The Tribune

By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

THE 23-year-old driver of the truck that mowed through a crowd during the Labour Day Parade was remanded to prison yesterday after being charged with negligently causing the deaths of four women.

Travis Lamar Sawyer, of Silver Gates, was charged before Assistant Chief Magistrate Subusola Swain with four counts of manslaughter by negligence stemming from the June 1 incident, which also injured 24 people.

It is alleged that on the Friday in question, Sawyer, by means of unlawful harm, negligently caused the deaths of 41-year-old Tabitha Haye, 48-year-old Tami Patrice Gibson, 51-year-old Kathleen Fernander and 55-year-old Dianna Gray-Ferguson.

Shortly after 10am on June 1 the annual Labour Day parade was walking north on East Street in the vicinity of Shirley Street, when a green Ford F150 truck, which was a part of the parade, descended the hill towards Shirley Street.

The vehicle, which at the time had no driver, ran into a number of people who were a part of the parade, resulting in them receiving injuries. The vehicle came to a stop on hitting a Nissan vehicle, parked in a nearby parking lot.

Two people were pronounced dead at the scene, while 26 others were taken to hospital. Two women later died at the hospital, which was forced into mass casualty mode.

The driver of the truck was subsequently taken into custody.

Sawyer was not required to enter a plea to the charge and the case was adjourned to November 13 for service of a voluntary bill of indictment.

Bail was denied and he was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Corrections in the interim.

Up to press time, Sawyer’s attorney, Barry Sawyer, was at the Supreme Court yesterday seeking to apply for bail for his client. However, The Tribune understands he was not successful in having the bail application heard.