Archives for May 1, 2016

A Parika businessman was on Saturday killed when two gunmen attacked him in front of his home.
Dead is Seeram Singh of Lot 40 Parika Outfall, East Bank Essequibo.

Dead fuel dealer Seeram Singh

Relatives of the now dead fuel dealer

Reports are that the businessman was attacked at about 21:00h by the two gunmen who robbed him of three sizable gold chains which were on his neck. Notably, his gold rings were still on his fingers.
Guyana Times was told that the 52-year-old businessman was shot twice to his head. He also had three stab wounds to his body.
Relatives told this newspaper that the businessman put up a fight with the gunmen during the ordeal.
The grieving family stated that they are extremely disappointed with the Police’s response to the robbery.
A close relative related that the Police took a long time to respond following the shooting.

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo met with influential leaders and eminent decision-makers from the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States and the European Union (EU) to discuss the legacy and future prospects of the ACP-EU Partnership, among other issues.

Jagdeo meets with eminent ACP decision-makers

Under the theme ‘From Lomé to Cotonou Post-2020: a changing perspective in the ACP-EU relationship’, the High Level event aimed for a fruitful exchange of views in order to evaluate experience and debate options for ACP-EU relations beyond 2020, when the current Cotonou Partnership Agreement is due to come to an end.
Jagdeo, a former President of Guyana and a member of the ACP Eminent Persons Group, was part of a panel debate that included a number of influential figures.
He addressed the valuable nature of the partnership between EU and ACP, as underpinned by the Lomé Convention and the Cotonou Agreement.
The Lomé Convention is a trade and aid agreement between the European Economic Community (EEC) and 71 ACP countries, first signed in February 1975 in Lomé, Togo.
The Cotonou Agreement is a treaty between the European Union and the ACP countries. It was signed in June 2000 in Cotonou, Benin’s largest city, by 78 ACP countries (Cuba did not sign), and the then fifteen Member States of the European Union.
Jagdeo pointed out that for many ACP countries the EU had been the largest source of development funding. However, he stressed that many elements of that partnership did not work because they were asymmetrically determined by the EU without a full understanding of the realities of many member states of the ACP, particularly the island states.
At the meeting, the Opposition Leader also explored the evolving challenges to any future partnership beyond 2020 when the Cotonou agreement ends.
He outlined too the key elements of the work of the Eminent Persons Group of which he is the Vice Chairman. Jagdeo stressed the necessity of the Heads of State and Government examining the report in their upcoming meeting in Papua New Guinea so as to approve the key framework to guide the negotiations with the EU for the post-2020 relationship.
The longstanding partnership brings together 78 African, Caribbean and Pacific countries and the 28 Member States of the EU under a comprehensive cooperation agreement, covering trade, political dialogue and development cooperation.
The event was co-organised by the ACP Secretariat and the European Commission. It represents a first opportunity to jointly discuss the ACP-EU relationship at this level since internal processes for reflection on the topic were launched by both sides.

– employee shot

Armed bandits on Saturday morning robbed a Corentyne poultry retailer of more than $4 million in cash and jewellery before escaping on foot after shooting an employee.

Injured: Samuel Fernandes

This is as bandits continue to wreak havoc on the Corentyne. The incident occurred at about 03:30h at Lot 438 Rose Hall Town.
Speaking with this publication, Vanisha Shrikisson related that three men, all masked and carrying guns and knives entered her yard as she was about to leave home for the Port Mourant Market to ply her trade.
Reports are that at the time one of the victim’s brothers was in the yard along with three workers. They were all tied with pieces of clothes and placed at the back of the yard while one of the bandits stood guard.
According to the businesswoman, the bandits demanded the keys for the house after pouncing on her. “Dem deh a demand ah key, and I tell dem ah going and get the key, but one ah dem start fuh cuff me in me head and I beg dem fuh leff me alone.”
At the time of the incident, Shrikisson’s sister-in-law and her seven-month-old baby were in the house. “Ah call n tell she fuh open the door and she open it,” she added.
She noted that when the men finally entered the house, they took her to her bedroom and told her to empty a wardrobe, which had $2.5 million, while the other broke into a second bedroom. “He take all the cash I had, wha we sell and all me jewellery,” Shrikisson related. The jewellery is estimated to be in excess of $1.5 million.
Meanwhile, Samuel Fernandes, 20, a part-time worker with the businesswoman who arrived late for work, became suspicious after entering the yard. Shortly after entering the yard, the gunmen were leaving and a confrontation occurred between them and Fernandes. During the confrontation, Fernandes managed to pull the mask off one of the gunmen and in retaliation the bandit shot him to his shoulder. He was rushed to the Port Mourant Hospital and was later transferred to the New Amsterdam Hospital, where he remains a patient. Police have since launched an investigation into the incident but up to press time no arrests have been made. Meanwhile, over the past few weeks there have been a series of robberies along the Lower Corentyne, the most daring being the invasion of a house situated opposite the Albion Police Station on March 13. On April 10, a man was killed when bandits invaded his home at Topu. There have also been multiple home invasions at Belvedere, Port Mourant, Ankerville, Hampshire, and Rose Hall Town.

A 26-year-old man was stabbed to death outside the White Castle Fish Shop, Hadfield Street, Georgetown in the wee hours of Saturday evening.
Gordon Ross, 26, was reported found with multiple stab wounds to the body and four of his teeth missing. Hospital officials also claimed that he was badly beaten to the body.
Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum told media operatives that an investigation has been launched into the stabbing incident, while noting that none of the man’s relatives have made contact with the Police or the hospital.
He explained that based on reports, there was a crowd at the White Castle Fish Shop and the victim received several stab wounds about his body. He added that a taxi was stopped and asked to render assistance to the injured man and Ross was taken to hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries.
Up to late Saturday evening, no one was arrested for the murder. However, Blanhum noted that they are attempting to make contact with the dead man’s relatives to get information about his background, and more importantly, whom he would have left home with on Friday evening.
However, Guyana Times understands that a man of Rastafarian descent visited the Georgetown Public Hospital on Saturday morning to enquire about Ross but after he was told that the man had passed away, he ran out of the medical facility saying “jah rasta farai”.