Twenty of the army’s stolen AK-47s have so far been recovered, mostly from criminals, and the search continues for the remaining ten.
Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Chief of Staff Commodore Gary Best, in an invited comment to Stabroek News would only say that the search for the remaining weapons would continue. He was asked how many of the missing AKs had been found but he could not provide a figure since he did not have that information available at the time.
Subsequent efforts to get this figure from the GDF and then the police were similarly unsuccessful. According to Stabroek News’ records twenty weapons have so far been found.
Best had told this newspaper last May that the army would never stop looking for the stolen guns, and had expressed the view that the weapons were not in use at that time since the level of criminal activity had decreased somewhat and the crimes being committed were not associated with rifles.
Thirty AK-47s along with five pistols vanished from the GDF’s armoury at the base camp in February 2006.
Seventeen of the weapons which disappeared have been found in the possession of criminals, while the most recent recovery was at Adelphi, East Canje on September 21 this year.
A police source told this newspaper that the guns had been stolen with the sole intention of placing them in the hands of criminals.
There have been numerous suggestions that the weapons have been used in various crimes, but
Crime Chief Seelall Persaud told this newspaper last week that there was no evidence to support this theory and that the two weapons which were found in Berbice had not been used in any recent crimes.
The identity of whoever took the weapons remains an unanswered question four-and-a-half years later, even though Lieutenant Colonel Tony Ross who was in charge of the armoury at the time was found guilty in May 2008 of failing to effectively manage the army’s weapons’ store resulting in the theft of the weapons.
Ross was initially charged with four counts of negligence of duty but was freed on two of the charges, which were administrative in nature.
Wanted bulletins were issued for ex-soldiers Oliver Hinckson and James Gibson in connection with the weapons theft but the two never surrendered to police. They were later found in a South Ruimveldt house and slapped with gun-related charges for an unrelated firearm which was found in their possession.
Gibson, a Buxton resident who was killed during a shoot-out with police at Cromarty foreshore in December 2008 did have one of the GDF weapons in his possession at the time of his death.
The police had expressed an interest in Gerald and Maryam Perreira, who were said to be associated with the Joint Initiative for Human Advancement and Development (JIHAD). They had said that the Perreiras were wanted for questioning in relation to the missing weapons and had asked them to make contact with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID).
Former policeman Lloyd Roberts and Blue Iguana owner Royston Peniston and former army members were also persons of interest the police said, although they have never charged anyone with the theft.
In the months following the mysterious disappearance, the army in collaboration with the police conducted numerous raids across Georgetown and the East Coast Demerara as well as in Berbice. During these raids, the homes of several suspected drug dealers were targeted and cocaine and illegal weapons were seized.
The raids intensified in March 2006 when the Joint Services swooped down on the Blue Iguana Night Club and two other night spots in the city in an operation that that led to the discovery of illegal guns and ammunition, the arrest of several persons and the detention of 175 vehicles, some heavily tinted and others with questionable documents.
The Joint Services in their quest to find the high-powered rifles also targeted convicted drug trafficker, Roger Khan’s known businesses in the city and his D’Aguiar’s Park residence and deployed a team to Kaow Island in the Essequibo River where he owned a sawmilling operation.
Though none of the army’s weapons were recovered during this operation which lasted several days, many persons were charged and placed before the courts. This was the biggest operation launched in search of the missing weapons.
The first AK-47 belonging to the GDF was recovered in a clump of bushes on the East Coast Demerara Railway Embankment between Melanie Damishana and Enterprise months after the theft. Eight others belonging to the army were recovered from the bandits who had stormed the commercial banks at Rose Hall in Berbice in August 2006. These bandits were all killed in armed confrontations with the Joint Services over a period of three days.
In September 2006, the police got a tip-off from an unknown caller who informed them that some of the missing guns were at a location in West Coast Berbice.
An operation was launched and a bag containing three AK-47s was discovered, two of which were later confirmed to be from the GDF’s missing batch.
Another weapon was found on a dead bandit who was part of the gang which had raided two houses in Canal Number Two Polder, West Bank Demerara. The man has never been identified.
In November 2006, one of the army’s AK-47s was found in the possession of alleged former Buxton gang-member Anthony Charles, called Kussum, who was shot dead in Bachelor’s Adventure during a shootout with members of the Joint Services.
According to Stabroek News’s tally, thirteen AKs were recovered on separate occasions in 2006 while in 2007 two were found.
In March, 2007, based on information received members of the Joint Services swooped down on a house at Lot 190 ‘B’ Church Street where they recovered one of the stolen assault rifles. It was found in the upper flat of the building with part of its butt sawn off. Five occupants of the house were arrested. According to reports, an army officer frequented the property.
Then in October 2007, Seon Collier, 26, also known as ‘Picture Boy,’ who was wanted for killing his best friend and a brother was nabbed while fast asleep in a house at Bachelor’s Adventure, East Coast Demerara. An AK-47 rifle which was found with Collier was said to have been one of the GDF’s weapons.
In 2008, two were recovered – one on Gibson and the other on Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins who along with Jermaine ‘Skinny’ Charles was killed in August 2008 during a shootout with Joint Services ranks at Kuru Kururu, where they were fatally injured.
Then in 2009 only one weapon was located. The stolen AK-47 was found during a raid on a house at Haslington, East Coast Demerara. The house was the hiding place of Courtney James who was wanted in connection with a series of armed robberies and rapes along the coast.
James reportedly had the gun with him during robberies, but there was no evidence indicating he had used it, a high-level police officer had told this newspaper.
James was shot dead by police at Mandela Avenue and Hunter Street Georgetown in May last year following a chase by police.
The two weapons found at Adelphi Village, East Canje brings the tally to twenty. On September 21, quick action by police led to the arrest of a suspect and the recovery of a cache of arms. According to reports three police officers who had just responded to a report of domestic violence were on their way out of a street when they recognized two men who were known characters on a bicycle and ordered them to stop. The men who were carrying two bags refused to comply.
One of the policemen kicked the bicycle, causing the men to fall; they then got up and ran in separate directions. However, one of the policemen managed to hold on to one of them.
In his bid to escape, the suspect savagely bit the officer. His colleague who ran to his assistance was also bitten. The other suspect successfully eluded capture with a bag which may have contained weapons.
A search of the bag the captured man was carrying revealed two army AK-47s, in addition to one Uzi 9 mm semi-automatic pistol, one 12-gauge shotgun and three live 12-gauge cartridges. The suspect Timothy Sampson, 25, has been slapped with gun related and assault charges and is to return to court later this month.
