One of the two men who were recently freed of murdering West Berbice teenager Isaiah Henry was yesterday re-charged while his co-accused is also expected to face the court again.
According to the police, Anil Sancharra, called ‘Dan Pole’ and ‘Rasta,’ of D’Edward Village, West Coast Berbice appeared via Zoom at the Fort Wellington Magistrate’s court before Magistrate Singh. He was not required to plead to the murder charge and was remanded until August 10. The matter will be heard at the Blairmont Magistrate’s Court.
He is charged with the murder of Henry, committed between September 5, 2020 and September 6, 2020, at Cotton Tree Village, West Coast Berbice. While his co-accused Vinod Gopaul called “Magga,” of Yakusari North, Black Bush Polder, Corentyne, Berbice was not present at court. He is expected to be charged on the next date.
The two are also facing a joint charge in relation to the murder of Henry’s cousin, Joel Henry.
The joint charge in relation to Isaiah Henry was dismissed against the two men in July by Magistrate Peter Hugh who was presiding over the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the murder at the Blairmont Magistrate’s Court. The Magistrate had found that the evidence against the men was insufficient.
Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Shalimar Ali-Hack had immediately requested the documents taken at the PI to decide on how to proceed. The DPP in a statement then had maintained that there was sufficient evidence against the two accused. She said she had requested the documents taken at the PI in order to ascertain why the accused were discharged and to take appropriate action.
Gopaul and Sancharra were charged jointly with the murders, while a third man, Akash Singh, called ‘Monkey,’ of Zeelugt Squatting Area, East Bank Essequibo, who police say has implicated his co-accused in the crimes, was charged separately.
The mutilated bodies of Isaiah, 16, and Joel, 18, were found on September 6th, 2020, a day after they left home for the Cotton Tree backlands to pick coconuts. After they did not return home, relatives lodged a report with the police and subsequently launched a search. It was while searching that the bodies of the teens were discovered, triggering a series of protests on the West Coast of Berbice.
Autopsies performed on the bodies of the teenagers showed that they both died from haemorrhaging and shock due to multiple wounds.
