Latest update April 18th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jan 05, 2010 News
… as Police refute KN report
Wismar resident, Petal Reid and postal employee, Jenelle Kitt, yesterday insisted that Reid’s two-year-old daughter was with them in the “stinking” lockups at the Wisroc Police Outpost during investigations into the death of taxi driver Edward Whinfield.
The women, who were released yesterday after two days in custody, told Kaieteur News that the child spent about 30 minutes in the cell before being handed over to Reid’s reputed husband, Ralph Cox, who had visited the outpost.
They said that the cell was not only filthy, but was roach-infested and that they slept on pieces of cardboard spread on the ground.
But in a release yesterday, police insisted that Reid’s baby was not placed in the lockups. According to the release, Petal Reid was placed to sit in a chair in the Enquiries Office at the outpost with the two-year-old baby.
“The Guyana Police Force wishes to reiterate that at no time was Petal Reid placed with her baby in the lockups at the Wisroc Police Outpost,” the release stated.
At the time, police were responding to a Kaieteur News story which stated that Petal Reid, her 16-year-old daughter and Reid’s baby were detained in a cell at the Wisroc Police Station.
“The Guyana Police Force having examined this report has found it to have some inaccuracies, and wishes to say at the onset that a baby was not placed in the lockups at the Wisroc Police Outpost.”
The release said that based on information received during investigations into the death of Edward Whinfield police arrested Petal Reid, 40, of John Alley, Wismar, and her sixteen-year-old daughter around 14:00hrs last Saturday.
“At the time they were walking along the Christianburg Public Road , Wismar , and had a quantity of groceries in their possession. After they were told by the police ranks the reason for their arrest, Petal Reid requested to be allowed to take the groceries home and this was facilitated.
“After leaving her home Petal Reid picked up her two-year-old daughter who was in the yard at the time in the company of other adult persons, including Reid’s reputed husband Ralph Cox, called Ralph Benjamin.
“She was told by the police that she could not take the child with her to the Wisroc Police Outpost and that she should leave her with her reputed husband.”
Ralph Cox then said that he was going out and could not keep the child.
“Petal Reid was then taken to the Wisroc Police Outpost along with her sixteen-year-old daughter and her two-year-old daughter.
“At the Outpost, both Petal Reid and her 16-year-old daughter were passed through the records after which Petal Reid was placed to sit in a chair in the Enquiries Office with the two-year-old baby.
“Meanwhile her sixteen-year-old daughter was allowed to make a phone call to someone whom she asked to come to the Outpost for the baby, after which she was placed in the lockups.
“About an hour later the reputed husband Ralph Cox came to the Outpost and collected the two-year-old child from Petal Reid after which she was placed in the lockups.”
Commenting on her arrest, Reid said that she had insisted on walking with her baby because she had no one to keep the child.
She said that she was placed in the lockups with her 16-year-old daughter and her two-year-old. She said that the baby remained in the cell until around 18:00 hrs when her reputed husband arrived.
“Me, my (16-year-old) daughter, the baby, and the post office girl (Jenelle Kitt) were in the lockups. It was stink,” the woman said.
According to Reid, the ranks kept asking her “Where the money deh? Where the money that the man (slain taxi driver Whinfield) give to you?”
Petal Reid’s 16-year-old daughter was the slain man’s girlfriend.
The woman said that she had initially refused to accompany the police ranks since she knew nothing about the post office robbery or Whinfield’s murder.
Postal employee Jenelle Kitt also said that Reid’s baby daughter was in the ‘stink’ cell for some 30 minutes.
Kitt said that police ranks also grilled her about the Wismar Post Office robbery. Kitt’s boyfriend is a suspect in Whinfield’s murder.
Kitt confirmed that she was also detained at the Wismar Police Station in December shortly after the robbery.
At the time, she was four months pregnant and was put to sleep on a bench outside the lockups.
She was released shortly after but suffered a miscarriage.
Meanwhile, police said yesterday that they are still questioning an ex-policeman and two other men i connection the taxi driver’s demise.
Whinfield’s battered body was found in a clump of bushes at Wisroc, in an area known as Bamboo Turn, around 07:30 hrs on Thursday.
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