Woolmer murder: Police deny CCTV footage poor

Jamaican police denied reports that their investigation into Pakistani team coach Bob Woolmer's murder was being hampered by poor CCTV footage being looked into in nabbing the culprit.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Mark Shields, who is heading the investigation, said that the claims that the recording equipment was "archaic" and the footage was not clear, thus making it difficult for sleuths to identify the person(s), was baseless and false.

"There could be nothing farther from the truth, they are telling you a load of crap," Shields was quoted as saying by the Jamaica Observer Monday.

Woolmer was killed inside his room on the 12th floor of the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel March 18, a day after Pakistan crashed out of the ongoing World Cup with a shocking defeat by Ireland.

Shields, however, said that the cameras only recorded activity in the corridors and the footage does not show who went into or came out of the rooms, including that of Woolmer.

The CCTV footage could be crucial information for the police even as questions have been raised as to why they have taken over a week without identifying the murderer(s).

But Shields seemed undisturbed by public impatience.

"In a murder investigation you have to be very sure, you can't give a timeline. One thing I can tell you, we will get to the bottom of this," he said.

Police were still reviewing the tapes Sunday and room No. 374, where Woolmer died, has not yet been handed over to the hotel authorities.

The police have also collected DNA samples and fingerprints of all members of the Pakistan team and other persons who came into contact with Woolmer.

In the meantime, the local coroner's court will soon receive a report from the police that also includes findings of the pathologist and all the statements taken from the witnesses.

This is the first step towards an inquest, which was ordered into the Pakistan coach's death. The coroner's inquest will be held at the earliest so that Woolmer's body can be sent to his bereaved family in Cape Town in South Africa.

But the coroner's court has been plagued with a backlog of cases, and human rights activists have criticised the slow pace at which cases are dealt with.

Woolmer was killed after Pakistan, champions in 1992, shockingly crashed out of the World Cup after losing to hosts West Indies and then to minnows Ireland.

(IANS)

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