Three Dominican Republic women were each fined $15,000 on Thursday after they pleaded guilty to overstaying in Guyana.
Yolanda Hernandez, 25, Vianeley Montano, 26, and Vafreisi Cordero, 26, admitted that they failed to comply with the conditions of their permits and overstayed their time in Guyana.
Through an interpreter, each of the women pleaded guilty to the charge after it was read by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan in Georgetown.
Police Prosecutor Deniro Jones said that on February 12th, 2016, the women came to Guyana through the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) and were granted a one-month stay. He added that on April 11th, the police went to a hotel in Bartica after receiving information that sex workers were staying there. He added that the police, upon checking the womenโs passports, observed that they had overstayed their time in Guyana.
Attorney Paul Fung-A-Fat, who represented Hernandez, Montano and Cordero, told the court that the women came here seeking a better life. He added that they overstayed because they love the county very much.
The women were subsequently each fined $15,000, with an alternative of serving five days in prison.
Meanwhile, a Cuban national, who admitted to overstaying for a year and four months, was also fined after he was brought before Chief Magistrate McLennan on Thursday.
Pedro Adonis Neragio, who resided locally in the interior, was granted a permit to stay from October 10th, 2014 to November 11th, 2014. But it was discovered that he had overstayed on April 10, 2016.
Prosecutor Jones said Neragio arrived in the country on October 10th, 2014 and was granted only a monthโs stay. He said that Neragio was arrested at Moleson Creek after officers checked his passport and observed that he had overstayed his time in Guyana. Fung-A-Fat, who also appeared for Neragio, told the court that his client came to Guyana because he wanted opportunity. The lawyer added that his client was arrested while going to Suriname, since he thought his passport was in order.
Neragio was fined $20,000 by the magistrate, with an alternative of three weeks in prison.
