Tuesday, February 26 2013

ACTING Commissioner of Police (CoP) Stephen Williams has assured Sea Lots residents of a thorough investigation into Sunday’s vehicular accident near Abattoir Road and Beetham Highway, in which 28-year-old Haydee Paul and her two daughters, eight-year-old Akasha Paul and seven-year-old Shakira Paul, lost their lives. “We’d like to give you the assurance that there is no cover-up to any investigation involving all the events of yesterday (Sunday). One, the accident. Two, the response of the police officers to the accident,” Williams stated.

He was speaking yesterday afternoon during a visit to the scene of the fatal accident. The Acting CoP was accompanied by National Security Minister, Jack Warner and Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Kenrick Maharaj.

Responding to allegations that the car driven by an off-duty police officer smelled of alcohol and that a bottle of alcohol was removed from the vehicle by police officers who arrived on the scene of the accident Sunday morning, Williams yesterday told Sea Lots residents everything would be addressed “in a timely manner.”

“I heard people speaking about the officer and whether he was drunk. He has been breath-tested (and) blood has been extracted from him for testing by the hospital.” However, Williams could not say how long after the accident the tests were done.

In appealing to residents not to block the Beetham Highway again, he spoke of the hours-long traffic jam caused yesterday, a weekday, by their early morning roadblock. “As you know,” Williams stated, “we cannot condone the blocking of the roadway. It impacts the entire nation.”