Thursday September 12, 2013
Kaieteur News
Page 11
Family of slain rice miller believes attack BK embroiled was carried out by known individuals with GGMC over By Leon Suseran The family of the 74-yearold Corentyne rice- miller who was gunned down at his residence on Tuesday night believes that the gruesome attack was carried out by individuals who were wellknown. Lallapersaud ‘Lall’ Juggerdeo of Lot 34, Number Nought Village was shot in the left side chest and was pronounced dead on arrival at the Skeldon Hospital. Juggerdeo, a rice miller for over 15 years, came from a family of rice millers—his father being involved in the business for over 30 years. As newer details are coming to light on the attack, Basant Lallapersaud, the man’s son, stated that the four bandits were armed with two guns, one of which was a pump-action rifle. And they went all out to conceal their appearances since their heads were wrapped in black cloth; they wore sunglasses; were attired in all over black and had their faces covered in black handkerchiefs. He had just left his parents and cousins downstairs chatting around 19:30hrs, something they regularly did at the end of the day. His cousins had just arrived from overseas as well. “My dad left them and went upstairs to sleep,” he stated. The man’s wife, Sheila, continued that her husband left them downstairs around 20:30 hrs and shortly after, she saw a shady individual, dressed in all over black crawling and entering the yard. She called out to the person and questioned who they were. There was no answer, except that the person continued to advance to the family downstairs. She then realized it was an intruder, “and he wore dark, dark clothes and put a dark kerchief and dark sunshade.” The woman added that the intruder grabbed on to her neighbour ’s hair. The neighbour was also sitting with them “and he cuffed her on her back and she fight back.” Meantime, the other three intruders were encroaching. They all invaded the bottom house and kitchen downstairs during which Juggerdeo, who was sleeping upstairs, awoke to the noise and rushed downstairs, demanding the intruders leave the compound. She added, too, that one of the bandits accosted her and demanded that she take him upstairs. “My husband run down the step and pelted the bandits with the pineapples that were on the table and my husband took all of them to the street.” It could very well be that her
....police recover live rounds at crime scene
Juggerdeo’s house
husband diverted the bandits and thwarted their attempts to get further into the home and execute their robbery. He led them out to the roadway and there is where they started to fire shots, killing him in the process. “I think known people did this-from not far from hereand it is not the big banditsyoung guys; now training on this job because if it was professionals, they would have killed all of us but they were scared,” Basant said. He also stated that he was in his house in the front of the yard and heard a loud bang. When he arrived, he witnessed “my dad pelting them with a piece of stick, so they must have decided to shoot him and they fired the shot.” He stated, too, that he and the others started to pelt the bandits with any object they could have found, and it seemed as if the men got scared and discontinued their quest to carry out the robbery in the house and ran away. Sadly, though, his father got shot while the bandits were fleeing the scene. They
SHOT DEAD: Lallapersaud ‘Lall’ Juggerdeo shot their way out. He picked up his father, quickly put him in a vehicle, and rushed him to Skeldon Hospital. Basant believes the motive of the men seemed very clear—”to rob— because we sell rice yesterday [Tuesday] but the people didn’t pay us…They [the bandits] could have got to go in the house, but they didn’t get to go in.” Police arrived at the scene shortly after “with pen and paper—I don’t know if pen
and paper can find the bandits.” Kaieteur News was also told that the Commander of ‘B’ Division, Mr. Clifton Hicken also visited with other senior ranks yesterday. The police recovered three live rounds and two spent shells at the crime scene. “Our life ain’t safe in this country—the bandits them and dope people tracing you…Criminals must serve their time because they don’t deserve to be out here and destroy an honest person. I don’t think it’s right.” He described his father as an “honest and hardworking” person. “He didn’t fight with anybodyhe is home, had some fun at times but no fighting with neighbours-everybody can talk about him.” Juggerdeo also leaves to mourn his children: Basant, Sisto, Gaitree, Shashtree and Vijai. A post- mortem is due to be performed on the body but no resident Pathologist is available since Dr. Vivekanand Brijmohan is on leave.
Convict gets additional year for smoking utensil A convict, who is currently serving a one-year prison sentence for attempting to smuggle 99 grams of cannabis, was on Tuesday sentenced to serve an additional year in jail for a similar crime. Keith Tuesday, a married father of four, begged the court “to finish de story,” when he faced Georgetown Magistrate Judy Latchman. The man stressed that he cannot afford to be imprisoned because his wife is pregnant with their fifth child. He had initially pleaded not guilty to the charge. Law enforcement officers say that on August 8, 2013, Tuesday had in his
possession a utensil used for smoking cocaine at his Lot 2112 Alexander Street residence. The improvised pen cover used in connection with smoking cocaine was found in a room occupied by the defendant. The defendant was taken into police custody and an examination conducted by narcotics analysts revealed that the instrument tested positive for cocaine. Magistrate Latchman inquired whether the defendant has other criminal antecedents, prior to her ruling. Police Prosecutor Sergeant Vishnu Hunte, detailed the defendant’s criminal background.
Hunte told the court that Tuesday received a one-year sentence in absentia for possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking. When he was arrested for the current offence and placed before the court on August 9, he began to serve his sentence. Tuesday, then informed the court that “de sentence pass behind me back cause I been in jail serving another small sentence.” He explained that he served a two-month prison sentence for assault. The Magistrate took all the factors into consideration, before informing the defendant that he will be jailed for an additional 12 months.
License expansion BK International is accusing the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) for delaying the growth and expansion of the company by not responding to its application for a license to increase its Quarry reserve. BK’s Chief Executive Officer, Brian Tiwarie, on Tuesday said, “We have applied to expand our quarry operations at the GGMC since last year; we have not even got a response from GGMC to date. Whether they would do it, whether they would need a new quarry, whether they would allow us to expand… We are still waiting. We have the financial resources; we have the capacity to expand our business.” He then released the letter his company penned to the GGMC. In the said document BK stated, “The increasing demand for massive infrastructural development in the country, sharp increase in housing and commercial construction and export demand for crushed aggregates from Guyana are the factors attributed to the increasing demand for stone and hence the need for expansion. “It is in the light of this impending situation that BK Quarries Inc. is hereby seeking to secure a new license so that reserves may be established and production ensured.” According to Tiwarie, “We are trying to do everything possible that we could do with stone but we need the support from GGMC so that we can expand our business.” Rickford Vieira, the Commissioner of GGMC, said that the licence was issued to BK International since 2007, but with respect to the granting of expansions, that would be impossible since the lands that would have to be allocated for expansions are being leased to another entity. “As such we (GGMC) never got clearance from Guyana Lands and Survey Commission to grant an
expansion for the licence.” Vieira added that a meeting was held with BK International explaining why the expansion was not given. However, Tiwarie denied that there was any meeting. Further. He produced a copy of the document that seemed to suggest that the lease to the other entity was granted in 2010 but there was a flaw. The document appeared to seek to make the licence retroactive to 2003, which is highly irregular. The Flip Side BK’s contention comes at the time when the company is not getting enough local sales for ‘granite stones, even though the general consensus among some contractors is that there seems to be an apparent lack of stone available for purchase. But those making the claim could not name one contractor who sought to acquire stone from BK International who did not secure supplies according to his request. With the limited market avenues being presented to BK for crushed granite the company is contemplating the option to have their granite stones exported to clear off the stock pile that it has accumulated. However the company reported that it is giving preference to the local market and as such has not taken a decision to export stones. “We are giving up to this month end. If by this month end we see that they are not taking off the stone, then we will ship it out because we have an order for 50,000 tons per month to head to Trinidad where a Brazilian company is doing a huge highway in Trinidad. “We are now signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to have the 50,000 tons delivered with our ships.” This also comes in the wake of the market currently being supplied with slate stones by Gafsons Industry, a type of stone that BK has quantified as being inferior.