A 34-year-old Linden man was yesterday charged on three counts relating to the harbouring of wanted man Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins and his gang.
Shemroy Lyte of 36 Stewart Park Wismar Linden was not required to plead to the indictable charges when they were read to him by Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry.
It is alleged that between February 18 and April 22, at Wismar Linden, Lyte received, relieved, comforted, harboured assisted and maintained wanted men Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins, Clebert Reece called ‘Chi Chi,’ Cecil Simon, Otis Fefe and Mark Roydon Williams, also known as Roydon Durant or ‘Smallie’ who are wanted for the Bartica killings.
Between April 27 and June 16, at Christmas Falls, it is alleged that Lyte knowingly harboured the said individuals whose names and photographs had been published as being wanted by the police for the Bartica massacre and other criminal offences.
It is further alleged that between February 18 and April 1 at Wismar Linden, Lyte knowingly harboured the said men whose names and photographs had been published as wanted by the police for the Bartica massacre.
Lyte was unrepresented in court yesterday.
Since the February 17 killings at Bartica where 12 persons were gunned down several persons have been charged either with the murders or with harbouring the ‘Fineman gang’ which the authorities believe is responsible for the Lusignan, Bartica and Lindo Creek killings.
On April 9, Roger Simon, a 44-year-old miner and father of nine was the first person charged with the 12 Bartica murders. His matter was transferred to the Bartica Magistrate’s Court by Magistrate Melissa Robertson-Ogle. On May 28, a 30-year-old miner Clebert Reece called ‘Chi Chi’ of Lot 63 Barr Street, Albouystown, was charged with the 12 indictable counts of murder.
So far three men have been charged with harbouring Fineman and members of his gang. 32-year-old Sheldon Williams of 74 Seventh Field, Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara was remanded after he was charged with knowingly harbouring Mark Roydon Williams, also known as Roydon Durant or ‘Smallie’ who was said to be a member of the Fineman gang. The 20-year-old Durant of Uitvlugt, West Coast Demerara and a 14-year-old boy of Strathspey Squatting Area East Coast Demerara were jointly charged with the murders of the Lusignan 11. Those murdered at Lusignan were 48-year-old Clarence Thomas, his 12-year-old daughter Vanessa Thomas and his son Ron Thomas; 32-year-old Mohandai Gourdat and her two sons, four-year-old Seegobind Harrilall and ten-year-old Seegopaul Harrilall; 22-year-old Shazam Mohamed; 55-year-old Shaleem Baksh; Seecharran Rooplall, 56, his wife Dhanrajie Ramsingh, 52, and their 11-year-old daughter Raywattie Ramsingh.
On June 23, Rogers Omali Rogers 30, of 83 Woodpecker Lane Amelia’s Ward Linden was charged with harbouring the Fineman gang at Christmas Falls upper Berbice. He was also charged with ‘accessory after the fact of murder’ on June 24.
Royston Waldron 36, of Friendship East Bank Demerara was also charges with harbouring Fineman and members of his gang at Goat Farm. Both men pleaded not guilty to the harbouring charges when they were read to them by Magistrate Melissa Robertson-Ogle.
Waldron had also faced a number of robbery charges before Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton.
He was named as the number one defendant in three of the matters and number two, in another. The other named defendant was Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins. It is alleged that on June 16 at UNAMCO Road Upper Berbice River Waldron armed with a gun robbed Tyrone Halley of one Toyoto Hiace minibus-BGG 501 and a cell phone, Anita Hunte of one cell phone, Indra Bissoon of two cell phones and Donna Ford of one cell phone.
Attorney-at-law Glen Hanoman who had represented Waldron in these matters told the court in his application for bail that the institution of these charges was a “publicity gimmick” intended to appease the public. He had said that in the end the matters would amount to nothing due to the “unorthodox” manner in which the police were going about their work.
Hanoman had said that his client had been arrested on June 10 at Linden, miles away from where these alleged acts had occurred.
Just over three weeks after the Lusignan killings, gunmen struck at Bartica though security had been heightened countrywide. On the February 17 at about 9.40 pm, some 20 gunmen attacked Bartica killing 12 persons including three policemen during an hour-long strafing. Around 9.45 on the night of February 17 an estimated 15-20 gunmen rampaged through Bartica. Reports were that three of the men were left to guard the river while more than ten others assaulted the community in the hour-long attack. The police outpost was first attacked and three officers were killed while two others were seriously wounded. The gang of gunmen carted off several firearms and ammunition from two strongboxes at the outpost.
The gunmen then descended upon the CBR Mining Company, further up First Avenue and shot 72-year-old security guard, Irving Ferreira as he attempted to flee. Once inside the building, the gunmen broke into a safe and removed 11 guns: six shotguns and five .32 pistols and a quantity of ammunition. Police said that the gunmen also took away two safes containing gold, jewellery and cash.
The other persons killed in the attack were Bartica residents Edwin Gilkes and Dexter Adrian; policemen stationed at the Bartica Police Station – Lance Corporal Zaheer Zakir and Constables Shane Fredericks, Ron Osborne and Deonarine Singh who was from Wakenaam; Ronald Gomes of Kuru Kururu, Ashraf Khan of Middlesex Essequibo, Abdool Yasin, Errol Thomas of Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo and Baldeo Singh of Montrose East Coast Demerara were shot execution style at the Transport and Harbours Stelling.
After striking at the mining company, the bandits turned their attention to the home of a businessman and broke into the heavily-grilled home of Gurudat Singh, a gold dealer of First Avenue, a short distance away from the company. Firing their weapons and then using a sledge-hammer, they broke a window and knocked out part of a concrete grill to gain access to the home. Singh said that the gunmen took away two attaché cases.
A police press release issued late on Tuesday evening had stated that the police had arrested another man fingered in the February 17 Bartica massacre and had recovered two metal vaults and a briefcase containing documents which were identified as belonging to the CB&R mining company which was robbed on the night of the killings.
