Fitzroy Williams, 44, of Glasgow Village, East Bank Berbice says that his right knee was seriously injured due to a severe beating he received from ranks at the Central Police Station in New Amsterdam last month.
The man is further alleging that the beating took place at the police station and the ranks involved forced him to accept $40,000 as compensation for the damaged knee and had him sign for the money. He also alleged that they promised that $200,000 more would be forthcoming.
Stabroek News tried to contact the Commander of ‘B’ Division, Deryck Josiah for a comment but he was out of office. The newspaper spoke with Assistant Commander, Eric Bassant, who expressed shock and surprise at the allegations. Bassant noted that nothing of the sort was reported to either him or the Commander. He has since invited Williams to his office to present his complaint.
Williams said that on April 28 last, he and his wife were having an argument, during which the police patrol was passing the village. The police stopped and entered his premises “and called my wife and me and asked me what happened so we explained what had happen, and they said both of us has to go to the station”. He noted that both he and his wife cooperated.
“I was reasoning with my wife at the station when the police came and told me to go in the lock- ups and I said, ‘no problem’, because I was already at the station”. Williams said that the police officer [name given] “came with a baton and started to lash me all over me body— all over my chest and so on— all here (pointing to his right knee) and my back and then he started to beat this one knee [right knee] more seriously and the knee cap broke and they put me in the lock- up just so”.
He alleged that two officers did the beating. Williams named both men. He said his wife left before the act took place.
The man said that during that period, he was in intense pain and knew something bad had happened to his right knee.
“They put me in the lock- up just so and I had to rock the door hard for them to come and when they came, they said I have to bare my chafe and they go away and I rock the door again and then a next police came— the Station Sergeant— and said when the patrol van came, they would send me to the hospital”.
Williams said he was experiencing excruciating pains at this time “and I was hollering down in the lock- ups and crying and asking them for medical attention and then they took me to the hospital”. He added that upon examination by a doctor at the New Amsterdam Hospital and an x- ray that he was diagnosed with a cracked knee-cap. They cast the knee and took him back to the station.
He alleged that the Station Sergeant recommended that the police place Williams on $5,000 bail. Williams said he did not have any money since he works with an East Bank Berbice road contractor and is paid every fortnight and would have to wait for the next two weeks to receive another pay cheque. The Sergeant then told Williams he could leave but that he must return on Monday. Upon his return on Monday, Williams was sent to the Officer-in-Charge (O/C) and “the O/C sent me to the Complaints Office and the police came and said they will give me $40,000— [name of police given]— to done the story and I must sign a paper”. Williams added that he “was bullied to sign the paper and I signed it and took the money”.
He signed the paper at the Complaints Office, in the presence of the two officers who allegedly performed the beatings. He said they then took him in a car to a named beer garden on Republic Road, New Amsterdam and clandestinely handed him $40,000 in his hands and “then they gave me the money and then he said ‘let the story done here and he don’t want to hear anything else about the story’”.
Williams further alleged that upon showing the officers the x- ray of his cracked knee-cap, the officers offered him a further $200,000.
When asked why he accepted the first payment of $40,000, Williams said he was pressured to do so by the officers. “I needed the money too but they also forced me—- and they brought a retired police to talk to me— all of them came and talked to me. They put me in the car and forced me to sign the paper and collect the money to done the story because they said they did not expect I would have gotten such a bad injury and then the beer garden owner talked to me too— I think she is friends with them”.
Williams said that his leg is getting worse, since a visit on Tuesday to the N/A Hospital confirmed this. He was referred to the Georgetown Hospital for further treatment. He needs knee surgery the doctor had told him.
Williams told this newspaper that he has a wife and five children to take care of and the injury has incapacitated him.
He said to date he has not received the $200,000 payment and wants justice to be served and the officers to be held accountable.
