Tuesday February 9th, 2010
- Last update:12 hours 59 min ago
Homicide cops take over probe British couple attack
Published: 6 Aug 2009
Acting Police Commissioner Gilbert Reyes has instructed that detectives of the Homicide Bureau in Trinidad take charge of the investigations into the brutal attack on British couple Peter Greene, 65, and his wife Murium, 59, at their Tobago home over the weekend. He has appointed acting ASP Johnny Abraham, Insp Stanley Ramdeen and PC Sunil Ramoutar to take over the probe from Tobago officers. During a brief telephone interview late yesterday, Reyes confirmed that he gave instructions for the officers to take over the probe. Reyes, however, expressed confidence that the officers would assist in bring closure to the incident. The officers were at the Piarco International Airport with suitcases in hand, waiting as “standby” passengers to get on a flight to Tobago last night.
Abraham Ramdeen and Ramoutar, a police source said, were ordered to find the person/s responsible for the heinous crime against the Greenes: “They have been chosen because of their successes in the past in solving several high-profile homicides and kidnappings, including the recently-concluded Balram “Balo” Maharaj kidnapping and murder case in which seven Trinidadians were found guilty last week.” At the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex earlier in the day, Muruim was seen smiling and chatting with relatives as she remained in bed, partially bandaged. Even though she appeared shaken by the incident, a sense of comfort was in the atmosphere as her relatives spent most of the day at her bedside. Sources said her adopted son flew in from England, while one of her sisters came in from Canada. Relatives of Murium, however, refused to speak with the media.
“I am not speaking with the press,” said a woman with an British accent as she left cubicle 113 at the High Dependency Unit (HDU), where Murium remained warded, and made her way to the nearby Intensive Care Unit (ICU) where Greene remained in a critical but stable condition. Moments later, an Englishman emerged from Murium’s cubicle. He, too, refused to comment. He said: “I am very sorry but I cannot comment on anything right now. I wish that I could have assisted you with whatever information you wanted but I am sorry I cannot.” When asked if he was a relative of Murium, he simply replied, no. But he admitted he was a friend when further questioned. Up to late yesterday, relatives were at the bedside of both victims at the medical facility. As members of the media waited in the hallway to speak with the couple’s relatives, scores of security guards approached and ordered the media to leave the facility.
A man, who appeared to be a security officer, said he had specific instructions from the administration that members of the media were not allowed on the ward: “I was told that people from the media, radio, TV and newspaper must wait at the front of the building or we (security guards) won’t have any jobs.” However, media personnel protested and said the facility was a public place and they were waiting to secure an interview with relatives of Greene. Shortly after, a female security officer approached and said they responded to a report that members of the media were on the wards trying to take pictures of patients. The allegation was denied by members of the media who later left the facility after relatives of the couple sent a message that they were not interested in speaking with the media.
"....However, media
"....However, media personnel protested and said the facility was a public place and they were waiting to secure an interview with relatives of Greene." .... That might be true technically but it is a hospital for heaven sakes, what if there is an emergency and hospital staff has to move quickly? They supposed to maneuver around reporters standing in a 'public place'? Steups. The middle of the highway is public too, go stand there.
"The officers were at the
"The officers were at the Piarco International Airport with suitcases in hand, waiting as “standby” passengers to get on a flight to Tobago last night." - Just when you think you've heard it all...
How you like "scores of
How you like "scores of security officers approached..."?
A score is 20, that means at least 40 security officers approached the reporters in a hospital corridor.
I can't stop laughing...........
"Acting Police Commissioner
"Acting Police Commissioner Gilbert Reyes has instructed that detectives of the Homicide Bureau in Trinidad take charge of the investigations into the brutal attack on British couple" Are you trying to tell us something as the Homicide Investigators are for one kind of Investigations.
I am not knocking Abraham Ramdeen and Ramoutar, but as i said before if not for the FBI involvement in the Balram “Balo” Maharaj kidnapping and murder the family may not had closure.
Members of the media have to be aware not to interfair with the investigation, its sad, but good luck.
It is early in the morning
It is early in the morning
but whilst a hospital may be a public place, it is my understanding a ward is for patients (!), authorised delivery personal, staff and visitors! Media trying to get interviews or what ever do not fall into those four categories! They are also a hazard to the well being of the other patients warded.
I understand you guys have a job to do but behaving like vultures is unacceptable.
Was it also necessary to give the cubicle number? Why didn't you tell us what colour the curtains were around the cubicle, whether the cubicle was air-conditioned and what they were served for breakfast, lunch and dinner and how it tasted?! Your actions smack of total insensitivity (since when is sensitivity and media appear in the same sentence?) and for the couple who could be potentially identify their attackers, I am shocked that there was not greater security around them. The attackers could have posed as media, for cryin' out loud!
Media, you guys need to smarten up otherwise you may find some members of the public agreeing with PM Manning's sentiments about you and you surely do not want that!
La Diva
....the absence of a motive
....the absence of a motive for this horror is indeed troubling....the Tobago rumor mill is replete with theories...will the truth be ever known?....who knows?.....
Bring down Scotland Yard to
Bring down Scotland Yard to arrest the "Community Leaders". The Trinidad Police are useless. By the way, there are so many different branches of the Police Force, that all the Key Job Responsibilities are "blurred", so nobody does anything. Like everything in the PNM, "that is not my job man".
As long as there is
As long as there is corruption at the senior levels of the state apparatus and within state and public bodies such as the police force, no amount of change in personnel will suffice. As a former Trinidadian police office now residing abroad recently told me bribery and other forms of corruption is rampant within the Trinidad and Tobago Police Force. What Trinidad and Tobago needs is strong, competent / experienced leadership at all levels of its state bureaucracy. Sadly, this can only come about it if is also reflected in its elected leaders, ruling and opposition parties alike.
Socrates
Akile Simon Published: 6 Aug
Akile Simon
Published: 6 Aug 2009
What gutter press trash. This issue isnt about how the poor press are treated in the line of duty to the people one afternoon, get over yourself. Report the story and stop trying to make out that there is some conspiracy against the freedom of the Press. Typical of our sensationalist press. What happened? did you run out of things to write about because these poor people wouldnt let you take a snap shot of the victims so you can splatter it across your front page. Despicable!
Why dont you go and do some proper journalism by getting yourself over to Tobago and try and get some truth and fact rather than hounding the distraught relatives of the victims of this heinous crime.
These silly and poor quality reporting techniques do nothing but make it fashionable to commit such crimes in our country to those impressionable enough. They are laughing in the streets and boasting because they are in the news. Dont you see that?
Help the situation in this country by printing quality journalism, or at least read a book on how to do it.