The joint services operation in the city began around 5 am and targeted selected households in East Ruimveldt and Campbellville with the aim of netting wanted persons, illegal firearms and narcotics. After almost three hours of searching, ranks arrested a large group of youths, one of whom is a female.
There were numerous vanloads and two trucks filled with joint services ranks, some of whom were heavily armed. Even one of the Guyana Defence Force’s helicopters formed part of the operation but once it hit the skies, residents immediately became aware that something big was about to go down.
While noting that the joint services have a job to do, many residents in the affected communities openly voiced their frustrations about what they called “continued police harassment”.
A joint services statement released last evening said members conducted joint operations in Georgetown, Berbice and Linden during which road block exercises and searches of identified buildings were conducted.
A total of 47 apartments and 15 buildings were searched in East Ruimveldt, Campbellville, New Amsterdam, Canje, Rainbow City, Kara Kara Housing Scheme, Amelia’s Ward, Fair’s Rust and Coomacka Mines area.
The statement added that 32 persons, including one woman, were arrested pending enquiries into various offences including robbery under arms, unlawful possession, possession of narcotics and smoking utensils, and threatening behaviour.
Up to press time last evening there were no reports of any of them being released.
Police Commissioner Henry Greene told the media yesterday following the launching of the National Crime Observatory that no wanted persons or weapons were found during the searches in the city but persons were arrested and some were in possession of marijuana.
Speaking on the Georgetown operations he said, “There are some areas that we needed to do some searches and some probing in and we decided to do so today [yesterday.” He stressed that the operation will be ongoing for another few days.
Responding to questions on the magnitude of the operation that left many residents in disarray, Green said there were members of the military and police involved and perhaps how they were structured, it appeared that there were many ranks involved.
He said there are some areas where searches still need to be conducted as there are still lots of gun crimes being committed around the city and there are some people that are wanted.
Asked about allegations of unprofessionalism among the ranks, he said, “All over the world there is something known about collateral damage, which results from the nature of the operation that you do. You don’t set out to do collateral damage, sometimes you don’t get the cooperation and things don’t work as you expect. And therefore there is some collateral damage…”
It all started around 5 am when van loads of policemen and soldiers stopped on the East Ruimveldt Front road and headed into the front circle area.
One resident recalled hearing a senior police officer instructing his ranks to “keep to the right, keep to the right. Step quietly!”
They went to specific homes and started picking up young male occupants. The GDF helicopter arrived minutes after and people became aware of what was taking place.
The ranks spent about one and a half hours in the area and while many residents were cooperative others were upset, especially those whose relatives had been held.
Yvonne, who lives at Lot 519 East Ruimveldt, told Stabroek News that her son was preparing to go to work when she saw policemen dressed in black approaching.
She said they asked him his name and soon after he responded Devon Jackman, “they hold on to him and tek he away. Up to now they ain’t loose him.”
Yvonne said she was concerned for the safety of her child while he is in the hands of the police because several years ago, they gunned down one of her sons.
“I am not against any search. They don kill one already and my son is not a criminal. I want them to loose my son. He is not a criminal. He is not a thief and he never had no trouble with the police. He is the only man in my house and I am pleading with them to loose him,” the upset woman said.
Meanwhile another resident Patricia Thomas said her grandson Theon Edwards was whisked away to the East La Penitence police station, after ranks searched her home.
According to her, she didn’t see ranks arrest anyone else living close to her.
Campbellville
Ranks converged on the Campbellville Housing Scheme around 6.45 am. Residents looked out and saw van loads of uniformed and plain clothes policemen along with soldiers driving down Campbell Avenue. The line of vehicles turned left into a double corner and the officers searched certain homes and arrested at least five young men.
One resident, Wendy Eastman alleged that a group of policemen kicked down her door and slapped up her 16-year-old daughter. A senior police official who was a part of yesterday’s operation said that the matter will be investigated.
Another resident, Jean Andrews said that her son, 28-year-old Lloyd Wills and nephew Orin Burkett, 24, were among those held. She explained that Wills was in his bed and Burkett was outside in the yard when the ranks arrived.
Wills heard the police cranking their guns on his neighbour, Andrews said, and when he opened the door he came face to face with heavily armed police and soldiers and was instructed to sit on a chair in the yard.
The upset woman said that she kept asking the ranks what was happening but no one answered her. Subse-quently, the hands of the two men were tied with pieces of string and they were placed in a police vehicle. The woman told Stabroek News that the two were taken away half naked and bare feet.
She said she spent most of the day trying to locate them and the police had her running from station to station. Even though she continued to ask questions none were answered and she was later told that the two men were being held for robbery under arms.
Andrews described the operation as unfair and stressed that her son and nephew only returned from the interior where they work about two weeks ago.
During the operation which lasted about 40 minutes, the helicopter landed on a basketball court and left when the ranks had completed their searches.
The residents openly commented on the selective nature of the searches and one resident recalled seeing ranks in a dark coloured car driving around the area on Tuesday taking pictures.
