Camp St prisoner dies 2 weeks after admitted to GPHC with swollen face

Camp Street inmate Shawn Thom, who two weeks ago had been admitted to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC) with a swollen face, has reportedly succumbed to his injuries on Sunday.
His demise was confirmed to Guyana Times on Sunday by Acting Director of Prisons, Kevin Pilgrim, during an interview in which Pilgrim stated that he received a telephone call on Sunday morning informing him of the man’s demise.
Extending sincere condolences to Thom’s family members, the Acting Prison Director has said the circumstances surrounding Thom’s demise are presently being investigated by the Guyana Police Force, and, as such, the Prison Service would be cooperating fully with the investigations.
He reiterated that upon Thom being discovered in a semi-conscious state on May 26, the prisoners with whom he had shared the cell told prison officers that he had sustained the injury in a fall.
Thom had reportedly stabbed another prisoner with a mop stick during a scuffle on May 25, and based on that incident, he had been relocated to another cell with three other inmates.
The then Acting Director of Prisons, Gladwin Samuels, had related that investigations were launched into both incidents, and the findings would be sent to the relevant authorities. Those investigations, according to Pilgrim, had been completed and the findings were sent to the Public Security Ministry. Taking Thom’s demise into consideration, the investigations will be reopened.
Pilgrim has said that Prison officials will be waiting on the post-mortem results to decide their next step. However, he noted that ever since Thom’s admittance into the GPHC, his mother was in constant contact with the Prison Service.
The 23-year-old Thom had been serving two three-year consecutive sentences for unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition. His release from prison was expected in 2019.