2 minute read
Murderer streams videos live from jail cell
Christopher Forbes’ livestream from his fully stocked jail cell at HMP
BY DELANA ISLES
DURING the 24 hour lockdown, a prisoner at Her Majesty’s Prison in Grand Turk took to social media to air his frustrations with the prison system.
While this is not an uncommon occurrence, particularly by inmate Christopher Forbes, it did spark some new concerns about lack of control at the territory’s only penitentiary.
Forbes is serving two life sentences for the brutal murders of two female Dominican nationals.
In the four videos he livestreamed on Facebook, the inmate was wearing street clothes, adorned with jewellery, and had a flat screen television in his jail cell.
He stood against a backdrop of a wellstocked shelf of grocery supplies, all inside Her Majesty’s Prison.
Forbes - like a lot of others on social media during the pandemic - provided exercise tips for people stuck in lockdown.
PNP candidate for South Caicos, Reverend John Malcolm in a Facebook post questioned who is really running the prison.
“The recent video of an inmate of the prison sporting street clothes and jewellery and the spat of other videos that were released, the constant riots and unrest that erupt there from time to time, are all indicators that this Government and the prison authorities have completely lost control of the facility,” Rev. Malcolm wrote.
He said the neglect of the facility has caused it to become “a festering sore that appears to be a malignant cancer in our society”.
According to the PNP candidate, his party has a comprehensive and a holistic plan to remedy the situation at the prison and has made several recommendations to the Government in this regard, to no avail.
Rev. Malcolm also remarked on the plight of a former prisoner, Evanson Walkin, who was recently released from prison.
In a Facebook post earlier this month addressed to the governor, premier and the private sector, Walkin pleaded for gainful employment be afforded to him and other inmates when they leave prison.
The young man was released some months ago after serving a jail term for possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear.
He said no one wants to hire him because of his criminal record.
“Myself and a few other prisoners have been released from prison and are unemployed (not all of us want to go back to prison, not all of us want to go back into a life of crime, some of us only need a chance and I am one of them).
“Please can someone in Government help me or someone in the private sector?” Walkin said.
Responding to Walkin’s pleas, Rev. Malcolm stated that the PNP has pledged to work towards transforming the experiences of prisoners like Walkin, in and out of prison.
He said that one of the main reasons that crime keeps perpetuating is failure to provide meaningful employment and other opportunities for former inmates, as well as a failure to rehabilitate youths who find themselves behind bars.
