ST GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC -Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell Tuesday confirmed that disciplinary action had been taken against four police officers implicated in the escape of three men, who have subsequently been char.
The men had allegedly hijacked the yacht belonging to the two Americans and sailed it to St. Vincent and the Grenadines, where they were captured by law enforcement officials there.
Speaking at a news conference here on Tuesday, Mitchell, also the National Security Minister, told reporters that “disciplinary action” has been taken so far against four police officers.
He said they have been charged with various offenses under the Police Act, ranging from making a false statement for permitting prisoner escape and breaches of Standing Orders.
“These officers, however, are also entitled to due process and …the necessary procedures and safeguards will be put in place to ensure that they have proper representation and the right to defend themselves,” Mitchell said.
He said when the process is completed, “the chips will fall where they must.”
The prime minister said that it is also clear that leadership decision is a matter that requires attention as well and that the Commissioner of Police has also commissioned an investigation to review the role of the leadership at the time of the escape of the prisoners.
He said the necessary report would be submitted to the Public Service Commission (PSC), which is responsible for disciplinary action.
Last Thursday, Ron Mitchell, 30, Atiba Stanisclaus, 25, and Trevon Robertson, 23, appeared in court in St. George’s and were remanded into custody.
They were jointly charged with two counts of capital murder by intentionally causing the death of the US citizens Ralph Hendry and Kathleen Brandel. They were also accused of the offenses of escaping lawful custody, housebreaking, robbery, and two counts of kidnapping.
Additionally, Stanislaus was charged with one count of rape. They will all return to court on March 27.
The men were repatriated to Grenada last Monday after the Senior Magistrate in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Colin John, issued an order for their removal from the country.
The men had pleaded guilty one week earlier to four immigration offenses and spent a week in prison awaiting their sentencing. They were arrested on February 21 in Petit Bordel, a village on the northwest coast of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Mitchell told reporters that he would not accept responsibility for the “human error” in the Grenada Police Force that resulted in the men escaping.
“The police are responsible for the custody of prisoners; if police action leads to the escape of a prisoner or prisoners, the responsibility lies with the police, and I think we have demonstrated that in those circumstances, action will be taken in relation to the police,” said Mitchell.
“As the Minister for National Security, the fact that I am here speaking to the issue means that from a public perspective, yes, we accept responsibility for what has happened, but if you ask me if I accept personal responsibility, then obviously the answer is no,” he said in response to a question about whether the Minister for National Security should take ultimate responsibility for his subordinates.
The Prime Minister told reporters that the police’s internal investigation revealed that human error caused the men to escape lawful custody.
“The investigations revealed that the four individual cells at the South St George’s Police station had secure and functioning locking mechanisms. However, the three prisoners had not been placed inside the cells with the secure locking mechanism; instead, at the time of their escape, they were in a corridor with burglar bars that were immediately located outside of the four locking cells.
“Being there allowed them to bend the wrought iron or iron grill that secures that corridor area and to escape. It is, therefore, clear that had the men been placed in individual locking cells with proper and functioning mechanisms, they would not have escaped or had an opportunity to escape,” Mitchell said.
He said further that warnings had been issued at least two days prior that the men were high risk and also a flight risk, and therefore, based on those warnings, it was more important to ensure that all of the standard operating procedures were followed.
“The investigation, therefore, has concluded that crucial alerts were not heeded, standard operating procedures were not followed, clear supervisory negligence was present, and shift handovers were improper. These factors contributed to the prisoners’ opportunity to escape.
“So, in summary, the police accept that human error, primarily in the form of negligence, played a pivotal role in the escape,” Mitchell said.
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