Prison officers to be quizzed on Stanley’s death

Two prison officers will be interviewed today by homicide officers as investigations continue into the death of Noel Stanley, the Carapichaima man who died in police custody on June 13. Prison authorities yesterday gave permission to ASP Nadir Khan of the Police Homicide Bureau to interview the officers based on an incident involving Stanley on June 13. Stanley, 27, reportedly threw a bag of marijuana over the Frederick Street Prison wall. He was then held by two prison officers and later handed over to CID officers of the Belmont Police Station.

Stanley was reportedly taken to the Port-of-Spain CID where he was interrogated by officers of the Port-of-Spain CID and the Anti-Kidnapping Squad. He reportedly complained of feeling unwell and died three hours after being handed over to the police. Relatives of the dead man denied that he was ill and insisted that he was beaten. The first autopsy at the Forensic Sciences Centre revealed that cause of death was inconclusive pending a toxicology report, but the second autopsy revealed that Stanley died from asphyxiation due to strangulation and his body bore several marks of violence.

There are reports that on the day Stanley threw the bag of marijuana over the prison wall, he was taken inside the Port-of-Spain prison where he was beaten by two prison officers. Two former prisoners who allegedly witnessed Stanley’s beating are expected to give statements to the investigator. The completed file is expected to be handed over to Snr Supt Dyo Mohammed next week.