Report On Cayman Officers Death Released
The Cayman Coroner’s Jury has returned with a suicide verdict in an inquest about death of a former Cayman police officer who died shortly after being released on bail after being arrested.
According to the Cayman Reporter, shortly after Raphael Williams’s death, Cayman Police Commissioner David Baines requested an independent review of the circumstances surrounding the arrest and subsequent death of Mr Williams.
This review was done by officers of the Bermuda Police Service, and a redacted version of the report, written by the Senior Investigating Officer Inspector Robert Cardwell, was recently released by the governor’s office.
Both the Cayman Reporter [link] and Compass Cayman [link] have posted details from the report by the Bermuda Police Service.
Mr. Williams, who had been arrested on Thursday 9 January, 2014, on suspicion of blackmail and breach of trust, was released on police bail on Friday 10 January. His body was subsequently discovered on Sunday 12 January.
“It is normal practice in the UK, and in other jurisdictions, that such circumstances would be subject to independent review”, Cayman Police Commissioner David Baines previously said.
“I felt it was important to ensure that the RCIPS also adopts this approach to ensure that all aspects of the arrest and death are reviewed in an open, transparent and independent way.”
There is a a co-operation agreement on reciprocal law enforcement assistance in place between the Caribbean Overseas Territories, and last year the Bermuda Police assisted the Royal Montserrat Police Service with an investigation following allegations of police misconduct.
Can they do that?