Last Updated on Tuesday, 12 January 2016, 9:53 by Writer
Vice President and Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan is not in support of calls made by sections of civil society for a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into a Special and Organised Crimes Unit (SOCU) operation that went horribly wrong,
Sources have told Demerara Waves Online News that the GDF operatives had been staking out the home of Alana Seebarran and her husband, Charles Ramson Jr, on Cowan Street, Kingston, Georgetown instead of the home of the Head of the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), Winston Brassington next door.
After Seebarran’s brother managed to escape from a road-block set up by the GDF intelligence agents’ vehicles, a high-speed chase ensued that resulted in a fatal collision with a truck on Carifesta Avenue. Dead are GDF Sergeant Robert Pyle, his wife and a truck driver. The Seebarrans immediately reported their encounter to police.
The Guyana Bar Association recently stated that it is imperative that a COI be launched into the botched operation.
“The deaths and their surrounding circumstances are cause for the gravest concern among citizens. It has now been confirmed that at the time of the officer’s death he was engaged in a surveillance operation which it is now known was directed at a public servant who is on leave. The Bar Association believes that an explanation is required for the use of GDF officers to engage in such activities and the legality thereof,” the GBA said in its statement.
In an exclusive comment, Ramjattan told Demerara Waves that he does not see the need for a CoI since it would be costly to the state.
"The Commission of Inquiry demanded by a certain group…no I do not think I will support that," said the Vice President.
He stated that a Coroners Inquest will be held into the deaths as prescribed by law.
"We will have what the law provides for – a Coroners Inquest," the Minister stated.
