News

Poor management of gold in its possession resulted in losses of over $10 billion for the period 2012 to 2014, a forensic audit of the Guyana Gold Board (GGB) has found and among other irregularities, the audit has uncovered instances of fraudulent transactions as well as heavy political interference in the entity.

Kwame Mc Coy, a former presidential liaison officer was arraigned yesterday in the Providence Magis-trate’s Court on three charges – including assaulting activist Mark Benschop – and released on $275,000 bail.

A woman prison officer who appeared before the Commission of Inquiry into the March 3, prison unrest, told the tribunal yesterday that she does not believe women officers should be exposed to the prison yard.

The Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts was in an uproar yesterday after remanded prisoner Adam McDonald began making death threats to various persons while brandishing a makeshift weapon.

Davenand Dhadhari,  called Kevin, age 18   of Betsy Ground, East Canje, was not required to plead to the charge of murder when he appeared yesterday before Magistrate Marissa Mittelholzer at the Reliance Court, in East Canje charged with killing Omesh Seelall.

A man who was charged on December 16, 2015 with possession of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking was yesterday sentenced to three years imprisonment.

President David Granger yesterday expressed satisfaction with the progress of work at the D’urban Park Development Project where key aspects of the independence jubilee celebrations will be held.

Murder accused Rondell Bacchus will have to face a second retrial after another jury yesterday failed to reach a unanimous verdict on his guilt or innocence in the 2008 murder of scrap iron dealer Akbar Alli.

PPP/C MP Anil Nandlall says Attorney-General Basil Williams has “put the cart before the horse” by seeking to rush new anti-money laundering reforms through the National Assembly without ensuring the establishment of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) that is responsible for enforcement.

The sister of Nicolas Narine, one of the five men on trial for the armed robbery of Justice Nicola Pierre and her family, yesterday corroborated what her brother had told the court: that he, like his co-accused Daymeion Millington, was also at home on the night of the incident.

Government last week announced that at the last Cabinet meeting a series of contracts were given the green light including one for over two million exercise books that are to be distributed to students countrywide.

One of the key questions at the first consultation on the draft Juvenile Justice Bill 2015 held at the Pegasus Hotel yesterday is whether the age of criminal responsibility should be raised from 10 years.

Two other prison officers yesterday testified before the Commission of Inquiry into the prison unrest, where they both made claims of alerting the Operations Room staff to the existence of a fire at the prison.

Saying it has been “blindsided” by recent policy changes in the regulation of the mining industry, the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) on Saturday voiced its objections to a lack of consultations, while announcing that it is seeking an audience with President David Granger to address its concerns.

A former clerk of General Equipment Guyana Limited (Genequip), who alleged stole nearly $30 million from the company, yesterday pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of embezzlement at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has launched its first Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) – Project Management Techniques for Development Professionals on the Harvard-MIT IDB platform.

On Tuesday, the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) received two ‘Ground Water Data loggers’ from the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Technical Assistance (REETA) Project which is funded by the Government of Germany through the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).

The Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) should aim at promoting the elimination of all forms of discrimination on the basis of ethnicity, Minister of Public Health Dr George Norton told representatives from different organisations at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre yesterday.

Vehicles entering Lethem may soon have to pay a toll, which would be put towards maintenance of sections of the road.

The uncle of alleged hitman Linden ‘Bullet’ Lewis who is accused of murdering Ruby businessman Habiboodean in 2008 is being sought by the police even as five persons including the suspected killer remain in custody.