And in another village political dispute, since Monday, we've been reporting on the political fall-out of an exchange of words between Police Constable Alicia Trapp and PUP's Julius Espat. The two had a tough conversation at last Sunday's Village Council Elections in Teakettle Village.
Depending on which of the two you ask, the other party was the verbal aggressor. Shortly after the exchange, however, PC Trapp took the disagreement to another level when she went to make a formal police report alleging that the PUP parliamentarian abused her. According to her attorney, Trapp has made a complaint alleging that Espat "verbally and physically attacked" her. She claims Espat allegedly berated her verbally and pointed out that she was violating the rules of the police department by showing allegiance to the UDP village council slate.
Espat has categorically denied that, insisting that the female Constable lied on him. He has gone as far as to instruct his lawyer to demand that both Trapp and her attorney retract their defamatory statements against him.
This morning, a photograph was brought to the attention of our newsroom, and in the picture - which is a tiny snapshot and not a complete visual account - it appears that PC Trapp is the one doing the aggressing. She is seen pointing at Espat, who is looking in a different direction as if attempting to ignore her.
This evening, we spoke via telephone with Espat, who said that the picture captures the moment PC Trapp came across to confront his companion for snapping a photo of her in her red shirt. Here's how he insisted that there would be no video or image that would found show him "verbally or physically" attacking the lady cop:
Julius Espat - Minister of Infrastructure Development & Housing
"Daniel, you're aware that [at] every election, everything gets heated. It is normal. It is our role. It is the Opposition's role to make sure that everything is done as fairly as possible. And to do that, you get into some verbal confrontations on the ground. Whoever understands politics, the media, the police, and the politicians, know that this happens. As I have said, when this incident happened, we were on our side of the tent, and a picture was taken of the lady. She got annoyed that a picture was taken, and she came across and told us that we can't take a picture of her because she is wearing red. And I told her that it's not because you're wearing red. It is because you're a police officer, and you're doing political campaigning. That's what you're seeing there, that You can't tell me I can't wear red,' that kinda thing. So, she was the aggressor. I've been saying it from the beginning, but from my point of view, that is what you do out there. And so, the only thing I told her [is] she doesn't have a right to do that as a police officer. Apart from that, it's the game we're in. But, when you try to utilize that and make it into something that it's not. Then, I am forced to defend myself. And, you know me, I will do whatever it takes. The allegation was that I 'physically abused' [her]. There is absolutely no image, no video, not even a satellite image, or a drone image that will ever exist for that to be true."
