Investigation into shooting of man in police custody

Rasheed Elijio

The family of eighteen year old Rasheed Elijio, a fisherman of Dangriga, is seeking answers in his shooting death, saying that his killing was unnecessary. Elijio’s grieving mother also told News Five on Tuesday that they know who shot and killed her son last Friday in Punta Gorda after he escaped from lawful custody earlier that morning.  Elijio, along with nineteen year old Brian Garcia, both charged individually for carnal knowledge of two minors, was being escorted in handcuffs to a waiting James Bus when he and Garcia somehow managed to abscond.  Elijio was mortally wounded several hours later after being shot in the Carib Reserve area.  Following the incident, Senior Superintendent Robert Mariano was dispatched to P.G. to commence an investigation into the matter.  That inquiry, however, has resulted in the officers’ stonewalling the process.  Their refusal to admit to shooting Elijio has led to a ballistics test of their weapons being requested.  According to Commissioner of Police Allen Whylie, the investigation is being supervised by the Office of the D.P.P.

Allen Whylie, Commissioner of Police

Allen Whylie

“There is a thorough investigation, both criminally, as well as internally, being done.  I know that sentiments are high because yes it is a police-related shooting, but the process of investigation is not an overnight system and it does take time.  Indeed the post mortem results were required, the ballistics is needed to match [in order] to confirm which weapons.  There were a number of different weapons out there.  Officers did admit to shooting, [however], the issue is that none have admitted to shooting the individual and that will take place through the issue of the investigation and the ballistic matching.  Hopefully those will be done very shortly and then we’ll be able to submit that file to the Director of Public Prosecutions.  But I want to reassure the public and the family that a thorough investigation is being done and the oversight is the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, who will say what it is we have in the file and whether or not we’ll need to do more work on that.”

Rasheed Elijio is the second person to be shot and killed by police within the past month.  On April eighteenth, twenty-one year old Ryan Lozano was fatally wounded after being shot by police in Los Lagos.  Lozana, it is reported, was caught along with twenty-seven year old Lenny Benguche in the act of burglarizing a property in the community when he was shot and killed by Ladyville Police.