On Thursday, Human rights activist Catherine Sealys experienced a terrifying ordeal when she became a victim of a carjacking.
According to Sealys, the incident occurred around 6:45 a.m. as she returned home from a gym in Castries.
It was not until she got to Chase Gardens that a man in a yellow hoodie, who had hidden in the back of her vehicle, suddenly attacked her, choking her from behind while she was driving.
“Out of the blue, there was someone in my car. I didn’t know the person, I didn’t see the person,” Sealys recounted.
The Raise Your Voice Saint Lucia president says she tried to reason with the assailant, telling him he could have the car but let her have her gym bag, to which the bandit disagreed.
Sealys told St. Lucia Times her gym bag contained her phone, wireless headphones, gloves, a belt, her pink hoodie, and $20 cash.
“He came from behind and wanted the car, so I decided the person could have the car. I got out and let him take it, because cars you can buy, but you can’t buy life.”
After relinquishing the car, Sealys said she was unsure of what happened next.
Reflecting on the experience, she noted that while she had anticipated a potential threat due to her line of work, she had not expected it to come in that form.
Sealys’ Raise Your Voice Saint Lucia is a nonprofit organisation dedicated to supporting women and children who are victims of gender-based violence and lack access to justice.
“I work in an area where one day I expect something to happen, but I thought it would be from an angry husband or boyfriend. But I did not expect that a young boy would out of the blue decide that I would be a target, because he wanted to have a car,” she stated.
Following the carjacking, Acting Police Commissioner Verne Garde visited Sealys.
In a St. Lucia Times exclusive, Garde explained the purpose of his visit: “I do intend during my course of operation to visit some of the victims of crime, this is just one of these traditional visits. I will do so to at least, sensitise myself to the eventualities and see how things unfold in regards to these individuals, and of course, express my empathy.”
The commissioner sent a stern warning to individuals who continue to break the law. “The Royal Saint Lucia Police Force will do all in its power to manage the crime situation in this regard.”
