Ex-employee, goldsmith charged
A former employee of Ricardo Henriques, the US-based businessman who was murdered in Middle Street on Monday night, and a goldsmith, appeared at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court yesterday charged with the man’s murder.
Junior Henry, 25, of Lot 58 West Ruimveldt Estate, Georgetown and Baldeo Seegobin, 31, of 97 West Ruimveldt Housing Scheme, Georgetown were not required to plead to the indictable charge of murder, read to them by Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson.
It is alleged that on November 24, Henry and Seegobin murdered Henriques.
Henry, who told the court he was a porter at Henriques’ D’Urban Street variety store, informed the court that Basil Williams was his attorney. Vic Puran, who was present at the proceedings yesterday, represented Seegobin.
Puran made four submissions to the court. According to the attorney his client was beaten; a plastic bag containing a noxious substance was placed over his head; his mother was denied visitation; the police refused to take a report from another attorney and they also refused to take a statement from him in relation to his alibi.
Baldeo Seegobin
Seegobin was beaten by members of the Guyana Police Force, Puran stated, and he requested that the magistrate record his submissions “lest it be labelled as fabrication at the time of the trial.”
Further, Puran told the court that a plastic bag containing a noxious substance was placed over Seegobin’s head and this caused him to become “giddy”.
“If the police have decided that people have committed crimes then it’s best they kill them….Killing them is better than torturing them,” Puran told the court.
According to Puran, his client knows one of the officers who assaulted him and he is in a position to identify the others. The attorney reminded the court that Acting Police Commissioner Henry Greene had said that magistrates have to order investigations into such matters and suggested that action be taken.
Seegobin, the lawyer said, was also forced to sign a prepared statement and while he was in custody for a number of days his mother was denied visitation. In addition, Puran said, the police refused to investigate or take a statement from Seegobin in relation to his alibi.
In addressing Puran’s submissions, Police Prosecutor Denise Griffith said if the police are of the view that granting visitation by a relative or friend of the accused will threaten their investigation then they can exercise their right to deny visitation.
Junior Henry
With regard to Puran’s submission that the police refused to take a statement from the accused in relation to his alibi the prosecutor said she had no such instructions. According to Griffith, there are certain redresses which the defence can take in such cases.
Given the circumstances, the prosecutor requested that the matter be adjourned for report and fixture. This application was granted by the magistrate.
The men were remanded to prison and they have to appear again in court on January 20. Henriques, 31, of D’Urban Street, Werk-en-Rust was shot in the head at point blank range just outside a Lotto booth on Middle Street during a robbery. The shooting occurred at approximately 7 pm on Monday and Henriques was later pronounced dead on arrival at Georgetown Public Hospital.
live in prison 4 the 2 men why? gt get so and the gov is not doing eany thing to save that country get that pres out and make a change like USA
jail these low life scum for life, or the hang man noose.
MAY JUSTICE BE SWIFT FOR MR. HENRIQUES’ DEATH. HOWEVER, THE RELEVANT AUTHORITIES NEED NOT COMPLICATE THE CASE THEREBY LEAVING GUILTY PARTIES TO GET OFF ON TECHNICALITIES.
IF THE TWO DEFENDANTS ARE GUILTY, LET THEM SUFFER THE CONSEQUENCES. HOWEVER, IF THE POLICE HAVE THE WRONG GUYS, THEY SHOULD ENDEAVOUR TO DO WHAT’S RIGHT IN FINDING THE RIGHT ONES.
BY THE WAY, SN, I AM STILL NOT CLEAR WHAT LED TO THE POLICE ARRESTING THE TWO DEFENDANTS. IF YOU HAVE THAT INFO, PLEASE SHARE IT WITH US.
AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK, SN, BECAUSE IT IS VIA YOUR MEDIUM THAT I KEEP ABREAST WITH WHAT’S GOING ON IN MY NATIVE GUYANA.
u make a good point but if u want ppl to read what you are saying then stop with the capital letters.
if what their attorney is saying is true the arresting officers has to take a more professional approach .They need to watch the ‘First 48′ on A&E.
They would not understand the ‘First 48″ ..too high-faluten for them.
But I did notice that the Magistrate decline to say anything in rebuttal to ‘quote’ ;
“The attorney reminded the court that Acting Police Commissioner Henry Greene had said that magistrates have to order investigations into such matters and suggested that action be taken.”
So no investigation into the allegations of “roughing up”.
Did I say that is Guyana? Perhaps inferentially !
they should be hung no remorse for a life they could of just rob hom and leave but to shoot in in cold blood like that I have no sympathy hang them
I say keep up the GREAT work GPF! How about the rights of the victim? There is a case in Florida right now – Casey Anthony- I bet – had the GPF done the interrogation – case would have been closed already!
Corruption all over again.
You never know who’s right and who’s wrong .
You catch sombody redhanded , you rough them up , don’t matter but you got suspects , you can’t do as they did to these men . GPF , you make a step forward and ten step backwards, not good.
What led to the arrest of these two man?
Assuming that these men did the act, why did the police have to complicate things with tortue?
I look at this on the news the other night, I saw a father wept for his son saying they could have taken the money, they didn’t have to kill him.
This was just so horrible looking at this elderly man crying for his son. His son should have been doing his last rites, instead, he has to do the last rites for his son.
That deceased provided employment for these people so they could they could earn a salary and what they did, the kill him to take what he had.
How greedy.
I wish to God that this country could implement some of the laws that exist in the moslem countries. (cutting off their hands and feet).
I wish the po po not only beat them so badly but do everything in their power to gave justice to this father who saw his son killed infront of him because of money that was not theirs.
Where is the the Human Rights and all the others organisation who cry foul everytime the police shoot a criminal?
I don’t hear them saying anything.
My sincere condolances to the family.
You make a sensible and wise comment Gettho Youth.
Not just the bloggers here; but very many ordinary Guyanese take this idea of INNOCENT TILL PROVEN GUILTY thing … much much too far.
EG: Criminals are caught red-handed whilst committing aggravated armed robbery and when the police put a bag over their head, the lawyers claim human rights and accuse the Forces of torture.
Guyana is in the grip of a terrible lack of value for human life and it is quite wrong to try and impose colonial human rights thinking on a country which most of us now agree is behaving like the Wild Wild West.
I am not sure that cutting of hands and feet is the way to go!!!!
However death for certain crimes like premeditated murder and dealing in HARD DRUGS seems to be the way to go.
Only just yesterday, China injected a prisoner and put him to sleep and the UN Human Rights people appear not to have noticed in the least.
I ABSOLUTELY AGREE WITH TASH. IT’S IRONIC THAT SOMETIMES THOSE CHARGED WITH DISPENSING JUSTICE HAVE THE FAINTEST IDEA WHAT IT TAKES TO UPKEEP I. MANY POLICE OFFICERS FORGET ALL THE TRAINING THEY’VE RECEIVED UPON BECOMING EMPLOYED. FOR THEM, IT’S ABOUT GETTING A JOB.
TIME AND TIME AGAIN WE FIND CRIMINALS GETTING OFF BECAUSE MANY OF THEM (THE CRIMINALS) AND THEIR ATTORNEYS) EDUCATE THEMSELVES ON THE LEGALITIES OF DUE PROCESS.
OUR POLICE OFFICERS NEED TO WATCH PROGRAMMES THAT PERTAIN TO GOOD POLICING INSTEAD OF JUST BILKING THE GUYANA TREASURY EVERY MONTH-END.