Separate PI’s for Henry Boys' alleged killers

Separate PI’s for Henry Boys’ alleged killers

Feb 19, 2021 News

Murdered: Isaiah and Joel Henry

Kaieteur News – The prosecution is expected to conduct two separate preliminary inquiries (PI) into the gruesome killing of the Henry boys.
On Tuesday last, the three accused of the murder made another court appearance in the Blairmont Magistrate’s Court, Berbice, before Magistrate Peter Hugh.
The men charged are; Akash Singh, 20, called “Monkey,” a fisherman of Zeelugt Squatting Area, East Bank Essequibo; his step-brother, Vinod Gopaul, 30, called “Magga,” of Yakusari, Black Bush Polder, Corentyne, Berbice; and Anil Sancharra, 34, called “Dan pole” and “Rasta,” a labourer of D’ Edward Village, West Coast Berbice.
Attorney-at-law, Dexter Todd, has since gone on record as the legal representation for Gopaul and Sancharra. Singh is still without legal representation.
Sancharra and Gopaul were slapped with two joint charges and Singh was charged separately with two counts of murder. They were not required to plead to the charges, which alleged that between September 5, 2020 and September 6, 2020, at Cotton Tree Backdam, West Coast Berbice, they murdered Isaiah and Joel Henry.

Remanded, Akash Singh.

Remanded, Anil Sancharra.

Remanded, Vinod Gopaul.

On the last hearing of the matter, the prosecution informed the court that they would be conducting a PI for Sancharra and Gopaul, who are jointly charged and a separate PI for Singh.
Magistrate Hugh then adjourned the matter to March 2, 2021. On that date, the prosecution is expected to make full disclosure of all the statements of the witnesses that are expected to testify against the three accused.
Gopaul, Sancharra and Singh were further remanded to prison. On their first court appearance, Gopaul and Sancharra repeatedly claimed that they are innocent of the crime charged for.
Kaieteur News had reported that the Guyana Police Force (GPF) investigators had announced that they secured a confession from one of the suspects, who under interrogation implicated the two other suspects in the gruesome double murder.
As such, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali-Hack, S.C, recommended charges be instituted on the three suspects.
The murder of the Henry cousins sent shockwaves through the country after their mutilated bodies were discovered on September 6, 2020, in clumps of bushes near a coconut estate located at Cotton Tree backdam, West Coast Berbice.
Law enforcement officers for months on end chased multiple leads and battled violent protests that erupted over the news of the gruesome murders.
Last August, the three defendants set up a camp and a cannabis farm in the West Berbice area. When they returned in September, they discovered their camp and cannabis farm were destroyed. The trio later received information that two young men from the Cotton Tree area are known to trample the backlands and destroy farms.
Sometime later, the Henry cousins ventured into the area and two of the suspects asked whether they knew anything about cannabis farms being destroyed in the area and the cousins reportedly laughed.
This angered the two men and Gopaul allegedly took out a cutlass and dealt a chop to one of the Henry cousins’ neck. Sancharra allegedly took out his cutlass and repeated the action.
According to the police, Singh claimed that he joined in the chopping after Gopaul and Sancharra threatened to do the same to him.
Singh, allegedly dealt gaping X’s on the Henry cousins’ heads, before their bodies were transported to another section of the backlands and dumped.
The bodies of Isaiah and Joel Henry were later discovered by frantic family members out searching for the young men, who were missing since September 5, 2020.
The murders sparked the anger of the West Coast Berbice residents, who engaged in violent, racially targetted protests, even as several men were taken into custody for questioning in relation to the murders over the past four months.
Police are still investigating the death of Haresh Singh, another West Coast Berbice teen, a grandson of one of the men originally taken into custody. Haresh was found lying in a patch of grass and bleeding from his nose in the Number Three Village backdam.