00:00With Prisons Commissioner Carlos Carraspe and Acting Deputy Commissioner
00:04Shohan Bruce being ordered to proceed on leave and Superintendent Elvin Sankt-Berry
00:10now acting as Commissioner of Prisons, the tides have already begun changing.
00:15Operations are said to have normalized pertaining to businessman Dominic Hadid
00:20who was said to be receiving preferential treatment behind prison walls.
00:23This in the latest update from General Secretary of the Prisons Officers Association
00:29Lester Logie.
00:31I now receive a call from a member who indicated to me that there was a change.
00:37He saw Mr. Hadid going for a visit in the visit area where everyone receives their visit like everyone has.
00:44So I can report that yes, there was a change.
00:48The businessman will remain in a cell by himself,
00:51but the association outlines that it doesn't amount to special treatment.
00:56It's not normal procedure.
00:57However, the remand prison does not have the, is not at full capacity
01:03because of the challenges with the infrastructure.
01:07So where he is, most of the persons there are in cells by themselves.
01:12Speaking on TV6's Morning Edition prior to the phone interview,
01:16Logie indicated that Hadid had been allowed to watch World Cup matches in the administration building,
01:21which is off limits to detainees.
01:24They also indicated that he's outside late at night after 8, 9 o'clock in the area.
01:33And he had had the remand prison.
01:35At that time, we do not have inmates outside at those facilities.
01:44And officers were being threatened by other detainees based on the treatment they saw Mr. Hadid get in.
01:51Logie is hoping that it changes, stabilize the tension behind those walls.
01:57His letter to the Prime Minister and Minister of Homeland Security
02:00indicated that threats were being made against prison staff by inmates
02:04who were forced to contend with the disparity in treatment between them and Hadid.
02:09Well, I hope that it will impact us in a positive way in terms of the threats against officers because
02:17of it.
02:18Hoping that the other detainees receive their entitlement.
02:24Just our concern for officers' safety is a serious issue,
02:29especially when certain detainees make threats.
02:32We cannot take it lightly.
02:34So these were high-level threats that were being made?
02:39Sure, yes.
02:41Logie says the constitutionality on which the prison system runs
02:45must be enforced equally across the board,
02:48noting that all detainees on PDOs are innocent until proven guilty.
02:53For inmates who have infractions within the system, those rights can be curtailed.
02:58It warrants a hearing by a tribunal,
03:00which is another concern for Logie,
03:03as he says from his knowledge, no such hearing has been held.
03:06He has also issued written correspondence to the ministry on that.
03:11The association emphasizes that the letter was a breaking point
03:14after months of unaddressed systemic issues,
03:17including severe staff shortages, rat infestations, and broken infrastructure.
03:24Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
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