Georgetown: Self-confessed death squad member Sean Hinds Monday turned himself into police custody while being escorted by his high profile lawyer Nigel Hughes.
Hinds, was dressed in a black t-shirt, dark shades and denim jeans as he strolled into the Criminal Investigations Department.
The former murder accused answered the call of the Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan whom advised Hinds through the media to turn surrender.
"There will be nothing in it for him. What's got to be there for him? He is helping so if he murdered we must allow him to get off of that?" said Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan.
His remarks to reporters at Arthur Chung International Conference Centre came ahead of a possible surrender by Hinds to the headquarters of the Guyana Police Force's Criminal Investigations Department.
Ramjattan said "discretion" would be used to ensure that authorities but said no amnesty would be granted at this stage. "At this stage we are not going to grant amnesty…nobody is going to have a free lunch in this society and if he did what he did and wants to bring it out, we'll fine. The trouble is let him come and we will determine that later," he said.
The Public Security Minister' said there was no role for the political directorate, but that Hinds should subject himself to be questioned and interviewed thoroughly by police about everything that he knows.
The former cop made some shocking and scurrilous allegations to another media house on Tuesday, where he disclosed that he was an integral part of a “death squad” which had a rampant operation during the mid 2000’s. Hinds claimed that he was directed by the CID and if he wasn’t a part of the “killing squad this country wouldn’t a got law and order…” He also claimed he was being fingered for the killing of Crum Ewing.
The “death squad” was reportedly responsible for going after criminal elements, particularly those who emerged after the massive jailbreak of February 2002, when five high profile criminals escaped from the Camp Street Prison. The men Andrew Douglas, Dale Moore, Shawn Browne, Mark Fraser and Troy Dick have all been killed after having confrontation with police ranks.
Minister of State Joseph Harmon speaking to reporters on the revelations on Wednesday, said while government would welcome Hinds to share all that he knows, it will not promise any official pardon to him. “I am not offering any amnesty whatsoever to anybody who admittedly involved in a criminal activity or criminal activities, who would say that I told you this and I told you that and I should be exempted”, Harmon said.
He noted, however, that Hinds is most welcomed to go to the police if he feels the need for some kind of protection for the information that he has, but as far as the state is concerned, this will not be provided. Harmon said, while he has spoken to the media, the state apparatus would be interested in following up those leads “more aggressively” and getting some additional answers.
“The issue is not with what Shawn Hinds said, but the implication of what he said. Two weeks ago while we were addressing the current spike in crime, our response was that we were not just going after the common criminal, but the intellectual authors and the people who are behind”, Harmon said.
The previous government had also reiterated that they were interested in the “intellectual authors” of the crime wave unleashed by the Mash Day 5. Asked about this and the implication of the CID, on the allegations of Hinds, Harmon said that if such is the case, then the state has an agency that will carry out an independent investigation in this regard.
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