Prime Minister: Thorough investigation into Younge’s death; police reforms will be implemented

The government is working closely with security partners to ensure that the inquiry into Adrianna Young death is properly handled and that necessary reforms within the Guyana Police Force are implemented, according to Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips.

The Prime Minister made the statement while speaking on the “Rest Talk Show” on Wednesday.

As part of these efforts, new protocols were introduced on April 29 and officially gazetted. These updated standard operating procedures guide how missing persons reports are to be managed by all relevant agencies and establish a revised approach to the urgency given to such reports.

“We’ve already made some changes. On the books, we had this standing operating procedure where 24 hours would have had to pass before you take any major action on receiving a missing person report… As it is now, we have changed that. Immediately on receipt of a missing person report, the police are now obligated to take action… with all the other agencies that will be able to assist — whether it’s rescuing the person or carrying out a recovery operation,” the Prime Minister stated.

Since their implementation, the new emergency protocols have already produced positive results, with three missing persons cases successfully resolved.

The Prime Minister assured that the reform of the Police Force and any other relevant agencies will continue, emphasising that the new protocols represent the first step in that direction.