By Gerrino J. Saunders
Journal Staff Writers

Complaints against police increased drastically in 2024 and this week a number of
officers from the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) prompted the courts to
issue arrest warrants for them after they failed to appear in the Coroners Court to
answer to serious matters related to several fatal police shootings in recent years.
Among them are Police Constable Kevin Greenslade and Constable Robert Young
who are facing charges in connection with the shooting death of 21 year old
Shanton Forbes in Yellow Elder in 2019.
A warrant of arrest has also been issued for Constable Samuel Ferguson and
former police officer Shando King who faces charges for the 2023 shooting death
of 42 year old Valentino Johnson.
Additionally, a warrant of arrest has been issued by the courts for Corporal Donald
Wright who was set to appear in the coroner’s court on Tuesday, He was to be
served a voluntary bill of indictment to send his case to the Supreme Court to be
heard for the 2018 shooting death of 20 year old DeAngelo Evans in Masons
Addition.
Also charged in the Evans matter is Inspector Akeem Wilson who appeared in
court and will be arraigned in the Supreme Court this week.
It was revealed by new Police Commissioner Shanta Knowles on Tuesday that
complaints against police officers in 2024 increased by a staggering 114 percent
with 315 complaints against officers compared to 147 cases in 2023.
Complaints by civilians rose by 79 percent from 89 in 2023 t0 159 in 2024. Sixty-
four of the civilian complaints were under investigation while 43 were closed with
no further action.
Internal police complaints saw a 170 percent increase from 54 in 2023 to 2024.
Accusations of corruption against police officers increased by 150 percent from
four cases in 2023 to 10 cases in 2024.

According to Commissioner Knowles, the RBPF aims to outfit all frontline officers
with body cameras to ensure the safety of both civilians and officers.
She said they are expecting a number of additional body cameras to add to their
current compliment within the next 3-4 months.
As it relates to the increase in complaints against police, Commissioner Knowles
said the force is “progressing well” with their ethics training for senior and junior
officers.
She said, “we take these cases very seriously and we will strive to maintain public
trust and confidence in the way we deal with them.”
Additionally, she said, “we are exploring other avenues to encourage the public to
report misconduct.”