A corrupt transaction charge against a Police officer was recently dropped after Magistrate Peter Hugh upheld a no-case submission presented by defence attorney Tuanna Hardy.
Police Sergeant Ramesh Chaitram and Constable Marlon Khadoo, both of Ulverston Village, Corentyne, were last year accused of corruptly obtaining $400,000. The allegation against them was that whilst being agents of the Guyana Government, on September 11, 2022, at the Rose Hall Town Police Outpost, they corruptly obtained from Gomotie Mattadin $400,000 as inducement for not charging Jahamal Hussain for illegal possession of a firearm.
At the close of the prosecution’s case, Khadoo’s attorney Tuanna Hardy submitted that her client had received no money, and even if he had, he had not been in a position to forgo charges against Hussain, as he was not the Station Sergeant at the Police station where he worked.
Magistrate Hugh thus upheld the attorney’s no-case submission and dismissed the charge against Khadoo. The charge against Chaitram was similarly dismissed earlier this year.
Chaitram and Khadoo had each been placed on $100,000 bail pending determination of their trials.
Jahamal Hussain, called ‘Matthew’, a 29-year-old carpenter of Nigg Settlement, Corentyne Berbice, was eventually charged with possession of a firearm without being the holder of a licence, a charge to which he pleaded not guilty.
It is alleged that on September 11, 2022, at Albion, he had in his possession a .22 revolver without being the holder of a firearm licence. This publication is unaware of the legal status of that matter.
After the gun was allegedly found at Albion, three Police officers had contacted the accused and had allegedly sought to have the matter not investigated further in exchange for $1 million.
However, after negotiations, the Police ranks had allegedly agreed to accept $400,000.
This publication understands that there was not enough evidence to implicate the third Police officer who allegedly had been involved in the transaction.
