Berbice “Notorious” bandit freed of all robbery charges

When 19-year old Kishan Hemnauth was arrested in February last year, the police were certain that he was part of a gang that was wreaking havoc on the Corentyne. At the time the police were under tremendous pressure, having incurred the wrath of Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee, who gave in to public demand and ordered the transfer of an entire station of ranks following a spate of armed robberies. And since the police were determined to show that they had cracked the gang that was causing the problem, they took out spite on the young Lot 160 Section ‘B’ No. 65 Village resident, who they were certain was a gang member. Hemnauth was repeatedly beaten and tortured by ranks who eventually forced him to sign a confession statement before instituting six armed robbery charges.

Kishan Hemnauth

But after a lengthy trial which ended two Wednesday’s ago at the No.51 Village Magistrate’s court, the case against Hemnauth was dismissed by Magistrate Charlyn Artiga. This was after the victims failed to positively identify Hemnauth as one of the persons who had robbed them. The outcome is being claimed as a victory for Krisendatt Hemnauth who had spared no effort to see that he gets justice for his son who suffered a brutal beating at the hands of the police ranks who arrested him. The allegations of torture that Hemnauth had made against the police were so horrifying that previous allegations of police brutality pale in comparison. Last year, after securing his pre-trial liberty, Hemnauth, now 20 had told this newspaper in an exclusive interview that he was suffocated, thrown into a trench, beaten with batons before being dumped into a dark cell, despite his obvious critical condition by overzealous cops who were angry over the full scale removal of their colleagues from the No. 51 Police Station. Thanks to medical intervention, he survived to tell his story. Hemnauth recalled that on the morning of February 20, last year, around 08:00 hours, he was tending his father’s cows in their yard when a group of heavily armed police ranks barged in and arrested him despite protestations from his parents. He spoke of overhearing conversation among the ranks “how police dem get transfer and dem gat to get back dem police to dem righted spot,” Hemnauth told this newspaper. That was only the beginning of his ordeal. At the No. 51 Police Station, Hemnauth was made to kneel on the floor after he could not tell the police what they wanted to hear. They wanted to know what Hemnauth knew about the gang that was committing the robberies. After the young man claimed ignorance, a plastic bag was placed over his head and the ranks started to cuff him about his body. According to the young man, the police took a piece of wood and lashed him on his shoulders before taking him to a cane field under the cover of night, where they continued to torture him. He explained that while handcuffed with his hands behind his back, two of the ranks held on to his feet and lowered his head into the trench. This was the local equivalent of waterboarding. This they did several times. While me in de trench, me feeling sick. When dem tek me out and me lie down pon de dam, one ah dem start fuh jump up pon me stomach. Me nah able breathe, I start fuh vomit out water,” he stated. Hemnauth told this newspaper that the ordeal continued with the ranks tying a piece of wire to his pants waist and this time throwing him into the trench, while holding on to the end of the wire. Weak and still handcuffed, he was unable to help himself and he started to ingest a substantial amount of water. It was not enough for the ranks, who took him to the front of their vehicle and discharged a round from a gun that was placed close to his ear. “Me hear when one ah dem ask de other one if he get rounds fuh put back, if he walk with extra. Then dem tell me dat dah one miss me and de next one going to me head. Dem kick me back again overboard and then tek me out.” Hemnauth said that he became so weak that he started to tremble and still the ranks did not tell him about the robbery allegations. “Me ah loss me vision and everything get shaky, if me stand up. Me just walking and drop,” he stated. Eventually he was taken back to Central Police Station and thrown into the lock-ups. “Me ask den wha dem beating me for and they say ‘you gon know’. All I tellin myself, ah gon dead now.” He sustained a suspected broken rib. A complaint was lodged with the Police Complaints Authority as well as the Police Office of Professional Responsibility and two cops were charged departmentally. Last week’s acquittal was bittersweet for the young man and his father. “Rohee had said that they had caught the notorious criminal; they had published my son’s photograph in all the newspapers. They know who was committing the crimes. I will like to know what Rohee will do now to repair my son’s character. Everywhere my son go, people calling him a thief. If anything should happen to me and my family I will hold the administration accountable,” said Krisendatt Hemnauth. He expressed thanks to all the persons who went to court and “spoke the truth.”