An elderly man died at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital some twenty-two hours after reportedly being severely beaten by his own son.
The victim, a retired senior citizen, Clifton Grant, 80, of #5 Oleander Street in the St.Martin area, was reportedly beaten by his son, 26, on Friday, May 14, at around 2:00 p.m.
Initial investigations reveal that at the time of the incident, the elderly man was seated in a sofa inside the living room when he was suddenly attacked.
Reportedly, while the victim was being punched and kicked, a 12-year-old girl witnessed the attack. The girl is the granddaughter of the elderly man and niece of the assailant.
In shock, the minor then rushed through the door to the neighbor’s home and pleaded for help. The neighbor, in turn, called the police.
An ambulance later transported the 80-year-old, who remained critical at the KHMH.
On May 15, at around 12:30 p.m., while undergoing treatment, he succumbed to his injuries.
This morning, a reliable source told us that the assailant was known to have been mentally challenged, and for that reason, had stopped working as a messenger at Michael Peyrefitte’s law firm.
The source also told us that the altercation was triggered when the son asked his father for some money to buy cigarettes, and that when the father refused, the son lost control.
Another reliable source who has known the victim for several years told us that in part, he blames the authorities for having released him from prison.
“The fellow is cool, but I think the police have a lot to do with this because they know he is mentally challenged. He has done this before. He beats his sister and he had already been reported. So I don’t understand why they have a man with that type of problem living out here.”
We did some research, and discovered that indeed, he had been charged for wounding his sister, Shelmadine Sanchez.
In 2008, the accused appeared before Magistrate Roberto Ordonez after he pleaded guilty to wounding and was sentenced to two years in prison.
In court, Sanchez had testified that the accused had hit her on many occasions in front of her children. The beatings had caused her lips to bleed and swell.
Additionally, she claimed that in one of the instances, he had put a knife to her throat.
Not surprisingly, the incident had taken place in the same pink house on Oleander Street.
Late this evening we manage to speak to Sanchez.
“I can’t say if my brother is mentally challenged…people are saying that, but I don’t know if it is true. That is just what they say. Nothing was wrong with my father, just that he suffered from asthma. I don’t hold any malice against him; God will know how to deal with him.”, she said.
Clifton Grant’s body now awaits a postmortem at the KHMH
The accused remains detained, pending charges.