Is wanted man George Lashley the US-based link who was supporting the gang responsible for the Ministry of Health (MoH) fire and a string of attacks in the city last November?
Despite repeated questions from this newspaper, Crime Chief Seelall Persaud has neither confirmed nor denied this.
On Thursday afternoon, Stabroek News presented this question to the crime chief for the second time. His only response was a short laugh.
In August 2009, after the MoH fire on July 17 that year, police had issued a wanted bulletin for Lashley. The man, according to them, was wanted for questioning in relation to the incident.
The bulletin, which was issued exactly one month after the MoH fire, asked anyone with information on Lashley to contact police. It has been more than 15 months since that bulletin was issued and investigators still have not been able to get their hands on the man.
Who is George Lashley? Persaud has declined to answer this question and indicated that he will not put Lashley on trial in the media. Does Lashley have a criminal record?
Even this question the crime chief has declined to answer stating that whatever information police wanted known to the public was disclosed in the wanted bulletin.
The same August 17, 2009 wanted bulletin issued for Lashley gave his last known address as “Lot 187 Freeman Street, North/East La Penitence”. Lot 187 Freeman Street is actually in East La Penitence and does not extend into the north-east section of the community.
It was further stated in the bulletin that Lashley was about 60 years old. Several US sources have since informed this newspaper that Lashley is 53 years old. It was most disturbing, one source said, that police have not been able to provide accurate information on the wanted man.
Lashley, according to one source, is a former member of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and would have spent time in prison after 1975. The GDF and the Guyana Prison Service, the source stressed, would have accurate records for Lashley.
“This leaves us to wonder just how seriously they are taking this investigation,” the source said adding, “if they can’t provide accurate basic facts for this man then how will they ever find him? In fact, Lashley has been living in the US, New York to be exact, many, many years now.”
Where is Lashley?
Last Wednesday Stabroek News visited the Freeman Street address. The house, this newspaper learnt, is being occupied by caretakers recruited by the Lashley family.
A resident, who requested anonymity, reported that Lashley grew up in the East La Penitence community. The resident knew Lashley during his time in the army and told this newspaper of several associates, all influential individuals, who had frequented the man’s home.
“I really can’t tell you when was the last time I see him [Lashley] but I can tell you it was before the Ministry of Health fire… most if not all of his relatives have been living in the US for a while now,” the resident said.
Another US source told this newspaper that up to last Wednesday Lashley was living in Brooklyn, New York. The source also said that even after the wanted bulletin was issued for Lashley last August the man remained an active member of online social network Facebook.
Lashley became the focus of attention again, following the arrest of Colin Jones at Amelia’s Ward two Fridays ago. Jones later led police to a ‘training camp’ in Kara Kara Creek where he alleged the gang responsible for the MoH fire and a series of attacks on November 4, 2009 stayed and was being financed and provided with weapons by a US link. Jones has since appeared at the Georgetown Magis-trates’ Court on 15 charges including murder and at-tempted murder.
It was after Jones’ arrest, the source said, that Lashley disappeared from Facebook. His Facebook friends also removed his photos from their pages.
“All of a sudden everybody seemed to realize just how serious things were and nobody wanted to be associated with this man in anyway at all,” the source said.
Sources have also raised questions about how Lashley was able to obtain a visa to travel to the US, insisting that the man has a criminal record.
Police had earlier made two requests to the US for help in locating the gang’s link.
The crime chief had told this newspaper that police still are not sure of the US link’s real identity since the man was operating under a series of forged identities.
When asked whether there was any new information on this man and if the US has been able to provide help Persaud did not comment. Instead he questioned this newspaper about whether it was not doing its investigations and referred to a recent statement made by President Bharrat Jagdeo.
Mabaruma killing
Some time between 1976 and 1979, sources said, Lashley, then a member of the GDF, was stationed in the North West District (NWD). During his time there he reportedly fatally shot a man with his service weapon at Mabaruma.
Following this incident, Lashley reportedly spent four years on remand in prison before he appeared at the Demerara Assizes, sources said. He was subsequently let off on time served.
Lashley was discharged from the army because of this incident.
Former GDF members who would have been in service during this time and other former public servants who would have been in contract with Lashley are denying that they ever knew the man.
This newspaper spoke with one former GDF member who would have been involved in taking statements from Lashley in the Mabaruma incident. Initially, the man said he knew “nothing much” about Lashley. However, he later admitted that he was stationed in the same area and knew of the incident.
“It was a long time ago so I can’t really remember the year… but it was some time between 76 and 79 and Lashley shot this Amerindian man with his Browning .45. Usually in these sort of matters a board of inquiry is conducted and the police would have also charged Lashley,” the man said.
The man also added that during the late 70s and thereon what Lashley did at Mabaruma was common knowledge to many of those associated with the armed forces.
This newspaper has made repeated attempts to locate court records for Lashley. However, High Court sources have said that criminal files prior to the 1980s are not in existence.
Lashley has also been linked to several other incidents which occurred in later years.
