A 36-year-old man died yesterday under suspicious circumstances following a collision on Wellington Street in the city.
Dead is Rawle Blackman called ‘Presumptuous’, of Lot 135 King Edward St, Albouystown and of Tiger Bay. Various accounts received by this newspaper revealed that Blackman was heading south along Wellington Street on his bicycle when he collided with a Mitsubishi motor car, PKK 4069, and a parked container.
According to eyewitnesses, at around 3 yesterday afternoon Blackman was heading up Wellington Street followed by the black motorcar, and upon their arrival in the vicinity of the Strand Cinema Building [which now houses the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God] the vehicle struck Blackman, who then fell hitting his head on a metal bar attached to the parked container, which is located opposite the church. The eyewitnesses maintain that the move by the driver was deliberate and they saw nothing incriminating about Blackman who they said had been riding his bike at a regular pace.
The driver of the car, however, told police that he was trailing Blackman after the man allegedly snatched two gold chains from a woman. The man said that he attempted to corner Blackman, but as the biker was looking back he rode into the container, hitting his head after which he fell and rolled under the vessel.
The driver is also said to have told persons at the scene that the alleged snatching took place on Water Street.
Eyewitnesses also related to this newspaper that it was at the insistence of persons on the scene that, ten minutes following the incident, the driver of the car took the bleeding Blackman, who was still breathing at the time, to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH). He was pronounced dead on arrival.
attached to the container on which Rawle Blackman hit his head.”]
At the hospital, pandemonium broke out after the dead man’s already hysterical relatives arrived on the scene and were refused permission to view his body. About half an hour later, the body was finally brought out from the Accident and Emergency Unit, and taken to the hospital morgue. Initially, the gate leading to the morgue was shut by security guards, but the deceased’s relatives forced it open so that everyone could enter. Upon viewing the extent of the injuries to Blackman’s head, his relatives were adamant that he was struck down and didn’t ride into the container as was related by the driver of the car.
When this newspaper arrived at Blackman’s mother Carmen’s house, she had just received the news of her son’s death and was trying hard to contain her grief so as not to cause her blood pressure to rise, which has been an issue for the past couple of days. “Me baby son dead,” she cried.
She then stated that Blackman’s death reminded her of his elder brother, Leroy’s death. He too had been struck down a few years back. Blackman leaves to mourn his three sisters and one brother.
Meanwhile, the driver of the car is in police custody assisting with investigations.
