KINGSTON, Jamaica— Mercia Frazer, mother of Mario Deane who was beaten to death while in police custody, says getting financial assistance for the burial of her son has proven to be a hard task.

Frazer told OBSERVER ONLINE Thursday that the family has raised very little funds to assist with her son’s funeral arrangements although the People’s National Party (PNP) caretaker for North West St James, Henry McCurdy, has offered assistance, which she refused.

“We have not raised much to bury Mario, as it stands now it’s not a lot.  By Saturday we might be able to tell if we have enough, but right now we just don’t know,” a despondent Frazer said Thursday morning.

Frazer said that she rejected McCurdy’s offer because she does not “feel good about how the Government is handling the situation”.

“At this point we are not accepting help from [the Government] because I really don’t understand what they are doing,” a distressed Frazer said.

“I sat with my family and we decided we are not going to accept any assistance at this point, maybe further down but not at this point,” she said.

“We put it to our lawyer and he agreed with our decision,” Frazer told OBSERVER ONLINE.

“…we have to leave space for that (assistance from the Government) because we just don’t know what will happen in the future,” she added.

However in spite of the difficulties Deane’s mother said she believes Jamaicans will rally in support of the family to bury him.

“I believe that Jamaican people want better for the country so they will stand with us and help us to deal with what we have to deal with,” she said.

“My son has to be buried and I don’t want it to remain too long, that is why we are asking for help because the expense is really heavy,” added Frazer.

Deane was arrested on August 3 for the possession of a marijuana cigarette and was beaten, allegedly by inmates, while in the lock up at the Barnett Street Police station in Montego Bay. He died at hospital on August 6.

Two civilians, Adrian Morgan, 25, and Marvin Orr, 35, have been charged with his murder, while six police officers — who were on duty at the Barnett Street Police Station at the time of the alleged beating — have been suspended amidst public outrage.

The matter is being investigated by the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM).