Four persons including two police ranks are in custody assisting with investigations into the shooting death on Sunday of 29-year-old Rondell Clarke.
Stabroek News was reliably informed yesterday that two police ranks are under close arrest and two security officers are in police custody assisting with the investigation. The post-mortem examination is expected to be conducted today. The firearms from both the security officers and police ranks are being processed.
Clarke’s family staged a small protest in front the Cove and John Police Station yesterday calling for answers. The family is being represented by attorney Dexter Todd.
Clarke was shot dead on Second Street, Enmore, Foulis on Sunday between 7:30 pm and 7:45 pm.
On Monday, the police said that a 25-year-old male security officer employed with a private service was the suspect. He was arrested and was assisting with the investigations. The police statement said that the security officer’s firearm was also confiscated. According to the police press release, the security officer allegedly shot Clarke, who was later picked up in a conscious state by police ranks and escorted to the Georgetown Public Hospital. Upon arrival, he was admitted to the critical surgical bay. However, at approximately 8.20 pm, he was pronounced dead. His body was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital’s Mortuary, awaiting a post-mortem examination.
But in an interview with Stabroek News, Clarke’s family refuted the police statement after obtaining video footage which showed a police vehicle chasing behind Clarke from the Railway Embankment, through the Foulis main access road as he rode his motorcycle. When Stabroek News contacted Regional Commander, Assistant Commissioner Khali Pareshram on Monday for a comment, he said that an investigation is underway.
Annalisa Housner, a relative of Clarke, provided an account of the events leading up to his shooting. She explained that Clarke was on his way home to see his children when the police allegedly pursued him from the Railway Embankment. The chase continued through the Foulis main access road onto First and Second Streets, where Clark was allegedly shot. According to Housner, several eyewitnesses reported that police allegedly fired multiple rounds in Clarke’s direction shortly after he passed a Chinese supermarket, causing him to divert onto the First Street. As Clark turned onto First Street, the police allegedly discharged several more rounds, one of which struck a nearby house. This incident forced the occupants of the house to seek cover under their bed for safety.
“Eyewitnesses say that the shots were firing from by the Chinese supermarket, whereby he cut through the First Street and they chased him. And he come through the Second Street and there is where they shot him in the stomach and he passed out. They pick up the body a couple of minutes after and took him to the hospital.”
Clarke had in his possession his cellular phone when he was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) by the police. According to Housner, he was abandoned at the hospital. Doctors there could not provide details since they were not given an explanation of what transpired. The family was told that Clarke was brought to the hospital by police ranks and left in their care. He was rushed into the emergency room for treatment.
However, later that night, Clarke’s fiancé called his phone to ask him to buy dinner and a nurse answered the phone. Clarke’s fiancé then asked the whereabouts of “Rondell”. The nurse stated that he had been shot and was at GPH. Housner recounted that the nurse asked whether a relative could come to the hospital immediately. They arrived at the hospital and at about 21:00 hours they were told that Clarke succumbed to his injuries.
After the visiting the hospital, Clarke’s family went to multiple police stations, including Vigilance, Enmore, and Cove and John, only to be told that no official report had been filed. Despite this, police mentioned hearing that Clarke had been shot near the Chinese supermarket. Determined to find answers, the family inquired within the village and visited the scene. At the Chinese supermarket, residents explained that the security guards there did not carry firearms, while others indicated that Clarke was shot on Second Street. The family searched the area thoroughly but found no evidence until a police vehicle passed through and stopped at the spot where the incident occurred. When the family questioned officer “Ross”, who exited the vehicle, about whether Clarke was being pursued, the officer denied it. However, video footage later revealed that the police vehicle was indeed chasing Clarke, who was riding a motorcycle at the time.
Clarke’s family then returned to the Cove and John Police Station for further clarification and met with Assistant Commissioner Khali Pareshram who said they (the police) learnt about incident through a 911 call. The parents were then asked to give a statement. “We were demanding answers and then we had like a semi protest and then they agreed for the parents to make a report.”
