A Police Corporal died this morning (Saturday, December 14, 2019) after falling overboard in the Berbice River.
Dead is 43-year-old Chakumba Scipio, who was attached to Central Police Station in New Amsterdam and of Angoy’s Avenue, also in the same town.
The incident occurred sometime around 09:30h when a group of police ranks were on their way to conduct investigations into several reports of theft in communities along the Berbice River.
According to police reports, the team, under the command of a Chief Inspector, departed New Amsterdam enroute to Sand Hills in a police vessel, which was captained by the now dead rank, who was a certified coxswain.
While in the vicinity of Bermine, the boat suddenly begun to sway resulting in Scipio falling overboard and going under the water.
Despite valiant efforts to rescue the Scipio, his body was found until hours later by ranks from the Coast Guard.
The officers’ grieving brother, Cleveland, told reporters that he was at work when he received information about the incident.
“They told me that he fell off the boat. I went down by the New Amsterdam Ferry Stelling and some of his colleagues told me what happened,” he related.
According to Cleveland, Scipio did not want to be a part of Saturday’s trip.
“We spoke up to Friday night and he told me that he did not want to go on this trip. However, he is a police officer and that is his job, When duty calls, they gotta do what they gotta do,” the brother noted.
Corporal Scipio was described as a super dad to his three children, whom he had been taking care of his three daughters alone after his wife died several years ago. He had also been supporting his only brother after their parents passed away.
The body of the 43-year-old rank is presently at the Arokium Funeral Parlour awaiting a post mortem examination.
Meanwhile, the police have launched an investigation into the incident.
Attempts to find out whether Seipio was wearing a life jacket at the time of the incident were unsuccessful. However, he is said to have been an excellent swimmer.
Scipio, who joined the Force in 1999, was the Divisional Electrician and Coxswain.
