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Relative of ex-govt. official fingered in elections bomb scare
Kaieteur News – Assistant Commissioner of Police, Edgar Thomas in his testimony before the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the events surrounding the March 2020 elections, on Monday revealed said that a relative of a former Deputy Permanent Secretary (PS) was fingered in the bomb scare that disrupted proceedings during the tabulation exercise at Ashmins Building.
Ashmins Building was GECOM’s Command Centre and the seat of the Region Four Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo. The Assistant Commissioner of Police who had previously testified before the COI was called again to the stand to give further evidence.
Assistant Commissioner of Police, Edgar Thomas
He also revealed that the former Deputy Permanent Secretary had called him, requesting bail for her relative, who was a suspect in the bomb threat at the GECOM Command Centre at Ashmins building at High and Hadfield Streets, Georgetown.
“On the 5th (March 2020), I received a call from one Miss Vansluytman who at the time was the deputy PS. I think was Business Ministry and requested bail for her relative who was the suspect with the mischievous phone call, the bomb threat… but it was out of my hands,” Thomas said.
He noted that he informed Miss Vansluytman that he could not help her since the matter was being dealt with directly by the Top Cop. He had previously testified that on March 5, 2020, ranks and officers from at least three sections of the Guyana Police Force converged at Ashmins building in the midst of a bomb scare.
According to Thomas, several of those ranks then played a role in the vehement attempts to clear the building, even after concern was expressed about the safety of the Statements of Poll (SoPs).
On Monday, Thomas’ cellphone records for the period March 5-6, 2020 were presented to the CoI.
It showed a series of calls from senior police officers, including former Commissioner of Police Leslie James. Attorney, Sophia Chote S.C., of Trinidad and Tobago, who led the proceedings, asked Thomas for a breakdown of the calls. He explained that out of the calls, 19 were between him and the former Commissioner of Police and 16 were with then Deputy Commissioner of Police, Maxine Graham, seven were based on communication with the former head of the Special Branch, Nigel Hoppie.
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