Silence from top PNCR executives as James Bond remain in police custody …over giveaway of Peter’s Hall lands

Nov 26, 2020 News

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Kaieteur News – There has been no formal statement emerging from the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) regarding the detention of senior member James Bond.
Bond is currently facing allegations of fraud, after he was fingered as the mastermind behind the sale of prime state lands located at Peter’s Hall, East Bank Demerara.
Bond was arrested on Tuesday and is expected to be released from police custody today.
At the time of his arrest, Bond had posted to his Facebook page, “I’ve been taken into police custody for questioning at CID Headquarters. I’ve been asked to take a lie detector test surrounding the allegations made against me by Mr. Eddie Doolal and Mr. Avlon Jagnandan. I am currently cooperating with the police.”
Later on, Bond reiterated his “lie detector test” claim but this was later debunked by the Guyana Police Force (GPF).
Notably, no formal statement has come from the PNCR directly or more importantly, from former President David Granger.
Kaieteur News had reached out to various executive members of the PNCR to comment to Bond’s arrest. The party’s Chair, Volda Lawrence referred the reporter to the General Secretary, Amna Ally. When Kaieteur News made contact with Ally, she stated, “I will not comment.”
Later on, Opposition leader, Joseph Harmon, issued a recorded comment deeming Bond’s arrest “a bad practice” by the force. According to Harmon, if there is clear evidence that a crime was committed, the police must be allowed to conduct their investigations.
He posited too, “I believe what is happening before us is the clear directions given by this government to the police to harass professionals.”
Bond was fingered by two businessmen embroiled in the scandal – Life 1 Pharms Inc. Director, Avalon Jagnandan, and Director of A-Z Pharmaceuticals Medical Supplies and Equipment Inc., Eddie Doolal as being the mastermind behind identical land deals which saw 30 acres of state land being transferred to Chinese nation, Jianfen Yu.
While in police custody, Doolal and Jagnandan reportedly told police that not only was PNCR senior member the brains behind the operations, he also received a hefty payoff from both deals, amounting to more than $100 million.
Jagnandan and Doolal both leased from the state-owned National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) 15 acres of land situated at Plantation Peter’s Hall, East Bank Demerara.
Kaieteur News discovered that both land deals carried glaring similarities.
Both companies were registered on March 1, 2017 and the lease agreement details for both companies were also identical – both agreed to pay US$11,700 plus tax in lease fees annually for a 20-year period; both received 15 acres in total and both agreements were signed on the same day – May 17, 2018.
Not only that, this paper also discovered that both companies transferred its lands to Yu, on the same day – January 28, 2020 and for the same price of G$100. Those details would align with what was reportedly told to investigators by the businessmen.
Both businessmen relayed to police that it was Bond who encouraged them to startup companies and apply to NICIL to acquire lands. Later on, Bond was said to have played a hand in the NICIL transaction and penned lease agreements for the businessmen. Bond was said to also have encouraged the men to transfer the state lands at a price. Bond reportedly also found the buyer, Jianfen Yu, whose address is listed as 43 Wellington Street, Georgetown.
Instead of the businessmen receiving the funds from the sale, sources said that it was Bond who demanded to receive 50% of the payment for the land and both businessmen reportedly handed Bond close to $100 million.
But that was not the only land deal that Bond also allegedly benefited from.
Kaieteur News would have reported that Bond received a US$1 million payment from Trinidad logistics company, Lennox Petroleum, for the sale of 10 acres of land leased to ARKEN Group Inc.
In that deal, ARKEN and its principal, Jermaine Richmond, leased from NICIL 20.8 acres of land at Peter’s Hall on May 9, 2018 for a 20-year period at US$16,224 per year. ARKEN later sold the 10 acres to local logistics company GLASS Holdings Inc. on October 10, 2019 for $200M.
Kaieteur News was informed that Richmond is or was at some point employed by James Bond. A wanted bulletin has so far been issued for his arrest.
Like the other deals, instead of the principals of the companies receiving the payment, it was Bond who pocketed the funds. Documents received by Kaieteur News showed that the monies were sent directly to a local bank account with Bond’s name as the receiver.

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