Two Rose Hall men complain about alleged police beatings

Two men of Rose Hall are alleging brutality at the hands of the Rapid Response Unit of the Police Force.{{more}}

Michael Stapleton and 17-year-old student Aldrick Mason visited SEARCHLIGHT’s offices on Monday, April 20, to relate their alleged ordeal. Both men claimed they were slapped and struck with a cutlass.

Stapleton’s alleged run-in with the lawmen came on April 18, after he had just finished working his lands in Rose Hall. This is when he said the officers confronted him. “I pass the police them by the corner around 5:30 pm eating biscuit and beef, and when I go around the corner, I saw two men coming and they turned back before reaching where the officers were,” Stapleton explained. Soon after, Stapleton, a vegetable farmer, said he was ordered by one of the officers to stop, which he did. “All I know is that one of the officers run up behind me and told me to put down my cutlass and spray can, which I did,” Stapleton said.

Stapleton said what happened next surprised him. “After I done do way dem say, the officer tek up the cutlass and plan me on my right leg and another one came and told me I love to talk too much and slap me,” he explained.

Stapleton said he felt violated by the actions of the officers and that he did not do anything to deserve such disrespect.

Aldrick Mason, who was in Stapleton’s company at the time incident, said he was told by one of the police officers to remove his hand from his mouth while they were talking to him.

“As soon as I moved my hands, I get a hard slap from the police,” he stated. Mason added that the officers dangled him for about a minute over a wall before they pulled him back.

Both men expressed similar sentiments about the alleged conduct of the police, stating that they need to respect citizens, as they, too, want to be respected.

Stapleton and Mason said they both lodged complaints at the Rose Hall Police Station and the Public Relations Department at the Central Police Station in Kingstown. Personnel at the Public Relations Department confirmed to SEARCHLIGHT that both men had filed complaints and said the matter was being investigated.