Hundreds demand Grant's release from police custody
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – “We want Grant, we want Grant” was the cry of hundreds of unity activists and supporters who converged at the front of the Basseterre Police Station this afternoon (July 5), demanding that the former leader of the People’s Action Movement (PAM) – Lindsay Grant – be released from police custody.
Grant was leading a march organised as part of the unity movement in the Federation which began at Greenlands and flowed along Cayon Street.
SKNVibes is not aware of what the specific route that the march was to take, but it is understood that when Grant got in the vicinity of Development Bank on Church Street where a barricade was placed, an altercation took place.
An individual who claimed to have seen what transpired told SKNVibes that Grant was accosted by a police officer who pulled him across the barrier. The individual also explained that he was beaten by member(s) of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force and taken into custody.
He was reportedly taken to the Basseterre Police Station.
At a rally at Bank Street, PAM’s Deputy Leader Jonel Powell declared that the time for talking had come to an end and he made a call for all to head towards the police station to demand Grant’s release.
The crowd walked up West Independence Square Street and east along Cayon Street, stopping at the front of the Basseterre Police Station where they demanded that Grant be freed.
Emotions ran high as the armed forces, some dressed in riot gear, formed a human barricade just outside police headquarters’ entrance and after the adamant crowd refused to leave, it progressed into officers using some degree of force in order to get the crowd to retreat.
Two barricades were formed – one facing the east and the other facing the west – both of which saw success in containing the crowd.
Torrential rain forced some members of both sections of the crowd to seek shelter under their umbrellas, with others taking the decision to brave the weather. Within half-an-hour after the rains began, the crowds began to dwindle to a few.
Although this has yet to be confirmed, this publication understands that while the crowds were making their demands, Grant was removed from Police Headquarters - via the back door - and transported to the Dieppe Bay Police Station.
When contacted by this media house, PAM’s Deputy Chairman Jonel Powell said he was unaware of the grounds on which Grant is being held and whether or not he has been charged.
