A Guyana Defence Force (GDF) captain was pronounced dead on arrival at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC) after he was involved in an accident a stone’s throw from where he lived, shortly before 10 last night on the Aubrey Barker access road.
Dead is Ansel Semple, 31, of 1033 Aubrey Road South Ruimveldt. Two cars that were reportedly involved in the accident were being held by the police up to press time this morning. However the circumstances of the accident were not clear.
Semple’s girlfriend Natalie Goodman told Stabroek News that he had just left home when she heard the loud collision. Upon checking she realized that Semple was involved in the accident. Goodman said that she is not clear on the circumstances surrounding the accident and by the time she reached the scene he had already been placed in a car to be taken to the hospital. Sobbing uncontrollably Goodman said that she entered the car with him and drove to the hospital where the man was pronounced DOA. “They said he died before he reached,” she told Stabroek News.
Taxi driver Chris Williams told Stabroek news that he was driving out of Aubrey Barker road and stopped to offer assistance when he saw the crowd. He too said that he does not know what happened but only transferred Semple to the hospital.
At the dead man’s father Cecil Semple’s home, relatives and friends gathered as news of the death spread. While attempting to provide information to this newspaper the man realized that his computer which he turned off before going to the hospital upon hearing of his son’s accident was missing.
Relatives recalled that the man had been in a near-death accident several years ago on the Linden Highway involving an army pickup.
A number of Ansel Semple’s colleagues also gathered at the hospital expressing shock at his death.
His sister said that he called her in the afternoon telling her he was “going to pass and see me…he never did,” she cried at the hospital last night.
Meanwhile the weapon he was carrying at the time of the accident was not recovered by police. When he was taken to the hospital only the weapon’s holder was found on him. A little while later his neighbour turned up with several rounds of ammunition that were recovered at the scene; but the weapon was not found up to press time.
The man was at the Tacama army base for the last two weeks and only returned yesterday, Goodman related. The man also leaves to mourn a six-year-old daughter.
