SHIELDS

Deputy Commissioner of police (DCP) in charge of crime, Mark Shields, has indicated that the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) will be approaching journalists with a view to pursuing the case involving rogue cops and their involvement in a multimillion-dollar car-stealing ring that reportedly led to the disappearance of businessman Oliver Duncan, 35, and Kemar Walters, a 20-year-old mechanic apprentice. Both men were accosted by policemen on December 23, 2004, at a plaza on Washington Boulevard in St Andrew.

Before my time

The Gleaner has run a three-part series, which started in The Sunday Gleaner, detailing the involvement of the police in the scheme.

"We are very interested in contacting the newspaper to discuss the case. The case is very interesting and I was aware of the investigation of the abduction of the men because it was months before I joined the JCF as head of crime."

In responding to the question of why The Gleaner could uncover such information and the JCF could not, Shields said that he would have to test the contents of the story to see which parts are accurate and which are not.

"We would have to test the veracity of the story which was printed in the newspaper as we don't know how accurate it is. People will sometimes speak to the police rather than the media and in other cases they will speak to the media rather than the police."

The DCP, however, stressed that the case was not closed and that the allegations in the case have sullied the image of the JCF.

"This case is far from over and we are investigating every aspect of the case and it is far from being a closed investigation. It is sad that policemen are involved ..."