BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – A recent incident, which resulted in the death of a young man and the subsequent release of the alleged perpetrator from custody without any charges, has led to the bewilderment of many people, including family members of the deceased.
At approximately 4:30 on the morning of Saturday, December 5, 2015, Travis ‘Gangsta Fat’ Hanley of Halfway Tree was rushed to the JNF General Hospital with a stab wound to his left leg and succumbed to his injury shortly afterwards.
According to a police statement, Hanley was stabbed at about 4:15 a.m. during an altercation at the popular Frigate Bay Strip.
Police had stated that “a female has been detained in relation to the incident and is assisting the police with the investigations”.
In the same statement, Assistant Commissioner with responsibility for Crime, Ian Queeley was quoted as asking members of the public for their assistance in solving this case.
“We know Hanley was with a group of people at this time and in this vicinity. We need these people to come forward as they may have information that is essential to the investigation.
“We want to hear from you. By providing information, citizens can make a significant difference and can help us to move recent cases such as these forward as well as some of our historical cases. By doing their public duty, witnesses not only help us to solve crimes, they also help us to protect lives in the future. Please call any police station in St. Kitts or Nevis to provide any information you may have, or you can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477(TIPS).”
The young woman was however released on Wednesday (Dec. 9) without any charges laid against her.
On request by a number of concerned citizens, SKNVibes decided to launch an investigation into the incident and learnt that the case file was submitted to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, where a decision was taken not to charge the young woman because she acted in self defence and there was no evidence that warranted a court hearing.
This publication was told that even though death may have resulted in an altercation, based on investigation, if a case of self-defence is made out by an accused, it is generally not proper or fair to charge the person.
Additionally, to warrant conviction, the Crown has to prove a case beyond reasonable doubt. And in the case of self-defence, it is very unlikely. So, unless the Crown can disprove self-defence, no charge could be laid against the accused.
SKNVibes spoke with a prominent member of society on condition of anonymity, who claimed to be dissatisfied with the above explanation.
“That is nonsense! Are you telling me that it is right for a man to lose his life, the accused apprehended and subsequently released without being charged because she killed him in self-defence? If that is the law, then it has to be repealed!
“Can this therefore mean that if I plan to kill someone and have about six friends as witnesses when I execute my plan and we all say to the police that it was in self-defence, I would not be charged? No way! Something is wrong with the system and people, with smart lawyers, would use this incident as a precedent.”
SKNVibes’ investigation revealed that on the morning of the incident, the young lady was dancing with her sister at a well-known bar on The Strip when the deceased, who was seemingly intoxicated, went behind her and started to “wuk up”. She objected stating, “We don’t want to dance with you, we don’t want to dance with you.”
He however continued and she reportedly pushed him away, which produced much laughter and jeers by some patrons in the venue. This led to an altercation and the accused allegedly punched her in the face.
This publication was told that a number of bystanders intervened and the altercation was quelled.
A close male relative of the young woman then led her out of the bar to take her to the hospital. But while waiting for the relative to arrive with the vehicle, the deceased, who was about to leave the vicinity in a pick-up truck with his friends, observed her presence and advanced towards her with what was believed to be a metal pipe.
As he approached her, in defence, the young woman whipped out a knife and stabbed him in the leg.
This publication was also told that while being taken to the hospital, the pick-up truck was in hot pursuit, “jamming the rear of the van with the hope of getting his hands on the young woman”, but no further incident occurred when they reached the medical institution.
Prior to this incident in which Travis ‘Gangsta Fat’ Hanley died, an attempt was made on his life some five years ago.
At about 4:30 a.m. on Saturday, February 20, 2010, he was shot in the back while in the company of the late Jermaine ‘Chalise’ Freeman, was shot in both legs, after they had left a party at Zion Old School Night Spot in Zion Village, Nevis.
