Two persons were on Monday charged before acting Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry with forging a will.
At the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court, Afeena Hussain and Reaz Manjoor were jointly arraigned on the charge which alleges that on September 2, at the Maraj Building, Georgetown, with intent to defraud, they both offered a will to Cynthia Bharrat, knowing it to be forged.
The documented was purported to be the will of Afzal Hussain, the court heard.
Afeena Hussain was separately charged with knowingly uttering to Mohamed Ali a forged will purporting it to be the will of Afzal Hussain on October 31, 2011, with intent to defraud. Further, it was alleged that on another September 2, at the Maraj Building, with intent to defraud, she knowingly forged a will of Afzal Hussain.
The defendants, who both reside at North East Grove, East Bank Demerara, were not required to plead to the indictable charges when they were read to them.
The attorney representing the duo said that his clients were innocent of the charges levelled against them. In the case of Afeena, the lawyer said while she was a beneficiary of the will, she was only the executor and was acting in this latter capacity at the time she was charged.
Counsel argued that it was her mother who had brought the proceedings against her and questioned why the mother and other beneficiaries of the will were not charged as well.
Meanwhile, regarding Manjoor, counsel said he was only a mere witness to the will, “not even a beneficiary.”
The attorney then made an application for his clients to be admitted to reasonable bail, saying that they had no antecedents, posed no risk of flight, had a fixed place of abode and had been cooperating with police investigations.
After hearing the case, the magistrate granted Hussain $100,000 bail for each of the three charges against her and granted Manjoor $100,000 bail for the one charge against him. In addition, they were ordered to report to the police every Friday.
