This morning a group of prisoners - who were being escorted from court to the Belize Central Prison- were pepper sprayed in the prison van. The mother of one the men, Allison Broaster, came to our studios after the incident to complain about a cell block officer who pepper sprayed her son and two other prisoners for no reason. She told us that all she was trying to do was give the officer money to give her son, but apparently, the officer wouldn't have that - there was some resistance and that is when the men were sprayed and taken away in the prison van. Here is what she had to say.
Allison Broaster
"We were out there when they bring down the guys from prison. They are not problem guys. They were asking to get some money from me and the officer pulled out the pepper spray and he started spraying them."
Courtney Weatherburne
"How are these boys related to you?"
Allison Broaster
"Ernest Thurton is my son and Jasper is a close friend and "Jungle" is also a friend too. We were asking for them to get $10 and the officer says that my son always give problems and he just start to pepper spray them for no apparent reason in their eyes. They took them back at the prison with no water to wash their faces. If my child becomes blind now, what will happen about that?"
Her son is 22 year old Ernest Thurton - son of Ernest "Dangalang" Thruton Sr. who was killed in April of last year.
As we understand it - even the police driver was sprayed in the rash act - and he had to take the afternoon off.
Court observers tell us that after the men were sprayed the van was reportedly closed up to heighten the punishment.
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