WESTERN BUREAU:
A MONTEGO Bay policeman is facing charges of assault at common-law for an incident in which he allegedly pulled his service revolver on one of his superiors.
The charges were levelled at the weekend against Constable Ricardo Evans, who is attached to the Mount Salem Police Station, following a ruling from the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Constable Evans is also facing additional charges for breaches of the Anti-Corruption Act. He was charged jointly in that matter on Friday with his colleague Constable Peter O'Connor.
The cops are in custody at the St. James Police Divisional Headquarters Lock-up and are booked to appear before the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court tomorrow.
Reports are that the incident occurred almost two weeks ago when the constable was being questioned by senior officers about his alleged role in extorting money from a motorist who had flouted the Road Traffic Act.
It is reported that when he was asked to hand over his firearm, he initially refused and subsequently took the weapon from his waist in a menacing manner before he was overpowered.
Detectives from the Professional Standard Branch (PSB) were called in recently to investigate the corruption matter after Evans and O'Connor allegedly seized a vehicle and arrested its driver in the Mount Salem area. The vehicle did not possess a road licence or insurance coverage.
It is alleged that $20,000 was paid over for the release of the man but when efforts were made to collect the vehicle, more money was requested and the PSB contacted.
