Files on the police’s investigation into the 1980 death of political activist Dr Walter Rodney and the operations of his party, the Working People’s Alliance (WPA), were admitted into evidence when the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) held its first public hearing yesterday.
New Crime Chief Senior Superintendent Leslie James was the first witness to take the stand when the public hearings began yesterday at the Supreme Court Library, where less than half of the available seating was filled. He handed over the police files and later, under questioning, said that police did not identify Gregory Smith as a suspect until 16 years after Rodney’s death—a situation he was unable to explain.
Rodney, who was a historian and co-leader of the WPA, was killed in a car near John and Bent streets on