Magistrate slams GPF over misleading claims on bail granted to acid attacker

Sep 19, 2025 News

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Kaieteur News – Acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty has publicly condemned what she describes as “inaccurate and misleading” comments by the Guyana Police Force (GPF) following her decision to grant bail to Keron Daniels, a suspect accused of dousing two women with acid earlier this month.

Magistrate McGusty, visibly upset, opened Thursday’s court proceedings by addressing the police’s statement released on Wednesday evening, which criticised her for admitting Daniels to bail despite his charge of allegedly throwing acid on the two women.

Magistrate McGusty said she felt compelled to take time out of her court schedule to correct what she termed false claims. She expressed surprise that the Police Force acted on what appeared to be incorrect information and emphasised that many of the assertions made in their statement were never raised in her courtroom.

To prevent future misrepresentations, McGusty announced that henceforth all proceedings in her court will be recorded, placing special emphasis on prosecutions statement. She stressed that prosecutors must ensure that the information they present in the public reflects accurately what transpired in court.

“I previously served as a graduated lawyer and once as a prosecutor and I would never make a public statement about anyone in a senior position like that. I do not do trials by public opinion,” McGusty declared.

The dispute centres around Daniels, who was remanded to prison on Tuesday for allegedly throwing a corrosive substance on 25-year-old Jilicia Leitch and Nirmala Sukraj on September 3, an attack that left Leitch visually impaired.

During the accused’s first court appearance, the prosecution strongly objected to bail, emphasising the severity of Leitch’s injuries noting that she is scheduled for surgery. “Due to the seriousness of the offence, the prosecution cannot let such acts go lightly,” the prosecution told the court.

Daniels was charged with two counts of throwing a corrosive substance with intent to maim, disfigure, disable, or cause grievous bodily harm. He was not required to enter a plea.

During the court proceedings, Daniels’ attorneys, Ronald Bostwick and Ronald Daniels, countered the prosecution’s claims of possession of CCTV footage identifying the accused as the driver of the getaway vehicle. The prosecution also told the court that Daniels confessed to the crime. However, his lawyers argued that they were not privy to the footage the police referenced. Further, the lawyers posited that any footage presented would show that the attacker was masked and thereby unidentifiable.

The lawyers said too that despite the police’s claims, no evidence was produced in court.

Magistrate McGusty had initially remanded the accused to allow time for review. However, since the footage was not available at the next hearing, she granted Keron Daniels $500,000 bail.

The GPF in a press release on Wednesday evening said it was “gravely disappointed” with the bail decision, citing the seriousness of the offence, the accused’s alleged relationship with one of the victims, the victim’s plea for justice from her hospital bed, and the risk of offences being repeated given the accused reported access to the victim. The statement further claimed the police had in their possession a recorded confession and video evidence of the attack.

“Despite the heavy prevalence of violence against women in Guyana, magistrates continue to omit to take this crucial factor into account in exercising their discretion in respect to the granting of bail. The matter is further compounded by the high likelihood of these types of offences being repeated, especially when the alleged offender continues to have ready access to the victim,” the police said.

Meanwhile, Attorney Ronald Daniels on his Facebook page, Wednesday evening in response to the police force’s statement criticised what he called an unjustifiable public attack on McGusty’s integrity. He argued that the police provided information to the prosecution which was not supported by actual courtroom presentation.

“It warrants noting that there has been some public pushback against Magistrate McGusty being at risk of being passed over for confirmation as chief magistrate in the traditional system of appointment by seniority. I can only hope that this is not some deeper ploy to render her unsuitable and mitigate against any sentiments over this appointment,” the attorney said.

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• acid attack, Acting Chief Magistrate, Faith McGusty, Keron Daniels, police force, Ronald Daniels

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