Four former employees of Avinash Complex were yesterday each sentenced to 56 months in jail after they were found guilty of stealing $24 million worth of suiting material from the company’s LBI bond in 2004.
Dennis Ramkarran, Kumar Kalladin, Deoroop Sugrim and Dinesh Singh appeared before Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court. The case was concluded within an eight-month time frame after the men approached the High Court seeking to have the matter dismissed because of the length of time it was engaging the attention of the court.
Previously, the case was hit with numerous delays owing to the changing of magistrates which resulted in the trial having to be restarted every time. This trial started on June 5 this year.
The case against the quartet was that between February 23 and 24, 2004 they stole 1,549 rolls of suiting material worth $24 million, property of the Avinash Complex.
During the trial, which was prosecuted by Superintendent Fazil Karimbaksh, the court heard that the four men stole the keys for the bond from a box which was at the Avinash Complex on Water Street. They then duplicated the keys and on February 23, 2004 went to the bond where they removed the cloth which was taken to Zeeburg, West Coast Demerara.
The following day while they were placing the cloth in a vehicle to take to another location, one of the store’s directors and the police turned up. Investigations were conducted and charges laid.
During the course of the investigation, the men gave confession statements in which they described in detail how the theft was planned and executed.
During the trial, their lawyer Euclin Gomes objected to the caution statements which resulted in four voir dires (trial within a trial) being conducted. Subsequently, the magistrate admitted all statements into evidence.
Stabroek News was told that in giving her ruling the magistrate noted the evidence of the 16 witnesses who had testified as well as the caution statements, which together were enough to make a case against the quartet.
She later handed down the sentence which is equivalent to four years eight months in prison each for the four.
When the matter was called yesterday, the accused, who were on $1.2 million bail each, were expected to continue leading their defence, but did not. The magistrate then gave her ruling.
Part owner of Avinash Complex, Malcolm Panday, in an invited comment last night, said, “I am happy that justice is finally served. They were trusted employees of mine who betrayed my trust”. He said that a number of “delaying tactics” were used to prevent the case from reaching a conclusion.
