Mohamed releases video of Kitty shooting incident; Plans private charges against Special Branch Head

The Leader of the Opposition, Azruddin Mohamed has announced plans to file private criminal charges against the Head of the Guyana Police Force Special Branch, Senior Superintendent Prem Narine over the shooting incident last week.

Mohamed is maintaining that the shooting on the night of October 12 was an assassination attempt.

At a press conference today, Mohamed released surveillance video recordings of the incident that were captured by the Government’s Safe Country Initiative CCTV cameras. He claimed that he obtained the footage from the Special Branch unit of the Police Force. The Opposition Leader said the footage clearly shows an attempt being made on his life by the Special Branch Head.

“I will be pressing private criminal charges against Prem Narine. So, I hope the DPP wouldn’t throw the charges out. I hope the DPP wouldn’t throw the charges out. And remember in Islam that you have to give account to Almighty Allah on the day of judgement, not Irfaan Ali,” the Opposition Leader said.

Stemming from the incident in Kitty, Mohamed and two of his staffers were charged with unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition and attempting to pervert the course of justice. The three have denied the allegations against them, and today Mohamed said he is the victim of an alleged attempt to murder him.

The footage, which had no audio, showed the Special Branch Head and other ranks exiting a white police vehicle at the Traffic Light at the junction of Vlissengen Road and Sandy Babb Street as they intercepted Mohamed’s vehicle. At the time, the Senior Superintendent was holding what appeared to be a gun.

According to Mohamed, the surveillance recording shows Senior Superintendent Narine shooting at the vehicle he was in at close range while at the traffic light.

The police had indicated that Narine fired several rounds at a heavily tinted vehicle as it passed his residence at Barr Street, Kitty after he claimed he heard what appeared to be a gun shot.

But the Opposition Leader is disputing the police’s account of what transpired.

“As we all saw, he came out of the right side of the police pick-up, then he was shooting to my direction. As I was sitting in the car, two shots hit the right side of the car, that was his direction. Then another shot after I put my hands in the air; he still fired shots at me. That is to kill someone. This is not playing business. This is there a rogue officer who is after me with government. The government they have this guy after me,” the Opposition Leader said.

He claims that the Special Branch Head and his ranks also stomped and kicked him even as he laid on the ground. He said his car was searched by the Police for more than two hour and it was not until it was driven to the Kitty Police station by a Special Branch officer that a gun was reportedly found in the car.

While he admitted to driving along the road outside Narine’s Kitty house twice on that night, he said he was looking into the issue of abuse of state resources.

“We didn’t come out of the vehicle at no time. We stopped there at no time. You have the videos that showed the time you saw when Prem came out on Bar Street. Mr. Slowe’s video [shows] when he was shooting behind the vehicle, so at no time we came out of the vehicle. We passed and we saw the vehicles park there with the engines on, guarding Prem Narine and when citizens of this country want to go to at the station to make a report, they don’t have vehicles available, the police not answering their phones. But this is how they’re abusing our resources, state resources,” the Opposition Leader said.

The Opposition Leader said he has taken note of a statement that the Government said it has sent to the Department of Justice on the issue.

He said he will also be providing the Diplomatic community with a statement and copies of the CCTV video recordings.

You must be logged in to post a comment Login