A woman was admitted to the Accident and Emergency Unit of the Georgetown Public Hospital on Tuesday afternoon after she was accidentally shot in the back.
The injured woman, who has been identified as Jean Rodrigues, of Crane Housing Scheme, West Coast Demerara, is said to be in her fifties.
According to reports, Rodrigues, along with her husband, Anthony Persaud, their three children and grandchild were all headed to a wake in Grove, East Bank Demerara (EBD) around 17:30h when the incident occurred.
The family was in the vicinity of the Timehri bus park when they heard screams coming from a Police Officer. When they looked up, they saw the Officer (name given) in pursuit of a man.
In an attempt to catch the man, the Officer discharged a round, which allegedly hit the woman. “We were all standing and this man run past us and then the policeman that was chasing him fire off shots and miss the man, but hit my wife,” Persaud said as he recounted what happened. The distraught man relayed that his grandson was in the spot where his wife was shot, just a few seconds before.
Rodrigues was picked up and rushed to the hospital’s emergency room by the policeman.
There are reports that the Police Officer told the family that he did not shoot the woman, but rather it was the bandit he was pursuing.
However, the family members said they saw what had occurred and claimed that the Officer was trying to “cover up the matter”.
The family said that since Rodrigues was taken to the hospital around 17:30h, they have been unable to see her or to get an update on her condition.
The matter was reported to the Police Outpost at the hospital. The Officer has been placed under arrest, and an investigation has been launched to ascertain what transpired.
