St Thomas woman explains why she housed Davian Bryan

When Sandra was asked by her friend to allow her brother, Davian Bryan, to stay "even inna the toilet", she recognised that he was in dire straits.

The woman, Bryan said, was her very good friend and had turned to her for help. Her brother, Davian, had just been arraigned in Portland on charges of rape and illegal possession of firearm. A court had granted him bail in July 2020, but leaving the parish was a condition of him being released from behind bars.

Sandra, 49, said she was aware of the gun charge but she did not know that Bryan was also accused of rape.

"She ask if mi could rent him somewhere, but I told her that I didn't have the space," Sandra said.

Having been released on bail, Bryan moved to Sandra's house in Bath, St Thomas. Sandra said that she thought that her role would be to ensure that he finds somewhere to stay, but after he reported to a police station in the parish, Davian was informed that he had to stay at her house as it was the listed address on the bail documents.

"Him sister say if a even inna the toilet she a beg mi keep him, so I gave him my room and shared room with my daughter," Sandra said, who also had a six-year-old grandchild living with her.

"Him deh here alright and everybody and him get along, including the neighbours."

However, all that changed on October 14, 2021 when he allegedly attempted to assault a woman who was bathing in the Plantain Garden River. Shortly after that incident, he is alleged to have grabbed nine-year-old Phyllis Prussia before disappearing into the bushes with her. She was found two days later. However, as residents celebrated the fact that she had been found, Davian allegedly returned to the community and abducted 13-year old Winshae Barrett. When residents found her on October 18, she was very weak.

Sandra, who has lived in Bath since she was 10 years old, said the ordeal caused her to flee the community as residents blamed her for knowingly harbouring an alleged rapist.

The events of last October, she said, remain fresh in her mind as her decision to help a friend nearly resulted in the loss of her house, her life, and has cost her some friends.

Sandra said that Bryan was acting strange the evening that he allegedly abducted Prussia. She said that her house guest told her that he was going to the river to catch fish to prepare for dinner.

"Him catch the fish and leave the yard and I was told that he was at a bar. I went out there and asked him why he was out a road a behave like an idiot and that he should go around to cook. Mi say mi nuh like big man who gwan like dem a (expletive), and him say him a go round go cook," Sandra recalled.

She said that Bryan then borrowed a knife and told her he was going to the river to scale the fish. She said after he left, a terrified woman came running into her yard claiming that Bryan attempted to assault her.

"She say she just finish bathe and a come up and the guy start run her down and she run and di barb wire cut her. Mi tell myself say Davian couldn't come back here, and mi and mi daughter sit down. Afterwards, somebody come tell we seh the youth who round here [and] a report [at the police station], take weh a child.

"Mi seh Jeesas Crise, a wah kinda problem this mi put meself inna. Mi daughter say she a guh help search and she leave."

"When everything happened it dawn on mi say a coulda mi six-year-old granddaughter him grab too," she said.

Sandra said soon after that she began receiving death threats, and out of fear she grabbed her family and hastily left the community. Hours later, her house was set on fire. Luckily for her, only the doors and windows were damaged.

"I almost lost my house because I was trying to help. I never returned to my house until the new year started," Sandra said.

She told THE WEEKEND STAR that she was overjoyed when she learnt of Bryan's capture on Wednesday night.

"Mi couldnt sleep last night the way mi glad," she said with tears welled up in her eyes. "Mi glad, enuh, because mi did fraid."