Minibus driver sues State for $35M for alleged misidentification, wrongful imprisonment

The Guyana Police Force (GPF) is being sued by an East Coast Demerara (ECD) minibus operator for alleged violations of fundamental rights, including unlawful arrest, detention and imprisonment, for more than $35 million in damages.
The claimant, Richard Rodney, is represented by the law firm, Dexter Todd and Associates.
The legal firm said in a press release that Rodney was misidentified and wrongfully detained by Police as they mistook him for another man for whom an arrest warrant had been issued.
The firm said that Rodney was stopped by the Police at a roadblock near Sugrim Singh Road on October 4, 2023, while operating a minibus as public transportation along the ECD highway.

A Police rank then urged Rodney to “get out of the vehicle” before taking him to an Inspector of Police and informing the higher rank that Rodney had an outstanding arrest warrant, according to the statement.
It said a court case concerning monies owed for a battery at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court was the subject of that warrant.
“Mr. Rodney was taken to the Sparendaam Police Station by the said Police officer who went into a room and brought out an arrest warrant for damage to property in which the defendant on that warrant was sentenced to six months in prison by the Magistrate.”
“Mr. Rodney indicated to the officer that he was not that person; neither did he live at the address stated on the warrant. He further showed the officer his driver’s license and indicated that they should do a proper investigation to know who they were looking for as that person was not him. Unfortunately, Mr. Rodney’s pleas fell on deaf ears as the Police officer indicated that it was Mr. Rodney who was sentenced, that he didn’t care to hear about anything else, and that Mr. Rodney must spend six months in jail for the matter,” the statement added.

According to the statement, Rodney was later arrested and later that evening taken to the Cove and John Police Station where he was placed in the lock-ups.
The next morning, the statement said, Rodney’s hands and feet were shackled and he was subsequently taken to the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court where the issue of the battery was settled. It said that he was again taken to the Sparendaam Police Station where he was again shackled.
The law firm said that their client told the Station Sergeant there that they had the wrong person but she refused to listen and even told him that he should serve his time and let his family fight his case after that. The Police further refused to call the complainant to verify if they had indeed arrested the right person, said the statement.
“Mr. Rodney was then taken to the Lusignan Prison where he was admitted as an inmate of the prison to serve a sentence of six months. Mr. Rodney told his story to multiple officers, including senior Prison Officer Mr. Charles, who did some investigation of his own and unearthed that indeed Mr. Rodney was who he said he was and not the person the “Police should have arrested.”
The attorneys claim that at approximately 7:00 pm on Friday, October 6, 2023, their client was taken by the Police from the prison to the Brickdam Police Station, where they forced him to make a statement. After being handcuffed once more, they said he was subsequently placed in the station’s lock-ups.
“On Saturday, October 7, 2023, he was taken to the CID office at the Brickdam Police Station then to the Lusignan Prison then to the Brickdam Police Station again, and thereafter back to the Lusignan Prison with the correct person.”
The statement noted that Rodney was transported by the Police to the Mon Repos Public Road, ECD, at around 2:00 pm on Saturday, October 7, 2023, after which he was released from jail.
The law firm emphasised that “a mere phone call to the virtual complainant in the matter or verification of the information provided by Mr. Rodney would have been sufficient to prove that he was not the person who was sentenced to prison by the court.”
The lawyers said that it was not until the Prison Service got involved that the truth of the story was unearthed and the Police realised they had imprisoned the wrong person.
The statement read, “A traumatized Mr. Rodney” filed the lawsuit on Wednesday at the Demerara High Court, seeking compensation over $35 million for his unlawful arrest, detention, and imprisonment without any proper investigation or logical cause. (Feona Morrison)