The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has issued a call for 35 witnesses to appear at the Vigilance Magistrate’s Court on Monday, November 7th 2022 at 8.30 am to testify in the case against alleged Ponzi scheme accused Yuri Garcia.
In an advertisement in today’s Guyana Times, the DPP listed the witnesses being asked to attend court as:
Sumatie Ramcharran of LBI
Seodat Sookdeo of Mon Repos
Naimonie Khan of Lusignan
Gavin Doodnauth of Annandale
Stephen Gopaul of Triumph
Jennifer Pearce of West Ruimveldt Housing Scheme
Sakichand Jagdeo of Lusignan
Kevin Adolphus of Enmore
Lolita Singh of Enterprise
Shalomie Ramdhanie and Sankar Ramdhanie of Herstelling
Parbattie Jadunauth of Middleton Street
Hemant Chowtie of Three Friends
Onisha Cameron of North Haslington
Deoraj Samaroo of D’ Endragt
Deonarine Jagmohan of Eccles
Haroon Baksh of Lusignan
Mandisa Bowen of Sandy Babb St
Alifa Sancharra and Hameraj Samcharra of Good Hope
Carla Cassiano of Cummings Lodge
Savitri Narine of Montrose
Veekadai Tomby of Enmore
Mohamed Farad Jamalodeen of Lusignan
Aubrey Norton of Coldingen
Reginal Mendes of Non Pariel
Mohani Makhan of Non Pariel
Goutam Boodhoo of South Better Hope
Rhonda Robers and Sean Roberts of Lamaha Gardens
Nateram Meghoo of Non Pariel
Nalini Gordon of Annandale
Parbatie Persaud of Helena
Surujpaul Balkissoon of Lusignan
Vedisha Samaroo of Good Hope
Garcia and his wife Ateeka Ishmael have been faced with around 150 charges of defrauding persons between the period August 27, 2020 and September 10, 2021, during which time they have appeared before different magistrates at Georgetown, Sparendaam and at Vigilance.
Among the charges they are facing are conspiracy to commit a felony and conspiring with other persons to obtain monies by false pretence.
They were charged under the Consumers Affairs Act with operating a pyramid scheme, and under the Securities Act with operating without a licence.
On some instances they were placed on self-bail while in others, they were released on cash bail. Their bail amounts exceeded $30 million in total.
Bail was set on the condition that they report to the police at stipulated times.
In August, 2020, the police had arrested Garcia and Ishmael after launching an investigation into what had been described as a huge Ponzi scheme.
The Guyana Police Force had said that Garcia, a naturalised Guyanese of Cuban origin, and his wife, Ishmael, 32, both of Track ‘A’, Coldingen, East Coast Demerara, were detained as part of an ongoing investigation of alleged fraud.
At a press conference held in early October, 2020, he had announced plans to recommence repayment of invested capital to 17,000 clients from October 12th, 2020 since the firm was not licensed to operate here and had been forced to cease all of its operations.
The firm had claimed repayment did commence as promised and some 27 persons received their invested capital.
However, two days after the repayment started, officials from the Special Organised Crime Unit raided the couple’s property at Coldingen, ECD and seized equipment containing records of their clients.
This resulted in a halt of the repayment.