Georgetown student says he was beaten by police officers at school

A teenage student is alleging that police officers beat him on school premises while they were responding to a call about a fight.
Mark Doyle is a 17-year-old who lives in Georgetown, and attends the Georgetown Technical Institute.

Last Tuesday he said that a verbal disagreement between him and the principal, Alrick Cuffy, caused him to announce, “Since you want me to stay home I will be more than happy to take my bag and leave”.

He reported that on his way out of the school compound, amidst scatterings of mockery from his fellow students, he was attacked by another student. The lanky teenager said he was never in a position to return what he had received.

After this incident, Doyle recalled that he was roughly taken to the principal’s office, and the police were called in.

The student claims that when the two officers from the Georgetown Police Station arrived at the office, one looked at him, while saying, “Mark again.”

Doyle admitted that he and the police officer had had previous interactions.

“Me and him whenever he see me in the streets, he has a habit of interfering with me, so by that time, I can notice that he’s trying to gain personal attacks against me,” he claimed.

Doyle claims that the police officer told the principal that he should not have been accepted in school as he is crazy and has a mental problem.

The student claimed that his response was to tell the police officer that he (the Policeman) didn’t know anything about him.

This allegedly resulted in the said policeman walking over to the student and slapping him. “Slap me in my face, for no reason at all,” the teenager stressed.

This was not all the abuse that Doyle alleges he received from the two officers.

He said he was also grabbed by the throat and leg and dragged outside the office. He said he was slammed on the floor and boxed repeatedly.

The student claims he was also dragged to the police transportation, and when they got there, he was slammed on the ground. He said that the officer handcuffed him and flung him into the back of the vehicle.

Doyle said while he was in the vehicle, one police officer used his feet to shove his (Doyle’s) face into the pane of the window of the police vehicle, making him unable to breathe.

“I was telling him to remove his feet so I could be able to breath and he refused to do so,” the teenager continued.

The other student who was involved in the incident was also taken away in the police transport.

Doyle said he was charged that he did say to a police officer, “Ah go kill ya mother c**t.” He is also charged, along with the other student, with fighting in a public place, namely the Georgetown Technical Institute.

“As you can see those people are very unprofessional,” and not suited to be working at the Royal St Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, said the teen, who claims he was advised by his grandmother to take legal action.

SEARCHLIGHT confirmed that the teenager made a report to the Police Public Relations Department about the incident.

Doyle also expressed frustration that his principal did not come to his assistance while he was receiving the alleged beating.

The teenager showed SEARCHLIGHT medical forms which indicate that he had some swelling to his neck, and a bruise on his wrist. He says that he has pain to his sides, and scratches as well.

When SEARCHLIGHT reached out to the principal of the Georgetown Technical Institute, he said he could not comment.