Pompey Accuses Police of Neglecting Direct Report of Alleged Human Remains
Former Commissioner of Police Rawlston Pompey has accused officers of potentially committing gross neglect of duty by allegedly failing to act when a direct report was made about possible human remains off the Parham coast.
Pompey sharply rejected the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda’s description of the allegation as a claim circulating on social media. He said information about the reported discovery had already been communicated or formally reported to the Parham Police Station.
“What the hell social media post are they referring to?” Pompey asked, accusing the Police Administration of failing to give the public a full account of how the matter was initially handled.
Citing sources, Pompey alleged that the officer who received the report appeared dismissive and showed little interest in determining whether the suspected remains were human.
He said that if police personnel received such information and failed to initiate an investigation, they could be “guilty of the punishable act of gross neglect of duty.”
“Their duty was to source the expertise to dive to ascertain whether or not the information was correct,” Pompey said. “Come straight. Come truthful.”
The controversy intensified after a follower of the True Crimes Antigua Facebook page recounted finding a man’s body near Millers By the Sea in 1992.
The individual said the discovery was immediately reported to the authorities but repeated attempts to obtain an update from the investigating officer went unanswered. The person said the experience caused lasting emotional distress and that the absence of information compounded the trauma.
The account was shared in response to the current unverified allegation that bodies may have been dumped at sea near a location about three nautical miles east of Parham Dock, in the vicinity of Great Bird Island.
Police said Sunday that officers and the Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force Coast Guard investigated the identified area Saturday, July 18, but were unable to establish the precise location of the alleged discovery.
The force said accurate coordinates or reliable location information were required to organize a comprehensive underwater search.
However, Pompey’s intervention raises questions about when police first received the information, what was reported to the Parham Police Station and whether any action was taken before the matter appeared on social media.
The Police Administration has not publicly addressed those specific allegations.
Anyone with information has been asked to contact the Criminal Investigations Department at 462-3913 or 462-3914, call 911 or contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 800-TIPS.
This article was originally published by Antigua News Room. Read the original article here: Pompey Blasts Police Over Handling of Parham Human Remains Report.