By Rebecca Zuill

A Bermuda Police Service (BPS) review team has exonerated the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS) in an independent review of the arrest and death of one of their police officers.

The death of Pc Raphael Williams occurred about a year ago, and the BPS team’s report into the actions of the RCIPS has been published on the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) website.

Allegations from the RCIPS’ Staff Association and the officer’s family included one that Cayman police officers may have been involved in his death.

Bermuda Police Insp Robert Cardwell was the senior investigating officer, appointed after the United Kingdom Overseas Territory Police Advisor David Baines was asked by the RCIPS for help in arranging a review “of the circumstances surrounding the arrest, care and custody and the subsequent death ... ” of Pc Williams.

A Police spokesman said today: “The BPS can confirm that the RCIPS and the FCO requested an independent review of an investigation into the death of an RCIPS officer in Grand Cayman.

“The BPS were able to respond to this request and sent trained criminal investigators led by a qualified and experienced senior investigator officer to conduct an independent case peer review.

“This is in line with best practice. The BPS has provided similar support in the past. The team lead by BPS’s Inspector Robert Cardwell, submitted a full report to the RCIPS and the FCO on the matter.”

He added: “It would be inappropriate to discuss the details of the initial investigation and subsequent report.”

According to the BPS review document, posted on the FCO website, Pc William had been arrested on suspicion of offences of blackmail and breach of trust.

Among the details of the allegations were that Pc Williams had demanded sex with the driver of an uninsured vehicle that he had stopped. He made the demand for sex as an alternative to prosecution. According to the report the driver “was successfully able to ward off the advances made by the RCIPS officer by agreeing to submit to the demand made at a later date.

The RCIPS officer provided (blacked out) his private cellular telephone number for the purpose as alleged by her, that contact be made to arrange for a sexual encounter and identified himself to her as ‘Mark’.

“(Blacked out) entered the private cellular number provided by the officer into her own cellular telephone. As she is a subscriber to the social media application ‘WhatsApp’ the cellular number provided by the officer was automatically linked to the ‘WhatsApp’ account of Pc Raphael Williams which included a photograph.

“(Blacked out) positively identified the photograph of Pc Raphael Williams from ‘WhatsApp and that this was the same person demanding a ‘sexual encounter’.”

Police determined that the allegations were criminal in nature, and the case was handed the RCIPS anti-corruption unit.

“It was during this meeting and having been briefed on the circumstances that DI Oliver recalled that the same Modus-operandi and allegation as alleged by (blacked out) had in fact been used previously and made against PC Raphael Williams by another female member of the public years earlier.”

However, in that case, the accuser did not wish to pursue the complaint.

Pc Williams was arrested on suspicion of breach of trust and blackmail offences, and released on police bail the following day. The day after that, his wife reported that he was missing.

The Police officer was discovered dead in a secluded area of brush.

According to the BPS report, the RCIPS Commissioner David Baines outlined some of the allegations that had been made against the officers involved in the investigation and arrest of Constable Williams, “ ... as well as general untoward perceptions around the treatment of Constable Williams against the RCIPS Organisation.

“These allegations had been brought to his attention by the RCIPS membership through the Staff Association Chairman and from the wife of Constable Williams through her attorneys at law firm ‘Cayman Mediation Center’ and the extended family of Constable Williams in Jamaica.”

Insp Cardwell undertook the review with BPS officers Det Sgt Renay Rock and Det Constable Jason Robinson. The team from Bermuda went to Cayman on January 27 last year, and they were in the Caribbean island for about a week.

The allegations were that the arrest of Pc Williams had been ‘heavy handed’ and “ ... involved multiple uniformed RCIPS assets” including an RCIPS helicopter and this combination caused “severe embarrassment” to Pc Williams. In addition, there were allegations of “ ... the lack of duty of care and appropriate risk assessment of Constable Williams that might have negated his subsequent death.” He was denied access to an attorney while in custody, and denied access to any Staff Association representative.

The last allegation was that: “ ... the death of Constable Williams was suspicious and may have involved RCIPS officers.”

The BPS review team concluded that: “ ... all actions taken in respect of the investigation conducted into the allegations made against Constable Williams were required and reasonable.

The investigation was fluid and rapid. The arrest of Constable Williams for the purpose of taking him into custody for the purpose of further investigation into the allegations made against him was proportionate and justified.”

The BPS team concluded: “The administrative shortfalls identified did not contribute to any negligence in the care, custody and observation of Constable Williams whilst he was in police custody.”

The BPS spokesman added yesterday that The United Kingdom Caribbean Overseas Territories (UKCOT) partners - Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands (BVI), Cayman Islands, Montserrat, and Turks & Caicos Islands - have a long-established practice of working, training and other “mutual support activities which aim to ensure operational effectiveness”, as well as finding joint training opportunities which may reduce costs, as well as sharing best practices.

“This incident is another example of the UKCOT and Bermuda working in support of each other to provide the best service to the communities they serve.”