Man charged over Potaro murder, gold heist

-denies shooting at undercover cop during arrest attempt

A suspect has been charged with murdering a Linden miner in the interior and stealing a quantity of raw gold in a separate attack and a city court was yesterday told that he was wounded in a shootout with an undercover policeman who tried to arrest him.

Steve Mohamed was yesterday charged with murder, armed robbery, illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition and discharging a loaded weapon to prevent a policeman from arresting him. During his arraignment before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry, before whom he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court One, he said that he was shot four times during his arrest for no reason.

Mohamed was not required to enter a plea to the murder charge, which stated that on July 15, at Konawaruk Backdam, Potaro, he murdered Quacy Thompson.

Steve Mohamed
Steve Mohamed

No details of the murder charge were given to the court but police had earlier reported that Thompson, 31, of Linden, was involved in an argument with two men, during which he was stabbed and shot to his body.

Mohamed pleaded not guilty to the armed robbery charge, which states that on September 1, while being armed with a gun at Mowasi Backdam, he robbed Akeem Greene of three pennyweights and 11 ounces of raw gold, $75,000 worth in phone cards and $145,000, all totalling $1,220,000 and which were the property of Terry Ambrose.

It was also alleged that on October 6, at Friendship, East Bank Demerara, he discharged a loaded firearm to prevent Sergeant Leon Lindo from lawfully arresting him. Additionally, on the same day, he is accused of having a .38 Taurus revolver in his possession, two live rounds of .38 ammunition, a live .380 round, and spent shells for a .380 round and a .32 round, all without licences.

Mohamed denied all the weapons charges. He was unrepresented by an attorney and addressed the court himself, lamenting that he had been shot four times during his arrest. He further complained to the magistrate that the police have refused to take a statement of his complaints even though he had begged them.

Quacy Thompson
Quacy Thompson

“Everybody just ignoring me, nobody ain’t teking me statement about wah happen to me,” he stressed.

According to him, he was shot in the abdomen by a “Rasta man,” “just like duh.”

He stressed that he had done nothing wrong and could not say why anyone would want to harm him. “I get shoot four times,” he argued.

The court enquired from Mohamed whether he knew the man who had shot him but he responded in the negative, explaining that he only knew that the man was “Rasta.”

Magistrate Sewnarine-Beharry ordered the prosecution to investigate the claims made by the accused.

It was at this point that Prosecutor Michael Grant said that on October 6, the date of the gun-related offences, it was the accused who had shot at police, who returned fire, hitting him.

The court heard from Grant that on that day, an intelligence rank from the Guyana Police Force received certain information and went to the defendant’s home in disguise at Friendship Village in connection with the murder and robbery charges.

While at Mohamed’s home, the court heard that Mohamed, pulled out a gun and discharged fire at Sergeant Lindo who returned fire, wounding him in the process.

The Chief Magistrate subsequently informed Mohamed that he would be remanded to prison until October 20, when he has to attend the Providence Magistrate’s Court for the gun-related charges.

Meanwhile, he will be taken to the Mahdia Magistrate’s Court on January 21 for the murder and robbery charges.