‘Nose’ charged with criminal assault of auxiliary police officer

The assistant editor at The News newspaper has been charged with criminal assault of an auxiliary police officer.

Yesterday, Douglas “Nose” Joseph appeared before Magistrate Carla James at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court, where he pleaded not guilty to the charge.{{more}}

Joseph was not represented by an attorney.

In an interview with SEARCHLIGHT yesterday, the veteran journalist explained that he was at work at The News on Friday, when virtual complainant Ricaldo Durrant came to the newspaper’s office at Kingstown Hill, complaining about a particular greeting that he had submitted for publication.

“The people at the front desk felt that it wasn’t appropriate for a child in the birthday greeting, so he came and he started raising his voice. I was downstairs sitting down and I told him is not everything that you write can go in the newspaper. He felt offended and I told him ‘well, if you continue making noise, I go throw you out’,” Joseph said.

The assistant editor stated that the man continued to quarrel and he (Joseph) went to his office to speak with someone who had come to visit him. The journalist said that when he emerged from his office about five minutes later, the man was still there. Joseph noted that he was carrying a cutlass, which he intended to use to root up a plant from outside the office to take to his wife.

“So, I was going outside now and he was still there talking to the lady. I say ‘man if you making noise I go throw you out’. He start up how I can’t do this and the other,” he said.

Joseph said he was standing behind the counter of the office when he told Durrant that he would throw him out of the office.

The assistant editor indicated that following the incident, he went into Kingstown to run some errands, after which he returned to the office.

According to Joseph, some time after returning to the media house, about five police officers came and arrested him. He stated that they put him on the back of an open pick-up and drove to the police garage at Arnos Vale before taking him to the Central Police Station in Kingstown.

A relative of Durrant, in an interview with SEARCHLIGHT yesterday afternoon, alleged that Joseph pulled a cutlass on Durrant and threatened to chop him up.

The journalist, however, is adamant that he never raised the cutlass to the man, nor did he threaten him with it.

“I never go up in his face. He told the police that I bring cutlass after he,” Joseph said.

“I could make a report and say he do me something. I could make up a thing like how he make up a thing on me” he said.

The matter has been adjourned to April 21, 2015.(BK)