Six T&T cops in court over Taser

(Trinidad Express) Six police officers of the Central Division who allegedly arrested and shocked three men with Taser guns in Chaguanas last year, appeared in court yesterday charged with misbehaviour in public office.

Sgt Rasool Balkaran and constables Elton Charlerie, Lyndon Hosein, Ramesh Boodram, Veda Persad and Samlal Seepersad were granted bail of $75,000 each when they appeared before Chaguanas Magistrate Gillian Scotland.

They were however unable to secure bail and were last evening taken to Maximum Security Prison, Arouca.

They are expected to have their bail taken at the prison.

The officers have been charged with three counts of misbehaviour in public office occasioning actual bodily harm.

It is alleged that on March 11, 2010 brothers Randy, 21 and Ricardo Youk-See and neighbour Kyron Baptiste, 18, all of Tunapuna, were beaten, tortured and threatened at the Chaguanas Police Station.

The three said the ordeal lasted five hours during which they were kicked, cuffed and beaten with a golf club.

Attorneys Joseph Honore and Keith Beckles represented the police officers yesterday.

Beckles said his clients who had 300 cases before the court against alleged offenders, had tried to surrender themselves to police since last week but were given the run around by a senior police officer.

He claimed the men were being treated in an oppressive manner and strategies were being used by the senior officer to have his clients remanded in prison custody.

The case was heard yesterday at 2.20 p.m. and Beckles charged that the late hearing was one of the tactics used by the senior officer.

Scotland granted each of the men bail in the sum of $75,000 and ordered that they return to court on November 29.

With time against them, the offices were unable to have the documents signed by a Justice of the Peace and were taken to prison.