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Triumph man, 64, charged with threatening to kill President
Remanded to prison Motilall Balkarran
Three days after a Triumph, East Coast Demerara, resident was taken into custody for allegedly making threats against the life of President David Granger, he was yesterday brought before a City Magistrate and was remanded to prison.
Sixty-four-year-old Motilall Balkarran of Lot 97 Triumph, East Coast Demerara, appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts where two charges were read to him.
The first charge alleged that on March 20, at Triumph, East Coast Demerara, he made a call to the 911 system at the Brickdam Police Station and threatened to kill President Granger by placing a bomb at his office at the Ministry of Presidency, with intent to cause public terror.
It was further alleged that on the same day in question, Balkarran called the 911 system at the Brickdam Police Station and threatened to kill the president.
Balkarran denied both allegations after they were read to him by the Magistrate. He was represented by Attorney-at-Law Tiffany Jeffrey. The lawyer in her application to secure bail for her client told the court that her client has no previous or pending matters. She added that her client strongly denied the allegations, citing that they are multiple persons living in the home who all have access to phones.
The lawyer further told the court that the police do not have any voice recognition system in place to know who the perpetrator is.
Police Prosecutor Gordon Mansfield strongly objected to bail being granted to the defendant citing the serious nature of the offence.
The Chief Magistrate after listening to the attorney and the prosecutor, told the court that based on the serious nature of the offence and the interest of public safety, she would remand the defendant. He was instructed to make his next court appearance on April 16 at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court.
In December 2017, Alim Ally, who is serving a five-year sentence for assault causing actual bodily harm, was charged for allegedly calling the emergency number 911 and threatening to kill President Granger and to shoot at the Brickdam Police Station.
He was slapped with four threatening language charges.
And in 2016, Bibi Safoora Salim was charged with posting death threats related to President Granger via Facebook.
The charges were thrown out by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, who ruled that the particulars of the allegations against the 52-year-old Vergenoegen, East Bank Essequibo resident did not create an offence.
One of the charges alleged that during the period March 1 and 31, 2016, Salim attempted to incite hostility or ill-will against the President by posting on Facebook “Granger want a bullet in he head” and other comments.
She was also accused of sending derogatory remarks about the President from her cell phone to her son’s cell phone via WhatsApp.
Salim, a mother of three, was charged under the Racial Hostility Act for attempting to incite excitement, hostility or ill-will on the ground of race.
An attorney for the woman had argued that the charges were void, because the particulars did not state how her posting on Facebook violated the Racial Hostility Act.
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