BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – A young mother of two is claiming that officers of the Sandy Point Police Station have violated her family’s democratic rights and one of them had physically abused her.
These accusations were made by Cleo Gumbs of Cleverly Hill, Sandy Point, who told this media house that the incidents stemmed from a group of police officers wanting to search her family’s home without a warrant shortly after mid-night.
“This morning (Oct. 26) about 12:31, I arrived home from church, and as I was about to enter the house, my brother was coming through the door to feed the dog. We both went back inside the house and shortly after we heard a loud banging on the door and our dog was wailing as if someone was beating it.
“I peeped through the window and saw some men in the yard, which meant that they had to jump the fence. When we opened the door, we saw five cops were outside and one of them said that they had a warrant to search our home. We asked them to show us the warrant but they refused and two of them forced themselves into our home and I told them they cannot do that without a warrant.
“One of the officers (name provided), who is from Grenada, took out a little piece of white paper, and may have taken us for fools, saying that it was a warrant. I then told him that I was not the owner of the house and I have to go and inform my parents who were asleep at the time,” Gumbs explained.
She noted that on seeing the piece of white paper, her brother told the officer that he had to read to them what was written on it because “I have to protect my family’s rights, because we know our rights”.
“Following that, I went to get my parents but that particular officer couldn’t wait on me to do so. He came behind me and boxed me down in the kitchen by the deep freeze and, my brother, who realised what was happening, came to my rescue. The officer started to wrangle with my brother after he said, ‘I can’t stay here and see you beat my sister like that.’
“The officer butt-up my brother’s head about three times to the bathroom door then shackled him and pushed him to sit in a chair. I then moved along the entrance and the officer followed me and chucked me down while I was calling for my parents,” Gumbs said.
Gumbs also noted that it seemed rather funny for the officers to claim they have a warrant and could not produce it, as well as the person whom they said they were looking for was not at home and yet they did not carry out a search of the person’s room.
She further explained that the officers said they were searching for foodstuff and appliances and two of them went into her bedroom.
“The two officers went into my room and threw out my children’s clothes and underwear all over the place. Then the one who boxed me down looked up on the chest of drawers and saw my flat screen TV and took it down. He was leaving with it, but because I told him that he can’t go with my TV, he started to beat me on my right hand with his torchlight.
“While he was beating me, my children were afraid and started to scream. My two-year-old daughter then said to the officer, ‘Wha you hit me mammy for…I gon tell me daddy.’ And the officer told me that I must tell my two children to hush.
“My father, who was present when the officer said that, told him, ‘No you can’t do that in here. You can’t do that to my grandchildren. You come here at this time of the night and want to harass my family.’ And the police pulled a gun and pointed it threateningly in my father’s direction.
“I was scared and so I started to pray. Shortly after they wanted to take my brother in his boxer’s shorts to the station, because the officer said he had obstructed him while performing his duty. But my mother objected to them taking him like that and the officers allowed him to be properly clothed.”
The young mother, who plaits and weaves hair for a living, said she left her home for Pogson’s Hospital where she was advised by a nurse to get a medical form from the Sandy Point Police Station, but she refused to go there “because it is the same station that the officer who beat me is working”.
She was however given medication for the pains she felt and the nurse had placed her hand in a sling.
This media house advised Gumbs to visit the Basseterre Police Station to lodge a complaint, which she did.
“I went to Sergeant Jacobs at the Basseterre Police Station and he told me that the procedure is for me to give a statement to the officer at the front desk. He also advised me to uplift a medical form and visit a doctor so that he could examine my injuries. This form, Jacobs said, must be returned to the police station and he will conduct an investigation.”
Gumbs however told SKNVibes that she did not get to see the doctor and would make another attempt later today. And she is very concerned about plying her trade, noting that she would be unable to do so for a number of days due to her inability to use her right hand effectively.
