The elderly American lawyer accused of shooting dead two climate protesters in Panama was earlier arrested for illegal possession of an AK-47 and an M16, as chilling new details emerged about this week’s deadly confrontation caught on camera.
Kenneth Darlington, 77, was seen on Tuesday casually approaching a group of protesters blocking the Pan-American Highway in the Chame sector, protesting a proposed mining contract for a Canadian company.
He was filmed waving his gun and began waving his finger while arguing with protesters, before finally shooting, according to the footage and police.
According to court testimony Wednesday, the confrontation began when Darlington saw protesters once again blocking roads, and allegedly turned to one of the people he was traveling with to say, “This ends today.”
After getting out of his vehicle, he asked to speak to the leader of the demonstration and said: “I don’t want to talk to women. I want to talk to men,” according to a judicial report by local media TVN.
Kenneth Darlington has been arrested after being caught on camera walking towards environmental protesters blocking a Panamanian highway on Tuesday and killing two of them. Bienvenido Velasco/EPA-EFE/Shutt Darlington, 77, was previously arrested for illegal possession of weapons, including an AK-47 and an M16. Bienvenido Velasco/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock Images posted online showed Darlington approaching to the climate protesters, who were blocking a highway in Panama. Bienvenido Velasco/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock The video shows one of the protesters asking if he was going to “kill someone,” to which Darlington asked: “Do you want to be the first?” Welcome Velasco/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Then, some men at the scene approached him and tried to calm him down, when the argument began, captured by cameras.
In the footage, one of the protesters can be heard saying: “Why don’t you shoot?” while others shouted: “Are you going to kill someone?”
“Do you want to be the first?” Darlington was heard responding, before suddenly opening fire, according to footage and court testimony.
The first victim, seen in the images carrying a flag and wearing a black T-shirt and a blue hat, immediately fell to the ground.
As another man dressed in red backed away, Darlington could be seen opening fire again, hitting another man in a black T-shirt, who fell after first grabbing his shoulder and wincing in pain.
Other images showed people standing around dead bodies on the road.
The National Police have been instructed to delete the publication of Chame’s murderer, Kennet Darlintong.
Is there that much power behind this guy? What or who are you afraid of? pic.twitter.com/F8kmtvtssH
— Davis Álvarez 🇵🇦 (@davisclick) November 7, 2023
Abdiel Díaz died at the scene, while Iván Rodríguez was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
When Darlington returned to his car, another passenger asked him, “Are you aware of what happened?”
People gather around fallen protesters after video showed Darlington shooting them. Bienvenido Velasco/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock One of the shot protesters died at the scene while the second was pronounced dead at a local hospital. Welcome Velasco/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
“Yes, I killed one and shot another,” he responded, according to what the Panamanian court was told.
“Come on,” he allegedly ordered a woman he was with, believed to be his girlfriend.
But she responded, “We’re not leaving,” and instead called National Police officers, who stopped the car and confiscated Darlington’s gun, TVN reported.
The American lawyer was later seen handcuffed and led to a patrol car.
Darlington was previously detained in 2005 after local authorities found weapons, including the AK-47 and an M16, in his Panama City apartment, according to the Daily Mail.
He claimed in court that the guns were simply part of a collection and was acquitted of unlawful possession of a firearm, according to the report.
Darlington was seen waving the gun.Bienvenido Velasco/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
The lawyer with dual US-Panamanian citizenship faces charges of murder and illegal possession of a firearm, local media TVN reports.
But he could again avoid jail time and be sentenced to house arrest because of his age, local reports suggest.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn