Latest update November 26th, 2024 1:00 AM
Man alleges Berbice magistrate ordered removal of dismantled house
Grantley Montooth points to the area where the valued pieces of wood were removed without his consent
…gives property to Berbice lawyer
Grantley Montooth, a minibus driver of 46 Palmyra, Corentyne, is alleging that a Berbice Magistrate instructed a Canter driver to remove several pieces of wood from a dismantled house that was once occupied by his now deceased aunt and uncle.
The man said that the materials that were removed were of very good quality. He said that he has since been giving a royal runaround by the magistrate and the police.
Montooth claims that he dismantled the home in December and left all the materials on the spot.
Later in the month, a Canter made two trips removing material.
He said that he made contact with the driver who stated that they took the materials to Berbice lawyer, Charandass Persaud, at Canefield, East Canje and was working with instructions of a magistrate who lives next door to Montooth.
Montooth said that the response made him angry and he reported the matter to Central Police Station.
He went back on several occasions to follow up the matter but he said that he is not getting any satisfaction.
He alleged that he confronted the lawyer to whose house the wood went and the lawyer told him that the wood was removed because it was an eye sore. He then asked Montooth to provide ownership of the land.
“If a man removes illegally, that is theft. My material is there; you can’t tell me to move my things,” Montooth told Kaieteur News.
“How can a magistrate give orders to remove wood from a property that does not belong to them?” he asked.
Montooth stated that he has been paying rates and taxes for the land.
His house is located behind the disputed area.
“This is totally wrong. That man [the magistrate] don’t have the right. I don’t think that is fair.
He should be charged”, Montooth said. “Why must they carry away my materials?”
When contacted the lawyer did not deny that the wood was delivered to his home but questioned Montooth’s legal claim to the land from where the wood was taken.
“He [Montooth] has no ownership over the place. He has nothing.
He’s a bum!” the lawyer argued. “These are people who get rights from the PNC era and think they can pick up anywhere and live,” he said.
The magistrate said that the place was infested with wood ants and some persons wanted some firewood and that the wood was just a pile of rubbish, so he gave it away.
The magistrate also said that he paid some carpenters with Montooth’s consent to tear the deceased aunt and uncle’s house down and that the place has been squatted on for the past ten years .
Montooth’s response to all of this was that it is not a case of him being able to provide written ownership over his aunt and uncle’s place but that the fact of the matter was that these two officials plotted to remove what was rightfully his without his knowledge or consent.
He said that the police have not been lending him an ear on the matter.
(Leon Suseran)
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