A Malaysian national was on Friday fined $100,000 for forging a date on his Guyana employment visa and presenting the document to an immigration officer.
Kanching Ankabasie, 41, pleaded guilty to the charges which were read by Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
The court heard that between December 20, 2014 and February 19, 2015, Ankabasie conspired with a person or persons unknown to forge the date on his Guyana Employment visa in his Malaysian passport, purporting the same to be issued by the Central Immigration and Passport Office.
The other charge stated that on February 19, at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, with intent to defraud, he uttered the document to a police constable with the forged date.
Prosecutor Deniro Jones told the court that on the day in question, Ankabasie was an outgoing passenger at the airport when he presented the travel document to an immigration officer, who observed the forged date.
Attorney Paul Fung-A-Fat, who represented the accused, told the court that his client was a land surveyor with the Barama Company and although he pleaded guilty, he was fleeced by someone after he sought help to have the date renewed. The attorney further lamented someone conning the Malaysian, resulting in him facing deportation.
Fung-A-Fat, begged the magistrate not to jail his client, while noting that the man is very frail as well as the fact that he might be taken advantage of in prison since he does not speak or understands the English language.
The magistrate subsequently ordered Ankabasie to pay a $50,000 fine with an alternative of three months in jail on each of the two charges.
