Five Cuban nationals were on Tuesday each fined $100,000 after pleading guilty to charges that they forged American passports and attempted to use them to leave the country through the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri.
Xavier Ferrer, 33, Enrique Lopez, 46, Maikel Hernandez, 35, Andy Anaguer, 33, and Dianh Lautoledo, 25, appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan in Georgetown to answer to charges ranging from fraud, conspiracy to commit a felony to overstaying in Guyana.
The court heard that the five men, on December 5th, at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, with intent to defraud, uttered forged United States of America passports to a Suriname Airways manager. For this charge, the men pleaded guilty and they were each fined $50,000.
The court also heard that between November 13 and December 5, all five men, at Georgetown, with intent to defraud, conspired with persons known and unknown to forge United States of America passports by inserting their photographs into the passports. The men also pleaded guilty to this charge and they were each fined $50,000 for the offence.
Anaguer and Lautoledo also pleaded guilty to charges of overstaying in Guyana and they were fined $20,000 and $30,000, respectively.
According to their lawyer Peter Hugh, the Cubans came to Guyana for a vacation and Christmas shopping. He said they were approached by an individual who offered them the US passports for the price of US$2,000.
The lawyer added that the Cubans were sorry for their actions and should be fined since they did not waste the court’s time.
Chief Magistrate McLennan ordered that the men pay the fines or serve a three-month prison sentence in default of payment.
