A third person appeared in the Fort Wellington Magistrate’s Court on Monday charged with the fatal chopping of a Bush Lot, Berbice couple, which occurred in early January.
Rooplall Abrahim, 24, of Rosignol, West Bank Berbice was not required to plead to the indictable charge when he appeared before Magistrate Rhondel Weaver.
It is alleged between January 8 and 9, Abrahim murdered eighty-one-year-old Doodnauth Arthur Rajkumar and his wife, Diane Chamanlall, 44, at their Lot 93 ‘A’ Bush Lot, West Coast Berbice home.
On the morning of January 9, Rajkumar and Chamanlall were discovered with gaping wounds about their bodies in pools of blood. They were taken to the Fort Wellington Hospital where Rajkumar was pronounced dead on arrival and Chamanlall succumbed while receiving medical attention. Persons went to the home after they were alarmed by unusual sounds.
The bandits chopped the couple multiple times while demanding money but the elderly man and his wife did not hand over anything. A source had told Stabroek News that after the robbers demanded cash, they were told by the couple that they did not have any. One of the men then responded, “How y’all gon’ get shop and don’t have money?”
The men then continuously chopped the couple. As they packed items, the police arrived at the scene and the men scaled the fence and escaped.
Nineteen-year-old Neeman Rafeek called ‘Shazam’ of Lot 5 Bush Lot New Housing Scheme and Gokun Mandanpaul, 18, called ‘Clown’ of 175 Block ‘D’ Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice were initially charged with the murder on January 13.
The men were remanded and the matter was adjourned to March 9 when the trio is expected to make their next court appearance.
Abrahim and Mandanpaul are currently facing two murder charges since they were recently charged with the murder of Anita Baichan, who burned to death in her Hope, Berbice home after it was set on fire by bandits on January 3.
