Palms resident should not have had firearm - Crime Chief

Palms resident should not have had firearm – Crime Chief

Nov 19, 2018 News

Police are seeking to ascertain how the 79-year-old man who threatened a nurse with a licensed firearm was able to keep the weapon while he was a resident of the Palms Geriatric Home.
Crime Chief Lyndon Alves told Kaieteur News that police may have been unaware that the individual, said to a retired prison officer, was residing at the Palms. He also suggested that the resident, who was released from custody, may have checked himself into the geriatric home.
“Had that incident not occurred, we may not have known (he was in possession of a firearm).”
Alves said that he hopes to have a report on the incident today. Investigators will also try to ascertain how long the man has been residing at the Brickdam location.
“This is a very serious incident. It could have been fatal had he gone to the extreme,” the Crime Chief said.
The 79-year-old was taken into custody last Thursday for allegedly threatening to shoot a male nurse who was working at the Brickdam institution.
Police said that the nurse and the ex-prison officer had a misunderstanding in one of the wards.
The nurse then went to another ward. When he was walking up the stairway, the ex-prison officer, who was at the top of the stairway, reportedly confronted him with a gun.
He is said to have pointed it at the nurse while issuing threats to shoot.
The nurse managed to disarm the elderly resident and summoned the police, who promptly arrived and took possession of the firearm.
The former prisoner officer was taken into custody but was reportedly released the same day.
When a Kaieteur News reporter visited the Palms yesterday, a staffer indicated that the ex-prison officer might not have been registered to stay at the institution.
Many of the residents seemed to be unaware of the incident. One resident said that the ex-prison officer would sometimes sit under a benab or walk around the compound.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News