The Tribune

By DANA SMITH

Tribune Staff Reporter

dsmith@tribunemedia.net

FOLLOWING the social media publication of a photo reportedly depicting the buttocks of a man who claimed to have been beaten by police, Police Commissioner Ellison Greenslade confirmed an officer has been charged in connection with that incident.

The photo had appeared on the Facebook page of former DNA candidate Rodney Moncur, who Mr Greenslade said had reported the incident to police.

The photo was published alongside another: an autopsy photo reportedly showing Jamie Smith – a man who died in police custody last month.

Mr Moncur confirmed he was taken into police custody on Saturday morning by a senior Cyber Intelligence Unit officer after the photos were published. He told the press that police believe he broke into the morgue to take the pictures.

Speaking yesterday, Mr Greenslade said no one has a right to disrespect victims and their families and denounced the apparent leak.

“We have in the past few days, had some very, very unfortunate things done in the public sphere – certainly in cyber-space,” Mr Greenslade said.

“I am a bit restrained at the moment to speak more pointedly to it except to say that where any action is taken in this country, by a member of the public or by a police officer, which is criminal, I am prepared to do my job. And so I will be speaking again to the matter of which I basically refer . . . and certainly will demonstrate to the public that that kind of behaviour is not going to be accepted; it is out of order; it is obscene; it is indecent; and I am not going to allow that.”

Although he wanted to “restrict” his comments, the commissioner said he wants the public to know that “in this community, we have to be very careful how we treat victims and their families.”

He said: “I believe that a premium should be placed on it. I don’t have the right as commissioner, I don’t believe any other citizen has a right to disrespect victims and their families. I don’t accept that; I don’t subscribe to that; and so I will speak again shortly to the issue in a very forthright way.”

Mr Greenslade also said he was pleased that Mr Moncur reported an incident to him over the holiday weekend – “Pleased to the extent that a member of the public was willing to step up and say I’m going to tell you of something which I perceived is wrong.”

“It was duly investigated, the matter that was reported and I am satisfied this morning that we are going to bring charges in that matter. Likewise, I will speak to that shortly.

“Again we say, thanks. This is what we’ve always said – report the matters, report it to the proper people, allow the investigations to take place, and let the law take its course.”

According to Mr Moncur, he was arrested after autopsy photographs of Jamie Smith and the buttocks of another man who claimed to have been beaten by police were posted on his Facebook page.

Mr Moncur said police accused him of “terrorising the nation and libelling the Royal Bahamas Police Force.”

Police also believe he broke into the morgue sometime this month to take the pictures, Mr Moncur said.

“I wholeheartedly deny breaking into the morgue and I am too old to be breaking into PMH,” he said.

He added that if Mr Greenslade had asked him to remove the photos, he would have.

He insisted that his arrest was unwarranted.