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Policeman kills man
during robbery
Monday, May 24th 2004
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An off-duty police officer on Saturday night shot and killed a man who snatched his gold chain while he was in a mini-bus at the corner of Broad and Saffon Streets, Charlestown. The man's two accomplices escaped. Reports are that Curtis Seales, of no fixed place of abode, and two other men, one of whom was armed with a knife, boarded a mini-bus plying the East Bank route at the park. As the bus approached the Charlestown area Seales snatched the policeman's chain. This newspaper understands that the mini-bus stopped suddenly after the robbery, and the three robbers scrambled out of the vehicle, but not before the policeman had fired a shot. The bus, which was carrying about two other passengers, drove away while the three men ran in different directions. Seales was later discovered by residents lying on Broad Street panting. According to one man in the area the incident occurred somewhere between 10 pm and 11 pm on Saturday night. He told this newspaper that he was at the time watching two youths in the area tantalising each other on the corner when the mini-bus suddenly stopped. The man said he then saw the men run out of the bus and heard something like a gunshot, but could not be sure. "All I hear is bladdam, and den I see dem men running all over, but I didn't even know somebody get shoot until I hear a body lying in the street..." the man said. The witness said that the mini-bus took off with such speed that part of a man's clothing was caught in the door, and he was seen running while the mini-bus was driving off. However, he subsequently got inside the vehicle again. Another resident said he was at a house party when someone alerted them to a man lying on the street apparently shot. He said at the time the man, who was dressed in a red jersey, was panting for breath. It also appeared as though he had an injured arm because it was in a sling. A police patrol arrived in the area about three minutes later, and the residents told them about the man. It was the patrol which transported Seales to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Reports are that a police officer from the Ruimveldt area identified the man since he is a well-known character. Up to late yesterday no relative had gone to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) to formally identify the body. The police officer's chain was not recovered, according to reports. A senior police officer yesterday said that it had become the norm for bandits to enter mini-buses to rob the unsuspecting operators and passengers. The police are investigating the incident.
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