Vendor: I got licks in jail

The 29-year-old street vendor of Sea lots, Port-of-Spain is currently nursing a broken arm which he alleged was sustained while serving a three-month sentence at the Port-of-Spain Prison. He was released from prison yesterday.

Ali was arrested and charged for illegal street vending on Charlotte Street, Port-of-Spain three months ago. The charges include obstructing the passageway, illegally pitching a stall and evading arrest.

Speaking with Newsday, Ali alleged that a prison officer struck him with a wooden staff on his right forearm "for no good reason" after he attempted to secure a cup of coffee to break his 12-hour fast. Ali said he was given permission by another officer to skip the bread line and advance to the coffee stand when the officer in question intervened and hit him. He said that in trying to fend off the blow, his right arm was broken.

Ali supported his claims with certificates from two Prisons Medical Officers, which stated that Ali’s right forearm was fractured. He further provided x-ray evidence to support his claim.

"I want people out there to know the kind of treatment that prisoners have to go through in prison," Ali said. "This is pure torment and brutality."