Agricola residents protest teen’s killing

–political parties call for full investigation

By Bhisham Mohamed

Slain Agricola teenager Shaquille Grant would have turned eighteen on Wednesday and his relatives plan to leave no stone unturned in seeking justice for his untimely death.
Bearing placards with the name of the police rank who allegedly pulled the trigger, and other messages calling for justice, the relatives picketed the Brickdam Police Station where four other young men were being held by the police.
The mother of the dead teenager is calling for the officer to be charged for the capital offence of murder. Shonette Adams told Guyana Times International that this was one of her recommendations to Opposition Leader David Granger and Alliance For Change executive member Nigel Hughes when they visited the village on Wednesday morning.
The distraught woman refuted claims by the police that the teenagers opened fire on them and asked for a ballistic test to be conducted on the teens, which would clarify whether or not they actually pulled a trigger.
She noted that from reports gathered, the teenagers were ambushed by the police who surrounded the house they were occupying and it was impossible for the teenagers to open fire on the police ranks. She said her son had no criminal record, a claim which was verified by a police source.

Immediate investigation
Meanwhile, Granger expressed shock at the shooting of Grant and called on acting Police Commissioner Leroy Brummel to conduct an immediate investigation into the circumstances that led to the shooting and to interdict the officer responsible.
People’s National Congress Reform representatives were immediately dispatched to Agricola to console the family and to ascertain the facts on the ground.
At a special press conference on Wednesday, AFC party expressed its profound disappointment over the shooting to death of the teenager and called for the matter to be properly investigated and charges to be being instituted against the person (s) responsible for the teenager’s death.
In an initial release, police said about 12: 10h on Tuesday, ranks on mobile patrol came under fire from a group of men at Caesar Street, Agricola, Georgetown. The ranks returned fire, fatally wounding Grant and injuring Bovell, 20, of Brutus Street, Agricola, who was admitted to the Georgetown Public Hospital and is under guard. A .38 Smith and Wesson revolver was recovered by the police and three other men were arrested and are in police custody assisting with the investigations.