Mother of Deceased Says She Wants Justice for Alleged Police Brutality

Andrew McDougall

A mother is in grief tonight after her son died of wounds he sustained, allegedly at the hands of police in Independence Village, nineteen days ago. Desiree McDougall told us that cops brutalized her son after they caught him smoking marijuana, and they are claiming he was disorderly. But whatever the situation was that led to the wounds that the twenty-five-year-old hemophiliac suffered, those injuries were severe because he had to be hospitalized since then up until the time of his death. News Five’s Marion Ali reports.

Marion Ali, Reporting

This was Andrew McDougall, a burly twenty-five-year-old man whose only health issue was that he suffered from hemophilia, an inherited bleeding disorder in which the blood does not clot properly, and which can lead to spontaneous bleeding. So when he suffered severe wounds almost three weeks ago, it definitely placed his life at risk. He had to be hospitalized from that time, but his conditioned only deteriorated.  He passed away on Tuesday and his mother blames the Independence police for his death.

On the phone: Desiree McDougall

On the phone: Desiree McDougall, Mother of deceased

“I went to Mango Cree Police Station with my daughter-in-law and I asked for my son, Andrew McDougall and I told them that he got beat up by the police and they looked at me like what I was talking about and I tell them yes, my son is in here. He has a sickness called hemophilia, and I begged them to put his medication on him. So when I went inside to see my son, he was bleeding.”

According to Desiree McDougall, prior to her son’s death, he told her that he was severely beaten by several officers while in police custody.

On the phone: Desiree McDougall

“My son told me that the officers beat him up, stomped him in his chest, head-bucked him five times and the female police officer slapped him in his face.

I asked them to please take my son to the public clinic, so we took him to the public clinic. The doctor said that he had trauma so he can’t stay locked up in the cell. I took my son home. By the evening my son called me and said mom I can’t breathe.”

The distraught mother is asking for justice.

On the phone: Desiree McDougall

“He died from blunt trauma from what they did to him. Inflicted wounds, that’s what the death certificate said. My son was in Belize City hospital. We were trying to keep him alive you know, the doctors tried everything they could.

I haven’t made my report yet because these officers don’t know what I’m going through, and I want justice for my son. I don’t think it’s fair for these police officers going around beating up people’s children. And I think they deserve to go to jail. I hope that Chester Williams does something about this and do the right thing. I want justice.”

Andrew McDougall will be laid to rest in Burrell Boom Village on Saturday. Marion Ali for News Five.