Quindon Bacchus’s death: Lance Corporal remanded on murder charge

…2 other cops charged with attempting to obstruct the course of justice

Almost one month after 23-year-old Quindon Bacchus was murdered, three cops were on Tuesday charged in relation to his death.

The policemen appeared virtually before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts to answer to their respectable charges. Lance Corporal, 22-year-old Kristoff De Nobrega of Lot 130 Downer Canal, Liliendaal, was charged with murder.
The two others, 24-year-old Thurston Simon of Bareroot, East Coast Demerara; and 35-year-old Dameion McLennon of B Field Sophia were charged with attempting to obstruct the course of justice. Simon was slapped with a second charge for conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline.

They were all remanded to prison. The case against De Nobrega is fixed for July 19 and was transferred to the Cove and John Magistrate’s Court while the cases against the others are fixed for July 12 at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
Bacchus, a father of one, was shot six times about his body following an encounter with Police ranks. It was reported that on June 10, ranks were conducting an intelligence-led operation in the Haslington New Scheme area of the ECD after receiving some information earlier in the day.
The ranks went to Bacchus’s home, where he was seen with a firearm in his possession. He had reportedly intended to sell it. The plainclothes rank, who was armed, made arrangements to purchase the firearm from Bacchus.

In the process of handing over the firearm to the rank, an alarm was raised. A chase ensued and shots were fired, hitting the now deceased man about his body.
Police said Bacchus was picked up in a conscious state and escorted to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he was seen and examined, but subsequently died. A post-mortem examination revealed that Bacchus was shot five times to his back.
While the Police had originally claimed that Bacchus had opened fire on the Police, the court was told that there was no evidence of Bacchus opening fire on the ranks. Based on ballistics tests, the gun which Bacchus allegedly used to fire at the ranks was not working.

A few days ago, the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) concluded its investigation into the fatal shooting, and recommended that the three Police officers be charged. Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Shalimar Ali-Hack, SC, then decided the charges to be instituted.
The recommendation for charges comes days after a violent protest erupted at several ECD villages. The protest led to several vendors at the Mon Repos Market being robbed while their stalls were vandalised and goods looted.
Some of the protesters who were armed with cutlasses, knives, iron bars, and other handy weapons, destroyed vendors’ goods, burnt stalls and vehicles, shattered windscreens of vehicles, and even terrorised vendors. The vendors were compensated by the Government.

Threats were also made against President Dr Irfaan Ali’s life which led to the arrest of a 35-year-old man of Golden Grove, ECD, Marvin Richmond, known as “Wakie”, a psychiatric patient. Following the protest, 16 men were arrested and charged with the offence of riotous behaviour.