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Senior cop sticking to statement on bail scam 
Friday, 11 July 2008 
The head of front line operations says he will not back down from his bombshell pronouncement Thursday that criminals are gaining access to information leading them to witnesses.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington came under fire from noted members of the after he told a group of business leaders Thursday about the nefarious practice.
ACP Ellington said protection of witnesses is being compromised by a deceptive practice in which suspected criminals fire their to gain access to the whereabouts of state witnesses.
ACP Ellington said criminals first get a lawyer to successfully apply for .
Upon getting bail, the suspects then fire their legal counsel to gain access to the case files which contain the names and addresses of all witnesses.
They are then free to track them down and kill them.
The senior crime fighter told RJR [he is standing firm by his statements and that some lawyers are in denial.
"I said it and I am not going to listen to those who object to it without providing a basis for objecting. I am not going to be responding to people who simply want to deny truth. Anyone who has a problem with it has only to observe what is happening, speak to the many detectives who speak about this everyday. I am standing by the statement I am not responding to people who just have a desire to ignore the truth," said ACP Ellington.
ACP Ellington said he spoke against the background of the urgent need for appropriate to protect witnesses.
But leading criminal defence counsel Bert Samuels has rubbished the claims of the senior cop.
He said detectives who put together case files are instructed not to include sensitive information about witnesses.
Mr. Samuels said the Assistant Commissioner is aware of this.
According to him this does not prevent persons accused of a criminal offence from confronting their accusers.
"I find the ACP's statement to be unfortunate. The identification of the address of witnesses is something police are trained not to put in statement and if they are put in statements prosecutors have to remove them. So the blame is really on the police who are tying to shift the blame to lawyers who are innocent in all of this," said Mr. Samuels.
ACP Ellington's claims were made Thursday as he addressed a Jamaica Employers' Federation breakfast forum.
Friday, 11 July 2008 The head of front line operations says he will not back down from his bombshell pronouncement Thursday that criminals are gaining access to information leading them to witnesses.Assistant Commissioner of Police Owen Ellington came under fire from noted members of the after he told a group of business leaders Thursday about the nefarious practice.
ACP Ellington said protection of witnesses is being compromised by a deceptive practice in which suspected criminals fire their to gain access to the whereabouts of state witnesses.
ACP Ellington said criminals first get a lawyer to successfully apply for .
Upon getting bail, the suspects then fire their legal counsel to gain access to the case files which contain the names and addresses of all witnesses.
They are then free to track them down and kill them.
The senior crime fighter told RJR [he is standing firm by his statements and that some lawyers are in denial.
"I said it and I am not going to listen to those who object to it without providing a basis for objecting. I am not going to be responding to people who simply want to deny truth. Anyone who has a problem with it has only to observe what is happening, speak to the many detectives who speak about this everyday. I am standing by the statement I am not responding to people who just have a desire to ignore the truth," said ACP Ellington.
ACP Ellington said he spoke against the background of the urgent need for appropriate to protect witnesses.
But leading criminal defence counsel Bert Samuels has rubbished the claims of the senior cop.
He said detectives who put together case files are instructed not to include sensitive information about witnesses.
Mr. Samuels said the Assistant Commissioner is aware of this.
According to him this does not prevent persons accused of a criminal offence from confronting their accusers.
"I find the ACP's statement to be unfortunate. The identification of the address of witnesses is something police are trained not to put in statement and if they are put in statements prosecutors have to remove them. So the blame is really on the police who are tying to shift the blame to lawyers who are innocent in all of this," said Mr. Samuels.
ACP Ellington's claims were made Thursday as he addressed a Jamaica Employers' Federation breakfast forum.
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