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| Oscar Bartholomew is seen in this undated photo. (Courtesy: Bartholomew family) |
CTVNews.ca Staff
A Canadian resident
has died in the tiny Caribbean island of Grenada, as a result of what the
victim's family alleges was police brutality.
The prime minister
of Grenada has ordered an investigation into the death of Oscar Bartholomew, a
39-year-old permanent resident of Canada. He died on Tuesday.
Richard Simon,
press secretary for Prime Minister Tillman Thomas, said Thomas is seeking more
information about the circumstances surrounding Bartholomew's death.
Dunbar Belfon,
superintendent of the Royal Grenada Police Force, says Bartholomew's death is
an "unfortunate incident." He said police will be thoroughly
investigating.
"The force has
a very good track record of being very impartial in terms of conducting similar
investigations," Belfon said. "We have been very forthright in
determining whatever investigation that needs to be conducted, even though it
is done against members of the same institution."
Media reports out
of Grenada say that local police took Bartholomew into custody after he
approached and hugged a female officer who he mistook for a friend.
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| Oscar Bartholomew is seen in this undated photo. (Courtesy: Bartholomew family) |
Belfon says the
officer was in uniform and Bartholomew was taken into custody after assaulting
her.
Bartholomew's aunt
Josephine de Souza said that Bartholomew, along with his wife and his cousin,
had stopped at the St. David's police station on Monday afternoon for his wife
to use the bathroom.
The reports say
Bartholomew was beaten while at the police station and died shortly thereafter.
Bartholomew's
mother Phyllis Tate said that his wife saw the police take Bartholomew into the
station.
"When he was
calling for her they shut the door in her face and she heard when all the
lashes were falling on him. She did not see him again until the ambulance came
and took him to the hospital, lifeless," Tate told CTV News Channel on
Wednesday.
"It's very
hurtful to know that he didn't do anything and they just take away his life
from him."
His cousin Shem
Pierre accused police of leaving Bartholomew bleeding in his cell for at least
three hours before calling an ambulance at the insistence of his wife.
According to
doctors, Bartholomew died of a burst blood vessel in his brain.
Canada's Foreign
Affairs Department released a statement Wednesday, saying it is "aware of
reports of the death of a permanent resident of Canada in Grenada. Our thoughts
and condolences are with those affected by this tragedy."
A spokesperson for
Canada's High Commission has said it will release a statement about the case.
Attorney Derrick
Sylvester, who is representing the family, said that the preliminary results of
a government-ordered autopsy were expected late Wednesday.
With
files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press
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