The Tribune

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

ALMOST a year after alleging that police officers took $9,000 from their Marathon Estates home during what they claim was a mistaken search, Aynalel and Marvin Deveaux are still without answers — leaving Marvin, already battling severe health issues, losing hope.

“My husband says he doesn’t have the energy to fight the police because he’s already down, already in too much pain, and cannot stand up long. He can’t do nothing,” said Mrs Deveaux, a naturalised Bahamian originally from Ethiopia. “I am the only one that can focus on my husband, you know? Everybody telling me it’s still an investigation, it’s still an investigation. I don’t know who to speak to.”

When The Tribune reached out to police for an update, a press liaison officer could not provide a definitive response, saying only that the matter was still under investigation.

 Mrs Deveaux said she and her husband had been saving the money for a medical trip to Turkey. The cash was reportedly locked in a bedroom, but allegedly went missing after officers searched their home.

 In May 2023, The Tribune first reported the couple’s allegations. The Deveauxs filed a complaint with the Wulff Road Police Station and later at police headquarters when they realised the money was gone.

 Since then, Mrs Deveaux, the sole breadwinner in her household, has struggled to pay legal fees while managing her husband’s medical expenses. Mr Deveaux has been on dialysis for the past 20 years, and his condition has not improved.

 She fears that even if they are eventually compensated, the money will be consumed by legal costs and mounting bills.

“Sometimes I’m tired and decide to drop him in the morning and pick him up in the evening because between my job and him, sometimes I hardly take my lunchtime — I gotta go take care of him,” she said. “No one is taking care of him in the house while I’m gone.”

 The ongoing ordeal has taken a heavy toll. Mrs Deveaux missed her sister’s funeral in Ethiopia because she was dealing with the missing money and could not afford the cost of travel.

 “It costs too much money,” she said. “And the police mix-up is my own situation, my life, everything. It’s broken up for me and my life in this country.”

  The experience has soured her view of life as a naturalised Bahamian.

 “This country is very bad,” she said. “The police take all of my money and you know, this was a little bit of change to take care of my husband. I don’t know. Now, I got to fight for me. Only I am looking for someone to help me and the lawyer.”

Last year, then-Deputy Commissioner of Police Leamond Delevaux said the matter was under investigation. He retired from the police force without giving an update on the matter.