A convicted prisoner, who reportedly suffered a sound beating after he was found with a quantity of ammunition following a day of labour at army base Camp Ayanganna last week, on Friday succumbed to his injuries at the Georgetown Public Hospital where he had been a patient for the last nine days.

Edwin Niles, 34, of Guyhoc Park was convicted for possession of cannabis on September 18, 2006 and sentenced to a three-year prison term, which would have expired on September 26 this year.

The Guyana Prison Service (GPS) in a statement signed by Prisons Chief Dale Erskine regrettably announc-ed the death of the prisoner who died around 11 pm on Friday.

The statement said the man was admitted to the hospital following reports that he had been beaten after he was found with seven .22 rounds of ammunition.

It said that on the day in question Niles had just returned from the army base when a routine search of his person prior to him re-entering the prison, turned up the ammunition.

An investigation was launched to ascertain how Niles had acquired the ammunition.
The statement said this investigation is still ongoing. Contacted yesterday, Erskine told this newspaper that the allegations were that the man was injured during an altercation with prison officers.

Asked about the nature of reports on Niles while he was a patient at the hospital, Erskine said the feedback he had received was that the man’s injuries were not life threatening.

Erskine said the prison administration has since been in contact with the man’s relatives. He would not comment further.

Hospital sources told Stabroek News yesterday that even though Niles had seemed to be recovering, his body bore serious lacerations and he had a broken arm as well as burns on his back.

The source said the man was able to walk to and from his bed and the washroom, but his body bore several “black and blue marks”, which may have caused much internal bleeding.

Stabroek News contacted the man’s relatives yesterday, but they said they preferred not to make any comment as nothing could be done to bring him back.

Meanwhile, this newspaper was informed that an inquiry has since been launched at the army base and several ranks were being questioned as well as other prisoners who were there at the same time as Niles.