Roger Khan Saga…

May 22, 2008 News

Media reports force police to request evidence on murder allegations

Media reports regarding the murders allegedly committed, or ordered, by Shaheed Roger Khan in Guyana prior to his incarceration in the United States have prompted the Guyana Police Force to formally seek from the United States Embassy in Guyana any information in the possession of the US authorities in relation to the murders.

The Guyana police had previously announced their cognizance of the revelations coming out of the US court in the case involving Khan and announced that they were moving in a direction that could lead to the questioning of several persons.

A senior police officer who asked for anonymity said that the police have been following with interest the developments of the case with regards to possible links to criminal acts that were committed in Guyana.
The source said that while there was no official communication between the law enforcement officials of Guyana and the United States, he could not say what information was passed on to Crime Chief Seelall Persaud or to any other senior local police official.

“These cases remain open and we are looking at every possible angle,” the local police source told this newspaper.

Head of State Bharrat Jagdeo, during a previous press briefing, had said that the Government of the United States had not presented the Government of Guyana with any evidence regarding the allegations that Khan may have ordered any murders or were involved in any murders.

“From what I gathered the US attorneys are presenting their case; we do not have any information from the US Government, that I know of, supporting any of these utterances in the court,” said Jagdeo at a press briefing held at the Office of the President.

He noted that as long as the Guyana Government is formally presented with the evidence linking Roger Khan to any murders in Guyana, then the Police will launch an investigation into the validity of the information.
“If we have any detail about how they came upon this evidence or what evidence they have then I think that the police should follow it up to the conclusion.”

He emphasized, however, that Khan was not in Guyana’s jurisdiction, “but we have an obligation that if presented with any information by the US government about Roger Khan’s involvement in any criminal act, that would be pursued by our law enforcement agency…That is my position.”

To date, Khan has been fingered in the US court as having ordered at least two murders, namely the execution of Donald Allison, a boxing coach of Agricola, and Davenand Persaud.

This newspaper had reported that the Prosecution in the Roger Khan court case had filed a motion in the United States District Court, Eastern District of New York, in that the prosecution sought to admit at trial evidence of Khan’s retaliation against Davenand Persaud, which included threats to Persaud and his family, seizing Persaud’s car, and ultimately ordering Persaud’s murder and the murder of an individual named Donald Allison.

The U.S. Government intends to establish that Persaud was charged with smuggling and conspiring to import cocaine into the United States and ultimately cooperated with U.S. law enforcement.

In December 2003, Persaud’s wife, Elisabeth Persaud, who was in Guyana, called Persaud in Queens. In a call consensually recorded by Persaud, his wife informed him that “Shortie,” “Shortie’s” bodyguards, and “Ledge,” had come into her store and threatened and pointed a gun at her while she held their child. She informed Persaud that they demanded to know his case number.

Individuals in the cocaine industry in Guyana, including Khan, suspected that Persaud was cooperating with U.S. law enforcement.

Additionally, the government will try to establish at trial that one nickname for Khan was “Shortman.”
Also, in the motion, the Government at trial is expected to prove, primarily through the testimony of cooperating witnesses and related corroborating information, that an individual named Donald Allison and others imported cocaine into the United States that was obtained from the Khan organization. Allison lived in Guyana.

The evidence, according to the government, will show that some of that cocaine was seized in the United States. With the disappearance of that cocaine, Khan suspected that Allison and his co-conspirators had stolen from him. The evidence, the state reveals, also will show that Khan wanted Allison to work for him within the Khan organization, but Allison refused.

On one occasion, Allison insulted Khan in public. Subsequent to these events Allison was shot and killed. The motion went on to state that the fact that Khan ordered these murders is proof of his leadership role in the conspiracy. The government has alleged in Count One of the superseding indictment that Khan was the principal administrator of a continuing criminal enterprise, and his role in the Persaud murder constitutes direct proof of that allegation.

Accordingly, the government said, evidence of the threats against Persaud and his family and Persaud’s murder are admissible as direct evidence of the conspiracy, because: (1) this conduct was committed in furtherance of the conspiracy and is thus direct proof of the existence and nature of the conspiracy itself, and (2) it is inextricably intertwined with the evidence proving the charged offences.

For similar reasons, the murder of Allison should be admissible as direct evidence of the conspiracy; the murder was committed in furtherance of the conspiracy, and therefore is part of the conspiracy itself. The evidence obtained by the prosecution, it was stated, will show that Khan ordered the murder of Allison in part because he believed Allison and others had stolen cocaine that they obtained from Khan’s organization.
This is direct evidence of facts the U.S. Government must prove at trial — specifically that the cocaine distributed by Allison and others was received from the Khan organization.

Further, Khan, according to the U.S. Government, ordered the murder of Allison because Allison refused to directly work for Khan and insulted Khan in front of Khan’s co-conspirators. Murdering Allison was thus a show of force used to demonstrate Khan’s power and make explicit the consequences of refusing to work for Khan.

Thus the murder of Allison is part of the cocaine conspiracy, and is admissible as direct evidence of charges in the indictment. Additionally, the government would offer the consensually recorded call from Elisabeth Persaud to Davenand Persaud, described above, and other evidence to corroborate the testimony of the cooperating witnesses.

In addition, the government also gave notice that it will introduce evidence of Khan’s criminal conduct in Vermont, including his bail jumping, if necessary, to rebut the defence advanced by Khan.
This conduct includes attempting to trade marijuana for handguns, and purchasing and possessing handguns as a convicted felon.