Senior cop assaulted at scene of crash
(CNS): Two local men have been arrested following a serious assault against a senior police officer who attended the scene of a collision in George Town on Saturday night. An RCIPS spokesperson confirmed that the injured officer is Detective Superintendent Peter Lansdown. The senior cop, who was in full uniform, was assaulted around 9:30pm and taken to the Cayman Islands Hospital with significant but not life-threatening injuries to his head and body.
A 25-year-old man was arrested at the scene on suspicion of assault causing grievous bodily harm and a 23-year-old man was arrested for obstructing police in the lawful execution of their duties. Both men are Caymanian and live in Bodden Town. They remain in police custody.
The single-vehicle collision happened at the Island Heritage Roundabout on the Esterley Tibbetts Highway, and the incident is now under investigation by officers of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
Anyone who may have witnessed the incident is asked to contact George Town CID at 949-4222 or 649-4222.
This is disgusting. I wish the officer a speedy recovery. A sacred line appears to have been crossed and the entire community should rise in unison in its revulsion.
CNS, I appreciate you are likely reporting what you have yourselves been told, but given that the immigration department itself needs time and often serious deliberation to determine whether someone is Caymanian or not, are you able to confirm how it may be that the police know these persons are Caymanian and are able to confirm it so quickly?
The issue can be complicated, and being born here 25 years ago, even if you have a Cayman passport, may mean nothing. I accept these particular men are very probably are Caymanian XXXX but I am more than a little impressed by just how quickly our police seem to be able to make determinations and pronouncements as to who is and who is not Caymanian.
Of course, being accurate about whether someone is Caymanian can be very important when it comes to the options which may be available to prosecutors and the courts. In our fight against crime, I would hope that the police not find themselves accidentally being too quick to exclude any weapon from their arsenal. One option which appears too seldom utilized may be deportation (post incarceration or other suitable penalty) for any criminal who may in fact not be Caymanian and where the offense warrants it. The facts remain to be known, but if someone who is not in fact a Caymanian caused serious physical harm to a police officer in the lawful execution of their duty, there should be little debate as to whether they still have the privilege of calling our Islands home following their release from prison.