Chief Election Officer Keith Lowenfield was finally served yesterday with summonses pertaining to three private criminal charges filed against him over alleged elections fraud and he is due to face the court today.
Despite numerous efforts, the complainants had been unsuccessful in serving the summons on Lowenfield.
A statement from one of the complainants, Daniel Josh Kanhai said that Lowenfield was finally served yesterday.
“Mr. Lowenfield has been evading the summons but fortunately, after careful planning and strategy, he was served at GECOM Secretariat’s office. Mr. Lowenfield will be expected to be present in Court tomorrow morning, July 24th, 2020, at 9:00hrs to face the private criminal charges brought before him. Justice must prevail so that the will of the Guyanese people be respected”, Kanhai said in the statement.
On July 3rd, Georgetown Magistrate Faith McGusty ordered that Lowenfield be summoned after the three private charges were filed against him in connection with the March 2 polls.
In separate charges, Kanhai, of The New Movement (TNM), and Desmond Morian, of the opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), have accused Lowenfield of conspiracy to commit fraud to alter the results of the elections and misconduct in public office.
Their lawyers, attorneys-at-law Glenn Hanoman, Mark Conway and George Thomas are expected to serve as special prosecutors.
Particulars of the offence as sworn to by Kanhai are that Lowenfield, between March 5th and June 23rd, 2020, conspired with person (s) unknown to commit the common law offence of fraud, to wit, by representing to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) that tables attached to his June 23rd elections report accurately reflected the true results of the elections in order to materially alter the results, with intent to defraud as he knew the tabulation to be false.
The offence is described as conspiracy to commit a felony as defined under Section 34 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, and carries a punishment of seven years in jail if proven.
The charge attested to by Morian states that Lowenfield, while performing his duty as CEO, without lawful excuse or justification, willfully misconducted himself by ascertaining results of the elections “knowing the said results to be false, the said willful misconduct amounting to a breach of the public’s trust in the office of the CEO.
A third charge, sworn to by Morian, was also filed yesterday alleging a conspiracy to commit a felony. It states that between March 5th and June 23rd, Lowenfield conspired with a person or persons unknown to commit fraud by representing to GECOM that the tables in his March 14th Elections Report reflected the true results of the elections, knowing that the tabulation was false, in order to materially alter the results of the elections.
