Man alleges police brutality

A 27-year old male from Sion Hill is nursing a broken left leg and a fractured right leg, after allegedly being beaten by police on Friday, January 5.

Zimroy Joseph spoke to SEARCHLIGHT recently, after being discharged from the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) and being brought to court to face three charges of possession of an offensive weapon, resisting arrest and assault with actual body harm.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges and says he intends to prove that he did nothing to instigate any retaliation by the police officers that night.

Joseph, who is a watchman with the Kingstown Board, stationed at the Tokyo Bus Terminal, alleged that the same officers have beaten him four times before and broken his foot once before.

“ ….Squad bin lock me up that time deh and you know what they told me? Anytime they see me, they going kill me…”

He said after the earlier alleged beatings, he was also charged and brought to court. He said he had pleaded guilty then because he did not want any more trouble with the police; however, this time he intends to fight it in the judicial system.

Joseph’s case will be heard on February 27, 2018.

In an interview last year, former Commissioner of Police Michael Charles told SEARCHLIGHT that while executing arrests, police officers are allowed to use reasonable force if the person resists, but nowhere in their training are they instructed to slap or beat civilians.

“There is no way in the training of a police officer they say that that person is being arrested and is to be beaten,” the former COP said.(CB)