APNU Parliamentarian accuses cops of selective profiling - following Tiger Bay raid
February 25, 2013, By KNews, Filed Under News, Source
A Partnership of National Unity (APNU) Member of Parliament and Attorney at Law James Bond has accused the police of “blatantly profiling and selectively targeting ordinary Guyanese”, in the wake of last Thursday’s recent arrests of several Tiger Bay residents.
Bond stated that the “blatant profiling and selective targeting of ordinary Guyanese under the Rohee Security Plan or any other Plan that this inept Government and its Ministry of Home Affairs has foisted on the populace should not be condoned.”
Police had arrested over 40 young men and seized a quantity of electrical, paint, hardware items, and motor cycles, which they said they suspected to have been unlawfully obtained.
The exercise was reportedly conducted by CID ranks and others from the Tactical Services Unit.
The men arrested were kept at the Brickdam Police station and were later released. Rosemary Lane, Tiger Bay residents were peeved over the activity saying that the police swooped and kicked down some of the doors of the small apartments and proceeded to search. They also said that the ranks failed to produce search warrants.
APNU Member of Parliament and Attorney at Law James Bond
According to Attorney, James Bond, “on the 21st of February a mere day after the 90th birth anniversary of the first Prime Minister and Executive President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, legions of policemen cordoned off the Tiger Bay area and ordered all the males out of their dwelling places.
“APNU was reliably informed that Senior Superintendent Errol Watts was in charge of the entire operation. In particular, plain clothes policemen in conjunction with other uniformed policemen conducted searches on the residents dwellings, their person and also seized a number of their personal belongings.”
He said that on visiting the Brickdam Police Station he contacted a senior police official and informed him that some of the residents were missing money, cellular phones and other personal effects in the wake of the searches by the policemen.
“Policemen have been accused by residents of stealing from the residents under the guise of a raid.”
“We would urge upon the hierarchy of the Guyana Police Force to resist every temptation by this administration to descend into the abyss of lawlessness, cock-eyedness, high handedness and abusiveness. We cannot restrain our disgust at this latest attempt by the Ministry of Home Affairs and the PPPC Government to run roughshod over certain communities…such actions would not be condoned.”
He further questioned if the actions by the police are related to the Home Affairs Minister’s much touted security plan.