SWAT unit misused in Dartmouth operation, opposition parties say
–bridge cleared but protest for justice continues
According to spokesmen for two of Guyana’s major political parties, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) misused the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit in the recent operation that resulted in the killing of businessman Orin Boston during a raid of his home.
“SWAT is only used in situations where there is a heightened threat of violence… such as when you had the situation in Bath where police officers were being attacked... These arrests could have been done in the normal course by local detectives trained in these matters,” Alliance For Change (AFC) leader Khemraj Ramjattan told a press conference yesterday.
Ramjattan, who served as Minister of Public Security under the former APNU+AFC administration, also questioned claims that the top brass within the GPF had been unaware of the deployment of the SWAT team.
He maintained that all operational matters and especially the deployment of such a specialised team should be under the direction of the Police Commissioner and therefore the explanation that Police Headquarters was unaware of the deployment suggests that there is political interference in the operations of the GPF.
“It is evident that operational matters are being decided and instructed from a source other than the leadership of the GPF. That could only mean political interference,” an AFC statement said.
A similar concern was raised by Retired Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force Rear Admiral Gary Best.
Speaking at a press conference held by the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), two hours before the AFC press conference, Best said that SWAT should only be deployed in a targeted manner.
“If you are going to go into someone’s home, without a warrant as stated, then there is a particular section within the law that allows you to do that. Notwithstanding that, I would say based on my experience that the intelligence must be targeted and the decision to use the SWAT must come from the top brass of the Guyana Police Force,” Best said.
Boston, of Dartmouth, was killed by police just after 4 am on Wednesday after a SWAT team invaded his home. According to a post mortem conducted on Thursday, the 29-year-old died from injuries he suffered when he was shot in the chest. The police had previously claimed that Boston was shot in one of his arms while engaging in an altercation with ranks. Boston’s wife, Feona, has, however, maintained that her husband was shot while in bed.
Both the PNCR and the AFC have called for a detailed probe into the killing but while the PNCR has expressed faith in the acting Police Commissioner to conduct the investigation, the AFC is calling for an independent foreign investigator.
According to Ramjattan, the actions of the government have demoralised the GPF and the death of Boston has damaged community trust in the force, so an independent probe led by a retired senior regional security official is more suitable.
Best, however, has suggested the acting Commissioner Nigel Hoppie can be trusted. “We, as a whole, do repose confidence in the Guyana Police Force and the Commissioner and we ought to give them that opportunity to conduct that investigation and based on that outcome the party will then reflect on what will be its next stages but at this point in time I think we need to allow the Commissioner of Police to conduct that investigation,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) yesterday also questioned whether the reported goal of the operation – searching for and recovering prohibited items – necessitated the use of the SWAT team.
“…[W]e must say that Guyanese should not be comforted by the initial police account of what happened in Boston’s home on that fateful morning. The explanation that Mr. Boston reached for a weapon and a confrontation ensued is standard police rhetoric that is all too familiar to the public,” the party said in a statement, while adding that the account of Boston’s widow, which contradicts that of the police, appears more believable.
Like the AFC, the WPA stated that it does not have confidence in the announced investigation. “We have no confidence in the police investigating itself in these circumstances. We therefore lend our voice to those who have already called for an independent investigation,” it said, while adding that such an investigation is expected to reveal what happened and serve as the basis for prosecution of the accused.
The WPA also stressed the need for the country to find a way to end what it called a “culture of extra-judicial killings,” which it argues has become more pronounced over the last three decades under PPP governments.
The party added that it stands in solidarity with the people of Dartmouth and the broader Essequibo community in their acts of public outrage.