Ex-police Sergeant Bailey freed of Diamond businesswoman’s murder

Oct 14, 2021 News

Kaieteur News – Less than 48 hours after Collin Grant, the man accused of being the hitman in the murder of Diamond, East Bank Demerara businesswoman, Sirmattie Ramnaress pleaded guilty to the crime, his co-accused former Police Sergeant, Collin Bailey, was acquitted of the murder charge.

Freed, Ex Police Sergeant Collin Bailey

Bailey, who was Ramnaress’ reputed husband, was charged alongside Grant for murder. Previous reports had alleged that Bailey paid Grant to execute his former spouse.
However, yesterday lawyer Nigel Hughes contended that the evidence provided to the court by the prosecution witnesses did not “in any way, shape, or form” tie Bailey to the crime.
Prosecutor Sarah Martin was left to call three more witnesses to the stand but she agreed that none of the other witnesses would present evidence linking Bailey to the crime.
As a result, Justice Barlow agreed, that with Mr. Hughes contention there was no-case for his client to answer. She instructed the jury to return a not guilty verdict for Bailey and acquitted him of the charge.
Meanwhile, Grant, who had initially pleaded not guilty to the indictment but opted to change his plea to guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter on Tuesday, is scheduled to face sentencing on November 2, 2021.
Last week, a jury was empanelled to hear the evidence of the trial. Based on the charge that both Bailey and Grant had conspired together to murder Ramnaress called ‘Sabo’ on August 30 or 31, 2013 at her Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara, residence.

Murdered, Sirmattie Ramnaress

The body of the 36-year-old businesswoman was found lying face down at her residence. She was reportedly killed in the garage of her home by an alleged hitman.
A blaze coming from the woman’s home led firefighters to a bond where they stumbled upon her body. Her body reportedly bore two stab wounds – one to the neck and another to the hip.
The Police, in a statement said that Ramnaress’ house was ransacked and drenched with a flammable liquid, and a storage bond at the rear of the building was destroyed by the ensuing fire.
A post mortem examination performed on her remains revealed that she died as a result of a ruptured spleen and brain hemorrhaging.
In 2015, the police charged Grant, who was Ramnaress’ neighbour, and later arrested Bailey after Grant claimed that he was paid by the policeman to kill his spouse and remove the device that stored her surveillance footage. Bailey was subsequently arrested and charged jointly with Grant for the capital offence.
By then, he had been dismissed from the Guyana Police Force (GPF) following corruption accusations against him and another police officer. Bailey and the other officer were placed before the courts for allegedly accepting bribes in order to dissolve a criminal matter.
They were accused of obtaining $300,000 as inducement to forgo charges for illegal arms and ammunition possession.

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