November 29, 2008
Shootout at Cromarty
Cop, three pirates dead
Missing fisherman found tied to tree
Travis Oslyn Glasgow
A shootout at Cromarty, Corentyne around 6.30 am yesterday has left a policeman and three pirates dead, while the partly mutilated body of a fisherman was discovered tied to a tree.
Detective Constable 18682 Travis Oslyn Glasgow of Fyrish Village, Corentyne was shot dead by the pirates, one of whom was identified as ex-soldier, James Gibson and another as Cliff Chichester of Mahaicony. The third pirate had not been identified up to press time last night.
The body of Hector Boodhoo, 57, a fisherman of Rose Hall Town, who had been missing since around 4 pm on Thursday, was found tied to a tree among some bushes at Port Mourant with cuts to his ear and the back of his head. A piece of multi-coloured cloth was tied to his head.
After Boodhoo did not go home, relatives launched a search for him on Thursday night but came up empty-handed. They continued the search yesterday morning and came upon the body among the bushes. Meanwhile, police had responded to a report that the pirates were spotted pulling in a boat, at the Cromarty foreshore, which they had hijacked from another fisherman, Bishan Motilall, on Thursday.
On seeing the police, the pirates opened fire hitting Glasgow and the police returned fire killing the three of them. Glasgow, who was attached to the Whim Police Station, was rushed to the New Amsterdam Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
The police recovered two AK-47 rifles and one 12-gauge pump-action shotgun and a quantity of ammunition including seven AK-47 magazines, 178 rounds 7.62 x 39 ammunition, fourteen 12-gauge cartridges and 28 rounds .30 ammunition, 17 round .40 ammunition, 6 rounds .45 ammunition, one round 9mm. ammo and an empty 12-gauge casing.
One of the AK-47 rifles has been identified as being one of those stolen from the Guyana Defence Force. Police also recovered a backpack, which contained the men’s belongings including a quantity of marijuana, clothing, toothbrushes, cell phone chargers, two SIM cards, a few tennis rolls in a packet and a bottle of all purpose oil; presumably used to clean the guns.
Reports are that Motilall had just returned from sea with his catch and was about to tie up his boat at the Rose Hall foreshore when the heavily armed pirates pounced on him from among the bushes. The pirates ordered him to empty the boat and he complied. They subsequently placed him along with his wife and daughter, who had gone to the shore to assist him, to lie face down on the beach.
At this stage, Boodhoo reportedly came upon the scene and the pirates grabbed him and took him with them. The men boarded the boat and headed upstream, but Motilall was not sure what became of Boodhoo.
Deeply traumatized, he and his family hurried out of the area. Along the shore they met four other persons, who said that “bandits” had tied them up earlier. Stabroek News understands that Boodhoo was aware that there was not much gas left in his tank and knew that it would not be enough to take the men very far. He was scouring the area with this in mind when he spotted the men pulling the boat in.
He immediately contacted his family and they in turn informed the police who responded promptly. According to an eyewitness, who did not want to be named, said, “within minutes dem [the police] don deh hey”. He said the pirates were in a clump of bushes “behind them crudah trees”.
The four policemen saw the pirates, who began running away from them. The police were then taken to “wan short cut and then dem circle dem pirates in the bushes”. Cornered, the pirates began to fire shots at the police who responded. Detective Glasgow, 25, of Lot 190 Fifth Street, Fyrish was killed in that shootout.
Doreen Glasgow (fourth from left) surrounded by relatives at her home yesterday. At front right is the dead officer’s son, Javis.
Doreen Glasgow, the grieving mother of the slain policeman, told Stabroek News that yesterday morning around eight o’clock, she received a telephone call from a police officer from the Whim Police Station who asked if ‘Glasgow lives there’.
She said she responded, “yes” and he went on to tell her, “‘Glasgow was shot this morning’, then he pause lil bit and say that he body deh at the mortuary”.
She said she went and identified her son’s body, which bore a single gunshot wound to the lower abdomen.
Later on she spoke with the commander of ‘B’ division who told her that her son had been shot in the line of duty. Doreen said her son joined the force since he was 18 years old; it was his first job.
She last saw him on Thursday before he left for duty at Whim Police Station. She said he must have worked through the night because he did not go home at the end of his shift and she did not expect to receive such a call yesterday morning. Glasgow has left behind a three-year-old son, Javis Akon Glasgow.
This clump of mangroves was where the pirates were hiding when the police found them.
Police in a press release said Gibson was on bail on a charge of possession of firearm without licence before the court in Berbice. He was reportedly found with a firearm that was stolen from the Police Outpost at Rose Hall, Corentyne, which had been attacked by armed gunmen.
He was also later jointly charged with Oliver Hinckson, again over the possession of firearm without licence, and was also on bail in this matter which is before the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court. He was not attending court in these matters and arrest warrants had been issued for him, according to the release.
Meanwhile, there are indications that the same pirates had hijacked another fishing vessel MV Mark Counter 2 with its five crew members, in the Mahaicony River on Wednesday.
The Coast Guard recovered the vessel around 10 am on Thursday at Number 19 Village, Corentyne with its fishing seines, catch, and engines all intact. The crew, who were all packed into the boat used by the pirates and left at sea, drifted ashore and reported the matter to the Coast Guard at New Amsterdam. The five-member crew was unharmed.
A GDF release had said that some men were seen in a clump of bushes on the foreshore in the vicinity of where the vessel was recovered but vanished as the Coast Guard vessel approached. (Shabna Ullah/Stabroek News/Additional reporting by Adrian Smith)
Dead fisherman found bound…
Policeman, three pirates......
..... killed in Corentyne foreshore shootout
A police detective was shot and killed yesterday morning in a confrontation with armed pirates at Cromarty foreshore, Corentyne, Berbice.
Constable 18682 Oslyn Trevis Glasgow, 25, was attached to Whim Police Station and lived at Fyrish.
During the shootout, which lasted about 20 minutes, three suspected pirates were shot and killed, as well, and their bodies are at New Amsterdam Hospital mortuary awaiting identification.A resident of Wellington Park, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the Guyana Chronicle that, shortly after 05:00h, he was about to go to the foreshore when he observed three armed men walking along a dam leading there.
James Gibson
Using his mobile phone, he called the nearby Police outpost and, subsequently, Whim Station, from where ranks responded within minutes.
The man recalled that, whilst waiting for the cops to arrive, Bishan Motilall, a fisherman from Rose Hall Town reported that his boat and engine were stolen on Thursday and he, after receiving information where to find it, had asked villagers to go with him to the foreshore for the recovery.
Hector Budhoo who was found tied to a tree with marks of violence on his head
However, just as they were going, Police in a vehicle drove towards the seashore and gunshots were heard. About 20 minutes later, the firing ceased and, after another half an hour, Motilall and the others ventured to the location where he saw the boat tied and he removed his engine.
Carpenter Nand Ragubeer, of Phillipi Side Line Dam, also on Corentyne, related that, about 06:30 h, he saw the Police driving along the narrow dam, which divides Cromarty and Phillipi, in the direction of the seashore.He said he became curious because it was not usual to see ranks moving at such a pace and followed by rapid gunfire. Ragubeer said, together with residents of the community, he rushed to the main thoroughfare, where he saw cops returning from the foreshore with wounded Glasgow.
Recovered boat engine
Some half an hour later, using the Wellington Park route, he saw the bodies of three men of African descent, with what appeared to be gunshot wounds.
A senior Police Officer said they received a telephone call informing about a boat in the Cromarty/Wellington Park area with three suspected bandits paddling and it was the same one stolen Thursday.
The Police officer said ranks responded to the report and the bandits opened fire on them, injuring Glasgow.
Recognising that one their number was injured, they returned fire and, in so doing, fatally wounded three men who were pronounced dead at New Amsterdam Hospital.
At the scene of the shooting, Police recovered two AK-47 rifles, one 12-gauge pump action shotgun, seven AK-47 magazines, 178 rounds 7.62 x 39 ammunition, fourteen 12-gauge cartridges, 28 rounds .30 ammunition, 17 rounds .40 ammunition, six rounds .45 ammunition, one round 9mm, one packet Bristol cigarettes, a wrist watch, a cellular phone charger, a bag of tennis rolls from Humphrey’s Bakery, a quantity of marijuana, a haversack, some male underwear and a bottle of ‘CRC’ multi-purpose lubricant.
The boat which was stolen from Bishan Motilall, at Rose Hall, seen at Cromarty Foreshore
Glasgow was taken to New Amsterdam Hospital, too, but died whilst receiving treatment. At his residence yesterday, neighbours and friends were consoling his parents, and three-year-old son, Javes Akon Glasgow.
Doreen Glasgow, mother of the dead man, said, at 07:45 h, a telephone caller requested to speak to the policeman’s wife or her.
She said a rank from Whim Police Station asked whether she had heard that her son was shot in the line of duty and was in hospital. As a result, she hurried to the institution where she saw his body in the mortuary, with a gunshot wound to the right side of his abdomen.
The woman said she was not at home when Police Divisional Commander Lakeraj called to say her son, who joined the Force six years ago, died during a confrontation with pirates.
Meanwhile, the body of Hector Budhoo, a 57-year-old fisherman of Rose Hall, was found tied to a tree at Port Mourant foreshore about 05:50 h yesterday. Dipoo Jaidett said he accompanied his boss, ‘Sonny Boy’ and co-workers ‘Car’ and Richard called ‘Wretch head’ at 07:30 h on Thursday to Rose Hall foreshore to fix their seine. But, on reaching there, they observed a strange boat with no one inside.
“However, Sonny Boy, who was walking ahead of us in the bushy area, was pulled into the bushes and he called out, saying: “Come and see something.” We went only to have three negro men, armed with what looked like two machine guns and a longer weapon pointed at us. They tied our hands behind our backs,” Jaidett narrated.
He said one of the trio warned them that he would shoot if they run. Jaidett said, fearing for his life, he remained quiet and the men offered them tennis rolls with cheese and two packets of cigarettes. The father of four girls said, as the Coast Guard and Police were patrolling the area, the men left them and went in the direction where Budhoo was seen fixing his seine. According to Jaidett, the three men of African descent were overheard telling Budhoo called ‘Old Boy’ to sit on a fish box.
But, because of the distance between them and the need for him to escape, he did not pay much attention to what was being done to Budhoo until he was found tied to a tree. At Budhoo’s Middle Street, Rose Hall home, his cousin Dr V. Ramayah said the now deceased had left to fix his seine but, when his fellow fishermen returned and he did not, the family went in search of him.
His bicycle and a bag were retrieved while his nude corpse, with marks of violence to the back of the head, was bound to a tree at Port Mourant channel. It is at Ramoo Funeral Home awaiting an autopsy and investigations into his murder are continuing. Police said one of the AK-47 rifles has been identified as being one of those stolen from the GDF.
Up to press time one bandit was identified as James Gibson who was on bail on a matter of possession of an illegal firearm in Berbice after being charged with the offense when he was found with a firearm that was stolen from the Police Outpost at Rosehall, Corentyne, which had been attacked by armed gunmen.
He was also later jointly charged with Oliver Hinckson, again for possession of firearm without license, and was also on bail in that matter which is before the Georgetown Courts. Police said the man had not been attending court in these matters and arrest warrants had been issued for him. (Jeune Bailey Van-Keric/Guyana Cronicle)
Woman in trench was strangled
Creavone Thorne, the woman whose decomposing body was found in a trench on Thursday, died as a result of manual strangulation. Thorne, 26, of Lot 35 Lyng Street, Charlestown, was found in a trench along Thomas Lands on Thursday morning.
A post-mortem examination was conducted on Thorne’s remains by Government Pathologist Dr Nehaul Singh at the Georgetown Hospital mortuary yesterday.
Stabroek News was reliably informed that when the woman’s swollen body was found, what appeared to be a belt mark was visible around her neck, while a wound consistent with it being banged against a solid subject was evident at the back of her head.
Meanwhile, Thorne’s boyfriend, who was arrested hours after the gruesome discovery was made, remains in police custody. Police went to the house the couple shared and removed items belonging to the man yesterday. According to reports, the man was the last person to speak with Thorne.
At the house, relatives were still in shock and continued to question what might have led to Thorne’s tragic death. Several of her friends turned up and recalled their last moments with her. They also reflected on her life, which they described as very outgoing.
Relatives had told Stabroek News that the Antigua-based woman was last seen on Monday night when she told a cousin that she was going “to mek a fine spin.” Her semi-nude body was already in a state of decomposition when it was fished out of the trench halfway between the African Cultural Development Association (ACDA) building and Albert Street, opposite the National Park.
The spot was in a trench outside the Guyana Sports Club ground. This newspaper had incorrectly said that the body was found outside the Malteenos Sports Club Ground, which is actually located further up Thomas Lands. (Staff/Stabroek News)
Cayenne murder
James shot five times
Troy James, the Guyanese man who was gunned down in Cayenne, French Guiana almost three weeks ago, sustained five gunshots to the chest, one of which caused the fatal injury, a post-mortem examination has revealed. Meanwhile, the man’s mother has secured a visa to travel to the French territory to retrieve his body so that it can be returned here for burial.
A Stabroek News source in French Guiana said the police are releasing very little information on Tuesday’s autopsy but confirmed that the man’s mother received her visa recently though they are unsure when she will be arriving in the country. The source said he was told that the French police are awaiting the mother’s arrival so that they can gather some more information which would aid them in their investigation.
Police are still looking for James’ brother, who they believe carried out the attack on James and they are still treating the case as a family dispute. The police say that they are “almost certain” that James died at the hands of his brother. Both brothers were known to the police in that country.
They also had several run-ins with the law while living in Guyana. The circumstances of the shooting are still unclear but this newspaper has been told that the two brothers had a falling out. They were both residing in French Guiana illegally. Press officer Lieutenant-Colonel Laperle from the Central Gendarmerie has said James was killed in Remire-Montjoly, a town in the suburb of Cayenne, on November 10.
The killing took place less than ten metres from a soccer field, where young players of a local team-–USL Montjoly–-were training. The coach, former international French goalkeeper Bernard Lama, was leading the training sessions and he was the one who contacted the police. According to the officer, most of the players did not hear the gunshots. (Staff/Stabroek News)
November 28, 2008
Bath taxi service owner shot dead
Was reportedly playing with gun
Doulatram “Dara” Singh
The owner of Timeless Taxi Service of Bath Experiment, West Coast Berbice died during a drinking session at a Chinese restaurant around 2.30 pm yesterday and reports are that he shot himself in the head.
Stabroek News learnt that Doulatram ‘Dara’ Singh, 35, a father of four was playing with a gun when he accidentally pulled the trigger. The bullet entered the right side of his head. Singh did not own a gun and no one could say where he might have acquired the one he was allegedly playing with.
According to reports, Singh was drinking with a friend at Lai Li Jiu Jia Chinese Restaurant yesterday. Two of the restaurant’s employees were reportedly present and the friend allegedly left Singh to go to the washroom. While there, he reportedly heard an explosion and on checking realized that the man had shot himself.
Curious villagers mill around as undertakers from the Anthony Funeral Establishment removed the body yesterday.
A large crowd gathered in front of the restaurant yesterday where the police were taking finger prints and conducting investigations; the gates to eating house were locked.
Through the iron-grille gates, this newspaper could see Singh’s body still in a sitting position on a chair that was braced against the wall.
His head was tilted to the right and he was partly covered with blood. A pool of blood was on the floor.
Four beer bottles were on the table. The man’s wife, Christine Singh, who was inconsolable, told this newspaper that she and her husband had no problems and she questioned why he would want to kill himself.
She said her husband never even any showed signs of wanting to end his life. In fact he had just bought concrete blocks to extend their one-flat unpainted concrete house in time for Christmas. The distraught woman kept lamenting, “we na had no problems; if we had problems and this de happen to he ah woulda say that’s why…”
In tears, she recalled that her husband had taken their children home from school for lunch and after they had eaten, he took them back to school, but did not return home. She said he called her a few times and told her he would “come just now.” But “just now” never reached, she said.
A distraught Christine Singh, surrounded by her children, Marissa, 11 (left); Doulatram Jr, 13 (right), eight-year-old Joshua (second, right) and six-year-old Travis (seated on mother) sits in front of the concrete blocks her husband had bought to extend their house.
Christine said he did not go to pick up the children after school and it was when she saw them arrive home on their own that she called his cellular phone.
She said a female employee of the taxi service answered it and told her that he had shot himself and was dead. Christine said her husband did not own a gun.
The employee, Neeta Persaud told this newspaper that Singh was at the taxi base located at Bath Settlement in the morning and he was in good spirits. Persaud said she was dropping off a passenger at Bush Lot around 3 pm when she received a call from the friend he was drinking with that “Dara shoot heself and he dead and he gat to call the police.”
She said that she went to the restaurant and was told that her employer had been playing with the gun. The man leaves to mourn his wife and four children, Doulatram Jr., 13, Marissa, 11, eight-year-old Joshua and six-year-old Travis. He was also taking care of three other children. (Shabna Ullah/Stabroek News)
Decomposing body of woman found in trench
Boyfriend held for questioning Creavone Thorne
The semi-nude and partially decomposed body of a woman was discovered yesterday morning in a trench on Thomas Lands, outside the Malteenos Sports Club Ground. Dead is Creavone Thorne, 26, of Lot 35 Lyng Street, Charlestown, who had lived and worked in Antigua, but returned home regularly. Her boyfriend was held for questioning yesterday afternoon, Stabroek News was told.
At the time of the discovery, Thorne’s body was clad only in a dark-coloured top and underwear. It was fished out of the trench halfway between the African Cultural Development Association (ACDA) building and Albert Street, opposite the National Park. That area is dark and secluded at night and it has been a dumping ground for murdered persons over the years.
According to the reports reaching Stabroek News, a Lamaha Railway Embank-ment resident, who would usually graze his cattle at the Malteenos ground, went there yesterday morning around 7 o’clock and discovered that one of the cows had wandered off. Sunil Persaud saw his cow grazing on the parapet in the vicinity of the ACDA building and was chasing it back into the sports club ground, when he spotted what appeared to be human buttocks sticking out of the grass in the trench.
The man’s brother, Rishi Persaud, told Stabroek News yesterday that he received a telephone call from Sunil, who asked him to go and get the cow because he had just seen a body in the trench. Sunil then called the police and pointed out his discovery to them.
When Stabroek News arrived on the scene, police tape cordoned the section of the trench where Thorne’s body was and detectives and uniformed officers were conducting investigations. Some officers were directing the traffic which had slowed to a crawl as motorists attempted to find out what was happening. Sunil was talking to the police and later taken away in a police vehicle to make a statement.
The woman’s body was in a clump of grass; part of it from the waist down was submerged in the trench. It appeared as though it had been there for several days, an officer told this newspaper and there were visible marks of violence about her body. Thorne’s remains are at the Lyken’s Funeral Home and a post-mortem examination is expected to be conducted today.
Missing
Thorne’s relatives and friends were in shock and tears over the gruesome manner of her death. Her mother, Yvette Parris, was being consoled as she sat on a chair just outside her home, which is a short distance from the home Thorne shared with her boyfriend. Stabroek News was told that the woman was last seen on Monday night and subsequent efforts to contact her on her cellular phone were futile. However, no missing persons report was made to the police.
Her cousin, Keisha Parris, said that on Monday night some time after 7 pm the woman was “gaffing” with relatives on Sussex Street, a short distance from her home when she told them ‘Ah coming back. Ah going and mek a fine spin’. That was the last time they saw her alive, Parris said.
Relatives tried calling Thorne’s phone subsequently but it was turned off. However, yesterday it was ringing out when dialled. They said they had been worried since it was unlike the young woman to stay away from home without informing anyone. A relative said that they had decided to start searching for her yesterday, when they heard that a body with a tattoo on the foot was found and was at the mortuary.
They later confirmed that it was Thorne, who did have a tattoo on her foot. At that time, the body was in a box outside Le Repentir Mortuary because of the state of decomposition. However, at the relatives’ request, Thorne’s body was subsequently taken to the Lyken’s Funeral home. Thorne was described as a very social person who liked to party a lot and who was always in a hurry. She leaves to mourn her parents Rudolph Thorne and Yvette Parris along with six siblings.
In November 2006, the body of 13-year-old Letroy Harris was found a few metres from the spot where Thorne’s body was discovered. Persons driving along Thomas Lands had noticed the child’s naked body floating in the trench.
At the time of his death Harris was a student of St Winefride’s Secondary School and a resident of Sophia. A post-mortem examination revealed that he died from drowning and blunt trauma to the head. It was also discovered that he had been sexually assaulted before he was killed. His murder is unsolved and no one was ever held for questioning. (Zoisa Fraser/Stabroek News)
Mutilated body of Charlestown woman found in canal
Dead: Creavon Thorne
The corpse was clad only in her underwear and a vest, her throat was slit, mouth stuffed with an unidentifiable object, nose cut off, eyes dug out and head bald of hair.
The mutilated body of 26-year-old Creavon Thorne, of Lot 37 Sussex Street, Charlestown, was fished out of a Thomas Lands canal yesterday morning.The corpse was clad only in her underwear and a vest, her throat was slit, mouth stuffed with an unidentifiable object, nose cut off, eyes dug out and head bald of hair.
After it was pulled from the water by mortuary attendants, the woman’s remains were later found to have been dumped in gated area of Le Repentir Cemetery, also in Georgetown.
A relative of hers, who did not want to be named, said dogs were sniffing at the dead woman at the scene of the Thomas Lands discovery.
She lamented that Thorne was the breadwinner of the family and her devastated mother was being comforted by other relatives while friends stood at the home, apparently stunned that the life of their loved one was snuffed out so suddenly and so disrespectfully treated.
Investigators removing the mutilated body of Creavon Thorne at Thomas Lands yesterday morning.
Parris said Thorne was a frequent visitor to other Caribbean countries and was mostly out of Guyana but was here for the past six weeks after returning from Antigua.
Before press time, it was disclosed that the dead body had been taken to Lyken Funeral Parlour and a post mortem examination has been scheduled for today but efforts to contact the Police were unsuccessful. (Delana Isles/Guyana Cronicle)
Neighbours report… Drug addict hacks father to death at Waiakabra
A drug addict, 24, hacked his 57-year-old father to death after the latter denied his request for money to buy cigarettes, neighbours reported yesterday. The murder took place at their Waiakabra farm along Soesdyke/Linden Highway early yesterday morning, they said.
The victim, Stanislaus Gomes also known as ‘Santa’ was found with the top half of his face almost severed from the rest of his body, a few feet away from the entrance to the one bedroom house three miles off the roadway. 
Dead: Stanislaus Gomes, called 'Santa'
Gomes and his alleged killer were the only two on the farm at the time of the killing and the corpse was discovered after the son, still holding a bloodstained cutlass, told a woman he had killed his father.
The son was taken into custody after a tense two hours during which a neighbour convinced him to surrender to Police who recovered the alleged death weapon.
People in the neighbourhood said, the murdered man, a veteran cash crop farmer may have met his demise while carrying out his early morning ablutions because a toothbrush was still clenched between his teeth.
House where Stanislaus Gomes used to reside
Felicia Pierre, who also lives at Waiakabra but some distance away from the crime scene, told the Guyana Chronicle she was standing on her verandah, around 07:30 h, when the younger Gomes, cutlass in hand, ran towards her home.
The woman said she became uneasy but, as she knew him, remained calm to enquire what was wrong. She said the armed man threw himself to the ground and blurted out that he had killed his father.“It was then I saw blood on the cutlass,” Pierre said. “I don’t know how I managed it. I was trembling inside. I wanted to run but I walked up to him and asked him why he had killed his father.
He then told me that he does work hard on the farm and his father did not want to give him any money and he had gotten angry and chopped him up with a cutlass,” the woman related. She said she spoke to him like a mother and, gradually, comforted him until she felt very relieved when he threw away the weapon in some bushes.
Murder weapon - the bloodstained cutlass in police custody
“Then he kept saying that he wanted to hide from the Police but I got him to sit down on the front stairs and I got him to talk and, after a while, I persuaded him to agree to stay until the Police arrived,” the woman said.
Relatives said the detained man was the only son of the dead man who cared for him since age four when his mother died.
The late Gomes, formerly of Mabaruma in Region One (Barima/Waini), farmed a four acres plot at Waiakabra and had cultivated a wide variety of fruits, greens and vegetables.
“Orange, tangerine, coffee, sorrel, soursop, coconuts, papaw, eddo, annatto, cassava were among the produce he planted,” said his brother-in-law, Ewart Fernandes.
Felicia Pierre at the murder scene
“He got the name Santa from Stanislaus and the name Santa stuck on him because he was a good natured man who was quiet and loved and had farmed for his entire lifetime,” Fernandes explained.
Trevor Baya, a nephew, revealed that his uncle had undergone major surgery in Georgetown last week and was in a frail health but returned to his farm to recuperate.
He said Gomes had complained to other family members about his suspicion that his son was using drugs. “He used to say, too, that his son would threaten to kill him whenever they had arguments about his use of drugs,” Baya said. Witnesses to the arrest said the suspect was behaving in a weird manner at the time.
One bystander said the suspected killer told him, after chopping his father across the face, he stood over him and prayed to God for forgiveness. Then he inflicted four more chops on the same spot to ensure he was dead. Police are expected to lay a charge for the capital offence after a post mortem examination has been conducted. (Clifford Stanley/Guyana Cronicle)
November 25, 2008
US-based businessman shot dead
Gunman escapes with bag of money
Ricardo Henriques
A businessman was fatally shot in the city during a robbery yesterday evening.
Ricardo Henriques, 31, of D’Urban Street, Werk-en-Rust, was shot in the head at point blank range just outside a Guyana Lottery Company booth on Middle Street, near Juice Power and Water World, the snackette and purified water distributor.
The shooting occurred around 7 pm. Henriques was later pronounced dead at the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he was immediately taken for treatment.
Richard Henriques, who was with his son at the time of shooting, explained that they went to buy water. When they arrived, he recounted, Ricardo decided to buy a lottery ticket. At this point, a man ran up with a gun, pointed it to his head and shot him. At the same time, the man snatched a bag with cash that Henriques had in his possession.
“He just run up, shoot he and snatch the bag,” the man recalled, as he fought back tears. He said he ran behind the shooter. “I ran behind him and pelt three shots and he returned fire.” The gunman then joined an awaiting accomplice on a motorcycle and rode off.
The man said he believes that the two men might have followed them to the spot when they left the Golden Coast restaurant. Relatives and friends of the dead man gathered at the hospital after learning of the incident. They were equal parts grief-stricken and angry over the incident.
A relative could not understand why the men felt they had to shoot Henriques. They explained that the father of two lived in the US, and only returned to the country two weeks ago to do business. He was described as a wholesaler. He had been due to renew his US resident card on Wednesday and was scheduled to return on Friday.
Ricardo also leaves to mourn his wife and two children aged eleven and ten years old.
In the midst of the grief, there were angry calls for law enforcement to do more to fight crime. A friend of the family who asked not to be identified decried the situation and emphasised the need for the police to act. “The commissioner should do more,” he said. “The police need to be more useful.”
The man noted that when traffic police target motorists they never seemed to pay much interest in motorcyclists. Only ten days prior to the shooting, the Guyana Police Force unveiled its annual security plan for city and its environs during the holiday season. Police spokesmen promised an increased presence on the streets, including round-the-clock foot and mobile patrols.
At the launch of the plan, acting Police Commissioner Henry Greene sought to give a public assurance that the force was prepared for increased crime during the Christmas season. He said: “There was a lot of issue and doubt and concern about the police not having something to tell the public. How do we assure them? This has become a culture of the police force to notify the public and the press as to what we plan to do… how we secure you during this period.” (Staff/Stabroek News)
November 23, 2008
Guyanese killed in drive-by shooting in French Guiana
Joseph McAulay
Guyanese Joseph McAulay was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in French Guiana early yesterday morning minutes after exiting a nightclub where he was reportedly mixed up in a brawl.
Unconfirmed reports from French Guiana stated that gunman was known to McAulay and that he has local ties. McAulay, 29, hails from Victoria, East Coast Demerara but had been living in French Guiana for some six years working as a painter. McAulay’s relatives said he died innocently and recounted yesterday how he was merely making peace in the nightclub after the fight broke out.
But the dead man’s mother, Jocelyn Daley frankly stated that she does not have all the facts and that the details surrounding what happened in the nightclub vary, since one report said that her son might have been embroiled in the brawl.
“I don’t know what to say other that I know my son and believe that he was making peace,” Daley told Stabroek News while shaking her head. She last spoke with her son on Tuesday and during that conversation he had asked her to pray for him. According to her, she had said a prayer then and early yesterday morning before she learnt what had happened to him.
It was some time after 5 am (6 am local time) when McAulay also known as ‘Obrien’ had exited the nightclub and was making his way home on a motorcycle in the company of a friend. A car subsequently pulled up alongside the two men and a man leaned out and shot McAulay in the chest. The car then sped off.
McAulay was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance immediately after he was shot. According to reports, he suffered massive internal injuries and died while receiving treatment. His mother received a call just after 1 pm informing her of his death. “I went numb when this call came and struggled to keep it together. I knew he was hurt because someone called earlier but I couldn’t believe it,” Daley recounted.
One of McAulay’s friends in Guyana telephoned his mother shortly after he had been shot. She later spoke with his foster father who also resides in French Guiana and remained in contact until news of his death reached her. Six years ago McAulay left for French Guiana seeking a better life, leaving his mother and two younger brothers behind.
He never returned to Guyana but had invited his mother over and two years ago she went to see him. It was an emotional reunion, according to Daley, who recounted that she had asked her son to return home but he declined. The woman said she did not like the place and that she had articulated as much to McAulay. However, be brushed it aside and though he had promised to visit Guyana after she returned home he never did.
She said McAulay loved French Guiana and that his heart must have been with the country for him not to return home. Daley plans to travel to French Guiana and bury her eldest son since she believes the cost of bringing his body home would be a financial strain. She said that his two younger brothers might likely make the trip with her.
McAulay’s death was on the lips of many in Victoria, and those who knew him personally spoke of how he would reach out to others. One friend said that McAulay remained too long in French Guiana, adding that they had never expected him to take up permanent residence over there.
Three weeks ago another Guyanese, Troy James, was shot and killed in French Guiana reportedly by a sibling following a disagreement. (Staff/Stabroek News)
November 19, 2008
ARMY PISTOL MISSING GDF launches investigation
The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) yesterday reported the disappearance of yet another of its weapons, this time from the Army’s flagship, the GDFS Essequibo. According to a release issued by the Army, the weapon – a M35 Browning Pistol, along with 37 rounds of 9 mm ammunition - were discovered missing from the small arms magazine aboard the vessel which was moored alongside the wharf, at the Coast Guard headquarters in Ruimveldt.
And while the release stated that several Army officers and Ratings attached to the Coast Guard, as well as the Police are assisting with the investigations, there are no indications as to when and how the loss was discovered.
An Army official when contacted would only say that such information would become known as the investigation, which would entail both officers and ranks attached to Coast Guard being questioned, progresses or is completed.
On February 28, 2006 the GDF confirmed in a release that 33 of its high-powered AK-47 rifles and five pistols were stolen from the weapons storage bond at its Base Camp Ayanganna headquarters, in the City. While some of the weapons have since been recovered, more than a dozen are still missing.
But following investigations conducted by the Army, Lieutenant Colonel Tony Ross, then Commanding Officer of Ordnance Corps which has responsibility for the storage and distribution of all weapons in the GDF, was tried before a military court (Court Martial).
He was on May 28, 2008 convicted on two charges, one of ‘conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline’ for failure to ensure that the keys to the Keys Cabinet were booked in at Defence Headquarters (DHQ) Operations (OPS) Room, a duty which he knew or was reasonably expected to know; and ‘neglect to the prejudice of good order and military discipline’, a charge which stated that at the Ordnance Corps, during the period March 2005 to February 2006, failure to manage an effective Booking In/Out system for the Keys Ledger, a duty known to him or reasonably expected to be known to him.
His penalty is forfeiture of one year’s seniority in rank. And, on November 30, 2007, the GDF discovered that an AK 47 which records showed was issued to a reservist, had not been booked in. The weapon was subsequently found in February submerged in a trench in an area at Adventure seaside, Corentyne, by a Joint Services team deployed to investigate the loss of the weapon.
They had arrested two persons and it was one of the arrested men who had taken the team to the area to recover the weapon which had been wrapped in plastic and strapped by electrical wire. The two men were placed before the court and have been remanded to prison.
Warrant Officer Torrington, who had an unblemished 21 years of service with the Army, was tried by military court (Court Martial) for the loss of the weapon, found guilty on February 28, 2008 and sentenced to one-year loss of seniority. The sentence was effective from November 26, 2007.
On the night of October 22, last, a 26-year-old GDF lieutenant was held by police with a grenade and more than 100 rounds of 9 mm ammunition in his car outside the Anira Street, Queenstown, house of his 16-year-old girlfriend’s mother. The young officer is alleged to have previously threatened to destroy the building. The GDF is reportedly still conducting investigations into that incident. (Wendella Davidson/Guyana Cronicle)
November 15, 2008
Police still looking for third shotgun used in Guysuco payroll heist
‘JOINT SERVICES BRIEFING’: Army Chief of Staff Commodore Gary Best, Acting Commissioner of Police Mr. Henry Greene, and Police Public Relations and Press Officer Mr. Ivelaw Whittaker at yesterday’s news conference at Eve Leary.
Acting Police Commissioner, Henry Greene, at a joint press conference with Guyana Defence Force Commodore Gary Best yesterday, told the media that they are still trying to recover a third shot gun used in the Guysuco $17.2M payroll heist last week at Stanleytown, West Coast Demerara.
Greene said the gang was one that had been moving around hiring guns, but from where they are not able to ascertain.
He added that the gang appeared to be very organized, did a lot of planning and was able to move freely in different parts of the country. He admitted to the difficulty in penetrating the illegal gun importation ring, adding that a number of tactics have been tried but no success has been had so far.
However, the Acting Commissioner revealed that the Force is working on a plan to stamp out this trade; one which they hope will bear fruit in the not too distant future. When asked about the allegations of abuse by the Police being made by Attorney-at-Law for Dennis Williams, also called ‘Anaconda’, Greene said no such allegations have been made to the Police; and if a report is made an investigation will be launched.
The issue of video taping of Police interrogations of suspects was raised, to which the Acting Commissioner noted that much infrastructure work has to be done before that can be feasible, although he did not rule out its implementation in the future. Greene said he recognizes that this system will remove the need for a voir dire in Court as long as it is done properly.
Asked about the frequent incidence of one particular news medium receiving information not officially available to the public, the Acting Commissioner said the Force is taking a very dim view of this practice and officers involved will be dealt with firmly if caught.
Greene, however, asked the media to give the Force a level playing field, adding that it is not asking that any misconduct by the Joint Services and the Police be ignored; but when good work is done, there should be recognition of this. Meanwhile, Commodore Best, responding to a question about allegations that one of the newly acquired helicopters, the Bell 206, was not functioning properly, said nothing is wrong with the machine.
When asked about the aircraft being used for surveillance and rescue at sea, Best noted that the helicopter is not one which can be used for that purpose, adding that the helicopter is being used effectively in those areas for which it is suited. (Guyana Cronicle)
Payroll gang was ‘hiring’ guns - Greene
The gang that planned and executed the $17M GuySuCo payroll robbery and a series of high-profile heists was highly organised and acting Police Commissioner Henry Greene said it appeared to have been hiring guns. “We are not sure from whom, but they had access to quite a number of weapons, some of which were recovered,” Greene told a press conference at the Police Officer’s Mess yesterday.
Two suspected members were killed and nine others were arrested during a joint service operation last week. But Greene cautioned that the arrest of gang members does not mean that gang robberies are a thing of past. He described the gang as one of the more organised ones.
“This gang was a more organised gang, obviously did a lot of planning. They did a lot of intelligence work. They had the services of a boat man who, we are aware, had knowledge of all the rivers and with that sort of facility were able to move freely to other parts of the country.”
Although the force had success in the apprehension of gang members, Greene admitted to its failure in cracking the gun trade within the country’s borders. “We have always admitted having a difficulty in penetrating the gun group — those who are bringing weapons into this country and trading in weapons,” he said. “We have admitted to a difficulty in penetrating that group.
We have tried all sorts of different tactics and we have not had much success in penetrating that group of persons who are bringing weapons into this country.” However, not to be daunted, the commissioner said the force is working “on something” and it hopes to get some success in this regard in the “near future.”
Meanwhile, Greene said he was “puzzled” about how photographs of the accused men ended up in the Kaieteur News, days before the men were charged. “Well, I think we ourselves are puzzled because we did not give the photos to that paper,” he said, though he added that newspaper has admitted to paying police officers for information.
Last Saturday the Kaieteur News carried the photographs of all the men who were held in connection with the robberies, although two were eventually released without charge. It was pointed out the commissioner that it was not the first time photographs not officially issued by the police have ended up in selected sections of the media. Greene acknowledged this fact.
“We are concerned. I have expressed my concerns in the force. I have expressed my concerns to the particular newspaper. Their excuse is they are paying for what they want and we must know how to protect our resources. That is what they continue to say…” the commissioner told reporters.
The commissioner also took the opportunity to thank members of the public for their support during the last year by passing on information, attending identification parades and giving evidence in the court. He also asked members of the media “to show fairness in their reporting and give us a level playing field. We are not saying that irregularities by police ranks should be condoned, but when good work is done, it should be given the requisite recognition and praise. (Staff/Stabroek News)
November 14, 2008
Crime up for 2008
Murders skyrocket 36%
The murder rate has shot up by 36% this year compared with the same period last year, a figure inflated by the mass killings at Lusignan, Bartica and Lindo Creek, Crime Chief Seelall Persaud said yesterday. Persaud, presenting crime statistics for the year, reported a 9% increase in serious crimes, with murder leading the way. There were 2,395 serious crimes this year, compared with 2,203 last year.
Figures show that from January 1 to October 31, 2008, there were 135 murders, while for the corresponding period last year there were 99, an increase on 36%. The 2008 figure includes the death toll of 31, from the Lusignan, Bartica and Lindo Creek bloodbaths.
Forty of the murders recorded this year were carried out execution-style; 10 occurred during robberies; 21 were of a domestic nature; 40 occurred as a result of disorderly conduct; 21 are unknown; and three of the cases occurred under unknown circumstances.
‘E&F’ Division had the highest number of execution-style killings with 20, including the Bartica and Lindo Creek killings; followed by ‘C’ Division with 13, including the Lusignan massacre. ‘E&F’ Division has the highest murder rate overall.
Persaud also reported a 33% increase in armed robberies, with 252 cases for this year compared to 189 last year. Robbery involving the use of firearms was also prevalent during this year, up from 580 to 700, a 21% increase.
Persaud did, however, report a decrease in rapes, with 50 cases this year, compared with 70 last year, representing a 28% decrease. Burglaries were also down, with 52 this year, compared with 87 for 2007, a 40% decrease. There has also been a decrease in the number of firearms seized this year. According to Persaud, 126 were seized so far as compared to 130 last year, with ‘A’ Division taking in 54 firearms, and ‘E&F’ Division, 35.
The Crime Chief stated that the force continues to face numerous challenges. These include gangs; the influx of tourists; organised crime-drug and firearm trafficking; illegal firearms in society, including missing army AK-47s; the expansion of economic activity in the interior; and the increase of economic and social activities, particularly in the city. However, Persaud said strategies such as training, intelligence-gathering, investigations, collaboration and intelligence-led operations will be used to tackle the challenges. (Staff/Stabroek News)
Suriname ministerclaimed Corentyne River in talks with Jagdeo,
newspaper says
Months before the controversial seizure of a Guyanese vessel in the Corentyne River, Suriname’s Justice Minister Chandrikapersad Santokhi claimed that the river across its entire width to be completely Surinamese territory.
According to a report in the de Ware Tijd newspaper, Santokhi made the claim in April to Guyana’s President Bharrat Jagdeo, explaining that nationals of both countries engaged in economic activities on or through the river should abide by regulations in force. de Ware Tijd said Santokhi made the comment to President Jagdeo during a meeting of Caricom Ministers in charge of national security that was held in Guyana.
In mid-October Suriname’s maritime authority seized the MV Lady Chandra in what Guyana has labelled an act of aggression. The boat captain was placed in the lock-ups and the other six crew members were left on board the vessel. The vessel and crew were eventually released after the payment of a fine of US$400. Guyana has since lodged a complaint with the United Nations over the incident. (Stabroek News)
Guyanese murdered in French Guiana was deportee
Cops seeking older brother
Troy James
French police say they are “almost certain” that Troy James, the Guyanese deportee who was gunned down in French Guiana on Monday, was killed by an older brother. James had been convicted on crack cocaine charges and spent ten months in jail before being sent back to Guyana, the police said.
So far the suspect has not been apprehended and sources have told Stabroek News that he returned to Guyana through Suriname and was spotted as recently as Wednesday. The circumstances of the shooting are unclear but this newspaper has been told that the two brothers had a falling out that sparked the fatal shooting. Both brothers were residing in French Guiana illegally.
A Stabroek News source in French Guiana made contact with press officer Lieutenant-Colonel Laperle from the Central Gendarmerie and was informed that James was killed on Monday around 7 pm (6 pm local time) in Remire-Montjiloy, a town in the suburb of Cayenne. ”We think he has been shot by his brother and we are looking for him actually,” the officer was quoted by the source as saying.
James sustained three bullets wounds to the thorax (chest) at close range. Four bullet shells were found close to the body. The officer added that the killing took place less than ten metres from a soccer field, where young players of a local team–USL Montjiloy–were training. The coach, former international French goalkeeper Bernard Lama, was leading the training sessions and he was the one who contacted the police. According to the officer, most of the players did not hear the gunshots.
The policeman further said that James had been arrested for crack dealing in 2005 and later convicted in court. He spent ten months in jail in French Guiana after which he was given a paper in 2006 ordering that he leave the country immediately. He left the country but returned in April this year, the officer added.
The source later told this newspaper that the local daily paper, France-Guyane had reported that the two brothers were living together in a small house.
Meanwhile the local police said that no word has come from their French counterparts in relation to the investigation and while they know that James was shot and killed, they are not yet involved in the matter.
James’ mother, Rose Ann Garraway, called `Rosie’, told reporters that she received a telephone call from one of her son’s female friends around 7 pm on Monday informing her that he had just been shot and killed. The man’s relatives later received confirmation of his death from the French Consulate in Guyana.
Stabroek News was told that James had been working in French Guiana for the past few years and would return home periodically. His mother said she had warned him repeatedly about going to that country. “I told him that I don’t like there for him,” she said. She added whenever he was returning to the country, he would slip out when she was asleep so that she could not see him leaving.
Garraway said the last time she saw her son alive was when he returned home about two months ago. The man’s relatives had said that they were clueless as to what might have sparked the tragedy. They had said that they would travel to French Guiana to retrieve the body for burial here. (Staff/Stabroek News)
November 12, 2008
Guyanese construction worker shot dead in Cayenne
Troy James
A 24-year-old Guyanese man was gunned down in Cayenne, French Guiana on Monday under unknown circumstances. Dead is Troy James, a construction worker who resided at Lot 71 Norton Street, Lodge, whenever he was in the Guyana.
Yesterday his relatives were in a state of deep grief and a black flag was mounted at the front of his home. They said they were making arrangements to have the body returned here for burial. His mother, Rose Ann Garraway called `Rosie’, told reporters that she received a telephone call from one of her son’s female friends around 7 pm on Monday informing her that he had just been shot and killed.
Garraway said she asked the woman if she was sure and she replied that she was standing over his body and “if you see how he dead, dead”. Garraway, a mother of eight, with James being her second child, said she passed out in her state of shock and stressed that she never expected that she would have received such dreadful news. The man‘s relatives have since received confirmation of his death from the French Consulate in Guyana.
According to James’ uncle, Patrick King, the information they got was that James was shot dead. This newspaper was initially told that one of James’s siblings was shot dead and another man wounded, but King said that they were told that it was James who was killed and there were no reports of anyone being hospitalized.
Stabroek News was told that James had been working in French Guiana for the past few years and would return home periodically. His mother said she had warned him repeatedly about going to that country. “I told him that I don’t like there for him,” she said, sorrow and heartache evident in her voice.
She said whenever he was returning to that country, where he worked in construction, he would slip out when she was asleep so that she could not see him leaving. Garraway said the last time she saw her son alive was when he returned home about two months ago.
She said also he was the father of two and that his younger child resides in French Guiana. She described him as a peaceful and loving person. Meanwhile, King said that after receiving the news, he and Garraway went to the French Consulate where it was confirmed. The man’s relatives said that they are clueless as to what might have sparked the tragedy.
Garraway and King are currently making efforts to travel to French Guiana to retrieve the body for burial here. (Stabroek News)
November 11, 2008
Payroll robbery accused in Court… ‘Anaconda’ charged with Bartica massacre murders
Dennis Williams alias ‘Anaconda’, one of the men arrested for the $17M GUYSUCO payroll heist last week, made two Court appearances yesterday.
The accused, of Lot 125 Waterloo Street, Georgetown, first appeared before Magistrate Nayasha Williams-Hatmin, on a charge related to the February 17 Bartica massacre.
Particulars of that offence said he murdered Zaheer Zakhir, Shane Fredericks, Ronald Gomes, Irvin Ferreira, Errol Thomas, Edwin Gilkes, Dexter Adrian, Baldeo Singh, Ashraff Ally, Abdool Yasseen, Baldeo Singh and Ron Osbourne.
Williams has reportedly confessed to being a part of the gang that stormed the mining community in what was described as one of the year’s worst mass killings.
However, Attorney-at-Law Mr. Adrian Thompson, who appeared for Williams in court yesterday, alleged that the Police used “extreme measures” to make him confess the crime. The lawyer said Williams has marks of violence on his back to show that he was beaten by the Police although he knows nothing about the Bartica killings. In that case, Williams was remanded to prison through December 9.
Subsequently, Williams, Robert Dar, 35 and Paul Stephenson, 23, both of Lot 3 Public Road McDoom and Aldhren Adonis, 29, of Lot 941 Grove Housing Scheme, also on East Bank Demerara, Lloyd Johnson, 32, of Lot 11 Goed Fortuin, West Bank Demerara, Jermaine Todd, 21, of Beterverwagting, East Coast Demerara and John Ross (no address given) were all taken in front of Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton in answer to charges related to the last week Thursday heist.
Details of the indictable offences said:
on November 6, at Stanleytown, West Bank Demerara, being armed with guns, they robbed Manosi Sundat of one $5,000 cell phone;
that same day and place, being armed with guns, they also robbed Phillip Rampersaud of one $30,000 cell phone and $800 cash;
on that day and the same place, being armed with guns, they robbed Ulric Taylor of a 12-gauge shotgun and one 12-gauge cartridge valued $114,608, property of GEB Security Service;
the same day and place, as well, being armed with guns, they robbed Phillip Persaud of a 12-gauge shotgun and one 12-gauge cartridge worth $114,000, GEB Security Service property, too;
on November 6, at GUYSUCO Wales Estate, being armed with guns, they robbed Mudnarine Shaw of $17.2M of estate money and
robbed Phillip Haynes of one motor van priced at $4.5M belonging to GEB Security Service.
Police Inspector Desiree Fowler, prosecuting, successfully objected to bail for the alleged robbers, on the basis of the seriousness and multiplicity of the offences. That case was transferred to Wales Court, West Bank Demerara, for December 4.
Meanwhile, four of the same accused -- Dar, Johnson, Adonis and Stephenson appeared a second time before Magistrate Octive-Hamilton on additional joint charges of robbery under arms and two counts of discharging loaded firearms with intent.
The allegations against them said:
on October 24, at Kuru Kururu along Soesdyke/Linden Highway, being armed with guns, they robbed Chim-a-pauw Robert Vincent of a quantity of clothing valued $200,000 and US$1,500;
the same day and place, being armed with guns, they robbed Lionel Calendar of $55,000;
they robbed Danram Singh of a $210,000 gold band amongst booty with a total value of $310,000;
they robbed Wes-Julio Roberto of a $6,000 cell phone and US$800;
they discharged a loaded firearm at Barbara Ferreira with intent to commit grievous bodily harm and
did similarly to Danram Singh.
In this case also, they were refused pre-trial liberty, until November 17, when they are scheduled to appear at Providence Court, East Bank Demerara, to where the case has been transferred.
The quartet, on two additional joint charges, are accused of having robbed Davindra Chatram of $6M, on October 14, at Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo, while armed with guns and robbing Omwattie Chatram of $20,000 cash in a $470,000 robbery. That case has been transferred to Leonora Court, West Coast Demerara, for November 20. (Nathalene DeFreitas/Guyana Cronicle)
Clothes vendor murder
Cocaine found in fuel tank of car
Police seeking friend
Raphael Piggott
In a dramatic twist of events, police yesterday unearthed eight kilogrammes of cocaine in the fuel tank of the car clothes vendor Raphael Piggott was driving when he was gunned down in Cummings Lodge on Saturday. This new development may point to the motive for the man’s killing and followed the discovery of a large quantity of foreign currency in the vehicle, police said in a press release last night.
The police are now looking for the man Piggott had gone to drop home when he was shot dead by a lone gunman. According to the statement, further intelligence garnered during investigations by the police into the murder of the 26-year-old businessman and Guyhoc Park resident, led to a detailed search of his motor vehicle.
During the search, the police found eight packets of cocaine with a weight of eight kilogrammes concealed in the fuel tank of the vehicle to which some adjustments had been made. The release said that initially the police had found US$14,041 and 1,100 euros in the vehicle at the scene of the incident. The money is the custody of the police.
The police said they are also in the process of making efforts to locate Vincent Da Costa of Sixth Street, Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara, who was in the vehicle with Piggott at the time of the shooting. Piggott was shot and killed by an armed gunman at Sixth Street, Cummings Lodge around 5.15 pm on Saturday and was subsequently pronounced dead at a private hospital.
The man’s reputed wife had told Stabroek News on Sunday that they had just returned from Suriname, where they had gone to do some Christmas shopping. Her husband was dropping off his friend (Da Costa), who had accompanied them, at his Sixth Street, Cummings Lodge home. She was sitting in the front seat while the friend was in the back seat.
She had recounted that they had reached the lot where the friend was to be dropped off, but he had not exited as yet as her husband wanted to turn the car around. She said she knew something was wrong when Piggott reversed the car in a rash manner and then she saw him look through the window. It was at this point that she saw a man with a gun in his hand walk up to the car and before she could react two shots were fired hitting Piggott in the back.
Shortly after that the car crashed into a fence before coming to rest in the yard of the Trooper Taxi Service in Sixth Street. The woman had told this newspaper too that since the incident, she had not seen the friend they had gone to drop off. According to her, her husband had walked and sold clothes and spare parts and also worked his car as a taxi. (Stabroek News)
November 10, 2008
Two cars used in vendor slaying
Raphael Piggott
Men in two vehicles were involved in the murder of clothes vendor Raphael Piggott on Saturday in Cummings Lodge, another execution-style case.
The pregnant reputed wife of Piggott, who was in the vehicle at the time, yesterday said she didn’t see the murderer, just a small hand gun in his hands that fired two bullets into the back of the vendor killing him almost instantaneously.
The woman yesterday told Stabroek News that they had returned from Suriname, where they had gone to do some Christmas shopping and her husband was dropping off his friend, who had accompanied them, at his Sixth Street, Cummings Lodge home when tragedy struck.
She was sitting in the front seat while the friend was in the back seat. A release from the police yesterday said that they are investigating the incident which occurred at around 5:15 pm on Saturday.
Speaking from their Guy-hoc Park home, the woman said that they had reached the lot where the friend was to be dropped off but he had not exited as yet as her husband wanted to turn the car around. She said she knew something was wrong when Piggott reversed the car in a rash manner and when he turned the car around she saw him look through the window.
“So I look through the window and is then I see this man come out a car with a gun in he hand,” the woman said. She said before she could react the man fired two shots hitting her husband in the back. Piggott’s foot was on the accelerator and after he was shot he accelerated and the car pulled off at a very fast speed.
Twenty-six-year-old Piggott was in no position to control the car which eventually came to halt in the yard of the Trooper Taxi Service in Sixth Street after ramming the fence. “Both of us had on seat belt so I was trying to reach over to get the wheel but with the seat belt it was hard. After the car stop I jump out and run around and try to open he door but it was hard.
Some men then come and help open the door and tek he out and they say a bus coming to carry he to the hospital,” the young woman said. She said that she remained with her husband all the time and she tried talking to him even as blood gushed from his wounds. The woman said her husband made no sound after being shot. He was pronounced dead on arrival at the St Joseph Mercy Hospital.
King said after her husband was shot and the car crashed she never saw his friend again until she went to the police station to give a statement. That’s because, according to the friend, after the car stopped “I just open the door and I gone, I ent come out back until the police come because me ent know if them men still went around.”
Speaking to Stabroek News, the man, who did not want to be named, said like Piggott’s wife he only knew something was wrong by the fast rate his friend reversed the car. He said when he looked through his window he saw the gunman running alongside the car with the gun in his hand and even before he realised what was happening the shots were fired.
The man, who is a miner said, as Piggott slumped over the steering wheel with his foot still on the accelerator and the car raced out of control, he stretched forward and attempted to control the wheel to no avail.
It is not clear whether the car was trailing Piggott but from all indications it was not lying in wait for the man, according to residents in the area. And residents also reported that two cars were utilized in the murderous attack since when the man exited one car another car with two occupants was also parked in the area. They both sped off after the shooting. Residents said the cars were white and blue in colour.
And while the woman said her husband, who walks and sells clothes and spare parts and also works his car sometimes as a taxi, does not have a problem with anyone, his mother, Ena Piggott, said that he had a serious feud with a former brother-in-law.
How-ever, the woman said it was about four years ago. While not pointing fingers the woman said it is something worth investigating since as far as she knows her son, who she described as a “loving and peaceful child”, did not have a problem with anyone else. She recalled that her son had called her and told her he had just arrived from Suriname and that she should visit his home and wait for him.
“I tell he I can’t come but I wanted to surprise he so I was here waiting for him when I get the news,” the woman said. Other than his wife and his mother Piggott has also left seven siblings to mourn his death. The man had fathered two children with another woman but both died at ages seven years and a year and a half respectively.
Execution-style
Piggott’s death has reinforced the point that execution-style killings are back. His death follows closely on the heels of 25-year-old Alicia Foster who was shot in the face last month, minutes after she drove up to her David Street, Kitty home.
While she was waiting on her sister to open the gate to drive into the yard she was approached by a man who demanded that she exit the car. She was then shot in the face and pulled from the vehicle. Her assailant then jumped into her car and drove away while his accomplice also fled the scene. The day after the shooting the woman’s car PHH 2236 was found abandoned at Well Road, North Ruimveldt minus the keys.
And on March 21 this year gunmen executed a Charles-town man at Laing Avenue in a well-planned drive-by attack. George Barton called ‘Burlin’, 48, of 34 Howes Street, Charlestown was shot in front of his daughter. The man’s killers were reportedly trailing him since he left his Charlestown home. They crept up on him from the opposite end of Laing Avenue, which is a long stretch of road running east to west from Cemetery Road, East La Penitence to Hunter Street, Yarrow Dam, and shot and killed him on the spot.
Another execution-style killing occurred on May 14 of this year when Arjune Singh was shot at a roadblock. He had stopped at the roadblock block set up on Middleton Street by two police officers who were checking documents. Within minutes, a car pulled up alongside the checkpoint, a gunman disembarked and a fusillade erupted.
And on December 1 last year Pastor Ian David was also shot and killed execution-style. There were suggestions that Pastor David was executed over a private matter and that robbery was not the motive. The pastor of Prophecy One Deliverance Ministry in Hadfield Street, Lodge, was shot after a gunman stormed into the church.
David was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he died while receiving treatment. The pastor was shot to the back of his head and the upper back while lying face down as ordered by the gunman. And on June 7 last year Navin Serrao died after armed men drove up alongside his car and pumped several bullets into him on Thomas Lands. (Oluatoyin Alleyne/Stabroek News)
November 9, 2008
GuySuCo payroll robbery
One bandit a member of ‘Fineman’ gang, say police
The three shotguns and ammunition that were recovered at the Nismes riverside on Friday.
One of captured bandits who committed the daring daylight robbery on a GEB security vehicle on Thursday during which a $17.2M GuySuCo payroll was stolen, has been identified as a member of the Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins gang and linked to the February 17 Bartica massacre, the police said yesterday.
Meanwhile as investigations continue into the heist, three shotguns including the two stolen from GEB security guards were recovered at the Nismes riverside, West Bank Demerara (WBD) on Friday. One of the weapons that was recovered during the armed confrontation at Goed Fortuin during which Leon Dundas was shot dead, belongs to a cambio dealer who was the victim of an armed robbery last year.
Police disclosed in a statement yesterday that during their investigations into the armed robbery of the payroll at Stanleytown, WBD, ranks recovered three 12-gauge shotguns along with sixteen (16) matching cartridges at the riverside at Nismes. Two of them have been confirmed as being those stolen from the GEB security guards during the robbery.
The release further said that the 9mm Glock pistol recovered by the police during the armed confrontation with four of the perpetrators at ‘Old Road’ Goed Fortuin, had been identified as belonging to cambio dealer Roy Sarjoo. Roy Sarjoo was attacked and robbed of a quantity of cash and his firearm by armed gunmen on October 24, 2007, in Subryanville, Georgetown.
In addition, one of the men arrested by the police had been identified as a member of the ‘Fineman Rawlins’ gang and is suspected of having been involved in the murders at Bartica, the release added. The police yesterday did not disclose if they had captured all nine gunmen or provide any information on those in custody or the status of their investigations.
Several efforts to contact senior police officials yesterday to get additional information were unsuccessful. Around 11.20 am on Thursday, the police responded to a report that some fifteen minutes earlier a GEB private security cash escort vehicle had been ambushed and robbed at Stanleytown.
A gang of men reportedly numbering nine, four of whom had firearms, held up the driver and three armed security guards who were escorting a locked canister with $17.2M in cash to the Wales Estate, in the vicinity of the Stanleytown bridge. The bandits then took away the locked canister with the cash along with two shotguns and a .38 revolver and ammunition from the security guards and escaped using the GEB vehicle and a car which they had used to block the road.
Ranks from West Demerara set up roadblocks and began an immediate operation to locate the perpetrators. Subsequently additional resources were made available from the Police Marine Section, the Joint Special Operations Group and the Guyana Defence Force, whose helicopter joined the search.
The teams spread out at key points and cordoned off sections of West Demerara, including the Demerara Harbour Bridge, impeding the movement of the bandits. The GEB security vehicle was later found abandoned at Nismes.
Subsequently a police team encountered two of the bandits on the foreshore at Nismes, who opened fire on the ranks, and during an exchange one of the bandits who was later identified as Eric Williams of Fyrish, Corentyne, was fatally wounded while the other man managed to escape. An unlicensed .32 pistol with twelve matching rounds was recovered by the police along with a boat and an engine.
Williams is no stranger to the police. Over the years he had been linked to several crimes, and he served five years in jail for rape and armed robbery. At the time of his death he had a robbery under arms case before the court, and had recently been released by the Magistrate on bail.
The teams remained in ambush while teams from Georgetown were mobilized and arrests were made on the East Bank of Demerara and at the Demerara Harbour Bridge. The man who had escaped during the armed confrontation at the Nismes foreshore was later arrested in the Nismes area.
While patrolling on Thursday night, a team of police ranks encountered a motor vehicle at Vreed-en-Hoop, West Coast Demerara, with two men inside, who upon being questioned were suspected of being involved in assisting the perpetrators to get away; they were then arrested.
At about 1.15 am on Friday the police confronted a group of four men along the ‘Old Road’ at Goed Fortuin. During an exchange of gunfire Leon Dundas of Punt Trench Dam, Albouystown, was killed; the other three men were arrested.
The police also recovered the canister with the payroll; the .38 Smith and Wesson revolver and the six rounds that had been taken away from the GEB security guards, along with a .32 Taurus pistol with two magazines and twenty-one rounds; a 9mm Glock pistol with two magazines and thirty-one rounds; and two .38 Taurus revolvers with ten matching rounds.
During interviews members of the gang confessed to a number of robberies including the armed robbery committed on businessman Chetram called ‘Barry’ at Tuschen, EBE, on October 14. Several police sources have told this newspaper that there is a bandit with gunshot wounds in hospital while the other four have been transferred to the city where they are being grilled. However, there has been no official confirmation from the police. (Staff/Stabroek News/photo: police)
Money laundering trial
Arnold Budhram sentenced to three years probation
Arnold Budhram, who had pleaded guilty to laundering money for drug pushers in Guyana, was last Friday sentenced to three years probation with six months of that period being spent at home while he is electronically monitored.
According to documents seen by this newspaper, Senior Judge Edward R Korman handed down the sentence which also orders Budhram to reimburse the probation department for the cost of the electronic monitor.
Arnold and his wife, Sabrina, who also pleaded guilty to money laundering and is awaiting sentence, were arrested and charged with money laundering on April 6, 2004. Investigators searched their home and work offices and gathered a large amount of evidential material.
They were granted US$5 million bail each, which was put up in cash and surety by many family members who were present in court when they made their first appearance. Over US$400,000 which was seized by the authorities from accounts held at two banks, Astoria Federal Savings Bank and the JP Chase Morgan Chase Bank, was forfeited to the state by an order made on April 5, 2005.
While Sabrina collected huge sums of money from people associated with drug accused Roger Khan, Arnold, a vice president at a bank, deposited it into bank accounts in small sums to avoid filing currency transaction reports (CTR), which help detect money laundering.
Court documents had revealed that Arnold who was VP-Operations at Astoria Federal Savings Bank admitted to knowingly and intentionally… breaking down amounts of currency in “excess of [US] $10,000 into amounts less than [US] $10,000 and depositing smaller amounts of currency into an account in a financial institution.”
The Budhrams laundered over US$10 million for the Roger Khan organization, the US government said in the charge against them.
During his pleading session before Justice Korman, Arnold was told to inform the court in his own words what he had done.
He responded, “Exactly what you just said.”
Judge: “I can’t hear you.”
Arnold: “Exactly what you just read.”
Judge: “Well, I know that but I need…”
Arnold was then prompted by his lawyer to tell the court in his own words what he had done.
Arnold: “Making deposits less than [US] $10,000 in the bank. Breaking the [US] $10,000 into 5 and 4. Not 5 and 5, 5 and 4 not to file CTR.”
Judge: “You did that to avoid filing CTR?”
Arnold: “Exactly.”
Judge: “And that was the purpose?”
Arnold: “Yes.”
When the first version of the CTR was introduced the only way a suspicious transaction of less than US$10,000 was reported to the government was if a bank teller called an agent and provided the information. This was due, primarily, to the concern by financial institutions about the Right to Financial Privacy. On October 26, 1986, with the passage of the Money Laundering Control Act, the Right to Financial Privacy was no longer an issue.
As part of the act, Congress had stated that a financial institution could not be held liable for releasing suspicious transaction information to law enforcement. Meanwhile, Sabrina is also hoping that she will receive a non-custodial sentence as according to her their son has an eating disorder and he needs almost round-the-clock attention which can only be provided by her.
As she awaits her sentence Sabrina had two of her former colleagues from the Middle Village Radiology write glowing references about her, which were relayed to the court. Other court documents had indicated that a handwritten “money and drug ledger” found in the couple’s New York home referred to individuals who are believed to be Khan’s co-conspirators.
Bank records indicated that in 2001, a company associated with the Budhrams transferred money to a bank account in the name of Khan’s wife and child and it appeared that Khan was in direct contact with the Budhrams in early 2003. The prosecution had revealed how the bank vice-president and the radiology technician used a company they had set up and their connections to launder money for drug traffickers operating in Guyana.
Sabrina Budhram is the sister of Peter Morgan, who is now facing drug charges in New York after being extradited from Trinidad. Records showed that in at least one case the couple transferred funds in his name. (Staff/Stabroek News)
November 8, 2008
Police kill another, capture more payroll bandits
The Joint Services, Thursday night, shot and killed another of the suspects in the GUYSUCO payroll heist.
It happened in a second shootout, this time at Goed Fortuin, also on West Bank Demerara, where the canister that contained the stolen $17.1M was found and eight more suspected of being involved were arrested.
A Police release said, around 01.15 h yesterday, ranks who had maintained constant vigilance throughout the night before, confronted four men along the Goed Fortuin Old Road and there was an exchange of gunfire which resulted in the death of Leon Dundas, of Punt Trench Dam, Albouystown, Georgetown.
The three men who survived the shooting were arrested, according to the release which said they were in possession of:
* the canister in which the GUYSUCO payroll was being transported;
* a .38 ‘Smith and Wesson’ revolver and six rounds that were taken away from the GEB security guards;
* a .32 ‘Taurus’ pistol with two magazines and 21 rounds;
* a 9 mm ‘Glock’ pistol with two magazines and 32 rounds and
* two .38 ‘Taurus’ revolvers with 10 matching rounds.
The release said this interception was preceded by one earlier Thursday night, at Vreed-en-Hoop, West Coast Demerara, where Police took into custody two men suspected to have aided the bandits getaway bid. Two other bandits were held, around the same time, at Nismes, after they failed to flee from a bushy area.
The Police said, during interviews, the men under arrest confessed to a number of robberies, including the one committed on businessman Chetram called ‘Barry’ at Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo, last October 14.
A gang of about nine men hijacked the payroll that was going to Wales Estate about 11:05 h on Thursday but prompt Police response led to the killing of Eric Williams called ‘Eddo’ and the capture of another, recovery of an unlicensed .32 pistol with 12 matching bullets and a boat with engine. (Guyana Cronicle)
‘Jah Jah’ charged with Wednesday Agricola robbery murder
Twenty-one-year-old Jermaine Savory called ‘Jah Jah’ appeared before Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson-Ogle yesterday, charged with the murder of 27-year-old Melissa Payne at Agricola, Greater Georgetown, last Wednesday. The accused, of Lot 97 Second Street, Agricola, was remanded to prison until December 5.
The victim, of Den Amstel, West Coast Demerara, was shot and killed about 08:20 h when her reputed husband, David Fraser, stopped the vehicle in which they were travelling to fix a problem it had developed along the roadway. Payne and Fraser were also robbed, at gunpoint, of cash and gold jewellery. (Guyana Cronicle)
November 7, 2008
BANDIT SHOT DEAD
In Guysuco payroll heist Three suspects arrested
Unlicensed .32 pistol with twelve matching rounds,.....
.... along with boat and engine recovered
The Joint Services shot and killed a bandit after the heist of a multi-million-dollar GUYSUCO payroll on West Bank Demerara yesterday midday, following a high-drama manhunt on the foreshore of several villages.
The dead man, of African descent and believed to be in his late forties, was identified by the Police last night as Eric Williams of no fixed place of abode.
Williams was killed at Nismes, not far from an engine boat that was suspected to be part of the getaway arrangement for the robbers who held up a private security vehicle and a GUYSUCO one which were in a convoy en route to Wales Estate with the money about 11:30 h.
Police recovered a handgun from the possession of the dead man but the stolen cash in two canisters was not. At least three dozen heavily armed uniformed ranks were, up to last night, still scouring dense bushes along the riverside on the foreshore between Nismes and Toevlugt.
They were being supported by a Guyana Defence Force (GDF) helicopter, a river patrol boat and dogs while cops from the Forensic Section of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) were trying to lift fingerprints from a vehicle used by the bandits to escape.
Stake-out': Joint Services ranks hunting the bandits yesterday.
It was reported that the payroll sum, uplifted from a West Coast Demerara commercial bank around 11:00 h, was being transported to Wales Estate when the GUYSUCO vehicle leading the convoy slowed to a near stop to negotiate a hump on the roadway entering Stanleytown.
A statement from the Guyana Police Force last night on the incident, said its investigations have so far revealed that the driver and three armed members attached to the GEB Private Security Service were escorting a locked canister with an undisclosed sum of cash to the Wales Estate, when -- in the vicinity of the bridge at Stanleytown, their path was blocked by a silver grey motor car that was across the road and as they stopped, ‘nine men’ surrounded their vehicle and held them at gunpoint.
The bandits then took away the locked canister with the cash along with two shotguns and a .38 revolver and ammunition from the security guards and escaped using the GEB security vehicle and the motor car.
Boat and engine found
The GEB security vehicle was later found abandoned at a Service Station at Nismes, W.B.D.
The police responded promptly and launched a search for the perpetrators during which two of them were confronted at the riverside behind the Service Station where the security vehicle was found.
The men opened fire on the police who returned fire, fatally wounding one of them who has been identified as Eric Williams of no fixed place of abode, while the other managed to escape,” the Police press statement said.
An unlicensed .32 pistol with twelve matching rounds were recovered by the police along with a boat and engine,” it added.
The Police said “a car that was parked on the public road at Nismes and which is suspected to have been used during the robbery has been detained and three men have been arrested as the investigation continue.”
SECURITY GUARDS BEATEN
The bandits, when they surrounded the GEB vehicle, proceeded to beat the accompanying security guards and seized their firearms, the cellphones of the GUYSUCO personnel and then threw away the ignition keys to their vehicle. The hijackers commandeered the private security vehicle and headed in the opposite direction to where it was going and ventured on a road leading to the Demerara River.
On reaching a point on a parallel dam, they abandoned the vehicle, apparently intending to cross the river by boat to East Bank Demerara. But the quick response of the Police led to the confrontation with the suspected getaway boatman, leaving his passengers holed up in dense bushes along the riverside. They, eventually, eluded capture despite the search being supported from air and river.
At Toevlugt, another West Bank Demerara village, a resident recalled seeing two vehicles with strange men inside parked on the foreshore at Nismes two weeks ago. He said he was standing on the roadway near to a gasoline station when he saw the strangers drive into the area and, subsequently, walk around talking among themselves.
The man said the men spent a while on the foreshore and he believes they are the ones who were involved in yesterday’s robbery. The hunt by the Joint Services included a cordon of villages, which led to a heavy build-up of traffic for several hours.
ARRANGEMENTS IN PLACE TO PAY WORKERS TODAY
GUYSUCO officials at Wales did not disclose how much was taken but promised workers that other arrangements are in place for them to be paid their weekly earnings today, as usual.
The security guards and other victims of the hold-up were last night assisting the Police with the investigations and the foreshore between Nismes and Toevlugt remained under heavy patrol, by ranks of the Joint Services hoping to flush out the wanted fugitives. While the associations have stated that the fares will be reduced, Minister Prashad said that the Ministry will continue to monitor the situation. (Clifford Stanley/Guyana Cronicle)
Agricola murder suspect held
Melissa Payne
A man fitting the description of one of the perpetrators involved in Wednesday’s armed robbery on the Agricola public road during which Melissa Payne was shot dead, was picked up in the village hours after the incident. This disclosure was made by Acting Police Commissioner Henry Greene who told Stabroek News yesterday that three persons were picked up in a house in Agricola.
This newspaper understands that shortly after the shooting, armed ranks went into the village to look for suspects and saw three men running. They were pursued into a house and were later arrested. Two of the men were taken to the Georgetown Hospital that night to be treated for cuts and bruises they sustained while attempting to flee the area.
During a visit to the area following the incident, a resident had complained that he had no faith in the police because they do not respond to reports of incidents in the village. Commenting on this yesterday, Greene said that many of the residents are scared of the criminals and as such do not cooperate with the police.
Police said in a release last evening that they are searching for a fourth man, in connection with the incident. Up to press time last evening the trio was still in police custody.
According to reports 27-year-old Payne of Lot 56 Den Amstel, West Coast Demerara and her reputed husband John Fraser also known as David Fraser were proceeding to Georgetown when they were forced to stop shortly after 8 am when the canter they were in encountered a mechanical problem. Within minutes and while Fraser, a contractor, was attempting to fix the problem, gunmen who were standing in an old shop across the road came over and menaced them.
One approached Fraser, another went to the woman and the third acted as a lookout. Fraser managed to run into oncoming traffic but Payne was unlucky as a gun had already been pressed against her side and she was commanded to hand over the handbag she was clutching.
From all accounts, the woman attempted to escape and was shot in the process while the men fled through a nearby alleyway with the bag which contained more than $100,000 and the two gold chains she was wearing. Payne who sustained a single gunshot wound under her right armpit was pronounced dead on arrival at the Georgetown Hospital. Fraser escaped unhurt.
According to reports the three men involved in the incident are known criminals who would attack unsuspecting villagers late at night. They would hide out in an old shop at the entrance of the street leading to the back of the village and would pounce on persons as they passed, robbing them of valuables and in some cases carrying out sexual assaults.
Two of the youths are living in the Agricola while the third is from a community farther up the East Bank but spends lots of time in the village, this newspaper was reliably informed. (Staff/Stabroek News)
November 6, 2008
Fatal breakdown on Agricola Rd
Woman slain by gunman
Melissa Payne
A stop on the Agricola public road to fix a problem yesterday morning turned tragic when a gunman fatally shot a 27-year-old woman after she refused to hand over a bag containing more than $100,000.
Dead is Melissa Payne of Lot 56 Den Amstel, West Coast Demerara who sustained a single gunshot wound under her right armpit. Her reputed husband John Fraser also known as David Fraser escaped unhurt but collapsed on hearing of Payne’s death and had to be hospitalised.
The couple was proceeding to Georgetown when they were forced to stop shortly after 8 am when the canter they were in encountered a mechanical problem. Within minutes and while Fraser, a contractor, was attempting to fix the problem, gunmen who were standing in an old shop across the road came over and menaced them.
One approached Fraser, another went to the woman and the third acted as a lookout. Fraser managed to run into oncoming traffic but Payne was unlucky as a gun had already been pressed against her side and she was commanded to hand over the handbag she was clutching.
From all accounts, the woman attempted to escape and was shot in the process while the men fled through a nearby alleyway with the bag and two gold chains she was wearing at the time. According to information reaching this newspaper, Fraser had recounted that he was attempting to fix his vehicle when a “big man” with a handkerchief over his nose came up and pressed a gun to his head.
While running away he instructed Payne who was standing a short distance away to hand over the bag and run. However one of the bandits was standing next to the woman and he grabbed her. It was while she was trying to slip away from the bandit that she was shot. Fraser recounted too that he ran up the road and the gunmen shot at him and then ran into a shop across the road.
Eyewitness accounts of what transpired were slightly different. On a visit to the scene, things were calm and the canter truck had already been removed by the police. This newspaper noticed two van loads of heavily armed policemen coming out of the road leading to the back of the village. A man was in the tray of one of the vehicles.
This newspaper could not ascertain if the man was a suspect in the incident but according to reports the three men are known criminals who would attack unsuspecting villagers late at night. They would hide out in an old shop at the entrance of the street and would pounce on persons as they passed, robbing them of valuables and in some cases carrying out sexual assaults. Two of the youths are living in the Agricola while the third is from a community farther up the East Bank but spends lots of time in the village.
“Them man been watching”
Residents recalled that the canter stopped on the public road between two shops and one of the front seats was pushed forwards in order for Fraser to fix a problem. Stabroek News was told that the woman was standing a few feet away clutching a bag that was around her shoulder and she was acting uneasy.
Residents said that from the way she was behaving the three thieves who were watching on from the shop across the road may have suspected that she had valuables in the bag and in addition she was wearing gold bangles and chains.
Persons recalled seeing the men walking across to the canter, two walked towards the couple while the other took up a position a short distance away. When one approached Fraser, he immediately ran into the early morning heavy traffic and the woman attempted to run down a nearby alleyway.
However she only managed to flee a few feet when a gun was pressed against her side. Reports are that the woman attempted to run but was shot after which the gunman snatched the bag and two gold chains she had on and ran into the village, jumping fences in the process.
Stabroek News was told that none of the men was wearing a mask during the attack. Following the shooting there was a traffic build-up on the East Bank highway and public-spirited citizens placed the motionless woman in the back of a car which took her to the hospital.
There she was pronounced dead on arrival. The woman’s mother Debora Payne and an aunt were inconsolable when they turned up at the hospital. Debora fainted minutes after she had seen the body of her eldest daughter at the Georgetown Hospital morgue.
Amidst wails the woman said “Who ever did this, they will pay for this. Father God give me strength. Ow Meli, Ow Mel”. The woman said that she last spoke with Payne on Tuesday about some money she had given to her to bank. Her daughter had promised that she would continue that conversation the following day (yesterday) at home.
Debora recalled that she received a telephone call informing her that her daughter was admitted to the Georgetown Hospital and that she should come immediately. Payne was described by her mother as a kind, loving person.
No faith in police
In light of the rising incidence of gun-related and petty crimes in the East Bank Demerara community residents said that they have lost their confidence in the police as they do not come when there are reports. Instead they would converge on the community when there are “major’ incidents.
According to residents many crimes occur in the village but they do not report them especially since they are being committed by persons who can be easily identified and are around them regularly. They said that when the wayward youths commit crimes on the public road they flee though alleyways and disappear.
In yesterday morning’s incident police who just happened to be in the area arrived shortly after the incident, but there were no reports reaching Stabroek News of any attempt to track the three men. One woman said that she had been a victim several times but it makes no sense to report them to the police. In a release on the incident, police said a warhead was recovered at the scene. (Zoisa Fraser/Stabroek News)
November 5, 2008
Constable says feigned death .....
.....after husband hammered, stabbed her
Dawn Dash in hospital yesterday
A special constable told Stabroek News yesterday she pretended to be dead after being repeatedly stabbed by her husband who the police said later turned the knife on himself.
Both Dawn Dash, 36, and her husband Edward Dash, 37, were admitted to the Georgetown Hospital where he recounted a different version.
“Is she start de nonsense…” said Edward who was accused of beating his wife with a hammer and stabbing her with a knife at their Den Amstel, West Coast Demerara home just after 12:30 yesterday morning.
When Stabroek News visited Dawn of Lot 17 Young and Clay Brick Street, in the Female Open Ward at the Georgetown Public Hospital she was crying out in pain as she attempted to move her left hand that was bleeding. She said that the attack followed a phone call from a male friend overseas just after midnight. She said that Edward got off the bed and went outside but soon returned.
Dawn stated that she got out of the room and went to the hallway where she sat and answered her call “more properly”. She said that Edward then came from behind her and dealt her several blows to her head with a hammer but “de handle of de hammer break so he had to stop” said Dawn. “He then strip me and put me to sit down on de steps” and asked her to be intimate with him.
She said that she told him that she would comply and he immediately dropped the hammer handle. She noted that all through the incident “I dey hollering murder, murder he gon kill me”. She said that neighbours heard her shouts for help and soon called the police who arrived on the scene promptly.
She said that as the police were knocking on her door while calling out her name, Edward peeped through the window but suddenly pulled back, walked towards her and dragged her to the kitchen where he got a knife and stabbed her several times about her body. She said “I fell to de ground and play dead and he left me and went to de bathroom and stab he self with the same knife”.
She said that as Edward was doing so he was crying out in pain. The police soon managed to break down the front door where they found Dawn lying in a pool of blood on the floor while Edward stumbled out covered in blood. The two were later rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital. Dawn alleged that Edward had threatened to kill her once before. She sustained several stab wounds to her chest, back and neck. She also sustained wounds to her head and body as a result of the blows with the hammer.
However, Edward who is currently in the Male Open Ward of the hospital refuted Dawn’s claims. He said that he had only voiced his displeasure at Dawn receiving calls that early in the morning and that she was the one who had picked up the hammer and “hit me on meh muscles”.
He said that he took the hammer away from Dawn and she started to fight with him and that it was as a result of the scuffle that she picked up a knife and stabbed him twice to his chest”. He said that “Is she start de nonsense but I can’t tek this no more, we gon get a divorce”. He also stressed that he had not stabbed himself.
A police press release that was issued yesterday stated that nearby relatives had heard Dawn’s call for help and they immediately contacted the police. Upon entering the house that had been locked and windows grilled, the police found the couple with the stab wounds about their body. The knife suspected to have been used in the altercation was recovered. Investigations are ongoing. (Ayanna Blair/Stabroek News)
November 4, 2008
Labourer, 18, stabbed to death in drunken brawl
15-year-old suspect in custody
Keron Caldeira
An 18-year-old labourer was stabbed to death during a drunken brawl at Line Path, Skeldon around 10.40 pm on Sunday and his 15-year-old attacker has been taken into custody at the Springlands Police Station.
Reports are that Keron Caldeira was rushed to the Skeldon Hospital where he succumbed within 15 minutes while receiving treatment. He sustained wounds to the left side of his neck.
Stabroek News learned that the two were drinking in the company of others when an argument erupted over a pair of boots belonging to Caldeira that the attacker was reportedly wearing.
According to reports, persons had managed to “quiet the two of them” but the argument continued. Caldeira then reportedly cuffed the suspect twice behind his head and left to go into the house. He armed himself with a broken bottle while the suspect who had followed him, retrieved a knife from the house and dealt him the stabs.
The suspect’s mother said she was sleeping at the time of the argument but was awakened by her son shouting “mommy! mommy!” When she got up to investigate why the boy was so hysterical, she saw Caldeira lying in a pool of blood.
She said her husband was “trying to look after him and we took him to the hospital”. She said the police were informed and they visited the scene and retrieved the broken bottle and a pair of slipper belonging to the Caldeira. She could not say what happened of the knife that was used in the attack. The police said last night that they had retrieved the knife.
The woman lamented that her son and the dead teen were getting along fine prior to the incident and that they “used to go swimming together…” She recalled sadly that she cooked “duck curry and dhal and rice yesterday [Sunday] and the two of them eat and [son’s name] even shared some of he own with Keron.” She said though, “because of the alcohol in dey system that’s why that happen.”
She said Caldeira was working in the area and that his father had rented a room at her house for him. She said he had been staying there for the past two months. Caldeira’s father, Winston Caldeira, 40, told Stabroek News yesterday that he received a telephone call around 11.10 pm on Sunday from the hospital. He said he was told that his son had been involved in an incident and had been taken there.
He said he rushed to the hospital but by the time he got there he learnt that his son “got stab and he did not make it.” Caldeira leaves to mourn his father, his mother who resides overseas and his six siblings. He was the eldest child. (Shabna Ullah/Stabroek News)
November 01, 2008
‘Pinky’ was strangled – post-mortem
Anjanie Mahdoo
The post-mortem examination performed yesterday on Anjanie Mahdoo, also known as `Pinky’, revealed that she died from strangulation and from a blow to the right side of her head.
According to a police release the cause of death has been identified as “asphyxiation caused by compression injuries to the neck, compounded by blunt trauma of the right side head”.
The boyfriend of the deceased remains in custody while the police continue investigations. Since the discovery of her body, the family members were adamant that she was the victim of foul play. According to the family members it was very usual for the woman to stay out late and especially not to answer her cellular phone.
A close relative told this newspaper that after Mahdoo could not be found efforts were made to contact the woman’s boyfriend but he could not be reached. However, the family members said that on Tuesday, the sister of the boyfriend suggested that they look for her body in case anyone had killed her. They said that they considered this advice to be suspicious.
On the following day, the partly decomposed body of Mahdoo, a resident of Alexander Village, was found in a canal at Cherry Field, LBI on Wednesday morning by a group of sugar workers. She was found with her head face-down at the side of the canal and was wearing a multi-coloured top and a pair of black pants.
She was reportedly missing since Monday evening after she and a co-worker parted ways after going shopping for footwear. Meanwhile, family members told this newspaper Mahdoo will be cremated tomorrow. (Staff/Stabroek News)
