The family of Carlton 'Carlisle' Grant is seriously concerned about what they describe as a desperate attempt by the police to cover up his killing last Saturday night.
They say that the police have been acting unprofessionally and have fabricated a tale to cover their tracks after shooting the 17-year-old.
Fired gunGrant, son of deejay Spragga Benz, was killed by the police along Church Street last Saturday night. Police allege that they were on patrol when two men were seen on a bicycle. They were signalled to stop and complied. One of the men, the police reported, pulled a gun and fired at them. The fire was returned and the men ran. The area was searched and Grant was found suffering from gunshot wounds. A semi-automatic pistol was also allegedly taken from him. Grant was taken to the Kingston Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
But this report, Grant's family says, is totally false. They say they have witnesses who gave a completely different story.
Grant's aunt and another family member who contacted THE STAR yesterday said the teen and another man were first signalled to stop. The police, they say, exited their vehicle, questioned the men and eventually fired a shot which hit the teen in his face.
The other young man, they said, was told to run and while he was doing so additional shots were fired at him.
SuspiciousWhat makes the family even more suspicious of the police's report is that they saw a videotape that shows Grant going into a gas station near to Church Street to purchase a sandwich minutes before the incident. They say that there was no sign of a weapon on the teen. This video they say will be given to the police to use in their investigations.
Yesterday, to make things even worse, they say there was an attempt to arrest the other youngster after they went to make a report. "Is like them a try get rid ah him. Dem a try everything to cover up them tracks," one family member said.
Grant's death has been devastating for the family, especially for Spragga, who returned to the island on Monday. "Him fadda just hug up Sharon (Grant's mother) and say she must not cry. And him not really saying anything, you just see pure tears running from him eyes," Grant's aunt said.
She describes the teen as a quiet child who wanted to be an actor. Having been in the movie Shottas, he was set to be part of another movie to be shot overseas later this year.
Efforts by THE STAR to get a comment from the Bureau of Special Investigations which is investigating the incident was unsuccessful up to press time.
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