Guyana’s Opposition Leader demands that Assistant Commissioner Khalid Mandall face legal consequences for what she describes as obstructing justice during Adrianna Younge’s case. Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton suggests that the senior police officer should be arrested for allegedly providing false information and charged with creating public mischief and attempting to pervert and obstruct the course of justice.
There has been intense political and public scrutiny surrounding the 11-year-old girl’s murder investigation. The young girl, who was found in a pool at the Double Day Hotel in Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo, on April 24, reportedly drowned. Her death, which was initially speculated to include foul play, ignited protests and widespread outrage, leading to numerous arrests.
In a statement released on Thursday, she accused Mandall of misleading the public and fuelling civil unrest by releasing what she alleges were false claims early in the probe. “When this issue with Adrianna began, the police were called in, and the commander told this nation that they had video evidence of this young lady leaving the hotel. That turned out not to be true,” Norton said in a lengthy statement, per reports.
The opposition leader is demanding that the same legal standards applied to nurse Tiana King, who has been charged with creating public mischief and attempting to obstruct justice, also be applied to Mandall. Norton insists that Mandall’s alleged misinformation equally contributed to the unrest that unfolded following the incident.
“If you are accusing Nurse Tiana King of creating public mischief and attempting to pervert and obstruct the course of justice, then the same thing should occur for the Assistant Commissioner,” Norton argued and emphasised that she is not defending King but demanding fairness under the law.
The call for Mandall’s arrest has deepened concerns over political bias within the Guyana Police Force. Norton urged the authorities to rise above politics and enforce the law without favouritism.