Akiel Chambers’ inquest starts today

THE inquest into the death of schoolboy Akiel Chambers will start this morning before Chief Magistrate Sherman Mc Nicolls in the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Court.

The witnesses in the inquest were formally served earlier this month and they will appear in court, most of them for the very first time since the inquest was ordered more than three years ago. The last time the inquest was called was before Magistrate Marcia Thompson-Murray, sitting as Coroner at NIPDEC House. However, Chief Magistrate Sherman Mc Nicholls has decided to take over this matter which has received a lot of publicity in the last three months. When the inquest was called on August 11, just two witnesses were present - Valerie Pascall, aunt of the dead boy, and PC Clive Alvarez, the investigating officer.

The court will inquire into the circumstances surrounding the death of Chambers, whose body was found in the swimming pool of businessman Charles James at Haleland Park, Maraval, on May 24, 1998. Akiel Chambers had gone to the Maraval residence to attend a birthday party for James’ daughter Carrie, when he disappeared. Akiel was discovered missing from the birthday party, and according to one witness, he was last seen leaving the premises. A search was mounted for the 11-year-old boy, but he was not found. Even the swimming pool was searched. Shortly before midnight, Akiel’s body was found in a crouched position in the swimming pool. An autopsy performed by forensic pathologist Dr Hughvon Des Vignes revealed that Akiel died from drowning. But the pathologist found spermatozoa in the rectum of the boy, leading investigators to believe that he was sexually molested prior to his death.

On April 19, 2000, Coroner Jai Narine ruled that Akiel’s death was as a result of an accidental drowning. No inquest was held and the Coroner’s decision came after reviewing the file. The following month, the then Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Mark Mohammed ordered a second inquest.