The family of Marlon Fredericks, the mentally-challenged vendor who was fatally shot by a member of the city constabulary on Sunday, has lodged a report at the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) after a police force report on his cause of death contradicted the autopsy report.
Fredericks, 33, of Tiger Bay, was fatally shot after he allegedly attempted to flee the custody of the constabulary outpost at Bourda.
Although the Guyana Police Force said the post-mortem examination performed by Government Pathologist Dr. Nehaul Singh gave Fredericks’ cause of death as “complication to lower back due to gunshot wound,” Claudette Fredericks said the report in her possession states that her son died of gunshot injuries to his chest, with no mention of an exit wound.
The mother indicated yesterday that she filed a formal complaint against the police yesterday. She also visited the office of Singh, the pathologist, but was unable to see him as she was made aware that he is only present on certain days.
Meanwhile, when contacted Commander of A’ Division Marlon Chapman indicated that the police will be conducting their own investigation of the report made by the deceased man’s mother.
The police, in a statement on the shooting, had said Fredericks, who was in custody at the outpost for assaulting a peace officer and simple larceny, allegedly forced his way outside of the lockup when it was opened to let out another prisoner to use the toilet.
It was then, the statement added, that a struggle reportedly ensued between the victim and the Lance Corporal, who tried to restrain him. In the process, Fredericks ran out of the outpost and was fatally shot once in the lower back by a Lance Corporal, who was armed with a service pistol.
Claudette Fredericks previously told Stabroek News that when her son saw her, he began to run and tried to jump the counter to get to where they were. However, he was unable to do and so instead crawled under the counter and ran out of the outpost, despite her asking him not to run.
Claudette stated that she heard a shot and thought that it was fired as a warning because Marlon turned around. However, she then watched as he fell to the ground.
She added that her sister and nephew, who were with her, had related that Marlon stumbled to the ground shortly after he ran out of the outpost and it was then that he was shot.
