St Lucia’s National Security Minister Hermangild Francis

(CMC) – National Security Minister Hermangild Francis has hinted at the possibility of a secondary school teacher being charged in connection with a 16-year-old school boy who brought a firearm to a school earlier this month.

“If the evidence is there, I am sure that the police can hold who ever handled that gun and returned that weapon to that boy. There are offences in the Criminal Code you could deal with,” Francis told reporters.

Francis, who is also the justice minister, said if the persons involved do not cooperate with the police “you could be an accessory before or after the fact”.

Media reports said that the unidentified teacher returned the gun to the 16-year-old fifth form student after he had reported that an “item” from his bag had gone missing.

The police were told that on January 16, the student brought the gun and an unknown quantity of ammunition on the school compound.

News4orce television reported that another student took the gun from where it was hidden and that the school’s principal, Andrew Willard, later alerted the teacher about the missing item.

The teacher is reported to have investigated the matter and convinced the student to hand over the “item” which the student then placed in a sealed container given to him by the teacher who then kept the container as she continued with her teaching assignment.

But it was not until after the classes had ended that the teacher decided to investigate the “item” and found it to be a gun.

Willard is quoted in the television report as saying that the student warned the teacher that someone could get killed if the gun was not returned. The owner of the gun was also reported to “be waiting nearby”.

The school principal said that based on the threat, the teacher was advised by the district education officer to make a decision she thought would preserve life and as a result the gun was returned to the student.

The television report indicated that the gun has not been retrieved by law enforcement officials and the students are still at school.

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Hilaire (left) and Hathaway

(SNO) — Former High Commissioner of Saint Lucia to the United Kingdom (UK), Dr. Ernest Hiliare, believes that the killing of a UK national here will place the island’s justice system under the microscope by the British government.

The body of British national and longtime Saint Lucia resident, Robert ‘Bob’ Hathaway, was discovered with “apparent wounds” in his residence in Piat, Grand Riviere, Gros Islet by a neighbour last week.

Since this is not the first time that Saint Lucia had to deal with the killing of nationals from the UK, Hilaire is of the opinion that the latest incident will generate renewed interest.

“All of that shows that the British government and the British public expect the highest standards of policing and forensic work to ensure that whoever is responsible for those acts are brought to justice,” he said at a recent press conference. “It has continued to be a soft spot and yet again with another British national, unfortunately and regrettably, losing his life in Saint Lucia, I am sure it is going to revive the interest of the British government into the criminal justice system in Saint Lucia.”

He said more work needs to be done to improve the justice system, saying it has deteriorated even more since 2016.

“We heard talks that once there was a new DPP (director of public prosecution), all those matters would have been dealt with,” Halaire said. “We are going on a second year of the DPP and they still have those outstanding matters.”

He stated that it will interesting to see whether the Minister of National Security will address the matter in the next few days on how Saint Lucia will deal with it.

“Certainly from our experience we know that it is always a matter of grave concern when a national, particular in this case a British national, loses his life,” Hilaire said.

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Minister Hermangild Francis

(SNO) — Facing pressure from the opposition and on the country’s homicide rate and with Saint Lucia now under international scrutiny after the killing of British national Robert ‘Bob’ Hathaway, National Security Minister, Senator Hermangild Francis, has said the island is safe.

Speaking at a media briefing on Monday, he said despite the apparent negative publicity in the British press that the matter has generated, visitors come to Saint Lucia and have a great time.

“I expect, yes, that it is going to be in the British press,” he noted. “It’s going to heighten tension, persons are going to be looking at Saint Lucia and thinking, well is it safe that I come to Saint Lucia. But when you look at the circumstances, I think tourists are safe. They come to Saint Lucia and they enjoy themselves.”

Francis said that it appears the British press is implying that British nationals are being targeted on the island.

“I don’t think that is so,” he stated. “If you look at the incidents that have occurred in Saint Lucia, they all have their peculiar circumstances and we have to take each as they present themselves.”

Four British nationals have been killed in Saint Lucia since 2011 and despite arrests, there have been no convictions in any one of them.

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Assistance Commissioner of Police for Crime and Intelligence Management, Wayne Charlery

(SNO) — Saint Lucia, with the cooperation of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), has launched a hotline to combat human trafficking which as been described as a global problem.

The 24-hour hotline, 8-4-7, was launched here on Tuesday to help bring public awareness on the issue.

Assistance Commissioner of Police for Crime and Intelligence Management, Wayne Charlery, explained how the system works.

“When a call is received by the officer attached to the police control room, the information will be immediately relayed to the Central Intelligence Unit for assessment, development, synthesis and then dissemination to myself or the assistant commissioner responsible for crime and intelligence management for the appropriate action,” he stated.

He said the hotline, with the assistance of the public, can be a very effective tool in combating the problem.

“The hotline is a toll-free, anonymous, 24-hours, seven-days-a-week service,” he stated. “We at the police department are very pleased and grateful to have contributed to the collaborative efforts of the service provider LIME, the Department of Home Affairs and National Security and the IOM for the installation of the counter in trafficking persons hotline.”

Meanwhile, National Security Minister, Senator Hermangild Francis said he has held discussions with the attorney general in regard to strengthening laws for those found guilty of human trafficking.

He said the days of thinking Saint Lucia was immune from such crimes are long gone.

“I believe those days of denying or thinking we are immune to to this crime occurring here are long over,” he stated. “Wherever there are people, you will find some who are bent on criminality and unlawful means of enriching themselves.”

The anti-human trafficking campaign is being held in Saint Lucia under the theme “Know the Signs, See It, Report It.”

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(SNO) — A male individual has been hospitalised as a result of a shooting incident in Bruceville, Vieux Fort this morning (Jan. 24), according to law enforcement officials.

The incident occurred shortly after 8:30 a.m.

Residents reported hearing the sound of at least four gunshots and found the victim suffering from wounds to his legs and back.

He was transported via ambulance to St. Jude Hospital. His medical status is unknown at this time.

Police are investigating.

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* This is NOT actual illegal guns seized by local authorities.

(SNO) — The police in Saint Lucia said they are making headway in fighting crime on the island with 62 firearms seized in 2018, eight in December alone.

They said a number of gun-related crimes are being investigated and arrests have been made.

Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of crime and intelligence, Wayne Charlery, commended his men on a job well done.

“So we want to thank very much our operational units, our police officers and even the public because we could not have recovered those firearms without that coordination and that help coming from everyone,” he said at a press conference.

Of the eight firearms recovered in December, seven people have been charged with the possession of them.

He stated that arrests have been made in a number of gun crimes on the island.

“We arrested one of the main perpetrators of the West Tech robbery,” Charlery revealed. “He is remanded as we speak.”

He stated investigations into other crimes, including the one involving Ideal Bakery, are continuing.

“We have some interesting leads into the Ideal Bakery robbery,” he said.

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Chris Blanc

(SNO) — The High Court in Dominica has granted bail in the sum of $300,00 to Saint Lucian Fimbar Mohamed Greenidge who is facing a charge of murder.

Greenidge from Ravine Poisson in Saint Lucia has been in custody since he was charged with the murder of Dominican, Chris Blanc.

Police reports indicate that Blanc went missing on December 30, 2016 after spending some time in St. Joseph, a village on the west coast of Dominica.

On January 5, 2017, Blanc’s lifeless and partly decomposed body was discovered down a precipice in the heights of the village.

Initially, two Dominicans and two Saint Lucians, Greenidge and Garie Elwin Dariah of Anse La Raye, were charged with his murder.

The charge against one Dominican was subsequently dropped. The fate of Dariah remains unknown.

As part of his bail conditions, Greenidge was told to report every day to the Roseau Police station and must reside at Bath Estate, a community near Roseau.

He was also ordered to surrender all travel documents and not interfere with prosecution witnesses.

He is also forbidden from traveling.

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(SNO) — Law enforcement sources have confirmed that a man was shot and killed at the Vieux Fort Fishing Complex on Friday night.

The incident occurred around 8 p.m.

The victim, who is believed to be in his early 20’s, was reportedly shot in the head and died on the spot.

Reports are that the victim was cleaning fish when at least two individuals approached him and one shot him.

More details soon

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Pierre

(SNO) — A man who was shot in Vieux Fort on Thursday morning has been identified as Jahmill Pierre.

The incident took place in Bruceville and residents said they heard at least four gunshots.

Amateur video circulating on social media shows residents rushing to the scene and shaking Pierre so he could remain conscious.

He was transported via ambulance to St. Jude Hospital.

His medical status remains unknown.

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Hathaway

(SNO) — Minister in the Ministry of Tourism, Fortuna Belrose, is of the opinion that the death of a British national here in Saint Lucia will not affect the diplomatic relations between the island and the United Kingdom.

Belrose was questioned on the death of longtime Saint Lucia resident, Robert ‘Bob’ Hathaway, whose body was discovered with “apparent wounds” recently and whether it would affect the relationship between the two countries.

But according to her, crime happens everywhere in the world and it is important to maintain dialogue and diplomacy.

“I think in the age of diplomacy and dialogue, that’s what really matters, the constant engagement, getting people on all side to understand the issues that prevail because crime happens everywhere, anywhere in the world crime happens,” she stated. “And so it is important that we continue to dialogue and maintain our relations.”

Belrose did admit the incident could affect how Saint Lucia looks as a nation.

“I think any death in any society will affect the society at large and when it happens to somebody who’s been in Saint Lucia for a number of years, whether they were German, English, you name it, it would affect anything, it would affect how we look as a nation,” she stated.

She however said the important thing is how well Saint Lucia responds as a country.

“I think the important thing is how well we respond as a country to those issues, how well we resolve the crime and I think with our government, what we are attempting to do is to ensure that we provide the attention that is necessary to deal and address the issues that plague us,” she noted.

Belrose pointed out that it is up to all Saint Lucians to make sure that incidents, such as the one involving Hathaway, don’t happen again.

“The case of Bob Hathaway is one of many that we have to resolve as a country and I think the onus is on all of us as citizens to ensure that we rally and try to make sure that such situations do not happen,” she remarked. “And this is where we are, trying to solve the problem as opposed to propelling it into the international arena.”

Last week the main opposition Saint Lucia Labour Party said the killing of Hathaway will place the island’s justice system under by microscope by the British government.

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Soomer

(SNO) — A man is now in hospital after he was shot in the face in Bruceville, Vieux Fort on Monday.

He has been identified as Miguel Soomer.

He was taken to hospital after the shooting in a private vehicle.

Reports indicate that the incident took place some time after 9 a.m. on January 28.

Soomer is reportedly in serious but stable condition at hospital.

St. Lucia News Online (SNO) understands that the alleged shooter may be a cousin of Soomer but that has not been independently confirmed.

There has been a series of shooting in Vieux Fort in recent days, some fatal.

On January 24, Jahmil Pierre was shot and injured in Bruceville and remains in hospital.

On January 25, Melvin George was shot execution-style at the Vieux Fort Fisheries Complex.

He reportedly died on the spot.

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George

(SNO) — The police say they have one man in custody in connection with the fatal shooting of another at the Vieux Fort fish market.

At the same time they are appealing to those with information to come forward to assist in the investigation.

A a briefing, Press Officer of the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force Sgt. Elvis Thomas did not give much information on the person of interest the lawmen has taken into custody.

“One person is presently in police custody assisting with this investigation,” he stated.

He said a post mortem examination will be scheduled for a subsequent date.

Thomas called for public information in the matter.

“We are encouraging anyone with information regarding this incident to contact the Criminal Investigation Department in Vieux Fort at 456-3926,” he stated.

Reports are that on January 25, Melvin George was cleaning fish at the Vieux Fort Fisheries when he was approached by a lone hooded gunman who shot him in the back of the head.

He reportedly died on the spot.

Thomas said there is no definite motive as yet behind the deadly shooting.

“That we cannot speak too,” he stated. “Presently the matter is under investigation and based on what we find out later, then we will be able to make the connection.”

George is the third homicide victim in Saint Lucia for 2019.

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(SNO) — Saint Lucia has been ranked fifth in the region in 2018 in perceived levels of corruption, information based on a report released on Wednesday by Transparency International has revealed.

The annual report gives countries higher scores for lower levels of perceived public sector corruption.

The index, which ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and business people, uses a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean.

According to the report, Saint Lucia ranks 55 on the scale, making it fifth in countries in the region that have been ranked.

Based on the report, Barbados, ranked at 68, is the least corrupt country in the region, followed by the Bahamas, at 65. By comparison St. Vincent and the Grenadines is ranked at number 58, Dominica at 57 and Grenada is ranked 52.

According to Transparency International, the data “reveals that the continued failure of most countries to significantly control corruption is contributing to a crisis in democracy around the world. While there are exceptions, the data shows that despite some progress, most countries are failing to make serious inroads against corruption”.

Delia Ferreira Rubio, chair of Transparency International, said: “Corruption is much more likely to flourish where democratic foundations are weak and, as we have seen in many countries, where undemocratic and populist politicians can use it to their advantage.”

Denmark was ranked the cleanest country in the world with a score of 88 while Somalia was ranked the most corrupt with a score of 10.

Below is a list of Caribbean countries on the perceived level of corruption of 2018 on the 0 to 100 scale used by Transparency International.

Barbados……68
Bahamas…..65
St. Vincent..58
Dominica …57
St. Lucia… 55
Grenada …52
Jamaica……44
T&T……….41
Haiti…20

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Dr. Rigobert

(SNO) — Education Minister Dr. Gale Rigobert has expressed confidence in the manner in which her ministry is handling a gun incident at the Corinth Secondary School.

Speaking to the media for the first time on the matter this week, she said such events should not be happening at any school, saying they are wrong and in some cases, illegal.

However, according to her, the matter is being handled professionally by her ministry.

“I trust that my colleagues, having briefed me, and having had internal discussions, are very clear what needs to happen next,” she stated.

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Victim: Miguel Soumere

(SNO) — A 20-year-old male resident of Bruceville, Vieux Fort has been charged in connection with a recent shooting in his community, according to law enforcement sources.

Irvin Julian, also known as ‘Block Chest, was charged with attempted murder on Thursday.

He appeared in court on Friday, Feb. 1 but he did not enter a plea since the charge is an indictable one. He was however ordered to be further remanded in custody by the magistrate.

His arrest stemmed from the shooting of 20-year-old Miguel Soumere in Bruceville, Vieux Fort on Monday, Jan. 28, after 9 a.m.

Soumere was shot in the face and hospitalised in serious but stable condition.

According to reports, the gunshot fragments damaged Soumere’s right eye and exited his nose. The left eye may have been affected by the fragments as well, reports suggest.

St. Lucia News Online (SNO) understands that the alleged shooter may be a cousin of Soumere but that has not been independently confirmed.

“Hmm nowadays not even your own family you can trust,” one person commented under the initial breaking story on social media.

There has been a series of shooting in Vieux Fort in recent days.

On January 24, Jahmil Pierre was shot and injured in Bruceville and remains in hospital.

On January 25, Melvin George was shot execution-style at the Vieux Fort Fisheries Complex. He reportedly died on the spot.

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(SNO) — A security camera has caught what appears to be a woman and a child shoplifting at local popular store S&S.

The incident occurred on January 30, according to HTS News.

Footage of the incident obtained by HTS shows the two entering the store, with the woman carrying a handbag, and the child, with a bag on his back, behind her.

She walks to the clothing section and proceeds to cut security tags on a number of items.

She then proceeds to stuff the items into the bag on the child’s back.

HTS said at least $200 in clothing items were taken by the pair and no one, not even store security, caught on what was going on.

The two eventually walked away with their loot.

S&S told HTS that the matter has not been reported to the police and warned other store owners to be on guard against such robbery.

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(SNO) — Two hooded men pounced on a female commuter in Castries and the incident was all captured on a security camera on a nearby building.

The incident took place on High Street during a rainy morning on January 30, HTS News has reported.

Footage from the camera showed the woman walking along the street but sought shelter from the downpour under a protruding sign of a business place.

It was then the two hooded deviants emerged with one holding what appeared to be a shotgun.

The other accosted the woman and grabbed her belongings.

Within seconds the incident was over and the two men made good their escape.

There are no official police reports on the incident.

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Neighbor who filmed wrong apartment shooting aftermath says she’s had death threats

(ABC NEWS) — The woman who filmed the aftermath of the shooting of Botham Jean — the man killed in his own apartment by former Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger — said she has been receiving death threats and was fired from her job after she uploaded the video to social media.

The video shows an apparently distressed Guyger, still in her police uniform, talking on her phone as she paces back-and-forth outside Jean’s apartment on Sept. 6. The neighbor who took it, who only wished to be identified by the name “Bunny,” said in an interview published on Jan. 20 on YouTube by the Advise Media Network that she began recording about 60 seconds after hearing two gunshots and hearing a male voice saying, “Oh my God. Why did you do that?”

Bunny says she didn’t plan on uploading the video at first, but in the days after the shooting, she saw reports that contradicted what was on the video she took on her phone.

Jean, 26, lived on the fourth floor of the Southside Flats apartments in Dallas, according to an arrest warrant filed in September. Guyger, who lived directly below Jean on the third floor, said she parked on the fourth floor and walked down the hallway to what she “thought was her apartment,” the warrant stated.

Bunny cast doubt in the interview on Guyger’s explanation, saying that she “would have had to walk down two pretty long hallways to get to his door,” and would have passed “plenty” of signage to indicate which floor she was on.

The neighbor also argued that the apartments are equipped with fire safety front doors that “shut as soon as your release them,” saying that it was unlikely that Jean’s door was ajar when Guyger approached it.

When Guyger entered the apartment, she saw a “large silhouette” in the dark and shot Jean, thinking he was a burglar, according to her arrest warrant. She was off duty and not wearing a body camera at the time because it had been left at the station, per police protocol.

Filming from a lower floor through the staircase railings, Bunny said in her interview that it sounded as if Guyger was making a personal call — rather than to 911 — as she frantically walked around the hallway outside Jean’s apartment. She added that it appeared Guyger did not attempt to render aid to Jean.

“It was just a lot of crying, a lot of hysterics,” Bunny said. “She was just pacing back-and-forth for at least seven minutes, according to my video.”

Police said after the shooting that Guyger called 911 for help, and the responding officers administered aid to Jean at the scene.

Once police arrived on the scene, one of the officers told Guyger that she was “doing too much” and another took her cell phone from her, Bunny said. The investigators then took Guyger back to the scene, Bunny added.

Jean was then taken to a local hospital where he later died, police said.

Bunny said she gave the video to the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors did not offer a comment to ABC News due to a gag order on the case.

The harassment began shortly after Bunny uploaded the video to social media, she said.

“I did get a few threats from people saying they weren’t gonna leave any witnesses behind, telling me I need to watch my back, things like that,” she said.

Trolls also found the name of the pharmaceutical company where Bunny worked and began harassing the company by phone, email and posting to its Facebook page, saying she was a “radical,” “anti-police” and “a black extremist,” she said.

Bunny said her employer let her go, explaining that they “didn’t want their company associated with a high-profile case.” When she threatened to go to the media, they then “took it a step further” and blacklisted her credentials, which she said they were able to do because she earned the credentials while working for them.

Bunny did not reveal the name of the company because she is in the process of appealing the blacklisting of her credentials, she said. ABC News could not independently confirm her claims that she was fired, or, if so, why.

While Bunny said she would only interact with Jean — who worked at multinational professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers — in passing, in the interview she described him as “very, very friendly” and said that he “seemed to have good energy about himself and be in good spirits.”

Guyger, 30, was fired on Sept. 24 after an internal affairs investigation found that she “engaged in adverse conduct” when she fatally shot Jean, according to an email sent by Dallas Police Chief Rene Hall that day. She was indicted on a murder charge on Nov. 30.

Guyger’s attorney, Robert Rogers, told ABC News he is prohibited on commenting on the case due to a gag order. A hearing for Guyger scheduled for Tuesday has been reset for a later date.

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Francis

CASTRIES, St. Lucia, Feb 2, CMC – National Security Minister, Hermangild Francis, says St. Lucians should be allowed to determine whether or not to abolish the death penalty, as he maintained that he had no definitive position on the matter.

Francis, an attorney, who is also the home affairs and justice minister, said that with plans being advanced for constitutional reform, the issue of the death penalty could be put to the people for their consideration.

“I think St. Lucians have to have a say as to whether they still want the death penalty or not,” Francis said on a radio programme here on Friday night.

The former deputy police commissioner told radio listeners that his position on the death penalty is “neither here nor there” and that he supports the law at present.

“I am for the law. The law says that if you kill, there are certain categories of murder; that you should face the hangman,” Francis, said, noting that while St. Lucia has not carried out a hanging in years, it does not mean that it cannot be done in the future.

“That’s what the law says,” he insisted.

St. Lucia has not carried out the death penalty since 1995 when Joseph Solomon was executed after being convicted for murder and rape in 1979.

The London-based international human rights organisation, Amnesty International, has been urging Caribbean countries to abolish the death penalty noting that as of the end of 2017, over 96 per cent of all those on death row in the English-speaking Caribbean were held in three countries namely Barbados (13 per cent), Guyana (32 per cent) and Trinidad and Tobago (52 per cent).

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Minister Hermangild Francis attended the meeting

(PRESS RELEASE) — Minister for Home Affairs, Justice and National Security Senator the Honourable Hermangild Francis along with Attorney General Stephen C.J. Julien on Friday, January 25, 2019 returned on island after attending the one-day Regional Security System (RSS) Council of Ministers’ Meeting in Barbados.

Minister Francis said the one-day meeting is a strong signal that Caribbean leaders remain highly committed to collectively combating crime.

He also described the meeting as productive and geared towards setting the tone for the New Year.

“The highlights of the meeting indicated that the escalation in lawless activities is really a regional problem and not per se an isolated or one “island” issue. Barbados, for example, has had eight homicides already and this is very unusual for Barbados historically. At the meeting Prime Minister Mia Mottley stated clearly that she was very keen to address that, as well as Prime Minister Ralph Gonzales, who in respect to Saint Vincent, shared a similar concern. Saint Lucia too espoused these sentiments and so the best approach is to keep working together to push back on the criminality in a way that sends a strong message.”

Minister Francis explained that there are some negative dynamics associated to the free movement of people around the region and those appear to be strong contributory factors, to the current challenges confronting the region.

“I talked about the free movement of people and those who misuse this as a means to move around committing serious crimes and then moving again to evade police. I also talked about the polygraph tests, and every leader present supported that this should be applied to everyone working in law enforcement and border control before they are hired and then periodically thereafter.”

Another major talking point for the regional leaders, he says, was the judiciary‘s role in the context of the region’s response to criminality.

“Bail seems to be given to notorious characters so easily that it defeats the work of the police,” he lamented.

Other talking points from the RSS Council of Ministers Meeting included gangs and the anti-gang legislation, the implementation of a new anti-corruption unit for the RSS, adoption of a harmonious position on the marijuana issue, and the feasibility of an inter-island exchange programme to benefit law enforcement officers.

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