A United States-based Pathologist Dr. Rockefeller F. Cooper has assured families of the Odell Sherman, students community and the public that he going to leave no stone unturned; as the student community has also threatened to arrest Rev. Emmanuel Giddings.
In a brief remark, Liberia National Students Union (LINSU) told Dr. Rockefeller F. Cooper, a pathologist, that their protest action at the main entrance of the Liberia National Police headquarters is in demand of justice for the death of the late student Odell Sherman.
According to the pathologist, Liberia has its own standard of dealing with things and he does not support violence against women because he has his families and friends residing in Liberia.
Dr. Rockefeller Cooper disclosed that his scope of work as a forensic pathologist and medical doctor usually start from the crime and death scene.
The Liberian based in the U.S. explained that he got in Liberia on Sunday 30th of June 2019 and has since completed the late Yatta Kamara’s investigation, a lady that was found lifeless at the Palm Spring Hotel and his aim in the investigation of the death of the late Odell Sherman is for justice to prevail.
Dr. Cooper narrated at the police headquarters to the protesting students and some heads of the Liberia National Police that his investigation on the death of Odell has not gone 50 percent; adding that scientific forensic investigation will help derive at the suspect and also a story that does make sense which will be based on fact.
Dr. Cooper who also requested an urgent closed-door meeting with Deputy Inspector at the LNP for crime services Prince Mulbah, Sadatu Reeves and the parents of Odell Sherman to brief on how far he has gone and the way forward, but at the same time urged the students to remain calm.
During the protest, LINSU’s Vice President for International Affairs, Faith Wutuh who earlier on refused to adhere to the called by the police to a dialogue later agreed after vigorous interventions went with police officers and Odell parents and had a long discussion aimed at finding a lasting solution to the incident.
Ms. Wutuh expressing her views during the dialogue with top Police Officers said on the 21st of May this year a female student died at the ELWA hospital at the result of alleged raped, but alleged that the murder in the death of the late Student Odell Sherman case has been Rev. Emmanuel Giddings and police has deliberately refused to arrest him since the girl died.
LINSU Vice President for International Affairs also narrated since the death of Odell Sherman, call logs found on her phone has never been published by the police and Rev. Giddings has not been arrested; adding that if Rev. Solomon Joah Sr. and his son Solomon Joah, Jr. who were accused of beating a student at his school can be arrested and sent to jail, what’s about Rev. Giddings?
“Is it that he is above the laws of Liberia or has he a connection in the government that is preventing his arrest,” she wondered.
The students who also went on the round page of standing in the middle of road preventing vehicles from plying that route for hours narrated that the place where the late Odell Sherman’s lifeless body was found has been allegedly destroyed Rev. Giddings.
The group said the police is yet to speak on the matter surrounding the death of the student and has been silent on the matter but wonder why the police are yet to arrest him (Rev. Giddings). They noted that as students, they are going to definitely arrest him if the police refuse to do so and they will not listen to anyone until Justice is served something she said has provoked their action of taking the street.
For her part, the Deputy Director for Administration at the LNP Sadiatu Reeves told the students during a meeting with them that she thinks the action by the students is not in the right decision.
Madam Reeves said being a female and also having a girl child, she is not taking the death of Odell Sherman lightly, adding that police investigation is different from how the public thinks and justice will definitely be served when the forensic investigation is concluded and scientific facts are proven.
Explaining her frustration, the mother of Odell Sherman, Cynthia Sherman said the manner in which her daughter was raped and murder, has been ignored by the Liberia National Police and the Ministry of Justice.
The 21-year-old victim mother said, Rev. Emmanuel Giddings who said he does not know Odell Sherman, his daughter has revealed that the late Odell Sherman was a scholarship student of Rev. Giddings scholarship program and wondered how can Rev. Giddings says he does not know her (Odell)?
Madam Sherman added that facts and circumstances surrounding the death of her daughter have proven that her daughter has been visiting the house Rev. Giddings, ‘perhaps she might have been loving to him because on day they planned to go out, after their WASSCE, she went in the fence of Rev. Giddings and only met the security and knocked at the gate and she was allowed in,” she narrated.
According to the late Odell mother, when her daughter went to Rev. Giddings’ house, the same route her daughter took was the same route that Rev. Giddings took but only to note that her daughter was discovered dead lying in a pool of blood.
When Rev. Giddings was confronted on the matter earlier on, he denied having any link with the girl or having sexual intercourse with her or had any link to her death.
But the biggest question is what happens at the Rev. Giddings’ house where the late Odell Sherman lifeless body was found night after they when outing.
She further stated that when her daughter was discovered almost dead in Rev. Giddings house, the SIM card and battery of her phone were removed but was later taken to ELWA hospital where she was later pronounced dead by health authorities.
Mother of the late Odell Sherman expressed that the second crime committed by Rev. Giddings was changing her daughter name at the hospital after she passed away she and family were told by Giddings to take the matter home and will take the responsibility of the burial when the matter has been investigated.
Madam Sherman Further blamed the ELWA hospital administration for giving three different contradicting medical report which tells that something wrong somewhere and also noted that the hospital authorities were involved in medical malpractice but the main one that really hurts is that the report given earlier by the police spokesman was that Rev. Giddings has no link to the death of her because no sufficient evidence were found to arrest Rev. Giddings.
She is, therefore, calling on police authorities to immediately arrest Rev. Giddings and let justice be served to her daughter even though she has gone.
