Three men, Richard Mangal, Eon Sampson, and Gary Joseph, were yesterday charged with robbing several fishermen of over $6 million in a series of pirate attacks over the last weekend, and the court prosecutor said that they confessed to the crimes after leading police to the stolen articles.
Mangal, a fisherman, of Lot 44 Pigeon Island, East Coast Demerara, Sampson, a vendor, of Lot 69 Mocha Arcadia, and Joseph, a farmer/fisherman, of Barima River, North West District, were arraigned on a series of armed robbery and simply larceny charges when they appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
They were not required to plead to the indictable charges and they were subsequently refused bail and remanded to prison, after prosecutor Stephen Telford described them as flight risks and also warned that they could tamper with witnesses.
In the wee hours of Monday morning, the police launched an operation in the Barima/Waini area and arrested the three of five suspected pirates during an operation in which the police were met with resistance by the men in the vicinity of the Waini Coast, some 20 miles north of Moruca. Police recovered five boat engines, a quantity of fish glue, a Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) device, six cell phones and a boat that was used during the robberies. A wanted bulletin has since been issued for one of the men who managed to elude police.
The robberies were committed between 8 pm last Friday and about 6 am last Saturday, beginning at LBI and moving to the Pomeroon River and the Waini Coast, in Region One. The men, who were armed, were said to be masked during the attacks.
It was alleged that between September 7 and September 8, being armed with offensive weapons, the men stole a fishing vessel, valued $400,000, which was the property of Munilall. Munilall and his crew members were fishing at LBI, when they were allegedly confronted by the accused, who were armed with handguns, the court heard. Telford said the alleged pirates then demanded the articles, which included a number of fishing items, from the crew members, who became fearful for the lives and handed the articles over to the pirates, who made good their escape via boat.
It was also alleged that on September 8, at LBI, being armed with guns, they robbed Jameer Khan of a number of articles, which included fish nets, fish glue, and an engine, all valued at $2,300,040 in total. The items were the property of Leonard Jettoo. It is also alleged that on the same date, being armed with a gun, they stole an engine, valued $510,000, which was the property of Mohammed Mohabideen.
It is also alleged that September 8, on the Pomeroon River being armed with weapons, they robbed Shameer Shafiq and other crew members of a number of fishing articles, totalling $360,000. They were also alleged to have had robbed Vibert Singh and his crew members, on September 8, of a 48-HP engine valued over $500,000.
Other charges are expected to be filed against the men, the prosecutor noted.
Telford said the police received information about the whereabouts of the suspected pirates and they were captured. He added that the alleged pirates then took the officers to where the stolen articles were hidden, after which they were taken back to the Charity Police Station, where they provided caution statements in which they admitted to committing the offences.
According to Telford, the stolen items will be photographed and returned to the victims.
He requested that the men be remanded to prison on the grounds that if bail was granted, they would flee the jurisdiction and they would also tamper with the witnesses. He also emphasised the seriousness of the offences.
After careful consideration, the Chief Magistrate refused bail and remanded the men to prison. They are due to be appear at Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court on September 17 in connection with the charges stemming from the offences committed at LBI, at the Charity Magistrate’s Court on September 18 for the charges over the Pomeroon attacks, and the Akwero Magistrate’s Court, in the North West District on October 2, over the Waini Coast attacks.
