A SANTA Cruz vendor accused of cuffing and advancing towards a policeman with a chopper at his stall in 2017 will receive over $415,000 in compensation for the three charges unlawfully laid against him.
The compensation ordered by Justice Carol Gobin also includes damages for false imprisonment, assault and battery, and trespass to his property by the police on May 15, 2017. The sums awarded by the judge also include interest.
Adeleke Rivas, the owner of a fruit stall at Saddle Road, Santa Cruz, was alleged to have cuffed PC Patrick Greig in the throat during a search of his business place for firearms, ammunition and marijuana.
The charges laid against him by Greig were possession of marijuana for trafficking, possession of a Chinese chopper intended to be used for a crime and assaulting Greig.
At his trial in the magistrates’ court, the presiding magistrate upheld a no-case submission on the possession charges and Rivas was found not guilty of assaulting the policeman.
He filed a malicious prosecution lawsuit and Gobin, after considering the submissions filed by his attorney and those for the State, granted judgment in his favour in chambers without a hearing.
In his witness statement, Rivas said the police came to his business place, located opposite the Cantaro post office. Greig was one of the officers. He said he was told by one of the officers, identified as acting Cpl Dhill, they had information he had in his possession marijuana and an illegal gun. The police began searching the stall and Rivas said he asked if they had a search warrant but he was ignored. He said he was manhandled and punched in the face by Dhill.
He then said Greig pointed his gun at him and after he raised his hands in the air and begged him not to shoot, he was shot in the leg.
He said another officer then shot him in the thigh. He was taken to the Santa Cruz health centre and transferred to the Port of Spain General Hospital where he stayed one day under police guard.
After he was discharged, he was taken to the San Juan police station and charged by Greig for the possession charges and Cpl Baksh for the alleged assault on Greig. He appeared in court two days later and was granted bail which he was unable to secure for 51 days.
He spoke of the embarrassment and trauma he endured during his incarceration at the Port of Spain prison and the conditions there. He also said he felt ashamed because of the newspaper articles written about his court appearance before the charges were eventually dismissed.
The police had claimed Rivas grabbed a bag and started to run, struggled with Greig who he was accused of cuffing and grabbed the Chinese chopper while advancing towards the officer causing him to shoot him (Rivas) in the left foot. Police also claimed they found 1.35 kilogrammes of marijuana in the bag.
In August 2021, Greig was charged by police with the murder of his neighbour after two separate investigations by the police and the Police Complaints Authority.
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