October 27. 2005
Coast Guard Deployed
`Operation Stiletto’ widens
`They (Police and Army) are working as one and that can only redound to the benefit of all Guyanese as it will enhance our security operations’
Army Chief-of-Staff Brigadier Edward Collins
TROOPS CHECK: Army Chief-of-Staff Brigadier Edward Collins, second from right, and Col. L.V. Ross, right, with soldiers and Coast Guard troops in the East Demerara conservancy zone yesterday. (Photos, courtesy Guyana Defence Force)
COAST guard troops have been deployed into the East Demerara Conservancy and in the central navigational canals around the troubled East Coast village of Buxton as `Operation Stiletto’ expands and the Joint Services Coordinating Council is urging communities to watch out for strange persons slipping into their areas.
Army Chief-of-Staff Brigadier Edward Collins visited the Army and Police troops, some 400 altogether, on the ground yesterday as they continue their hunt for criminals and illegal arms and ammunition primarily in Buxton/Friendship. Meanwhile, the cooperation of citizens in security exercises is being called for as another operation will be launched tomorrow around the Georgetown Prisons and its environs.
This exercise will include the Prison and Fire services, Assistant Police Superintendent John Sauers said, speaking on behalf of the Joint Services Coordinating Council. He said mobile patrols continue between Melanie and Annandale, and static patrols in Buxton, where `Operation Stiletto’ was launched Monday before dawn.
Ranks, he said, are still being deployed in the backlands, the conservancy and the central navigational canals. Collins visited south Buxton, the Railway Embankment, Cove and John and other areas to meet constables and soldiers to see how they are doing on the ground. He said he was “most impressed” with the synergy between the police and soldiers at the lower level.
“They are working together. They are working as one and that can only redound to the benefit of all Guyanese as it will enhance our security operations. It’s what we call an ‘operational multiplier’”, Collins told the Guyana Chronicle after his extended tour on the ground. Reporting on his visit to Buxton, Collins said the rapport of his troops with residents was “good, no complaints”. He said residents waved and warmly greeted his party and soldiers as they moved around.
Sauers, in an operation update, added said that the exercise continues to be conducted with the cooperation of residents of Buxton, pointing out that for yesterday there were no incidents of hostile behaviour. However, he said residents who see strange persons in their communities should immediately contact the Joint Operational Centre on telephone numbers 225-4702, 227-4650 and 223-6342.
Officials believe members of the criminal gangs who had made Buxton their safe haven for more than two years are on the run and may be seeking cover in other communities. Meanwhile, of the 112 persons who were detained for questioning on Monday, 82 have since been released, Sauers said.
The Joint Services said while “troops were making a concerted effort to ferret out criminals, other elements of the Joint Services were engaged in a community project (which) encompassed the repairs to maliciously damaged bridges and roads in Buxton.”
Sauers said consideration is being given to asphalting sections of roads and bridges which have been repaired in Buxton. Joint Services engineers repaired two bridges on the railway embankment and mended six breaches on the embankment, Friendship Middle Walk, Company Road and Church of God Road.
The villagers and troops yesterday continued to have friendly exchanges around Buxton and as witnessed by this newspaper Tuesday, the community was in a state of calm, far from the heightened tensions in previous security operations in the village. Buxton had become the epicentre of a crime wave across the coast for more than three years after five armed and dangerous criminals fled the Georgetown prisons on February 23rd, 2002 in a deadly and meticulously planned escape. (Guyana Cronicle)
October 26. 2005
Buxton lockdown Tightens
AWAITING ORDERS: troops await orders at the Friendship camp of `Operation Stiletto’ yesterday.
The Joint Services launched `Operation Stiletto’ before dawn on Monday and yesterday intensified the search for criminal elements in Buxton. In a statement last night, the Joint Services said that during the past 24 hours, the troops who are a part of the operation, conducted searches in north Buxton.
“The searches in the north were based on intelligence and were not limited to any specific area. As the intelligence picture continues to develop, areas that may have been previously excluded initially will be searched”, the Joint Services said. Cordon and searches were yesterday extended to the bordering villages of Coldingen and Strathspey.
“While troops were making a concerted effort to ferret out criminals, other elements of the Joint Services were engaged in a community project (which) encompassed the repairs to maliciously damaged bridges and roads in Buxton”, the statement said.
Joint Services engineers repaired two bridges on the railway embankment and mended six breaches on the embankment, Friendship Middle Walk, Company Road and Church of God Road. “This completed project has since allowed for vehicular traffic to traverse the carriageway smoothly”, the joint statement said.
As the main opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) and the Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) came out with separate statements against the exercise, the Joint Services command said “troops in the operation area were heartened by the overwhelming support received from members of the community during the early phases of Operation Stiletto.”
Villagers and troops were yesterday seen in friendly exchanges around Buxton and there were no signs of the teeming tensions that prevailed in previous police operations against armed gangs in the troubled village that had become the epicentre of a crime wave across the coast for more than three years.
More houses were yesterday searched in Buxton and in neighbouring communities rounding off the second day of `Operation Stiletto’ as the troops dug in for a sustained exercise, mounting more sweep patrols in the notorious and dangerous Buxton backlands.
Joint Commander of the operation, Deputy Commissioner of Police Edward Wills, said there were no new arrests in the village where 112 persons were detained for questioning when the operation began Monday morning. In addition, Mr. Wills who spoke to this newspaper in the presence of his counterpart from the Army, Colonel Linden Ross, said no weapons or ammunition were unearthed from the searches yesterday, as was the case Monday.
He said the houses searched in the communities outside Buxton were abandoned buildings which were thought to have been used by criminals as hideouts, and houses with occupants who were believed to have been harbouring criminals.
STATIC PRESENCE
STAGING AREA: soldiers and Police stand by at their staging area aback Lusignan for deployment into the Buxton backlands yesterday.
The Police and Army yesterday were maintaining a static presence in South Buxton while regular patrols were being conducted on the northern side and in the backlands. In addition, Wills said some of the persons who were detained Monday have been released.
Some 400 soldiers and Policemen are based at the Friendship Community Centre ground, where Wills and Ross were on hand when this newspaper visited at midday yesterday. Meanwhile, Colonel Ross reported that repairs on ditches on roads in Buxton, which trapped unsuspecting innocent persons who were beaten and robbed, were completed yesterday.
Major Brian Bristol, in charge of the ground troops, carried this newspaper around Buxton to show the reconstruction work done. Steel plates on two bridges on the embankment were replaced, he pointed out, and the ditches in the entire community were sealed back. As was the case on Monday, the operation was carried out successfully and the Joint Service Coordinating Council thanked residents of Buxton for their cooperation.
The council is calling on persons with information which may lead to the arrest of criminals in the area, to contact the Joint Operational Centre on telephone numbers 225-4702, 227-4650 and 223-6342.
The Joint Service Coordinating Council launched `Operation Stiletto’ at 05:00 h Monday and on that day 344 houses were searched and 112 persons arrested, among them three men wanted for several offences.
Arrested were Albert Andrews/Albert Evans called `Donie’, wanted for conspiracy to commit murder, abduction and unlawful restraint for ransom, Eon Anderson called `Mad Man’, wanted for at least three murders, and Dexter Nero, who was wanted for four counts of robbery under arms and is a suspect in several other offences committed in the Buxton area. Armed and dangerous criminals turned the village into a safe haven after five of them broke out of the Georgetown prison in a meticulously planned and deadly escape in February 2002. (Guyana Cronicle)
Felix knocks `Operation Stiletto’ critics
says no part of Guyana should be no-go for Police
Police Commissioner Winston FelixPOLICE Commissioner Winston Felix yesterday reacted sharply to critics of the joint sweeping Army-Police operation mounted Monday to round up dangerous criminals and illegal guns and ammunition in the troubled Buxton village on the East Coast Demerara.
Responding to charges that the Police Force is targeting Buxton, he said, “I say to them that we can only go where the crimes are being committed, and for the Guyana Police Force, as the principal law enforcement agency, we must have access to every village, and every street and no part of Guyana should be a no-go area.”
“I will not encourage that”, he told the Government Information Agency (GINA).
The main opposition People’s National Congress Reform and the Guyana Human Rights Association yesterday separately came out against the Joint Services exercise. “We are going after the targets we feel are the ones justified to be targeted and that’s how we operate and we do not wish to be put in any position where we go about targeting people because of who they are or where they live,” the Commissioner stressed.
“If in an Amerindian community…we have people we want, we go after them; if there are persons in the East Indian community we go after them, and that’s the way law enforcement should work.” “When we raided Kaneville, Agricola, Albouystown, Sophia, (were) we targeting these areas where we have reports of robberies and other forms of criminal activities? So what’s wrong with Buxton?” Felix queried.
“We wanted to arrest some other persons. We do have some people but there are some other persons we needed and we did not get those; not yet. I don’t know what it would look like at the end of the day.” He said it is not an easy task for the Police Force, and the problem with the office of the Commissioner is either “we brace the rock or the hard place”.
“I have no problem with that. Earlier this year we were doing frequent raids in Buxton. It was then said that we are doing all sorts of things which are incorrect and we were using the men as human shields, those we arrested.”
“There was some relaxation on those raids while we reviewed our operations and in the interim when we were not going into Buxton. Now that we have resumed, I can recall policemen being shot and killed or seriously injured simply because they drove through Buxton. We have had about two murders in there, and most recently the robberies on Sunday night on the railway embankment.”
He said the operation has so far been a success. “I don’t want to make an evaluation before the completion of the exercise but I will say that so far it has been a success.” “We did set ourselves certain targets, some of which were achieved. Those which we did not achieve should not make the operation unsuccessful. Though we would have desired to have more, we are so far satisfied at what we have attained and we say that better days are coming”, he said.
He said that of the 140-odd persons arrested, 31 were still in custody, and investigations are being carried out. “We are conducting investigations into their possible involvement in certain crimes committed previously, such as reports of armed robberies which they may have been involved in and that is why we have kept this lot and we have released those whom we had nothing against.”
He said the operation will continue until the targets are achieved and “there is nothing left there for us and then we’ll make a decision at that time”. (Guyana Cronicle)
October 25. 2005
Army, Police in Buxton lockdown
OPERATION STILETTO: troops fanning out in Buxton yesterday.
`Operation Stiletto’ kicked off at about 05:00 h and by last night, Army and Police officials reported that three dangerous wanted men were among more than 100 persons pulled in after a sweep that had combed more than 340 houses.
No incidents were reported in the lockdown that covered Buxton and neighbouring Friendship and - unlike previous incursions in the notorious criminal safe haven that Buxton has been turned into - the troops did not come under hostile fire.
ARRESTED: Wanted man Eon AndersonPolicemen and at least one soldier have been shot dead when patrols came under heavy gunfire in previous raids and official sources were last night baffled at the seeming disappearance of the huge arms and ammunition caches they knew were secreted in Buxton.
Armed and dangerous criminals turned the village into a safe haven after five of them broke out of the Georgetown prison in a meticulously planned and deadly escape in February 2002 and it has been the epicentre of a crime wave that has gripped the coast since then.
The Police and Army are maintaining a heavy presence in Buxton/Friendship in the joint operation being run from a command centre at Police headquarters in Georgetown. The soldiers and policemen are now camped in Friendship, which adjoins Buxton, and sources said the operation will continue for several days.
Among the wanted men arrested were Albert Andrews called “Donie”, who a Police source said was fingered in the latest mysterious murders tied to Buxton in which two men, believed to be Policeman Sundat Ramoutar and fishmonger Suresh Persaud, were found burnt beyond recognition in a car trunk last Wednesday. An arrest warrant was issued for Andrews on October 6, 2005 on a charge of conspiring to commit murder.
Up to press time, 112 persons had been arrested and taken to Georgetown for questioning. The other wanted men among them were Eon Anderson called “Madman” who was wanted on a charge of attempted murder, and Dexter Nero who was wanted for four counts of robbery under arms. 
Relatives of those who were arrested in Operation Stiletto, and others, outside the Police base in Georgetown where the detainees were being questioned.
For the operation, joint Army/Police roadblocks were set up from Annandale to the west and Strathspey to the east.
There were also air and sea aspects of the operation, with flyover searches to comb the dreaded Buxton backlands which were locked down and water surveys in the conservancy and central navigation canals, officials said.
Commander in charge of the ground troops, Major Brian Bristol, reported that part of the operation is to fix damaged bridges and repair ditches dug on roads during previous incidents in the village. The ditches were being used as traps where unsuspecting persons who got stuck in vehicles were pounced upon and if lucky escaped with their lives after being robbed and assaulted as was the case with a West Demerara family who landed in a newly-dug ditch Sunday evening.
Bristol, standing on steel plates just replaced on the Friendship railway embankment bridge, said residents did not resist their exercise. However, he said there were “emotional outbursts” when their “sons, fathers, spouses and so on,” were being arrested. Some of the relatives of those arrested made their way to the Police Sports Club in Eve Leary where they shouted against the Police/Army convoys taking in those detained for questioning and screening.
The Army was primarily involved in the reconstruction exercise and yesterday had repaired four ditches and today they are expected to fix the other ditches on the `cross’ streets in the two villages, namely Church of God and Company roads in Buxton and Brushe and Sideline dams in Friendship. (Guyana Cronicle)
French cops to help Guyana crime fight
FRENCH HELP: French Tourism Minister, Mr. Leon Bertrand (centre) and President Bharrat Jagdeo share a light moment at the Office of the President yesterday. (Cullen Bess-Nelson photo)
The team will also help boost the Guyana justice system, French Tourism Minister, Mr. Leon Bertrand told reporters after a hectic round of meetings, including talks with President Bharrat Jagdeo and Home Affairs Minister Gail Teixeira.
The first French Tourism Minister to visit Guyana since Independence, he is urging Guyana to set up a permanent consulate in French Guiana, expecting it will lead to faster resolution of several issues affecting both countries and foster bilateral cooperation. At the end of his one-day visit to Georgetown, Bertrand, through a translator, said he found out through discussions with Mr. Jagdeo, that Guyana and France share many common views.
He also met Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation, Mr. Clement Rohee and Mayor of Georgetown, Mr. Hamilton Green as well as some French citizens residing here. At a press conference at Herdmanston House in Peter Rose Street, Queenstown, Bertrand told local and French reporters, who came with him, that stemming from his talks with Ms. Teixeira, a team of police experts from his country would be sent here to help local police in their struggle against crime and to assist in reviving the justice system.
He also announced that the French Government would send another mission of experts, before year end, to build cooperation between Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. Bertrand could not say when the consulate would be established but explained that special focus will be on issues such as illegal immigration and the movement of transportation and criminals between French Guiana and Guyana.
Of equal importance, he pointed out, is to create mechanisms to help each other’s tourism industry as well as the environment, health and education sectors. Acknowledging that the movement of people is getting intense because of globalisation, the minister pointed out that the expected consulate should have a broad mission, and be the basis for cooperation to effectively deal with certain issues.
“It is important for us to start dialogue and my visit here is the starting point. I am here to build bilateral cooperation between Guyana and France and to strengthen the relationship between French Guiana and Guyana…cooperation will allow us to deal with a number of issues,” he said.
French Guiana is a French protectorate. Guyana’s Minister of Tourism, Manzoor Nadir who was also at the press conference, concurred that the consulate would serve both countries beneficially.
Bertrand flew out of Guyana last evening. (By Renu Raghubir/Guyana Cronicle)
October 22. 2005
Guyanese footballer dies of cocaine ingestion
MARLON HENDRICKS
GUYANESE footballer Marlon Hendricks, who was found dead at Wotton, Christ Church, in Barbados,last Wednesday, a day after arriving on the island, had nine bags of cocaine in his stomach, according to a report in the Barbados Nation.
A post mortem carried out on the body of the 29-year-old Hendricks, who played football for Camptown Club in Guyana, revealed that he died from cardiac failure as a result of one of the bags bursting.
Hendricks arrived in Barbados last Tuesday and was staying at a guest-house at Kingsland, Christ Church. On Wednesday he reported that he was not feeling well and was taken to a private doctor. The doctor summoned an ambulance to take him to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
On arrival at the hospital, Hendricks fled before receiving medical attention. Hours later his body was found on the lawn of a house at Wotton. Police said on Saturday that Hendricks was accustomed to making trips to Barbados and this time he had gone there from St Lucia.
"We suspect he was an international drug mule", a police source stated. He said two tubes of cocaine were discovered in the refrigerator at the apartment where he was staying, as well as two bottles of a laxative, two cartons of milk, and an empty snack box.
The police source's opinion was that Hendricks may have eaten, and that made it difficult for him to excrete the bags of cocaine. It is understood that his sister arrived in Barbados on Thursday morning. (Guyana Cronicle)
October 20. 2005
Burnt bodies in trunk
POLICE yesterday found the charred remains of two unidentified persons in a car trunk after gunshots were heard in the troubled East Coast Demerara Buxton/Stratsphey villages on Tuesday night. The corpses were locked in the trunk of an ‘AT 192’ Toyota motor car shell on Stratsphey railway embankment.
Reports said, about 21:36 h on Tuesday, cops received a telephone call and proceeded to the area where the discovery was made at 22:00 h. The victims could not be recognised but it is believed they were first shot and bundled into the vehicle that was torched. Detectives are using the recorded chassis number of the car to try and ascertain its owner from records at the Licence Revenue Office.
Meanwhile, the cadavers are at Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) mortuary awaiting identification and what remains of the car is at Vigilance Police Station. The obvious murders are a grim reminder of the September 19 unsolved killing of Friendship, East Bank Demerara taxi driver, Rondell Whyte, whose bullet- riddled body was in a drain alongside Annandale railway embankment, on East Coast Demerara, as well. His burnt-out ‘Toyota Carina’ was on the Buxton railway embankment. (Guyana Cronicle/Michel Outridge)
Hemwattie Woati
Norman Mitchell, an ex-policeman, allegedly killed Hemwattie Paramsook also known as Hemwattie Woati and Sherda on June 29, 2003 at the Lewis Manor police outpost, Corentyne, Berbice.
Called to testify by State Prosecutor Nyasha Williams, Inspector Ludorick Scotland read Mitchell's statement which was admitted into evidence yesterday. According to the statement, Mitchell said he was involved in an intimate relationship with Sherda and that he visited her home or she visited him at the police outpost.
He said that the day before she died, Sherda accompanied him to the outpost where he assumed duties.
"She remained with me at the outpost throughout the night. Whist there she asked me to leave my reputed wife and to take her full and I said I cannot do that. She further said that she lost three opportunities to go to the United States of America because of the relationship between the two of us. She told me that she would kill me but I did not believe her," the statement said.
"When I look up in her direction she had the revolver pointed to the lower portion of my body and was about four feet away from me. I took both of my hands to Sherda and held on to the firearm with the intention of taking it away. Having a hold on it I pulled away and in the process heard a loud explosion and the firearm fell on the ground. I saw Sherda fall on the floor and start bleeding from her face.
"I ran over to one Monce house and told him what occurred and asked him for a phone call but he told me his phone was not working. I then went on the public road caught a bus which took me to the central police station where I made a report."
The state also called Sergeant 16673 Eon Jackson who is stationed at CID Headquarters ballistics section and has been attached to the firearm and ammunition examination section for over ten years.
The jury asked the witness whether there was a safety on the revolver to which he replied yes and the prosecutor under re-examination asked the witness to demonstrate to the court. He explained that the weapon had an internal safety which was activated when the trigger was pulled.
However, under further cross-examination the witness said he did not know the circumstances under which the weapon was used and only a gunsmith or a firearm examiner could tell about the revolver safety. The jury further questioned the witness on how long gun powder would remain in the barrel after a bullet was discharged and he replied that it depended on how the weapon was kept.
Also testifying yesterday for the prosecution was Suknanan Sahadeo who said he knew Mitchell, who worked close to his home at the toll gate. He also said he had known the deceased for about 20 years. On the day in question, he saw Mitchell running towards him and asked what had happened. He said Mitchell replied that Sherda was dead because she had heard "he tek back the next girl" and she picked up the gun, but he snatched it and it went off. Sahadeo said Mitchell then asked him for the telephone and he told him something and he went on the road and took a vehicle towards New Amsterdam.
Yeshwarie Woati, the sister of the dead woman, testified that her sister and the accused had lived at her home for about six months as husband and wife prior to the incident. She said her sister used to cook for the accused and he supported her sister's four children. The court had also heard earlier from the deceased's brother.
On Tuesday, when the trial started, three police officers - Police Constable 15123 Gilbert Ross, Constable 18683 Eon Hamilton and Detective Constable 15619 Gregory Chichester testified to receiving the report of a shooting incident, visiting the crime scene, securing evidence and conducting preliminary investigations. The case continues today. (Stabroek News/Keisha McCammon
October 19. 2005
USVI police test new strategy to curb domestic violence
ST CROIX, USVI: In an attempt to focus attention on domestic violence crimes in the US Virgin Islands, VIPD Commissioner Elton Lewis announced that the names and photos of persons arrested on domestic violence charges will be sent to the media.
Police Commissioner Elton Lewis said in a press release this week, domestic violence reports will be gathered daily and sent to the media. He said the information would contain the "names, location and photographs of all persons arrested for domestic violence regardless of position, employment, race, nationality, male or female."
"It is my desire… to assist in changing the notion that domestic violence is acceptable in the Virgin Islands," Lewis said. "We must do everything possible to change the mindset of our young men and women to get them to understand what they may have seen growing up in the home as it relates to violence was wrong."
VIPD brass hopes the new strategy will increase awareness in the community to the frequency and severity of the crimes. The department hopes releasing the names of the arrested persons will spur the community to intervene and break the cycle of family abuse.
The VIPD receives an average of 55,000 calls for service a year in the Virgin Islands. One-third of those are domestic violence incidences. Approximately 500 restraining orders, initiated by men and women, are recorded each year. Over the last 20 years in the territory, 37 people - two men, two babies and 33 women - have died from domestic violence.
Lewis said domestic violence contributes to the breakdown of the family structure. "The home is a place of love, nurturing, and instilling good moral values in children, not fighting ring," Lewis said. Lewis appealed to the community to help spread the message that violence is not the way to resolve differences. (Melody Rames-Wiggins/Caribbean Net News Correspondent)
October 18. 2005
Man sold woman's 28 chickens over short pay
A man who admitted stealing 28 chickens from a woman was yesterday sentenced to six months in prison by Magistrate Krisendat Persaud at the New Amsterdam Magistrate's Court. Parmanand Dhanraj pleaded guilty to the simple larceny charge. Between October 10 and 15 in New Amsterdam, Dhanraj stole 28 chickens valued $13,440, property of Pamela Thompson.
According to the police, Dhanraj was a regular visitor at Thompson's home and he would help to take care of the chickens. On October 10 Thompson left Dhanraj with the chickens but when she returned home on October 15 she discovered her chickens missing. She contacted Dhanraj who admitted stealing them and she called the police who arrested him.
October 14. 2005
SURINAME TO JOIN CCJ
Chandrikapersad Santokhi
The Government of Suriname is moving forward with the process to become a member of the Appellate Jurisdiction of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).
That countrys Minister of Justice and Police, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, told the one-day meeting of the CARICOM Legal Affairs Committee (LAC), that the process had started and Parliament would consider the legislation.
In this light we would reiterate our wish of becoming a member of the Appellate Jurisdiction of the CCJ and hopefully Surinamese repr e sentation in the CCJ can be a reality in the near future.
Santokhi also stressed Surinames commitment to regional security and called for more cooperation in this respect. All the sectors and the institutions within our region could be therefore l in ked with each other, not only for the improvement of good communication and coordination, but more for a mutual interdependence, which will lead to a common strategy of assisting and supporting member states where necessary, and harmonising conditions for a regional approach.
He believed this was increasingly necessary given the upcoming free movement of nations, globalisation, and the penetration of international and trans-national crime into the Caribbean. Because of these challenges, Santokhi cal led for a the region to look at issues relating to the threat of our community, human dignity and other types of criminality which will be affected by these developments, and to combat this, we must strongly suggest for more interdependence and inte gral approach in the CARICOM to prevent and uphold safety and security at national and regional level.
This level of cooperation was also necessary in developing joint strategies to protect the youth against the negative impact of these threats, he said. (The Barbados Advocate)
October 13. 2005
Felix briefs joint session of Cabinet, Defence Board
Winston Felix
Speaking at his post-Cabinet media briefing at the Office of the President yesterday, Luncheon said that the Commissioner of Police made statistical analyses of crime nationally, highlighting trends taking place with regards to major categories.
He said that the Commissioner was engaged by Cabi-net members on the recommendations to deal with topical issues arising from criminal activities and police responsiveness. Following the Cabinet meeting, the police announced rewards of $1M for information leading to the whereabouts of four missing sugar workers and $1M for information on the whereabouts of wanted man, Neil Bovell.
Luncheon said that the forum also addressed capacity constraints, resource allocation and discipline as it relates to the police. He said that the Commissioner went into detail about the resources available to the various departments of the force. Luncheon said that the force's commitment to law and order and protection was emphasised and the role of the public analysed.
Felix also laid out the concerns that the force has about the fear of human rights violations when policemen shoot suspects. This joint meeting of the Cabinet and the Defence Board comes in the wake of President Bharrat Jagdeo's censure of the Police over their "lethargic" approach to tackling serious crime and the long time it takes to plan for crime fighting.
In answering questions on the government's failure to effectively clear forested areas behind Buxton and contiguous villages after the first two sugar workers went missing, Luncheon said that the Police and Army, in conjunction with the Guyana Sugar Corporation had started such a campaign but this was ceased.
He said that the operation reached a stage where private property became involved and the issue of possible compensation came up regarding mowing down "fruit trees and not bush." Since then two more sugar workers disappeared while on duty in the backlands and an operation launched soon after again proved fruitless. (Stabroek News)
Three Brazilians ordered deported for overstaying
Gilson Vieira De Guiar, Louridan Nascimento and Erio Valda Da Silva were charged separately with being a prohibited immigrant.
On July 23 at Lethem, De Guiar being granted a permit to stay in Guyana for three weeks failed to leave Guyana on or before the expiration of that time. Nascimento was granted his permit on May 15 while Da Silva was given his permit on December 20, 2004 to stay in Guyana for three weeks. (Stabroek News)
Accused claims he found ganja in police vehicle - court hears
Kissoon denied the charge of possession of narcotics. The accused told the court that he was in a police van when he saw a plastic bag and picked it up and threw it out of the vehicle at Smyth and Leopold streets and the police charged him with the offence. His matter will be called again on October 19. (Stabroek News)
October 10. 2005
Two ex-cops among eight men remanded on firearms and ammunition charges
The arms cache accused leaving the court under heavy police guard yesterday.
Eight men, including two former police officers, who were allegedly found with a quantity of firearms and ammunition on Thursday at Continental Park, East Bank Demerara, appeared yesterday in the Georgetown Magistrate's Court.
A large crowd of supporters of the accused and curious onlookers converged on the court compound and surrounding areas during the men's appearance yesterday afternoon.
Former policemen Kevin Saul and Sheldon Westford; Oneil Wilkinson, 27, of 63 Hunter Street, Albouystown; William Mittelholzer, 34, of 109 Atlantic Gardens; Patrick Cadogan; Neville Johnson; Christopher Massay and Sir Lawrence were all remanded to prison by Magistrate Bertlyn Reynolds.
Besides being charged jointly with possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition, Cadogan is separately facing two additional charges of the same nature.
It is alleged that on October 6, 2005 at Continental Park, Cadogan, 23, of 63 Hunter Street, Albouystown had one .357 Magnum revolver. On the same day, Cadogan was allegedly found with six live .357 rounds of ammunition. Cadogan denied the charges of unlawful possession of a firearm and unlawful possession of ammunition.
On that same day also at Continental Park, Cadogan and the other defendants were allegedly found with an inter-dynamic 9 mm Luger and one semi-automatic Beretta. The defendants allegedly also had 80 9 mm rounds, six .357 rounds and 60 .22 rounds of ammunition in their possession. They all denied the joint charges of possession of firearms and possession of ammunition.
According to reports, the police uncovered the illegal weapons after a raid was carried out at a house in Continental Park. The items were allegedly found in a bag in the house. Attorney-at-law Peter Hugh who is representing Cadogan and Wilkinson told the court that his clients were in custody since Thursday. He also added that they were beaten by the police and they were no flight risk.
Lawyer for the other defendants, Paul Fung-A-Fat said the police had beaten his clients around 8 pm on Sunday and forced them into small cages. According to Fung-A-Fat, the men were all on the street standing when the police carried out the raid. He said that no weapons were recovered nor was any confession statement taken.
"The watchman stated that a man brought a black bag and left it in the yard close to a fence while another man confessed to owning the bag with the items," Fung-A-Fat said. The attorney also told the court that the men were working on the house in Continental Park. Saul and Westford both served in the police force for six years. The other men are masons.
Fung-A-Fat said Wilkinson and Cadogan confessed to owning the firearms and ammunition but the police charged all of them. "If certain actions were taken, these men would not have been charged," Fung-A-Fat said.
Attorney-at-law Vic Puran who is appearing in association with Fung-A-Fat stated that the men were charged without advice. He asked that the Prosecutor, Police Inspector Desiree Fowler, outline to the court the gist of a prima facie case and it would be seen that there was no evidence against the men.
After listening to Puran, the prosecutor told the court that Wilkinson admitted that the cache was found on him and she was objecting to bail for him and Cadogan. She suggested that the others be placed on substantial bail. However, the magistrate refused to grant the men bail and they were all remanded to prison until October 14 when they will appear before Acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan in Court One.
As the men were being returned to custody, chaos erupted outside the court and the police were forced to call for back-up to take the men away. In the ensuing confusion, some media personnel were shoved and assaulted by people in the crowd. (Stabroek News)
October 07. 2005
THIEVES broke into the New Amsterdam Magistrates’ Court building in Berbice Wednesday night and stole, among other things, four passports that were exhibits in cases and computer accessories.
The Office Assistant made the discovery when he opened the doors yesterday morning and saw a keyboard from one of the computers on the ground in the doorway leading to the Chief Clerk’s office, officials said.
Police, who were summoned to the scene, found case jackets and other legal documents scattered across the floor in the lower flat of the two-storey place in which drawers and cupboards were ransacked. One of the secured iron safes was forced open but an attempt on the other was unsuccessful.
Officials were still taking an inventory and the extent of the loss was still not verified up to press time. Detectives suspect entry was gained by breaking one of the glass windows to allow in someone of small stature to be followed by other persons. (Guyana Cronicle)
October 04. 2005
New Commissioner of Police takes over in St Vincent and the Grenadines
Incoming Commissioner of Police Keith Miller (l) receives the symbolic baton of authority from outgoing Commissioner, William Harry
KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent: A new chief of police took office in St Vincent last Friday as Keith Miller took over from retiring Commissioner of Police William Harry during a parade at the Richmond Hill Playing field.
Miller admitted that he is “not a super-hero” but promised to “strive for excellence at all time”.
Speaking at the parade said he will make a “critical assessment” of the Police Force as he noted that the task will be “challenging” because of what he described as the “many internal issues and demands”.
He identified the need for law enforcement officers here to improve their work attitude and embracing international investigative techniques and highlighted the challenges of criminal activities. He said it was necessary to equip officers with major disaster preparedness techniques and to the foster and maintain better relationship with the public.
“There must be bilateral corporation between the police and the public in order to build an efficient and effective Police Force,” COP Miller said. He said the public must be “the watchdog” for the police and criminals as he noted that “…Police officers will have to operate within the ambits of the rule of law, and criminals will be deterred from their modus operandi.”
“When we fail, the police fails and our beloved country suffers,” COP Miller said.
Outgoing COP William Harry, addressing the parade spoke of some of the challenges confronting policing today including less tolerant individuals, more greed, illicit drug trafficking and money laundering. He also noted that the shores of SVG are more porous today. “I implore you to be courageous, efficient and observant in order to diminish such trends,” Harry advised.
Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves and National Security Minister Sir Vincent Beache also addressed the parade. (by Kenton Chance Caribbean Net News Correspondent)
October 01. 2005
Trawler recovered, trucks still missing in smuggled fuel saga
Prime Minister Hinds blasts removal of impounded vehicles
Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and Commissioner of Police Winston Felix at the press briefing.
According to reports reaching this newspaper, the trawler, ‘Ashley S’, was found by the Coast Guard, but details about where the vessel was found remain sketchy. However, the whereabouts of the three fuel trucks GJJ 6043, GHH 8713 and GHH 9239 are still unknown.
On Thursday afternoon, between 15:30 h and 17:00 h, the vessels which were all in custody at the site of the seizure, were unlawfully removed. Whose custody the vessels were in at the time is still not clear.
At a press conference held by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, at his Kingston Office yesterday afternoon, with Police Commissioner Winston Felix in attendance, the Prime Minister said that “the removal of these impounded vehicles was an unlawful and unacceptable act that will not be countenanced by this Administration”.
According to Mr. Hinds, anyone who might have contributed, whether directly or indirectly, to the unlawful removal of the trucks and trawler should be grilled by the Police. He said the Police is appealing for the public’s assistance with any information on this matter.
He said that since the disappearance of the vessels, issues including the efficiency of the security that was at the site at the time is being discussed. In addition, they are looking at the issue of insufficient coordination among the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA), the Police Force and others involved.
According to the Prime Minister, the question of corruption and collusion among persons at the site would not be overlooked. Currently, the Guyana Police Force is leading the investigation into the missing trucks, with the support of all security agencies, and aerial surveys are also part of the search.
The Prime Minister said the interception of the suspected shipment of illegal fuel at East Bank Demerara location, charges being laid and persons involved being placed before the Court “was an important development by the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) to clampdown on the smuggling of fuel”
Following the big smuggled fuel bust, at Buddy’s Farm, Coverden, East Bank Demerara on Tuesday night, ten persons appeared in the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court Thursday.
Wazir Mohamed, of 28 North Road, Bourda; Errol Prince, 43 Garnett Street, Kitty; Deoram Singh (no address given); Clement Huntley, of 39 Wisroc and Fitzgerald London, of Lot 494 Canvas City, both in Linden; Sanicharran Ramlogan, of Number 64 Village, Corentyne, Berbice; Cezann Vanelwin (no address given either); Joseph Allen, of Diamond Squatting Area, East Bank Demerara; Ramsahai Basdeo, of Lot 101 Cornelia Ida Housing Scheme, West Coast Demerara; and Osbourne Richards, of Supenaam, Essequibo Coast, all appeared before Acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan.
They were each put on $175,000 bail after pleading not guilty to being in possession of illegal petroleum that did not have the marker required by the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA), on September 27. The cargo measured, so far, is 43,000 litres, valued at approximately $6M. In addition to the ten persons who were charged, Police Commissioner Winston Felix yesterday disclosed that one other person is being questioned.
Meanwhile, the Guyana Association of Trawler Owners and Seafood Processors have refuted allegations in the September 29 edition of the Stabroek News that the ‘Ashley S’ is registered with them. According to the Association, the vessel is owned by Coastline Towing, which has never been a member of the Association, and is not suppliers of seafood to any of the processing plants affiliated to the Association.
The release further added that the ‘completely inaccurate report’ could seriously compromise the concessionary agreement between the Government and the Association, which allows members to purchase fuel offshore as ship stores to be expressly used for the purpose of fishing in Guyana’s waters. (Guyana Cronicle)