Greene says file back with DPP

Police Commissioner (ag) Henry Greene yesterday lent no credence to media reports that the force had recommended that four prison officers be charged with the murder of prisoner Edwin Niles.

During an interview with this newspaper, he declined to reveal what recommendations were made in the file, which was recently resubmitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

According to Greene, the file was returned to the police some time back for “certain things to be clarified”. That was done and it was recently returned to the DPP’s Chambers.

The commissioner stressed that while the police would submit their recommendations in the files, which are sent to the DPP, they do not disclose them because of their confidential nature.

He did not confirm or deny reports in the Thursday edition of the Kaieteur News that a recommendation was made for four prison officers to be charged with murder.

According to the Kaieteur News article, police have implicated four officers including two senior ranks in the death of Niles and have recommended that they be charged with the capital offence. The article added that one of the senior ranks was reportedly stationed at the Georgetown Prison and the other at Mazaruni Prison.

Niles was reportedly dealt a thrashing after he was found with seven live .22 rounds in the pockets of his pants after returning from a day of labour at army base Camp Ayanganna on July 2. It was during interrogation about where he got the rounds that he was beaten with a rubber hose and then burnt with a hot liquid. Niles had reportedly found the pants in a room at Camp Ayanganna which he had cleaned. He subsequently died at the Georgetown Hospital.

His cause of death was given as a clot in his lungs as a result of burns