Autopsies performed on Winston Herbert and Earl Graham, the two inmates who were fatally wounded after they attempted to escape from the Lusignan Prison on Saturday revealed that they were both shot in the chest.
Police spokesman Assistant Commissioner Royston Andries-Junor yesterday confirmed that the autopsies confirmed that Herbert and Graham died as a result of shock and haemorrhage due to the gunshot wound to the chest.
The autopsies were performed yesterday morning by Government Pathologist Dr Nehaul Singh.
The police on Saturday had said that Graham, 51 and Herbert, 21 were shot and killed while five others prisoners were injured by guards stationed in the prison’s tower in the midst of rushing towards the main gate to escape.
The shooting capped off hours of protests by inmates over a number of issues, including overcrowding at the facility and the risk of exposure to COVID-19, which were raised earlier in the day when the Home Affairs and Health ministers visited. Overcrowding at the facility has been a longstanding concern.
Graham was serving a three-month sentence for malicious wounding, assault and resisting arrest, while Herbert was in custody for rape.
In a statement issued on behalf of the Guyana Prison Service, police spokes-man Assistant Commissioner Royston Andries-Junor had detailed the genesis of the unrest, which started around 7.30am Saturday with the refusal by inmates to accept meals from prison staff.
The statement had said that prison administrators subsequently tried to engage the prisoners on their concerns but they refused and instead demanded to see the Minister of Home Affairs.
According to the authorities, the situation persisted until 12.30 pm, when attempts were made to distribute the lunch and the prisoners continued to refuse and intensified their requests to see the minister.
As a result, Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn and Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony both visited the Holding Bays at Lusignan around 1.15 pm.
“The ministers were loudly cheered and welcomed on entering the facility. They commenced a discussion with nominated representatives of the prisoners from Holding Bay 2. During this engagement all the prisoners appeared calm and those being engaged appeared receptive,” the statement said.
It noted that concerns surrounding extensive timelines between court hearings and remand, among other things, were raised with the ministers, who committed to address those within their portfolio. They, however, also informed the prisoners that the ability to address the issues within the remit of the courts was outside their authority but committed to bringing them to the attention of those with those responsibilities.
Although the response was reported to have been generally well received, the statement said that during the subsequent discussion by the ministers with inmates of Holding Bay 1, some prisoners from Holding Bays 2, 3 and 4 became aggressive and began throwing missiles, which led to the ministers ending the visit and leaving.
It added that after the officers left the main compound, the situation rapidly deteriorated into “mass disorder,” with inmates rushing the main gate in a bid to break it. “In response to [the] situation, and in a bid to contain same, ranks posted within the towers discharged several shots in the general direction of the gate which resulted in the injury of seven inmates and restoration of relative calm to the situation,” it said.
Meanwhile, responding to questions asked about the unrest from APNU+AFC parliamentarian Geeta Chandan-Edmond in the National Assembly on Tuesday, Benn said that while the loss of lives during last Saturday’s riot was regrettable and sad, the actions taken were necessary to prevent a jailbreak.
Two inmates of the Lusignan prison were initially tested positive for COVID-19 during last week. To date, about 140 prisoners have been infected, the majority of whom have since moved to isolation facilities for monitoring.
