A look at persons charged for crimes against LGBTQ members

Jul 04, 2021 News

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By Renay Sambach

Kaieteur News – In this week’s edition of ‘The Court Journal’, I will focus on persons who were charged for hate crimes against members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning (LGBTQ) community. Hate crime is defined as a crime involving violence, which is motivated by prejudice based on race, religion, sexual orientation, or other grounds.

For the entire month of June, PRIDE was observed. Pride month is the promotion of self-affirmation, dignity, equality, increased visibility for members of the LGBTQ community and a time that the past struggles of LGBTQ members and the fight they put up for their rights are remembered.
It should be noted that Guyana is the only country in South America and in the Americas outside the Caribbean, where homosexual acts (as well as heterosexual anal and oral sex) are still illegal.
Engaging in anal or oral sex can carry a possible punishment of life imprisonment under the laws of Guyana. However, that law is not enforced and, in the past, there were efforts to decriminalise homosexual acts in the country.
Despite those efforts, LGBTQ members in Guyana continue to suffer at the hands of some in society for expressing their sexual identity. According to reports, some LGBTQ members were sexually, physically assaulted and some were even killed.

The first case I will highlight is that of the Managing Director of the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD), Joel Simpson, who was severely beaten by a group of men at Bourda Market in the capital city on June 16, 2019. Maverick De Abreu of Lot 56 Broad Street, Charlestown, the main suspect in the homophobic attack on Simpson, was never charged. However, police had issued a wanted bulletin for the 29-year-old.According to reports, Simpson, along with other rights activists, was at a nightspot on Main Street, Georgetown where a group of men threw beer at them. Simpson, in a Facebook post, had noted that when he realised who committed the act, he asked to speak with a supervisor. The SASOD head had shared, “I went to the bar and asked for the supervisor and I was directed to a man who wasn’t wearing any uniform or badge to identify him as a member of staff. I reported to him what happened and his response was, ‘we don’t want man whining pon man here’.”
As a result, Simpson and his friends left the facility and made their way to another bar on the East Coast of Demerara (ECD). After enjoying their time there, Simpson said that he proceeded to Bourda Market to purchase food from the vendors who are usually out at that time. Simpson said it was there that he encountered the men once more and was subsequently attacked and beaten. According to Simpson, “…while I was ordering, the whole gang of them attacked me and beat me up. The sellers had to intervene.

I don’t know these guys and I have never said anything to them.”
On July 27, 2015, another member of the LGBTQ community was shot and killed at Quamina and Carmichael Streets, Georgetown. On this occasion, it was transgender sex worker, Noel Wilson Luthers called “Nephi” of ZZ Durban Street, Wortmanville, who was at the receiving end of a hate crime and died as a result. His killer, Ron ‘Andel’ Forde, a fisherman of Lot 31 Rahaman’s Park, East Bank Demerara (ECD), was sentenced to 20 years in prison in June 2017 – this was after he accepted that he killed Luthers and pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter.Luthers died as a result of a single gunshot wound to his chest. It was reported that he was shot during a confrontation with two men – those men are believed to be Forde and his friend Kanand Ojha. Ojha had reportedly gone in the vicinity of St. George’s Cathedral where he paid Luthers $5000 to perform a sex act. Luthers had reportedly relieved Ojha of his personal belongings during the sex act. The man left but subsequently realised that his cell phone and cash were missing. Ojha, reportedly accompanied by Forde, went back to the location where they confronted Luthers who denied doing business with the man. An argument ensued and, as a result, Ojha’s friend, Forde, reportedly pulled out a gun and pulled the trigger, shooting the sex worker to his chest. Luthers, according to reports, fell onto the road and the two men fled the scene in a vehicle.
Police later arrived on the scene and assisted with transporting the sex worker to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

Days after Luthers was gunned down, police had issued a wanted bulletin for Forde and Ojha in connection with the killing. However, Ojha of Lot 2 First Street, Meadow Bank, EBD was never captured.
In another matter, Devar Kissoon was freed of assaulting two sex workers. Kissoon had the charges dismissed against him on January 27, 2015 by Magistrate Geeta Chandan-Edmond.
Kissoon, 28, of Lot 41 Almond Street, Eccles, was charged with assaulting Seon Persaud called ‘Isabella’ and Micron Bennons in two separate attacks in which they were shot at with a pellet gun.
It was reported that Kissoon allegedly assaulted Persaud and Bennons at separate locations to cause them actual bodily harm. It was reported that on April 7, 2014, around 20:00hrs, Kissoon saw Persaud among friends at King Street and North Road and Bennons at King and Charlotte Streets and allegedly shot them with a pellet gun.

However, the Magistrate in her ruling had stated that Persaud gave conflicting accounts about positively identifying Kissoon as the shooter. In relation to Bennons’ matter, the charge was dismissed because Bennons’ failed to attend court to testify against the defendant, as well as the absence of some police witnesses to give evidence.
Meanwhile, in March 2016, a Magistrate was accused of discrimination after he reportedly banned cross-dressing in his courtroom. Magistrate Dylon Bess was accused of discrimination by members of the LGBTQ community and advocacy group, Guyana Trans United (GTU), after he barred one of its members from entering his courtroom while dressed in women’s clothing.
According to reports, the transgender woman, who goes by the name of ‘Twinkle’, had claimed to be the virtual complainant in a matter. A man had reportedly used a beer bottle to attack Twinkle, who at the time, was a passenger on a minibus. Twinkle had further alleged that while making a report at a police outpost, the attack continued. In an act of self-defence, Twinkle admitted to injuring the attacker. The matter was then reported to the Brickdam Police Station and then taken to court.
Twinkle had told reporters that Magistrate Bess was strict about not allowing cross-dressing in his courtroom. Moreover, Twinkle, while cross-dressed, was asked to leave the courtroom.

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