Bacchus refutes Crime Chief's claims lawyer took him into CID

Bacchus refutes Crime Chief’s claims lawyer took him into CID

Aug 22, 2022 News

‘Paper Shorts’ murder…

– insists Detective Sergeant Bascom was the one

Kaieteur News – Rondell Bacchus known by his alias “Killa” has refuted claims made by Crime Chief, Wendell Blanhum that his lawyer had turned him in at the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) after the Guyana Police Force issued a wanted bulletin for him in connection with the murder of Ricardo Fagundes better known as ‘Paper Shorts’.

Rondell Bacchus known as “Killa”

He is now insisting that it was Police Detective Sergeant Bascom, who had picked him up from his home and took him to the police station.

Bascom had alleged in a Facebook live that senior ranks at the CID wanted Bacchus, an ex-convict, to take the fall for the murder of ‘Paper Shorts’ as part of a massive cover-up plan. The detective claimed that he was the one who decided to take Bacchus in just to save his life. In the live video, he alleged that part of the cover-up plan was to send out ranks to arrest Bacchus and then make it look as if he had died during a confrontation with police.

The Crime Chief, Wendell Blanhum and the Guyana Police Force (GPF), have called Bascom a liar and stated that his allegations are concocted and malicious in nature. In his arguments, the Crime Chief in a press conference stated that it was Bacchus’ Lawyer who had turned him in to police for ‘Paper Shorts’ murder and not Bascom.

The Force did not stop there in its campaign to discredit Bascom and had moved to publish a photo of CID investigators interviewing Bacchus in the presence of his lawyer, Damien DaSilva.

However, Bacchus himself has come forward to say that the Crime Chief’s statement is not entirely true and that Bascom was speaking the truth when he said that he was the one to take him in.

In a recent interview with journalist Travis Chase, Bacchus related that when he learnt of the bulletin, the first person he called was his lawyer but it was Bascom who picked him up and took him to CID.

“When I learn of the wanted bulletin issued for me, the first person I jump pon meh phone and call is my attorney Damien DaSilva and tell he that I am going down at Eve Leary with or without him. I am going down there. Then after words, I jump pon the phone and I call Bascom. I call him and say, watch a bulletin issued for me and he come and he pick me up and we go in there”, Bacchus told Chase.

He explained that shortly after they arrived at the CID headquarters, his lawyer showed up to represent him as the detectives grilled him about the Fagundes’ murder.

Asked why he chose to call Bascom, Bacchus said that it’s because he is a police officer and he was not a stranger to his home.

“I call him to take me in knowing that he is a police officer, so a situation with this calibre… I needed somebody to take me in and I did call him to take me in”, insisted the ex-convict.

As it relates to why Bascom frequents his home, Bacchus said, “Bascom has been coming to my home a very long time. Bascom is a friend… the woman with whom I am in a relationship with, her son and Bascom is close friends… I come out of prison and meet Bascom coming to this home. Bascom is no stranger to this home. He know all the woman children them.”

In response to claims made that he is a police informant, Bacchus said that this is not true.

Police had listed Bacchus as their prime suspect in the murder of ‘Paper Shorts’ on April 6 and he turned himself in an hour after. With no evidence in their possession to link him to the crime, police released him.

Bacchus back then during an interview with Travis Chase, had claimed innocence and said that he had nothing to do with the murder.

He maintained his innocence in the recent interview and said he has put his past behind him.

In the ongoing back and forth between GPF and Bascom, Blanhum had said that it was Roger Khan, a close friend of ‘Paper Shorts’ who had tipped them off that he was involved in the killing.

Bascom has since implicated a prominent businessman, Azruddin Mohamed and a security guard with Mohamed’s Enterprise, Mark Richmond in the murder and has accused his superiors, one of them, Superintendent Mitchell Caesar of taking a bribe to cover-up the case and alleged that they wanted Bacchus to take the fall for it.

Mohamed, Richmond and Caesar have since denied Bascom’s allegations and have threatened to sue him for millions for defamation of character.

GPF on the other hand wants to charge him for breaching its code of conduct. They have already submitted a case file with recommendations to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali Hack.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News