Eight ‘carjackers’ brought before the court this week, remanded

Aug 28, 2022 News

---

The Court Journal

By Renay Sambach

Kaieteur News – For the past week alone, a total of eight alleged carjackers were brought before the court and remanded to prison. This is as a result of members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) cracking down on a suspected carjacking gang.

On August 17, last, Kaieteur News reported that carjackers had snatched three more cars in a week, and a week prior to that, it was reported that two cars were stolen within three days.

This week, I will highlight the two matters which saw eight alleged carjackers being remanded to prison.

On Friday, Rawle Franklyn called “Mad Max” and “Rawle Dog”, one of the four men that, was arrested following a shootout with the Police recently, made his first court appearance and was remanded to prison.

Just days prior, Franklyn’s allege co-accomplices 18-year-old Emmanuel Hale and 32-year-old Hamza Samuels called “Bad Coolie”, both of ‘B’ Field Sophia, Georgetown – made their first court appearance and were remanded to prison.

Samuels and Hale were slapped with 13 charges.

Franklyn, Hale and Samuels were among four men who were captured recently by police during a shoot-out on Mandela Avenue in Georgetown.

They had reportedly hijacked a car from a taxi driver, Joshua Singh, and locked him in the trunk before going on a robbery spree until they were nabbed finally by patrol ranks.

According to police, Franklyn and Andrew Newyer known as “Black Boy” were reportedly shot during the confrontation with police. Newyer succumbed to his gunshot wounds.

Kaieteur News had reported that it was Hale who had reportedly given police a confession admitting to a number of violent crimes, which they had committed. Moreover, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali Hack, SC, had advised that police charge them.

Hale and his accomplice, Samuels, on Monday last appeared first at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court before Magistrate Leron Daly to face the first four charges and were later taken to the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court to face the remaining nine charges.

At the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court, the duo was charged for allegedly discharging a loaded firearm at police on August 18, last, on Mandela Avenue with intent to maim, disfigure, disable or cause grievous bodily harm. The second charge alleges that on August 18, at Kitty, Georgetown, while being armed with a gun, they robbed Ershad Mohammed of a haversack and other items totalling $310,000.

A third charge read that on the same date, at Thomas Land, Georgetown, Hale and Samuels, while being armed with a gun and in the company of others, allegedly robbed Brindsley Thom of two cellphones, a wallet and cash, totalling $253,000. They were also accused of stealing a black bag, a cell phone, local and foreign currency totalling $89,500 from Jomo Angus that same day.

Samuels and Hale were not required to plead to the four charges read to them at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court and Magistrate Daly remanded them to prison until November 14, 2022.

The men were then taken to the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court where they appeared before Magistrate Rushelle Liverpool to answer the remaining charges.

There, the court heard that Hale and Samuels on August 18, last at Ogle, East Coast Demerara (ECD), while being in the company of others, allegedly robbed Madan Ramdeo of a cellphone and cash totalling $73,000.

It was further alleged that on that same day, at Red Road, Sophia, they robbed Jenny Mingo of $293,000 in items. They were also charged for hijacking a $1.7M car from Joshua Singh, robbing him of his cellphone and cash and then abducting him in his own car.

The charges did not stop there. The Magistrate went on to read that on June 26, at Sophia, Georgetown, the duo robbed George Grey of a quantity of personal items totalling $895,000. Earlier that month on June 12, at Sparendaam Housing Scheme, while being armed with a cutlass, they allegedly robbed Royston Adams of a Taurus pistol, ammunition and other items totalling $1.4M.

Samuels was also charged separately for allegedly robbing Collin Robinson of $944,000 at gunpoint on July 24, last, at ‘B’ Field, Sophia. He was slapped with another charge, which alleges that he robbed Angela Delayra at gunpoint of $1.9M in items. That robbery reportedly took place on July 31, last, at Cummings Park, Sophia, while he was in the company of others.

Hale’s accomplice, in the carjacking and other robberies, was also charged individually for allegedly attempting to rob Ezra Roberts on July 31, last.

The duo was not required to plead to the abduction charge at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court but for the remaining eight charges, they faced there, they pleaded not guilty.

Magistrate Liverpool also remanded them to prison and they are expected to return to court on October 7, 2022.

Meanwhile, on Friday last, Franklyn was slapped with 14 charges – four at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and 10 at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court.

He first appeared in the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court. The charges include hijacking a car, kidnapping a taxi-driver, armed robberies and larceny.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges that were read to him – except the abduction charge which was laid indictable. He was remanded to prison and the matter was adjourned to October 7, 2022.

Franklyn was then escorted to the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Senior Magistrate Daly.

There he was slapped with robbery, shooting at police and illegal gun possession charges. He denied the charges that were read to him.

Senior Magistrate Daly remanded Franklyn to prison and the matter was adjourned to November 14, 2022.

According to reports, while in police custody, Hale and Samuels gave police detailed confession about their alleged hijacking and kidnapping of a taxi driver before going on a robbery spree. In that confession, they named a fifth accomplice, Romario Hudson, popularly known as “Mario”.  Police are yet to nab that individual. Hale told investigators that he was picked up from a location at Kitty Public Road by Samuels, Franklyn and Newyer in the car driven by Hudson.

Hudson reportedly drove them to Vryheid’s Lust, East Coast Demerara. Upon their arrival there, Hudson, Franklyn and Samuels, all armed with hand guns, exited, leaving him and Newyer behind. They approached a white car with its windows down that was parked in front of a taxi base and hijacked it and locked its driver in the trunk.

The suspects reportedly got into the stolen car and Hudson drove it. Hale claimed too that Newyer took over the wheel of Hudson’s car and drove behind the stolen car all the way to ‘B’ Field, Sophia.

When they arrived there, Newyer handed over Hudson’s car to an individual by the name of “Foxy” and together with Hale, he entered the stolen car still being driven by Hudson.

The carjackers then proceeded to carry out a robbery spree with the stolen car while the owner was still locked in the trunk.

However, their luck ran out after police spotted them and chased them all the way to Mandela Avenue where they were captured eventually in a shootout.

According to reports, persons had spotted them committing an armed robbery on Lamaha Street and had tipped off police around 02:59hrs.

Hale and Samuels have also reportedly admitted to participating in several other robberies in the Georgetown district and led police to a house in West Ruimveldt where they handed over a 9mm Taurus Pistol without a magazine and a single live 9mm ammunition.

The two suspects then took police to Hudson mother’s home at ‘D’ Field, Sophia where more suspected stolen items were found.  Hudson is the fifth suspect still on the run. Police identified the items as four cellular phones, and an HP laptop. Police also found boxes of illegal .32 and 9mm ammunitions along with over 2000 grams of ganja. Hudson’s mother was taken in for questioning and the illegal items were seized.

Meanwhile, on Friday, last, Magistrate Sunil Scarce remanded five men to prison for their allege involvement in a carjacking ring.

Remanded are Jason Harry, 36, an ex-member of the Guyana Police Force and a resident of Kuru Kuru, of Soesdyke/Linden Highway; Jomain Watson, 26; Toney Jerrick, 32; Stanford Ford, 25; and Randy Fraser. They made their appearance at the Diamond Magistrate’s Court.

They were slapped with a series of armed robbery charges, car theft and other offences.

They were all remanded to prison on until September 28, 2022.

Investigators have related that they are still under investigation for a number of hijackings and more charges are forthcoming as EBD police continue efforts to dismantle the gang that has been giving car owners sleepless nights along the East Bank of Demerara and other locations across the coastland of Guyana.

Detectives were able to dent the gang’s operation after one of its members hired a Green Ice Taxi on Tuesday evening only to lure him into a trap to be hijacked.

This publication had reported that the bandit posing as a passenger told the driver that he wanted to go the Timehri Police Station but as they were almost nearing the location, he decided to change his destination to Dookie Road, Soesdyke.

It was there that the bandit, along with accomplices pounced on the taxi driver, who has been identified as a 48-year-old man of Roxanne Burnham Gardens, and hijacked his car –  a new model Toyota Allion – and stole his cellphone and other valuables.

It is alleged that they drove the car to a forested location along a trail at St. Cuthbert’s Mission (Pakuri) where they hid it. Swift work by police led to the car being recovered before gang members showed up to strip it.

It was reported that police received a tip about a car bumper for sale and it led them directly to one of the remanded suspects. At his home, police found a 9MM pistol along with some car lights and bumpers.

The 26-year-old was arrested and after intense interrogation, he led police to recover seven “chopped up” stolen cars in the backlands along the Soesdyke/Linden Highway. Police identified the locations as St. Cuthbert’s Mission and Long Creek.

The ranks were able to recover the Green Ice taxi driver’s car still “intact” and they could not believe their luck when two more suspects drove themselves into their hands.

As they were exiting one of the locations where they found the stolen cars, the ranks spotted two men in a car travelling to the same location.

The ranks reportedly intercepted them and when questioned, they said that they were heading to St. Cuthbert’s Mission but when ranks searched their vehicle, they found tools that are used to dismantle cars.

They were arrested and taken into custody. As police continued their investigation, they were able to secure a confession from the first suspect they had arrested while the other two kept their lips sealed.

He eventually disclosed to police more locations where stolen cars are hidden. More investigation by police also led them to conduct a cordon search in some houses at another Soesdyke/Linden Highway village, Kuru Kururu, and it was during that exercise that ranks were able to nab two more suspected carjackers.

Inside one of suspect’s home, the investigators found a Guyana Defence Force (GDF) shirt and bulletproof vest.  When questioned about the military clothing, the suspect said that it belonged to his relative.

One of the two arrested was positively identified as the bandit who posed as a passenger to hijack the Green Ice taxi driver’s car.

Apart from the carjacking, detectives were able to pin them to a number of armed robberies, including a recent one that took place on August 22, last at Hillfoot, Soesdyke – they reportedly robbed a woman by the name of Tenesha Fordyce.

 

 

 

 

 

---

---