Prison surveillance footage shows that the lights suddenly went out on cell block C and two men ran across the corridor moments after officer Dion Bowles is seen handing an object to a prisoner.
The Coroner’s Court jury saw this and much more yesterday, during an extended screening of the footage of Her Majesty’s Prison cell block C on the morning of January 17. On Wednesday, technical difficulties limited viewing of the footage.
The video showed that at 2.06am Sgt Steven Sands, who had a warrant issued for his arrest yesterday when he failed to show up to court, conducted an apparent inspection alone.
Mr Sands can be seen going to Corey Hepburn’s cell, where he stood for several seconds and appeared to be conversing with the inmate, according to prison surveillance officer Travis Bowe.
Officer Bowe, who presented the screening, said that it was not clear whether Sands passed anything to the inmate.
He also noted that it appeared as though officer Sands stopped at no other cell.
As it was reported previously, while corporal Bowles attempted to leave the C block at 4:11am, he handed an item to an inmate whose cell was located at the far end of the block.
There was no camera positioned at any other angle of that block, other than the one which focused on cells C-16 to C-25.
Prison surveillance footage shows that officer Bowles returned to the block by himself at 4:10 that morning and went directly to the rear of the block where Corey Hepburn’s cell was located.
According to officer Bowe, Bowles then stopped at cell C- 17 and appeared to speak with the inmate inside for a few seconds.
It appeared from the footage as though while Bowles was attempting to leave, he was called by the inmate in what appeared to be cell C-16 – Corey Hepburn’s cell.
Bowles seemed to have been beckoned by the inmate to retrieve an item that was on the ground near the door of the cell directly opposite Hepburn’s.
Bowles is seen stooping to pick up an object and seemed to pass it to an inmate on his way back out of the corridor, just before the lights went out.
Just after this, two figures could be seen running across the corridor One individual apparently had on a pair of short dark trousers and the other had on long, dark trousers and a dark jacket.
The person in the short trousers seemed to be waiting hesitantly in the corridor, while something appeared to be happening in the shadows, though it could not be picked up by the camera.
Several seconds afterwards, an individual with what the Coroner noted as, a “peculiar” stride, could be seen walking out of the shadows dressed in long, dark trousers and what appeared to be a long dark jacket.
Surveillance footage also shows that at 2.14am, the inmate in cell C-21 passed an item which looked as though it was wrapped in a white cloth to an inmate in cell C-18.
It was noted by the Coroner that this exchange took place between inmates Robert Green and Wesley Guist.
Officer Bowe also noted during the viewing that at 3.30am, there was an inspection by Principal Officer Rolle and Sgt Sands.
Mr Rolle had the flashlight and checked cells C-24 to C-15 which were on the cell block officer Bowe explained.
At 3.48 an item was passed from cell C-17 to cell C-16; Hepburn’s cell.
The inquest was adjourned to next Tuesday.
By: Natario McKenzie, The Tribune
