscene manner. The police warned the couple to desist but they continued.
While the commotion was going on, ASP Singh observed a number of barber chairs and an air conditioner in boxes and as a result he requested Jones to provide any form of documentation or proof of ownership for the items. After Jones failed to present the relevant documents, ASP Singh instructed Corporal Singh to remove the said items.
In the process of removing the items, it is alleged that Jones’ wife assaulted Corporal Singh by unlawfully pushing him by his chest out of the bottom flat before closing the door with ASP Singh locked inside.
It is further alleged that the woman proceeded to threaten to kill the senior officer. The officer was released from the room about 10 minutes later after pleading with the woman to open the door.

Subsequently, attorney-at-law Darren Wade arrived at the premises and began to verbally abuse ASP Singh and levelled a claim that the People’s Progressive Party Government sent the police to Jones’ house.
“Mr Darren Wade, thereafter, left the premises of the claimant (Jones) and returned shortly with unidentified papers in his hand which he waved around in the dark while continuously uttering that no one can enter the claimant’s house” the AG said in his defence.

Wade then threw the papers on the ground in front of ASP Singh. ASP Singh, along with other ranks that remained in the premises of Jones, were unlawfully prevented from re-entering the bottom flat of the house by Jones, his wife and the other females present.
The Guyana Chronicle had reported that, on Friday, August 21, the police carried out a search on Jones’ Tucville home during a power outage. They initially had no warrant to carry out the search and seizure, but eventually got one, and pressed ahead with seizing a quantity of barbershop chairs and other items.
The search was executed after an audit of the Ministry of Social Protection showed that it had approved the disbursement of $4.8M, through the Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) administration, for the procurement of equipment for a barbershop under the Sustainable Livelihood and Entrepreneurial Development (SLED) programme.
The presentation of a financial return would reveal that the entire sum of money was spent by December 31, 2019, but almost $1M in items were not physically delivered but were instead stored at Jones’ home, and neither had the project been executed.