State mulls paper committal against six policemen

Paper committal proceedings may be initiated against six police officers charged with misbehaviour in public office.

The charges against them stemmed from the alleged assault of three men in 2010. The six—Sgt Rasool Balkaran and PCs Veda Persad, Samlal Seepersad, Elton Charlerie, Ramesh Boodram and Lyndon Hosein — were charged in 2011 after an alleged taser gun attack on Tunapuna brothers Ricardo and Randy Youk-See, 28 and 21, and their 18-year-old neighbour, Kairon Baptiste, on March 11, 2010.

The officers reappeared before Chaguanas magistrate Gillian Scotland yesterday and state prosecutor George Busby told the court he was considering paper committal in the matter. Persad, the father of two, with 16 years’ service; Seepersad, the father of two; Boodram, 29, of Mamoral; Balkaran, father of two, with 14 years’ service; Charlerie, of Arima, the father of two; and Hosein, with nine years’ service, are jointly charged with three counts of misbehaviour in public office by assaulting the Youk-See brothers and Baptiste.

They are out on $75,000 bail. During yesterday’s hearing, Busby, instructed by attorney Shelly Ann Gajadhar, said paper committal was his “legal preference.”

However, he said, he would review the matter to determine if there were witnesses he would like to call to give evidence. Busby said he would communicate with defence lawyers Israel Khan, SC, and Joseph Honore on his intention to proceed with the case by paper committal. Khan and Honore were not at yesterday’s hearing. The matter was adjourned to May 22.

The victims claimed they were beaten, tortured and threatened at the Chaguanas Police Station. They also alleged they were beaten with a golf stick and shocked with a taser gun. Thursday, January 10, 2013 www.guardian.co.tt Guardian news A11 VACANCY