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The suspects in the tray of the police van after they were captured.
Lack of cooperation from witnesses has been cited as the reason behind the release of two male suspects who were arrested last Friday for allegedly breaking into a house in Balata.
Photos of the two suspects, handcuffed in the tray of a police vehicle, were plastered all over Facebook, however, according to a senior police, official eyewitnesses have failed to provide formal statements that would have led to the men being charged.
Assistant Superindent Gregory Alexander of the Police Public Relations Department told St. Lucia News Online (SNO) today, June 7, 2017 that the men have been released without charge “pending further investigations”.
Alexander however pointed out that the witnesses have not been forthcoming with statements.
“The police have tried but we don’t have anything to keep the men behind bars or charge them with,” he said, while stressing that this is the lawful procedure.
SNO understands that one of the suspects obtained a lawyer and was released on Saturday, while the other suspect was released on Sunday in the care of his mother.
SNO also understands that the issue has angered the police, who responded quickly to the report and apprehended the suspects — only to be stone-walled by the witness or witnesses.
The police has also taken issue with persons have exposed the faces/identity of the suspects on Facebook without them being charged. A police source said the suspects now have the right to take legal action against the persons who have plastered their photos on Facebook without them being charged.
SNO was criticised by members of the public for blocking the faces of the suspects in its report on the alleged break-in.
The men were allegedly caught red-handed after an alarm went off moments after breaking into the Balata home.
According to the home owner, who preferred anonymity, she was on a Whatsapp goup chat for the neighbourhood watch when she found out about the break-in.
This news prompted the homeowner to leave work immediately and head home where she saw the two suspects in the tray of a police vehicle.
She said the alarm at her home went off seconds after the door was broken, and noted that the suspects were caught less than half hour later.
The homeowner was told that the suspects were seen acting suspiciously minutes before the break-in.
She pointed that one neighbour told her he saw the men after he heard dogs in the area barking ferociously – which usually happens when someone strange is in the area.
It is believed that one of the suspects stayed on the road as a lookout while the other went to break and enter.
The men were reportedly seen by neighbours running away from the scene after the alarm went off.
After they were caught, the police brought them back to the community to be positively identified, the home owner said.
The police have been praised for their quick action in apprehending the men, however all that work has gone down the drain as the witnesses have not given any statements.
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