Georgetown: After confessing his role as a former Death Squad member, Shawn Hinds has made startling revelation about high profile murders and operations which occurred during 2002-2007 when Guyana had its highest crime wave.
In an explosive interview broadcasted on HGPTV Nightly News Shawn Hinds fingered a retired Assistant Police Commissioner and other policemen in a number of high-profile killings while he was a member of a death squad that haunted Guyana after the 2002 jailbreak.
The former policeman and self-confessed death squad member said on one occasion when he was contracted to kill Guyanese journalist Ronald Waddell, who was gunned down in front of his home in 2006, he was beaten to the assassination by the now retired Assistant Police Commissioner.
Waddell met his demise in 2006 after he was gunned down in front of his Bel-Air residence. The Police presented details on the case, but investigations have not borne fruit.
Waddell was known at the time for his harsh criticisms of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government in his television programme, ‘Taking Care of Business’.
“I deh pun de seawalls looking out for the man, cause I tell them I on the seawalls. They operate like Special Branch,” Hinds told the news agency about the night of Waddell’s murder. “When you feel is you alone got a job, other people got em to.”
He recalled that he was in the vicinity of the seawalls when he received a phone call informing him that Waddell was on the move. Hinds then proceeded to Waddell’s Bel-Air residence, but the journalist was gunned down before he got to him.
“By de time de man come out de yard. De man ain’t went home, yah know,” Hinds said recalling the night of Waddell’s death, “The man ain’t come from the road. He went in he house and as he come out he yard, a car swing Sherriff Street, a blue 212 swing from Sheriff Street.” Hinds said a round of gunshots was heard, during which he crouched down in his vehicle.
Hinds failed to mention who called him informing him of Waddell’s whereabouts, and also who hired him to carry out the acts. He did say however that Waddell was murdered at the hands of two Police officers (whom he named, and one of whom is a retired Assistant Commissioner of Police).
The retired Assistant Police Commissioner has been fingered in a number of other high-profile killings and has been named as being involved in the U.S. visa fraud and the death squad that haunted Guyana after the 2002 jailbreak.
He had also played a leading role in the Target Special Squad of the Guyana Police Force at a time when that unit was named in extra judicial killings and several police abuses.
Hinds’ revelations come as Police have issued a wanted bulletin for him. The police have not stated what Hinds is wanted for, but other reports point to a possible link to the death of political activist Courtney Crum-Ewing, who was gunned down in the height of the May 11 elections campaign.
He said too that even though there was a phantom and a death squad in operation there could have been outside killers.
Hinds not only denied involvement in the murders of political activist Courtney Crum-Ewing, but also the cold case of the death of the former Agriculture Minister under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic Government, Satyadeow Sawh and members of his family in Sawh’s La Bonne Intention, East Coast Demerara home.
The former Death Squad member also made a shocking revelation that his squad operated alongside the Police Force, and received resources from the Force for their operations. “The Police was a part of it. We used to get guns from the Police. I used to go and uplift a gun from CID Headquarters, a machine gun.”
“We was guided, and been in communication with senior people from CID Headquarters,” Hinds continued. Asked whether he had links to the former People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government, Hinds responded, “I gon tell yah dis. All my orders came from CID Headquarters, and there is evidence to this day.”
“I have communication with me and people, saying what they need to be done, and how it need to be done, the kind of guns that need to be used, and what mustn’t be done and how yah muss do it, and doan do dis one like dis, and doan leff he in de streets and dem kinda ting,” Hinds continued.
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