Two Lodge residents were yesterday released on $600,000 bail each after they denied killing a suspected thief, who succumbed to attempts made by a group of public-spirited citizens to subdue him.
Charles Brown, 41, and Karen Reece, 44, both of Lot 71 Joseph Pollydore Street, Lodge, were accused in a city court of unlawfully killing David Marks on January 4, in the Mazaruni River area.
Prosecutor Deniro Jones stated that on the day in question, Reece had returned to her shop to find it ransacked and observed Marks standing nearby. The man, who was said to be wielding a cutlass, allegedly attacked Brown, the co-owner of the shop. When an alarm was raised, Jones said, the defendants, along with public-spirited citizens, rushed out armed with pieces of wood, cutlasses and bottles and dealt blows to Marks. Jones stated that following the beating by the mob of villagers, the deceased had jumped into a nearby trench, where his body was later found floating.
Brown and Reece, who are involved in business together in the area, were represented by attorney Gordon Gilhuys, who made an application for reasonable bail for the couple. Gilhuys informed the court that his clients had been granted station bail prior to their court appearance and had been reporting regularly to the Criminal Investigations Department as required. Furthermore, he noted that the charge was a bailable one.
The prosecutor objected to bail being granted, mentioning the gravity of the crime committed and the penalty attached.
Gilhuys noted that the facts presented by Jones and those in his possession were similar in nature and he acknowledged that a brawl had occurred, but he denied that his clients had any involvement in it.
Magistrate Ann McLennan, after considering the bail application, placed Brown and Reece on $600,000 bail each and adjourn-ed the case to October 23, when it will be heard at the Bartica Magistrate’s Court.
